Conquer Europe from the West

Chapter 84: The First Battle of the Airborne Forces (Please Subscribe!)
"Then I will take my leave."

After the final briefing, Ryan consciously said goodbye to the generals.

"Go."

Hellingen nodded to him.

Ms. Catherine, who was standing by, immediately opened the door and left the meeting room with Ryan.

"Don't you need to stay inside?"

Ryan was a little concerned about Catherine leaving with him.

Ms. Catherine's response to this is quite interesting: "I don't want to stay in there and stink of cigarettes."

"After all, he's from the General Staff."

Ryan was used to this.

The Imperial Capital's General Staff was famous throughout the continent for its explosive work pressure. To ensure their brains were clear, the staff officers began smoking from the moment they opened their eyes. But even so, they would still feel annoyed by their lack of concentration.

"Let's not talk about that for now." Ms. Catherine was obviously not very concerned about the staff's affairs. She patted Ryan's arm lightly and said, "Where did Viscount Brinkman go? Why are you only wearing a shirt?"

Ryan immediately said, "Oh, as for the lieutenant, she accidentally tore her clothes, and I lent her my coat. It was in the locker room before, but I don't know what happened after that."

He rushed to the meeting room immediately after sending Brinkman to the locker room, so he couldn't give a definite answer.

But Ryan was more concerned about the conversation just now.

"Speaking of which..."

At the end of the corridor, he pulled a self-rolled cigarette from his pocket, held it to his lips, and while fumbling for a match, he glanced towards the door at the end: "The commander and the general should have had a smooth discussion before I came here, right?"

Ryan's words made Ms. Catherine stunned for a moment: "Why do you say that?"

Ryan probably had the answer in his mind, but he felt there was no need to hide it from Catherine, so he was quite straightforward when he spoke.

He said, "I heard them cursing, but I didn't hear such loud noises when I was sending the lieutenant to the locker room."

"It stands to reason that if they were to develop into that situation, they would have been arguing for a while, but it just feels a little weird, like they were just acting."

As he spoke, Ryan blew out two smoke rings. The light gray circles swirled in the air, attracting Catherine's attention.

Flicking the accumulated ashes into the water-filled ashtray beside him, Ryan continued.

"Also, at the end of the report, General Draven seemed to have been wanting to ask me the name of the unit, as if he had already decided to let me command it."

When he said this, all he was thinking about was the conversation he had just had with Draven and the others.

Although there were many conflicts in the conversation, it was obvious that Draven and Volbeck gave Ryan enough face most of the time.

They did not find too much fault with Ryan's speech, but instead gave Ryan a chance to explain.

This was obviously different from the imperial soldiers Ryan was familiar with.

Ryan was no fool. He knew that even if he was the owner of the Blue Star Musk Medal, he would still be frequently mocked in the Seventh Army's front-line staff and headquarters.

If this is the case with the captains and colonels, how can the other generals possibly give him enough face?
There must be something wrong somewhere.

"You are right."

Just as Ryan guessed, Lady Catherine said, "Before you came, Captain, they had already discussed your arrangements. But the quarrel was real. Father, no, the commander hoped that you could quickly master the command of multiple regiments, just as he wanted, but Uncle Draven thought it was a bit hasty."

"I knew it."

Ryan smiled bitterly: "It's a good thing I didn't say the wrong thing, otherwise both sides would be embarrassed now."

Catherine hadn't expected Ryan to say that. "Their previous agreement was that if you, Captain, request to manage more than two regiments, we'll send you to the Imperial Capital General Staff for three months of training, and then transfer you back to Stuttgart for frontline practice."

"But you chose the second path. Although the regiment is not a small unit, it is still a position held by officers with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel and above, so it is still a bit troublesome to handle."

Now it was Ryan's turn to be surprised.

But he immediately remembered that Catherine was also a soldier, but she was in charge of clerical work, so he was immediately relieved.

Seeing that Ryan didn't say anything, Catherine continued, "The Commander and General Draven have agreed on one thing: when you, Captain, begin to reorganize your troops, they will submit your promotion proposal to the Imperial Capital General Staff to complete your promotion to the rank of Major."

"After the troops complete their training, I will make an exception and promote him to lieutenant colonel on the grounds of outstanding training performance."

"That way, firstly, you won't have to use your status as a decorated officer to forcefully command officers of your own rank to conduct operations, as you did in Stuttgart. Secondly, it will sound much better in terms of publicity."

After saying this, Ms. Catherine kept her arms crossed over her chest, leaning against the railing of the terrace.

Ryan was trying to figure out what Catherine meant by this.

He could guess that Catherine said this at the instruction of Commander Hellingen, but Ryan didn't know why Hellingen did this.

Logically speaking, they could have made these things clear when talking to me without beating around the bush.

"I can't understand why they do this?" Catherine, who noticed that Ryan was confused, looked at the boy who was ten years older than her son and was like a younger brother and a child, with a hint of teasing in her tone.

Unlike Brinkman, a new aristocrat who entered the military academy right after graduating from high school, she was a top student who had completed a bachelor's and master's degree in political science. After her marriage, she also worked in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for a period of time, so she was very clear about the ins and outs of these twists and turns.

Then she realized she had underestimated Ryan.

Ryan's voice was filled with annoyance. He said, "It's because I figured it out that I feel weird."

"The commander seems to not want this matter to be brought up openly and wants it to remain off the record, so he's using this method to have you tell me."

"But actually, this kind of thing is not uncommon in the army. This is what I don't understand."

Catherine was obviously surprised by Ryan's judgment, and even forgot to push a strand of hair that fell in front of her eyes behind her ear - this was not a common thing for her who attached great importance to her appearance.

She couldn't help but say to Ryan, "Captain, when the war is over, how about you go to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs? I know a lot of diplomats, and when they were your age, they weren't as good at analyzing people's hearts as you are."

"forget it."

Ryan was a little embarrassed by what Catherine said.

It’s still unknown whether the empire can win this war, so it’s a bit too early to think about the future.

But he couldn't say that and could only refuse immediately.

Catherine seemed to realize that her remarks had gone too far and immediately changed the subject.

"Because, Captain, you are a little too famous in the eyes of Farlan and the United Kingdom."

As she spoke, Catherine was almost entirely gazing at the crowd in the courtyard, her tone becoming somewhat lamentable. "In fact, Captain, you should have considered this when you decided to give up your noble status and continue your studies in the general officer course, right?"

Ryan was a little confused now. He knew that he had done this in the past, but he had actually traveled through time, so he had no relevant memory.

But since Catherine didn't know Ryan in the past, he used a more euphemistic way of saying it: "To be honest, I was hit by the shockwave of the artillery shell when the Farlans attacked. After waking up, I forgot a lot of things."

"Oh?"

Catherine glanced at Ryan, then turned her gaze back to the people in the courtyard. "Well, even so, Captain, you know what's going on. After all, these days, anyone with a choice wouldn't choose to refuse a title. Ultimately, the status of a true noble is far more useful than that of a soldier or heir to a title. Few young people have your level of awareness."

When Catherine said this, she waved and greeted a colonel who seemed to have a very close relationship with her, but her words were still addressed to Ryan.

"Brigadier General Bryan... he's the staff officer of the Fifth Military Region. Don't you have a good relationship with him?"

"The Brigadier General is a very good staff officer and he takes good care of me." Ryan said in a flat voice.

Catherine: "He was a doctor's son before he was admitted to the military academy. Everyone urged him to be awarded a title, but he refused."

"You and Brigadier General Brian..."

Ryan was a little confused now.

Ms. Catherine immediately puffed out her chest with pride: "After all, I graduated from the General Officer Academy, although I only majored in logistics."

"Oh."

Now Ryan understood.

Either they are in the same period or they have a very good relationship.

Catherine continued, "After graduating as a lieutenant, he climbed from lieutenant to colonel in just four years. He was the same age as you are now."

"But the war ended very quickly, so he was stuck at the rank of brigadier general and never got promoted."

"I heard that he specifically plucked you out of the military academy and brought you to the Fifth Military Region?"

"To be honest," Ryan scratched his head, "my grades are obviously not up to par."

But his words immediately made Catherine laugh: "A guy whose grades were blocked every time because he was too good is now saying that his grades were not good enough and he was picked up. Don't tell anyone about this, or you will be beaten."

Now it was Ryan's turn to be embarrassed.

Catherine also noticed Ryan's embarrassment and immediately changed the subject: "Well, after all, this is an outsider's evaluation. Captain, the fact that you can lead your men out of the Second Battalion's camp has already proved your ability." "Soldiers can be proud, or rather, they should be proud. No soldier wants to follow an officer who is gloomy and self-pitying every day, right?"

"That's what you said."

Ryan nodded quickly. At the same time, fierce shouting and cursing came from behind a wooden door not far ahead.

Catherine became visibly upset after hearing Commander Hellingen's swearing, but she did not go forward to stop him.

"Okay, enough chatting."

She lowered her hands and leaned her elbows on the railing. "The commander wanted me to ask the captain how long it would take for your troops to complete their training."

For some reason, Ryan found himself not at all surprised that Catherine would ask such a thing.

He was silent for a moment, then spoke: "That depends on the specific qualities of the troops."

"What do you mean?" Catherine's tone became noticeably more serious.

Ryan: "If the troops are highly educated, highly obedient, and have actual combat experience, the training time can be shortened to as little as three months. If they are young people who haven't yet fully mastered the current common tactics, it can even be a month."

"So fast?" Catherine was surprised. She stood up straight and looked at Ryan with eyes full of disbelief.

She was a logistics professional, so she naturally understood the meaning of Ryan's words.

Seeing this, Ryan immediately explained: "But they are elite troops."

"If it were a normal unit, it would take six months just for soldiers to learn and master new tactical theories, and it might take more than two years to fully complete the training."

"That's pretty much it."

Catherine breathed a sigh of relief: "But we don't have much time."

"Marshal Schlieffen gave us 39 days, but it seems impossible for the Empire to force the Farlanders to surrender within 39 days."

Ryan found that what she said was completely contrary to what Hellingen and Draven had said before.

"The United Kingdom has sent troops?" he asked.

Catherine wasn't surprised: "Already guessed it?"

"I guessed it when the Central Army attacked Lie Ri."

Throwing the remaining cigarette butt into the water, Ryan said in a low voice: "The Kingdom of Perijie is the bridgehead of the United Kingdom on the mainland. If the Empire attacks Perijie, it will inevitably cause dissatisfaction in the United Kingdom."

"I have a friend in the Central Army. He wrote that he had met someone from the United Kingdom..."

"Colonel Ludendorff?" Catherine immediately guessed who the friend Ryan was talking about.

"You know him?"

Then Catherine turned her gaze towards the door where the shouting and cursing was still coming from. "Last year, he had several arguments with the Commander at the General Staff Headquarters. The Commander is still furious. Before you were assigned to Episode 7, Captain, he was furious for several hours because he heard you had a good relationship with him."

"That's why the Commander came all the way to see me that day!"

I thought I finally understood why I ran into Hellingen as soon as I arrived in Stuttgart that night.

Before, he thought that this was Heilingen trying to show his friendliness, but now it seems that the mother came here to check the household registration!
A general of the rank of Admiral actually did such a thing...

Catherine also seemed to immediately realize that she had talked too much and had an embarrassed expression on her face.

Ryan didn't take it too seriously.

His mind began to flash back to the events of August and September during the First World War.

There were many battles in those two months, but the most important ones on the Western Front were probably the Battle of the Marne and the intelligence war waged by the British.

There is no need to say much about the Battle of the Marne. What is important is the intelligence war started by the British troublemakers.

Probably in the middle and late stages of the Battle of the Marne, the damn Anglo-Saxon barbarians sent about three to four thousand people to a port in Belgium.

They spent a lot of money on publicity at the time, and the media exaggerated the story more and more, so that when the news reached Moltke the Younger's ears, the number had increased from 3,000 to 40,000 British troops to 30,000 to 40,000 British troops and tens of thousands of Russians!

This information made Moltke the Younger immediately believe that the Allied forces in the North Sea had advantages in shipping routes and naval strength, and further prompted Moltke the Younger to think of withdrawing quickly to preserve strength.

After this, the famous march to the sea began.

The fortifications they left behind during their advance also indirectly laid the foundation for the main environment of the battlefields of World War I - trenches.

Ryan didn't want the empire to be forced into a long and consuming stalemate.

For him, it would be best if the war could be over in a few months, as most people thought.

Instead of lasting four full years.

After a moment of silence, Ryan spoke again.

He asked, "Has the United Kingdom proposed an alliance with the Empire?"

"Have."

Catherine immediately replied, "They proposed it just the day before yesterday. The Russian Empire has agreed to their request and is currently in the process of general mobilization. The headquarters and the general staff believe that they will need at least six to eight weeks to assemble the troops..."

“It won’t be that ideal.”

Ryan's voice was cold.

"Speed ​​is of the essence in war, and the people of the Russian Empire are no fools. They will definitely launch an attack before they complete their assembly. There will be no exception."

"How can you be sure?" Catherine didn't believe Ryan's judgment: "Their organization and strength are not as good as the Empire. Even if they launch an attack..."

Then she too fell silent.

Catherine's pupils shrank instantly, sensing the implication behind Ryan's words. "The Empire will launch an early attack to support Farlan and the United Kingdom. Their goal isn't to win, but to force the Empire to withdraw its main forces... and establish a two-front battlefield..."

"I'm going to tell Vice Admiral Draven immediately."

She immediately took a step forward, but was stopped by Ryan.

"Not now," Ryan grabbed Catherine's wrist, his face serious. "This is the Empire's tactic. The sooner we act, the more passive we will be."

Catherine's voice and expression became extremely tense: "But if we don't take action..."

Ryan retorted: "The later we react, the more advantage it will have on the Empire."

"Marshal Schlieffen's plan is to use a powerful army to sweep Farland from north to south with sheer force. However, the empire's current deployment of troops falls far short of Marshal Schlieffen's planned standards. The empire is already short of troops, and now they have to withdraw troops. This is not a good thing."

"Then when do you think is the best time to say it?" Catherine was not a fool after all. She immediately understood what Ryan meant.

The Empire cannot respond to the Russian Empire too early, as this will weaken the number of troops on the current front and will also give the Empire a reason to attack due to premature action.

It is neither appropriate nor logical to point it out in advance.

But Ryan already had an idea: "Wait until the United Kingdom actually enters the game."

he said.

"When those barbarians who can't even cook start loudly announcing that they will send troops to support the Kingdom of Perijie and the Farlans."

"When their troops set foot on the land of the Kingdom of Perijie, that's when we strike."

Catherine's brows furrowed as she realized Ryan hadn't mentioned mobilizing troops...

That's what he said.

Attack...

This made her start to take the youngest owner of the Blue Star Musk Medal seriously for the first time.

the reason is simple.

Captain Ryan Flegg had just been authorized to form an airborne unit a few minutes ago.

And after a few minutes.

He had already planned a debut show for his airborne troops that would shock the world.

"Captain..."

Catherine looked at Ryan.

A warm breeze blew by.

But she only felt that the wind was icy cold.

(End of this chapter)