Listening to the broken shouts from the two sides in their standoff, Molin had already pieced together most of what had happened.
These Saxon soldiers causing trouble were, like him, soldiers of the 32nd Infantry Regiment, except they came from the 2nd Battalion.
In the earlier offensive, the 2nd Battalion had suffered grievous casualties just like the 1st Battalion. Not only had they endured saturation fire from magic crystal cannons, they had also come under attack from enemy forces superior in number.
Their battalion commander, two company commanders, and a large number of officers had all been killed on the battlefield. Now, the highest-ranking man left in the entire battalion was only a captain and company commander.
With no officers to restrain them, and having just gone through a bloody battle, these soldiers’ nerves were stretched to the breaking point, exactly as Molin had previously analyzed.
On top of that, the 2nd Battalion’s three field kitchen wagons had still failed to serve food. In the end, these starving soldiers had resorted to robbing civilian homes.
The soldiers of the National Army and the International Brigades had evidently been called over by civilians who had escaped.
After arriving, they had caught these Saxon soldiers in the middle of their “zero-cost shopping.”
Since the rank-and-file soldiers on both sides could not fully communicate with each other, and because tempers were still flaring after they had just come off the battlefield, the moment emotions ran high, their gun barrels ended up pointed at each other.
Now, more and more people were gathering to watch, and quite a few Saxon soldiers who had heard the commotion had also assembled.
But seeing the situation, no one knew what to do for the moment.
Seeing the smell of gunpowder between the two sides grow thicker and thicker, with fingers almost resting on triggers, Molin knew he could not wait any longer.
The fighting in Seville was not yet over. If their own side started killing one another here first, there would be no need to fight the next battle at all.
No one would want the faction they belonged to to suffer defeat. Moreover, his current identity was also that of an officer of the Saxon Empire; he was supposed to restrain the soldiers to begin with.
So, with the other officers still not arriving, he had to find a way to calm the situation down. And the way he handled it had to leave no one with any grounds for complaint.
He could neither allow the conflict between the two sides to continue escalating, nor could he fail to give these local civilians an explanation.
Should he simply shoot these Saxon soldiers dead?
That crude and simple method would indeed be the fastest way to calm the situation.
But in the long run, it would only intensify the conflict, making the Saxon soldiers feel they had been bullied by their allies and affecting morale.
He had to approach it from another angle.
At that thought, Molin hesitated no longer. He pushed directly through the surrounding crowd and strode into the middle of the dark muzzles on both sides.
When those soldiers from the 2nd Battalion saw a Saxon officer walking over, their faces first lit up, thinking their savior had arrived.
But none of them expected that Molin would say nothing at all. The moment he came up, he directly shoved aside the rifle of the leading soldier, his gaze so terrifying it was as if he wanted to devour someone alive.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?!”
As he spoke, Molin kicked the soldier from the side into the back of the knee, causing him to stagger uncontrollably. The momentum he had shown just now, as if he were ready for a firefight at any cost, vanished in an instant.
The soldiers of the National Army froze. The soldiers of the International Brigades froze. The Saxon soldiers watching from around them froze as well.
Even Major Thomas and Lieutenant Colonel Ludwig, who had heard the commotion and hurried over with their men, happened to see this scene and froze along with the rest.
The soldier who had been kicked straightened up again, his face full of disbelief. He had not expected that Molin did not seem to have come to “protect his own.”
“What are you looking at?!”
Molin glared at the others, then moved swiftly, kicking them one after another in the backs of their knees. They all went weak at once.
“And you lot! Put your guns down!”
These few kicks thoroughly stunned the troublemaking soldiers. Not one of them made any resistance, and the evil fire in their hearts was beaten out of them as well.
They subconsciously lowered the rifles in their hands. Seeing this, the soldiers of the National Army and the International Brigades also lowered their muzzles.
Only then did Molin let out a slight breath of relief. At least the worst-case scenario would not happen for the time being.
He thought over some of the “political work skills” he had learned from his seniors before transmigrating, his mind turning rapidly as he modified them into rhetoric with the distinct characteristics of the Saxon Empire of this other world.
Maintaining a stern expression, Molin stood before those soldiers and began to speak.
“Let me ask you. You traveled thousands of miles from the Empire to the Kingdom of Aragon to fight. What was it for?”
The soldiers lowered their heads and did not dare speak.
“Was it to rob a few blocks of cheese? A few strips of salted meat? Was it to point your guns at civilians who regard us as liberators, at allies who were shedding blood alongside us just moments ago?”
Molin’s voice suddenly rose. He pointed at the food hanging from their bodies, then pointed at the National Army and International Brigades soldiers opposite them, whose expressions had become complicated.
“When your parents, wives, and children sent you onto the train, did they not hope you would become heroes and win glory for the Empire? Did they not hope you would return home safely with medals on your chests?!”
“But what are you doing now?! You are smearing filth on your uniforms! You are smearing filth on the Empire’s black eagle banner! Can what you’ve done live up to the hopes of your families far away? Can it live up to those comrades who died on the battlefield?!”
Every word struck at the heart.
Molin did not speak any grand principles. These words were not only meant for the few soldiers who had made mistakes, but also for all the Saxon soldiers around them.
He knew very well that among the Saxon soldiers, these few were by no means the only ones harboring negative emotions. They had merely been the first to erupt. So he could also take this opportunity to put pressure on the others.
Those troublemaking soldiers had only acted on impulse because of fear and hunger, committing such an act.
Now, after Molin spoke to them like this, the defenses in their hearts completely collapsed.
One of the youngest Saxon soldiers’ eyes reddened, and with a “wah,” he burst into tears.
“Sir... we were wrong. We were just too hungry...”
“We’ll never dare do it again...”
In a fluster, they untied the cheese and salted meat strung to their bodies with rope, placed them neatly at the entrance of that civilian home, then lowered their heads like a group of children who had done something wrong.
Seeing this, most of the anger in Molin’s heart also dissipated.
He turned around to face the soldiers of the International Brigades and the National Army, then solemnly gave them a military salute.
“Fellow allies, on behalf of these young soldiers’ actions, I apologize to you and to the affected residents of Seville.”
He used fluent Aragonese, so everyone around him could understand his words.
“The Saxon army will deal with them seriously according to the relevant military discipline. I also ask you to believe that this is merely an isolated case. I guarantee that from now on, we will keep our troops under control and absolutely will not allow anything similar to happen again.”
“I believe these soldiers did not do this deliberately. Just moments ago, these young men were also charging enemy positions with bayonets fixed. Their unit suffered devastating losses, and their officers were almost completely wiped out. That is what led to their momentary extreme actions after the battle...”
“I guarantee to all of you once again that from now on, our side will definitely keep our troops under control.”
The anger on the faces of the surrounding National Army and International Brigades soldiers gradually faded as well.
They were all simple, honest people. Seeing that Molin, a Saxon officer, had not shielded these soldiers but had instead shown such a sincere attitude, and considering that the Saxon soldiers had indeed suffered heavy casualties, their anger had long since subsided.
At this moment, Major Thomas and Lieutenant Colonel Ludwig also walked over at just the “right time.”
Major Thomas nodded at Molin, then loudly announced to everyone:
“Just as Second Lieutenant Molin said, these soldiers will all be dealt with according to military discipline! But I also hope everyone will give them a chance to atone for their crimes through merit!”
“At the same time, as Second Lieutenant Molin emphasized just now, any act that violates the military discipline of the Saxon Army and damages our relationship with our allies will receive the harshest punishment!”
Molin, at the proper moment, translated his words into Aragonese and repeated them.
Immediately afterward, Ludwig also added in fluent Aragonese:
“The Saxon Empire, the Aragon National Army, and the International Brigades are steadfast allies. Our common enemies are the Kingdom Army and their Britannian masters. Anyone who attempts to destroy this friendship is our enemy.”
The statements of the two senior officers thoroughly put an end to this disturbance.
Men from the 2nd Battalion soon came over and took away those dejected soldiers. These soldiers would not be shot, but punishment was certainly unavoidable.
The owner of this civilian home was also invited out. After accepting some Saxon pfennigs as compensation, he also expressed forgiveness.
A crisis that might have triggered internal strife was thus defused by Molin with just a few words.
After the crowd dispersed, Major Thomas patted Molin on the shoulder, his eyes filled with approval.
As for Ludwig, the look he gave Molin became even more complicated, as though he were seeing Molin anew.
In his gaze, aside from scrutiny and curiosity, there seemed to be an additional trace of genuine recognition.
Even the officers of the International Brigades and the National Army looked at Molin differently now.
They all understood that to be able to quickly find the key to the problem amid such a chaotic situation and resolve it in the most effective manner was absolutely not something an ordinary young officer could do.
However, before everyone could fully recover from this disturbance, a messenger came galloping over on horseback. After flipping down from the saddle, he ran briskly up to Thomas and Ludwig.
“Urgent military report! Major General Paul’s orders! All officers at battalion level and above are to proceed immediately to the command post in the city for a meeting! Lieutenant Colonel Ludwig, you are to attend as well.”