Sarrebourg.
The French soldiers' morale was extremely low. After all, no one could stay excited when they were shelled all day. Worst of all, this one-sided situation had continued for more than ten days, and the army's high command seemed powerless to do anything.
Of course, this mainly applied to the new recruits who had arrived as reinforcements. The French soldiers who had previously fought the German Allied Forces in open battle didn't feel this way.
That was also why the French high command had remained silent. After suffering several attacks, they had thought they could wipe away their shame in a head-on battle. Instead, they had suffered their greatest defeat yet.
At first, Lamoricière had been just as stunned as his subordinates. But after reviewing events and observing the enemy for days, he had finally realized that these Allied forces weren't the main body of the German Allied Forces—or, rather, their main body hadn't arrived yet.
Their repeated calls for surrender seemed more like a way to stall for time. Apart from the first two days, the shelling hadn't been very frequent, and they often fired wildly at night.
Lamoricière was no fool. He knew perfectly well that the general who had wielded those motley German Allied Forces with such ease in the first day's battle couldn't possibly be an incompetent.
After that crushing defeat, Lamoricière began to take the enemy before him seriously. Archduke Albrecht of Austria was undoubtedly an opponent worthy of respect.
His record, his battle honors, even his birth were beyond reproach. The German Allied Forces were rife with factions, and only someone from the House of Habsburg could keep them under control.
That was also why the commanders of the three German Allied Forces groups all came from the House of Habsburg. The greatest