Chapter 337: Siege of Florence Part II

After that day where Berengar and his Army had fought off the Italian Charge, things went back to their usual pacing. The rain finally dispersed, and soon the muddied trenches dried up, allowing the Austrian soldiers still issued flintlock rifles to use their weapons properly.

Rain was replaced with snow as winter soon fell upon the city of Florence, and thus the Austrian Army was now dressed in its winter clothing, who were struggling with each day to endure the cold and harsh life of sustaining a large term siege while living in a trench. 

Another month had passed, and during this time frame, the Italians had seldom made an advance; despite this, the Austrian Army continued to shell the city every day for several hours at a time. If not for Berengar's established supply routes, and the empty cities behind him, he would have had a hard time maintaining the number of shells needed to bombard the town. 

The thunder of the guns echoed off as the hundreds of cannons alternated fire, ensuring that a battery was fired nearly every second during the time frame Berengar had set for bombardments. Seeing how the artillery pieces were elevated at varying degrees, the projectiles flew over the walls and into the city below. The citizens within Florence found their homes destroyed, and their lives were taken during this process.

In fact, by now, Berengars army had fired hundreds of thousands of shells into the city. He was beginning to wonder if there was anyone left alive within Florence. After all, it had been some time since the Italians had rushed his position. If not for the roughly three years spent preparing for this war, Berengar likely would have run out of munitions ages ago.

At the moment, Berengar was within the rearmost region of the trench line, where his quarters were built into the ground. He was shaving, as it was now light enough out for him to do so. The straight razor cut at the hairs growing on his face and neck as he began to break out into laughter. 

If one were to observe him, it would appear as if he had gone mad. Still, Berengar was currently reminded of an incident from a particular science fiction franchise from his previous life where soldiers bombarded a city for years after everyone inside was long dead. 

Having nearly cut his throat while laughing at this prospect, Berengar quickly calmed himself and finished the task at hand; after doing so, he decided he would check to see if anyone was alive within Florence. As such, he cleaned himself up before grabbing ahold of his burgonet, where he placed it upon his head. He then grabbed his needle rifle and exited his quarters, where he entered the trenches. 

Within the trenches, it became apparent that the men within had endured quite a bit of difficulty over this past two months of siege warfare. However, it was nothing compared to the poor souls who suffered through the great war from his previous life. After all, Berengar's Army was not subject to bombardment by the city's defenders.

Eventually, Berengar made his way to the mess constructed for his General officers to dine in. Seeing them eating their morning supply of breakfast brought a smile to Berengar's face; the moment they saw the King arrive, they jumped up from their seats and saluted him, where Berengar immediately responded with the command.

"At ease."

After the men relaxed, Berengar approached the General tasked with leading his five artillery Brigades and began to discuss his newest plan.

"I think it is about time to bring down the walls. Have your brigade within our trench line focus their fire on the Northern wall until it crumbles; I'd like to see if there is anyone left alive in the city."

After hearing this order, the General nodded before responding.

"Yes, your majesty! I will relay your orders immediately!"

With that said, Berengar nodded in approval, thus dismissing the man where he ran off to inform the Artillery units of their new orders. Shortly after that, the bombardment had begun once more, as the shells whistled in the air and exploded onto the northern wall. While this Barrage had begun, Berengar had given the infantry Generals new orders as well.

"Prepare our soldiers; we are entering the city. The time has come to conclude this war and secure our independence. For glory and fatherland! God with us!"

After hearing this, the infantry Generals jumped up in response as they saluted Berengar. 

"For King and Fatherland!"

Afterward, Berengar dismissed them, where they began to muster the Army that had spent the last two months living in the trenches, waiting for this very moment. After roughly an hour, the northern wall had collapsed, and with it, the city of Florence, or what remained of it, was revealed. 

Berengar stood at the front of his Army with his sword drawn as he gave a brief but rousing speech.

"Let today forever be known as the day that Austria gained its independence from the Empire! Whatever difficulties you may face, know that Austria stands behind you! God with us!"

Thousands of men instantly echoed the Austrian battle cry as they began to advance. The sight of tens of thousands of Austrian soldiers emerging from the trenches with their rifles in hand and their bayonets affixed as they charged towards the ruined city was indeed one to behold. 

Berengar allowed the Army to pass him by as he took a rear position in the Army; the days of him charging into the front lines of war had long since passed. Though he might take an offensive role in the trenches, he would no longer be the first to storm a city. 

Thus he followed the Army from the rear as they breached through the gap between the northern walls only to see a scale of death and destruction he had never witnessed before. After months of bombardment and hundreds of thousands of shells dropped into the city, few buildings were left standing. 

Most of Florence had been crumbled into debris, and the people within the city walls were either torn apart by the explosive shells or crushed to death by the collapsed buildings. Month-old corpses littered the streets as they festered and rotted. 

Berengar now understood why the Italians had not sent a force to attack his line in weeks. The reason was simple; there was no one left to send. Despite the utter destruction brought upon the city of Florence, Berengar's Army was as always professional. As such, they cautiously cleared the streets while marching upon the Imperial Palace, and more importantly, the Medici bank. 

Every so often, the soldiers of the Royal Austrian Army would clear through debris and find a few citizens hiding within their cellars, assuming their house had one. Many of them had long since died of starvation; others had managed to survive, potentially through drastic measures. However, these shell-shocked survivors offered no resistance to the Army that had brought death upon their lands. 

Berengar personally led his troops into the now ravaged Medici Bank; not a single soul was left alive within the structure, though it had been hit by shells and collapsed in some areas; by the grace of God, it had mostly survived the massive bombardment that Berengar had unleashed upon the city. 

Berengar slowly walked through the halls of the bank with a calm and collected expression on his face. He was flanked by his Grenadiers, who guarded him cautiously. Eventually, he reached the vault where the Medici fortune was contained, where his soldiers used TNT to breach the entrance. 

After entering the vault, Berengar gazed upon the massive hoard of gold and silver coins stacked as high as the ceiling. Berengar never imagined the Medici wealth to be so grand; gazing upon such a vast stockpile of gold and silver flipped a switch in Berengar's brain. 

Gold was a substance like no other; compared to the material strengths of steel, it was a far less practical metal. However, the effect it had on a man's mind was like no other. Seeing such a massive pile of gold coins gathered in one place that was potentially greater than his fortune made Berengar break out in mad laughter. After nearly a minute of laughter, Berengar began to cough heavily before calming himself down; after doing so, he uttered a few words.

"To think that the Medici wealth was so much more than I was led to believe... Truly, it is a fortune to rival that of Mansa Musa, and now it is all mine! With this wealth, I can transform the Austrian economy into the greatest the world has ever seen!"

Seeing the manic expression on Berengar's face and the words he had spoken filled his guard with a slight sense of trepidation; however, eventually, Berengar recovered before giving out his orders to the Grenadiers.

"Guard this treasure trove; once we have finished securing the city, we will haul it all back to Kufstein, where it will be melted down and reminted into our currency!"

With this said, the vast fortune of the Medici Family had found its way into the hands of the von Kufstein Dynasty, and by extension, the Kingdom of Austria. With this Wealth, Berengar would use it to stimulate his economy and break the stagnation that it had begun to suffer due to the limited quantities of the precious metals that he severely lacked until now.

Though Berengar was unaware of what fate awaited the Medici family, whether they were killed off from the bombardment or fled the city, leaving their fortune behind, it did not matter. One thing was certain The vast wealth of the Medici Bank that had once funded the Catholic Church was now acquired by their greatest enemy. Due to this fact, the church's ability to wage war against Berengar was crippled for years to come, buying him several years of much-needed peace to industrialize his Kingdom and its military. 

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