Chapter 131: A Great Victory at Tunaya

Countless Austrian soldiers were thrown by the shock waves from exploding shells, their feet trapped in stirrups, causing panicked horses to drag Austrian cavalrymen along as they galloped wildly, ultimately resulting in the cavalrymen's deaths.

Additionally, many Austrian cavalrymen were directly killed by shrapnel or bullets from exploding shells.

Nevertheless, in order to successfully break through, the Austrian army continued to charge fearlessly. They all knew that if they couldn't break through the encirclement of the French, they would be doomed.

"Archduke Charles, let my cavalry distract the enemy's main force, while you lead the troops to retreat north!" Colonel Aldo spoke on the battlefield.

"What? Aldo, are you suggesting I flee?" Archduke Charles instantly became furious upon hearing Colonel Aldo's words. As an Austrian prince and nobleman, he couldn't entertain the thought of fleeing from the battlefield. Such an act would be against his upbringing and honor.

"No, Your Highness. This is not desertion. It's only a temporary retreat. Currently, we're in a dangerous situation with the French attacking from both sides. This is to protect the main force of our army," Aldo said anxiously.

"No, Aldo, I refuse to retreat. I will hold my ground here," Archduke Charles said firmly.

"Archduke Charles, you can't! You're the soul of the Austrian army. If anything happens to you, it would be a huge loss for the Austrian army. Please, Your Highness, retreat first! I beg you," Aldo knelt on the ground, pleading with Archduke Charles.

At this moment, his face was filled with generosity. The more critical the situation, the more it could reflect a person's noble character. He was prepared to sacrifice himself. He was insignificant to the Austrian army, but Archduke Charles was different.

As a renowned commander of the Austrian army and a prince of Austria, his death or capture by the French would be a blow to the entire Holy Roman Empire.

"Aldo... you..." Watching Aldo kneeling on the ground, Archduke Charles's expression was complex. He hadn't expected Aldo to be willing to divert the main force of the French for his sake.

Thinking of this, Archduke Charles couldn't help but resent himself even more for causing this situation due to his incompetence.

"Then... then I'll leave everything to you," Archduke Charles finally said after a long silence. With that, Archduke Charles, accompanied by a small number of Austrian soldiers, fled north in a desperate manner.

"Everyone, follow me! Stop the French attack!" After seeing Karl leave, Aldo immediately commanded the soldiers around him.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

As the Austrian army began to charge, the French musketeers also opened fire. Soldiers fired all their bullets from their muskets without aiming, as the Austrian assault formation was so dense that they were sure to hit some Austrian soldiers.

"Brothers, charge! Kill all these Austrians!"

Following the loud commands of their officers, brave French cavalry drew their sabers and charged towards the Austrian cavalry. The sharp saber blades glittered with a cold light under the sun.

"Charge!" With the command of the French cavalry commander, all the French cavalry surged forward, killing towards the Austrian army.

"Splat!"

Under the high-speed drive of their horses, the sharp saber easily cut an adult man in half. With the high-speed charge of their horses, the cavalry only needed a small force to successfully kill the opponent or cut off their head.

The French cavalry was facing Karl's guard regiment, which had about a thousand men. While Muira's central cavalry brigade had suffered severe casualties after repeated battles, the French cavalry still had nearly five thousand soldiers and horses.

Therefore, despite the fierce fighting spirit of these Austrians, the French army had an absolute numerical advantage. On the battlefield, it was often two or three French cavalry against one Austrian soldier. In such a situation where two fists are no match for four hands, one Austrian soldier after another was immediately eliminated.

"Ah!" A scream rang out. One Austrian soldier's face was cut in half, screaming and falling to the ground.

However, before the French cavalryman who killed the Austrian soldier could be happy, several bayonets stabbed out beside him, piercing his body. However, the several Austrian soldiers who successfully ambushed were almost simultaneously pierced by two sabers.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

At the same time, Dessa's soldiers also arrived on the battlefield. He commanded his infantry to raise their guns and shoot at the Austrian soldiers on the battlefield. Although the muskets were not accurate enough for sniping, the dense formation of the Austrian army meant that the French muskets could cause massive casualties.

"The despicable bastards! These French are too despicable," muttered Austrian commander Aldor through gritted teeth. In his view, brave cavalrymen should be engaging in close combat with their sabers, not relying on the assistance of infantry.

Facing the siege from one French cavalry division and nine Dessa infantry divisions, Aldor's guard regiment quickly suffered heavy losses.

"Damn it, we must hold on. By now, Archduke Karl should have broken through the encirclement, right? I wonder if Muehrfeldt has received the Archduke's message. No, I must hold on a little longer," Aldor thought, watching his troops being rapidly annihilated on the battlefield, his heart aching.

After more than an hour of fierce fighting, Aldor's guard regiment was completely wiped out, and the battlefield was littered with Austrian bodies.

"Surrender! You have nowhere to go now. If you surrender now, I can spare your life," Muira said, tightly gripping the saber in his hand and pointing it at Aldor.

He had seen Aldor's rank; he was a colonel in the Austrian army, which was quite a high rank. If he could capture him, it would be a splendid addition to his victory.

"Hmph! You think you can capture a great Austrian commander like me, you French bastard? Let me tell you, you're dreaming in broad daylight," Aldor retorted disdainfully to Muira's offer of surrender.

Then, he picked up his sword, placed it against his own neck, made a light cut, and blood flowed out instantly. Aldor then fell heavily to the ground, lifeless.

"Now that's a man of honor," Muira said, looking at Aldor lying on the ground, unable to help but feel a sense of respect. This was how a soldier should be; only such a person deserved to be a soldier.

"Give this Austrian colonel a decent burial, and then clean up the battlefield," Muira ordered.

Muira then led his soldiers towards the city of Tortona.

Tortona, the most important fortress in Italy, was now scarred with the marks of war. Walking through its streets, one could see damaged bunkers, trenches filled in by artillery fire, and scattered bodies. Tortona had become a hell on earth.

"Muira, Dessa, you two have finally arrived. We've been waiting for you," Napoleon greeted them along with several French military leaders at the city gates.

"Thank goodness you're safe, Napoleon. That's a relief," exclaimed Dessa excitedly upon seeing Napoleon waiting for them. He hurried forward, approaching Napoleon with concern.

"Of course, of course, I'm fine. It's just a measly 200,000 Austrian troops; they pose no threat to me. Even if Karl had ten more days, he still couldn't take Tortona," Napoleon declared boldly. At this moment, he no longer felt the anxiety of being heavily surrounded. Instead, the victory at Tortona had him feeling somewhat buoyant.