She changed Europe

Page 66

"Brother, be careful." Nina quickly stepped in front of her brother, activated her magical shield, and blocked the bullets fired by the Frenchman. Leopold used the same moment his sister activated her shield to reload, raise his gun, aim, and kill his opponent.

Nina never used her full power because she didn't want to reveal her secret as a magic user. After all, her brother taking her out of Bavaria and heading to dangerous northern Italy was enough to make him look bad in the eyes of the public. Therefore, she didn't want to cause trouble for her brother at this time.

Faced with the unexpectedly high morale of the Austrian army, the French cavalry failed to gain the upper hand and instead fell into a disadvantageous position as the battle became increasingly intense. As a result, they had no choice but to retreat and launch an "attack" from the rear.

Standing on a distant hillside, McMahon watched the rout of the Guards cavalry, then expressionlessly adjusted his glasses. He had to admit that this time, the Austrians were far superior to the Russians in both weaponry and morale. The reason he had his light cavalry employ this tactic was because, in Crimea, the French army had used this very tactic to launch a counterattack against a Russian force several times their size, and against the equally ferocious Cossacks.

However! This war has only just begun, and McMahon licked his lips with pleasure at the thought.

At the same time that Leopold's 7th Brigade was engaged in battle with the French Guards Cavalry Division, five other brigades of the Austrian Empire on the west coast were also attacked by the Franco-Saxon coalition.

The Sardinian army, with high morale and under the cover of magical armor, launched several swift attacks on the Austrian positions. They spared no effort in deploying magical armor in the frontal assault, even if it meant facing Austrian artillery directly.

Corporal Khima, an ordinary officer in the tens of thousands of soldiers of the Kingdom of Sardinia, joined the army two years ago. Initially, due to his imposing physique and outstanding performance, he was noticed by Princess Misera, who was inspecting the front lines, and was awarded the title of knight and transferred to Turin, where he later served in the Royal Guard. However, during a training exercise, he accidentally injured a nobleman who was watching the training and was stripped of his honors and reassigned to a front-line unit.

He remained in the army after that, stationed with his troops on the border of Piedmont in July, and then moved to Lombardy in August as the Pisa Tea Party unfolded. He participated in the Siege of Aubila between Austria and Sardinia, and faced the swift attack organized by the Austrian princess. Although he did not participate in the Battle of Ticino, he did participate in the cleanup work afterward.

Veterans like him have lost the youthful vigor of freshmen, but they still retain an indomitable spirit. Even if His Highness Misella is captured, even if Lord Garibaldi is missing, even if the kingdom has no magic users to fight with, so what? Now they still have the help of France, and they are not as passive as they were more than twenty years ago. In his view, Italy can still fight.

PS1: Ra!

Chapter 243 Irises Withering in the Alps: Capter 104 Why are you here? (Seeking votes)

Thinking of all this, Keshima, who was crawling on the ground dodging the shells, raised his head and looked behind him. Shells whistled overhead, heading towards his comrades and the magical armor assisting in the attack. The massive explosion shattered these steel behemoths; some, using their shields to block the bullets, continued their attack, while others, whose shields were breached, were left paralyzed on the ground. Countless comrades around him were injured by shrapnel from the explosions and blown away by the blast waves.

"Damn it!" Keshima bit his lip hard and slammed his fist on the ground. Then he noticed the square box in the hands of his fallen comrade, grabbed it, hugged it to his chest, and angrily looked at the Austrian position a hundred meters away, and the artillery positions further away.

"Cover me!" Keshima shouted to his comrades, then slowly crawled forward. His comrades quickly understood his meaning, raising their guns and firing at the Austrians while rushing forward. To better cover Keshima, they used a frenzied attack to divert the Austrians' attention.

A comrade in a green uniform fell, still firing as he died. The second, the third... they all chose to fall not far from Keshima, so as to use their bodies to provide the last bit of help to the crawling Keshima.

This short distance of just over a hundred meters felt as long as a kilometer. His company had more than two hundred men, and nearly half of them died under the Austrian magic armor, artillery, and alternating attacks of bullets and shells.

Finally, he crawled up to the Austrians, who, preoccupied with their defense, failed to notice the imminent threat. Keshma observed his position; two Austrian soldiers were reloading. He leaped up, grabbed his rifle, and jumped in. With practiced ease, he raised his bayonet and plunged it into one of the soldiers' hearts, instantly staining his white uniform crimson with blood.

"Bastard!" the Austrian soldier roared in German. Although Keshma didn't understand German, that didn't stop him from understanding the soldier's anger.

“Tell God your grievances, invaders.” Keshima fired the only bullet in his gun. The whistling bullet easily pierced the Austrian soldier's chest, and a vibrant life was lost. Without a second thought, Keshima threw down his gun and ran towards the artillery position further away. As long as the explosives were ignited, the sacrifice of all his comrades would be worthwhile.

Unfortunately, he couldn't always be so lucky. The sound of gunfire erupted from behind him. Without even thinking, he knew that the Austrians had spotted him. First his left hand, then his shoulder, thigh, and left abdomen. In an instant, Keshima was hit by four shots. At this moment, he fell to the ground like a puppet with a broken string, blood flowing from the wounds caused by the bullet holes.

"The soil smells of blood, but this is our land!" Keshima's vision was a little blurry. The ground was so close, and his comrades had sacrificed themselves for this very moment.

"Boom!" Another loud bang came from the artillery position in front of him. Obviously, another shell was flying towards his comrades. Without a doubt, many more wives and children would lose their husbands or their fathers.

His body temperature was gradually dropping, and it seemed that death was not far away for him.

"I'm sorry, Your Highness!" Keshima seemed to see the princess he had once sworn allegiance to, the vow made under the setting sun. He gently lifted Princess Misera's hand, cradling it like a precious treasure, and then kissed it.

"Khima, my knight, loyal warriors of the Savoy dynasty, you are my sword, to cut through the enemy's chest for me; you are my shield, to protect the people, to protect our compatriots; for Italy, you will face death without fear." Kehima suddenly opened his eyes and, with his last ounce of consciousness, crawled toward the Austrian artillery position. Finally, with the explosion of explosives and the depot detonation, the towering flames shone like a beacon in the night.

The soldiers of the Kingdom of Sardinia watched the explosion with awe. New commands rang out, and a new offensive had already begun.

At this moment, in a small town still dozens of kilometers away from Magenta, Gisela suddenly stood up, wiped the sweat from her brow, and just then, the sun shone on her face, forcing her to squint.

"You're finally awake, Your Highness? You don't look too well." Hannah Rothschild put down her book, adjusted her glasses, and looked at Gisela with a serious expression.

“I dreamt that the Italians destroyed our artillery positions, and our people were in grave danger.” Gisela covered her eyes, a strange pain making her feel uncomfortable.

"Interesting? Indeed, you Austrians are fighting the French in Magenda." Hannah carefully observed Gisela at this moment. She could not allow Gisela to make any further mistakes. If she had the authority, she would have liked to send the princess back to Vienna and protect her properly until the plan she mentioned was realized.

"where is this place?"

"On the carriage heading to Magenta."

“No! Miss Rothschild, why are you here?” Gisela frowned, looking at the black-haired girl in front of her with some confusion.

"Your Highness really does have a bad memory." Hana covered her mouth with her right hand, smiling as she looked at the somewhat silly and adorable princess before her. Princess Gisela then noticed something in her bed and pulled back all the covers.

At this moment, Chloris, with her long gray hair, leaned against Gisela wearing only underwear. Her fair skin, graceful figure, and soft, fragrant breath stirred Gisela's heart. Although she disliked this woman, she had to admit that Chloris was quite feminine when she was in a normal mood. Rita, on the other hand, was now sleeping peacefully due to her injuries, with a fist-sized bandage wrapped around her abdomen.

"It's time to wake up." Gisela wanted to kick Chloris awake, but faced with Chloris's somewhat provocative attire, she hesitated for a moment, unsure whether to kick her or not. Embarrassed, she helplessly looked up at Hana, who had already picked up her book and resumed studying, seemingly oblivious to Gisela's presence.

“Then I want…” Gisela gently bit her lip, fixing her gaze on Chloris’s prominent breasts. The black lace lingerie accidentally touched Gisela’s target area.

After confirming Hana's gaze one last time, Gisele stretched out her hand. In truth, no one would care. After all, they were all women. What you have, she has too. What you don't have, she probably doesn't have either.

PS[尹镏1氵II二疚21：克宗：小小狐把捏把捏。]

Chapter 244 Irises Withering in the Alps: Capter105 Just a Touch (Seeking Votes)

Gisela swallowed hard and placed her hand on Chloris's chest. The touch was different from her own. Although they both had the same thing, the former made Gisela feel a little complicated, and there was also some inexplicable excitement.

"If you don't wake up soon, I'll use force." Gisela's voice was barely audible, as if she were speaking to herself. Seemingly to match her words, she slightly increased the pressure she applied to Chloris's chest.

"Mmm!" Chloris let out a soft moan, while Gisela's cheeks flushed slightly. After all, was this considered a crime? After all, in her past life she was...

"Cough cough!" Gisela, being a gentleman, suddenly realized that what she was doing was wrong, so she tried to remove her hand. Just then, Chloris smiled smugly and skillfully wrapped her legs around Gisela's waist, teasing Gisela's wagging tail with her stockinged feet.

A strange feeling quickly washed over her, and Gisela collapsed onto Chloris as if all her strength had been drained.

“My dear little fox, shall we continue?” Chloris whispered in Gisela’s ear. Gisela’s senses were already focused on her sensitive tail, and she didn’t hear Chloris’s words at all. She was just whimpering and moaning.

Suddenly the carriage stopped, and then an elegant short-haired nun gently opened the carriage door. She was clearly Aponia, who had been sent by the Thirteen Courts to protect Gisela.

"Your Highness, this is a gift from our Thirteen Courts to you..." Before the words were finished, the atmosphere fell into endless awkwardness.

Although Aponia's calm and beautiful face showed no surprise, the file folder that slipped from her hand was enough to reveal the ripples in her heart.

The two ladies seemed to be engaging in some rather private interaction, and I knew I had disturbed them; surely God wouldn't forgive me. Thinking this, Aponia felt apologetic and tried to close the car door, but Gisela stopped her with her little foot.

"Miss Aponia, don't go. Let's talk inside. There's quite a lot of space here." At this moment, because Gisela was pressing down on Chloris, Aponia clearly saw that the princess was in control.

“No need, Your Highness. I have already sworn to serve my lord with my heart and soul.” Aponia frowned slightly, placed her right hand on her chest, her fair cheeks flushed slightly, and a hint of panic flashed in her purple eyes. She slowly took a step back away from the carriage door.

"Miss Aponia, didn't you have something to do?" Gisela tilted her head, somewhat puzzled as to why the beautiful nun in front of her was telling her so many random things.

"Ho ho ho!" Chloris squinted at the nun outside the door for a moment, then let out a somewhat amused exclamation. As an experienced driver, she quickly discovered the nun's repressed and lewd nature.

"Your Highness, I want more!" Chloris then deliberately acted coquettishly and said in a very suggestive tone, before wrapping her legs around Gisela's waist and wrapping her arms around her neck.

Not only was Aponia bewildered by this scene, but Gisela also couldn't understand what this woman was up to.

"Let me go, I have important business to discuss." Gisela couldn't keep thinking with her lower body. After all, without a gun in her hand, she wouldn't have the confidence to speak. Right now, she put on a gentlemanly demeanor, as if the woman under her was the one in the way.

"Your Highness, please take good care of yourself. Also, please make sure to drink plenty of water." After saying this, Aponia put the document bag into the carriage and left the carriage as if fleeing, following the troops ahead.

"Pfft! Water intake." Chloris let go of Gisela and laughed, clutching her stomach.

Gisela turned around somewhat awkwardly, looking at the Prussian princess who was laughing hysterically. Replenishing water is the same as replenishing bodily fluids, and it was clear that the nun had misunderstood something.

"Shut up! It's all your fault! You caused this misunderstanding. You women are such a hassle sometimes." Gisela yelled angrily at Chloris, but her words had no persuasive power, because she didn't have a male perspective at the moment.

“Alright, take a look at the file bag.” Chloris became serious again, fixing her gaze on the black paper bag beside her. Hannah Rothschild, who had witnessed everything earlier but remained unconcerned, immediately put down her book and focused her attention on what Chloris was pointing to.

Although the Luo family, being Jewish, adhered to Judaism and had no interest in Catholicism, this didn't stop her from watching these heretics fight amongst themselves. Why are they considered heretics? Those familiar with religious history should know that Islam and Christianity, in a sense, originated from Judaism; therefore, the three are collectively known as the Abrahamic religions.

"A gift from the Thirteen Courts?" Gisela crossed her legs and picked up the black file bag. If Rita saw her sitting in this macho posture, she would inevitably be lectured again. Of course, the maid was still fast asleep.

"It's just an ordinary document bag, why all this fuss?" The black document bag is printed with the XIII symbol, and the button wrapped in thread is even gold. Is the Papacy just nouveau riche? Or are they just putting on a show? They're capable of such wasteful behavior; maybe they should just repeat the Sack of Rome in 1527. (The 1527 mutiny of the Holy Roman Empire's army, led by Charles V, the Habsburg monarch, who spontaneously sacked Rome.)

The letter reads: "To Gisela Louise Marie, Archduchess of Austria, heir to the glorious Habsburg-Lorraine dynasty, Regent of Bohemia…" A string of titles, too numerous and insignificant to even glance at. Gisela clearly desired real power more than titles. Did you know that Gisela's father, Emperor Joseph of Austria-Hungary, held the title of Kingdom of Jerusalem? But did the Austrian Empire ever possess Jerusalem? No! They probably hadn't even been to the Levant.

"These are photos?" Gisela stared at the black-and-white photographs before her, lost in thought. The photos depicted events that had occurred in Laura's village. Houses burned to the ground, corpses strewn everywhere—men, women, and even children were not spared—it was a blatant and undisguised massacre.

PS1: Time to get back to work after the holiday, time to get back into the swing of things.

Chapter 245 Irises Wither in the Alps: Capter 106 If I Can Avenge My Debts in the Future (Seeking Votes)

Gisela flipped through the pictures, her expression growing increasingly grave. Finally, her gaze settled on a burning house, where a mother was holding her dead child and wailing desperately. She didn't notice that further behind her, a soldier was pointing a gun at her back, his dark, burly body appearing so ferocious and terrifying.

This was the village where she once lived, and some of the people there even took care of her when she was injured. But apart from Laura's sister and their father, almost everyone else became victims of the French.

Countless innocent people are caught up in the monster called war and cannot escape. Thinking of this, Gisela took a deep breath and covered her aching eyes.

Su Beiming, if you were in her shoes, what would you do in the face of this? Stop killing with killing? Wipe out all the enemies and then repay their people in the same way? I suppose someone with her straightforward personality would do that. And what about me? What would I choose? Repay evil with good? No, no, no, I am not a saint, nor do I wish to redeem others. Since you died because of me, then at least let their deaths become bullets fired at the enemy.

"Hana! How's my newspaper going?" Gisela put down the photo, her eyes a little red, but she didn't shed a tear. Tears can only deceive others, but they can't deceive herself.

If he gets his revenge in the future, he will surely stain the mouth of the Seine with blood.

“Your Highness, the Taisei Daily is operating smoothly. That gentleman has successfully established branches in New York, London, Paris, Berlin, and Vienna.” Since taking over Gisela’s factories and businesses, Hana has fully utilized her brilliant business acumen to assist the princess in managing these enterprises. She has also secretly used the Luo family’s funds and connections, as well as Rania’s family’s political influence in Bohemia, to make these enterprises thrive. However, Gisela has also maintained control over these enterprises, preventing them from falling entirely into the hands of the Luo family.

“Mr. Bradley, I knew I hadn’t made the wrong choice.” It’s worth mentioning that Gisela didn’t realize at the time that her experience with this man in Berlin was so similar to the plot of Roman Holiday. By the time the story was made into a movie, Gisela had already become the Empress, and no one connected the friendship between this news mogul and Her Majesty the Empress. Of course, that’s another story.

"So what does Your Highness wish the newspaper to do for you?" Hana pushed up her glasses and took out her notebook. Although her glasses prescription wasn't high, this young lady of the Luo family had recently taken to wearing glasses all the time, because it gave her an intellectual and knowledgeable beauty.

“Miss Hannah, if I remember correctly, your Luo family has a highly efficient intelligence transmission channel, right? I want your people to make several copies of this photo and send them to London, Paris, Berlin, Vienna, and New York. I need to make sure that the whole of Europe knows about this within three days and the whole world knows about it within seven days. And the first newspaper to report this must be my Taixi Daily.”

"Secondly, we must direct all these perpetrators toward the French, toward Napoleon III. We must get our people thinking and fabricating the scene, or fabricating interviews—it has to be done for me. I don't need pointless verbal battles; I just need people to see the 'facts.'" Neither the British nor the French could possibly leave their own bodies behind in such a situation. Although they were both very careful, there would always be flaws. And people in this era were not yet so eager to know the truth.

Gisela rattled off everything she had to say to Hana, then took a deep breath and looked solemnly at Chloris in front of her. Clearly, the Prussian princess had overheard everything she had just said.

“These things are our secrets, and I don’t think anyone will leak them, right?” Gisela put her hands on her hips and struck an arrogant pose, but with her blonde hair, Chloris still couldn’t see any threat from this fox princess. Instead, she seemed to be begging Chloris.

“Of course I wouldn’t do something so boring.” Even so, Chloris was still quite inspired by Gisela’s words. For example, controlling the news media was not just about controlling people’s thoughts; it could also be used as a weapon against one’s enemies. No wonder she couldn’t understand why Gisela spent so much effort on these strange areas; the root cause was that her own thinking was too limited.

If Bismarck were here, what would she think after hearing Gisela's words? Would that meticulous woman, who controlled everything, allow someone even more cunning than herself to become an obstacle to the rise of Prussia?

But my dear little fox, don't worry. You will get whatever you want. I will also make Bismarck yours, because only the union of you and me is the future of Germany, and only the union of Prussia and Austria can break the shackles of the European countries.

Now it's my turn to make a move. Gisela gripped the file folder in her hand tightly. The spurs she had already scattered on enemy territory were ready to be used to prick people.

"Let the army cross the Ticino River, and we will launch a counterattack when the enemy is close to victory." At the Battle of Magendra, will Austria lose again?

—Let's return our attention to the battlefield.

The massive explosions at the artillery positions caused serious turmoil among the Austrian defenders on the right flank. At the same time, the Italians displayed unprecedented morale and launched another offensive against the Austrian troops in front of them.

After a brief exchange of fire, the two sides entered a close-quarters combat phase, and the soldiers in white and green uniforms quickly became huddled together like dumplings in a pot.

The Austrian army was primarily manned by Hungarians. While the Hungarians often engaged in political maneuvering with the imperial court, one thing is undeniable: they seemed to have inherited their nomadic ancestry from the Magyars, often possessing a superior talent in combat. They may not have been the most loyal, but they were certainly among the most skilled and valiant warriors in the Austrian Empire. (The other was the Croatians.)

Although the Italians were in high spirits, their soldiers lacked combat experience and were unskilled in close combat. The Hungarians, on the other hand, were skilled and experienced, but their morale was a problem.

László, a grenadier in the Hungarian 6th Brigade, was not going to the battlefield for the first time. Not long ago, his unit had fought against the Prussians and Danes on the Jutland Peninsula as an expeditionary force. In the bloody Second Battle of Missonde, he was the vanguard tasked with carrying sandbags.

When the Sardinian soldiers clumsily pointed their bayonets at him, he felt relieved. The artillery attack had already shaken him, and the Italians' shouts had further eroded his will to fight. Unfortunately, the enemy's poor performance restored his and his comrades' confidence.

PS1: I don't have enough money left over from my holiday to top up my account QAQ

Chapter 246 Irises Withering in the Alps: Capter 107 Bloodbath (Seeking Votes)

Parry, deflect, and Kira slammed his rifle butt into his opponent, knocking the Italian to the ground. His comrade, another Italian soldier, lunged at him from the side. Kira stepped forward with his right foot, crouched slightly, took a deep breath, and raised his own rifle. Just as his opponent was about to close in, he swung it. The immense force struck the tip of the Italian soldier's rifle, causing the thrust, already propelled by inertia, to deflect and the bayonet to pierce the ground.

Raki kicked him in the stomach, knocking him down, then stepped on him and plunged the bayonet into his chest. The sharp bayonet pierced through, and the Italian stared at himself with wide, ferocious eyes. However, the incessant flow of blood and the gradually weakening resistance silently told one fact: this man was about to die.

"Damn it!" The Italian soldier who had just been knocked down by Raki's rifle butt rushed towards him despite the blood streaming down his head, and the two of them rolled into the trench together.

The crazed Italian soldier pinned Raki down, thrusting his bayonet into Raki's neck, while Raki braced himself against his opponent's wrists with both hands, preventing the enemy from moving even an inch.

"Die! Die!" the Italian soldier in front of Raki roared, his eyes bloodshot. He thought that the person he had just killed might have been an important friend of his, but what did it matter? This was a battlefield where it was either you or me!

Having a knife to your neck is no fun. Raki's hands were starting to give way. His opponent had shifted his entire weight onto him, while he could only rely on the strength in his wrists.

"Damn it!"

"Bang!" A distinctive gunshot from a Skoda 1869 rang out, and Raki immediately felt the pressure from the enemy pressing down on him lessen considerably. Taking advantage of this moment, he pushed the other man aside and turned his head to see the fatal bullet hole in his back.

"Are you alright, Raki?" The black-haired man in front of him reached out his hand to Raki.

"I'm fine, Leon."

"Horse, stop! The grass is lush and green. Singing a war song will surely bring victory. Here, take this back." The man handed Raki's gun back to him.

"Thank you!"

Raki took the rifle from the man, pulled the bolt to eject the spent cartridge, and then fed a new bullet into it.

"It's always good to keep a bullet just in case." Although the enemy wasn't strong, he would still have been in grave danger if his comrades hadn't helped him.

At that moment, the whistling of artillery shells filled the sky; the terrifying sound filled every soldier with dread.

"Boom!" Another deafening explosion rocked the Sardinian soldiers still fighting the Austrians, who were engulfed in the blast and reduced to dust. This was just the beginning. More cannons of varying calibers and magic cannons mounted on magic armor followed, unleashing a barrage of fire on the Austrian positions. Countless soldiers fighting outside the trenches were blown to pieces, their limbs and severed bodies scattered everywhere. The cries of agony echoed from all sides.

"Damn it! Did you see that? These Frenchmen have gone mad. To kill us as many times as possible, they're using their own soldiers as bait!" Raki and the middle-aged man said after getting up from a pile of dirt and looking at the hellish scene before them.

"No! Those weren't French soldiers. They were soldiers from the Kingdom of Sardinia. Poor Italians, fighting for the French and ending up like this." Raki looked solemnly at the explosions around him. Whether they were Hungarians, Austrians, or even Italians, under such shelling, they could only accept death equally. He had no interest in the lives of others now; he just wanted to pray that the shells wouldn't fall on their heads.

"Do you think it would be a good thing for Hungary to really break away from the empire? Actually, I don't think our Emperor Joseph was as incompetent as the propaganda portrays him." Looking at the pitiful state of the small country before him, Raki sighed. At least now they could exist as a whole, part of a powerful empire, instead of an independent little country. They wouldn't face the tragic fate of being driven to war by a great power, or even used as cannon fodder, because they were the great power...

"Damn it! Take back what you just said! László, out of consideration for our shared struggle, I can pretend I didn't hear anything! First of all, he's not an emperor, he's the King of Hungary! Secondly, the Crown of St. Stephen must be in our own hands, and all the peoples within our kingdom must understand that they are subjects of the King of Hungary, not the German Emperor." The decree issued by the Hungarian Parliament requires all citizens within its jurisdiction to address Joseph as King, not Emperor, otherwise the crime is equivalent to treason. Furthermore, the Hungarian Parliament disregards the opinions of other ethnic groups within its borders and forcibly promotes Magyarization.

"I'm sorry." Raki lowered his head and continued to gaze into the distance. Although he was deep in the battlefield, his consciousness had already traveled to a much farther place.

“The Kingdom of Hungary, right?” he murmured.

At this time, the French side—