Starting with the smashing of Dunkirk

Chapter 37: Completely Changed from Head to Toe

After learning to drive, they learned to fly, and incidentally improved and supervised the production of individual equipment for the Storm Commando Team.

Lelouch's vacation was quite fulfilling.

He spent most of his time in Munich and Nuremberg, dealing with mundane tasks. But he also took a week off to visit the DWM Karlsruhe arms factory in the neighboring Duchy of Baden, where he made some minor custom requests on behalf of the 6th Army—requests that, of course, had been consulted with His Highness the Duke and received his approval.

In 1914, the two largest small arms manufacturers in Demand were Mauser and DWM. The former was responsible for the production of rifles and ammunition, while the latter was responsible for the production of the MG08 heavy machine gun, as well as mortars, grenade launchers and other equipment and their ammunition.

As for heavier artillery and other equipment, that depends on Krupp and Rheinmetall in the north, but those are located in the Ruhr industrial region, beyond the reach of Duke Rupprecht's sphere of influence. Therefore, the development of artillery can only proceed naturally for now.

Lelouch went to the Karlsruhe arsenal, naturally, to order a batch of hand grenades. The wooden-handled grenades currently used by the German army did not have pre-fragmented grenades, so their effectiveness against personnel was somewhat unpredictable.

Producing pre-fragmented pineapple pies like those from the Kingdom of Burkina Faso is still difficult for the time being. It would require re-development and adjustment of the production line, so it is not possible for the time being. After all, that factory is managed by the Principality of Baden, and the royal family of Barea cannot get too involved.

Currently, Lelouch can only customize a batch of hand grenades with wooden handles featuring simple stamped grooves on the outer shell to increase the number of fragments upon explosion. He also needs to optimize the grenade handles to make them compatible with both manual throwing and grenade launchers. (This modification isn't particularly difficult, and it was achieved historically after the war.)

Weapons like the "grenade launcher" have a long history in the German army and can be considered a specially designed mortar.

The small grenade launcher has a caliber of only 50 mm, smaller than the smallest mortar.

The largest could reach 280 mm, technically called a "grenade thrower". A later World War II version of the SDK251 half-track vehicle used a six-barreled 280 mm grenade thrower. However, the grenade thrower itself actually existed in World War I, called the "smoke thrower". World War II simply adapted it for self-propelled use and mounted it on a half-track armored vehicle.

Due to the time constraints, Lelouch didn't expect to make any major improvements to the grenade launcher this time.

In actual combat, the accurate strike range of this weapon is between 100 and 500 meters, which is considered as supplementary firepower between grenades and mortars, perfectly matching the role of the Storm Commando.

However, the experiences of World War I and World War II have fully demonstrated that aiming a grenade launcher is much more difficult than aiming a mortar. This is mainly because grenade launchers do not have a base/mount, so they cannot be pre-leveled, which easily introduces additional errors when aiming. Only elite soldiers can use them well—fortunately, those who can join the Stormtroopers are already elite soldiers.

……

Time flies, and it's already early December.

Early that morning, Lelouch drove back to Munich from Thuringia, with two large suitcases in the back seat of his BMW.

Inside were several prototype light machine guns and submachine guns manufactured by the Bergmann company.

Using a BMW worth 20,000 marks to haul goods—I doubt anyone would do that.

This vehicle was already rare, attracting the attention of pedestrians along the way. When they saw the cargo box piled up in the back, the rate of people turning their heads to look at it skyrocketed to 100%.

Lelouch returned to his lodgings, and Immelmann came out to look when he heard the engine. He had been eating and drinking well for the past few days and was quite bored. Since Lelouch learned to drive, he had been driving around by himself.

When Lelouch saw him, he readily opened the box and pulled out a gun from each side, handing it to him:
"MG15 light machine gun, MP15 submachine gun, we keep our word, and we even customized a rotating gun mount for you, which can be bolted to the side of the cabin."

Without a firing coordinator, modern airborne machine guns certainly cannot fire forward, as the bullets would hit the propeller. However, the enemy is currently completely unprepared for air combat, so such machine guns are sufficient for the time being.

It's not too late to learn the shooting coordinator next year when I have time.

Yin Maiman took the machine gun, a look of delight on his face, and examined it over and over: "Shall we go to the shooting range and practice shooting together?"

Lelouch: "Please spare me. I drove for six hours to Thuringia yesterday and drove back today. I'm exhausted."

The two were chatting when someone suddenly came over and interrupted them: "Captain Lelouch? You're back! His Highness the Duke said that you should go to Neuschwanstein Castle for a banquet tonight and give a report on the preparation of your personal equipment. Bring everything you need."

The speaker was the royal butler who managed the manor, and Lelouch had recently become quite familiar with him.

"Your Highness has returned to Munich too?" Lelouch was somewhat surprised to hear this. "Alright, I understand. I'll be there on time."

He then realized that the Duke must have already finalized the battle plan for the Battle of Ypres and wanted to take one last chance to return home and reunite with his family before the fighting began. Many high-ranking generals who could afford it would do the same.

So he quickly tidied up, changed into a helmet, camouflage uniform, and boots, and left Immelmann behind to drive straight to Neuschwanstein Castle—not because he didn't want to bring his brother along for a free meal, but because the Duke hadn't invited him.

As for the military uniform he was going to wear to the banquet, Lelouch was afraid of wrinkling it beforehand, so he carefully folded it and put it in his suitcase, planning to change into it after he finished his work report.

This was his first time attending a banquet at a royal castle, and he could only try his best to be neither arrogant nor servile.

Neuschwanstein Castle is located in the southwestern suburbs of Munich, a two-hour drive away. It is a snow-capped mountain castle situated in the Alps.

Many readers in later generations may not be familiar with this name, but as long as they see its shape, they will definitely feel familiar with it - because Disney castle is based on this, and later well-known two-dimensional works have also conventionally used the shape of Neuschwanstein Castle when depicting castles.

This is a stereotype that develops so subtly that people are unaware of it.

Construction of the castle began in 1868 and took eighteen years to complete, finally finishing in 1886. It cost six million marks and has 360 rooms, which at one point drained the royal treasury of Bajau. After its completion, it remained the main palace of the royal family.

Lelouch was worried about being late because he wasn't familiar with the route, so he set off very early. However, the journey went smoothly, and he arrived two hours earlier than required.

The castle guards recognized his car as that of a guest highly regarded by the Duke and allowed him in after verifying his identification and invitation.

"It seems I've arrived too early. Perhaps I should go and report to the Duke first, and then change into formal attire for the banquet." With that thought in mind, Lelouch asked the waiter who had received him to help him announce his arrival.

But the waiter said the Duke hadn't arrived yet, and Lelouch realized that important people's schedules were always very tight.

He had no choice but to return to the waiting room, feeling rather dejected.

However, just as he walked through the front courtyard corridor, he saw a richly dressed boy, about fourteen or fifteen years old, staring at him with a curious yet defiant look.

Lelouch, unaware of the other person's identity, simply bowed slightly and nodded as a greeting.

The boy, however, looked him up and down casually: "Hey, what are you wearing? Your clothes are so dirty. That's so rude. And you drive a BMW? What a waste. I don't even own that car."

Lelouch was taken aback and subconsciously looked down, only to realize that it was his camouflage uniform that had been mistaken for "disheveled clothing."

He wore this outfit to show the Duke the effectiveness of the disguise.

Since it was designed for the muddy environment of the Ypres battlefield, where there was little vegetation, Lelouch did not choose green as the base color. Instead, he used the gray base color of the German army uniform, but with many tan and white patches mixed in.

People of this era had never seen camouflage clothing before, and at first glance, they might mistake it for a slovenly person covered in mud.

Lelouch didn't know how to explain it for a moment, but just then, a slightly older long-haired girl appeared behind the boy. The color of her hair was very strange, probably because she had some kind of illness.

The young girl, dressed in a gothic-style lace dress, was immediately struck by Lelouch's tall and handsome appearance upon first glance. His left eye, especially, deeply red from being injured by poison gas, added to his air of mystery.

The girl quickly stepped forward, grabbed the boy, and scolded him, "Albrecht, you can't be rude to guests! You're only fifteen, what do you need a car for! Your father is only doing this for your safety."

The girl seemed more polite. After giving him a few words of advice, she turned to Lelouch and said, "You must be my father's guest, right? Oh, my father is His Highness the Crown Prince. This is my younger brother, Albrecht Ferdinand Mitchell. My name is Ilmingard Theresa José Cecilia Aldegund."

Lelouch: "Lelouch Hunter, Captain. I am here to report to His Highness. This special uniform is for better concealment on the battlefield, not for filth. Mr. Albrecht just misunderstood."

Cecilia nodded. "My father hasn't returned yet; you've probably arrived too early. But if you have any military matters to ask, you can chat with my great-uncle first. Would you like me to introduce you?"

Lelouch hesitated for a moment: "Wouldn't that be too presumptuous? After all, I didn't make an appointment."

Cecilia: "It's alright. The old man has been bored ever since he retired two years ago, and he'd love to welcome younger members of the military."

Lelouch: "Then I shall respectfully comply."

Cecilia pulled her brother away and left. A few minutes later, a castle servant came and invited Lelouch to another study upstairs.

Lelouch tried to be polite and walked lightly into the house, where he saw an old man who looked to be in his seventies, leaning back in a recliner with his eyes closed, resting.

Although the old man's hair and beard were all white, his skin was still smooth and taut, and he exuded a sense of power and an aura of authority.

Lelouch felt a chill run down his spine, suddenly remembering the old man's identity:
Cecilia calls him her great-uncle, so he must be Duke Rupprecht's uncle and the younger brother of the current King Ludwig III of Balria.

This old man was the Commander-in-Chief of the Eastern Front during the later stages of the World War, the successor to Field Marshal Hindenburg, and one of only five recipients of the Grand Iron Cross in the Reich.

In the history of Earth, it was this old man who ultimately brought down the Lusa Empire on the eastern front.

In terms of military status, this old man is considerably higher than his crown prince nephew.

(End of this chapter)