Battlefield Priest's Diary

Chapter 164 Chaos
On June 22, 1940, in the Compiègne Forest, the French delegation finally arrived at the designated signing location.

During this period, they faced numerous difficulties from the German side.

Raising a white flag, hiking through jungle trails, and deliberately being held up for two hours at the meeting place "awaiting orders" (during which time they were forbidden from using the toilet) – the humiliation reached its peak when they saw the Foch carriage signed in 1918.

As previously agreed, Pétain would not appear as the signatory; instead, Army General Anzie would sign on his behalf.

Before signing, Anzier was making a final effort.

"Your Excellency, regarding the naval issue, we believe that retaining a portion of non-capital ships is beneficial for maintaining stability in the seas."

"That's impossible, we don't need to discuss this anymore." German Defense Minister Jodl casually tossed the documents handed to him aside without even glancing at them.

"Regarding the treatment of prisoners of war, we believe that relations between the two sides have changed, and they should not be forced into labor; at the very least, they should be allowed to return to their home countries..."

Boom!Boom!Boom!
Yodl rudely interrupted him by banging his hand on the table.

“General Anzire, I must remind you, this is not a vegetable market. We are not here today to haggle with you.”

"Furthermore, we are not here to negotiate today, but simply to confirm the ultimatum. You can just tell me whether you will sign it or not."

After saying that, Yodl handed over a pen and looked at the other person arrogantly.

“That’s a full 20 people!” Anzire slammed his hand on the table, his emotions running high.

"God will not allow this to happen!"

“Is that so?” Yodl smiled.

"God helped you in Verdun and the Somme 20 years ago, otherwise this place should not have existed in 1918."

"That was bought with the sacrifice of hundreds of thousands of heroic souls!" Anzire said indignantly.

"Oh? So where are your heroic spirits? Why are they no longer responding to you?"

“General, perhaps you could try summoning the spirits of the dead from World War I and see if they can stop our Stukas and tanks.” Yodl’s face was full of mockery.

thump~
? ? ? ! !

No sooner had he finished speaking than a clear sound reached the ears of everyone in the carriage. Yodl, who had just been laughing loudly, thought he was hallucinating.

thump~
There was another sound, and this time everyone heard it. Because the two sides had just discussed that topic, the representatives from both Germany and France felt a chill run down their spines.

dong dong dong~~~
The sound of continuous beating echoed, sounding like the military drums of infantry advancing during the Napoleonic era.

Thump thump thump~~~Thump thump thump~~~Thump thump thump~~~
The sound grew increasingly urgent, as if something was about to burst forth. The representatives from both sides in the carriage were astonished and looked around for the source of the sound, but found nothing for the time being.

Snapped! ! ! !

The crisp sound rang out, as if striking everyone's heart.

The first to notice the anomaly was Wilhelm Keitel, Commander-in-Chief of the German Wehrmacht. "Damn it! What is this?!"

Only then did the people inside the house notice that a viscous liquid was spreading on the floor, its bright red color resembling blood.

The liquid accumulated and, like a rising tide, began to submerge people's shoes.

Woohoo!! Woohoo!!
Waaaaah~~ Waaaaah~~
The once empty carriage was filled with the voice of a little girl, which sounded like a painful groan or a helpless and desperate cry.

An ominous aura spread around everyone. Whether it was an illusion or not, the temperature in the entire carriage dropped as the bright red "blood" flowed.

"Damn it! What the hell is this thing!" Yodl drew his pistol, but didn't know where to aim.

Quack quack quack quack!!!

Suddenly, a large number of crows rose up from all around the woods, cawing loudly as they flew into the sky, their black feathers fluttering down like snowflakes.

Squeak squeak squeak!!
A large number of rats emerged from the corners, scurrying around under the feet of the crowd, further exacerbating the chaos!

The eerie scene overlapped with the memories in his mind, and Manstein suddenly remembered something.

click!
He drew his sidearm, parted the crowd, and shouted, "Guards! Follow me to protect the Führer! There are..."

Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump! Several muffled sounds were heard, and suddenly white smoke of unknown composition rose from the vicinity of the carriage. The thick smoke not only enveloped the carriage, but also the surrounding area became shrouded in smoke.

"Get out! Everyone out of the carriage!" "Don't go out! It's dangerous outside!"

"Fire! Open the exits!" "Don't fire randomly! Be careful not to hit your own people!"

"The SS have mutinied! The Führer is here! Protect the Führer!!!"

The soldiers were completely confused by the contradictory German languages, and even began to wonder whose orders they should take.

Cough cough cough~~~
Inside the carriage, General Charles Anzie was thrown to a corner. He had a pre-existing lung condition and was struggling to breathe.

With oxygen supplies dwindling and his vision blurring, the general could still hear the words the Germans had just spoken: "Where are your fallen heroes?"

"Is it the spirits of fallen heroes who have come to punish me, a sinner?" Charles Anzige muttered to himself as he leaned against the wall.

In his confusion, someone walked towards him, piercing through the thick fog; it was the face of a typical French girl.

The girl just looked at him, her eyes showing neither resentment nor disgust, only the pity one feels for an ordinary person.

Tears were on her cheeks, as if she had just been crying, but not for herself.

Anzir slowly extended his right hand to the girl, like a sinner begging for forgiveness.

Just as their fingers were about to touch, the girl vanished into thin air, and he felt his body fly up, being pushed out of the carriage by a force.

After his breathing returned to normal, a tremendous sense of guilt overwhelmed the army general.

He knew he had been saved.
-
Crows flew around wildly, rats scurried about, and the outside of the carriage was in complete chaos amidst the swirling smoke!
"Guards! Guards! Get around to me!" Manstein was still directing the guards around him, but he was surrounded by SS men; his personal guard was not with him.

Bang! Someone bumped into him, and Manstein instinctively raised his pistol.

But he discovered that the person opposite him had white hair; the person opposite him was French Prime Minister Philippe Pétain.

At this point, Manstein had no time for pleasantries. He shouted to Pétain, "Your Excellency! Quickly restrain your men! Otherwise, a serious incident will occur! If anything happens to the Führer, I guarantee Paris will be awash in blood!"

A figure in officer's uniform ran past him, and Manstein instinctively grabbed the man's shoulder. "Which unit are you from? Come with me and immediately order the soldiers..."

The next second, time seemed to stand still.

The officer was pulled to the side, revealing one side of his face.

It was a face that often appeared in his dreams, seemingly unchanged for decades, except for a long, winding scar on the side of his face.

The army general looked like he'd seen a ghost, and even forgot to raise his gun.

A large wine bottle is magnified in the field of vision!
boom! ! !
The sound of shattering glass rang out, and someone collapsed.
-
"Führer, please come with me! It's too chaotic and unsafe here! We need to get out of here first!" Through the smoke, Rudolf Hess helped the man with the mustache run towards the Mercedes armored vehicle.

He didn't know what the problem was, and although he didn't believe the SS had really rebelled, he decided to drive away alone with the Führer to prevent a possible mutiny.

Everything was fine once we got to the airport.

"Let go! Hess! Do you want to make me a dishonorable deserter?! Absolutely not!" The mustachioed man was still struggling beside him.

“I’m sorry, Your Excellency! This is my duty.” Rudolf Hess half-dragged, half-pulled the other man toward the car.

But the next second, he froze.

There was nothing in the empty space except for a long tire track on the ground.

Why? !

Where's the car?!

On the Compiègne Forest Road, a Mercedes-Benz bearing the insignia of the head of state roared toward the airport. Upon seeing the insignia, the surrounding defense troops stood at attention and saluted. The entire journey was unimpeded.

Five kilometers away, a Junkers transport plane took off!

(End of this chapter)