Outside Graz, the Independent Army, having been reduced in size, was arrayed on the training ground, performing drills.
This was a mandatory review that the Emperor conducted every time he visited Graz, accompanied by an inspection of Graz's arsenal.
The army's training level, and the maintenance and inventory of its armaments, were crucial factors determining the Imperial Army's combat effectiveness.
Besides these two points, the soldiers' treatment, including military pay and logistical supplies, were also issues Laszlo was most concerned about.
After deciding to implement a second military reform, the Imperial Army's organization underwent some changes, and for the first time, a unified structure was used across different legions.
In the three existing legions, each legion consisted of four infantry squadrons, one musket squadron, and one artillery squadron.
Due to the relatively ample inventory after the demobilization, each legion maintained a full complement of equipment, armed with matchlock guns, cannons, and Hussite War Wagons.
However, the Hussite War Wagon, which could only adopt defensive formations and use defensive counterattack tactics in battle, greatly limited the Imperial Army's performance.
Therefore, Laszlo, feigning inspiration from the Swabian War and combining his many years of war experience, showed Marshal Adolf the combat method of the Spanish Tercio as he envisioned it.
This formation was more practical than the Swiss formation, allowing a large infantry formation to achieve flexible maneuverability on the battlefield, truly integrating offense and defense.
The Swiss formation was too cumbersome, and they were so poor that they lacked sufficient long-range firepower, so each time the Swiss formation had to charge the enemy while enduring dense long-range fire, suffering huge casualties in the process, and then relying on unparalleled morale to crush the enemy in the subsequent close combat.
In last year's war, the Swiss suffered hundreds of casualties more than once during their charges, which Laszlo considered almost comparable to a Banzai charge.
The poor have their ways of fighting, but Laszlo was not poor now, so he chose a more expensive but also more powerful method—guns and cannons combined with pikes.
Laszlo still remembered Marshal Adolf's expression of awe at the time; the old marshal subsequently made some structural optimizations to the formation to adapt it to the Imperial Army, and then decided to promote it throughout the army.
At this moment, Gunter was commanding his Independent Army to demonstrate their new formation, which they had been drilling for over two months, to Laszlo.
The golden glow of dawn swept over the stone arrow towers on the edge of the training ground, and Laszlo and a group of Imperial Guard officers overlooked the scene on the training ground from this high tower.
A golden banner embroidered with a double-headed eagle crest fluttered in the wind, and the soldiers participating in the drill had already arrayed themselves beneath the banner.
Four infantry squadrons spread out in a two-front, two-rear formation, forming two clearly defined core tercios.
The reflections of iron armor shimmered slightly with the soldiers' movements, as if a silent, surging metal forest stood on the training ground.
Each core tercio consisted of one thousand soldiers, with battle-hardened armored pikemen in the first row; they were crucial for maintaining the line and formed the backbone of the entire tercio.
Several-meter-long ash wood pike shafts pointed forward, their leaf-shaped iron tips gleaming coldly in the sunlight, with pike tips spaced less than half a meter apart, forming an impenetrable barrier of spikes.
The row behind them was composed of Imperial greatswordsmen and a small number of newly enlisted pikemen, who were responsible for surging out of the formation upon contact with the enemy to break their lines.
The soldiers behind them were also arranged in a pattern of one row of pikemen and one row of greatswordsmen; if the front lines were depleted, they would step up to engage the enemy in a new round of bloody combat.
At the very rear of the formation were the auxiliary soldiers, poorly equipped and with inferior combat power.
They could not play much of a role on the battlefield; by the time it was their turn to engage, the formation could already be declared destroyed.
Dozens of cannons were neatly arranged behind the infantry, and behind the artillerymen was a rectangular Hussite War Wagon.
Musketeers were scattered in multiple small square formations on both sides of the core tercio, and some pikemen were arranged in the front ranks of these small formations to provide protection for the musketeers when subjected to cavalry charges.
Musketeers were allowed to have larger spacing, about twice that of other infantry, to avoid accidents from being too close when handling gunpowder.
When about to engage the enemy, they needed to quickly gather in front of the core tercio, complete a round of firing, and then quickly retreat to seek the protection of the infantry.
This was the most primitive, standard "basic tercio," and it was the focus of the Independent Army's drills during this period.
In reality, on the battlefield, the arrangement of the army formation needed to be determined according to the terrain and specific battlefield conditions, so Laszlo and Marshal Adolf also devised many tercio formations suitable for different terrains.
And how to use these formations to deal with the enemy greatly tested the basic skills of the battlefield commander.
Of course, before drilling a variety of formations, the most important thing was always to train the soldiers' ability to coordinate and cooperate.
As the commander's flag waved, bright bugle calls echoed over the training ground, and the drill entered the advance phase.
The pikemen took the first steady steps, each step landing on the heavy beat of the military drum, followed by the synchronized march of the entire formation—the clang of colliding armor, the muffled thud of footsteps on the ground, and the low shouts of the soldiers mingled together, making the entire formation like a slowly rolling boulder, the ground even trembling slightly with this uniform force.
Laszlo took in this scene and couldn't help but nod slightly; such a level of uniformity was probably the peak of this era.
He even began to faintly anticipate the arrival of the next war, to test the strength of the Imperial Army after undergoing another transformation.
However, considering that the country had only recently stabilized, Laszlo suppressed the inappropriate restless emotions in his heart.
After demobilization, the money saved each year could be used to develop Austria, and until his war treasury plan was completed, Laszlo would try to avoid new wars.
Laszlo pulled his thoughts back; at this moment, Gunter was commanding the army to change formation.
The width and depth of the tercio, as well as the arrangement of its various parts, underwent many changes; although there was some confusion in the middle, overall it could be described as orderly.
Finally, the Independent Army retreated into the Hussite War Wagon, demonstrating the scenario of reorganizing the army during a retreat.
"If our army can display such tactical proficiency on the battlefield, I'm afraid there will be no enemy on this continent that can stop us."
Laszlo gazed at the high-spirited Independent Army below, and couldn't help but sigh.
Ester, the Imperial Guard commander standing beside him, held a different opinion: "Your Majesty, no matter what, abandoning cavalry and relying solely on infantry as the core of the army will probably inevitably lead to a disadvantageous situation on the battlefield..."
As a pure Transylvania cavalry general, Ester still found it difficult to accept this pure infantry tercio combat method for a time.
In contrast, Gunter, a German mercenary general who was already skilled in using infantry, showed considerable adaptability.
"I have not abandoned cavalry; cavalry can still play a decisive role on the battlefield, but the importance of infantry has now begun to increase.
The era of knights is almost over; perhaps people are still unconcerned about this now, but the dawn of a new era has quietly arrived."
Laszlo's gaze was profound; for him and Austria's financial resources to compete with the French in cavalry was undoubtedly an act of folly. The more cost-effective infantry tercio was an inevitable choice in this era of frequent warfare.
He would become the pioneer of a new era, completely erasing the dazzling halo that enveloped knights.
The military parade ended, and as soon as Laszlo returned to the Graz palace with his attendants, he immediately received a secret letter.
Laszlo opened the envelope in front of several of his advisors and some officials from Styria.
Those present quickly noticed that the Emperor's expression became extremely serious, and he then called Lord Heinrich von Neippeg, the governor, into a separate room.
In the room, Heinrich was still puzzled by the Emperor's sudden change in attitude, constantly guessing the content of the secret letter.
"Governor, what do you know about Wilhelm Gressel?"
Laszlo's sudden question interrupted the governor's thoughts.
"Gressel is a family from Marburg, and Wilhelm is the younger brother of Oswald, the Marburg city defender, and should now be assisting his brother in managing Marburg."
"The secret letter was sent by him, and its content is to expose his brothers Oswald and Nicholas Grippenger for conspiring against me. Is this news credible?"
Laszlo asked calmly, but Heinrich was greatly startled by Laszlo's words.
If someone rebelled in Styria, his life as governor would certainly not be easy.
"Your Majesty, this is consistent with the intelligence I have collected recently.
To my knowledge, Hans, the son of the former governor Letold von Stubenberg, has been in close contact with some nobles recently, and there may be some conspiracy.
And Nicholas Grippenger, whom you just mentioned, is Hans's servant.
Furthermore, Nicholas and Oswald are half-brothers, and their connection has always been very close."
Heinrich wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and slowly revealed all the information he had.
"Stubenberg?" Laszlo frowned deeply. "I'm afraid it's because of my punishment of Letold that they harbored resentment and thus embarked on the wrong path of conspiracy and rebellion."
"Your Majesty, this matter is, after all, only Wilhelm's unilateral statement, and the truth is still unclear. I believe we should act cautiously now," Heinrich suggested.
"Hmm," Laszlo nodded slightly, "This matter involves Marburg and the Stubenberg family; one is an important market in Styria, and the other is the most powerful noble family in Styria, so it cannot be handled lightly.
Most importantly, those conspirators hidden in the dark cannot be alerted before they are rooted out."
"Then I should now strengthen surveillance of Count Stubenberg and Oswald, gather more evidence, and try to ascertain the identities of all those conspiring to rebel."
Heinrich looked full of vigor, and Laszlo was not surprised by this.
For more than twenty years prior, the position of governor had always been held by the Stubenberg family.
Now, the Neippeg family, represented by Heinrich, wanted to replace the Stubenberg's position, and of course, they would not miss this good opportunity to kick them when they were down and completely overthrow their rivals.
Even though he saw through his little scheme, Laszlo did not expose it. After all, there was a high possibility that the Stubenberg family was seeking their own demise, and Laszlo didn't mind supporting a more obedient and less powerful local noble to rise to power.
His struggle with the local magnates was not actually very intense.
Firstly, in Austria proper and Tyrol, there were almost no powerful local noble forces; most nobles were dependent on the imperial family, and the vast majority of them worked for Laszlo.
The largest noble family in Tyrol was still the Montfort family, the former Count of Bregenz and now Lord of Tettnang, after selling most of their territory.
That Countess who sold Bregenz passed away young due to childbirth after several years of living a carefree life, and her inheritance was all inherited by her cousin John.
The latter is now one of the most powerful state councilors in Tyrol and a strong contender for the next governor of Tyrol.
In the other states, either the local forces were not strong, or for reasons of military security, Laszlo lived in harmony with the local forces.
Moravia and Styria were more special.
Laszlo had just incorporated the former into Austria and had not yet begun to reorganize it, while the latter was the stronghold of Austrian noble power.
Their restless nature was comparable to that of the feudal nobles under the medieval feudal system—or rather, that was their essence.
It was precisely because of this that they hated Laszlo's attempts at modernization and centralization reforms.
Having seen who the obstacles to reform were, what Laszlo had to do was very simple.
"Yes, you can strengthen surveillance, but you must not alert them."
What Laszlo was most worried about now was that he would not be able to catch all the rats hidden in his home in one go; if that happened, others would continue to jump out and annoy him.
Dealing with just one Stubenberg, while it could serve as a deterrent, would not satisfy Laszlo.
"Hmm... I've thought of it. You continue to monitor this matter. Everything must be done cautiously; do not act rashly. I will find a way to ascertain their true intentions."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Although Heinrich was somewhat confused, he still obeyed Laszlo's command.
After he left, Laszlo immediately wrote a secret letter in his own hand, summoned a confidant, and had him deliver the letter to Marburg and serve as a liaison.
This letter was sent to the "righteous" informant Wilhelm, and in addition to the letter, Laszlo also rewarded him with a large sum of money.
As a reward for his loyalty, Laszlo promised to grant him a castle fief and elevate his noble title after everything settled, and also to bestow upon him a more important official position.
Wilhelm, on the other hand, needed to disguise himself and find a way to infiltrate that mysterious resistance organization through his brother Oswald's connections to ascertain their true intentions.
Laszlo had considered directly arresting Hans and torturing him to force a confession, but this method carried considerable risk and was not suitable for nobles; once those conspirators sensed danger, they might disregard everything and directly raise an army in rebellion.
The six thousand troops in Graz were precisely to prevent such a situation from occurring. Laszlo, holding two legions, was not worried about anyone resisting by force.
He was worried that if he couldn't extract information about those rebels from people like Hans, and those people then went into hiding, the danger would persist.
Therefore, Laszlo decided to ascertain the truth and gather sufficient evidence through this secret method, and then conduct a public trial to uproot all forces that could endanger Austria's security.
If Wilhelm's side was slow to make progress, Laszlo would directly act against those who had already been exposed, such as Hans and Oswald.
At that time, the scene would undoubtedly become very bloody.