A mage? A spell engineer!

Chapter 418 The Plan Failed

"I hope the general will abandon the attack as soon as possible and not let our comrades die in the stinking ditch any longer." Paul witnessed the hand-to-hand combat in the trenches, which was slow and brutal.

For the attacking side, the five trenches formed a muddy maze of death, with the possibility of encountering well-prepared enemies at any moment around the corner. The narrow passages and the increasingly heavy rain rendered long-barreled rifles virtually useless, leaving the soldiers who entered the trenches with no choice but to take down their bayonets and fight the enemy hand-to-hand.

"We need to find new tactics that can cut through layers of barbed wire and trenches vertically, instead of just crowding into one point like we are now." Paul thought of his favorite mille-feuille pastry—a dessert with layers of flaky pastry, cream, and fruit. He had to use a sharp knife to cut through each layer to the bottom, otherwise, if he just took a bite, he would end up as pathetic as the infantrymen today.

"The 'knife' that cuts through layers of defenses needs a good 'blade' that can break through barbed wire, cross trenches, withstand bullets, and open up a relatively safe passage for subsequent troops."

"Should we send the mage to the front? Or the heavily armored knights?" Drouot thought to himself.

In the current battle, in order to maximize their morale advantage, the National Guard boldly adopted skirmish tactics, coupled with the use of radio, and achieved remarkable results in the first wave of attacks.

However, by sheer coincidence, the Valois soldiers stumbled upon the "Turtle Colonel's" masterpiece. During this time, Valois mages attempted to repeat their tactics to create more breaches, but the prepared Imperial mages unleashed a barrage of evocation spells before the earthen hand could even land. And then there were the disgusting [Lightning Bolts], which would strike every time the National Guard was about to break through the breach, electrifying the exhausted soldiers.

Thus, the Imperial Army's position was stabilized, and some officers even thought that the camp, with its five layers of armor, was impregnable.

But Lieutenant Colonel Hench, the paranoid architect of the defensive position and the creator of the ditch, didn't think so. Even when he got to the command post tent, he couldn't sit still, smoking one cigarette after another, the smell of cheap tobacco permeating the command post.

The general himself also smoked, but what he preferred to inhale was the superior aroma from a high-end pipe, rather than secondhand smoke mixed with dampness.

Fortunately, "Colonel Turtle" had become the biggest contributor at the moment, and it was too embarrassing to kick Hench out of the camp again. The general and staff could only glance at him occasionally, and then let him continue to pace around and smoke.

Richard now stands with Lieutenant Colonel Richard Hench, listening to how the general commands this "counterattack." In truth, everyone knows that not being taken down by the National Guard today would be a victory.

Finally, Richard Hench dragged the colonel with him out, and the others were granted a reprieve.

Richard (the sorcerer) knew why Hench was anxious; the two were standing in the rain, and the problem lay in the water falling on them:

Richard Hench pointed out that when the trenches were built, due to the rush to complete the construction, proper drainage was not provided. In fact, the annoying Valois spring rains were incessant, and water accumulation in the trenches was an unavoidable problem.

No superhuman can stay in the mud indefinitely to maintain their fighting ability, not to mention that the weather isn't hot enough yet and the rain would cause hypothermia.

Hench pulled out his pocket watch: "The battle has lasted for nearly four hours. Aside from the wounded who managed to evacuate, the general doesn't have enough troops to rotate the first wave of combatants. Think about it, fighting in cold, muddy slurry, without hot food or water."

Richard somewhat understood why Lieutenant Colonel Hench was so almost obsessive in overseeing the construction of the trenches. It wasn't just based on his assessment of the situation, but also on his way of thinking about his soldiers. A qualified general should "care for his soldiers for the sake of victory," something Hench failed to do.

"The general may be right; what you've said is also troublesome for the enemy. What our army needs to do now is to delay as much as possible until the enemy takes the initiative to retreat and abandon the attack."

"Yes, you and the general are both right." Hench's cigarette was extinguished by the rain, leaving his hand holding it somewhat awkward. Richard cast a spell to relight it for him, and Hench took a deep breath: "But don't forget the National Guard's sinister morale."

In an era when it took an average of 400 bullets to cause a fatal wound, morale was a crucial factor.

Lieutenant Colonel Hench had read the books Richard had found, and he could basically understand the source of the enemy's morale. However, he believed that the rise and fall of morale on the battlefield depended mainly on the battle situation, and those slogans that were "better said than done" only increased the "base value" of morale.

Hench exhaled white smoke: "Now both sides are locked in a fierce battle. At the current rate, the water in the trenches is rising higher and higher, and the morale of both sides is getting lower and lower. But we are fighting a defensive battle. If anything happens to the main camp, not only will we lose our own strength, but it will also greatly boost the morale of those Valuwa people."

Hench was trying to guard against what Richard had done during the capture of Moncado Fortress. If the enemy succeeded in their surprise attack, it would instantly break the stalemate.

His reasoning was based on this: the most likely candidates to break through the defenses and launch a surprise attack on the Imperial army's rear camps were spellcasters. And the only ones to guard against mages were mages.

Richard understood Hench's anxiety and earnestly continued to think for Hench: "Even without me, there are still three intermediate mages at the command post, so there's no need to worry. The medical area and the maintenance area aren't of much value, so let's report to the general and request that the ammunition depot be reinforced."

"That's right, hurry up."

The fighting and the rain seemed to be coming to an end, with the National Guard and the Imperial Army both at their limits.

As more and more able-bodied men were sent to the battlefield, the defenses of the Imperial Army camps gradually became weak.

In front of the ammunition depot, the soldiers who were originally on patrol now had to take on the task of transporting ammunition supplies. They had made countless trips and were exhausted. They were not as careful as they had been at the beginning when covering the ammunition with waterproof tarpaulins.

After the soldiers carrying ammunition left with a crackling sound, a series of small explosions mingled with the sound of rain, and at the same time, a spellcaster slipped into the camp. He appeared out of thin air, and the illusory veil obscuring his presence made the corner of the ammunition depot seem slightly out of place.

Success. The spellcaster who came to launch the sneak attack tried his best to calm himself down and tiptoed inside, passing the open crates and stopping at the place where gunpowder was stored.

Just then, the scrolling effect ended, and the veil that had helped him become invisible disintegrated, revealing the boy's anxious face and his mud-covered military uniform. He had also managed to obtain a grey-blue uniform from the Imperial Army, which didn't quite fit.

Apprentice Jule, a person with exceptional talent in spatial magic, should have continued studying at the Tower of Stars if he hadn't joined the National Guard. His talent would have been recognized, and he could have achieved at least the same level of skill as Caroline.

He used his most refined "Leap" for stealth and breakthroughs. The next step in refining "Leap" is "Stealth Step," a movement spell that tests one's talent. Now, he still needs the help of moonstone powder to achieve this.

The daring apprentice grabbed another handful of moonstone powder from the materials bag. With very little powder left, he was unlikely to make it back safely.

But it doesn't matter. There's no one else around now. Jules' other hand condensed a small flame.

"Got you?"

Richard's voice rang out from under the felt, and the unsuspecting Jules was struck by the ray, his body growing cold. The flame and the apprentice's plan were shattered.

(End of this chapter)