"Marshal, word has come from Rome. Lieutenant General Karl defeated the Kingdom of Italy's forces attacking the Papal States. They're preparing to counterattack Florence!" An intelligence officer rushed into Archduke Albrecht's headquarters with a telegram. Albrecht took it and confirmed the contents.
"Excellent. Pass on my orders: cross the river and launch an offensive along the entire line." Archduke Albrecht said excitedly. "Now it depends on how Victor Emmanuel II chooses. If he withdraws his troops, the front will be thrown into turmoil. If he does not, our expeditionary force can drive straight into Florence. Hahaha!" Archduke Albrecht threw back his head and laughed.
Of course, the Kingdom of Italy could urgently recruit another batch of men to defend Florence, but the Austro-Hungarian expeditionary force was the Empire's most elite army, selected from the best of the best. How could a motley rabble hastily organized by the Kingdom of Italy, men who had only just put down their hoes, possibly resist them?
Moreover, how many peasants the Kingdom of Italy could mobilize was still unknown. If the numbers were too small, they would be of little use at all.
The reason Albrecht had held back these past few days was that he had been waiting for news from Rome. This war between the Austro-Hungarian Empire and the Kingdom of Italy had three battlefields: aside from the eastern front and Rome, there was also the naval battlefield at sea.
If they wanted to break open the situation, Rome was the easiest place to do so. Therefore, once the telegram from Rome arrived, Albrecht no longer hesitated.
As the orders were issued, the Austro-Hungarian Army, which had long been itching for a fight, advanced from its forward positions on the western bank of the Isonzo River toward Italy's Isonzo River defensive line,