Yet Albert noticed that even after putting away their weapons, the two men still glared at each other. Clearly, his orders had done nothing to bring them into line.
Albert was furious. These two fellows had clashed repeatedly ever since the Northern Frontier Corps was formed. He had no idea where they found so much energy.
From what he understood, the friction between their territories amounted to unclear borders and disputes over farmland. There had not even been any bloodshed, yet they behaved as though they were mortal enemies. Did their lords personally duel to settle every dispute?
Albert's guess was actually correct. Both men were viscounts promoted after the Civil War, and their territories had been reassigned to them afterward. Neither had much wealth, and both had few subjects and small private armies.
With slave prices soaring, developing their new territories had left them both rather poor. Naturally, they begrudged spending money on slaves, and were even less willing to send their precious private soldiers into deadly combat whenever a dispute arose.
So whenever they had a dispute, the two men settled it themselves through horsemanship, hunting, and similar contests. Recently, they had taken to wrestling. The tall, powerfully built Viscount Jeno enjoyed an enormous advantage and had won match after match. Viscount Tese could not swallow his anger or keep his mouth shut, which only sharpened the conflict between them.
Seeing that these two fellows were still behaving so disgracefully, Albert said, "If you keep this up, there is no need for you to take part in this campaign.
"I can send you and your private armies back to your territories immediately, then report the matter to His Grace and let him judge."
At Albert's words, Tesai and Jeno immediately grew alarmed. Neither dared glare at the other