Chapter 242: Oh No, I've Become a Rebel!
On a distant hill, Joseph's speech continued:
"The ongoing riots have caused immense destruction in the southern provinces. Yet our brave Marquis Saint-Véran, with nearly twenty thousand troops at his command, has consistently refused to intervene and suppress the riots. He's been watching idly as respectable and educated families are looted by the rioters."
He paused, allowing the reporters to take notes, before raising his voice again:
"Some even suspect that Marquis Saint-Véran might be the mastermind behind these riots. But, of course, I find that hard to believe. Fortunately, His Majesty the King has never forgotten his people! He has commanded me to mobilize every available force in Paris, including the police, and travel the long distance to Montpellier to restore peace…"
As he spoke, the sound of gunfire echoed from afar, catching Joseph's attention.
It's starting!
Two cavalrymen rode up quickly, shouting from a distance:
"Your Highness, the Montcalm Regiment has suddenly launched an attack on us. It seems they're planning to rebel!"
The dozens of journalists and nobles nearby were shocked, frozen in place, unsure of what to do.
Joseph, putting on an exaggerated show, widened his eyes in disbelief and exclaimed:
"How is that possible?!"
One of the "plants" in the crowd spoke up in a trembling voice:
"Could it be that Marquis Saint-Véran has been allowing the riots to continue, just waiting for Your Highness to come to suppress them, only to launch a surprise attack?"
Joseph immediately followed up:
"It seems he truly has started a rebellion…"
At this point, Aymar handed Joseph a telescope. Joseph took it and looked down the hillside, frowning:
"They're attacking General Berthier!"
Soldiers quickly brought out several boxes of telescopes, thoughtfully distributing them among the reporters.
As the reporters peered through their lenses, the scene below came into focus—a large army was firing relentlessly and advancing towards Berthier's encampment behind the small forest, with the Montcalm Regiment's flags clearly visible.
From Bruin's perspective, he could only see the small forest directly in front of him, but from the elevated side view, the camp behind the forest was clearly visible.
With the reporters already convinced that the Montcalm Regiment was attacking Berthier's forces, they naturally assumed the worst.
With a dashing move, Joseph mounted his horse and solemnly addressed the reporters:
"I must be with my troops! If anything happens to me, please make sure the world knows what transpired here."
With that, he and his guard galloped away, leaving the soldiers to quickly reclaim the military-issue telescopes, leaving the reporters with a blurry and uncertain view of the battlefield.
Major Bruin, meanwhile, was lazily overseeing his troops as they methodically surrounded the small forest, just waiting to drag out the bodies or captives inside. Suddenly, he heard a deafening roar from behind him.
He frowned, his first thought being: I didn't bring any cannons, did I?
But when he looked up, his pupils contracted sharply—several bloody gaps had appeared in his infantry formation, with soldiers frozen in shock, clearly not understanding what had just happened.
"That's enemy artillery!" Major Bruin snapped to attention. "No, these aren't rioters!"
He quickly turned to his messenger and shouted:
"Order the entire army to halt. Have the flanks close in towards the center! Send the cavalry to scout the southeast!"
Before the messenger could move, another round of cannon fire boomed from afar.
This time, the soldiers of the Montcalm Regiment finally realized what was happening and began scattering in a panic to avoid the shelling. The officers, however, drew their swords and tried desperately to maintain order.
On the northern hill, an officer from the Intelligence Division was explaining the situation to the reporters:
"Did you hear that? The rebels have even brought out cannons! What in God's name are these damned traitors trying to do?! Oh, may God protect His Highness… I pray nothing happens to him…"
After the third cannon volley, the Montcalm Regiment fell into complete disarray.
Those were three 12-pound cannons and six 6-pound cannons, firing precisely at pre-marked targets, almost never missing.
What followed was inevitable.
As Major Bruin hesitated between requesting reinforcements or ordering a retreat, two infantry regiments emerged on either side of his position, forming a pincer movement, while a large cavalry unit quickly maneuvered behind him.
Meanwhile, the cannons continued their relentless bombardment.
In that moment, Major Bruin finally realized that he had been lured into a trap…
After only a brief hesitation, he turned his horse around and fled back to Count Salérier's estate with just a few dozen guards, abandoning his troops.
Back on the hill, the reporters anxiously waited for the cannon fire to stop. After more than an hour, they were finally approached by guards sent by the Prince to escort them.
The area around the small forest, where the battle had raged, had been mostly cleared.
Joseph, with a face full of righteous anger, led the reporters to view the bodies of the Berthier Regiment soldiers, who had supposedly been killed by the rebels.
The corpses were laid out neatly, numbering around two hundred.
The Prince loudly condemned the treasonous actions of Marquis Saint-Véran, briefly recounting how General Berthier had bravely repelled the rebels, and swore to avenge the fallen soldiers.
Of course, the bodies on the ground were actually those of Montcalm Regiment soldiers. But since their uniforms were similar in color and style to those of the Royal Guard, the reporters couldn't tell the difference.
The reporters, still shaken from the earlier battle, quickly got to work, scribbling down their observations and sending their assistants or servants to rush the news back to their papers.
Soon after, the sound of cannon fire echoed once more from the direction of Count Salérier's estate to the east.
The reporters stood up, straining to see what was happening.
An officer quickly arrived to escort them to a safer location to the north, explaining with concern as they went:
"Did you hear that? The rebels are attacking His Highness's forces again. This will surely be a tough battle…"
In reality, the battle was anything but tough.
The cannon fire came from the Royal Guard as they launched their assault on the Montcalm Regiment.
When Marquis Saint-Véran learned that Major Bruin had fallen into an ambush, he hastily ordered his troops to assemble for battle.
However, he had received no warning of the Royal Guard's approach. His soldiers were leisurely resting within the estate, with no scouts posted on the perimeter. By the time Berthier had nearly surrounded the estate, almost half of the Montcalm Regiment's soldiers had yet to form ranks.
What followed was a heavy artillery barrage. After two mid-ranking officers in the Montcalm Regiment surrendered their troops, Davout's regiment was the first to breach the estate's defenses, swiftly cutting through the estate and engaging Marquis Saint-Véran's guards.
(End of Chapter)
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