Upon receiving the royal decree, Karl and Duke immediately assembled their troops, assigned tasks, and then dispatched them by regiment to various regions, further delegating tasks down the chain of command, beginning the eradication of banditry throughout the Papal States.
During this first operation, everyone was highly motivated, showcasing their best skills. Some dispatched personnel to gather intelligence, conducting overt and covert investigations to locate and destroy bandit lairs in one fell swoop. Others controlled key mountain passes and roads, employing methods like sector-by-sector searches to meticulously encircle and suppress the bandits. Still others found alternative approaches, disguising themselves to follow merchant caravans or directly impersonating them, luring the bandits into attacking proactively and catching them off guard.
Seeing that the Papal States were serious this time, bandits who received early news fled, preserving their strength to continue stirring up trouble elsewhere.
Bandits with less timely information were not so lucky; facing a new army far superior in numbers, equipment, organization, and training, all their schemes were futile. They were either utterly powerless to resist or simply surrendered decisively.
In fact, very few bandits realized the disparity and still dared to fight to the death. Therefore, the casualties inflicted on the Papal States army were also very limited.
While the anti-bandit campaign was in full swing, Romeo, in order to implement his plan, also took the opportunity to demonstrate his capabilities. Despite his old age and frail health, he personally visited various Italian city-states, lobbying them to join the joint anti-bandit operation.
Suppressing bandits was already in the interest of all states, and with Romeo, a man of such advanced age, personally enduring the journey, appealing to both reason and emotion, Tuscany, Lucca, Genoa, Savoy, and the Spanish-held Milan and Spanish-held Naples all readily agreed.
Only Venice remained unyielding, refusing to join no matter what was said. Although Venice had just changed hands this year, the new Governor of Venice, Leonardo Donato, was equally clear about the relationship between Venice and the Papal States and had no intention of improving ties between the two states.
Donato worried that the Pope, taking advantage of his recent inauguration and unstable position, would use the anti-bandit campaign as an excuse to send a large army into Venice and eliminate him along the way.
However, this was expected. Persuading all other Italian regions was already a tremendous success. Romeo was already at the pinnacle of his official career and could not be further promoted.
Previously, Enzo's investigation had uncovered a considerable amount of money, which was turned over. Augustus conveniently allocated a portion of it to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as funds, and also bestowed rewards upon those who had rendered meritorious service in this diplomatic endeavor.
Although this was a mutually beneficial cooperation that did not target anyone, perceptive individuals could see that the Apennine Peninsula was about to undergo a major change.
In this short year, the balance of power between the Papal States and the various Italian states had undergone earth-shattering changes. As for the exact extent of these changes, even Augustus himself was unsure until the true war arrived.
Austrian officers and soldiers, fighting on the front lines of the Austro-Ottoman War and eagerly awaiting papal reinforcements, learned that the Papal States army had finally made a move. Their morale surged, and they consecutively captured several fortresses occupied by the Ottoman Empire.
Faol, as per Augustus's request, established a police department, which quickly replaced the original security force and became the new public order system.
David took over from Enzo, continuing to follow clues from illicit economic dealings to search for those who had escaped detection. However, he only symbolically caught a few big fish before letting the matter rest.
Enzo, following Augustus's secret order, secretly dispatched more personnel to infiltrate various cities in Venice, deploying and mobilizing the spy network, lurking in every corner of Venice, awaiting the critical moment to act.
Lorenzo was in charge of military service, and several batches of conscripts had already completed their service. Should the army experience reductions due to various circumstances, relatively high-quality recruits could immediately be brought in to fill the gaps.
However, this 'relatively' was only in comparison to ordinary citizens who had received no training at all. The gap between the conscripts serving under Lorenzo and the regular army trained by Karl and Duke was still a chasm.
In the blink of an eye, the day of Francesco's execution arrived. On the banks of the Tiber River, a tall execution platform was temporarily erected, and in the center of the platform stood a brand new gallows, specially prepared for Francesco.
Because the time of Francesco's execution had been publicly announced long ago, many people arrived early at the execution platform to secure a good spot to watch the spectacle. By the time of the execution, the platform was surrounded by people three layers deep, both inside and out.
Thinking that the once unapproachable Minister of Internal Affairs would die in such a manner before their eyes, the onlookers could not suppress their anticipation, and occasional commotions broke out in the crowd. The police department also dispatched sufficient personnel to maintain order at the scene.
At the appointed time, Francesco was escorted onto the execution platform by two guards, one on each side, and then slowly led to the gallows.
The onlookers did their utmost to insult and curse Francesco, as if to pour all the grievances and unpleasantness they had ever suffered onto him.
Francesco silently endured it all, not saying a word. At this moment, his heart was exceptionally calm. There were still many things he hadn't figured out, but none of that mattered anymore.
The executioner slowly loosened the hemp rope on Francesco's hands and began to wrap the rope from the gallows around Francesco's neck.
One loop... two loops...
Everything proceeded methodically; the executioner's hands showed no rustiness despite the long time since his last execution.
After six loops were wrapped, at a single command, Francesco's body left the ground, gradually reaching the highest point of the gallows. Francesco's cervical spine finally broke, unable to bear the weight of his body, and Francesco consequently perished.
As soon as Francesco died, a burst of applause and cheers erupted from the crowd.
From a church not far away, Augustus witnessed it all. For some reason, even with the obstacle removed, Augustus's heart was not at ease.
Among the onlookers was a nobleman who had just arrived in Rome from Madrid that day. Passing by, he saw so many people gathered and joined in to find out what was happening. This person was Augustus's uncle, the former Spanish Empire Army General Don Giovanni de Medici.
Giovanni found the actions of the onlookers baffling and couldn't help but ask a bystander next to him, "Who is this person? What crime did he commit? Why was he sentenced to such a severe punishment, and why are people applauding?"
The person glanced at him and said, "You must be a foreigner who just arrived in Rome. He, you see, was originally our Papal States' Minister of Internal Affairs. You'd think a person living to that extent would have nothing to be dissatisfied with, right? But he, well, he conspired with bandits to assassinate His Holiness the Pope halfway! Fortunately, His Holiness the Pope is blessed with great fortune and did not fall victim to his scheme."
"So, he was sentenced to hanging for attempting to assassinate His Holiness the Pope? Everyone is so indignant, His Holiness the Pope must be very popular, right?" Giovanni confirmed.
"This current Pope is indeed good, he feels much better than the previous ones," the person thought for a moment, gave an evaluation, and then casually added, "But that being said, in reality, people just enjoy seeing others suffer misfortune."