The citizens, who had believed there would be no further military action once the civil war ended, grew deeply unsettled at the sight of some 500 duchy soldiers moving in perfect order, apparently thinking war had broken out all over again.
The duchy army was still stationed on the outskirts of Radensdorf, so military action was possible at any moment. We received protests from the administrative bureaucrats, but since I had secured the grand duke's permission in advance, we pushed ahead at full speed.
Michael, the Director General of the Military Department, gladly mobilized troops at my request. As it happened, his father-in-law had been riding him hard, and this made the perfect excuse to slip away.
The reason we pressed on even as the citizens fell into chaos was to strike first, before the bastards hiding in the slum could slip out. Our enemies never would have expected us to act this aggressively.
