All right, as the current head of the Bonaparte family—a military dynasty with a long history (though in truth, it had only reached its third generation)—General Joseph Bonaparte was a seasoned commander through and through. He wasn't old; a senior officer in his fifties was still in his prime, of course. But he was utterly cautious and thorough.
That said, at 5:25, the fighting suddenly grew fierce.
Seeing that their little trick hadn't worked, the combined fleet waited until the Outer Ring Fleet's assault group began to slowly pull back, then suddenly concentrated all its Solar-class dreadnoughts and surged forward at full speed.
Their goal was clear: keep up the barrage and close-quarters fighting, driving the flames of war all the way into the Commonwealth's main formation. That way, with their numerical advantage—especially the greater numbers of their assault troops—they could engage the Katai in the boarding actions they loved most.
Perhaps the Imperial knights overseeing the battle could even join in then. They would have the initiative firmly in their hands.
Unfortunately, it was a fine plan, but it ultimately failed.
Had the Imperial Guard Fleet been carrying it out, they might well have succeeded. Unfortunately, the combined fleet had made far too many mistakes: in choosing when to fire, in their accuracy, and in their maneuvering. Perhaps because they weren't coordinating well with their allies, one Katai Solar-class ship even collided with an Enbu cruiser.
These were problems that should have been handled by the individual captains, navigators, helmsmen, and gunnery officers in each turret. Yet it seemed none of them had been properly resolved.
Even so, that sudden thrust had given the Outer Ring Fleet quite a scare. Fortunately, the Yinglong-class battlecruisers covering the retreat had precisely spotted the enemy's momentary confusion and immediately answered with a