Conquer Europe from the West

Chapter 86 Those who are not afraid of death, step out!

The time came to August 16th.

Six days had passed since the offensive on Belfort was launched, and the soldiers of the 2nd and 4th Battalions were currently enjoying half their leave.

Most of them received a total of fourteen days, or two weeks, of vacation, including travel time.

The soldiers of the assault company had already had a rest once (when Ryan went to the imperial capital), so they did not get a vacation, but were still arranged to take a short rest in the rear camp in Strasbourg.

It is worth mentioning that the soldiers of the Second and Fourth Battalions were lucky. During the battle, only 12 people were slightly injured, 5 were seriously injured, and two of them were killed.

The two unlucky guys were from the second battalion. They were injured while retreating from the foot of the mountain to the top of the mountain and died due to lack of timely medical treatment.

In addition, I need to say a few more words about the Esco explosion-proof wall that Ryan told Brian about when he was about to be assigned to Alsace.

The explosion-proof wall has been tested and used effectively on the front line and has withstood the test of actual combat.

Therefore, on the day that Belfort was breached, Brigadier General Brian wrote a letter to his classmates in the Imperial Military Equipment Development Department, asking them to immediately improve and mass-produce the Esco explosion-proof wall.

Ryan had no objection to this. The only thing he wanted to say was that Brian wanted to call it the Flig Explosion-Proof Wall after Ryan.

This made Ryan immersed in a strong sense of stealing for almost the entire day, but that feeling of stealing was soon thrown away by the commission of 10 pfennigs for the explosion-proof wall.

Money is still important.

After resting for a night in Stuttgart, Ryan received a joint order from Ms. Catherine from the Imperial General Staff and General Hellingen, commander of the Seventh Army.

Brinkman sat in the corner of the cafeteria, put down her plate of nearly half-pound steaks, and read the document Ryan handed her.

The document did not contain much content. It just asked Ryan to pack up and take his adjutant, Brinkman, back to the imperial capital.

They will receive the organization order of the Tactical Experimental Force from the General Staff in the imperial capital, and then be taken to the Army Officers College for two days of propaganda and recruitment.

Before that, Ryan and Brinkmann needed to think of a recruitment slogan and send it by telegram to the liaison office of the Imperial Army Officers College, asking them to make promotional posters.

Brinkman carefully placed the documents against the edge of the dining table, forked a piece of steak into his mouth, and said incoherently, "Are you going to the Imperial Army Officers College to recruit soldiers?"

Unlike Brinkman, Ryan was still not used to eating with a knife and fork. He was holding a pair of simple chopsticks he had carved out of two sticks. "That's about it."

Brinkman was still very curious about his special tableware. After all, this place was different from Earth. There was no so-called mysterious Eastern country.

But now she was used to it. "Captain, have you thought of a slogan?"

"not yet."

Ryan shook his head and took a sip of the iced lemonade he could only drink in the rear. "Besides, these guys graduating from the military university will be sent out to the army. Although it's called recruitment, it's actually similar to the internship before graduation. The only difference is that one goes to companies and state-owned units, and the other goes to the battlefield."

"How about using this term?"

Brinkman raised his eyebrows and cut the last piece of meat into several small pieces. The serrated knife made a subtle cutting sound on the plate. "Besides, the main force of the infantry regiment is still Lieutenant Schneider's assault company. The Second and Fourth Battalions are on loan just like them. They have to be returned to the Seventh Division later, right?"

Ryan agreed with her statement: "That's why."

"What we need now is a stable replenishment of personnel, not the kind of reserve officers who can be sent to the grassroots level immediately after their training is effective."

"But this is what Lieutenant General Draven wanted. He used his authority to approve four airships for us. He can't fail to do his part in this matter."

When Ryan said this, there was more helplessness than dissatisfaction in his voice, which surprised Brinkman.

In her opinion, Ryan should actually put forward his ideas directly to the General Staff instead of worrying about how to satisfy them. He could also avoid becoming a big loser who can continuously output officers with practical experience to the front line.

But she also knew that it was pointless to say these things now. Instead of racking her brains to find a solution to many things, it was better to let nature take its course.

Ryan had just finished his breakfast. He washed his chopsticks and put them back in his briefcase. He picked up the empty plate and said, "I'll go to the communications company first."

"Do you want me to join you?" Brinkman quickly drank the last bit of milk in the cup, but was pushed down on the seat by Ryan.

"Go pack your things. Two changes of uniforms should be enough. The plane is supposedly arriving soon."

"Row."

The girl nodded and watched Ryan leave.

Ten hours later.

In the suburbs of the imperial capital, outside the Imperial Army Officers University.

The Junkers, which was supposed to be born more than ten years later, made a humming roar. It braved the raindrops falling from the sky and, propelled by the three propellers on its nose, drilled into the hangar next to the runway.

Ryan, who was so frantic that he almost vomited his lunch and breakfast, looked out the window with a grim face. Soon, several soldiers and ground staff approached the plane and pushed the boarding ladder to the cabin door.

Although they were no longer exposed to the rain, Ryan's expression didn't improve much. "They wouldn't ask me to recruit soldiers in this weather, would they?"

"Should...right?"

Brinkman had a wry smile on his face. As officers, both Brinkman and Ryan knew very well that this kind of hot and humid weather with moderate rain was what the instructors at the military academy liked most.

"Damn it."

Ryan cursed angrily before the cabin door opened, then pretended to be very excited and got out of the cabin.

then.

Sure enough, as soon as he got out of the cabin, he heard an excited voice.

An Army Major General—a guy Ryan didn't even know—excitedly walked up to him and shouted excitedly, "Captain Ryan Fliger!!"

"You're finally here, hurry up and get in the car, the guys can't wait!"

Ryan was startled by his voice at first, and then he and Brinkman were forcibly grabbed by the arm and dragged into a convertible nearby.

Before he and Brinkman could even say anything, they felt a large number of water drops hitting their faces.

The major general, however, acted as if nothing had happened. He turned his head from the front seat and looked at Ryan and Brinkman. "To be honest, when I heard from Lieutenant General Draven that Captain Flig was coming to the school to recruit soldiers, I was much more excited than those guys down there!"

As he spoke, he pulled a bright red poster from his briefcase and, braving the wind and rain, read the slogan written in Gothic font: "For the Empire! For the People! Look, this sounds much better than the slogans those idiots in our Propaganda Department came up with!"

Ryan quietly looked at the major general whose name he didn't even know, and just wanted him to shut up.

Damn, how come this guy is more energetic than the navy?
But he couldn't say it.

Because before the major general could finish what was in his mind, Ryan saw a brightly lit playground in the distance.

Nearly 10,000 cadets, wearing their warrant officer uniforms, stood in the increasingly heavy rain.

In the corner of the playground, a lighting system consisting of hundreds of light bulbs cast a golden glow on them.

In front of them was a makeshift podium with an electric microphone.

It was obvious that they were all waiting for Ryan.

"They all volunteered to come and see you," the major general said, holding up his hat to prevent it from blowing away. "In fact, there are a lot of young men who want to come but don't have the opportunity - because they haven't completed all the credits for the officer course."

Ryan wanted to say something, but he decided to keep his mouth shut.

Brinkman, who was standing beside him, nudged his thigh with his knee and muttered, "The rain is getting heavier."

After saying that, the car stopped.

A lieutenant who was obviously an instructor opened the car door for Ryan, and several old men standing nearby - the heads of the university - hurriedly held up umbrellas and handed Ryan several pieces of paper sandwiched between glass plates.

Ryan thought that these guys were really troublesome. They held an umbrella while letting those reserve officers stand in the rain. They even thoughtfully prepared a speech for him. It was obvious that they could not forget their usual methods of putting pressure on students.

"What is this?" He didn't take the papers.

"Speech, Captain Fleagle."

The old man who spoke was not wearing a military uniform, and his tone was very respectful: "This was prepared by several generals from the General Staff. It will boost morale."

Ryan took the paper calmly and asked, "Vice-Admiral Draven gave it to you?"

The old man was stunned: "No."

"That's not necessary."

Ryan immediately pushed it to Brinkman beside him, and Brinkman threw the paper and the waterproof glass plate to the ground, splashing mud and water all over the ground.

This stunned the old man and several senior military officers around him.

Then they saw Ryan walk straight up to the podium.

The major general who came at the beginning immediately rushed forward and tried to hold Ryan, but was stopped by Brinkman.

Brinkmann, who had been annoyed with this guy since school, said tactfully, "We have the permission of Prince Schubert and Admiral Hellingen."

The major general said stubbornly, "But... this is against the rules."

"That's your business, General Mueller."

at the same time.

A shocking slapping sound was heard in the conference hall.

Everyone instinctively shut up and looked at Ryan who was testing the microphone.

Ryan stood on the podium, pulled up his hat, and ordered the sergeant who was holding an umbrella for him to leave.

The young reserve officers looked curiously at this man who was only a few years older than themselves.

They knew about Ryan's deeds and were indeed standing here because they wanted to see Ryan.

Major General Mueller was not talking nonsense on this point.

But in Ryan's eyes, these little guys had been in the rain for who knows how long, and the blood color on their faces had begun to disappear.

The raindrops hit them harder and harder, turning into puddles of mist and making the entire playground look a little white.

A little mist came out from them, mixed with the surrounding water vapor, and was immediately blown away by the wind.

Ryan swallowed, his Adam's apple moving up and down, and his voice was sent into the microphone.

"Young man! How long have you been standing here waiting?" Ryan's voice came from the loudspeaker.

"One hour? Two hours? Or half a day."

He cast his gaze towards the queue on one side, scanning each row until the very end.

"On the Imperial front, our soldiers are hiding in trenches they have just dug, standing in the same heavy rain as here."

"To resist the attacks from the Farlan invaders, to protect the empire, the people of the empire, and their families."

"They will stand in this rain until the Farlans attack, until the last Farlane falls."

A little rain slid down the brim of the hat and hit the microphone, making a clicking sound.

Ryan paused for a moment before saying, "Or maybe he fell down on his own."

"Now, tell me, how long can you stand?"

No one speaks.

No one spoke, whether they were standing in the front row or the back row.

They looked at Ryan, then at their classmates beside them.

After a while, a boy who looked a head shorter than everyone else took a step forward and shouted in a voice that had just emerged from puberty.

"We will stand until the very end, until all invaders are eliminated! Those who agree with this, step out!"

In an instant, without any hesitation, everyone took a step forward.

But Ryan did not encourage them. His voice was cold: "Then you are all dead now."

His words made the young people look at each other in confusion.

No one had ever said anything like that to them.

Ryan added: "You shouldn't be standing there."

"Our soldiers would stand in trenches, in the rain, because they were obeying the orders of their superiors."

"You, as their superiors."

"We should stand in front of them, at the forefront of all the troops."

"You stand at the forefront of the troops so that your soldiers, your troops, don't have to stand in trenches with enough water to swim in, or in the freezing rain."

"As officers, your job is to lead your troops to destroy the enemy physically and destroy their will! Instead of standing there in trenches or hiding in air-raid shelters, waiting for the enemy to rush in front of you, playing a war game where only one can survive."

His voice was so loud that it made the microphone pierce.

"I have been ordered by the Imperial General Staff to raise a force."

"Some of you will join my unit and become its backbone in the future, or go to other units."

"Perhaps you have received some information from your instructors, such as the size of the unit, the nature of the unit, or the unit's main mission, but I can tell you that the information they gave you is all wrong."

The words trailed off.

It was the same short Warrant Officer from before: "Report! Warrant Officer Clementine requests to question!"

"Speak!" Ryan nodded.

"Excuse me, what is your army like?"

"good question."

Ryan withdrew his hands from the podium and stood upright in the rain. "Warrant Officer Clementine, where did you originally want to go?"

"Report! Sixth Army, scouts!"

"Where's the warrant officer to your left?"

"Report! First Army, artillery!"

"right side!"

"Report! Fourth Army, cavalry!"

More young people are expressing their ambitions.

Some wanted to go to the machine gun company, some wanted to go to the staff department, and some wanted to go to the transport unit. There were all kinds of people.

Then Ryan said: "But in my army, there is no such organization."

"There is only one branch of soldiers in my army."

"Airborne."

It was still the young man from the beginning: "Report! Warrant Officer Clementine wants to ask questions!"

"explain."

"Excuse me, what are airborne troops?"

As his voice spread, all eyes were fixed on Ryan.

Ryan was already prepared.

His tone was calm.

"I'll stuff you into airships and airplanes."

"Bring your own rifle, with bullets, and a dog tag."

"Then jump out of the hatch at an altitude of several hundred meters."

"This is the airborne troops."

The words fell.

For a moment, even the sound of breathing disappeared from Ryan's ears.

The young warrant officers were obviously frightened by Ryan's words.

He could even hear someone cursing in secret.

More people, including the leaders and instructors of the military university, were also stunned.

They had never heard of this type of soldier.

Even before Ryan said the word "paratroopers", they thought Ryan was just here to recruit junior officers.

"idiot."

An officer who was originally very excited by Ryan's appearance shook his head and turned around.

More officers were like him.

They all thought Ryan was farting.

But Clementine pressed on: "And then?"

Ryan looked at him and immediately thought that this young man was interesting.

He smiled, his words slowing down but still sharp.

"You will fall directly behind the enemy's main force, around the enemy's artillery positions, or even on top of the enemy's headquarters."

"No supplies, no support, no escape."

"There's only one thing you have to do."

"Kill all enemies you see."

The footsteps stopped.

The officers who wanted to leave stopped and looked back at Ryan.

They looked at Ryan in shock, at the man who was just a child like those warrant officers a few years ago, but now was a hero of the empire.

This guy is crazy!
Everyone thinks so.

No supplies, no support, no escape?
Who dares to fight such a war?

This is clearly a suicide squad!
Several university leaders and major generals looked at each other in confusion. They didn't believe that Ryan could recruit enough soldiers with these words.

But, just when they believed in themselves so much.

On the drill ground, a female warrant officer stood up, wearing a completion medal and the same third-level gunnery badge as Wolfe.

"Report! Warrant Officer Christina requests to ask questions!"

Ryan: "Speak."

Her eyes were sharp. "Excuse me, Captain! Are there any application restrictions in the unit?"

Ryan shook his head slightly: "There is no limit."

Ryan looked at Christina. The girl stood there, not saying anything, as if she was thinking.

Then the girl took a big step forward.

The voice is loud and clear.

"Imperial Army Officers Academy, Infantry Department, everyone, please pay attention!!"

"Those who are not afraid of death! Step out!"

(End of this chapter)