I, who was eager to retire, became an Imperial General.

Chapter 158 The tide will shatter their illusions of victory!

Following Lieutenant General Faco's order to begin operations, the Seventh Army Corps began its rapid advance, encircling the small coastal town ahead.

After arriving at a location about 1 kilometer from the trench, following orders from officers of all ranks, the artillery vehicles began to raise their muzzles and launch an attack on the circular trench ahead.

"Boom boom boom!"

The intense tremors, accompanied by deafening explosions, echoed across the battlefield.

At this moment, in a temporary underground command post behind Star Town, John felt the vibrations coming from above and listened to the scouts reporting the damage to the front-line trenches. However, his expression remained unchanged as he calmly gazed at the calm sea in his field of vision.

In fact, when Martha was tasked with digging that circular trench, he was prepared to suffer battle losses.

Because from beginning to end, he never intended to use that suicide squad of less than 400 men to resist the Allied attack.

These suicide squad members in the trenches had only one real purpose.

That is to act as bait to lure Allied forces to a predetermined location.

Only in this way could he ensure that, after witnessing casualties in the trenches, Frank, as the enemy commander, would believe that he was out of options.

Then, in a moment of carelessness, he led his troops to launch a final encirclement against him.

Of course, John knew this too.

Given their personality, they would never be content with this.

While attempting to annihilate the Imperial Army forces, the enemy will certainly try every means to annihilate, or even capture, them and their 1st Magic Battalion.

As for the magic soldiers who can fly at supersonic speeds with the help of magic packs, even if the other side carries magic interference devices that can restrict the magic soldiers' flight ability, if they want to capture the 1st Magic Battalion, they must first set up interference lines on the sea to block their retreat.

If an ordinary imperial commander were here, he would probably think such a thing was impossible.

After all, with only flashy magical technology, and with cannons far inferior to the Empire's allies in terms of both projectile power and caliber, how could they possibly have miraculously deployed jamming devices in the surrounding seas in just one day?

Therefore, the other party will definitely not take any precautions.

But John, who knew Frank's personality well, knew that the other party was not a commander who played by the rules at all.

Moreover, as the Seventh Army was equipped with the most advanced technology and equipment currently available to the Allies, John knew very well that the enemy had the capability to deploy defenses at sea, and that it would be very easy for them to do so.

"After all, in the later stages of the Battle of Fauken in the game, Frank's most famous tactic was to use the Allied first-generation amphibious transport vehicles to transport magical facilities, thereby creating a sea defense line with various spell effects, and thus limiting the speed of Imperial warships and interfering with the accuracy of Imperial artillery fire."

"It was precisely this unique combat method that allowed the enemy to quickly annihilate the Imperial Third Navy's fleet in Faoken Bay after joining forces with the Fifth Army and utilizing coastal artillery and a large number of warships!"

"And although the amphibious transport vehicle achieved unprecedented success under Frank's brilliant mind, it was only for this one time."

"Subsequently, with the Empire taking precautions, they also began to specifically enhance the strength of submarines and destroyers, thus destroying the combat plan of this low-cost sea surface technology blocking belt. It could only be transformed into a coordinated operation of transport vehicles and battleships. It lost the original stealth that was due to the small size of the target and the ability to avoid detection through techniques, making it difficult to achieve the possibility of silent deployment, and thus it was gradually abandoned."

"Therefore, if nothing unexpected happens, the opponent will most likely use this tactic of 'debuting at the peak' against themselves this time!"

Looking at Martha, who had activated her telepathic enhancement, he saw a real-time monitoring map of the sea area two kilometers away from the Starry Coast, presented to him through the scouts' perspective.

Upon seeing the enemy amphibious transport vehicle convoy that had activated camouflage techniques, absorbing light to simulate the surrounding environment and transforming into invisible ghosts, leaving ripples on the sea surface.

John, who had remained silent for ten minutes under enemy bombardment, couldn't help but let a slight smile creep onto his lips at this moment.

He knew that once this sea defense perimeter against the magic forces was completed, it would be time for Frank to lead his army in a decisive battle against his own forces, who were now 'desperate'.

And that's exactly what he wanted to see.

Frank's seemingly flawless plan, thanks to his prior deductions and arrangements, will soon be completely shattered by the approaching Black Tide, rendering it utterly ineffective against him.

Although the enemy is as clever as they are, they will certainly set up anti-magic devices along with jamming devices to prevent this sea defense line from being destroyed by the magic soldiers, thus ensuring victory.

If John could only command the Imperial Army 1st Division and the Air Force 1st Battalion, then this battle would indeed be somewhat troublesome for him.

But in fact, this battle was completely different from the previous ones.

This time, he was no longer fighting alone, but had the help of allies after a long time!
And unlike Dolan and Tony, this time he can completely trust his ally!

Therefore, Frank, who tried to outmaneuver himself by exploiting information asymmetry, will also be outmaneuvered by himself in this encounter.

Inevitably, they were caught between the surging, yellowish-brown waves on the shore and the overwhelming Kuroshio Current from the sea.

That illusion of victory was utterly shattered!

And in this regard, it is a matter of being a fraudster, being deceived by an even more insidious fraudster, and heading towards a cold death.

As the commander, Frank should have been aware of this long ago, right?
John pondered to himself, while his fingers tapped slowly and rhythmically on the table, making a soft thumping sound, like a messenger of death counting down the final days for the souls he was about to harvest.

"Reporting to Sir John, the enemy's artillery bombardment has ended. Our trenches have been severely damaged, and the surviving soldiers have evacuated into Star Town as you instructed. However, the enemy is encircling our forces. What should we do next?"

Inside the underground command post, after hearing the battle report from his subordinates.

Unlike the still calm John, Samuel felt more anxious than ever before, and his forehead was covered with a fine layer of cold sweat.

At this moment, he was feeling very down, even to the point of despair.

Although he also wanted to trust John's command abilities, based on the instructions and intelligence he had received, his years of combat experience constantly told him that they were doomed to defeat this time.

Even with the arrival of the first Imperial Spear, they would have no chance of winning against the enemy's nearly 20,000 troops.

Right now, we are completely trapped in a dead end!

There is absolutely no chance of victory. In fact, even he, the nominal commander, will most likely be captured by the Allied forces!

Although Samuel had foreseen this outcome when he pledged his loyalty to John several days earlier.

But now that it has actually happened to him, he realizes that this ending seems a little too heavy.

It was so heavy that he couldn't help but start to waver!
Samuel looked at John with a flickering gaze, his mind in turmoil.

Loyalty and betrayal churned within him, causing him to instinctively clench his fists before releasing them.

After performing this action for a long time, he took a deep breath, suppressed all the chaotic emotions in his heart, and then, forcing himself to speak, said in a deep voice to John, who had a half-smile on his face:

"Sir John, I will continue to lead the soldiers to resist the enemy in Star Town for you. You should lead the magic forces to retreat as soon as possible. As the saying goes, as long as there is life, there is hope. So, I think..."

However, before Samuel could finish explaining his thoughts, John, who was sitting at the makeshift desk, suddenly laughed and then said something that left Samuel stunned:

"Colonel Samuel, do you think my promises are so unreliable? Or was your previous approval of me all a pretense?"

“No, Your Excellency John, that’s not what I meant, it’s just…”

Samuel was eager to explain, but before he could continue, John's gaze sharpened as he saw the enemy's naval defenses were complete. He slowly stood up and said something to Samuel that left the latter stunned:

"Colonel Samuel, you need not doubt or be confused. Just as I said before, you only need to follow my orders and carry them out steadfastly, and I will reclaim the victory and glory and share them with everyone in the 1st Division."

"This is my promise to you all, and it is a goal that I, John Maslow, will definitely achieve!"

“And it’s impossible for anything to happen to it, and I won’t let anything happen to it!” Meeting Samuel’s astonished gaze, John smiled slightly, then ignored the other’s astonished expression and turned to walk towards the passage leading from the underground temporary command post to the surface, while giving the other a soft order.

John's voice was very calm, without any emotion.

But to Samuel, it was like a thunderclap from a clear sky, making him tremble with excitement and almost uncontrollably roar to the heavens at this life-or-death reversal.

"Twenty minutes ago, I ordered the assassination squad, which was carrying out a secret mission, to blow up the dam that had been built in advance at Yuanhe. If nothing unexpected happens, the flood will officially arrive here in ten minutes and engulf the entire Starry Coast."

"Therefore, I need you to immediately notify everyone to consolidate their defenses and gather at the edge of the Starry Coast. This must be done within ten minutes."

"Ten minutes from now, regardless of whether everyone has arrived or not, I will order the 1st Company of the Magic Force to completely destroy Star Town before the flood arrives, creating a giant floodgate."

"In addition, our naval allies are already in position near the Starry Coast and are about to tear through the Allied naval blockade to provide long-range fire support for our forces."

"So, go and mobilize the soldiers immediately to carry out the order, Colonel Samuel."

"The moment of victory we have been waiting for is about to arrive."

"Yes, Your Excellency John!!!"

……

"Wow!"

Meanwhile, two kilometers away on the sea surface off the Starry Coast, one can look through a telescope at the distant Starry Town, where artillery fire rages.

At this moment, sitting in the co-driver's seat of the amphibious transport vehicle, Dunert, under the arrangement of Lieutenant General Fako and leading his magic technology functional group, was responsible for completing this sea surface magic technology ambush mission. A smug smile appeared on his face.

He knew that, surrounded by his own forces, that foolish imperial army had nowhere to escape.

Those enemy troops on the ground will be completely swallowed up by our own army under firepower.

But he did not envy his allies on the ground.

The merits he could gain from the sniping mission were far greater than those from annihilating the ground troops.

After the enemy's defeat at Star Town, there is no doubt that John Maslow, as the enemy's commander, would try to escape from the sea area where he was located after learning that there were magical interference devices on the ground.

At that time, he could deactivate the camouflage spell and activate the magic interference device, causing those damned magic soldiers who like to fly in the sky all day to lose their speed and become flies that they can easily shoot down.

If he is lucky, he might not kill the enemy commander, but instead cripple him and knock him to the surface of the sea.

So at that time, in addition to winning the honor of capturing the enemy commander, he will also likely become the commander of the kingdom's magic force because the kingdom's intelligence department will learn about the training methods of the imperial magic soldiers through interrogation of the other party!
If one were to be even bolder, then becoming a marquis or prime minister might not be out of the question!

Thinking of this, Dunert, his heart pounding with emotion, couldn't help but lick his lips, which felt inexplicably dry.

However, he did not lower his guard because of the impending victory and glory; on the contrary, he became even more serious and focused.

After hearing about how his cousin, Porter, was defeated by John Maslow through a feigned surrender because of his greed for military achievements, and how he himself was demoted from colonel to lieutenant colonel as a result.

He then realized that all illusions were vain until true victory arrived.

Only after he has truly captured John Maslow will he be qualified to enter a state of relaxation!
Suppressing the surging emotions within him, Dunert's eyes were filled with determination. Without hesitation, he activated the communication device and gave orders to his subordinates:

"Everyone, stay alert, keep a close eye on the sky, don't let a single mosquito get away..."

However, before Dunter could finish giving the order, a sudden wave crashed over him, causing his amphibious transport vehicle to shake violently and uncontrollably.

Under the impact, he was also uncontrollably tilted forward, and if he hadn't reacted quickly, he would have hit his head.

"This damned, awful sea!"

Dunter couldn't help but curse, just as he sat up straight, intending to take a deep breath and issue another order.

The eerie waves surged again, growing ever stronger, as if some terrifying behemoth was hurtling across the once calm sea. The sheer force of the waves was so great that even Dunert, who wasn't very familiar with ocean currents, noticed the anomaly and immediately angrily questioned the reconnaissance company at the regimental headquarters:

"What's going on? Why are there so many more waves all of a sudden? Didn't I tell you to scout the sea area before we set off and set up ambush zones in areas with smaller waves? What the hell is going on?!"

Dunert had expected the reconnaissance troops to give him a perfect explanation, but to his surprise, at that moment, the reconnaissance company commander, who was behind them and responsible for leading the team to monitor the surrounding sea area in real time, was there.

When this report was given to him, the other person's voice lacked its usual respect, instead filled with fear and horror:
"Commander, there's a black wave approaching from behind. They're moving incredibly fast, at least 100, no, 200 knots per hour! At least 200 knots! Wait, God..."

"Crack!"

"Hey! Hey? Damn it!"

He listened to the communication that was inexplicably disconnected, and the ear-piercing explosion that his subordinates made before hanging up, which sounded like steel being crushed by a giant object.

At that moment, Dunter felt an unprecedented sense of unease.

Without the slightest hesitation, he immediately instructed the driver to turn the transport vehicle around.

I plan to see what's going on back there.

However, just as he asked the driver to turn the car around, he suddenly realized that the sea around him was beginning to surge violently, and even his car was beginning to shake uncontrollably.

What is this...

Dunert's forehead was covered in sweat, and he was extremely confused and nervous.

As for this question, it was the instant the car's front end completed its turn.

He then fully understood the real answer.

It was a terrifying wave that almost covered the entire sea surface.

Numerous iron chains were bound to the bodies of giant demonic whales, each over 500 meters long, and then connected to the massive, black warships—a total of thirty-two of them!

Driven by their combined momentum, these monsters, one of flesh and blood and the other of steel, broke through the distance barrier almost instantly and moved faster and faster!

"How could this be? How could this be? Damn it!!!"

Dunert was horrified, his eyes wide with rage, but just as he came to his senses and tried to connect the communication device to transmit the information before he died,

The next second, he suddenly realized that the sky above him had inexplicably turned completely dark.

As if time had been reversed, the blazing sun high in the sky was transformed into complete darkness at this moment.

Then, as if realizing something, he suddenly raised his head and looked out the glass.

However, what finally came into his view was a colossal warship, over 500 meters long and over 80 meters high, resembling a moving city wall, carrying surging waves and radiating a dazzling, massive magical light, as it hurtled toward him.

Immediately, amidst Dunert's bitter smile, his vision was plunged into darkness.

"Crack!"

……

(End of this chapter)