Chapter 335: Ghost Town

Nearly a month had passed since the swift victory in Milan, and Berengar's army had waited for reinforcement and resupply before marching on the City of Parma. At the moment, the Jaeger Corps had a few hundred men issued with the new Schmidt Needle Rifle, though the ratio of men armed with the Needle Rifle and the traditional muzzleloading Jaeger Rifle was roughly 1:3

As for the rest of Berengar's army, they were still outfitted with the 1417/18 Rifled Muskets. However, compared to the enemy they were facing, such weapons were more than enough to massacre any army they would encounter.

The Jaeger Corps had done their jobs and led the way to Parma; in doing so, they encountered little resistance. It became increasingly apparent that the Italian soldiers still in the field had begun to disobey their orders and flee from the lost cause that was their war with Austria. 

At the moment, the City of Parma could be seen in the distance. However, something was noticeably lacking in Berengar's mind as he gazed through his binoculars into the distance. Upon the city walls, as far as he could tell, there were no defenders stationed on the ramparts. 

This was quite shocking, as every City was supposed to have a garrison defending it, especially in times of war. Yet, the more he observed the walls, the more he found them vacant of any form of military presence. With this in mind,  Berengar gave an order to his Colonel Dietrich of the Jaeger Corps. 

"Send a few of your men to scale the walls and see what they can find out about the current situation within the City. Have your other men cover them from the tree line!"

With this said, Dietrich nodded his head before giving his most elite troops the orders. Some might consider this a suicide mission, but Berengar did not want to walk into a trap. As for the rest of his army, they immediately became alert and fixed their bayonets in preparation for the event of an ambush.

Corporal Lach and his squad were the ones deployed to scale the wall; despite having the assurance that they were being protected by the elite marksmen of the Jaeger Corps, they still felt a sense of gut-wrenching anxiety as they rapidly approached the walls. 

However, by the time they arrived at the base of the City's defenses, they had not been fired upon by the defenders or the lack thereof. Therefore, they quickly pulled out their grappling hooks tied to hemp rope and tossed them onto the ramparts above.

After checking to see if the rope was secure, the men slung their rifles over their backs before climbing up the rope and onto the ramparts above. The moment they did so, they quickly equipped their weapons and searched for any sign of hostility; however, they were utterly and genuinely alone atop these walls, which greatly confused the small squad of Jaegers. As such, the squad leader immediately gave the order to his soldiers.

"Pull out your binoculars and survey the city; see what you can find!"

With this command given, the squad of Jaeger's did as instructed; however, when they looked down at the City below, they were shocked at what they saw. There was not the slightest sight of occupation within the City. Throughout the entirety of Parma, there was not a living soul to be found. 

It was as if the residents of the City had just abandoned it overnight, which was shocking to the soldiers. After inspecting the town within the walls for some time, the Squad Leader issued another command.

"We will repel down the walls and open the gates, be cautious; this might be a trap!"

The various soldiers beneath the Squad Leader's command, including Corporal Lach, nodded their heads before doing as instructed. After reaching the ground, they unslung their rifles once more and performed a proper sweep of the street leading to the gate.

Despite this, they indeed found nobody within the City's walls. As such, they suffered no resistance when they finally opened the Gates. When the gates opened and the Jaeger soldiers within waved the flag of Austria, Berengar was deeply concerned. 

Not a single gunshot had echoed in the distance as the men entered the City. Despite this, the city gates were opened effortlessly, and his Jaegers appeared utterly unharmed. Berengar could not fathom what game the Italians were playing, but considering this, he decided to investigate. With this in mind, he gave a command to his officers, who relayed his orders throughout his massive army. 

"We will enter the City's gates, but be on alert; this may very well be a trap!"

After hearing their orders, the Austrian Host advanced into the abandoned City in an attempt to thoroughly investigate just what was going on. After approaching the City Gates, Berengar began to speak with his Jaegers, who were the first to enter the scene.

"Status report!"

Immediately the Squad leader saluted the King before reporting what he knew about the current situation.

"Your Majesty, we have observed the city for some time with our binoculars to find not a single trace of habitation, either everyone is quietly hiding within the walls of the city, or it has been completely abandoned!"

Upon hearing this, Berengar was shocked; even for a small city like this, it would take some time and effort to withdraw every living being from within and relocate them entirely. Though they had waited roughly a month for reinforcements to arrive, it still seemed unlikely that every citizen had fled the City in such a period of time as such Berengar gave his decree to the army.

"Tear this city apart; I want to find out what has happened here; remember, this still might be a trap!"

With this in mind, the Austrian soldiers began to kick down every door in the City where they searched for people, wealth, or clues as to what had transpired. Because the City had been rapidly evacuated, many things of value were left behind, and as such, Berengar and his army could acquire some degree of wealth to bring back to Austria. 

However, the most crucial form of intelligence came from a letter left within a house. Berengar's spies occupied this small structure. In doing so, they were forced to vacate the City with the rest of the civilians. Before they did so, they left a letter to inform the Royal Austrian Army when they arrived as to what had transpired within the City and others like it across Northern Italy. 

The Emperor had made a decree that all cities and villages on the path to Florence must be evacuated, where its people would seek refuge within the capital's mighty walls. The reality behind this decree was that Emperor Balsamo Corsini intended to arm every citizen capable of bearing arms to fight against the Austrian invaders. 

A wicked smile curved itself upon Berengar's lips as he read the contents of the letter. He could not help but voice his thoughts aloud in a voice so low that only he could hear it.

"So, you seek to follow the fate of Carthage? Do you desire for me to exhaust my army as I spend months or years at a time trying to force my way through every corner of your capital in an attempt to route you out and secure victory?

Sadly you have made a grave error... No, my dear Emperor! I have much grander plans in mind for the City of Florence. If God truly exists, then I do not doubt that he will judge me severely for what I am about to do.

Unfortunately, you have left me no choice. I will not send my army into a meaningless death. However, I assure you, your City will be the grave of every soul contained within! You have brought this upon yourself!"

With that said, Berengar pulled out his lighter and lit the letter aflame. After doing so, he waited for his army to gather the wealth left within the City of Parma's walls. Once they were finished, he sent a small convoy to deliver the goods to Austria's treasury. 

As for the rest of his Army, Berengar had chosen a course of action and decided to march directly onto Florence. The war was coming to an end, and Berengar chose to waste no further time sacking the cities within his path; after all, the fortune of the Medicis was far greater than anything he could gain from within the walls Bologna.

As for how he would choose to deal with the City of Florence, only time would tell. However, one thing was sure; he would not allow his soldiers to march into the Capital of the Empire and engage in a brutal struggle to take every corner of the City from the fierce resistance of the Italians.

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