When the Saintess Arrives, No King Exist-Chapter 772 - 727: Inspecting Bear Chomping Castle

"Loyalty! Honor!"

On either side of the red carpet, army boots with copper-plated spurs slammed together with a roar.

Crossed long halberds drew silver arcs in the air, and the sound of iron armor clattered as it came to a halt, startling the drowsy crows perched on the battlements.

Moliat dismounted with a rare smile on her face, her cloak of black silk lined with scarlet fluttering.

She wore a fitted navy-blue knee-length jacket with her white long hair casually tied up, revealing a pristine neck.

As time went by, Moliat increasingly did not mind showing her face.

Looking at rows of dozens of soldiers donned in neat armor uniforms, Moliat displayed a satisfied smile.

However, when she saw the City Guard in a rabbit fur coat hastening obsequiously towards her, the genuine smile on her face swiftly transformed into a more insincere one.

The City Guard inexplicably felt a chill sweep over him, tightening his heart inexplicably.

"City Guard Makato has worked hard during this period," Moliat extended a clenched iron fist from her left hand.

Makato bent forward immediately and kissed the knuckle of the middle finger: "In your presence, how could I dare to say it's exhausting? How about entering the castle first for a bite for lunch?"

"No need." Moliat waved with her whip-wielding right hand, her eyes behind the iron mask flickering on and off, "I'll first go to the barracks to see the other soldiers."

"Of course, of course."

Under the guidance of the City Guard, Moliat first toured around the barracks, even sitting on the filthy communal beds to converse with the group of soldiers.

Then, she issued an order for the straw beds to be replaced with heated brick beds, insisting they must be in place by her next inspection.

Afterward, His Highness the Despot went to various posts, gifting fine ham, sausages, and blankets, moving the lower-ranking soldiers to tears.

During her visit to the posts, Moliat also took the opportunity to traverse the surrounding terrain, even wandering around the outskirts of Feldheim Town.

This was the tactic learned from Horn, these small yet beneficial acts should not solely be used by Horn.

This tactic was not only used by Moliat, but now even King Charles VIII of Falan would occasionally visit the military camp and merchants' households.

The lunch that was supposed to be had was heated over and over, and by the time Moliat returned, it was already time for dinner.

The ravenous City Guard and others were so hungry their eyes turned green, while Moliat on the other hand was still full of vigor.

After dining with various senior military officers at Bear Chomping Castle, the Female Grand Duke stayed for several rounds of card games.

Don't be fooled by Moliat being a woman; when she slams the table and pounds the cards, she's as fierce as any man.

When she lost her temper, she pointed at the noses of the officers opposite, cursing them, yet the more she acted this way, the more popular she became among the officers.

Those officers being cursed at by her took pride in it, bragging to others: "I was called a filthy dog by His Highness the Despot!"

The card game went on until the moon was high in the sky; only then did Moliat feign drowsiness, yawning before departing.

But as soon as she returned to the large heated brick bed prepared by the City Guard, Lannes quietly came back.

"How did it go?" Moliat looked at Lannes who pushed the door open to enter, "I've kept them occupied the entire day and most of the night; you know the consequences if you yield nothing."

Lannes stood at attention: "Reporting to Your Highness, I found the City Guard Makato to have no major issues, just mere negligence.

He is drunk every day, only handling training matters, while the rest are left to the Deputy Minister and Quartermaster.

There are rumors in the army that the Quartermaster and Deputy Minister are selling off provisions, as their meals are worsening, yet I found no evidence.

Those accompanying Military Chaplains and Military Judges from the Juanist Faction and Holy Path are honest, yet often go to Feldheim for drinks during work hours.

The literacy classes and prayer sessions led by Military Chaplains mostly see soldiers sleeping, and any disciplinary issues are ignored by the Military Judges and clerks."

"And what about the reports of those few battles of merit?"

"They are true; the officers promoted from the Black Hat Army and your Walking Knights are quite fair and earnest regarding battle merits and warfare.

These are the hope for those frontier soldiers; without fairness, there really will be rebellions."

Moliat nodded, this aligned with the results gleaned from her card table conversations and eavesdropping during the meals.

"And what about the soldiers, how are they?"

"Generally well, training and fighting are attended to seriously, but the daily work… " Lannes trailed off and did not continue.

Yet Moliat knew what he meant in the latter half, essentially that inspections led to improvements; previously it was just cutting corners.

The Female Grand Duke had her own channels, sharing part of the resources from the Holy Union Cheka because Jia Li during the Gulag period held the position of "Cheka Chief."

According to intelligence gathered by the Cheka, soldiers in their daily work were ineffective, letting anyone pass as long as no weapons were carried.

Junior officers used confiscation of contraband items as an excuse to loot merchants, declaring items contraband at their discretion.

Senior officers freely beat or enslave soldiers, even sending garrison soldiers to open shops in town.

Yet, if one were to claim incompetence, the training outcomes were decent, repelling multiple advances by Shattered Stone Plain troops, and capturing numerous infiltrating mercenaries and spies.

At one moment competent, at another incompetent; truly perplexing.

Moliat rubbed her iron fist, closed her eyes slightly, and pondered internally.

She could understand; thorough inspections would definitely lead to inefficiency and sluggish commerce, incurring the wrath of superiors.

Moreover, if it became too meticulous, there'd be no end once begun, no system without room for escapes.

If inspections were careless, spies would infiltrate, incurring equally wrath from those above.

So why not simply cut corners and spare oneself the trouble?

Bear Chomping Castle stranded on the border of the Thousand River Valley, even by fast horse report, takes a journey of three to five days.

If not for the Military Chaplains and Military Judges, military regulations for the frontier soldiers are truly but empty talk.

To be precise, such occurrences in this era are rather commonplace.

In Langsande County, relying on economic profits and political games, relatively efficient and responsible border functions could be executed.

Yet to believe that the entire Thousand River Valley frontier could operate to such standards is mere delusion.

Ultimately, from uprising to nation-building, Thousand River Valley has only been around for three years; expecting it to leap from a medieval inefficient, corrupt makeshift operation to a reliable government is nearly impossible.

What Horn and Moliat have been doing has always been promoting bureaucrats to replace the rule of feudal nobility.

Only reducing legal exploitation through the system; relying solely on the moral level of these bureaucrats is even less realistic than expecting the Holy Father to descend to earth.

As far as Horn himself sees it, not only the Advisory Council and Autocratic Duke Cabinet, even the Holy Alliance feels somewhat makeshift.

The efficiency of the ry Court Barracks government partly rests on its system, and partly on the capability of the founding elders of the Gulag.

Thinking of this, Moliat could not help but clench her fist tightly.