229 – Last Army Standing (5) – Across Kikkus
“Caught.”
The commander of the 9th Corps, Vasily Molodov, smiled contentedly. His own strategy was successful.
Unlike the enemy’s 1st Panzer, which only had to be penetrated in a straight line, in the case of the 6th Panzer, it was necessary to make a large detour.
In addition, two infantry divisions were also deployed in the vicinity of the 1st Armored Division to expand the battlefield.
There is no way that the 6th Panzer, which was tasked with quickly detouring and attacking the rear of the allies, was given an infantry unit that ate away its mobility.
In the first place, their purpose must be to join the Uk ranian Airborne Forces, who are parachuting into the rear area and conducting a siege.
However, that meant that the 6th Panzer was a single armored force.
The meaning of a single armored force meant that the moment a breakthrough was blocked, there was a high possibility of losing power and plummeting to the ground.
And actually.
The combat skills of the 6th Armored Corps, which had properly met the fierce counterattack of the allied armored units, were being consumed at a rapid pace.
“An enemy armored battalion has been repulsed and is on the run.”
“Don’t chase me to the end and tell me to cut off the supply lines. Anyway, armored troops will end once supply is cut off.”
Vasily Molodov was looking at his battlefield with a rather advanced perspective. An armored unit may seem formidable, but its formidable offensive power comes from sufficient supply and morale.
As with the old cavalry divisions, if there is no hay to feed the horses, their excellent impact power and breakthrough power will rapidly deteriorate over time.
The situation is not much different for an armored unit that suddenly appeared a few years ago and took its place.
“Correspondence Chief.”
“Yes, Commander!”
“Was the 104th Division the unit of the Southwest Group Army currently deployed in this area?”
“Yes. I am subordinate to the 15th Corps.”
“Deliver this letter to the commander of the 104th Division.”
“Okay!!!”
For Lieutenant General Vasily, Army Group Southwest was already a rebel army. However, in this situation, even one soldier would be a waste.
Besides, aren’t you still looking at the liver from afar? They, too, will be long gone. Is it right to turn your back on the empire in the middle of a war?
In that case, dig into that hesitation and drive a wedge into it.
Dear 104th division commander.
I know that your younger brother was swept away in the bloody purge that overflowed from the capital. You will have no choice but to be dissatisfied with the empire and the emperor.
I’m single without a family, but if I were like that, I would have vented endless anger against the emperor.
I would not say that the Empire and the Emperor are right. If our empire had been such a proud nation, we wouldn’t have waged such a f*cking war in the first place.
But as you know, we are in the middle of a war. Those on the other side are our enemies, not allies.
How pitiful and humiliating it is to entrust the fate of the country to the enemy, seized by a momentary rage?
Avenge yourself with your own hands, not others. Go all the way, or put that foolish emperor down.
You are mistaken if you think the Uk ran and Polania will leave the Empire alone. They are just wild dogs that take the opportunity and pounce. You lost your brother, but your actions will cost the lives of countless people of the Empire.
If you want your dedication to be truly rewarded.
If you haven’t yet been completely blinded by your anger towards the Empire.
Come with me to defeat the invaders and usher in a new era. Then i will be with you
-9Th Corps Commander Lieutenant General Vasily Molodov-
The letter written in his own handwriting reached the commander of the 104th Division through the hands of a messenger.
In fact, Soviet Army Group Southwest promised cooperation with Uk ran and Red October, but not everyone under it promised cooperation.
The commander of the 104th Division, who was at a loss as to where to put the weight between anger at the loss of his younger brother and duty as a soldier of the empire, hardened his mind as soon as he received Vasily Molodov’s letter.
It was a letter written by a hero of the empire, who is currently at the peak of his career, even containing the strong word ‘fall of the emperor’.
Even a great hero could have been dragged to the guillotine and beheaded.
From the point of view of the commander of the 104th Division, he felt that Vasily Molodov was desperately persuading him.
Even risking his own life. This was an implicit threat, but at the same time it was an appeasement. After all, Vasily Molodov could have been weaved together for treason if he had this correspondence.
“…… Division commander, what should I do?”
“Give orders to his troops to mobilize.”
“Yes, I understand.”
The infantry division of Army Group Southwest, which had been waiting in silence for the enemy’s armored forces to enter his territory, began to move.
The 6th Armored Division couldn’t help but be embarrassed by the betrayal of those they knew as allies.
“What?! What happened!”
“Commander, it’s the enemy’s mortar! The 104th Infantry Division has betrayed you! They are breaking the silence and attacking!”
“Clear the way out! It will be annihilation if it continues like this! Dig into the direction the 9th Infantry Brigade deployed!!”
“The 3rd company will be in charge of breaking through. Back please, Lieutenant Colonel George Smith!”
“Glory to the motherland!!!”
The 6th Panzer, realizing that even if something went wrong, it was going wrong, immediately responded.
Quang! Bang!!
“Enemy shells falling!!”
The pouring artillery fire, the narrowing encirclement, and the enemy tank units advancing with the momentum to trample on anything in sight were not things that could be overcome with spirit alone.
Besides, it wasn’t just the land that choked them.
“Enemy bombers observed above ours!”
“Everybody go into the trenches!!”
The concept of ‘air defense’ has not been established yet, it is the same as the Sobie Empire or the Kingdom of Uk ran.
Like Roxanna Elim’s 1st Fighter Squadron, dominating the skies of the Empire without any threat, pouring down huge flames on the ground.
Even though they might be criticized for being blunt, the imperial aircraft threw bombs ceaselessly over the heads of the 6th Armored Corps at Soviet, which again gathered up its troops and sortied.
Supply has been cut off, and the enemy’s pressure is getting stronger.
In a desperate situation, a tank battalion led by Lieutenant Colonel George Smith attempted to secure a breakthrough, but it was thwarted as eight tanks were destroyed by a counterattack by the enemy heavy tank battalion.
Even that Lieutenant Colonel George Smith was seriously injured.
In the end, the 6th Panzer had no choice but to go back the way they came and lock themselves in a small city called ‘Paluga’.
“The orbit is destroyed!”
“Except the gunner and loader, get off! We will use this as a stationary turret from now on!”
The front line, which had been widely spread for the breakthrough, was reduced to the center of Paluga before anyone knew it. In fact, it was a form close to a sit-in that could not be called an operation now.
And even division headquarters were very pessimistic about the prospects.
“Retreat is impossible.”
“Division commander!!”
“The only way to retreat is to throw away all of this equipment and run. Do you really think you can run away with everything in your tank and truck?”
“… ….”
“We are one of the few tank units in Uk ran. If we retreat like this, it will be like opening a huge hole in not only the corps, but also the power of the kingdom.”
The staff members, who strongly resisted the life-threatening threats that were gradually tightening their necks, could not answer the division commander’s voice, which seemed to have given up.
“And what about the Airborne Forces deployed to the north? As for the 8th Motorized Infantry Brigade struggling to extricate us from below?”
The siege has already been completed. What was the mission assigned to the 6th Armored Division in the first place?
Wouldn’t it have been to support the Uk ranian Special Operations Forces, who were encircled by dropping behind the enemy and pressuring the front line, to break the siege and completely destroy the enemy’s defense line?
However, far from reaching the special agent, the current situation of being surrounded in all directions of the Southwest Group Army.
If the 6th Armored Division is annihilated, the 9th Infantry Brigade, as well as the Uk ranian Special Operations Forces, which have been surrounded since long ago, will inevitably collapse one by one.
What if that happens?
Game over.
The corps commander had already judged that this attack would be the greatest and final attack by the Uk ranians that could be inflicted on the Sovie Empire.
From the civil war to now, in fact, for almost two years, Uk ran’s national power has been pushed to the limit.
However, unlike the Uk ran, the Soviet Empire is taking the foundation again from destruction once again based on its terrifying industrial power and national power.
The moment they finally recover all their skills and step on the Uk ranian soil again.
It was clear that a miracle like the last time would not happen.
“…… We stand here Even if we all die together.”
The division commander’s clenched fist trembled. It was a silent clamor that contained both anger and helplessness.
Three days later.
The commander of the 6th Armored Division, who declared a desperate battle, was killed in a bombardment of Soviet.
It was Uk ran’s first general-level death.
And they were still there.