Trench Bolts and Magic

Chapter 168 Plan No. 17

Thanks to the transportation provided, the soldiers of the 1st and 3rd Companies crossed the 3-kilometer distance to the North City in the blink of an eye.

As the truck stopped at the northern edge of the city, Klaus and the 3rd Company Commander led their respective troops into the city on foot. The soldiers who were waiting at the intersection breathed a sigh of relief almost simultaneously with them.

"Sergeant Klaus! You've finally arrived!"

One of the soldiers responsible for the rendezvous almost cried with excitement upon seeing Klaus's imposing figure.

"The battalion commander and his men are on the central bridge ahead; they've already cleared out the enemy at the bridgehead!"

"Good job!"

Klaus patted him on the shoulder, then turned and yelled at the soldiers behind him.

"Keep up! Hurry, hurry, hurry!"

Soon, the main forces of the 1st and 3rd companies arrived at the bridgehead on the south bank of the Central Bridge.

When Klaus and the 3rd Company Commander saw Morin huddled behind a bunker at the bridgehead, their hearts finally settled down.

"battalion commander!"

"You are here."

Morin, who was scribbling on a map with his head down, turned around and glanced at them, a smile spreading across his face.

With two more companies of soldiers suddenly at his disposal, he immediately felt less panicked.

"how is the situation?"

Klaus walked up to Morin and asked in a low voice.

"The enemy in the south city has broken up into smaller groups and infiltrated the city."

Morin briefly explained the situation.

"The 2nd Company has taken control of the other two bridges on the east and west flanks, but its forces are somewhat dispersed."

"I need two companies of yours to immediately enter the south city and wipe out the remaining enemy forces inside!"

Morin pointed to the map and gave orders to Klaus and the 3rd Company Commander.

"Remember, it's the same old routine. Advance in platoons, taking turns providing cover, and proceed steadily! Don't be reckless!"

"Urban warfare is not like field warfare; a sniper shot could come from any corner at any time!"

"Make full use of our firepower and training advantages! Although the other side wants to fight us in urban warfare, they obviously don't have much experience. Don't let us be caught off guard and lose our battle!"

"understand!"

Klaus and the 3rd Company Commander responded in unison.

They were all experienced veterans and naturally understood the dangers of urban warfare.

Soon, under Morin's watchful eye, the soldiers of the 1st and 3rd companies, in combat teams, entered the southern city of Charleroi quickly and orderly.

Intense gunfire soon echoed through the streets and alleys of the southern part of the city.

The roar of the MG14 light machine gun and MP14 submachine gun, mixed with the sound of grenade explosions, rose and fell in waves.

The Flanders soldiers who had just dispersed and taken refuge in the city had not yet had time to build an effective defensive position when they ran headlong into the training assault battalion soldiers who were far superior to them in terms of tactical skills and firepower.

The battle was almost entirely one-sided.

Just as Morin said, the Flanders soldiers had absolutely no experience in urban warfare and only knew how to set up roadblocks behind their bunkers.

But in this situation, the training assault battalion would never charge the road head-on. Instead, they would flank from behind, then unleash a barrage of explosives, and the Flanders soldiers' lines would collapse.

They were often blown to the ground or riddled with bullets before they could even see where the enemy was coming from.

The entire clearing operation went even more smoothly than Morin had anticipated.

By the night of August 8, as the gunfire in the southern part of the city gradually subsided, the Training Assault Battalion had completely taken control of the entire Charleroi city area and its three bridges.

Aside from suffering over twenty casualties, they successfully annihilated three hundred Flanders soldiers who stubbornly resisted within the city and captured over 100.

Molin set up the temporary command post in a relatively intact small building at the south end of the bridge.

Kleist also arrived here with the 4th Company, the battalion headquarters, and the supply troops, and joined up with the main force.

At this point, the entire training assault battalion had finally established a foothold in Charleroi.

Meanwhile, in Ilson, about fifty kilometers southwest of Charleroi.

This is the headquarters of the Fifth Gallic Army.

The Flemish messengers who had rushed out of Charleroi in the morning finally arrived here as night fell after nearly a whole day of running.

When they delivered the urgent military intelligence from the front lines to General Charles Langlezak, commander of the Fifth Army, the Gallic general's face was filled with shock and disbelief.

"What?! The Saxon striker has already arrived in Charleroi?!"

Langlezak jumped up from his chair, dropping the coffee cup he had just picked up and shattering it on the floor.

He had only learned of the fall of the Liege fortress yesterday.

At the time, he, like most other Gallic generals, believed that this was just a false message deliberately spread by the Saxons to undermine their morale.

After all, the fortifications of Liege are renowned for their strength, and recently, large anti-aircraft magic devices were installed specifically to counter the Saxon armored airships.
In their view, even if the Saxons exerted all their strength, it would be impossible for them to conquer the place in such a short time.

The General Staff of the French Army is also working diligently to verify the authenticity of this news.

But who could have imagined that, in just one night, the Saxons not only actually captured the Liege fortress complex, but had even reached the border of Gaul!
"Do these Saxons have wings?!"

The absurd idea kept popping into Langlezak's mind uncontrollably.

The distance from Liege to Charleroi is nearly 100 kilometers!

How did they manage to cross such a long distance in such a short time?

Moreover, their vanguard had already demonstrated such terrifying combat power, defeating hundreds of defenders in Charleroi in a short period of time with only one or two companies.
What about their main force?
Does this mean that the military strength of the Saxons has reached this level?
A chill ran from Langlezak's feet straight up to the top of his head.

He realized that the situation he had been most worried about was probably really going to happen.

The north is where the Saxons will focus their attack!

Thinking of this, Langlezak could no longer sit still.

He rushed to the communications room, grabbed the handset of a landline phone, and yelled at the operator.

"Connect me to the General Staff! I need to speak with the Chief of the General Staff! Immediately! Right now!"

Soon, the call to the General Staff was connected by an operator.

Langlezak took a deep breath, trying to make his voice sound less panicked.

"Commander-in-Chief, this is Langlezak."

On the other end of the phone came an old but steady voice, which belonged to Joseph Joffre, Chief of the General Staff and Commander-in-Chief of the Gallic Army.

"Lang Lezak, is there some emergency this late?"

"Yes, Commander-in-Chief!"

Langlezak no longer concealed his anxiety and spoke rapidly:

"My fears have come true! The Saxons have broken through the Liège fortress complex, and their vanguard reached Charleroi this morning and engaged in firefights with the local garrison!"

"I have just received a messenger from the commander of the 31st Flanders Infantry Regiment pleading for help. The situation is extremely urgent! The Saxons may cross the Sambre River at any moment and launch an attack on us!"

However, after listening to his report, Xiafei on the other end of the phone fell silent for a moment.

After a long pause, he spoke slowly, his tone still calm. "Lang Lezak, are you sure this source is reliable?"

“Very reliable! It was the Flanders messenger who told me himself!”

"Don't get agitated, my general."

"The General Staff also received similar intelligence, but after analysis, we believe that this is likely a feint by the Saxons."

"Feint?"

Langlezak could hardly believe his ears.

"Commander-in-Chief, they have breached the Liege fortress complex and are at our border! How could this be a feint?"

"Based on our consistent assessment, the main force of the Saxons is deployed along the Alsace-Lorraine line."

Xiafei explained patiently.

"Their forces in the north were insufficient to support a large-scale offensive. The rapid fall of the Liege fortress was indeed unexpected, but it was likely a chance victory achieved by using some new weapons or tactics that we did not yet understand."

"What you saw was probably just a small, fast-moving unit they sent out to harass our flanks and tie down our forces, thus creating an opportunity for their main offensive in the south."

Joffre's words left Langlezak feeling powerless.

He realized that he and the commander-in-chief were not on the same wavelength at all.

In Joffre's mind, there was only his grand "Project Seventeen," only the desire to reclaim Alsace, Lorraine, and the southern sea outlets, and wash away the humiliation brought by the "Sargasso War."

The central and southern battlefields were his most important objectives in this war.

"Commander-in-Chief, I must remind you!"

Langlezak emphasized his words.

"Once the Saxons cross the Samble River, the northeast of Paris will be completely undefended! The safety of the entire country will be seriously threatened!"

“I understand your concerns, Langlezak.”

Xiafei's tone remained calm and composed.

"However, we cannot let a small-scale harassment by the enemy disrupt our overall strategic plan."

"The southern battlefield is the key to the outcome of this war! As long as we can break through the Alsace-Lorraine defense line and penetrate deep into the Saxon Empire, the threat from the north will naturally be eliminated."

"To ensure the absolute success of the Southern Offensive, I even hope that you can transfer two more divisions from the Fifth Army to reinforce the Second Army in the South."

Joffre's words completely ignited Langlezak's anger.

They want to withdraw two more divisions?!

Has he gone mad?!
No! Absolutely not!

Langlezak could no longer contain himself. He angrily grabbed an ink bottle from the table and smashed it hard on the ground.

The ink bottle shattered with a crack, splattering black ink everywhere.

"Commander-in-Chief! Forgive my bluntness, but your decision is gambling with the fate of all Gaul!"

He practically roared into the microphone.

"The Fifth Army under my command only has fifteen divisions in total! And most of them are troops that were conscripted before the war!"

"All of our heavy artillery has been redeployed, and the few remaining 75mm magic cannons are just a drop in the ocean! The two squadrons of the Knights Templar have already been transferred to the south by you!"

"If the Saxons really launch a massive attack, how could my small force possibly stop that ferocious army that can quickly capture the Levi Fortress?!"

"Do you know what the consequences will be if the defenses are breached?!"

Langlezak's roar echoed in the Fifth Army Command.

The staff officers and officers around were so frightened that they dared not breathe.

On the other end of the phone, Xiafei fell into a long silence once again.

Langlezak's words forced him to reassess the current situation.

He admitted that Langlezak's words made some sense.

If the Saxons have indeed committed a large number of troops to the north, then the Fifth Army will indeed be under tremendous pressure.

But his attention quickly returned to a telegram on the desk in front of him.

That was the latest battle report that had just arrived from the southern battlefield.

The telegram was very simple, but also very encouraging.

The First and Second Armies have successfully penetrated into the Alsace-Lorraine region. The enemy is retreating steadily, our morale is high, and victory is in sight!

Army Group South is also launching a fierce attack on the Saxon-controlled Mediterranean estuary, and the offensive is progressing smoothly so far.

All the intelligence seemed to confirm the Gallic Army General Staff's long-held assessment that 'Operation Seventeen' was being executed perfectly.

The scales of victory have begun to tip in Gaul's favor.

Thinking of this, Xiafei's slight wavering vanished instantly.

He picked up the microphone again, his tone regaining its previous calmness and firmness.

“Lang Lezak, I understand your situation.”

"Out of caution, I agree that your Fifth Army can advance to the border area to build a defensive line and prepare for battle."

"However, I will not provide you with any reinforcements."

Xiafei's tone left no room for argument.

"Because I must concentrate all my forces to ensure a decisive breakthrough in Alsace through the central route, and then outflank the enemy from Saxony to the north, eliminating all enemy forces within the United Kingdom of Flanders once and for all."

"If we win this battle, we could even defeat the Saxons permanently!"

Hearing this, Langlezak was completely disheartened.

He knew that no matter what he said, he couldn't change the stubborn commander-in-chief's mind.

"I understand, Commander-in-Chief."

His voice was filled with exhaustion and disappointment.

After saying that, he hung up the phone.

The exchange between the two ended unhappily.

"General."

An adjutant cautiously stepped forward.

Langlezak waved his hand, indicating that he didn't need to say anything more.

He walked up to the huge map, looked at the small mark of Charleroi, and his eyes became extremely solemn.

Since we can't rely on the headquarters, we have to rely on ourselves.