The wind rose, clouds surged, and the vast sea rippled. The nascent sun scattered its light, illuminating the expansive sea and sky. The trees on the islands refracted colorful light under the sun, adding a touch of mystery, as both fleets remained in a tense standoff.
Veronese was full of ambition, holding the advantage of terrain and having an ambush prepared. As long as the Papal States fell into his trap, they would be engulfed in a sea of fire by a rain of cannonballs. At that point, he would lead the Venice Navy, of which he was so proud, to charge in and surely achieve a decisive victory, making a name for himself across the land.
However, there was no movement from the opposing side for a long time. Veronese, who had been looking forward to the battle, grew increasingly impatient and, having no solution, paced back and forth on the deck in frustration.
Pisani saw his chance and proposed that he call out to the enemy, intending to disrupt their morale and lure them into attacking. Veronese immediately agreed.
Picking up the microphone, Pisani provocatively announced his identity with a high-pitched voice: "You dogs of the Papal States, I am Pisani! You must be very disappointed to see that I'm still alive!"
Even with binoculars, it was impossible to see the faces of the people on the ships from several hundred meters away, but voices could not be faked. As expected, upon hearing Pisani's voice, Giovanni, Karl, and Riccardo all looked as if they had seen a ghost.
Even some soldiers began to whisper: "Yesterday, Ferrara was surrounded three layers deep, like an iron barrel. How did Pisani escape?" Some soldiers had even witnessed Pisani self-immolate. How could he be here now? Could it be that Pisani had signed a contract with the devil and mastered the art of resurrection?
Confirming it was Pisani's voice, Riccardo cursed fiercely, "Damn it! That cowardly rat actually escaped! Since Pisani is not dead, news must have reached all parts of Venice, and they must have prepared for battle in advance."
"No matter," Giovanni calmly reassured, "Even with advance preparation, Venice would have at most one night to prepare. We, on the other hand, have been preparing for several months." He then calmly looked at Karl, "I'm just curious how he escaped. Didn't they say he self-immolated?"
Giovanni had no intention of blaming. It was just that he was not present at the time, and Riccardo did not participate in the final encirclement. Among all those present, Karl should have been the clearest about the situation at the time.
Regarding Pisani's appearance, an answer was needed not only by the generals of both armies but also by the soldiers. There was a big difference between Pisani having barely escaped with his life and him having fought his way out of the encirclement. Understanding the situation would allow for a better response.
Karl furrowed his brow and pondered for a moment, then deduced: "It seems now that the one who self-immolated at the time must have been his body double. And adopting self-immolation as a method was also to deceive us, making us mistakenly believe that Pisani was dead, thus buying him time for his subsequent escape.
During the battle, our encirclement was extremely tight, so Pisani could not possibly have broken through then. Based on my guess, he most likely escaped after the battle, when we were cleaning the battlefield and our guard was down, by mixing in with our people or even with the corpses."
"In that case…" Giovanni clapped his hands happily, having an idea, "I know how to respond."
After a long silence, Pisani was about to say something more to provoke the Papal States when Giovanni's voice drifted over the sea: "So it's Pisani Commander. I didn't expect you to not only be alive but also to be able to lead troops again. How delightful!
Venice has no one left, to actually send you, a defeated general who lost his army and disgraced his country, to lead troops again! I am truly relieved! Can you tell me how you abandoned all your subordinates and escaped alone under heavy encirclement?"
At this point, a long burst of laughter erupted from the Papal States' side, and there was a stir of murmurs from Venice's side. Even Veronese and Lavallette, who knew this was the enemy's scheme to sow discord, couldn't help but look askance at Pisani. From beginning to end, Pisani had never said exactly how he escaped, not to the Doge, and not to his colleagues either. This naturally aroused suspicion.
Pisani was not angered and immediately retorted, "My subordinates fought bravely and protected me with their lives, dying in your sneak attack, just so I could escape and expose your true colors, to make the soldiers of Venice guard against you treacherous villains, lest they repeat the same mistake and let your conspiracy succeed!
You must be very disappointed to hear my voice here today, aren't you? All of Venice is prepared. If I'm not mistaken, you are attacking us from two directions, by land and by sea.
The border guards have long since set up an ambush, just waiting for your Field Army to attack so they can be wiped out. Garrisons from all over are also being continuously transferred to Venice to guard the Doge's Palace. Your dreams are over, your conspiracy has failed!"
Upon hearing this, Karl's heart sank: "Oh no, should we quickly send a message back to Duke to tell him that the enemy at the border has an ambush?"
Although Karl and Duke often competed with each other and always wanted to get the upper hand, as fellow generals of the Papal States, both personally promoted by the Pope, they had developed a sense of mutual appreciation over time. Karl would never want to see Duke fall in battle or be punished.
"General Karl, don't be anxious. Calm down and think, how many troops can Venice mobilize within one night? Moreover, they know our primary target must be Venice, so they will certainly prioritize defending Venice.
Even if the border guards are prepared, how many people do they have, and what is their combat strength? General Duke is one of His Holiness the Pope's two most trusted generals, also seasoned in battle, and he can certainly see the battlefield situation. He leads the Field Army, which the Pope also highly values. Do you not trust him that much? Even if he encounters temporary resistance, self-preservation will be no problem, let alone defeat.
If we send ships away from the fleet now, it will not only be of no help to the battle over there, but our morale here will also be greatly affected. This is exactly the effect Pisani wants! We cannot let others lead us by the nose!"
"Damn it! I almost fell for his trick! I really shouldn't have, to not even see through such a simple scheme," Karl said, taking a sharp breath and blaming himself after hearing Giovanni's analysis.
"Concern makes one confused. It shows that you and General Duke have a good relationship, which is understandable," Riccardo smoothed things over.
After getting permission with a questioning look, Karl picked up the microphone and cursed loudly: "Pisani! You gutless old turtle, stop bluffing! Your Venice is a small place, your nobles are treacherous, and your local officials act independently. Don't even talk about giving you one night to prepare; even if you had ten years, what kind of waves could you stir up? I tell you, in the face of absolute power, all schemes and tricks are futile!"
The Papal States' soldiers, who had just looked worried, immediately cheered up, their anxieties swept away.
"If that's the case, why did you concoct such a conspiracy, first feigning alliance, then designing to kill my Venice soldiers? Wasn't all of this a scheme you Papal States devised because of your insufficient strength? Relying on schemes and tricks, yet now you shamelessly talk about absolute power, it's simply ridiculous!"
"Everything my Papal States did was sincere! It was your Venice that was arrogant and presumptuous, bringing this upon yourselves!"
"You Papal States are nothing but insidious people who only know how to cheat and ambush. Now, my Venitian is right here. Do they dare to fight?"