The summer sun swept across the upright spears, reflecting dazzling white light that sent a chill down one's spine, yet it was mostly covered by the surging hot blood.
Riccardo and Pisani stood at the rear of their respective formations, gazing intently from afar, emboldened by the protection of their personal guards.
"Commander, it looks like the Venetians are getting serious." A family member beside Riccardo, completely unaware of the agreement between Riccardo and Karl, and experiencing his first battlefield, couldn't help but feel a little nervous with the big battle imminent.
"What are you panicking for! Look at your lack of courage, I'm only afraid he won't get serious. If soldiers come, we'll block them; if water comes, we'll cover it with earth. Just fight!" The junior's slight timidity didn't displease Riccardo; instead, it added a touch of grandeur to him.
Riccardo had waited too long for this day!
If they were to engage the Tuscans with muskets under these circumstances, the battle wouldn't end until one side was completely unable to fight any longer. Pisani, with his single eye, scanned the battlefield and calmly ordered, "All troops, charge!"
One massive military formation after another began to slowly move forward, adjusting and gradually picking up speed while maintaining formation, soon reaching maximum velocity, causing the ground to shake and dust to fly.
However, from Augustus's elevated perspective, the thousands of men forming the square formations looked like charging wild boars, stirring no ripple in his heart.
The Venetian formations exuded an imposing aura, fueled by the fires of vengeance, and even before engagement, they created a psychological deterrent for the Tuscan soldiers who were new to the battlefield.
Riccardo naturally anticipated this, so the front lines of the defense were manned by elites, and even the first few waves to enter combat were seasoned veterans who were unfazed by such minor scenes.
Most of the new recruits were positioned in the middle to rear, with veterans providing support at the very back, and they were also accompanied by experienced soldiers. This allowed the new recruits sufficient time to adjust their state and prevented them from breaking and fleeing due to psychological pressure.
Of course, Riccardo's ability to deploy them this way was thanks to Grand Duke Ferdinand's generous hand; although he only provided 3,500 soldiers, most of them were battle-hardened veterans. Furthermore, they had been handed over to Riccardo early on for training, and now he could command them as easily as moving his own arm.
The Venetian formations, raising dust, had entered the range of the Tuscan soldiers.
The Tuscan musketeers in the front row, unhurried, had already loaded and raised their guns. At a single command, bullets flew out in unison, striking the various Venetian formations, and over twenty Venetian soldiers fell.
In the attacked Venetian formations, the soldiers behind quickly filled the empty positions in front, and the entire formation continued to charge forward, treading over the bodies of their comrades.
Soldiers with minor injuries who could still fight continued to charge forward, while those who still had temporary mobility but could no longer fight quickly dragged their heavy bodies to the outside of the formation and lay down, awaiting rescue.
Some Venetian soldiers, struck down, did not die immediately; though severely wounded, they still had a breath left. However, the advancing formation could not stop, so they were treated as corpses, and under the trampling of the formation, they let out a few final, mournful wails before truly becoming corpses.
After the first row of Tuscan soldiers finished firing, they systematically turned sideways and retreated through the gaps in the defensive line to the last row to reload.
The second row of musketeers stepped forward, also raising their loaded muskets, and under the flag officer's signal, commenced a new round of firing.
"Bang!"
Another volley of gunfire, and the lives of over twenty Venetian soldiers dissipated like clouds.
Compared to the first volley, this round of gunfire was less uniform, and even with the Venetian formations closer, the hit rate was only roughly equal to the first volley.
The Venetian formations moved extremely fast, and after only two volleys, they had already charged to the front of the defensive line. But these swift two volleys had already caused direct or indirect casualties of 50 Venetian soldiers.
Although most of the fallen soldiers were neither direct descendants nor elites, the first rank of the formation was not something that could be filled with just any cannon fodder. The overall combat ability of these fallen soldiers was mostly above average, which made Pisani's heart ache.
With two volleys completed and the enemy already at hand, there was no time for a third volley. Riccardo conveyed the order through the flag officer, and the Tuscan defensive line immediately changed formation.
Musketeers retreated row by row, while pikemen moved forward. The first three rows of pikemen lowered their previously raised pikes at different angles, with the first row crouching, the second half-crouching, forming a tight defense by utilizing simple barricades and chevaux de frise.
As soon as the two armies engaged, dense spears from both sides thrust out. Due to misjudging the distance, many Venetian soldiers, who had just thrust out their own spears, were impaled and killed by the spears suddenly thrust forward by the opposing side.
For a time, battle cries, wails, and the tearing sounds of spears piercing armor and flesh were incessant.
In the first engagement, the well-rested Tuscan side killed a large number of Venetian soldiers at a very small cost.
But the Venetian officers quickly realized the problem and adjusted their attack methods.
Due to the slight advantage in length of the Venetian formation's spears, some Venetian soldiers adjusted their distance and cautiously performed repeated probing thrusts, seizing opportunities to kill the opponent while ensuring they could not be attacked themselves.
As a result, the defensive fortifications previously set up by Tuscany were not only useless but also became obstacles limiting the attack range of the Tuscan soldiers. It became much more difficult for Tuscan soldiers to kill Venetian soldiers, and many Tuscan soldiers even found themselves passively taking hits on their own defensive line.
Other Venetian soldiers deliberately entered the opponent's attack range, and just as the opponent's spear was about to reach its maximum extension, they suddenly grabbed the opponent's spear tip, pulled it back with all their might, dragging the opponent along with their spear and cover, and were then immediately stabbed to death by comrades beside them.
There were even some Venetian warriors who threw away their cumbersome spears, armed with short knives, and, crouching low to avoid the opponent's spear attacks, charged to the opponent's front, wielding their short knives to cut the enemy's throat, pulse, and Achilles tendons, and stab through their chest, abdomen, arms, and thighs.
Most of these warriors faced certain death, yet they continued to advance relentlessly. What motivated them was both the glory of the most noble Venice Republic and the rights they could earn for their families through their valiant struggle.
Riccardo realized the Tuscan soldiers' disadvantage in close combat due to weapon length, so he decisively ordered them to abandon the defensive line and retreat.
Facing the pile of abandoned fences and chevaux de frise left by the Tuscan soldiers, the Venetian soldiers were hesitant whether to advance or retreat. Crossing them one by one would inevitably disrupt their formation, and moving them would make them easy targets for the enemy.
While the opposing side hesitated, the Tuscan musketeers and pikemen had re-formed. Under the cover of the pikemen, the Tuscan musketeers fired again.
A volley of gunfire, and another group of Venetian soldiers fell into a pool of blood.