The British Government had already been driven to a frazzle; the French Government was in even worse shape. It had long since been at a loss, with no idea how to wrap this up.
As one of the parties involved, Napoleon IV received even more bad news. On the surface, the French army had rallied after its crushing defeat, but outsiders had no idea of the terrible price it had paid.
Retreating amid a rout was no easy task. The enemy was not stupid; they would certainly seize the chance to expand their gains. To withdraw smoothly, one had to cut off the tail to save the body.
Moreover, the troops assigned to cover the rear had to be elite units of high loyalty. If newly formed units full of Italians had been left behind, the moment the Austrian army arrived, they might have switched sides on the battlefield.
And so, one million French soldiers were gone. Killed, wounded, scattered, or captured—the French army had suffered losses exceeding one million men, including three hundred thousand elite troops.
The manpower losses were devastating, and the losses of supplies and equipment were beyond counting. In order to retreat as quickly as possible, the French army had even been forced to blow up its own artillery positions.
Lost supplies could be bought again, lost weapons and equipment could be manufactured again, and manpower losses could be replenished. Only time would not allow it.
The battle had barely ended when the Battle of Turin had already begun, followed closely by the Battle of Luxembourg. The French army could only fight reactively.
Minister of War Luskinia said, "Your Majesty, yesterday morning the Spaniards launched an offensive in the Roussillon region. After the bloody efforts of our frontline soldiers, the enemy was finally defeated by evening."