Chapter 31

Our Discord Server: https://discord.gg/PazjBDkTmW

Chapter 31: The Insult to Austria Today

"Your Highness, please wake up, there is an important task today."

Liszt stood outside the tent, softly waking Erika Mia up and patiently waiting for her response.

"What important task could it be to patrol every day? It’s so boring!"

Erika Mia grumbled as she pushed open the tent door, her hair a mess like a chicken’s nest, and she didn’t care about her appearance as she walked out.

The princess was feeling restless during these days on the battlefield, because it was too dull. Apart from capturing a few prisoners on the first day, she hadn’t seen anything else, just patrolling along that broken road.

She was very dissatisfied with her grassroots life, and she already wanted to return to school.

Liszt awkwardly smiled and said, to be honest, this important person was not easy to serve. It’s not because she was a pampered princess, but… her martial spirit was just too strong, always clamoring for battles.

"Your Highness, there really is a big task today. Our allies are going to attack Sennerburg, and our ninth division will also participate. It’s truly a major battle."

"How many people will be in this big battle?"

"Probably… around tens of thousands of people." Liszt was just a reconnaissance platoon leader, so he didn’t know much.

The princess waved her hand, saying, "Alright, I know. I’ll wash my face and brush my teeth first."

Liszt: Brush…brush teeth? This seems to be a special term for grown-ups.

Liszt’s family is not considered really poor. They have been doctors for generations, and as a junior lieutenant, he earns eight pounds a year, which is more than ninety percent of people.

But still can’t afford a toothbrush. In these two years, the price of toothbrushes has increased seven times, more expensive than gold twice the weight. It’s said to be due to the Far East War, where England blocked Ming Empire’s foreign trade, leading to a shortage of supply of Ming Empire’s pig bristles.

Erika Mia was very curious in the first few days she came to the military camp. When she was brushing her teeth, the soldiers were all staring at her. She asked only to find out that toothbrushes are considered luxury items.

"Since you can’t afford toothbrushes and have to brush with cloth… why not use silk instead?"

Soldier: …

Cough, the young Princess Erika Mia is unaware of the hardships of life, this is a common thing.

This is just a small episode. The 9th Division Dragon Cavalry Reconnaissance Company set out at 9 a.m. on December 14 as the vanguard of the entire division heading to Sennerburg.

Two days earlier, the Austrian army, Hanoverian army, and Bavarian army, who were leading the attack, had already arrived at the battlefield and started their offensive. Prussia’s 9th Division was responsible for the rear guard and the second reserve.

The princess seemed anxious, urging everyone to move faster as she wanted to reach the battlefield quickly.

Liszt was responsible for holding back the princess, insisting on marching at a steady pace. It was a nineteen-kilometer journey from Wes Town to Sennerburg, which would take most of the day.

"Nineteen kilometers in a day? We’re cavalry, cavalry, cavalry!"

"Your Highness… According to the military manual, the Dragon Cavalry’s normal daily marching distance is thirty kilometers."

Warhorses were good at short sprints but not at long-distance charges. During long marches, they had to maintain a slower pace, staying below five kilometers per hour to ensure that the horses remained energetic and could engage in battle at full strength if ambushed.

Soldiers would march for half an hour, rest for an hour, drink water, eat grass, and pat their horses’ necks affectionately to keep their spirits up.

In addition, soldiers needed rest time during the march as they remained highly alert, which consumed their energy. In short, cavalry couldn’t march very fast under normal conditions unless ordered to do so by high command for urgent or forced march.

Erika Mia, "Then let’s force march and cover a hundred kilometers in a day!"

Liszt explained, "My new recruits cannot endure forced marches, only elite troops can do that, and forced marches require specially trained long-distance horses."

The princess was shocked. The knowledge she learned in military school was very different. The textbook said cavalry had both short-distance horses and long-distance horses, but in reality, not many troops could have one person with two horses. Also, in the simulated war games, soldiers wouldn’t refuse themselves, and any army could achieve perfect forced marches…

At that moment, Erika Mia realized a huge gap between reality and theory. The princess, who used to be carefree and unaware of hardships, began to change.

Throughout the journey, Princess Erika Mia was pondering whether the things in the textbooks were really practical, if everything in theory could be replicated in reality, and whether the simulated war games’ god would be a tactical master in reality.

The textbook is just a framework and a standard. It doesn’t mean that people should really do everything according to the textbook. There are too many details in war, and if every detail were to be written in the textbook, it would probably take millions of words. Therefore, many things are overlooked, and military school students must apply knowledge practically.

Previously, Erika Mia was puzzled. Although she always won in simulated war games, Moltke disagreed with her joining the army after graduation. Now she seemed to understand a bit.

"Lieutenant Liszt, please give me guidance," said the princess earnestly.

"Guidance is too much to ask for. I’m just here to provide you with some suggestions for reference."

The 9th Division’s Dragon Cavalry Reconnaissance Unit smoothly entered the war zone without any harassment or interception. Everyone wrinkled their noses instinctively at the scent of gunpowder in the air.

Captain Liszt instructed everyone to dismount and rest, staying at the edge of the war zone for a while, before looking for a camping spot in the evening.

Erika Mia didn’t get off her horse, she took out her special telescope and searched the battlefield, but couldn’t see any bodies. The Danish army’s defense line surrounded the city, which had been hit by cannons before and now Danish soldiers were fixing it.

"Every so often, like after a failed attack, both sides would stop fighting and remove the bodies. When you don’t hear gunshots, it means it’s a ceasefire," Liszt said.

Erika Mia asked, "Could someone take advantage of the other side picking up bodies and shoot illegally?"

Liszt recalled, "That’s something Americans like to do, we civilized people in the world don’t stoop to such behavior."

Erika Mia asked again, "But I heard looting by soldiers is very common."

Liszt remained silent for a while, "That’s mostly done by people from England and France."

"What about the Prussians?"

"Prussians never loot, we only requisition things."

Princess Erika Mia gained more understanding about her own army.

In the evening at five fifty, the Austrian infantry launched a major attack, while the Prussian Ninth Division Dragon Cavalry Reconnaissance Company stood on the battlefield sidelines as spectators, with soldiers gathered in small groups.

"I bet half my life."

"I think three quarters are going to die."

The soldiers pointed and laughed at the Austrian army launching the attack, making jokes and mocking.

Captain Liszt ignored the soldiers’ amusement, standing with his arms crossed casually leaning against a dry tree trunk, watching the battle unfold.

Erika Mia didn’t quite understand why the lower-ranking soldiers had such an attitude towards war, making jokes about others’ deaths, watching as others launched attacks and cursing them to die.

"It’s not that we are cursing, but foreseeing the future; the Austrians are about to repeat their mistakes."

Liszt had once fought alongside the Austrian army in the Apennine Peninsula, where he saw the true nature of the Austrian army: incompetent leaders, weak soldiers, every attack without follow-through, easily countered by the enemy’s prepared reserves.

"Your Highness, look. The Austrian army’s charge this time will break through Denmark’s first line of defense. Denmark’s reserves will come up, causing the Austrian army to retreat or be completely annihilated."

Erika Mia quickly noticed something was wrong. She saw around two thousand Austrian soldiers rushing forward, but no one was following them. More Austrian soldiers were still staying in the camp.

This is quite strange. Normally, they should send a wave of scouts, then send a wave of main troops, add in a feint attack and reserve team to advance as a whole. Even if they are not very skilled, they should all charge forward together, not caring about anything and just go for it. Maybe they would have a better chance of winning.

The Austrian army’s current strategy of launching isolated attacks without follow-up will definitely be pushed back by the Danish reserve team.

Liszt said, "Sometimes Austrian generals want to engage in a war of attrition, wearing out the enemy’s energy wave by wave. Sometimes Austrian generals never intend to win, they just want to send some people they dislike to their deaths."

Erika Mia, "How is that possible?"

"Your Majesty, you may not know the situation inside the Austrian army. For a unit of the Austrian army to maintain order, they need at least one translator for every five officers, sometimes seven or even nine. Most of them do not understand German, and most Austrian army officers only speak German."

"I often see the Austrian army camp starting fights for no reason. Bohemians fight against Austrians, Hungarians fight against Serbians, Poles fight against Slovenians, Bohemians fight each other, with Czechs against Slovaks. It’s all very chaotic."

"When I was fighting in the Apennine Peninsula, most of the time I spent with the useless Austrian army. Occasionally, I would encounter some elite Austrian troops. They had decent combat skills, comparable to our second-line troops."

Erika Mia, "Why not organize different ethnic groups separately…"

She imagined the scene and said, "Never mind, it seems like it would cause even more trouble."

The Austrian army arrived at six o’clock, and by around twenty minutes past six, they left in a calm manner. After a fierce battle, they almost occupied the first line of defense in Denmark.

Speaking of which, Denmark was no match at all. The Austrian soldiers ran more than two hundred meters, panting, and engaged in close combat. Even so, Denmark was almost defeated.

It was only when the Danish reserve troops arrived that they managed to stabilize their position.

Watching the battle from afar, Erika Mia could only think, Denmark and Austria are truly evenly matched opponents.

"Alright, lads, the Austrians are nearly all dead. Let’s see if there are any available campsites for us to stay." Liszt waved his hand, and the reconnaissance unit mounted their horses.

This is another small trick of war. If you are too lazy to set up camp, just wait for the Austrians to die off while attacking the fortress, then take over their camp.