Chapter 124
Prossenian forces, Asgard Knights' Amplar Armored Division forward command post.
Division commander Wilhelm Dietrich lowered his binoculars.
Just one kilometer in front of him, an 88mm anti-aircraft gun position set on high ground was firing continuously.
The four 88mm guns fired relentlessly, each shot meaning another Ant tank was destroyed.
The 88mm gun is an anti-aircraft weapon; to ensure the shells could reach as high and fast as possible into the "interception zone," their velocity was exceptionally high, giving them extraordinary armor-penetrating power capable of piercing thick armor from extreme distances.
At the same time, to ensure sufficient firepower density, the 88mm had an excellent rate of fire compared to other guns of the same caliber, and with a skilled gun crew, its firepower density was astonishing.
Add in the Prossenians' traditionally excellent sights, and this gun became the famous tank killer, able to hit and destroy tanks from very, very far away.
Wilhelm Dietrich suddenly said: "The 88mm gun is like sunlight, and the Ante Empire's new tanks are like soap bubbles, vanishing swiftly under the light."
He smacked his lips lightly, as if savoring the poem he had just composed; the more he tasted it, the more he liked it, so he took out his notebook to write it down.
Then he started adjusting the wording, trying to make it rhyme.
At that moment, the sound of submachine gun fire came from the nearby village.
Wilhelm Dietrich: "What's going on? An enemy ambush?"
A staff officer immediately dispatched a messenger to check the situation, and five minutes later the messenger reported back: "The military police are clearing the village of inferior races and potential resistance fighters to free up camp space for the rear units."
Wilhelm Dietrich nodded and continued studying his poetry in the notebook.
In the village behind him, the sound of submachine gun fire rose and fell.
----
Ant Army, Agsukov, Southwestern Front Headquarters. August 2nd, 1530 hours.
The communications officer saluted before General Skorobo: "Report!"
General Skorobo: "It's news of the counterattack, isn't it? The counterattack succeeded, didn't it?"
The communications officer looked embarrassed.
"No, we've lost contact with the 6th and 11th Tank Corps, and the 5th Tank Corps, which is mainly equipped with old models, has already collapsed-the remnants are retreating toward Olachi."
"No!" General Skorobo cut him off. "The 6th and 11th Corps didn't report because things went too smoothly-they're charging ahead too fast to stop and send a transmission! Tell the hymn choir to urge them to stop and report!"
At that moment, General Skorobo finally noticed the communications officer holding a telegram and asked, "What's that?"
Staff officer: "It's a reconnaissance report from the air force. A large number of tank wrecks were found along the line from Odendorf to Shepetovka. Aerial observations suggest those are our new tanks."
As he spoke, the officer handed over a stack of photos: "These are photos submitted with the report by the air force."
General Skorobo picked up the photos, his expression turning grave.
Even though they were blurry aerial shots, it was clear from the sloped armor on the wrecks that Prossenian tanks didn't have such advanced designs.
General Skorobo stared at the first photo, showing no sign of flipping to the next one.
The Crown Prince stepped forward, took all the photos behind the first, and began flipping through them one by one.
"Weren't we told our tanks had absolute armor superiority?" the Crown Prince asked softly.
The Army Group Bishop standing beside the Crown Prince replied, "That should be the case. But Rokosov previously reported that the enemy would target the tracks and the turret ring, disabling the tanks for the infantry to finish off. This might be..."
"What's this?" The Crown Prince picked out a photo and showed it to everyone.
Chief of Staff: "Looks like a Prossenian anti-tank gun position. This kind of anti-tank gun with cross-shaped stakes anchoring it was mentioned in reports from the Castilian Civil War. It's an 88mm anti-aircraft gun, but after being fitted with land-combat sights, it can also serve as direct-fire anti-tank artillery."
"These things destroyed our tanks?" The Crown Prince found another photo and tried to piece them together, but couldn't get them to align.
The Chief of Staff directly picked out one photo and handed it to the Crown Prince: "This one goes in the middle."
The Crown Prince did as instructed. The three photos' edges fit together perfectly-clearly part of the same scene.
"I don't know how to interpret photos," the Crown Prince said, "but I do know how to judge by the size of the house next to it. That anti-tank gun position and the wreckage zone are super far apart!"
Chief of Staff: "Roughly two kilometers. The enemy pierced our armor from two kilometers away. What's even more terrifying is their ability to hit targets accurately at that distance. We'll need to issue orders for bombers and attack aircraft to prioritize eliminating these guns."
As soon as the Chief of Staff finished speaking, General Skorobo put down the photos and stood up.
"What are you doing?" the Army Group Bishop shouted, "As commander, you must always remain calm. You can't gamble with the lives of hundreds of thousands!"
General Skorobo: "What are you talking about? I'm fulfilling my duty as the front's commander. Although the armored units' counterattack has failed, we haven't lost yet!"
General Skorobo picked up his pointer and started gesturing across the map:
"According to confirmed intelligence, the enemy has four attack directions. On the outer flanks are two armored clusters, advancing from hundreds of kilometers apart. Inside, two main thrusts are launched by infantry army groups.
"I believe we can ignore the outer armored thrusts for now. Duke Meshkin's Shepetovka Cluster is holding off the northern Second Armored Cluster, and I have several army groups entrenched against the southern First Armored Cluster.
"Even if they manage to complete the encirclement, that won't happen until after August 30. Before that, we can focus on stopping the two inner infantry army groups. We might even annihilate them, depleting their manpower!"
The Crown Prince gaped: "So... we really can hold the line?"
"Of course! We have so many troops and so much supply! Even if we get surrounded, we can fight for dozens of days." General Skorobo said with confidence.
The Crown Prince looked at the map, then at the General's resolute face: "I can't find any flaws. After all, I graduated second to last in military academy. So... I'll report this to Father, then?"
General Skorobo: "We've already been ordered to hold at all costs. Agsukov is one of the birthplaces of the Ante Empire-before Year 1 of the Jule calendar, it was the capital of ancient Ante. Anyone who casually gives up Agsukov will one day abandon Saint Yekaterinburg too!"
At that moment, the communications officer came in again: "Urgent message from the High Command!"
"Read it!" General Skorobo waved his hand and picked up his cup to drink.
The communications officer opened the folder and read: "Not an inch of national territory may be surrendered. Any unit commanders who order retreats without approval will be deemed traitors. They and their families will be executed!"
General Skorobo: "See! Just told us to hold the line, and now they're issuing this across-the-board order. We can only fight the enemy here to the death! Don't worry, Your Highness-we'll stop the enemy's inner assaults."
The Crown Prince nodded, then asked: "Then what if the enemy completes the outer encirclement?"
General Skorobo paused for a second, then answered: "I said our ammunition and rations will last for dozens of days. We'll fight here for the Empire until the very last moment."
The Army Group Bishop said: "Although we must hold firm, we can issue a general evacuation order for Agsukov's civilians. Let the women and children retreat to the rear."
General Skorobo nodded: "That's fine. If this turns into a siege, women and children might starve due to food shortages. Proceed with the plan!"
----
Ante Empire, Saint Yekaterinburg, Summer Palace, Jule 914, August 2nd, 1630 hours.
"No, no!" Tsar Nikolai V roared at the generals, "You all swore before that the heavy troop cluster in Agsukov could defeat the enemy! Then let them defeat the enemy now!"
Marshal Kurenzov, Chief of the General Staff, said: "According to aerial reconnaissance, our tank corps composed of new tanks are no match for the enemy. We overestimated these tanks' combat effectiveness. Right now, although the enemy's pincer attack has just begun..."
"That's not what you said two weeks ago! You said even an idiot who ranks dead last and wets his pants could use T34s to destroy enemy tanks by the dozens!" the Tsar furiously pounded the table, the signet ring on his ring finger ringing sharply.
Just then the door burst open. The guard outside exclaimed in panic: "Your Highness, you can't enter! This is a top-level military meeting!"
Princess Olga Nikolayevna Antonovna ignored the guards and rushed into the center of the meeting room, stopping only at the map table.
Nikolai V said impatiently: "Olga! This isn't the time to pretend to be Catherine the Great! We're discussing serious matters-military matters!"
Her Highness glanced sideways at her biological father: "Father, I also have military matters to discuss."
Nikolai V turned around and shouted at the trembling maid hiding near the door: "What are you waiting for? Take her away!"
Olga Nikolayevna Antonovna stared into her father's eyes: "Father, have you read the battle report from Upper Peniye? I mean the one without exaggeration. Since the Tribunal gave my brother the report, it should also be on your desk."
Nikolai V looked a bit awkward and was about to reply, but his daughter continued: "And also the battle report from Loktov. Anyone who's read it would know Alexei Konstantinovich Rokosov is a true military genius. He has a sharp instinct for the battlefield and solid military training!
"A person like that couldn't possibly graduate last. That leaves only one possibility! He deliberately ranked last for the sake of my foolish older brother!
"He had to ensure his grades weren't higher than my brother's, while still ensuring he could graduate. Such precise grade control-if that's not genius, what is?"
The generals and marshals in the room looked at each other in silence.
Only Nikolai V was still scolding the princess: "Olga! This isn't your little game!"
The princess stared back at her father: "I'm telling you how stupid your generals are! Think about it-they just happened to back the right side during the Civil War. They're no smarter than those defeated nobles from the devout faction!
"And some of them still have deep connections with the devout nobles who were defeated!
"Papa! It's because you didn't get rid of these people completely that we've suffered such disastrous defeats after just one month of war!"
"Your Highness!" Marshal Kurenzov, Chief of the General Staff-and the Empire's only remaining prince-growled, "Even royalty must not speak so recklessly!"
Princess Olga snapped back: "Am I wrong? You deceived my father with sweet words, made him believe Agsukov was unshakable! And now you tell him to retreat from Agsukov! You..."
"Enough!" Nikolai V slapped his daughter. "Get out!"
At that moment, the youngest person present, Duke Raul, stood up and tried to mediate: "Your Highness, please leave. This way."
As he spoke, he tugged gently at the princess's sleeve.
Princess Olga reluctantly turned and left the room, with Duke Raul following after her.
"Your Highness," he whispered, "we were close to convincing His Majesty to issue the retreat order. Now, after what you did, he's embarrassed and unlikely to retreat-at least not today."
Olga: "And that's my fault? Weren't you the ones who boasted a few days ago that the war had turned in our favor? So what now?"
Duke Raul looked a bit awkward: "Yes, we underestimated the enemy. But we're trying to fix that mistake. You've seriously disrupted our efforts."
"Hmph!" Her Highness made no effort to hide her disdain.
Duke Raul continued: "Also, someone as smart as you must realize that His Majesty relies on us to counter the church, especially the Grand Patriarch. You'd better not get too close to the church either. During the Civil War, the devout faction had some popular support. The church needs us to win those people over.
"Now, after ten years of champagne and caviar campaigns, the public is full of secular believers. This war is our last chance."
Olga: "But you're not fighting well. I think the real darkest hour of our Mother Ante is you people still squabbling over this in a time of crisis."
Alliance Leader Z Aniu extra update
(End of Chapter)