Steel Empire
Robber

The next day Berengar proclaimed Austrian territory as he passed controversial laws that were in effect throughout the region. This law was known as the Brigand Act, and by the time the southern rulers realized that it was nothing more than a ruse, it was too late.

"I, Count Berengar von Kufstein, Regent of the Duchy of Austria hereby declare the signing of the Brigand Act to be law. Under this law, the soldiers of the Austrian Army, which today consists of various units of the Tyrol, will be stationed throughout the Austrian District to ensure that most robbers, bandits, robbers, and other, and the other bastards who have appeared in our territory since the destruction brought by the Bavarian occupation will be brought to justice!"

With that said, the Austrian Army, which was only the Tyrolean Army that was renamed under Berengar district, was immediately deployed to the areas that suffered the most from raiders, that became the district most likely to rebel against Berengar's transition to power.

Willehelm Krieger stared at the notice in his hand as he rode a horse towards the region known as the Custenland. The region, also known as the Austrian Coast, was crucial to Berengar's plans to develop the Great Navy.

Willehelm was a young man of ordinary descent; his father was a gunman just like his father before him. He was one of the first to join the Berengar Army; back in the days when it was considered a militia. He was one of the few members of the Officer class who came from ordinary birth. Through his actions in the various campaigns of Bernegar, he has risen to the rank of Captain and is currently leading the effort to eliminate a group of Brigand who have occupied a village.

The unit he led was an equestrian infantry, and they had been at the forefront of the battle against Brigand in southern Austria. Due to their fast mobility and incredible firepower, the cavalry infantry were one of the most deployed units to combat the rascals who had caused trouble in the south. As for the rest of their infantry, cavalry, and artillery units occupied towns, cities, and ports in southern Austria. Their total number is in the thousands. 

Willehelm and his company of soldiers approached the village and noticed that a rough barrier had been erected around it. The robbers who had taken over the city had used it as their hiding place. Seeing that their distance was still safe, the troops descended before continuing on foot. 

Currently, a thick fog filled the air, making it extremely difficult to see several meters in front of one's location. Thus they are not noticed by the robbers who are currently enjoying the dawn by drinking, partying, and persecuting the women and village girls they occupy. Some of the people stationed at the poorly constructed watchtower had no idea that the army company was advancing to their positions. 

The infantrymen climbed up the hill overlooking the settlement, where a soldier took out his binoculars and scanned the area; he soon realized that there were only half a dozen men standing guard. As for the others, it was impossible to know their numbers. However, this bastard was not well equipped and could be easily dealt with. So the soldiers started loading their rifles before approaching the palisade on the north side. 

After approaching the area, the eavesdroppers incorporated with the company began placing TNT along with three positions, where they quickly fell back to a safe distance before detonating the explosives. A thunderous echo exploded, and the north side of the barrier turned into shrapnel, therefore Willehelm gave the order to shoot at the dizzy and confused bastard who was acting as a guard.

Immediately dozens of rifles were fired at the six targets, and mini-ball projectiles quickly penetrated the robbers' flesh. Huge holes appeared on their chests and stomachs as blood spurted into the air and onto the ground below.

Those who had fired their rifles quickly began to recharge, and due to the use of the quick-charging tubes that had been provided, it was a much faster process than before. Thus, the army company was fully charged in a matter of seconds.

Hearing the explosion and the sound of firearms being fired, the robbers hiding inside the settlement quickly began to flee from the building they were in; they knew their lives were in danger because the Austrian Army was here to deal with them, and they had no intention of defending against it.

However, as they entered into the open, Willehelm gave another order to his soldiers.

"choose your target and shoot as you please!"

So while perched on the hill above, the army companies fired their rifles at the village below, targeting anyone who held a weapon in their hands. Soon enough, those who were cowardly enough to escape the city were all shot dead, and Willehelm blew his whistle beckoning the people to put up bayonets and storm into the settlement. 

While Austrian soldiers stormed into the village with bayonets attached, they soon came into contact with another wave of robbers, and opened fire on them, before beating them with their bayonets.

After a short and bloody scene, most of the bandits were killed and the leader of the robbers revealed himself. He took a young woman hostage and pointed a knife to her throat as she began to press her charges against the Austrian soldiers who had surrounded her.

"Not one step closer! I warn you; I will cut throat***** this!"

Seeing the robber so close to killing the hostages, Willehelm quickly gave orders to his troops.

"Stop!"

"Rely willingly! Don't spill any more blood in vain!"

However, the man began to laugh and punish Willehelm for his bold words.

"Rush up? Fuck those! You'll just execute me! I want a horse and enough food and water for three days! if you do not submit it to me, I will kill this***** here, and now I swear to God! "

Seeing the situation turn bad, Willehelm immediately retreated and ordered his troops to fulfill the request.

"Do what he says! Hurry along!"

However, as he did so, he stared intently at the soldier rushing past and grabbed him before whispering in the man's ear.

"Bring my horse..."

The man quickly nodded, and thus ran towards the direction where the horses were mounted. Moments later the soldier returned with Willehelm's horse and handed him over to the Captain. Captain Willehelm immediately took control, and behind the horse cover, grabbed into the holster located in the saddle of the horse and grabbed the flintlock gun, where he quietly tilted the lever. 

After doing so, he took the horse to the leader of the robbers and handed the reins to the man. Where the man started laughing and mocking Willehelm because of his obedient attitude.

"Good! Goody! Be a good little soldier..."

As the man jumped on the horse, he quickly dragged the woman into his lap, though he kicked and yelled, and grinned at Captian Willehelm while doing so.

"You've helped me a lot; I'll make sure to release the girl after I've had fun with her."

Just before the man could break the reins and go to dawn. The sound of gunfire echoed, and the rifle ball pierced through the back of the robber leader's skull and came out from the other side. His body immediately fell from the horse and onto the ground, where Captain Willehelm was seen with a smoky pistol several meters away. Luckily for him, his weapon was snatched, and such a shot was quite easy to do without harming the women. 

After that, he gave another order.

"Clean the village, and make sure the other robbers hiding in the area are killed on the spot; there is no mercy for such criminals!"

With that said, an army company is assigned and investigates the village, where they find some robbers hiding among the farmers. Upon finding these men, they were arrested, dragged to the wall, and executed. This is only one village, but this view is displayed throughout the southern part of Austria. 

This action was merely a guise Berengar used to conceal his true intentions. Only a fraction of the troops sent south were used to hunt down the robbers. In reality, Berengar needed less than a thousand people to accomplish these tasks.

Instead, however, he had sent thousands of soldiers to the southern District, where he began to place his troops within the borders of his enemies. Most of the army occupied the towns, cities, and ports where Berengar intended to use this power to quickly quell any possible rebellion.

When the Prince of South Austria realized that Conrad was dead, they would already be fully occupied by a large army—preventing their rebellion against Berengar's rule. Of course, Berengar had other plans for those who opposed his authority, and as the Brigand Act was underway, Berengar began plotting against those who would resist his rise to power.