184 – Preparations for the invasion of Austria (4)
And half a year later, a week before the departure of the Austrian expeditionary force.
“Then, from now on, I will disclose all top secret information related to the expedition to officers of colonel or higher.”
With this declaration, everyone’s attention was focused on the staff officer who was making the announcement at the front.
Most of the officers here had no idea of the classified information that was to be announced, so they looked full of anticipation, worry, and a little apprehension.
The Crown Prince and I, who already knew all the information, realized that this expedition had begun in earnest.
“First of all, the Austrian Expeditionary Force consists of a total of 14 divisions, and the total number of troops is 115,000. The Commander-in-Chief is His Highness Crown Prince Michael von Reich, the Deputy Commander is Lieutenant General Peter Jaeger, and the Chiefs of Staff for Personnel, Transport, Administration, and Intelligence make up the General Headquarters.”
According to the original plan, even if His Highness the Crown Prince goes as the commander-in-chief, it is correct that if the number exceeds 100,000, a captain-level commander will accompany him as the second-in-command.
Thanks to the numerous achievements I have accumulated so far, and thanks to the strong support of His Majesty and my father-in-law, I was able to become a lieutenant general and second-in-command.
Furthermore, the command of the 7th Guards Division also belongs to me.
“And according to reports from the Imperial Intelligence Department and the troops deployed in the Czechovia area, the current Grand Duchy of Czechia has deployed 80,000 troops centered on Charlesburg Castle near Visozia. It is said that 30,000 men were dispatched as a follow-up unit for defense.”
When we heard that, the generals and officers, including His Highness the Crown Prince and I, spoke with expressions full of concern.
“Offense is much more disadvantageous than defense, so if we fight like this, won’t we actually be losing the war with Czechia?”
“Our second-in-command is Lieutenant General Yeager. “You must have something on your mind.”
“That’s true, Director Gapel… I’m a little uneasy.”
If the place I was planning to attack was Czechia, I would have changed the place I wanted to attack as soon as I received that information.
Because no matter how much I am a flying and crawling general, unless I am a general who is a walking natural disaster, it would be absolutely crazy for the defending troops to attack with forces that are almost the same as those of the attacking side.
“In addition, Archduke Weidmann von Austrian, the Archduke of the Grand Duchy of Austria, gathered a large army numbering 130,000 people in western Austria, centered on Linz. Furthermore, Austria and Czechia even entered into a military alliance to attack the imperial army together if the soldiers of the Reich Empire attacked western Czechia or northern Austria through Visozia.”
If this happens, the worst situation will happen where we have to fight against a large army totaling 240,000 soldiers when we attack Czechvia.
Maybe that’s why the officers had expressions on their faces that seemed to say, ‘If this continues, won’t our organization be ruined?’
The moment I heard about the number of soldiers gathered by the Austrians and the military alliance between the two countries, I was extremely embarrassed.
Because, if they had only acted according to the information I leaked, the Archduke of Austria would have had absolutely no reason to enter into a military alliance with Czechvia.
This is because, if Austria concludes a treaty to send reinforcements if Czechoslovakia is attacked, it will definitely suffer a loss.
In other words, if you judge based on these facts, you will come to this conclusion.
‘The Austrians already know that they, not the Czechoslovakia, are being attacked through the double agents I dispatched. However, I feel very grateful to the Austrians who signed this treaty, because the Duke of Czechvia seems to be the country that is being targeted.’
“However, this time the Empire will attack the western part of the Grand Duchy of Austria, along the route from Innsbruck to Linz. Therefore, reinforcements from the Czechoslovak army will not come.”
In a situation where a mutual defense treaty was signed, the western part of the Grand Duchy of Austria was attacked, but it may sound a bit absurd to say that the Grand Duchy of Czechia is not sending reinforcements.
However, most treaties of this era are made as a joke to lay the groundwork for hitting the other side hard in the back.
Even if there is only one letter different from what is written in the treaty, in most cases, they find fault and do not implement any treaty that is unfavorable to them.
This is a world where, in extreme cases, the agent on the side of the annulment gets the king’s seal by mistake and claims it is invalid.
It is impossible to believe in the treaties of this era, except that they were actually decided by the difference between victory and defeat in the war.
“…… Lieutenant General Yeager did another thing. In order to gather an army of over 130,000 people in Linz, Austria, troops would have had to be gathered from all over the Grand Duchy…”
“Isn’t Linz, in Innsbruck, empty except for the bare minimum of defensive forces?”
“It’s always fun to rob empty houses. Additionally, unless the Archduke of Austria is an idiot, he will have no choice but to give up his advantage in defense if he wants to intercept us. “The enemy will not be able to take advantage of the defender’s advantage.”
The staff here are jumping for joy, but the Crown Prince and I cannot look at this situation very optimistically.
Because at most, 5 people, including Martius, who was planted as a double agent, betrayed.
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This is because the beautiful plan to strike the enemy in a big way collapsed, and we ended up fighting at a disadvantage than expected.
Therefore, much of the confidential information and information about the Austrian military that we received from double agents has proven to be unreliable…
So, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, who was sitting in the highest seat in the exact center to my right, tried to get up as if to shout, ‘This is a trap.’
I grabbed His Highness by the hem of his clothes and shook his head to signal him.
‘For now, let’s just pretend we were fooled. That’s a more effective way to screw them, Your Majesty.’
The most fatal thing from a deceiver’s perspective is to pretend to be deceived until just before the critical moment.
Counterattacking at a critical moment is the most effective.
“I cannot reveal his identity yet, but the empire has now dispatched several spies to Austria. In addition, some of them are now serving as officers in the Austrian army.”
At those words, the officers here cheered.
“As expected, it’s His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and Vice Admiral Jaeger. It is difficult to persuade an officer in the Austrian army. “You managed to bring in our own officer.”
“Isn’t it essentially like looking at the enemy in the palm of your hand?”
“This expedition will be very easy.”
…… No, we were hit in the back. Still, I’m just pretending like I don’t know, and then I’m trying to break Ostrich’s head.
Oh, it’s a shame because I made preparations and tricked him into withdrawing his troops to the western part of Innsbruck.
If I had relayed the correct information to Martius, who was acting like a double agent, I would have just given up on this expedition.
His Royal Highness must have thought the same thing, but it really took ten years.
“So, it is the opinion of the General Staff Department and the General Staff College that this expedition will proceed smoothly without any major problems. “This concludes the general presentation.”
As soon as he finished speaking, applause rang out from all over, and the other generals had already started drinking bowls of kimchi soup, or even whole bowls of it.
I quietly took out a fountain pen and wrote on a piece of paper lying on my desk.
[Major Martius and four others betrayed. Otherwise, there would be no way for Czechia and the Grand Duchy of Austria to form an alliance. However, because we sent them so carefully, the Grand Duchy of Austria will think that we were deceived by them, so it would be better to keep everything as it was before except for the marching route.]
Then, I handed the memo to His Highness who was sitting next to me.
So we listened to the briefing session on the strategy that lasted for the next three hours, and His Royal Highness carefully called me to a corner and asked.
“Lieutenant General Yeager, what is this situation for us now? Is it the worst or the best?”
First of all, Matthias, who was acting as a double agent, attacked them in the back, but since they changed the advance route anyway, no reinforcements will come from Czechvia.
So, it is definitely not the worst situation.
However, it cannot be said to be the best since the double agents and various secrets planted have gone to waste.
“It’s up to you and me. However, since your majesty and I have joined forces, we can overcome even the worst, right?”
When His Highness heard those words, he smiled and said.
“It’s always best when you and I are together. “This was a pointless question.”
After that, he spoke while gritting his teeth.
“Martius, Bolton, Ludwig, Billy, Josef… You betrayed the Empire even though I gave you the chance. I swear to Deus that I will tear you limb from limb and kill you once this expedition is over. “Also, it’s really funny that you’re still playing in the palm of Lieutenant General Jaeger’s hand after betraying him like that.”