Trench Bolts and Magic

Chapter 147 The Assault on Liège
The Second Army, responsible for the main attack on the Liège fortress complex, was a temporary "Meuse River Combat Group" consisting of six infantry brigades and three cavalry divisions, with a total strength of nearly 60,000 men.

The battle group commander was General Otto von Emich.

Morin had no recollection of this general, only knowing that in the world before his transmigration, this man had almost managed to capture the Liege Fortress.
The vanguard of this battle group approached from the northeast of the Liège fortress complex in the morning, and the 11th and 12th Brigades of the United Kingdom of Flanders were responsible for blocking them from the outside.

Faced with an enemy several times their size, the two brigades did not put up much resistance.

After a brief skirmish with the vanguard of the Saxon cavalry, they quickly withdrew their forces and retreated into the twelve fortresses of the Liège fortress complex, preparing to defend themselves with their fortified positions.

By noon, the main force of the 'Meuse River Battle Group' had arrived at their designated attack positions.

General Emmish immediately ordered a full-scale attack on Baxon Fortress, located on the easternmost side of the fortress complex.

For a moment, the sound of cannons boomed and was deafening.

The skies over the entire eastern part of Liège were shrouded in the smoke of gunfire.
Meanwhile, in the rear of the Second Army Group, the training assault battalion, which had been 'carefully protected' and had been enjoying a leisurely journey, finally received their first combat mission in this campaign.

The messenger rode a fast horse and found Morin resting by the roadside.

"Reporting, Captain! Orders from Army Group Command!"

The messenger dismounted and handed over an order stamped with sealing wax.

Morin opened the order and quickly glanced at it.

Then, a strange expression appeared on his face.

Seeing his expression, Manstein and Kleist, who were standing nearby, curiously came over.

"Sir, what is the mission? Are we to support the attack on Baxon Fortress?" Kleist's tone was tinged with excitement.

"This is more important than that mission; the army group command has entrusted us with a very important task."

Morin handed them the orders with a smile, his tone flat.

The two men took the order and their expressions froze instantly.

The command clearly states:

"The First Training Assault Battalion of the Imperial Guard is hereby ordered to proceed immediately to the rear supply depot of the army group to protect its safety and ensure the unimpeded logistical supply line."

Protecting the supply train?

Kleist and Manstein looked at each other, both seeing the words "utterly disappointed" on each other's faces.

"What...what does this mean?" Kleist's voice even changed slightly.

"You want us to protect the supply train? The entire Second Army is ahead of us now. The Flanders' army has long been driven back to the fortress. Where are the enemies in our rear? There's no need to protect them at all!"

"It's obvious that the command doesn't want us to go to the front lines!"

Manstein couldn't help but complain that the young staff officer, eager to make a name for himself, was a bit agitated at the moment:
"They would rather send their regular infantry brigades to tackle tough targets like fortresses than send our unit, which excels at assaults,!"

The other officers in the camp also gathered around, and after seeing the contents of the order, they were all filled with righteous indignation and complaints.

They trained so hard for so long, equipped with the most advanced weapons in the entire empire, not to run to the front lines as warehouse guards.

Seeing his men's excited expressions, Morin laughed.

"Okay, stop complaining."

He looked at Kleist and Manstein and said, "An order is an order. We are soldiers and must obey. Even if they want us to go home and rest, we'll turn back obediently." Manstein: "But, sir..."

“There are no ‘buts’,” Morin interrupted him. “Don’t worry, all of you. I promise you, our time to play will come eventually.”

"When the time comes, and you're faced with shells falling from the sky and bullets flying everywhere, don't regret not cherishing this peaceful time today."

Morin's words, tinged with a hint of teasing, eased the tense atmosphere considerably.

Although the officers were still seething with anger, they said nothing more and went back to their troops to discipline them.

Taking this opportunity, Kleist walked up to Morin and said to him with a serious expression, "Sir, as the battalion adjutant, I have a request."

"explain."

"Sir, if I may say so, if our battalion has an assault mission coming up, I would like to lead the front-line attack force."

Kleist's eyes were serious; he wasn't joking.

"As the battalion commander, you should be stationed at the battalion headquarters to oversee the overall situation."

Not long after the training assault battalion was formed, this battalion adjutant had heard about Morin's "glorious deeds" on the battlefield from Klaus, Bowman, and others.

When he heard that the latter often transformed into a 'commando captain,' charging to the front lines and even penetrating directly into enemy territory, Kleist always felt that he should discuss it with Morin.

In his view, Morin was already the battalion commander, the backbone and brain of the entire battalion, and should not personally take risks.

A commander's duty is to strategize from the rear, not to charge into battle like an ordinary soldier.

Upon hearing his words, Morin paused for a moment, then burst into laughter.

"Forget about being a deputy or not, let's just divide the business and discuss it together."

Morin chuckled and quickly moved on from the topic.

Just as Kleist was about to say something, a low hum came from the sky.

Then a dark shadow appeared in the clouds in the distance and began to descend.

A new unit was quickly marked on the system map – the 'Zeppelin' armored airship L28.

The Saxon Empire currently possesses a total of 32 large airships. In addition to 16 passenger and cargo airships, airships numbered L17 to L32 are armored airships belonging to the Imperial Air Force.

L28、L29、L30、L31、L32这五艘，更是换装了203毫米舰炮的新型号。

The armored airship slowly flew over the training assault battalion and then headed towards the Liège fortress complex.

Almost all the soldiers stared curiously at the enormous creature in the sky; for many, it was the first time they had ever seen such a war behemoth up close.

As Morin looked at the magical glow on the airship's gasbags and the twin-mounted 203mm turrets mounted on the deck below, a thought couldn't help but flash through his mind.

"The caliber might still be a bit lacking. I remember the Liege fortress in another world was immune to artillery fire of calibers smaller than 210mm. But if we were to attack the top, wouldn't it be possible to break through it?"

"Wait a minute, the United Kingdom of Flanders, under the influence of the Britannians, also follows the path of magical technology. So, does this Liège Fortress also have a defensive system like a large magical shield?"

Just as Morin was pondering these questions, the sound of cannons booming came from the distant sky.

The armored airships, which had already flown some distance, began firing in unison.

(End of this chapter)