"Push through! Put every last ounce of strength into it, you worthless lot!"
"Hold the line as long as you can! Don't hide behind your shields!"
A brutal close-quarters fight erupted between the infantry.
Spear tips punched into chests, blades hacked at collarbones and tore through the gaps between shoulder and neck. The crash of shield against shield thundered in every direction. The sergeants craned their necks out and intermittently hurled torrents of abuse at the soldiers who foolishly broke formation.
But after fifteen minutes passed and thirty crawled by, one side was being driven back relentlessly.
It was the Imperial army.
The Sardinian infantry was pushing them back, little by little.
"Your Highness, we have the advantage!"
"Good!"
The Grand Duke of Florence clenched his fist.
"The enemy has far fewer infantry than we do. Push through! Push right through them!"
The commander-in-chief's excitement spread to the other officers like wildfire.
From the outset, the Sardinian commanders had been reluctant to cross the river and attack. They suspected the Imperial army had deliberately advanced from Pavia to this position for a reason. Were they planning to strike while they were mid-crossing? Or had they built a dam upstream and meant to burst it…….
But Commander-in-Chief Cosimo de Medici thought differently.
"Prepare to cross the river immediately."
"Your Highness!"
The commanders objected, their faces betraying their shock.
"Though the water is shallow, we must not let our guard down. I fear they may seize the opportunity while we are mid-crossing."
"From what I've heard, the Imperial army numbers as many as thirty thousand."
The Grand Duke spoke. His voice was unusually cold.
"No matter how I look at them, there are only a little over ten thousand. Where do you think the rest of their forces are?"
"……."
"There are over ten thousand citizens alone held captive in Pavia. To deal with all of them, they would need to leave behind at least several thousand soldiers."
"……! Your Grace, surely not!"
The Grand Duke nodded.
"That is correct. That harlot has indeed decided to execute the citizens of Pavia. The reason the enemy has advanced this far is to buy time until they finish with the citizens. The more we hesitate and delay our crossing out of fear, the greater the terrible tragedy unfolding in Pavia."
The commanders sighed heavily.
"Goddess preserve us……."
"Damned Imperial scum! Have they no honor at all!"
Some burned with fury over the enemy's cruel atrocities, while others grimaced at the slaughter they imagined must already be unfolding in Pavia. The Grand Duke of Florence looked as though his rage might erupt at any moment, but he barely held it in.
"Understand this. They did not come here to defeat us. Their aim is to buy time from us—time until their rear is secured, so they can retreat more freely……."
The Grand Duke's gaze cut sharply toward the front.
The Imperial mounted archers were taunting them, loosing arrows in a lazy, provocative volley. They clearly wanted nothing more than to rile them up. Every gesture was an obvious attempt to lure them forward.
Were they truly trying to draw them out? But the ruse was far too transparent for that. The Grand Duke of Florence narrowed his eyes.
'An overly obvious stratagem always hides a trick. Let us see for myself.'
The Grand Duke first dispatched his own mounted archers in response.
One thousand strong. He deliberately matched the enemy's numbers roughly equally.
The Grand Duke's calculation was simple. If the enemy truly wanted to lure them out, they would reinforce their mounted archers even further and press the attack. If the enemy committed more troops, he would have no choice but to do the same.
'Conversely, if they are merely feinting an attempt to draw us in……'
The Grand Duke made his judgment.
'The Imperial forces will continue to pester us with just about a thousand cavalry archers. In that case, their goal is to sow seeds of doubt in our minds. It's a ploy to stop us from rashly fording the river...'
The Grand Duke surveyed the battlefield calmly.
The Imperial cavalry archers were chased across the river by the Kingdom's cavalry archers. The moment the Kingdom's forces, thinking they had given chase enough, turned to return, the Imperial forces suddenly reversed course and attacked again. Seeing this, the corner of the Grand Duke's lips curled upward.
"So it was an empty show after all."
By observing the enemy cavalry archers' movements, the Grand Duke could make three judgments simultaneously.
First. The Empire's true objective was not to lure them in.
Their real goal was delay. By pretending to lure them, they wanted to make him fear some hidden trap.
Second. They did not wish for a full-scale battle.
The enemy had likely panicked upon learning that the Kingdom had received information about the destruction of Pavia city. The enemy wanted to retreat secretly, but if the information leaked, it was clear the Kingdom would rush to pursue them.
In other words, third.
This was the moment the enemy least wanted to fight.
"Transmit the order for a general advance to all units!"
Now, the Grand Duke of Florence was without hesitation.
Fording the river to attack was undoubtedly risky. However, the Trebia was shallow. Hadn't the Imperial cavalry archers crossed and recrossed the river line as if it were their own living room?
To the commanders still worried about being attacked mid-ford, the Grand Duke spoke.
"Rest easy. The Empire, though unintentionally, has given us conviction. Conviction that there is no problem advancing our army across that river. The saying 'to be outwitted by one's own scheme' is precisely for this."
The Grand Duke grinned.
The commanders nodded in agreement. Indeed, the enemy cavalry archers were proving for them that the Trebia was a safe river. If infantry entered the water, it would reach at most waist-high.
"Yes, Your Highness! We will relay the order to each regiment immediately."
The sound of a horn echoed long across the plain.
Thirty thousand royal troops, led by the Order of Knights, advanced forward.
Immediately after, the cavalry on both flanks crossed the river first. The enemy responded in kind with their own cavalry. While the cavalry clashed on the far side of the river, the infantry pushed forward powerfully, enduring waters that rose to their waists.
"……."
"……."
The command staff was gripped by tension. This was the most dangerous moment of all.
Sending the Order of Knights and the cavalry ahead was meant to secure a safe crossing. In case the enemy tried to interfere, the knights and cavalry had to buy time at all costs…….
The Imperial army had far more cavalry than expected. At a glance, they outnumbered their own forces by more than double. And these were not lightly armed horsemen — they were heavy cavalry, armored and barded just like knights. How long the allied forces could hold out was anyone's guess…….
'Gods, please do not show mercy to the butcher!'
The Grand Duke prayed. He had mounted his horse with a composed demeanor and was crossing the river alongside his command staff. But inside, he was more anxious than anyone.
'Do not forgive the harlot who sold herself to the demons, and above all, grant me the chance to avenge the citizens who died innocent!'
The infantry crossed the Trebia River swiftly.
The moment the horses' hooves left the water and stepped onto the soft ground, the Grand Duke of Florence sensed victory. There had been no issues whatsoever. The allied cavalry had held their ground brilliantly against enemy cavalry that outnumbered them by more than two to one!
"My lords! Look upon this!"
The Grand Duke cried out, his voice brimming with elation.
His face betrayed no such joy. After all, the Grand Duke maintained an expression and voice brimming with majesty. He knew all too well that even a slight change in the commander-in-chief's countenance could have a tremendous effect on those around him.
"They never imagined we would advance immediately. We completed the crossing without the slightest interference. We have struck at the enemy's blind spot!"
"Your Highness the Grand Duke, your insight is truly remarkable!"
The adjutants responded in unison with booming voices. The Grand Duke nodded.
"Now it is time for all of you to show your mettle. Let us sweep the enemy ranks without squandering our overwhelming infantry strength!"
"Yes, Your Highness. All forces, advance!"
The royal army, having safely crossed the Trebia, marched forward with confidence.
The Grand Duke glanced back with satisfaction. Most of the regiments had crossed the river entirely. But here and there along the bank, shallow swamps had spread out. The soldiers unfortunate enough to stumble into them could do nothing but clog their thighs with thick, sticky mud.
'Good grief. That could have ended badly.'
The Grand Duke of Florence furrowed his brow.
'What a stroke of fortune. If they had launched their attack when the crossing was only half complete, it would have been a disaster.'
If the Imperial army had been sufficiently prepared for a full-scale battle, and had possessed detailed knowledge of the local terrain, they almost certainly would have driven the royal army into those swampy stretches. The royal army would have found itself in a truly dire situation...
"Hm."
The Grand Duke felt a quiet sense of relief, realizing he had slipped past a crisis without even knowing it.
Moreover, the Grand Duke grew ever more firmly convinced of something. The Imperial army was truly not prepared for battle. They were clearly unfamiliar with the geography of the surrounding area. He had not been wrong. Attacking the Imperial army now had been the absolutely correct decision.
And just as he expected.
When infantry clashed with infantry, the outcome began to show in less than an hour.
"Your Highness, our forces hold the advantage!"
The adjutant reported in an excited tone. Ten meters. Since the engagement began, the royal army's lines had pushed the Imperial army's lines back ten meters. In just thirty minutes, the battle front had been driven back a full ten meters. The Imperial army was clearly at a disadvantage.
Even the Grand Duke of Florence couldn't help but clench his fist.
"Excellent! The enemy's infantry is vastly outnumbered compared to ours. Push forward! Press the attack and don't let up!"
But not all the news was good.
As if fortune and misfortune were alternating in turn, another adjutant reported with troubling news.
"Our right-flank cavalry is retreating in defeat!"
"What... What is Baron Vertimo doing?!"
Before the Grand Duke could react, a regimental commander nearby erupted in outrage.
"A man who raked in ransom money without limit turns tail and flees first when battle actually begins! Your Highness, I believe the baron deserves to be punished under military law!"
"Hm. Once the battle is over, I will make sure rewards and punishments are handed out properly."
The Grand Duke nodded.
Inwardly, he did not blame the right-flank cavalry. Given that they faced more than twice the number of enemy troops, they had held up well enough. However, if he let the retreat of their own forces go unpunished too leniently, there was a real chance the rest of the soldiers would start fleeing at the drop of a hat.
"On the other hand, Knight-Commander Luano is living up to his reputation. He has not yielded a single inch."
"Though the right flank has collapsed, the left flank holds firm, so I do not believe there is cause for great concern."
The current state of the battle favored the kingdom's army.
First and foremost, the numerical disparity in the central infantry was extreme. The imperial forces numbered only around fifteen thousand, while the kingdom pressed forward with roughly thirty thousand infantry.
In cavalry combat, the imperial side held the advantage. But it was not enough to turn the tide of battle. The right-flank cavalry had been routed and scattered, but on the left flank, Florence's knight-commander stood his ground against the enemy with unyielding courage.
One could say that, for now, the kingdom's army held a slight edge overall. But as long as they maintained the advantage in the center, the imperial forces would inevitably begin losing strength at a rapid pace from a certain point onward.
A war of attrition, the Grand Duke thought. The battle would drag on for as long as six hours — perhaps as short as two.
The Helvetica mercenaries were of higher quality than the average mercenary, so perhaps they needed to be prepared for up to five hours. But the outcome was already decided. Victory belonged to their side.
'The problem is that we have absolutely no cavalry strength left to pursue the enemy.'
The Grand Duke's expression soured.
'We'll win the battle, but the enemy will preserve at least seventy percent of their forces. It's a decisive victory, but not a crushing one. Finishing this war with a quick, decisive battle is out of the question… No. For now, let me be satisfied that Pavia has been saved. Something the Duke of Milan couldn't do — I achieved it! That should be enough…'
Just as the Grand Duke was about to order reinforcements deployed to the right flank,
"Y-Your Highness! A report from Knight-Commander Luano!"
The Grand Duke of Florence, lost in thought, turned his head. The face of the mage holding the crystal orb was pale and gaunt.
"What is it? Report quickly."
"An enemy assault on our left flank! Deputy Knight-Commander Getane has fallen!"
"......!"
Every face in the command group, the Grand Duke's included, went rigid.
"It's an ambush! Imperial ambush troops hit the knightly order on the flank!"
"What — that's impossible. Where would ambushing troops even come from......"
"The left-flank cavalry is already in retreat. The knightly order has taken thirty... no, forty percent casualties! The Knight-Commander is urgently requesting orders, Your Highness!"
Cosimo de' Medici's face twisted.
============================ Author's Afterword ============================
I'll post a battle map in the series settings section.