Black Iron’s Glory

Chapter 222: Wilf Post

“What did you say? The Grand Prince himself went forward to oversee the war and took his guard camp?” Claude was shocked.

As soon as he returned to the guerrilla camp, Claude heard an unbelievable message from Captain Ledfank of the Logistics Department.

“He's a great prince! How could you let him go to the front? If anything happens to him, then no one can escape this responsibility..." Claude feels that the servants are crazy, how dare you let Prince Hansburg run to the front?

If you encounter a short-sighted stray bullet, it is a shameful failure for the Kingdom of Ovilas to win this battle and destroy the Principality of Siddins. Knowing that the Grand Prince was not only the first heir to the throne, but also the commander in chief of the battle, his presence on the front line did not mean that he would be on the front line facing enemy fire.

“None of us can stop it. The Grand Prince was angry, and the three corps of the besieged kingdom of Nasri, under the attack of our seven corps, assembled a division of troops to forcibly raid our side. The grocery camps were simply unable to resist their attacks, and the Grand Prince was unable to stabilize the front without having to go to the front line to execute the execution order.

But this morning, the Kingdom of Nasserli launched a cavalry regiment from which it slanted through the second line of defense, taking over the Wolfgang, despite the casualties. One of the local guard battalions guarding the Vilph post died in battle, and the Grand Prince is now marshalling a force command force ahead to attack the Vilph post. If the Weaver post is not recaptured, the defense forces in the first four hills will not be reinforced and supplied, and they will not last long under enemy attack... ”

Captain Ledfank pointed to the map and explained to Claude. On the map, a curved black thick line leads to the Amelia Plains, the national road that runs from Amis City to the Duchy of Siddins in Avenasburg. Most of the wars of this era revolve around waterways and national routes in order to ensure the safe transport and passage of heavy logistical goods for large forces. And if the three regiments trapped in the Kingdom of Nasserli want to break through in the direction of Amis City, it is most convenient to strike from this national highway, which is also the focus of the defensive line.

From the map, the first few hills were struck with red forks, which meant that the hilltops around the front of the national highway had been lost. And while the four highlands on both sides of the Central National Highway line are still in the hands of the Royal Auvellas Army, the last unofficial ellipse is similarly marked with a red fork, which is marked with the Wolfgang.

There is also a red slant on the map, which is the route through which the cavalry regiment of the Kingdom of Nasseri raided the Wolfgang. Obviously, the commanders of the Army of the Kingdom of Nasserli are not idiots either, they are well aware of the point of seven inches of serpentine beating and are unwilling to engage in a mountainous offensive defense with the defence forces of the Kingdom of Auvellas, which not only caused huge casualties but also delayed time, but behind them there are seven regiments of the Kingdom of Auvellas attacking them on both sides, and their destruction is on the horizon.

So I took the risk of putting together a cavalry raid to capture the Wolfgang and cut off the supply support lines for the four Mountain Defense Forces in front of the Wolfgang. As long as the cavalry guards the Weave Post and the troops behind it successfully take over the four hills, the national highway will be unobstructed beneath Amis City, Hirakawa Ma.

“Why didn't His Royal Highness order the troops to retreat to Amis City, where the defensive front was intact, and even if the forces of the Kingdom of Nasserley were to break under Amis City, they would still be unable to escape the fate of total defeat..." asked Claude.

“No, there's still a gap on the north line of Amis City.” Captain Ledfank said.

“North line, that's the beach. Where are they going?” Claude doesn't understand.

Captain Ledfank shook his head with a grin: "You forgot their joint fleet, the waters over there are still the territory of the joint fleet. If they break into Amis, they can sail off to the beach. Even if the big troops can't get away, those regimental commanders will get away first. That is why the Grand Prince insisted on setting up a defensive front in the hills, striving to close the door and beat the dogs so that a senior officer of the Nasserli kingdom could not escape. ”

Claude understood: "What should I do now? ”

“Do what? Go to the front line, this is your chance to perform.” Captain Ledfank said, "I've heard of the field defense drill at the 11th Field Battalion of the Blue Feather Corps, where you broke a squadron's defensive position with one squad. As of this morning, the Grand Prince has carried out four attacks by his commanding forces, causing heavy casualties, but the Vilph Gang remains in the hands of that cavalry regiment in the Kingdom of Nasri. Now you go over there and see if you can use your methods to attack and retrieve the Weaver post...”

Captains Claude and Ledfank handed over the prisoners and wounded, replenished the ammunition and then took the squadron to the front line. The closer you get to Wilfgang, the more you feel the war is imminent.

Less than half a mile from the meeting point on the front line, Claude saw a hillside filled with the bodies of soldiers who had died in battle. Only a small half of the bodies were covered with white cloth, and the rest were so placed on the hillside that it gave a very shocking feeling. On this hillside, it is estimated that there are two or three thousand bodies of soldiers...

It was difficult to find the assembly point of the guerrilla camp, and Claude found the soldiers' morale to be low. After grabbing a familiar sergeant and questioning him, he learned that in the morning to noon, the Great Prince commanded the troops he had mobilized to launch five attacks on the Vilph post, but five failed, more than half the casualties were there, even the guerrilla battalion had been pulled up twice, and now there are less than 300 soldiers left...

“How did you attack?” Claude was surprised that the guerrilla camp, though not fully staffed, had more than 700 men, and now less than 300, how could the casualty rate be so high?

The sergeant sipped on the ground: “The goddamn Colonel Rossler himself fought for the great prince. Let us march up the parade battalion as well. He tried to line up in front of enemy positions before firing again, but every time we were bombarded back by the four guns above, almost none of the platoons in the front could come back...

Ridiculously, those four artillery guns or we set them up, and after the position was occupied, the enemy turned to bombard us with these four artillery guns, and within a hundred meters we couldn't get close at all, and the shotgun they fired had covered the entire forward position. That damned Colonel Rossler forced us to die, demanding that we take the gunfire to the enemy for 50 meters before firing, then mount the bayonet to launch the attack... "

If the enemy had only guns and no artillery, perhaps Lieutenant Colonel Rossler was right in his offensive strategy, bearing in mind that the casualties of soldiers approached the enemy 50 metres before firing, and then launching a blade strike might have frightened the enemy and had no courage to resist. But the problem now is that there are four more artillery guns in the position that can cover the entire front-line position within 100 metres of firing a shotgun, at a time when the soldiers are marching forward, and that is indeed killing them.

Claude turned to Wilf Post, which was not high in the distance and was estimated to be more than forty or fifty metres. The hillside facing this side was still smooth, and the left and right sides were still rocky cliffs, eliminating the possibility of an attack from both sides. Now, in the middle and upper parts of the hillside, there is a large body of soldiers from the Kingdom of Auvellas lying there unpacked, and the lower part of the hillside is pretty much cleaned up, although there are several more cannons leaning to the ground.

“What about the artillery?” Claude asked.

“The great prince sent his men, just not tall enough to hit the position, had to move forward, but the enemy had four artillery guns, as well as artillery gunmen, who came down high and quickly blew up the artillery.” The sergeant replied.

“How many more enemies are up there? ”

“I don't know, it's probably more than four or five hundred.” The sergeant shook his head: "I heard there was more than a thousand left in the morning, but we attacked five times and the Grand Prince's guard camp fired more than two dozen rounds of shooting in the back, so I guess they'd have to lose half a horse anyway. ”

The artillery is useless, the enemy can see clearly above and strike far, only one side of the hill can launch an attack, which may lead the squadron to lurk. As long as the artillery units of those four artillery units are scrapped first, without the threat of artillery, and then people rush straight up, then the capture position becomes a reality. Claude looked at Wilfgang and wondered...

A sharp copper whistle interrupted Claude's thinking and looked up, but it was Colonel Rossler who blew the copper whistle and came close. He put down the copper whistle in his mouth and sighed and yelled: "Assemble at the guerrilla battalion! ”

“He's about to launch another offense, I don't know if I can come back alive this time...” said the sergeant around.

Claudella grabbed him and said, "Is that all we have left in the Rangers' camp to attack? ”

“Paralyzed, no man dies. This damn Rossler never stops. The old man came back two times completely and I cursed him to death in the front.” At the end of the war, I don't know if I can survive this attack. The sergeant no longer cares about the upper and lower ranks of the army, he doesn't even want to mention Lieutenant Colonel Rossler's rank, he just calls him an old boy.

And then Colonel Rossler saw Claude, and he walked over and said, "Claude, you're back. Get your soldiers in line. We're about to attack! ”

Claude upright: "Sir, can I lead the brothers of the guerrilla camp on a probationary offensive, maybe I can find a way to overcome the enemy's position...”

Colonel Rossler's furious: "Claude, line up now! This time you're in the first row! Don't try to fool me with your tricks. What kind of probative offense are you trying to fool us like before? The war is imminent, I don't have time to get involved with you, the front line has been taken by the enemy another position, if we don't take down this Weaver post as soon as possible to support the front line, then the besieged enemy will break through from here!

Do you understand the tension? We don't have much time! Don't try to be clever. Get your squadron soldiers in line right now. You're in the middle! If you disobey my orders, I will authorize the law enforcement team to execute you on the spot in the name of deserters! Now! Get in line now! ”

Claude was eager to curse, but when he looked at Colonel Rossler's red eyes, he forced him to hold his breath. And this wooden head doesn't make any sense, all he knows is to queue up the soldiers to die the way he's used to. If Claude really continues to argue with him, he will surely bring in law enforcement teams to execute Claude on the spot for disobeying orders and refusing to go to war and deserting as a soldier to warn other soldiers...

Claude had no choice but to step forward and line up his squadron with soldiers on both sides, more than fifty in one line. The remaining surviving soldiers of the guerrilla battalion lined up behind Claude, five rows in total.

Behind the guerrilla battalion are other troops, mostly lined up in a battle battalion configuration, although Claude quickly added a queue to his left, a queue of more than forty men. The flat hillsides of Wilfgang can accommodate these two queues, and there can be no more rows.

It took half an hour for all the offensive teams to line up, and the scorching Prince Hansburg, with an iron speaker, told all the soldiers, to the effect that the kingdom had risen and died, depending on whether the offense could take over Wilfgang and destroy the enemy. In short, he said a lot of morale and even offered a reward. But the soldiers listening to the speech were still low morale, and no one could believe that the attack would wash into the Weaver's post.

Claude estimated the queue behind him, roughly more than 2,000 soldiers who were involved in the attack. His Royal Highness's guard battalion was at the end, they were not involved in the attack, but rather they were suppressed and supervised, and any soldiers who fled later would be killed.

Lieutenant Colonel Rossler stood at the top left of the queue after the Grand Prince had spoken, about three meters from the queue, blowing hard the copper whistle in his mouth, pushing the military knife of his right hand forward, taking down the copper whistle in his left hand, shouting out: "Attack! Big step forward! ”