Verona, nestled against the Alps to the north, bordered by the economic hub of Milan to the west, connected to the water city of Venice to the east, and leading to the capital Rome to the south, with the Adige River winding through it in an S-shape, boasts a network of well-developed transportation arteries.
Its superior natural environment and advanced economic conditions have made it a strategically important location for military strategists since ancient times.
At this moment, Verona was even more crucial as the southwest gateway of the Venice Republic; if it fell, the Republic would be cut in half, severing communication between Brescia and Treviso, and collapse would be imminent.
Therefore, at a time when Venice and Austria had no direct conflict and Venice had absolute confidence in its navy, the main force of Venice's army was not in the capital, Venice, but near Verona.
Capello, the commander of Verona, immediately sent requests for aid to all Venetian units in the surrounding areas upon receiving the news, while also implementing a scorched-earth policy.
Since Stirile had deployed all his personnel to prevent Venice from seeking external aid, he had no spare capacity to manage this area, so Capello's request for aid was very smooth.
Overnight, he gathered more than 8,000 soldiers, most of whom had some combat experience.
With such a scale, actively invading the Papal States was not very realistic, but holding fast to the strong city of Verona, even against an opponent of tens of thousands, would make it almost impossible to breach in a short time.
Outside Verona, Duke's Field Army of over 10,000 men had already begun setting up camp, clearly not intending to break through the city in one fell swoop.
Inside the commander's tent, Duke and a group of officers sat around a long table, staring blankly at each other.
Before the march, Duke had repeatedly emphasized: upon entering Venice, they must not harm the civilians in the slightest, treat prisoners with kindness, and extend courtesy to nobles who voluntarily submitted to the Papal States, as these people would all be citizens of the Papal States in the future.
His Holiness the Pope had great things to accomplish, and no mistakes must be made on his part.
However, along the way, Duke discovered that not only were there no civilians to be seen, and food and supplies had vanished, but even houses, crops, and weeds had been burned to ashes, and along the route, a small number of extremely deadly traps had been laid.
Before even encountering the enemy, the Field Army had already suffered dozens of casualties.
Every sight and sound here proclaimed a message to Duke: if we don't win this battle, we won't make it; there's no retreat!
But in Duke's view, this battle was not only the founding battle of the Papal States but also his own battle for a foothold, so how could he lose?
No matter how strong or crazy the opponent was, he had to win at all costs.
Upon reaching the foot of Verona's city walls, Duke was dumbfounded again: the city walls were built like an iron barrel, vastly different from when he had passed by previously.
Looking from afar, there were at least two thousand well-equipped soldiers guarding the city walls.
Furthermore, as a seasoned professional soldier, Duke could easily tell whether the opposing force consisted of well-trained regular soldiers or incompetent militiamen; with a glance, he could see that none of them were easy to deal with, and their combat effectiveness was definitely no less than Pisani's two thousand men.
"How should we fight this battle? Does anyone have any good ideas? Let's discuss it," Duke slowly began.
An officer from the Second Regiment exchanged glances with his regimental commander, and after receiving his approval, spoke first: "It seems the enemy received news in advance and made preparations early, possibly borrowing main forces from surrounding areas.
They've also implemented a scorched-earth policy, making it a case of many soldiers and strong walls.
We can neither obtain supplies locally nor use cannon fodder.
If we rashly launch a frontal assault, there's almost no chance of victory.
If we suffer heavy losses and low morale in a siege, we might even be pursued out of the city and annihilated by the enemy.
However, since the enemy is already prepared, and Verona is a large city with the Adige River flowing through it, if we were to besiege them to starve them out, it would likely take several months at the shortest, or even several years at the longest."
"Absolutely not!" Hearing "several years," Duke's head buzzed.
"His Holiness the Pope's requirement is a quick victory; in a few years, everything will have gone cold, and with any more variables, we'll all be finished."
"But the current situation is something His Holiness the Pope also did not anticipate…" The officer wanted to argue further but was stopped by a look from Duke.
Alfred, the commander of the Second Regiment, seeing this, had a rough idea of Duke's thoughts and cautiously began: "You just mentioned that Verona might have borrowed troops from surrounding areas.
If that's true, then Venice's other regions must be lightly defended.
Why don't we take a small path, bypass Verona, and directly attack Treviso?
If General Karl's route goes smoothly, he will have certainly taken Venice by then, and we can then rendezvous with them.
Supplies can be continuously transported from the sea, and once we capture all other areas of Venice, they will have no choice but to surrender."
Before Duke could speak, Juan, the commander of the Eighth Regiment, interjected with a challenge: "The idea is good, but is it too reliant on General Karl's success?
If General Karl's route doesn't go smoothly or even ends in failure, and we directly bypass Verona to attack Treviso, we might face the combined garrisons of Treviso and Venice.
Then, if Verona's garrison comes out to attack us from both sides, we will be completely annihilated!"
Alfred immediately retorted: "I didn't say we should execute it immediately; this is just an idea for a quick victory.
First, we definitely need to send people to scout the situation in other regions of Venice and understand General Karl's progress in Venice."
"We can first send people to scout the situation in other regions and Venice; more understanding is always good," Duke nodded in agreement, then changed the subject.
"However, we must also prepare for two scenarios.
If General Karl successfully takes Venice, that would be ideal, and the overall situation would be settled.
But if General Karl's side doesn't go smoothly, the burden will fall on our shoulders.
How do we fight then?"
"Since a direct assault won't work, how about poisoning the Adige River?" Cortez's eyes gleamed with a ruthless, fierce light as he softly asked for permission.
"Cortez! Have you forgotten what I said before we set off? Don't ever suggest such a malicious trick again!" Duke roared angrily.
Realizing he had spoken out of turn, Cortez immediately reined in his gaze and said with a ingratiating smile, "General, don't be angry, I was just suggesting it; you're still the one who makes the decisions.
If a siege won't work, do we have any way to trick Verona's defenders into coming out for a decisive battle?"
"Verona's commander isn't an idiot; why would he abandon a perfectly good city and run out to fight a decisive battle with us?" Juan couldn't help but scoff.
Alfred, however, expressed some agreement: "It is a valid line of thinking, but to make them come out for a decisive battle, they must feel they have an absolute chance of victory.
But now they have no external reinforcements, and we are united internally, so even if we were to feign surrender, how could we gain their trust?"
On Verona's city walls, Capello looked with some pride at the bustling Papal States army: "With just these few men, they want to capture my Verona? Wishful thinking!
I can guard this city wall until I die of old age!"
"It's just a pity for those citizens outside Verona; they did nothing and lost their homes, and I don't know where they've retreated to now," said Andrew, an accompanying officer, with some reluctance.
Capello waved his hand dismissively, full of ambition: "Andrew, as a warrior of the Republic, you must have a spirit of sacrifice! As long as the palm tree endures, who cares if the wild grass turns to ash!"