I am the Crown Prince of France

Chapter 207: Like Wolves and Tigers

The first round of cannon fire usually serves as a ranging shot, especially with mortars that have curved trajectories. Adjusting the angle of the cannon based on the impact points of the previous shots is a necessary step. However, one cannonball landed directly within the pirates' defensive positions.

Although the power of the black powder explosion wasn't enormous, it knocked down the two pirates closest to the blast. Shrapnel from the explosion embedded itself in the abdomen of one and the chest of the other, splattering blood all over the surrounding pirates.

Before the pirates could react, the Guard Corps fired another volley.

The gunners had adjusted their aim based on the previous errors. This time, more than half of the cannonballs accurately landed among the pirates, causing even more bloodshed.

After several rounds of bombardment, a major officer arrived on the beach via a small boat. He frowned as he glanced at the pirate cannons still firing chaotically from the harbor fort. Although the pirates' gunnery skills were poor, and they hadn't yet hit the Guard Corps directly, it was only a matter of time before they got lucky.

The major pointed toward the hundreds of pirates defending the beach and said to the signal officer, "Order an immediate assault."

"Yes, sir!"

As the signal flags were raised and lowered, the drummers moved to the front of the formation, alongside the company commanders, and began beating the drums as they marched forward.

The soldiers behind them advanced in unison, completely ignoring the pirates' scattered gunfire. Not a single man was hit as the first seven companies that landed on the beach approached within 70 paces of the pirates.

"Halt!"

Following the signal flags, the officers issued commands:

"Present arms!"

"Take aim!"

"Fire!"

A barrage of bullets erupted from the Guard Corps' ranks, and screams of agony echoed from the pirates' side as more than ten of them fell onto the sand.

The pirates, already disorganized by the bombardment, fell into even greater disarray. The sporadic gunfire that had been coming from their side dwindled to almost nothing.

The second rank of the Guard Corps stepped forward three paces and fired another volley on the command of their officers.

In this methodical, alternating fire, they quickly closed the distance between them and the pirates to less than 40 paces.

The Guard Corps already outnumbered the pirates and were equipped with faster-loading, more powerful percussion cap muskets. They were also far better trained than these pirates. In the ensuing exchange of gunfire, over a hundred pirates were killed, and the survivors began to flee.

On the Guard Corps' side, only four or five soldiers were hit by bullets, simply by bad luck.

Finally, the pirates' morale shattered under the relentless and disciplined advance of the Guard Corps. After yet another volley from the hundreds of Augustin-pattern muskets, the remaining 400 to 500 pirates, wearing white headscarves and various colored half-robes, began shouting, "It's over! We're finished! Run!" and dropped their weapons, turning to flee toward the town behind the harbor.

The Guard Corps quickly cleared away the spiked barricades. Meanwhile, more soldiers landed on the beach from the boats, and three 4-pound cannons were brought ashore.

After quickly reorganizing, two infantry battalions and an artillery company swiftly moved around the slope behind the harbor fort, effectively surrounding it from a distance.

By this time, the pirates around the fort had already fled. Berthier, who had landed on the beach, looked up at the fort on the high ground, pondering how to minimize casualties in the assault. A fort without infantry support wasn't particularly fearsome. With a combination of skirmisher attacks and artillery suppression, it could be taken relatively easily.

At that moment, a few eager young military academy officers rushed over, excitedly saluting him:

"Sir, please allow us to take the fort!"

"We promise not to disappoint you!"

Berthier glanced through his telescope at the pirates on the fort, who were firing wildly without much strategy, and nodded. "Alright, go earn your glory, gentlemen!"

"Yes, sir!" The young officers exchanged excited looks and quickly returned to their companies. Soon, the sound of drums filled the air as the soldiers swiftly formed over ten assault columns.

Simultaneously, the three cannons began providing covering fire.

Not far away, Davout, hearing that the cadets were launching an assault, felt a surge of competitive spirit and also requested permission from Berthier to participate in the attack on the fort.

If Joseph could see this, he would undoubtedly exclaim that it was a waste of talent—this was Marshal Davout, one of the three great marshals under Napoleon, about to be used in such a dangerous task as storming a fort!

However, every great commander starts as a novice. Without honing their skills in the crucible of battle, how could they gain the experience needed on the battlefield? Even the young Davout was no exception.

This was one of Joseph's key objectives in sending them to North Africa. After all, the intensity of the North African battlefield was far less than that of Europe, making it one of the safest places to gain combat experience.

After a moment of consideration, Berthier agreed to the young officer's request, assigning him and his company to support the cadets from the rear. If the cadets failed to take the fort, they would launch the second wave of the attack.

Davout hurried back to his company, leading his soldiers to join the cadets' assault and positioning them in a skirmish line on the flanks.

Soon, the cadets, leading the assault, charged up the slope toward the pirate fort at the top.

The pirates noticed the Guard Corps' movements and hastily sent 150 men out of the fort to form a defensive line on the slope. This was all the manpower the fort had left.

Contrary to what movies might suggest, if defenders stay holed up in a fort, attackers will quickly move into the dead zone of the fort's cannons, gradually picking off the fort's defenses.

The most effective defense is to hold off the enemy with infantry, using the fort's firepower to inflict casualties and ultimately repel the attackers.

But before the pirates could get into proper formation, the 200 cadets were already within 70 to 80 paces. Although the fort's cannons had been firing continuously, the pirates' terrible aim meant they had hit very few targets.

The pirates below the fort only managed to fire two volleys before the cadets charged at them with bayonets, shouting, "In the name of the Prince!"

Davout ordered his men to provide covering fire with a volley.

The Tunisian navy could easily bully merchant sailors, but they were no match for the ferocity and fearlessness of a well-trained elite force. The pirates' defensive line instantly crumbled. They screamed as they fled back to the fort, but most didn't even have time to run; they simply dropped their weapons and surrendered on the spot.

This coastal defense fort was typically built at a very high elevation, but the fort itself wasn't particularly tall, usually only about two stories high.

Davout watched as the cadets, like hungry wolves, scaled the fort, occasionally tossing pirate corpses down as they advanced. He was envious, his eyes practically glowing with jealousy—those cadets had claimed the supreme honor of being the first to breach the enemy's defenses, something that had eluded him...

(End of this chapter)

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