On a high ground, Derisen watched in anger as his line of infantry collapsed before they even properly engaged the enemy. Frustrated, he threw his binoculars to the ground.

"They're a disgrace to the Royal Guard!"

Remembering that his Grenadier Corps was still holding its ground, he quickly ordered the messenger, "Tell Bor and Karus' regiments to reinforce the Grenadiers!"

These two regiments were his reserves. Derisen believed that the recent failure was due to poor command within the Fehn Corps. If he could stabilize the situation around the Grenadier Corps, he might be able to buy some time.

Soon, the Prussian reserves moved forward, having just reformed into ranks behind the first infantry line, about 200 paces back. In roughly ten minutes, they would fill the gap. This second line also served another purpose—to block any retreating soldiers in the event of a collapse at the front.

In this era of warfare, the weapons' lethality was surprisingly limited. Even a volley from thousands of flintlock rifles might only kill a hundred men. Battles were usually lost when one side's morale broke, causing soldiers to flee. As long as they could keep soldiers in place, the fight could continue.

However, this time, the fleeing soldiers seemed unusually terrified. Despite facing the bayonets of the reserves, they continued to retreat in panic, shouting things like:

"They can't be killed…"

"Run! Those are demons!"

"Only God can kill them!"

Hearing these cries, even the reserve soldiers hesitated. Only after officers shot a few deserters and personally led the troops forward did they manage to restore some order.

Yet, just as Bor and Karus' regiments were about to fill the gap in the front line, the two Grenadier regiments also began to break.

The Guard Corps' cadets were simply too strong. Their speed and precision in loading, shooting, and maintaining formation, as well as their morale, completely overwhelmed the Prussians.

This time, the cadets were also protected by bullet-resistant inserts, which gave them immense confidence. They advanced to within 20 paces of the Prussians, unleashing a volley that shattered the enemy's formation.

At this close range, the inserts provided little protection, but the Prussians could no longer manage a cohesive volley. The sporadic shots that did hit caused minimal damage.

Derisen took the binoculars from his aide and saw his reserve line scattering with the Grenadiers before any substantial contact with the enemy.

He checked his pocket watch with a stony face—the French had broken through his makeshift line in under half an hour.

He knew that his main force was likely still in disarray. Under such conditions, fighting the French in their organized formations would only lead to a chaotic retreat.

With a sigh, Derisen lamented that, since the death of Frederick the Great, the Prussian army's training had steadily declined. Even the elite Royal Guard had become this ineffective.

Hearing the French gunfire drawing closer, he turned his horse around to withdraw and ordered his messenger:

"Order the August Corps to fall back to Liegnitz immediately. All other corps are to withdraw north in an orderly manner, setting up defensive positions in stages."

The August Corps was originally positioned as the rearguard. Given their distance from the French, they might still have a chance to escape. The rest of the units would have to buy whatever time they could. If luck held, some might manage to flee.

Yes, Derisen had decided to abandon the battle.

He recalled how just two months ago, he and Krakow had mocked King Charles II for being routed by the French at Luxembourg, laughing at the incompetence of the Hanoverians. Now it seemed that it wasn't the Hanoverians who were weak, but the French who were too strong…

Upon receiving orders to cover the staged retreat, Colonel Dudon immediately instructed his officers to abandon all supplies and have the soldiers assemble in ranks on the eastern slopes. His forces were the southernmost and couldn't realistically retreat, so they would hold the line as long as possible to give the other corps a chance to escape.

However, just after his orders were given, cannon fire rang out from the east.

Dudon's heart clenched. General Derisen had said that the French main force was to the southwest. Where had these cannons come from?

Before Dudon's forces could form ranks, they were hit by a close-range cannon blast, throwing them into disarray and sending them fleeing north towards the main Prussian force in search of cover.

Even the Guard Corps' horse artillery hadn't expected things to go this smoothly. They had initially ambushed the Prussian vanguard simply to slow them down, allowing the infantry to flank the Prussian side. Unexpectedly, their ten 6-pounder cannons, combined with a few Hussars, had routed nearly 4,000 men of the Prussian Bleicher Corps.

The horse artillery commander had intended to regroup with the main Guard Corps, but a major named Napoleon suggested pressing forward and launching a surprise attack on the Prussian center to assist the infantry's decisive strike.

Napoleon managed to persuade his superior, and the horse artillery, shielded by 400 Hussars, circled around the fleeing Bleicher Corps and arrived on the eastern flank of Derisen's main force.

And then they noticed that the Prussians were already retreating.

Without hesitation, the horse artillery opened fire on the retreating enemy.

Meanwhile, the Guard Corps' main infantry force, having swiftly crushed the Fehn Corps, rushed northward several kilometers but found only corpses and scattered Prussian soldiers who hadn't escaped in time.

Soon, scouts returned to report to Berthier that the horse artillery had broken the Prussian line and, with the Hussars' support, were chasing the enemy north.

Berthier's eyes widened in shock. The horse artillery, totaling fewer than 300 men, accompanied by 10 6-pounder cannons and 400 Hussars, were pursuing nearly 20,000 fleeing Prussians?!

After consulting with his aides, he quickly ordered the infantry to move north as swiftly as possible to join the pursuit, while also recalling the horse artillery through a messenger.

The sheer number of Prussians was too large. If they regrouped for a counterattack, the horse artillery could be wiped out.

An hour and a half later, Joseph arrived at Derisen's former command post. Given the chaotic state of the battlefield, Berthier had urged him to stay behind until they were sure the area was secure. Only then did they allow him to proceed.

"Your Highness, our vanguard has chased the enemy all the way to the area around Jägerdorf," Berthier reported, "and our dragoons have overtaken the Bleicher Corps retreating towards Breslau."

(End of Chapter)

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