Chapter 909: Exchanging Pieces
Seven kilometers north of Trento.
Alvinczy craned his neck, peering in every direction. The roar of gunfire and the thunder of cannons echoed from all sides, and he could even faintly hear the distant shouts of French soldiers.
This indicated that the enemy was already perilously close to him.
And this location happened to be his headquarters!
Beside him, a staff officer continued to read the latest consolidated battle reports. "Three thousand French infantry have been spotted to the west, currently assailing General Weber's flank.
"General Krudener has been pinned down by enemy cavalry and is temporarily unable to close in on headquarters.
"Colonel Haenger is launching an assault on the enemy artillery, but he seems to be meeting stiff resistance..."
Alvinczy waved his hand irritably, cutting him off.
"So, exactly how many enemy troops are surrounding us?"
"Curse it!" Alvinczy slammed his hand onto the map. "Napoleon's main force is in Molveno, and Bajzáth is blocking Augereau's sneak attack to the east. The French shouldn't have any mobile forces left."
Before his words had even finished echoing, a cavalry captain entered the tent and tipped his hat in salute.
"Marshal, our scouts have spotted General Victor's banners to the southeast."
"Victor?" Alvinczy was momentarily stunned. "Isn't he supposed to be in Trento?"
The realization hit him instantly. "They actually abandoned Trento... Good God, these Frenchmen are madmen!"
He was leading a massive army to besiege Trento, yet he never expected the French defenders would leave the city to launch a proactive strike against him.
However, because he had dispatched the bulk of his forces to encircle Napoleon, his central army currently consisted of only twenty thousand men. Furthermore, at least half of them were stationed to the west to prevent Napoleon from breaking through the defensive lines at Topaganella Mountain.
His headquarters sat before Victor like a freshly peeled egg, completely exposed.
Alvinczy gritted his teeth and pointed toward the messenger.
"Order General Weber to cease reinforcing the right wing and immediately march south to seize Trento!"
Weber's corps was only nine kilometers from Trento; they could arrive within half a day. Since the French dared to leave Trento, he would simply take it for himself.
Trento was a vital strategic stronghold. Occupying it would significantly impact the safety and security of the Mantua Fortress.
As the sound of nearby cannon fire intensified, Alvinczy began arranging his own escape route.
"Order the Diel Corps to delay Victor's forces. Krudener is to move as quickly as possible to assist him.
"Davidovich will move with me toward Topaganella Mountain."
The Diel Corps was the main strength of his central army, numbering over fifteen thousand men. Combined with Krudener's three thousand Croatian troops, holding Victor back for a day or two should be manageable.
Meanwhile, Davidovich had managed to regroup some six to seven thousand survivors over the past two days, which would be sufficient to screen the headquarters during its westward retreat.
As long as Victor failed to crush his central army while Weber seized Trento, the French would immediately find themselves in a state of total disadvantage.
...
East of Molveno.
Although the Austrian Zweig and Strom corps had been delayed slightly by the unusual activity near headquarters, they still launched their assault on Napoleon before three in the afternoon.
Over thirty-three thousand Austrian soldiers surged toward the French lines like a tidal wave. Meeting only sporadic resistance, they successfully routed the French forces with ease.
Zweig rode his horse across the enemy positions they had just captured. Looking at the jubilant soldiers around him, he felt a nagging sense that something was wrong.
He turned to Strom and remarked, "I expected Napoleon to give us more trouble. I mean, he has fought brilliant campaigns in Sardinia and Lombardy before."
The latter waved his riding crop dismissively.
"The French have launched too many meaningless attacks over the last two days, exhausting their soldiers' stamina. It is only natural they would be unable to resist when faced with our superior numbers in a counter-offensive."
Zweig nodded, finding the explanation plausible.
"In that case, our army's right wing is stabilized once more. The next step is to continue the pursuit of Napoleon's troops."
"Exactly," Strom agreed. "He must have retreated to Molveno.
"There is still some time before dark. I suggest we assemble the soldiers who still have the energy and launch an immediate attack on the town."
"My thoughts exactly." Zweig gestured to his side. "Messenger!"
Half an hour before dusk, thirteen thousand Austrian soldiers reached the town of Molveno and launched a fierce assault without hesitation.
Gunfire from a French counter-attack soon erupted from the town, but the fire seemed sparse and lacked the overwhelming pressure felt in previous battles.
This was not surprising, however, as there were fewer than four thousand soldiers of the Lyon Legion inside the town, and most of them were either physically exhausted or wounded.
This was the true reason Zweig and Strom had been able to "defeat" Napoleon so easily earlier.
The French troops in Molveno were lucky. After the Austrians launched a single, relatively moderate wave of attacks, the light faded and the sky grew dark.
Meanwhile, under the silver glow of the moon, Napoleon was leading twelve thousand soldiers on a bypass around the northern side of Topaganella Mountain.
According to his plan, they would arrive at the position of Alvinczy's central army before ten o'clock tomorrow morning.
Topaganella Mountain spanned only five kilometers. While it served as an excellent anchor for a defensive line, it wasn't a particularly long distance to march around if one chose to ignore the Austrian defenses entirely.
In fact, much earlier, Napoleon's cavalry and horse artillery had already departed. By now, they had reached a position ten kilometers north of Trento.
If Napoleon failed to arrive with the infantry in time, they would launch an independent attack on Alvinczy.
While that would certainly result in heavy casualties, Napoleon was certain that Alvinczy would not have many troops with him at that point, so the cavalry could at least pin him down firmly.
Then, his main infantry force would arrive to finish the job.
However, Napoleon had clearly underestimated the cross-country marching capabilities of the third-year students from the Paris Police Academy.
The following morning, as Napoleon heard the heavy, rapid breathing of his mount, he turned to look at the soldiers of the Royal Infantry Division who had maintained a brisk pace beside him the entire time. It all felt somewhat surreal.
But a smile quickly spread across his face, as bright and confident as any he had worn in his previous victories.
Soon, a hussar galloped toward him and tipped his hat in salute.
"General, Alvinczy's headquarters is three kilometers to the southwest."
Napoleon nodded, pulled on his reins to turn his horse toward the marching column, and stood up in his stirrups. He shouted at the top of his lungs:
"Soldiers of France! After today's battle is over, I will personally recount your heroic deeds to His Royal Highness, the Crown Prince!
"But for now, everyone must endure for three more hours. Then, we shall rest and reorganize at Alvinczy's headquarters!
"Form up!
"Follow me and crush those Austrian scoundrels!"
The soldiers showed no sign of fatigue despite having marched for over a dozen consecutive hours. Instead, they let out a roar like a crashing tsunami.
"In the name of the Crown Prince!"
"Crush the enemy!"
"Victory!"
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