Trench Bolts and Magic

Chapter 249 A Perfectly Performed Focused Armor-Piercing Bomb
Although they reacted in time and tried to immediately move closer to each other to form a back-to-back defensive formation, it was too late.

The moment they turned the armored knights around, the ground around them seemed to come alive.

One after another, dark green armored knights draped in camouflage netting emerged from the ambush pits like demons crawling out of hell.

They were incredibly fast, and in just a few breaths, they completely severed the connection between the three 'Siegfried 1's, separating and surrounding them.

"Meet the enemy!"

Despite being caught off guard, the seasoned Teutonic Knights remained calm.

They immediately followed standard engagement procedures, raising the giant shield on their left arm for defense, while simultaneously drawing the 'armor-piercing warhammer' from behind them, a weapon specifically designed to deal with armored knights.

The Teutonic Knights were prepared to use this new weapon, which had already earned the nickname 'can opener,' to teach these enemy armored knights, whom they had never seen before, a fatal lesson.

However, they soon discovered that these smaller enemies were surprisingly agile.

One of the 'Hound 4' tanks, responsible for the main attack, charged at high speed toward one of the 'Siegfried 1' tanks, its twin swords flashing in a dazzling display of light, successfully drawing the enemy's full attention.

Just as the Siegfried I raised its warhammer, ready to smash the annoying little guy, another Hound IV from the same group had already silently cut into its blind spot from the side and rear.

By the time the Teutonic Knights reacted, a giant net made of some kind of high-strength composite material had already been shot out from the side and rear of the 'Hound 4', instantly covering his 'Siegfried 1' completely.

While this specially designed capture net cannot hold a powerful armored knight for an extended period, it is more than sufficient to restrict the opponent's movements in the short term.

Just as the Siegfried I was struggling, the Hound 4, which had circled around from behind, closed in.

Its weapons were not twin swords, but a short-handled warhammer and a sharp dagger.

Its attack targets were very clear: it avoided all the heavy armor of the aircraft and focused on the relatively vulnerable joints of the 'Siegfried Type 1' and the outer armor plates of the engine at the back.

"boom!"

The short-handled warhammer slammed into the knee joint of the 'Siegfried Type 1', producing a loud metallic clang.

Although it didn't directly destroy the joints, the enormous impact caused the steel giant to stagger and lose its balance.

The pilot of the Siegfried 1, which was caught in the net, roared and forcibly twisted his body, sweeping his armor-piercing hammer across the enemy to the side with a whistling sound.

However, the Hound 4 demonstrated amazing agility, taking a sudden step back and narrowly avoiding the powerful blow.

Taking advantage of the moment when the Siegfried 1 missed its attack and the center door was wide open, another Hound 4 rushed up from the other side like a ghost.

The uniquely shaped short sword in his hand transformed into a cold light, precisely piercing into the complex joint structure exposed beneath the 'Siegfried Type 1' shoulder armor.

"Pfft!"

The sharp blade severed the internal hydraulic lines and magical muscle bundles, and liquids of various colors gushed out instantly, like the blood flowing from this armored knight.

The Siegfried 1's entire right arm immediately lost control, drooping limply, and the armor-piercing warhammer in its hand fell to the ground with a clatter.

Almost simultaneously, fierce fighting broke out at the locations of the other two 'Siegfried 1' aircraft.

The other two Siegfried Type 1s fought back desperately, and with the immense power of their Armor-Piercing Hammer and Armor-Piercing Lance, successfully destroyed the two Hound Type 4s that had charged too far ahead, leaving horrific through-hole wounds on their cockpits.

However, when faced with an enemy several times their size who possessed exceptional driving and combat skills, they ultimately found themselves outnumbered.

In a very short time, the 'Forester' squadron, through tacit teamwork and targeted tactics, successfully disabled the three Teutonic Knights armored knights, completely restricting their mobility.

On the other side of the woods, the battle quickly turned into a one-sided affair.

Without the cover of the armored knights, the attacking Saxon infantry battalion collapsed instantly under the combined attack of two 'Hound 4' tanks and elite infantry of the Royal Fusiliers Regiment.

These 'Hound Type 4' armored knights demonstrated even greater mobility than the Garter Knights' 'St. George Type 3'. They were incredibly efficient at pursuing fleeing infantry, moving across the battlefield as if it were empty, reaping lives at will.

Soon, the Saxon infantry battalion was completely defeated, and the surviving soldiers abandoned their armor and fled in disarray in the direction they had come from.

After pursuing them for some distance, the Britannian soldiers and the two 'Hound 4' armored knights received Erwin's order to stop the pursuit and then quickly retreated into the 'man-eating' forest.

The battle in the woods was over.

Three towering Siegfried Type 1 armored knights lay motionless on the ground, like giant beasts with their teeth and claws pulled out.

The armored knights of the 'Forester' squadron skillfully used their weapons to forcibly pry open the external armor of the Saxon armored knight's cockpit.

The Teutonic Knight pilot inside had just angrily raised his pistol for last-ditch defense when he was punched in by a 'Hound 4' robotic arm, smashing him and the equipment inside the cockpit into a mangled mess of flesh and blood.

Colonel Irwin also jumped out of his cockpit, without even glancing at the three captured Siegfried 1s.

As Brittany's most elite armored knight hunter, he was well aware of the gap between the Saxon Empire and the Holy Brittany Empire in conventional armored knight technology.

What really interested him were the captured weapons.

He walked over to a disabled Siegfried 1 and bent down to look at the strangely shaped armor-piercing warhammer.

He was mesmerized by the unique structure on the hammerhead, which was completely different from that of a conventional warhammer.

He then walked to the wreckage of the two 'Hound 4' tanks that had been destroyed in the counterattack, looking at the two precisely pierced circular holes in the cockpit armor plate, the metal around the holes exhibiting a strange molten state.

He reached out and gently stroked the smooth edge of the hole, his eyes flashing with a solemn light.

"So this is the Saxon people's new weapon."

"They can penetrate the frontal armor of armored knights in an instant. No wonder the Golden Fleece Knights and the Garter Knights were defeated in direct combat."

"But from this moment on, it's no longer a secret."
-
The ambush against the Saxon armored knights ended in a complete victory for the 'Ranger' squadron.

Colonel Irwin did not linger there; he knew that Saxon reinforcements would arrive soon.

So he immediately ordered his troops to clean up the battlefield and take away the most important spoils of war—the intact 'armor-piercing warhammer' and the 'armor-piercing spear'.

They also salvaged some key structural samples from the destroyed 'Siegfried 1' wreckage, and finally took with them the wreckage of two of their own destroyed Armored Knights before quickly withdrawing from the forest.

Just as he had expected, news of the attack on the Saxon infantry battalion and the loss of contact with the three armored knights quickly reached the rear.

Hector, the Teutonic Knights captain who was on patrol along the supply line, was furious upon learning the news.

He immediately assembled the remaining armored knights of his squadron and, together with a nearby full-strength infantry regiment, marched in a mighty force towards the scene of the incident. However, by the time they reached the woods, the battle was already over.

They were met only with a scene of utter devastation and a pungent smell of blood mixed with engine oil.

The woods were littered with the corpses of Saxon soldiers. Some were killed by bullets, while many others were mutilated, clearly killed by the armored knights' melee weapons.

Soon, Hector also saw the wreckage of the three Siegfried 1s lying on the ground.

After confirming that the surrounding environment was safe, Hector jumped off his armored knight and ran quickly to one of the wreckages.

When he saw the cockpit that had been violently pried open, and his comrade inside, who had been turned into a pile of minced meat and was completely unrecognizable, an uncontrollable rage instantly surged up in his head.

"asshole!"

Hector let out an angry roar and slammed his fist into the cold armor of the 'Siegfried Type 1', making a loud bang.

As a typical 'knightly' officer in the Teutonic Knights, he valued knightly honor and camaraderie with his comrades more than his own life.

Watching his comrades die in such a humiliating way was a tremendous shock to him.

However, anger did not solve the problem. After a careful on-site investigation, Hector quickly calmed down.

From the traces of battle left at the scene, and the number of used 'energy-concentrating armor-piercing weapons' left behind, he quickly deduced a possibility that sent chills down his spine.

"No, that's not right. There were wreckage of three of our machines at the scene, but we only found fragments of two armor-piercing spears and two armor-piercing warhammers."

"The quantities don't match."

Hector muttered to himself, cold sweat beading on his forehead.

What does this mean? It means that the Britannians may have captured a complete set of intact 'energy-conducting armor-piercing weapons'!
This discovery plunged Hector into despair; he understood better than anyone the significance of the 'energy-conducting armor-piercing projectile' to the Teutonic Knights.

This revolutionary technology is their biggest trump card and advantage when facing the Knights of the Garde in Brittany.

Once this technology falls into the enemy's hands, the Teutonic Knights' technological advantage in weaponry will vanish!

“We’ll return to camp immediately and report this! This is a state of emergency of the highest level!”

Hector spoke to his adjutant with an extremely serious expression, his voice distorted with fear and anger.

This astonishing news, urged on by Hector, seemed to sprout wings and, after passing through layers of channels, was finally presented to General Mackensen, commander of the First Army, and Leonia von Foltis, Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights, at top speed.

The atmosphere in the temporary command post of the First Army Group was terrifyingly tense.

For the first time since the start of the war, General Mackensen's face was unusually grim as he stared at the urgent battle report in his hand, remaining silent.

Standing opposite him was Grand Commander Leonia, a tall female knight with dazzling blonde hair that seemed to glow, whose face was also extremely grim.

It should be noted that this Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights was known for his calmness and iron-fisted approach, and rarely showed such an expression.

"It seems we all underestimated the Britannians."

After a long silence, General Mackensen finally spoke.

"This was not a simple harassment, but a premeditated precision strike specifically targeting our 'shaped charge' technology."

"Yes, what's even more terrifying is that they succeeded."

Leonia's voice was cold, but her clenched fists betrayed her inner turmoil.

They both realized the seriousness of the problem at that moment.

The Britannians were quite technologically advanced and were known for their skill in imitation and improvement. Once they obtained a complete weapon sample, given their technical prowess, it wouldn't be long before they could decipher its principles and create their own version.

By then, the technological advantage of armored knights that the Saxon Empire had painstakingly built up will be quickly caught up with, or even surpassed.

This will undoubtedly be a huge variable in the course of the war.

"This matter must be reported to the General Staff immediately," General Mackensen decided decisively. "At the same time, we must find a way to deal with it."

"General, what do you think we should do?"

Leonia asked:
"Should we take advantage of the 'shaped charge armor-piercing weapon' to expand our gains before the Brittany completes the reverse engineering?"

"This is one direction, but we cannot be reckless because of it."

Mackensen shook his head, pacing back and forth in the command center, his mind racing.

Suddenly, the image of a young man flashed through his mind.

At the same time, the 'Golden Lion' opposite him was also thinking of the same person.

The two looked at each other simultaneously, and saw the same answer in each other's eyes.

"Friedrich Morin".

The inventor of the "shaped charge armor-piercing projectile," the guy who always manages to create miracles.

"Perhaps, in addition to issuing a warning to the General Staff, we should also ask for his opinion."

After a moment's thought, Leonia spoke first:
"Since he can invent this weapon, maybe he also has a way to counter it?"

“You’re right, Grand Master Fortis, I agree with you.”

General Mackensen nodded heavily, then immediately turned and shouted to the staff officer standing at the door, "Go to the operations office and ask where the 1st Training Assault Battalion of the Imperial Guard is located!"

"Yes, General!" The staff officer dared not delay and immediately ran out.

Not long after, the staff officer came running back, panting.

"Reporting, General! According to information from the Operations Department, the Training Assault Battalion has reached the front of our army group's attack! According to the battle plan, they are probably already engaged in the battle to break through the enemy's trenches!"

(End of this chapter)