industrial lord

Chapter 754 A Huge Bait

"Stephen did a good job!"

Jürgen looked at the telegram in his hand, a slight smile playing on his lips, and couldn't help but mutter a few words of praise.

Although the fire last night did not directly kill many people, the raging flames surrounded everyone, and the only escape route was firmly blocked by the enemy's position. Despair spread like a plague, ultimately forcing Grositz to give the order for everyone to surrender.

It wasn't until noon that the Elbe Convention coalition forces and the militia of Hammam arrived at the scene, allowing Stefan to relax a little.

Faced with the immense pressure of having 3,000 guards over 10,000 prisoners, Stefan racked his brains and, through vivid descriptions of the generous treatment offered by the Inner South Coast United Fruit Company, the warm and pleasant climate, the enthusiastic and open-minded girls, and the beautiful vision that he could return home safely after just a few years of sunbathing, he finally managed to appease the restless prisoners of war.

The members of the Winged Hussars were quite different from those of the traditional army. Apart from the noble sons who had no right to inherit the family business, the vast majority of them were small landowners from the countryside. They were inherently resistant to heavy physical labor such as building railways, and only the allure of exotic customs could soothe their discontent.

In particular, the large amount of gold that Frederick had brought back from the southern continent had inspired some people to dream of striking it rich.

Jürgen handed the telegram back to his staff officer, spread the map out on the folding table, and began to concentrate on planning the assault group's next attack.

The assault corps secretly departed from Stork Harbor and traveled more than 300 kilometers northward. Now, just over 20 kilometers to the east lies the largest fortress built by the Kingdom of Sverrière after conquering the Kingdom of Danma.

The fortress's defense system was designed to be watertight, with thick and sturdy walls. Several military camps surrounded it for about a kilometer as a barrier. Currently, it has stockpiled a huge amount of food and other logistical supplies. However, due to its distance from the front line and lax defenses, the scouts were almost discovered by the guards who were out hunting and playing.

The tent flap was opened, and a biting wind carrying some snow dust rushed in. The scouts, panting, brought back the latest military intelligence.

The transport fleet of the Kingdom of Sverrière is urgently loading cargo at the dock next to the fortress, seemingly to transport a large amount of supplies to the front lines by waterway.

Jürgen leaned over the map, his fingertips repeatedly tracing the lines of the rivers and roads, lost in deep thought.

The core mission of the assault corps was to completely sever the logistical supply lines between the north and south of the Kingdom of Sverrières. Franz Jr. did not issue specific instructions, but instead gave him ample room to maneuver.

Logically, the mission should have been completed simply by destroying the enemy's transport convoy, but Jürgen felt that such a strike was too conservative and not thorough enough.

The main reason was that Eugene's 3rd Division had performed too well, and Jürgen was unwilling to be second to them.

Although the assault troops did not have an "emperor killer" and there was no emperor in the north, they still had enough military merits to earn.

The core of the assault corps, the 4th Division, possesses a unique advantage: the entire division is equipped with agile puppet warhorses.

This area is flat and open, with no steep mountains to block it. As long as the river is not deep, you can cross anywhere as if walking on flat ground.

Jürgen's finger moved across the map, tracing towns and winding roads before finally focusing on the formidable fortress, a glint in his eyes.

"Call Frank over here."

Every time Jürgen called the artillery staff officer of the 4th Division, he felt a strange unease, because the other person's name was exactly the same as his father-in-law's, and he was worried that he would be embarrassed if he called him by the wrong name when he got home.

Frank quickly approached, straightened his back, saluted, and asked, "Commander, what's the mission?"

Jürgen looked directly at him and asked seriously, "In this weather, can you guarantee that the first round of fire will cover the fortress's docks?"

At this time, the north wind howled like a wild beast. If they wanted to launch a surprise attack on the dock, they could only rely on long-range artillery fire, and their accuracy would inevitably be severely hampered by the bad weather.

Frank frowned and asked, "No test firing?"

Jürgen answered decisively: "There was no test firing."

Frank paused for a moment, tapping his fingers lightly on his overcoat, then calmly replied, "If it's just about creating chaos to cover an area, it's not a big problem."

"But to accurately strike a specific target, two to three, or at most five, rounds of test firing and correction are required."

Jürgen nodded slightly, his gaze sharp as a knife, and said, "Alright, tonight you will be in command of all artillery and rocket artillery units."

"The first round of shooting is intended to start a fire and create panic; the second round of shooting is intended to cover the firefighters and make them pay the price."

The pre-battle meeting took place during dinner. The soldiers silently munched on a pot of randomly selected canned instant noodles and a bottle of soda, their eyes revealing a mixture of anticipation and nervousness for the upcoming operation.

As darkness fell completely, the team left the temporary camp silently, like ghosts, and steadily advanced towards their designated position along the snow-covered forest path.

The biting wind chilled to the bone, and the swirling snowflakes stung my face.

Night fell heavily over the land, but the fortress and the adjacent dock area were unusually brightly lit.

Countless windproof lanterns hung high on the pillars of the pier and beside the piles of goods, their dim yellow light illuminating the bustling scene in minute detail, making them very conspicuous under the night sky.

The fully loaded transport ship was moored in the middle of the river, surrounded by a thin layer of floating ice. The low water level in winter meant that the ship was quite a distance from the shore.

The long wooden pier stretches from the muddy riverbank into the deep water, where countless feet have trodden, creaking and groaning in the cold wind.

Soldiers and conscripted laborers from the Kingdom of Sverrières lined up in long queues, carrying heavy sacks of grain, boxes of medicine, and other supplies across the slippery pier under the rude shouts and threats of officers and whips, and loading them onto waiting transport ships.

The pier swayed under the trampling of the crowd, and the cold wind, carrying icy moisture, hit people in the face. The biting cold made many people's lips turn purple and their hands and feet go numb.

About two kilometers away from the dock, behind a gentle slope, the artillery positions of the assault troops were already set up.

Frank crouched behind the makeshift observation post, his face turning blue and purple from the biting cold wind.

He forced himself to endure the chill and carefully checked the final coordinate data transmitted back by the scouts.

Fingers slid rapidly across the cold metal slide rule, constantly adjusting for the effects of wind speed and direction on the trajectory, finally uttering a series of clear and resolute firing data. The six meticulously camouflaged cannons removed their covers, their dark muzzles slowly rising to lock onto the brightly lit target area. The gunners held their breath, awaiting orders.

"First round, one round each from number one to three, target the central area of ​​the dock, load incendiary bombs, fire!"

Frank's voice sounded unusually calm over the walkie-talkie amidst the howling, cold wind.

The three heavy cannons suddenly lurched backward violently, spewing out large bursts of flame from their muzzles. The muffled roar tore through the silent winter night like thunder.

The soldiers of the Kingdom of Sverrières in the distance thought it was just the sound of thunder in winter and paid no attention.

Three expensive magical incendiary bombs whistled through the dark night sky, propelled by the biting north wind, and like messengers of death, landed precisely in the center of the dock's loading and unloading area.

"Boom boom boom!"

Three enormous, viscous, orange-red fireballs exploded violently, instantly covering an area of ​​tens of meters in radius. Deadly fire rain, like a fountain from hell, splashed wildly in all directions.

Bundles of freshly piled hay, sacks of grain, and even planks of the pier, immediately burst into flames upon contact with this magical fire, crackling and popping.

A transport ship docked at the end of the pier, loading supplies, was directly hit by a huge, sticky fireball that exploded in the nearby water. The two ships in front and behind were also partially affected. The sails and cargo on the deck burst into flames, and the fire spread rapidly, illuminating the terrified and distorted faces of the people.

The piercing screams instantly drowned out the sound of the wind. Soldiers and laborers on the pier and by the dock were caught in the flying flames and instantly turned into writhing, wailing figures of fire, struggling to throw themselves into the icy river water.

Several piles of supplies were ignited, and thick smoke billowed up like a giant black python soaring into the sky.

The sudden attack and fierce fire plunged the dock into extreme chaos.

People dropped their loads and screamed in terror as they tried to escape the inferno, pushing and trampling each other. Chaos reigned on the pier, with people constantly being pushed into the icy river, splashing water everywhere.

Some of the officers and soldiers looked around, searching for the attackers.

They had only heard that the Weisen Kingdom possessed a weapon capable of striking at great distances, but they had no direct experience of it. The battlefield was far away in Redwaterwheel Village, which made everyone forget that the Weisen army had arrived. Instead, they assumed that the remnants of the Danma Kingdom's defeated army had come to cause trouble again.

"Fire! Enemy attack! Put out the fire! Quickly, put out the fire!"

The alarm bells at the fortress and the outer military camps rang frantically, their piercing sound echoing through the night sky.

A large number of soldiers poured out of the nearby military camps and, driven by the officers' stern commands, rushed toward the dock carrying buckets and sandbags.

Some of the fortress's garrison also detached themselves to join the firefighting efforts, and the number of troops quickly increased.

The strong winds fueled the fire, with flames licking at everything flammable, but they also dispersed the thick smoke and heat, allowing firefighters to approach from upwind.

Driven by the high pressure, a large number of soldiers and civilians braved the scorching heat to fight the flames in the dock area, trying to salvage supplies and control the fire, their faces covered in sweat and fly ash.

The magicians rode up leisurely, many of them reeking of alcohol, and began to help put out the fire.

Gradually, the main fire spots seemed to be suppressed, and more and more people gathered in the dock area, forming a dense, dark mass of firefighters, as numerous as ants.

Frank watched all this coldly through the observation lens, a cruel smile playing on his lips, as he silently calculated the time in his mind.

When the crowd gathered at the dock area reached its peak and the firefighting operation seemed to be making some progress, he decisively issued a new order: "Target unchanged, adjust parameters, six cannons fired in rapid succession within one minute!"

"Three rounds of rapid-fire rocket artillery fire!"

"put!"

The six cannons roared deafeningly, while the eighteen rocket launchers, already loaded, emitted sharp, piercing sounds as they hurtled through the air. Dense rockets, trailing long plumes of flame, hurtled towards the brightly lit, bustling dock like a swarm of fireballs.

"Boom boom boom boom!"

The explosion, several times more powerful than the first, instantly and completely submerged the entire dock area.

The high-explosive warhead exploded in the dense crowd, the shockwave tearing people apart like rag dolls, sending flesh and blood flying everywhere. Steel balls and scorching shrapnel swept in all directions, mercilessly reaping lives like a sickle cutting wheat.

The soldiers and civilians who had just been fighting the fire were instantly engulfed by the flames and steel storm of the explosion, their screams drowned out by the deafening roar.

The pier collapsed with a deafening roar amidst a series of explosions, sending burning wood and severed limbs flying into the air before crashing heavily into the icy river, creating crimson waves.

Those who were lucky enough to escape the first wave of explosions were covered by the second and third waves of rockets.

Screams, explosions, and the crackling of burning wood mingled together. Flames soared into the sky above the dock, thick smoke billowed, and the air was filled with the heavy stench of blood and charred flesh.

The place where people gathered to fight the fire has become a hellish place filled with flames, flowing blood, and littered with wreckage and charred corpses.

Jürgen, observing through binoculars not far from Frank, ordered: "Cease the attack on the docks, attack the left and right camps, then attack the fortress."

The two military camps saw the rockets coming and were gathering their troops to prepare to attack.

Based on the shooting effects of the attack on the dock, Frank quickly calculated the relevant shooting parameters. The troops that had just assembled in the camp suddenly discovered that the fireballs from before had reappeared, and this time they were aimed at them!

With the threat eliminated, the artillerymen calmly launched an attack on the fortress.

Jürgen watched as the fortress burst into flames, a smile playing on his lips. This time, the enemy forces from all around would be rushing to their aid.

(End of this chapter)