“Words, no matter how nice, don't mean much shit for us, unless you tack on a nice bag of coins to it, *then* you’re speaking our language.” - Gregor “Savage Beast” Humpernickle, famed mercenary, known for hating it when people call him by his last name.

“Well done up north, Captain Edelstein. My daughter also asked me to pass on her compliments for your fine work,” said Duke Sandoval Utghwes of Dvergarder approximately three days after the attempted kidnapping incident. Reinhardt and the rest of the northern expedition had just returned that very morning, and while most of the mercenaries immediately returned to their encampment, the leaders of the units went into the city to meet with the Duke.

The young Duchess and her retinue had entered the city the previous evening, as they departed ahead of the pack on horseback, and prepared a welcome for them. Indeed, as the tired but victorious group of soldiers and mercenaries entered the city, they found a warm welcome from the citizens, both old and young, male and female, who cheered for their safe return.

Some of the older children present on the scene scattered handfuls of flower petals from baskets as they passed, while others crowded the returning army and proffered tankards of ale as well as various delicacies like freshly roasted meats and the liked to show their appreciation. They showed no discrimination between the house troops and the mercenaries, and even Reinhardt happily accepted some and happily chowed down on the offered food and drink.

The ordinary soldiers - who were all locals of the duchy - had at times hugged some of the cheering citizens, the parents, lovers, or children they had left behind when they went to war. For some, the reunion was more somber in tone, as in some cases friends of the family had to inform their relatives that their son or daughter, brother or sister, mother or father, would not be returning at all.

At the end of their march, which ended before the Ducal Mansion, the Duke himself had awaited them alongside the rest of his family. Much to the surprise of the soldiers - the vast majority of which were conscripted commoners, even if the Duchy’s commoners were perhaps better trained and experienced due to their being on the border - the whole family gave a respectful bow from the waist to the gathered soldiers.

Then the Duke himself had given a short speech about how he bowed out of respect to the courage and sacrifices of his people, who had gone to war on his name, and how their efforts were not in vain, nor would it go unrewarded. Many cheers - and not a few tears - erupted amongst the soldiers when the Duke proclaimed that every household from which a member had contributed to the campaigns would be exempted from taxes for the next two years, and those that had lost a family member because of it, freed from their obligations for the next decade.

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With good cheers and yelled praises for the Duke, the mustered soldiers finally broke off, as from there they would either return to their homes - for those who lived in the city itself - or else take a short break, enjoy the city’s hospitality, and then embark on the return journey to their homes. They were not worried about the compensation the Duke had proclaimed, as every house that had sent someone to fight in the war had been recorded during the conscription, and the Duke had always been true to his words.

As for the rest of the gathered military, namely the Duke’s personal army of professional soldiers, they were also dismissed with a free week of paid leave, while their leaders - along with the mercenary leaders present - followed the Duke’s family into the Ducal mansion. There the Duke met with them in his office as he personally gave his commendation and rewards to them one after another.

The officers from the regular army received their commendations first, followed by the mercenaries after they had left the room. For the mercenaries, the Duke had not reneged on his word, and along with his words of commendation, he also slipped them a storage artifact with their payment within, as well as bonuses and condolences money where appropriate.

Out of the four mercenary companies, the Janissaries were likely the most fortunate when it came to the casualties they took. They had barely one in ten of their members still nursing an injury or worse, partly due to their skirmishing approach to battle. The Duke gave them their pay, condolences money for the few who were unfortunate and died, as well as a bonus for the victory, but not much more since even their injured were mostly healed thanks to the healers employed by the Ducal house.

The Spears of Ostvin were far less fortunate, as they had lost over a third of their members, including their Captain. When their acting captain expressed his intent to leave the Duke’s service to refill their ranks, the Duke took it well, and also paid them what they deserved. They got significantly more in condolences money, but money didn’t help repopulate a group that easily, all considered.

Despite the state they were in when Reinhardt met them at Fort Kazka, the Silver Eagles actually had lighter casualties all considered. Only about one in five of their members fell or were badly injured, as they were veterans and knew when to advance and retreat properly. Unlike the Spears, they expressed their desire to continue working for the Duke for the foreseeable future.

As for the Free Lances themselves, Reinhardt had tallied the butcher’s bill together with Lars after the battles. With the badly injured taken care of by the Duchy’s healers, Their casualty count was similarly light, with roughly a hundred twenty or so who either perished or had expressed their desire to seek a more peaceful occupation, which was not an uncommon thing especially with newer mercenaries who faced their first battle and felt that they were lacking.

“I would also like to express my condolences for your losses, and my praise for the nobles your Company had helped us capture during the battles,” said the Duke as he handed Reinhardt the a storage ring. Even as he shook the Duke’s hand, he peered inside the ring and noticed the sizable bonus the Duke had added to their agreed-upon pay, mostly for the bounties they were responsible for. A smile formed on his lips as he chatted amicably with the Duke for a short while, at least until the man’s parting words caught him by surprise.

“Oh, and Guard Captain Grange also offered his compliments. The band of kidnappers your people handed over had been wanted in our Kingdom for the past decade or so,” the Duke had said.