Thunder Warrior Saves the World

Page 18

Thus, the first live broadcast in the world of Ens, a spectacle existing only in telegrams, was unfolding within the command post of the defensive line. Erwin was completely unaware that his troop movements had been fully exposed to the enemy. He still believed he was discreetly positioning his regiments in attack positions, awaiting the decisive moment.

"Company commander, what do we do? Are we just going to stand outside and watch?" a veteran from the reconnaissance company asked uncertainly. It seemed a bit unethical to just watch friendly forces fight, but they were only a company, and the firepower of six Mi-4 helicopters was negligible against tens of thousands of troops.

“Of course not.” Valerio had already planned ahead. The Belkens had done a good job of concealment, but it was all in vain in the face of various advanced reconnaissance equipment. They easily discovered the enemy command post, which was heavily guarded by soldiers. “After the Belkens launch their attack, we will go straight for their command post and catch them off guard.”

This wave of attacks seems to be a necessary response to the enemy's defenses. Regardless of whether the enemy's command post is ultimately destroyed, it will be enough to throw them into chaos. As long as the enemy's command is in disarray, the pressure on friendly forces on the defensive line will be reduced. This is one of the few things that small units like theirs can do in such a large-scale battle.

“I understand, I’ll have them get ready right away.” The veteran nodded.

"Any news from the armored battalion? When will they arrive?" With the enemy forces overwhelming, Valerio dared not be careless and inquired about the situation of his allies.

"They're on their way. It will take them at least two hours to arrive."

“Too slow.” Valerio frowned. “Did they run into trouble on the way?”

“Yes. Belken’s tank force had a lot of tanks break down due to mechanical failures on the detour route. After these vehicles were repaired, they spontaneously regrouped and continued to advance towards Svorbella. The armored battalion just happened to run into them, which caused some delays,” the veteran explained.

"We shouldn't have lost any tanks, right?" Valerio asked casually.

"I don't know, they didn't say." The veteran shook his head.

However, this tank unit was not entirely unscathed. In these two battles, one T-72 tank of the Amelia Volunteer Army was hit in the fighting, its track was damaged, and debris jammed the drive wheel, causing the tank to crash into wreckage and lose its track. It had to remain on site for repairs. On the Kyrgyz side, two SU-57 tanks suffered mechanical failures during the march, one BA-11 was destroyed in the fighting, and a BT-7 tank was involved in a chain-reaction collision due to improper night driving, resulting in damage to three BT-7 tanks. These non-combat losses left Bai Xue both frustrated and annoyed. It was foreseeable that after this battle, the Kyrgyz soldiers of the 6th Battalion would receive more night combat training to prevent similar accidents from happening again.

Leaving aside the waiting of the seven reconnaissance companies, the Ergia soldiers on the defensive line, after receiving intelligence, quietly began to move. Although the searchlights appeared to be operating in the same manner as in the first half of the night, in reality, all the soldiers on the position had already taken their positions, and the flares had been deactivated, just waiting for the Belken to charge forward.

Both sides held their breath, waiting for the moment of battle to arrive.

0440, the night raid begins.

The moment the Belkens made their first move, the news reached headquarters, was telegraphed to each company, and then relayed to every soldier by the communications corps. Some began to tense up, while others remained skeptical.

"It's pitch black. How did those Amelia people know that the Belken devils had started their attack?" The Ergia soldier with a heavy accent was clearly skeptical. He strained to look outside, but there was nothing unusual in his line of sight.

“Haven’t you heard? Those Amelias are chosen by the God of War. It’s reasonable for them to have eagle eyes that can see through the darkness, right?” His companion shrugged.

"Whoosh—bang!" The Belken moved quickly, which meant their wait was short-lived. The rising and exploding flares exposed all the Belken soldiers who were attacking through the safe passage opened up during the day to the Elgeans. "Fire!" The order to fire was faithfully carried out, and the bombardment began.

"Switch to contingency plan." Inside the Belken command post, seeing the scene exposed prematurely, Erwin had no choice but to activate the contingency plan. The artillery division's heavy artillery also began to unleash its power, shell after shell extending forward from their own attack positions, striving to open up new attack routes in the shortest possible time. The Belken troops, who were stationed at their attack positions, hadn't even had time for the smoke from the shell-saturated land to dissipate before they stepped onto the still-steaming ground, advancing along with the barrage of fire.

The dense whistles of the charge could not be drowned out by the sounds of gunfire. Upon hearing the whistles, the drug-addicted Belken soldiers who had approached the front line leaped out of their cover and charged at the Elgia's position at the fastest speed they had ever seen. As one fell, three more took his place. As far as the eye could see, there were enemies in yellow uniforms.

"Take out Belken's artillery! Otherwise, once they open up a new passage, we won't survive tonight!" Belken's artillery didn't land on their heads, but instead landed in the obstacle zone. This unusual phenomenon caught the attention of the command post. They immediately understood the enemy's intentions from the ever-expanding firepower and made immediate adjustments.

The mission was carried out by the Baba Yajia Squadron of the 588th Regiment. After several hours of rest, the pilots were in good condition and began their night flight. The flashes of heavy artillery fire became torches to guide their positions. Without the need for scouts to do anything, the predators in the sky quickly located their prey from these flashes, and then the hunt began.

The troops at the front were busy with the assault, while those at the rear were busy dealing with the air raids. Upon discovering the enemy possessed night-fighting aircraft, a brief period of chaos ensued in the command post. They then began packing up, preparing to move to a safer location. Just then, a reconnaissance company, already aboard Mi-4 helicopters, slipped through the gaps created by the hasty mobilization orders, heading directly towards the command post. Many of the garrison troops heard the helicopter's rotors, but failing to see the low-flying aircraft, they mistook it for the noise of an Il-2 formation returning from an attack, taking no action to intercept it.

Volume 1: Chapter 102 Chapter Ninety-Two: Returning Like Lightning (3)

The Mi-4 aircraft group encountered no interception and arrived at the perimeter of the Belken command post without any obstruction.

At this point, the people in command realized that something was wrong—why did the sound of the plane seem to be staying in a certain location nearby without moving? This question prompted them to send out the guards to investigate the direction from which the sound came, while at the same time they quickened the process of packing up their bedding.

However, not long after a platoon of troops set off from the command post, the location of the sound changed, and it moved closer and closer to the location of the command post. Amidst the panicked gazes of the personnel on the ground, the fire descended from the sky.

The outermost guard was wiped out by Mi-4 helicopter rockets within a minute. To ensure the big fish didn't escape, four of them hovered in the air, monitoring the enemy command post in the center from four directions, while the remaining two circled slightly outwards, providing fire support for the reconnaissance company's advance and preventing anyone from taking advantage of the loopholes in the inner circle's surveillance to escape.

As for the ground reconnaissance company, their advance was incredibly smooth.

The vast majority of the command post guards had been killed by Mi-4 rockets, leaving only a few remnants who were largely unable to organize themselves into a cohesive force to resist the enemy. Under the high-velocity fire of assault rifles, they didn't even need to call for helicopter support; they could suppress the enemy with their own rifles. Faced with this dense hail of bullets, the Belken soldiers didn't even have a chance to leave their cover, let alone launch a counterattack. If they intended to hide in a corner and snipe, the scouts would often engage them in sniper duels—using RGGs equipped with thermobaric rounds. After all, the RPG has a series of sniper rifle characteristics, such as the ability to scope in, high damage, and the need for manual reloading after each shot. Calling it a sniper rifle is reasonable, so using an RPG to snipe someone else is perfectly normal.

The approaching explosions outside made those in command realize they had guests. At that moment, a brief but deadly disagreement erupted within the command structure.

"The Ergia cannot commit too many troops to such a desperate operation. The battle formation outside must be a bluff by the enemy, trying to throw us into disarray so they can take advantage of the chaos. We cannot follow the enemy's lead. The guards are just temporarily caught off guard. We should order them to hold their ground, defend the lines, and annihilate all the invading enemy!"

"You idiot!" Such an opinion naturally met with strong opposition from some of the staff. "Are you trying to make the commander risk death or even capture to satisfy your sense of honor? Have you considered how terrible the impact would be if news of a general dying here or being captured reached the country!"

"Nothing could be worse than the chain reaction caused by the failure of the plan to attack Fabandi from both sides?" The advisor who proposed the counterattack scoffed at this. Capturing Fabandi quickly to weaken Elgia's will to resist was the only way to end the war swiftly, and attacking Fabandi from both sides was the optimal solution for occupying it in a short time. Under these circumstances, the strategic significance of Svorbella was self-evident.

"It's as if we can take Svorbella just by wiping out this wave of enemies," the retorter sneered. However, before he could finish speaking, he was interrupted by Erwin. "No need for further words. I will take full responsibility for the failure of this operation. You are all pillars of the Empire and cannot afford to lose yourselves here. Quickly pack your things and prepare to leave."

Although Erwin's intervention was very timely, suppressing the dispute with his identity before it escalated, the argument between the two had already attracted considerable attention from the surrounding area. Although the dispute seemed to be resolved, a question was planted in the minds of those present—in this situation, should they fight or flee?

With worries weighing on their minds, their actions naturally became less efficient. The approaching gunfire indicated that the situation outside was deteriorating, which further panicked the staff. Irwin made a decisive decision, ordering the abandonment of some documents that could not be taken away, leaving a few people to set fire to all the facilities and documents in the temporary command post, while the rest evacuated through another exit.

But their tactics were doomed to fail. The Mi-4s circling overhead could see these men who had left their bunkers clearly, and all they were met with was a hail of bullets.

"Big Kestrel, more than fifty enemies are breaking out to the southwest." But there were too many people in a command post. The rockets carried by the Mi-4s were quickly used up, and the remaining machine guns were somewhat powerless against the large number of enemies. Inevitably, some escaped. So the Kestrel No. 1 in the sky notified the company commander of the situation it had observed.

"Roger that. Third Platoon Leader, take two squads to block them. The rest of you, follow me!" With Valerio's order, the company of less than a hundred men immediately split into two groups. Valerio's main force continued its advance towards the command post. As they penetrated deeper, the resistance they encountered grew increasingly fierce. Faced with a disadvantageous situation, these Belken soldiers neither surrendered nor fled, but instead risked their lives to do everything in their power to slow the advance of this force.

But the reconnaissance company wouldn't be so easily held back. Valerio left some small squads to use individual rocket launchers more frequently for assaults, while leading his main force to bypass these strongpoints and continue advancing. The remaining squads would rejoin the main force after eliminating the immediate strongpoints. However, after the Belken Guard's repeated resistance and the depletion of their rocket launchers, the squads needed more time to eliminate these stubborn strongpoints, and Valerio's main force was dwindling in strength. Fortunately, the firepower of modern assault rifles far surpassed that of bolt-action rifles. When Valerio's main force was reduced to only about thirty men, they finally reached the temporary command post of the Elvin combat group.

But by this time, only seven or eight Belken officers remained in the command post who had set the fire. Upon seeing the small green men burst in, these officers immediately reached for their pistols, and unsurprisingly, they all ended up with several bullet holes in their bodies. Seeing the flames spreading, Valerio couldn't help but feel some frustration, but the news from the communications eased that frustration considerably—Zhang, the third platoon leader, and his two squads had successfully blocked the escape of over fifty enemy soldiers.

……

Happy Winter Solstice everyone!

Volume 1: Chapter 103 The Computer Exploded

As the title suggests, my computer is acting strangely; USB devices keep disconnecting for no apparent reason. Also, the 2/4 memory slots, which have always been recognized, aren't recognizing the memory. I don't know if it's a motherboard or power supply issue, but I really don't want to disassemble this machine. Anyone who's ever built a PC with that "Flower Bride" case knows how troublesome it is to disassemble and reassemble…

I bought some second-hand parts; I'll assemble a backup machine tomorrow.

Volume 1: Chapter 104, Chapter Ninety-Three: Returning Like Lightning (4)

"For the Empire!"

The Belken soldiers were like extremely devout religious believers, shouting slogans, fearless of death, and filled with fanaticism—the very soldiers their commander envisioned. Driven by this madness, all they could see was charging into enemy lines and wreaking havoc to soothe their restless emotions.

The overdose of drugs suppressed the body's natural alarm system and incidentally reduced the pain caused by "excessive exertion." The pain from occasional bullets or shrapnel grazing the limbs was negligible. The increased heart rate, blood pressure, and energy metabolism laid the physiological foundation for these soldiers to more powerfully extract their own potential. The physical changes inflated their confidence, making them completely ignore the fall of their comrades. They were like a pack of wild beasts.

The Belken's decision to redirect their fire to block the artillery gave them an opening. Wave after wave crashed against the Elginian lines, the viscous liquid, reeking of rust, silently seeping into the soil like seawater disappearing into the sand. But as more and more bodies were left behind, the waves were crashing closer and closer to the trenches.

Finally, the 8th artillery unit successfully destroyed 7 enemy heavy artillery units. However, a small group of Belkhan, suffering heavy casualties, crossed the final obstacle. They climbed the sandbag breastwork and leaped into the trenches—most of them were killed by the Elgins in the process, but some managed to reach the inside. These fearless and tireless beasts, whose physical strength had been enhanced and who had even mastered skill, were undoubtedly the most formidable enemies in this close-quarters combat, and the situation began to reverse.

Elgin soldiers fell one after another to Belken's bayonet, the spurting blood making these beasts appear even more invincible. Hearing the commotion, the veteran Elgin soldiers who had come to reinforce hesitated, but the beasts knew no hesitation. Already immersed in the urge to kill, they raised their rifles, uttering terrifying, unintelligible battle cries, and launched their charge.

Just minutes before, the Elgeans were slaughtering the Belken, but now, the tables have turned, and the roles have been reversed. Like wildfire, taking advantage of the loss of this section of the line, more and more Belken broke through and poured into the winding trenches—although the artillery was constantly firing at the reinforcements behind the line, trying to intercept them, they were helpless against the enemy troops who had successfully entered the trenches.

The clash of steel and muscle filled these trenches with screams of pain and exhilaration. Within the narrow, elongated trenches, long rifles seemed cumbersome, reduced to awkward short guns used only for thrusting. Those lucky enough to carry entrenching tools abandoned these clumsy weapons, swinging them at their own necks. Dropping their weapons and leading their allies in a rout, or being swept up by their own allies and charging into the enemy—close-quarters combat often produced only these two diametrically opposed outcomes. Fortunately, the soldiers of the 441st and 442nd Regiments, while perhaps not as skilled in combat as their opponents, possessed a fighting spirit no less intense than their thirst for bloodshed.

A tense atmosphere filled the command post behind the trenches. Staff officers continuously assessed the situation at the front, calculated the possibility of repelling the enemy attack, and assisted commanders in making decisions about "holding" or "retreating." At this point, even though they had successfully carried out a decapitation strike, this victory clearly wouldn't have a significant impact on the overall battle situation in the short term. Meanwhile, the soldiers of the 7th Brigade, sent to the front lines to act as the "eyes" of the artillery, gave Advisor Amelia an even clearer understanding of the situation at the front than the commander of the 441st Regiment.

In the ranks of the front lines, where signs of decay were beginning to emerge, these few soldiers of the 7th Brigade stood as steadfast as rocks on a beach. Their heavy body armor and assault rifles gave them the confidence to face these drug addicts without flinching—although consciousness reacts to matter, it is the fundamental condition of matter that determines consciousness. No matter how strong your bloodlust, once your body is thoroughly ravaged by 5.45mm poison bullets, your bloodlust will be destroyed.

After these little green men killed four Belsken people who attempted to break through, the Elgisanyan people began to realize that these "eyes" were actually stronger than them. They rallied around these little green men, just like the Sun Guard alongside the Astartes warriors, just like in the defense of Holy Terra, where they faced an enemy force many times their size but fought to the death.

The defense of Terra was ultimately thwarted by the rebels who stormed the Imperial Palace, and whether the Belken could break through the defenses and advance further remains to be seen.

Because Bai Xue's two armored battalions returned like lightning. Although the five armored companies that Bai Xue set out with had suffered heavy non-combat losses due to the poor road conditions, leaving only three and a half companies, this small but vital force was a crucial factor in changing the course of the battlefield.

Knowing that their allies were in dire straits, the armored battalion immediately launched an attack from the east side of the defensive line. The road previously cleared by the Belkens now greatly facilitated the armored onslaught—first bombed by the Belkens, then cleared by Belken soldiers' minesweepers, and finally subjected to several rounds of Amelia-style firepower. This minefield was now just a place with "mine" in its name.

The appearance of tanks effectively filled the firepower gaps on the defensive line. These impenetrable and unavoidable iron giants prevented the Belken from further deploying troops to expand their breakthrough points.

It wasn't just two tank battalions that appeared on this battlefield; an air assault company finally entered the fray as well.

The low-flying does licked at every moving yellow figure on the ground, dropping squads directly into the breached lines. The overwhelming firepower annihilated the isolated Belken force, deprived of reinforcements, and the 7th Brigade effortlessly recaptured the lines.

Although the Belken continued fighting with undiminished morale, the commanders of the 441st and 442nd Regiments learned the outcome of the battle upon receiving communications from the armored battalion and the air assault company. The Elwin Battle Group was no longer capable of organizing a raid of this scale and momentum; their operational plan had completely failed.

The Belken man had already grasped the fruit of victory, ready to pluck it, but the ranger slapped him across the face, snatched the fruit, and shoved it into the hand of the Elgian man standing nearby.

……

I returned like lightning.jpg

Honestly, after getting used to the 5600X, switching to the i3 2100 is a completely different experience... even playing Chip 'n' Roll in POI causes a one-minute lag.

Volume 1: Chapter 105, Chapter 94: The End of the Battle of Svorbella

Two infantry companies arrived along with the two tank battalions.

These BMP infantry fighting vehicles followed the vanguard tanks all the way to the front of the trench. As soon as the rear hatches opened, a group of little green men leaped out and poured into the trench, beginning to eliminate the threat. A complex situation began to form, a situation where each side was intertwined with the other, surrounding and in turn surrounding the other.

With the deployment of these infantrymen, the Belken infantry, caught in a pincer attack, began to fall rapidly. As the attacking forces dwindled, the Ergia began to recover from the raid, regain their footing, and, led by the soldiers of the 7th Brigade, launched an offensive to retake the lost trenches.

The Belken resistance remained fierce. Under the influence of drugs, they had no concept of surrender. Wounds or the death of comrades only made them more violent. Although they had the support of the Little Green Men, their numbers were small. The three hundred or so men spread out across the various fronts were even fewer. Most of them were scattered into 3-4 man fire teams, launching attacks on enemy-controlled areas under the cover of a large number of Elgin infantry. This tactic allowed them to recapture the trenches and implement effective control relatively quickly, preventing them from falling back into enemy hands. On other fronts where the Little Green Men were few in number or even non-existent, the Elgin army's efforts to recapture the trenches were slow. They even had to suffer two to three times the number of enemy casualties to successfully capture enemy-controlled areas.

In this close-quarters combat, the 7th Brigade finally suffered its first casualty of the war. These mobile infantrymen were not combat engineers; their body armor could not cover their entire bodies, and grenades exploding at close range in confined spaces could still cause them harm.

A hand grenade with its fuse pulled was thrown from around the corner, hitting the corrugated board on the right and bouncing to the scout's feet. Although the scout immediately kicked it away, the grenade, whose fuse had been pulled for some time before being thrown, exploded a second after being kicked. As the scout was knocked down by the explosion, the little green men behind him immediately stepped over the fallen scout, switching to fully automatic suppressive fire as they cut the corner—they wouldn't have been so gentle if they hadn't run out of grenades in the previous battle. Only after eliminating the enemy around the corner did they free up manpower to begin diagnosing and providing first aid to the fallen scout.

The soldier's flying kick saved his life. If the grenade had exploded on the ground, shrapnel would have covered his lower body from bottom to top. But the kick caused the grenade to explode in mid-air, and most of the shrapnel was absorbed by his body armor. Although his lower body was riddled with shrapnel, it was only gruesome to look at.

The first responder pulled a pair of bent-blade emergency shears from the soldier's medical kit, cut along the trouser leg, and immediately exposed two blood-soaked, hairy thighs. The shrapnel hadn't penetrated deeply and hadn't damaged any major blood vessels in the thigh, so the shrapnel was cleanly pulled out. The applied styptic powder quickly coagulated the blood in the wound, the vacuum-sealed plastic packaging was torn open, and clean, dry gauze was immediately placed over the wound and secured. The battlefield first aid was completed in just two minutes.

"The medic is here!" Upon seeing an Amelia soldier collapse ahead, an Elgin soldier immediately ran to notify the medic for help. He hadn't gone far when he spotted a medic who had just finished treating a wounded soldier, so he pulled the medic over immediately. *Hiss*

"Where are the wounded?" The medic pushed aside the people in the trench and rushed into the fire team's aid site, where he saw that the Amelia soldier on the ground already had bandages on his legs.

"No life-threatening danger, everything's been taken care of, just need to be evacuated later." The medic, having confirmed his companion was out of danger, picked up his gun again before returning to the fire team's attack.

"?" Looking at the pile of blood-stained shrapnel and torn medical supply packaging bags beside the wounded soldier, the medic turned and glared at the man who had led him there. "Damn it, is this the guy who said this place needed first aid?"

While the Allied wounded received treatment from medics, the Belken were less fortunate. Casualties far exceeded the Belken medics' theoretical capacity, and the lack of injury severity classification standards and the absence of corresponding emergency response skills among frontline soldiers resulted in a significant misuse of medical resources. Many severely wounded soldiers with a chance of survival died due to lack of timely treatment. Patients who could have treated themselves, or those whose injuries were too severe and had no chance of survival, consumed valuable time meant for other wounded soldiers and also drained the medics' energy. Furthermore, the limitations of their medical equipment severely restricted their capabilities.

These exhausted medics ran tirelessly across the battlefield, but most of their rescue efforts ended in failure. This accumulated negative feedback quickly broke their spirits. The breakdown of the medical system was merely the prelude to the complete collapse of the Elvin battle group. Once the Allied forces had completely recaptured the trenches, the Belken were once again pinned down outside the trench defenses, unable to move.

The most aggressive charge was wiped out, and those remaining were less heavily intoxicated. After several hours of fighting, the sky had already brightened, and the Belken soldiers could easily see the thick smoke rising from their own positions behind them. As the effects of the drug wore off and rational thinking returned, the Belken soldiers realized their precarious situation. Coupled with the lack of orders from higher command, the brigade commanders disagreed on whether to fight or retreat, and chaos began to spread among the troops.

Meanwhile, Amelia, with the advantage of artillery, regrouped her scattered fire teams. After resupplying, they boarded their tanks again and launched an assault on the Belken forces, which were on the verge of collapse. The Elgins in the trenches also spontaneously followed behind the tanks, forming a torrent that advanced towards the enemy forces, which far outnumbered them.

The weakness brought on by the fading effects of the drug became the final straw for the Belken. The stronger the drug had been, the more intense the weakness felt now. Looking at the menacing steel beast before them, even though it appeared much smaller than their own chariots, its constant speed amplified the sense of oppression.

The moment the tanks and infantry made contact, the collapse occurred.

Book 1: Chapter 106, Chapter 95: Fapanti's Crisis

When news of the defeat of the Elvin Combat Group reached the Allied command, the headquarters was instantly filled with cheers. For the past period, the Elvin Combat Group had been like a persistent dark cloud hanging over the hearts of every Elgin, but now that cloud had finally dissipated.

As the cheers subsided, Kaineng asked, "What are the casualties like for the frontline troops?"

“They haven’t finished fighting yet, so we can’t do a statistic,” the staff officer shook his head and then said, “Should we move the troops from the second line of defense up as well, and press our advantage to expand our gains?”

After a moment's thought, Kaineng said, "Even a rabbit will bite when cornered. Even if we are defeated, the Belken people still outnumber us several times over. It would be bad if we pushed them too hard and forced them into a desperate fight. We have too few people and cannot afford any more losses. Let the 441st and 442nd Regiments stop for now."

"Understood, sir."

Meanwhile, on the southern front, despite the Allied forces' pursuit, the Ergia soldiers, who hadn't rested all night and unlike the Belken, didn't rely on drugs to combat fatigue, began to slow down shortly after the armored units launched their assault. The 7th Brigade's hastily replenished ammunition during lulls in the fighting was also limited and would soon be exhausted in the pursuit. Watching her subordinates begin using steel needles to hit the infantry, Bai Xue felt a headache coming on. "Damn it," she thought, "this guy doesn't know the value of money! One 3BM42 shell costs 230 Silver Lions, and you're just wasting them on a few infantrymen like that? These are BWD's daughters; don't you feel bad about wasting resources like this?"

This wave, this search. Search: Seven Birds ● Rescue 〉± Another >. Qi∑×Gao°Lin wave is the Belken people consuming the 7th Brigade's high-value shells at extremely low cost, a great victory for Belken.

Enraged by this wasteful act, Shirayuki quickly halted the costly attack, and her dwindling ammunition also deterred her from continuing the pursuit. At that moment, Shirayuki, her upper body leaning out of the turret, watched the departing Belken soldiers with lingering reluctance, like an old mother seeing her child off at a train station, repeatedly murmuring that she wanted her child to come home often…

"Everyone, take stock of casualties, return to the front line for resupply, and await further instructions." The faint sound of aircraft engines drifted over, and Bai Xue understood that the air force had launched another attack after completing resupply. She figured that after her tank battalion finished resupplying, there might still be a chance to launch a few more attacks before these people completely escaped from Villand Province or disappeared without a trace. Of course, this was entirely a race against the Belken. Under the pressure of survival, these Belken would do everything in their power, and if so many people were scattered and fled in all directions, the workload of her tank battalion would increase significantly, and the Belken would be more likely to avoid being wiped out.

The jubilant atmosphere in the command post of the 44th Division of the Elgin Division did not last long. A rough casualty estimate was quickly delivered to Kenen. In this defensive battle, the 441st and 442nd Regiments suffered one-third of their casualties, the vast majority of which occurred during Belken's drugged night raid, followed by Belken's heavy artillery bombardment during the initial holding of the position, while the casualties during the pursuit phase of the later battle were undoubtedly the fewest.

That said, only the combined veterans of the 441st and 442nd Regiments could withstand Belken's initial assault. If one of those regiments had been replaced by the other two, they would have been utterly routed. Losing a third of their men would undoubtedly drastically reduce the 44th Division's combat effectiveness. Replenishing veterans isn't easy; it requires real combat experience, not just being handpicked from the ground. Even if a supply depot provides a batch of well-trained replacements, they're still just window dressing; they need to be put to the battlefield and kill a few soldiers before they become any real veterans. In other words, while the 44th Division won the Second Battle of Svorbella in the short term, if the Belken were to launch another battle of similar intensity, the 44th Division would be helpless.

And what about the Belken casualties? The count alone shows over three thousand bodies, and this is only a portion of the total. Those repeatedly obliterated by explosions, deserters, and those who surrendered are not included. The casualty ratio between the Allied forces and the Belken army is at least 1:5. It's worth noting that, to avoid capture, the command of the Elvin battle group chose to commit suicide after confirming they couldn't escape the encirclement, thus maintaining their dignity. While this left Kaineng somewhat disappointed, he had no right to criticize this unexpected stroke of luck.

Elwen's battle group had clearly lost the ability to continue the offensive, but the tens of thousands of defeated soldiers were still a problem that could not be ignored. These defeated soldiers could not defeat the Allied forces, but they could easily defeat unarmed civilians. Clearing out these defeated soldiers would undoubtedly be a time-consuming and laborious task.

All these factors combined meant that while the joy of victory hadn't completely vanished, Kaineng's expression had become noticeably more hardened. And once a communications soldier handed the telegram to the operations staff, who in turn passed it on to Kaineng with a stern face, that joy truly disappeared.

"Prepare the car to go to the Amelia people, then inform the 7th Brigade that we have important matters to discuss." After confirming that he hadn't misread the contents of the telegram, Kaineng folded the telegram several times, stuffed it into his breast pocket, and gave the order.

What could cause Kaineng to lose his composure like this was naturally the situation of the battle in the capital, Fabandi.

Over the past week, the citizens of Fabandi were mobilized, forming more than ten engineering battalions and a militia division of nearly 50,000 men. Centered on Fabandi, they constructed three lines of defense, with numerous concealed temporary and permanent firing positions on top, surrounded by layers of anti-tank trenches and barbed wire. The city streets were blocked off with sandbag barricades. Most of the regular army was deployed in the three outer lines of defense, a small elite force guarding the palace, while the militia took over most of the city's defenses. In short, Fabandi had essentially completed its preparations for a desperate fight against the Belken attack—except for the purge of its own forces.

The attack in Svorari had drawn the attention of the Elgin security forces, who investigated the case upwards. This naturally alarmed the high-ranking mole, who, realizing he was likely exposed, made a desperate decision: to rebel. An internal rebellion quickly threw the Elgin army on this defensive line into chaos, and the Belken seized the opportunity to launch a full-scale offensive.

……

The 1:25 scale Krab is huge!

Volume 19: Chapter 107 Chapter 96 The Night of Chaos (1) $zero<∈5∨∩

Meanwhile, the 7th Brigade, thanks to its light size, quickly completed its own casualty statistics.

Throughout the Battle of Svobera, the northern armored forces suffered one T-72AV damaged, with two men sustaining minor head injuries in the process. The southern observers deployed to the Ergia front were less fortunate; eight men were wounded, but thankfully, their injuries were not serious and would not leave any lasting effects. Ten men wounded, and the disabled tanks repaired – this outcome could be considered a complete victory.

However, just as Lu Wu breathed a sigh of relief, he received a message that Kaineng was coming over, saying that he had "important matters to discuss."

"That's strange. They always give us advance notice before coming and only confirm the exact time after receiving a reply. This is the first time they've come directly like this..."

"I'm afraid something has happened on the Elgin side." There's always something fishy going on when things are not going well. The old saying is still very true. So Lu Wu simply said, "Have the men below remain on guard and prepare for battle."

When he saw that Kenneth's face showed no joy at winning the battle, he realized that his guess was probably correct, but he didn't know how bad the situation would be.

"What happened?" Lu Wu didn't waste time on pleasantries and went straight to the point.

“My brother, I’ve received some terrible news.” Kaineng’s address made Lu Wu raise an eyebrow. “The Fabandi defenses have run into trouble.”