Chapter 75: The Feint
Chapter 75: The Feint
"May the Heavenly Father forgive their sins in this life, wash away their shame, and grant them glorious ascension to Heaven." Lothar made the sign of the cross before himself.
He wasn’t a ruthless man. Towards armed enemies, he could be merciless, because mercy towards the enemy was irresponsibility towards his own life and those of his subordinates.
Ruthlessness was mercy upon yourself.
Towards bandits who slaughtered the weak and robbed civilians, he could also sentence them to death without batting an eye. But these men, in all fairness, hadn’t actually committed such unforgivable crimes.
When Lothar was a corporate slave in his previous life, he couldn’t guarantee he didn’t slack off during work hours either.
But strict punishments and harsh laws had, since ancient times, been key to controlling an army.
If Lothar had no men, no soldiers, and no unconditional trust from Baldwin IV, and he dared to act this way, he might have ended up utterly isolated, deserted by all. Because these executed knights and squires all had their comrades-in-arms and brothers within the Knightly Order. They would hate him for this, perhaps even seek opportunities to assassinate him, then unify their story and blame it on retaliation from the Hashashins.
But he had his own personal troops. Unless everyone in the Royal Knights united to openly rebel, they couldn’t do anything to Lothar.
After strict punishment, gentle persuasion must follow.
Knights, after all, were a quasi-noble class, equivalent to an army’s officer stratum; they couldn’t be suppressed one-sidedly but required a combination of kindness and severity.