Mercenary I am the king

Chapter 1216 Colonel Kurt, Overwhelmed with Troubles

Inside the U.S. Joint Task Force Headquarters in the Green Zone of Bakta.

The atmosphere here contrasts sharply with the tranquility of Dagula, creating a hellish yet heavenly scene.

A huge electronic sand table occupied an entire wall, with red arrows representing the 1515 armed forces, like ferocious venomous snakes, frantically biting at the blue defensive line representing the government forces and allies.

Every flash, every movement, meant that more soldiers fell on the front lines, and more positions changed hands.

The blue blocks in the direction of Ozam have been breached in many places, and many areas have turned into a glaring red and are constantly sinking inward, like a piece of corroded metal.

In the Agra region, the blue halo representing the besieged Kold's forces is shrinking at a visible speed. The red indicators representing "urgent need for assistance," "out of ammunition," and "heavy casualties" are flashing continuously in the side frame of the situation map on the screen, like the last struggling heartbeat on a monitor of a dying patient.

The communications channels were in complete chaos, a cacophony of English, Arabic, and Kurdish accents mixed with screams, roars, static interference, and the faint sound of explosions in the background, all weaving together a desperate symphony that filled the busy command center.

"Eastern Ozam has fallen! Repeat, eastern district has fallen! 1515 armored trucks have stormed into the city! We are retreating! We need artillery fire to cover the entrance to the eastern district!"

"This is the Agra 'Freedom Fighters' First Battalion! We need air support! Now! Immediately! They're coming up again! Human wave tactics!"

"General Saif's command post is out of reach! The last communication was ten minutes ago, so he may have been moved, or... God help us!"

"Ammunition! We need anti-tank ammunition! RPGs! Anything that can stop their armored vehicles!"

"Colonel Kurt! Colonel Kurt! Are you listening?!"

General Saif's hoarse voice suddenly forced its way in through the encrypted line.

“My men are falling in droves! Where is your air support? Where is the artillery fire you promised? The East District is lost, and street fighting is breaking out in the city center! We can't hold out for more than a few hours! If you can't provide effective support, I will have to order the troops to retreat and abandon Ozam! Can you take responsibility for that?!”

Colonel Kurt stood in front of the sand table, his face ashen.

He grabbed the communicator and roared, "Saif! Hold your line! Don't retreat! Air support is being coordinated, you need to hold on! Abandoning Ozam is like losing Bakda's shield!"

"Coordination?! By the time you've finished coordinating, my command post will be wiped out!"

Saif's voice was almost a roar.

“Tell me, why are the ‘Musicians’ stuck in Dagula? If they had attacked Hurmatu as planned, the pressure on me would have been halved! What on earth are you Americans and that mercenary leader up to?!”

Just then, another, more urgent call, accompanied by a barrage of gunfire in the background, broke through, tinged with a distinct Kurdish accent and despair: "Command, command, this is Agra! We're completely surrounded! Repeat, completely surrounded! The enemy has broken through the southeast and northwest juncture and is pressing towards the center! We've run out of anti-tank missiles! Our heavy machine gun ammunition is almost gone! The wounded...too many wounded, nowhere to evacuate! We need immediate evacuation! Or strong close air support! For God's sake, save us! We..."

The cries for help were suddenly interrupted by a violent explosion and electrical noise, followed by a chilling silence.

Kurt's heart clenched.

He knew where the problem lay.

Tuz Valley.

That was a carefully planned move, a flawless "reduction of power from the vassal states."

Using intelligence to create a "reasonable delay," Song Heping suffered troop losses.

According to the plan, that was just the beginning; the next battles, the Battle of Hurmatu and the Siege of Tikrit, were the real focus.

If the ending is perfect, Song Heping's troops will suffer heavy losses after capturing Titrick, allowing the Kold's forces to reap the rewards and become the main force in the attack.

After this operation concludes, the Kold'd forces will gain more territory in northwestern Iligo and more initiative and influence.

The whole plan was perfect, but he never expected Song Heping's reaction to be so intense, so swift, so...

Completely unexpected!

In Kurt's view, Song Heping's reaction was excessive!
For the sake of the lives of a mere few dozen men, they dared to disregard the overall counter-terrorism situation in northwestern Iligo!
They disregarded the lives of more than 10,000 Kold's allies!
This is a blasphemy against the word "ally"!

Of course, Kurt is very "American," selectively ignoring the fact that he had first undermined the trust of his "allies."

First look for the cause in others.

"Colonel!"

A young staff officer strode up to him with a grave expression, his forehead covered in cold sweat. "The Pentagon... the White House National Security Council is holding an emergency video conference! Top level! It will connect in three minutes! National Security Advisor Brennan will be chairing it personally! You are required to attend and report on the situation here."

Kurt's heart sank.

What was supposed to come finally came.

The rapid deterioration of the war situation could not possibly go unnoticed by the gentlemen in Washington.

He took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the panic in his heart, straightened his slightly wrinkled military uniform, tried to make his expression calm again, and then walked towards the confidential video conference room located on the side of the command center.

He knew he had to pin all the blame on the ambitious mercenary leader.

Song Heping's "betrayal" is his best excuse.

1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, Washington, D.C.

Just as Colonel Kurt walked toward the video conference room, a black Chevrolet Suburban silently drove through the drizzling streets toward the northwest gate of the White House.

Inside the car, CIA Director Simon leaned back in the soft leather seat of the back seat, reading the day's newspaper.

The raindrops outside the car window streaked across his expressionless face in the light of the streetlights.

What interested him in the newspapers was a media storm that had suddenly erupted in the past few hours by the Horizon News Corporation's media platforms, which were controlled by Angel.

The counter-terrorism operations in the Ilig and Celia regions, which were originally handled discreetly, are now common knowledge.

Simon's lips twitched almost imperceptibly. Angel, this new media queen, is really quick to extend her tentacles.

The car came to a smooth stop at the checkpoint and, after a thorough security check, slowly drove into the White House grounds.

Simon opened his eyes, his deep gaze sweeping across the familiar scenery outside the window through his glasses.

Even in the rain, this building, representing the pinnacle of American power, still exudes a solemn yet oppressive aura.

But he knew that the atmosphere here today was probably no better than that in the command center on the front lines in Ilig.

He picked up the confidential briefcase beside him, which contained the CIA's latest assessment report on the current situation, as well as some...

Background material that is not suitable for presentation at public meetings.

The driver opened the car door for him, where a White House staff member was already waiting.

"Director Simon, Mr. Brennan and the other attendees are already waiting in the situation room." The staff member's voice carried a hint of tension.

Simon nodded slightly and followed the other person quickly toward the famous secret room in the West Wing of the White House—the Presidential Situation Room.

The corridor leading to the west wing was covered with thick carpets, and portraits of past presidents hung on the walls, their gazes seemingly fixed on the intelligence chief who was hurrying past.

The oak door to the situation room was pushed open, revealing a huge oval conference table that occupied the center of the room, with screens covering the walls, displaying live feeds of hotspots around the world.

The largest section clearly displays the real-time battle situation transmitted from the Baghdad Green Zone command center—the ever-spreading red is shocking.

National Security Advisor Brennan sat in the head seat, his face as gloomy as the weather outside the window.

To his left was the Secretary of Defense, a resolute-looking former four-star general, who was frowning and staring at the red arrow on the screen; to his right was the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, whose expression was equally serious.

On other split screens, senior officials from the Pentagon, the State Department, and other relevant agencies were also online.

Colonel Kurt's face, which was trying to remain calm but couldn't hide its pallor, appeared on one of the smaller screens, like a prisoner awaiting sentencing.

Simon, you've arrived.

Brennan gestured to the empty seat opposite him: "Have a seat, we've just begun."

Simon nodded, sat down in his seat, and placed his briefcase beside him.

He noticed that there was a tablet computer spread out on the table in front of Brennan, and the screen displayed the homepage of Horizon News.

A bolded headline stood out: "Strategic Mistake or Betrayal? — Iriego's Allies Are Besieged, Why Is the Mysterious Contractor Remaining Inactive?"

The accompanying image is a drone shot of the town of Dagula, clearly showing the vehicles and personnel of the "Musician" defense company stationary, in stark contrast to the intense fighting in the directions of Ozam and Agra.

Although the article does not directly name the United States, it is full of suggestive questions: Why did the contractors on which the US military relies stop operating at a critical moment?
Are there any undisclosed deals or conflicts? Whose decisions led to the abandonment of frontline allies?

The article quotes “unnamed military analysts” and “local sources” to portray Song Heping as a complex figure “forced to take self-defense action due to unfair treatment”, while implicitly pointing the finger at “certain US frontline commanders who tried to play power games and ultimately got burned.”

Good trick!
Simon secretly praised him in his heart.

He believed that the information disclosed in the newspapers must have been deliberately leaked to these media outlets by Song Heping through certain channels.

This article, along with similar reports published simultaneously by several other media outlets influenced by "Horizon," has already dropped a bombshell in Washington's media circles.

It not only linked Song Heping's "inaction" to the potential "mistakes" of the US military, but more importantly, it made public Song Heping's cooperation with the US military.

Before this, everything was done discreetly and in secret.

This is an invisible bond!

That's an incredibly clever tactic!

The video conference has officially begun.

Without any pleasantries, Brennan went straight to the point, asking Kurt on the screen: "Colonel Kurt, please explain why the situation in northwestern Ilig has deteriorated so drastically overnight? Why did Song Heping suddenly halt all military operations after capturing Dagula? I need a reasonable explanation!"

Colonel Kurt's expression visibly stiffened.

"Mr. Brennan, esteemed officers. As you can see, the situation is dire and continues to worsen. The root of all this lies in Song Heping's treachery and inflated ambition! After successfully capturing Dagula and gaining immense prestige and practical benefits, he believes he no longer needs our support, openly breaking the secret agreement reached with us and unilaterally halting the attack on Hurmatu!"

He became increasingly agitated, getting more and more excited: "His sudden halt to the advance led to a sharp reduction in pressure on the crucial Hurmatu direction, allowing the 1515 militia to transfer all its main forces, including its most elite assault teams and heavy weapons, to the Ozam and Agra directions! This is the direct cause of our rapid collapse!"

He took a deep breath, trying to draw everyone's attention to Song Heping's "conspiracy": "We have every reason to believe that Song Heping's actions are an attempt to blackmail us, to exploit the crisis at the front, and force us to recognize his greater autonomy in northwestern Iligo, and even to obtain more funding and equipment aid! He has ulterior motives! His actions have directly led to the desperate situation of our loyal allies—the Iligo government forces and the Kold'd militia—severely undermining our counter-terrorism strategy and damaging the United States' credibility and leadership in the region! Sir, I believe we must take decisive measures to counter this blatant provocation and betrayal in the most severe way, including considering cutting off all support to him, and even..."

"Enough, Colonel Kurt."

A calm, almost emotionless voice interrupted him; it came from Simon, who had been silent the whole time, sitting by the conference table.

All eyes immediately turned to Simon.

He remained seated, only slightly raising his head, his sharp gaze piercing through the screen like a knife, staring directly at Kurt on the other end.

His tone was calm, yet it carried an all-knowing and oppressive quality.

"You keep saying that Song Heping tore up the cooperation agreement..."

Simon's voice wasn't loud, but it reached everyone's ears clearly. "So, please explain to Mr. Brennan, and to everyone here, before the ambush at Tuz Valley, what strategic considerations led you, as the commander of the Joint Task Force of the Theater, to secretly order your intelligence analysis department to deliberately filter and delay transmitting signal intelligence to 'Musician' Defense Company regarding the possibility of elite escort forces accompanying the 1515 transport convoy?"

The meeting room fell into a deathly silence.

The air seemed to have stopped moving.

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(End of this chapter)