“I will ask you for the last time. Who did it?” 

Jenkins knew very well what would happen to him now that Thyra had caught him. The fear was so strong that he didn’t even feel that there was a wet patch between his legs. Jenkin shivered in her grip as he mumbled, “I don’t know.” 

Thyra sighed as she looked towards the group of more than a hundred people, asking, “Those who had followed him, come out.”

Expectedly, no one moved. Thyra repeated her words, but her tone had changed, “I will count to three. If you don’t want to die, push them out to the front. One.”

*Bang*

Thyra had no idea if the person who the bolt had struck was there or not, and she did not care.

“Two.”

*Bang*

After the second one hit, they all started to scramble. They didn’t care if they were their brother or friend. About thirty people were put forward.

“On your knees.” Thyra wasn’t sure if that was all. She didn’t care. One word was enough for them to get on their knees. Thyra threw Jenkins away before walking towards them.

Thyra wasn’t sure what she wanted to do. She wanted to kill them all but was sure she wouldn’t be happy giving them a swift death. She wanted to kill them, but she wanted them to be a warning for everyone.

Last time, she severed the heads of a few of them, but that wasn’t enough. She knew she had to find a way to ensure that the thing that happened today remained on their minds as long as they served her.

Thyra momentarily thought before turning to the other knights, “Tie them to the post with mana-suppressing cuffs and whip them hundreds of times. Those who would survive are free to go.”

Everyone knew that whipping them a hundred times was the same as killing them. However, none of them dared to voice their opinion.

Alas! Thyra wasn’t over yet. Thyra looked at them and said, “As a soldier of this domain, you need to act when something bad happens to this place. You need to stop it even if your friend is committing the crimes.”

Their breath was stuck to their throats as they waited for her to end the sentence. If it were anyone else, they would have thought they were bluffing, but the psychotic young woman would really do what she said.

“Whoever commits a crime and whoever just stands there without stopping it is equally guilty.” Thyra paused momentarily before adding, “However, I am not heartless enough to give severe punishment to those who have made the first mistakes.”

“For your punishment, form a group of three and whip one of the sinners a hundred times without rest. And if I find someone who isn’t whipping to repent their sins…” Thyra didn’t end her sentence and looked at them.

They wanted to sigh in relief but couldn’t. If seeing their friend beaten to death wasn’t enough, they could even imagine what it was like to beat your friend to death. However, they couldn’t just ignore her order.

Thyra walked towards Bella, who was glaring at her with a spot of dust on her forehead. Thyra looked at the woman behind Bella, ordering, “Treat the Viscount. You don’t want the Viscount to die on the first day, do you?”

“What are you doing, save my child? Quick, quick, call the mage, and find an advanced healing potion. Quick, he is going to die.” Bella started screaming and cursing at the servant and knight standing behind them.

She felt something grab hold of her hand. She wanted to curse, only to find it was Thyra. “They can take care of him. Those are just skin injuries. As long as he endured the pain, he would be fine. And they knew what would happen if he died. You follow me.”

If she could, Bella really would have beaten the sh*t out of Thyra, but she knew there was nothing she could do about it, at least not now.

“Can I just…”

“Follow me. Or do you want to end all of his sufferings…”

“No, no, no. I will follow you.”

Thyra then turned to Guntur, ordering, “You follow me too.” He nodded.

The three of them soon returned to the mansion. Outside the mansion, Selda was waiting for them along with a few of the soldiers. 

“Why are you here?”

“We brought a mage here. Madam asked us to bring one, so…”

“Madam?”

“Madam Nisa, leader’s wife.”

Thyra took a deep breath and didn’t talk about it. “How is Hure?”

“We don’t know. Madame had ordered us not to enter. Only a couple of women soldiers are allowed to enter.”

“Forget it.” Thyra entered the building with Bella and Guntur behind her. However, she added, “Go to the field of the main building and confirm that all thirty of them are whipped hundred times.”

Selda had no idea what Thyra was talking about, but as long as Thyra ordered it, he would follow without question. He quickly left with the others.

As soon as Thyra put her foot inside the building, she felt an unbearable chill on her body. And she heard it.

“Ahhhhhhhhhhhh…” It was a blood-curdling scream she had never heard before. Whether it was the people she had killed or tortured, none screamed like it. Thyra wondered why; to her, the screams sounded sad.

As Thyra was going to her room, she noticed someone standing outside Hure’s room, crying. However, as soon as she saw Thyra, she quickly wiped out her tears and bowed to Thyra. 

“My lady,” She said.

“Emma, she will be alright.” Thyra sighed, adding, “She has to be alright.”

However, Thyra’s words made her cry more. She wrapped her hand around Thyra’s waist and started crying. Thyra didn’t know why she was so patient with her, but she just stood there, rubbing her back.

It took a moment before Emma realised what she had done. She quickly stepped back and apologised. Thyra smiled and ruffled her hair before walking towards her room.

“Let me know as soon as they come out.” Thyra received a nod from Emma as she entered the room.

After Guntur closed the door, Thyra glared at Bella, saying, “You just hope nothing happens to Hure. And if something does happen to her, I will wipe the hoax family from the face of the earth even if I have to be prosecuted by the royal court for killing a noble.”

Thyra slumped onto the chair as all her energy left her body. However, another scream from the other room opened up her eyes.

Thyra took out a contract and threw it at Guntur, saying, “Sign it.”

Guntur, take a look at it. It was a similar version of the one she gave to his soldiers. He will not conspire, attack, or lie to Thyra while continue protecting the domain. He was free to do anything he wanted as long as he didn’t spread any news to anyone else.

“It’s not a slave contract.”

“Be happy that I still respect Justin.” Thyra looked at him, adding, “As long as you sign the contract, you can do anything you want. But I will be happy if you protect the people of the domain rather than the monarch.”

Guntur looked at her, not understanding what was going through her mind. Still, he cut her finger and signed the contract.

“Leave.”

“What will happen to the Viscountess?”

Thyra did not want to say anything, but she looked at her and said, "I have to make sure she does not try to play the same trick again. And if she still dares…”

I have read that the roman army used such punishment technique. When writing about it I felt that it make sense. The horror and shock of killing the person who had trained with you for long time, protected you in the field will be too much for a normal people to handle.