In the Roman rebel command headquarters, Charles stared at the marked enemy positions on the map, his brows tightly furrowed.
Given the Civic Guard's military standards, there were surely many enemy troops yet to be marked, but even so, the battlefield situation was extremely grim. After pondering for a long while, his gaze finally fell upon the Colosseum. "I can't believe you withdrew from the Colosseum two days ago." Lieutenant Colonel Puccini, standing beside him, hurriedly explained, "It was Captain Arceo's order. He told us to strike flexibly and not stubbornly defend one place." Arceo had been one of the two Modena officers the Security Bureau had previously brought to Rome, but he had been struck by a stray bullet and killed the day before yesterday. The other had slipped away before the Naples troops even reached Rome.
Thus, Puccini had once again taken up the burden of commanding the rebels—he was the person in the Free Rome Party who understood military affairs best. As for his rank of lieutenant colonel, the rebels had naturally bestowed it upon him; he had previously only been a second lieutenant.
Charles pointed at the Colosseum and said loudly, "This is the core of the entire city's offense and defense. Whoever occupies it will gain an enormous advantage. Please gather the soldiers at once. We must retake it!"
Yes, at this moment, he had completely forgotten that his purpose in coming here had been to take Josiah and the others away.
Whenever he saw the revolutionaries' blazing, fearless eyes, the words "Please leave Rome with me" simply would not come out. And when the rebels crowded around him, cheering, he felt responsible for leading them to victory.
Then it occurred to him that if they defeated the Naples troops, Josiah and the others would