Trench Bolts and Magic

Chapter 184 Stealing with Stability, Recklessly Stealing

Charleroi South City, temporary command post.

After the 1st Company repelled the first wave of the Gauls' attack and confirmed that the 1st Company's defenses were temporarily secure, Morin immediately took a truck back here.

Because the entire front was under attack, the three companies were under great defensive pressure and kept calling the battalion headquarters for instructions.

So Kleist and Manstein called him back, hoping he could take charge of the situation.

Meanwhile, Morin was also staring intently at the huge system map in his field of vision.

On the map, red troop markers representing the 9th Gallic Division surged into Charleroi from all directions like a tidal wave, attempting to overwhelm the Training Assault Battalion.

Although countless red soldier tokens flickered and went out the moment they came into contact with the green one at the first line of defense, subsequent red soldier tokens continued to replenish the ranks, advancing slowly and steadily forward.

"A bunch of brutes is really something else."

Morin couldn't help but mutter a complaint under his breath.

He now truly understands the meaning of the saying, "Stealing is safe, recklessness is stealing."

Previously at Liège Fortress, the people of the United Kingdom of Flanders fought very steadily, with their frontal defense being virtually impenetrable and their air defense discipline being excellent.

As a result, the training assault battalion used the very stealthy tactic of airdropping armored airships to directly penetrate their core.

Immediately afterwards, under the command of Ludendorff, a typical "sneak attack" leader, the training assault battalion seized the strategic location of Charleroi before the enemy could react, using "early motorized maneuver".

Now, it's the turn of these brutes, the Gauls.

They don't play any tactics with you; they just rely on their numbers and charge headlong into you without thinking twice.

This extremely simple and brutal "reckless" tactic is indeed very effective against the small and stealthy training assault battalion.

The opponent's numerical advantage also put Morin under unprecedented pressure.

Just like that classic line goes, "Even if you caught over 50,000 pigs, you couldn't catch them all in three days and three nights."
Moreover, these Gallic soldiers in front of us are not pigs to be slaughtered.

Led by officers, they charged wave after wave of men like the old guard, fearless and valiant.

The potential that people can unleash in dire circumstances is astonishing.

Many Gallic soldiers, under machine gun fire, managed to break through the sealed doors and windows with their bodies and explosives, and rushed into the building.

On the map, the soldier cards representing both sides are intertwined inside many building icons, and soldier cards are constantly flashing and disappearing.

Morin knew that a brutal and bloody melee was taking place there.

Submachine guns and grenades can unleash terrifying power in narrow rooms and corridors.

The buildings were soon filled with the corpses of Gauls.

But they still charged forward like madmen, stepping over the corpses of their comrades.

This reckless fighting style caused casualties among the soldiers of the training assault battalion, and the defensive line was gradually pushed back.

Some of the internal passages that had been deliberately opened up had to be blown up again with explosives to prevent the enemy from breaking in.

"Battalion Commander, the 3rd Company reports! The pressure on their left flank is immense! The enemy has committed at least two battalions to a fierce attack on their position! They can't hold on much longer!"

"Battalion Commander! 2nd Company reports! They've used up more than half their ammunition! Requesting resupply!"

"battalion commander."

Inside the temporary command post, reports from the communications platoon rose and fell, one bad news after another.

Kleist and Manstein's expressions also became unusually solemn. They kept marking the latest enemy and friendly situations on the map, and fine beads of sweat appeared on their foreheads.

Morin took a deep breath and forced herself to calm down.

The only good news since the start of the battle is that the Gallic armored knights belonging to the Knights Templar, whom he had been worried about, have not appeared.

This greatly reduces the pressure on the defense.

The bad news is that the Gauls were already close to breaking through the first line of defense of the training assault battalion by relying solely on the sheer number of regular infantry.

"We can't keep pushing this forward like this," Morin knew very well.

The purpose of the first line of defense is to delay and wear down the enemy; there's no need to fight them to the death here.

Continuing the fight would only push the casualties and ammunition consumption of the troops to an unbearable level.

Morin made a quick decision and gave the order to the communications officer:

"Order the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd companies to immediately abandon the first line of defense! Provide alternating cover and retreat to the second line of defense!"

"Yes, sir!" The communications officer immediately relayed the order.

"Tell all company commanders not to panic during the retreat! Take all the wounded with you! Take all the usable heavy weapons! Reorganize the defense on the second line of defense!"

Morin added another sentence.

He walked to the map and pointed heavily at the horizontal line that represented the second line of defense.

That was the real main course he prepared for the Gauls.

There were stronger fortifications, a denser network of fire, and some 'little surprises' he had brought with him before setting off.

"You want to fill the gap with human lives?"

Morin stared at the red soldier tokens surging forward on the map, his face expressionless from the battle.

"Then let me see just how tough your lives really are." The order was quickly relayed, and the training assault battalion soldiers, who were still struggling to hold on the first line of defense, breathed a sigh of relief upon receiving the order.

They emptied their magazines, threw out the last grenade strapped to their chests, and then, under the alternating cover of their combat squads, began to quickly disengage from the battle and retreat towards the second line of defense.

The withdrawal from the first line of defense to the second was a chaotic but orderly operation.

A soldier from the 1st Company had just jumped from the second floor of a burning building when his comrade grabbed him from behind.

"Hurry up! Don't stop!"

They crouched low and ran swiftly along the streets riddled with bullet holes and corpses.

Bullets fired from behind kept flying over their heads and around them, hitting the walls and kicking up clouds of dust.

Behind them, a squad of comrades were using a broken wall as cover to suppress the pursuing Gallic soldiers with heavy fire, buying them precious time to retreat.

After the retreating soldiers ran past their lines, the squad commander immediately ordered a retreat with his men.

The soldiers who had just retreated quickly found cover at the next street corner, set up their weapons, and provided cover for them.

"It's our turn! Cover them!"

"You all need to retreat!"

This skillful alternating cover tactic was ingrained in the very bones of every soldier in the training battalion.

It allowed troops to maintain strong firepower and organization during retreat, minimizing casualties.

Although the Gallic soldiers launched fierce attacks, they were unable to inflict a fatal blow on the training assault due to this hit-and-run tactic.

They often just captured a position, and before they could even gain a foothold, they were overwhelmed by new firepower from the flanks and rear.

When all the soldiers of the training assault battalion withdrew into the 'South City No. 1' defense line, they could finally catch their breath.

Unlike the makeshift first line of defense, this is the core of the training assault battalion's defensive system.

All the main roads and intersections leading here have been fortified with sandbags, forming sturdy bunkers about half a person's height.

The MG08 heavy machine gun was mounted behind a bunker, its dark muzzle like a pair of spying eyes, coldly watching what lay ahead.

The buildings on both sides of the street have been transformed into strongholds for fire support.

Light machine guns and submachine guns were mounted behind the windows on the second and third floors, forming a three-dimensional firepower network that combined long and short ranges and varied heights.

Soldiers can move quickly between buildings and provide support to any position in crisis at any time without being exposed to enemy fire.

And the most deadly thing on this defensive line is those 'little surprises' that lie across the roads—barbed wire that gleams coldly.

These barbed wire fences were also obtained by Morin specifically from the quartermaster of the 'Ludendorff Battle Group'.

The number wasn't large, and he used them all in this defensive operation.

Every few inches, sharp metal barbs, about 1-2 centimeters long, are tightly wrapped around the barbed wire.

These spikes are configured in a double spiral pattern to ensure that they cause severe scratches and snags no matter the angle of contact.

Under Morin’s personal command, these barbed wire fences were systematically deployed throughout the entire defensive line.

All the secondary streets and alleys, because they were not paved with tiles, were laid out using a 'pillar-and-stall' method.

Thick wooden stakes or sharpened metal rods were driven deep into the ground, and barbed wires were intertwined between the stakes to form insurmountable obstacles.

This arrangement, like a giant funnel, forced the attacking Gallic infantry to advance only along a few main roads pre-planned by the training assault battalion.

On these main roads, which serve as the primary 'killing zones,' the barbed wire fencing is deployed in an even more insidious manner.

They are not simply placed across the middle of the road, but arranged in a "Z" shape or diagonally.

This arrangement, leaving a 'way out', forced the attacking soldiers to instinctively weave through the narrow passages.

This greatly slowed their advance and extended the time they were exposed to the defenders' firepower.

"Cheer up, everyone!"

Company Commander Klaus stood behind a sandbag bunker and yelled at the soldiers who had just withdrawn.

"Check your ammunition! Replenish your grenades! Take a breath and have some water! We're about to have another fierce battle!"

The soldiers sprang into action, leaning against cover and silently panting as they expertly loaded bullets into magazines and placed them into the magazine pouches slung across their chests.

The machine gun team carried boxes of ammunition to the side of the machine gun position.

A young soldier, gazing at the street fragmented by barbed wire, swallowed hard and said to the veteran beside him:

"Squad leader, can this thing really stop them?"

The veteran who had fought in the street battles of Seville was bowing his head, carefully wiping his beloved submachine gun.

Hearing his soldiers' words, he replied without looking up, "Whether we can hold them off or not, you'll find out in a bit. Just remember, once they get inside the barbed wire, give them a good beating! Don't hold back your bullets!"

The soldiers, having completed their preparations, re-entered their positions, lying prone behind sandbags or hiding behind windows, pointing their guns forward.

The entire 'South City No. 1' defense line, like a lurking beast, quietly awaits the arrival of its prey.

After a period of silence, the figures of Gallic soldiers reappeared at the end of the street.

This time, the 75mm magic cannon also appeared behind them.

(End of this chapter)