Returning to the command headquarters, Lee Si-ae shared his thoughts with his subordinate commanders.
“I want to continue as we have been. What are your thoughts? I don’t believe it’s time to attempt a charge on the enemy position just yet.”
Most of the subordinate commanders nodded in agreement with Lee Si-ae’s words. The enemy’s defensive strength had not yet been nullified. No, they still maintained a proper defense. No one in their right mind would charge into a well-defended enemy position.
“In particular, we have not yet properly verified the power of the new cannons. A charge is premature.”
The power of the new cannons had been somewhat verified by their destruction of Milan’s walls, but it wasn’t a complete test. From this point on, they needed to verify what kind of power they would exert against a well-constructed trench on flat ground.
As everyone was showing their agreement with Lee Si-ae’s decision, the commander of the Assault Troops, clad in a black uniform, interjected.
“With all due respect, might this not be a good opportunity?”
“A good opportunity? How so?”
When Lee Si-ae showed curiosity, the Assault Troop commander explained his thinking. “According to the reconnaissance reports, enemy reinforcements are drawing near. I believe it would be good to strike them hard once before then to break their morale. Or even to crush them completely.”
“And you’re saying we should use the new cannons to hit that trench line?” a fellow commander pointed out.
The Assault Troop commander immediately replied, “There’s a limit to what artillery bombardment alone can achieve. The surest way is for our own soldiers to capture the enemy position.”
“But charging an enemy trench line means accepting heavy losses. To solve this problem, the best way is to take our time and grind them down with artillery.”
“The problem is that we don’t have a sufficient number of cannons to ‘grind them down,’ isn’t it? Have you forgotten that a trench is different from a wall?”
The commander who had been arguing against the assault wore a troubled expression at the Assault Troop commander’s words. No matter how high and thick a wall was, once it collapsed, it was over. In fact, the higher and thicker it was, the harder it was to repair when it fell.
But a trench was the opposite. Even if it collapsed, it could be repaired with just a little time. No, it was even possible to use the craters created by shells to connect and create new trenches. To completely destroy such a trench line, one had to pound it so densely and for such a long time that repair would be impossible.
And even for the cannon-obsessed Imperial army, this was a very difficult method. No matter how densely they fired, as long as men were adjusting the angle and bearing by hand, errors would continuously occur. And because the heated gun barrels needed to be cooled after using large amounts of gunpowder, there was a limit to how long they could sustain a relentless bombardment.
The conclusion was to soften them up as much as possible, then have the infantry charge.
The Assault Troop commander slapped his black uniform with his hand and continued, “Why are we, the Assault Troops, here in this place? It is precisely to break through that trench! New model or old, it doesn’t matter! As long as the cannons give the enemy trenches a proper caress, we can break right through!”
“You’ll have to face the enemy’s gunfire at point-blank range. Are you not afraid?”
“That’s what the assault vehicles are for, and why the Assault Troops’ uniforms are black.”
The armored plates of the assault vehicles could sufficiently block the enemy’s gunfire. And it was rumored that the reason the Assault Troops wore black uniforms was ‘to hide the flowing blood.’ Of course, the rumor that it was ‘to hide that you’ve pissed your pants’ was more widespread.
At the Assault Troop commander’s words, Lee Si-ae and all the other commanders had the same thought.
‘The tide has come in,’ is that it? He’s rowing with all his might.
The enemy had already conceded the first attack. For the Assault Troops, who had been waiting for just such a chance, this was an opportunity they absolutely could not miss.
“Hooo~.”
Sighing, Lee Si-ae grumbled internally. Damn this Imperial army tradition…
—Ever since the Challenger-class ships-of-the-line appeared in the Imperial Navy, there hasn’t been a single sane person among those first entrusted with a new weapon or a new branch.
It was an unwritten tradition passed down through both the Imperial Army and Navy. From the Challenger-class ships to the Assault Turtle Ships, the commanders and soldiers first entrusted with new weaponry were all recognized troublemakers. And in the army, that tradition started with the Longsword Infantry and was now being carried on by the Assault Troops.
The problem is, what that fellow is saying isn’t wrong…
Lee Si-ae’s head ached. The trench, which had always been the Imperial army’s steadfast shield, had now become a nuisance. He was keenly feeling just how much of a headache a ‘trench dug with serious intent by a sane army’ could be.
But to commit a unit that hasn’t even been tested yet is a bit… no, could this actually be a good opportunity to test them?
As Lee Si-ae, who had fallen into a state of indecision, was deliberating, it suddenly became noisy outside.
“What is going on?”
Lee Si-ae frowned at the sudden commotion, and his adjutant went outside. A moment later, the adjutant returned and reported the situation.
“There is a disturbance within the Florentine army.”
“A disturbance? Why?”
“They are causing a ruckus, insisting that they be the ones to launch the first attack.”
“What?”
***
When the French Count of Lohéac had come as an envoy, the Florentine and Swiss commanders and soldiers had also been nearby. Through them, the Count’s proposal spread throughout the Swiss and Florentine camps. And the soldiers’ reactions to the rumor were split in two. To be more precise, the reactions of the Swiss and Florentine armies diverged.
“Are they insane?”
“That’s what I’m saying.”
The Swiss army’s reaction was similar to that of the Imperial army.
—The enemy’s spirit is still vigorous, so why charge in? We should break their spirit some more before we go in.
But the Florentine army’s reaction was the opposite. Upon hearing the rumor, a few with a talent for public speaking brought over wooden crates, stood on them, and began to raise their voices.
“O, our proud people of Florence! Hear my words! Comrades who have learned and trained together, listen to me!”
As the eyes and ears of his nearby comrades gathered, the speaker put even more force into his voice.
“People, comrades! Just a moment ago, an envoy from the French army came and went!”
The speaker, after detailing the conversation between the Count of Lohéac and Lee Si-ae, raised his voice with an expression of righteous indignation.
“People, comrades! Are you not indignant! Are you not ashamed! This is the land of us Italians! It was we Italians who decided on this war! So why must we stand back and just watch! Must we be mere spectators in the accomplishment of the great work of ‘Italian unification’! People, comrades! Think of Milan! Did those fools of Milan surrender to us? No! They surrendered to the Empire! Where is there such a shameful thing! And you can still call yourselves Italian men, who have inherited the blood of great Rome! Do you think the women of Florence, of Venice, of Rome, of Naples will smile upon you!”
“Uoooooh!”
The Florentine soldiers, their masculine pride provoked, became agitated and rose up. It was because a similar incident had already occurred in Milan.
The thoroughly agitated soldiers went to their officers and made a request that was not quite a request to be allowed to lead the charge. For the officers, who were desperate to achieve merit, it was like ‘a welcome rain after a long drought.’
“I will gladly yield to your threats! Follow me!”
As such incidents repeated a few times, a disturbance had arisen near the command headquarters where Lee Si-ae was staying.
***
“These bastards, those bastards…”
Lee Si-ae, having heard the detailed circumstances, placed a hand on his forehead and shook his head. But, it’s also something that can’t be helped. Politics can’t be separated from war, and that’s especially true for this war…
No matter how much the Imperial and Swiss armies were the core of their military strength, they could not ignore the Florentine army. They needed the Florentine army for their justification. The problem was the chronic ailment of the Florentine army. No matter how much they were trained, once they got excited, they fought without discipline. In the end, there was a very high probability that the entire front line would be thrown into chaos because of them.
Hmm… could the French have been aiming for this? The probability is high. They are more familiar with Italians than we are.
“Hooo~. It would have been better if Lord Shin Sukju or Lord Seong Sam-mun had been the regional commander. Hooo~.”
Sighing repeatedly and grumbling, Lee Si-ae glared at the cheerfully celebrating Assault Troop commander next to him and asked, “Are the Assault Troops ready?”
“Yes! We can sortie at any time!”
“We will begin the operation the morning after tomorrow. Finish all preparations by then! If anything goes wrong after we start, I will use your head as a cannonball!”
“Y-Yes, sir!”
“Go and prepare!”
The Assault Troop commander, who had been so pleased just a moment ago, turned pale, hastily gave a military salute, and disappeared. After sending him off, Lee Si-ae commanded his adjutant.
“Bring the commander of the Florentine army! We are revising the plan!”
“Yes, sir!”
Late that evening, an Imperial officer and an interpreter, holding a white flag high, arrived at the French trench.
“We have a message to deliver to the Count of Lohéac!”
At the shout of the Imperial officer sitting on his horse, the Count of Lohéac came out of the fortress of Pavia and arrived at the trench line. After returning the crisp military salute of the Imperial officer who had identified him, the Count got straight to the point.
“Well, what has the Empire decided?”
“Our allied forces have decided to accept the French army’s proposal. The morning after tomorrow, at ten o’clock in the morning by European time, we will commence the attack.”
“Is that so? Understood.”
As the Count of Lohéac nodded, the Imperial officer continued. “The Regional Commander asked me to convey this. ‘I was deeply impressed by the valor and chivalry of your country’s commanders. In this, with a heart full of respect and admiration, I will give it my all.’ That is all.”
“Well understood.”
“Then, we will be on our way.”
Having finished their business, the Imperial officer and interpreter turned their horses and disappeared. Watching the Imperial envoys disappear into the distance, the Count of Lohéac gave a bitter smile and turned to his fellow generals.
“No matter how grateful they are, there’s no need to give it their all…”
“I agree. In any case, we have a day, so let’s prepare further.”
And so, for the entire next day, the French soldiers reinforced the defenses of their trench line. They dug the bottom of the trenches deeper and strengthened the walls and the roofs of the covered bunkers with sandbags. They also built barricades of sandbags at intervals along the communication trenches. This was to reduce the damage from shrapnel even if a shell landed and exploded in a trench.
Having thus completed their preparations as best they could, the soldiers and junior officers sought out a priest and attended Mass.
“May we survive safely. If we must die, may we die at once, without suffering from injury…”
***
The next morning, the French generals, having finished their breakfast early, climbed the walls of the Pavia fortress and observed the allied Imperial camp. With tense faces, they swallowed dryly again and again as they raised their telescopes. Just like the generals, the soldiers in the trenches also swallowed dryly as they stared ahead.
“What is all that smoke…”
“Hey, what is that?”
The French generals, who had raised their telescopes to observe the Imperial camp, focused on the numerous plumes of smoke rising from just behind the Imperial trench line. As they focused on the pillars of smoke, which numbered at least a hundred, the French generals all expressed their confusion.
“Why are the tractors over there?”
As they were questioning why the equipment their spies called ‘tractors’ were all gathered together, another general shouted, “There! Look one league (approx. 4 km) to the rear!”
“Huh? Hah!”
“Why are those things here!”
In the sky far behind the allied Imperial trench line, at least ten observation balloons were rising. As the observation balloons, which had not been seen in any area other than the port of Livorno, began to appear, a sudden chill ran down the spines of the French generals.
‘I will give it my all.’
The words the envoy had left behind came to mind.