"What is it, Captain?"
Léo's Aide-de-Camp, a young Lieutenant, rode closer.
"Nothing."
Léo shook his head, forcing himself to refocus on the mission ahead. According to the orders of Colonel Molière, Commander of the 4th Cuirassier Regiment, the maneuver along the Sambre River from the southeast of the city was a classic cavalry tactic, using mobility to bypass the enemy's front and attack or reconnoiter from a weak flank/rear.
But for some reason, Léo felt this decision was overly… reckless. The accounts of the civilians fleeing the city, especially the retired veteran's claim, haunted his mind.
In a third-story window of a residential building on the edge of the city, Morin slowly lowered his binoculars. On the system map, the six red unit tokens representing the Gallic Cavalry Squadrons were rapidly moving from the fields outside the city toward the southeast of Charleroi's South City—the defensive position of the Instruction Assault Battalion's 3rd Company.
"A standard cavalry flanking maneuver, indeed." Morin muttered softly.
"Gallic Republic Army First Cavalry Corps – Third Cavalry Division… Three squadrons of Dragoons plus three squadrons of Cuirassiers? Why do I suddenly feel like I'm playing Napoleon: Total War?"
The noise created by the Gallic Cavalry was considerable, so Morin dared not be careless. He immediately sent a Dispatch Rider to the 3rd Company position in the southeast via Military Truck at maximum speed to relay the enemy intelligence. Radiant Crystal trucks are still faster than a large-scale cavalry movement, especially since the trucks could take city roads while the enemy had to make a wide detour outside the city.
Having done all that, he left a few 1st Company soldiers to continue observing from the third-floor window, and he himself turned and went downstairs.
As he reached the ground floor, he ran right into Manstein, who was preparing to go outside.
"Battalion Commander, the willing residents have been mostly evacuated." Manstein reported to him. "The rest are elderly people who are reluctant to leave their homes; they refuse to be persuaded."
The two walked outside as they spoke. A Military Truck slowly drove past the street, with large white banners hanging on both sides of the truck bed, displaying a bold line of text written in conspicuous Gallic [French].
"The city is about to become a combat zone. For your safety and the safety of your families, you are advised to temporarily evacuate the city for refuge!"
Charleroi is located in the Gallic-speaking region of the Grand Duchy of Flanders; the residents here primarily speak Gallic [French], which was why Morin had specially ordered this. Although this was a foreign land, Morin and his men had no interaction with the local residents. However, based on Manstein's 'humanitarian' suggestion, the Instruction Assault Battalion still found a way to urge the local residents to disperse—at least the action had been taken; whether the locals left or not was beyond their control.
"Gallic Cavalry have been spotted outside the city," Morin said to Manstein, watching the truck drive away. "Judging by the scale, it's only a vanguard, but this means the Gauls already know Charleroi has fallen."
"If the commander responsible for this sector is thinking clearly, he should already be mobilizing troops to drive us out."
Manstein's expression immediately turned grave.
"What should we do next? Retreat outside the city to organize defenses, or hold our ground in the urban area?"
He paused, a deep sense of anxiety in his voice.
"According to the pre-war enemy intelligence issued by the General Staff, the Gallic Fifth Army Group is deployed opposite us. Their strength should be between eighteen and twenty divisions, complete with cavalry and artillery, and possibly even Templar Knights Armored Cavalry."
"We only have one battalion now, and even with the newly arrived Horse Artillery Battalion, facing the Gallic main Army Group, I'm afraid…"
He did not finish his sentence, but the meaning was clear.
Faced with Manstein's concern, Morin sighed helplessly. "Of course I understand, but the problem is… our orders are to hold here and wait for the main force."
At this point, Morin couldn't help but recall the scene from this morning when he first woke up. The Dispatch Rider he had sent out yesterday had finally returned, but following him was not the main force of the 'Ludendorff Battle Group' he had eagerly awaited, but a single 75mm Horse Artillery Battalion.
When he saw the dust-covered artillerists, combined with the bizarre maneuver of the 'Ludendorff Battle Group' token on the system map—a sharp turn away from the Liège Fortress cluster and moving toward Namur—Morin's heart sank instantly.
The verbal message the Dispatch Rider brought back completely killed the lingering hope in his heart. Ludendorff ordered the Instruction Assault Battalion to hold Charleroi for at least three days.
As for why the situation had taken such a sharp turn for the worse, Morin managed to piece together the whole picture through the Dispatch Rider's fragmented descriptions and supplemental information in the [Intelligence] tab. After they had quickly captured the Liège Fortress cluster with the Airborne Assault, the Second Army Group main force, responsible for the siege of the Namur Fortress Cluster, also tried to use the same tactic.
They transferred two Armored Airships over, preparing for another 'fortress speedrun' feat. Unfortunately, the Army Group lacked a Spellcaster capable of casting [Feather Fall], and the Captains of the two airships flat-out refused to let their precious crewmen parachute in as Assault Troopers, so the plan had to be abandoned.
However, General von Bulow was still unwilling to give up. He ordered the two Armored Airships to coordinate and force a breakthrough at night, similar to the Liège operation, hoping to destroy the Namur Fortress Cluster's 'Anti-Air Magic Guided Devices' and Magic Power Hub. This plan ultimately succeeded, but at the cost of the L28 Armored Airship being damaged by anti-aircraft fire and forced out of further combat.
Even worse, although the fortress's anti-aircraft and energy systems were destroyed, the garrison's command center remained intact. The various forts continued to resist fiercely; Namur did not fall into chaos like Liège.
Just as the Second Army Group main force was stalled outside the Namur Fortress Cluster, requiring at least one to two more days to capture it, even worse news arrived. The Grand Duchy of Flanders' Fifth Infantry Division, serving as the enemy's reserve, set out from Brussels, attempting to travel south by rail to reinforce Namur.
To breach the difficult Namur fort quickly, and also to protect the flank of the Army Group's main force, General von Bulow had no choice but to send men to catch up with the already departed 'Ludendorff Battle Group' and order them to immediately change course to intercept the southbound Flanders Fifth Division.
It was precisely at this critical juncture that Ludendorff received the Instruction Assault Battalion's request for support. The future 'Famous General' found himself in a dilemma. His first reaction was to order the Instruction Assault Battalion to retreat, but he quickly realized the strategic position of Charleroi was simply too important.
If they could hold the bridges over the Sambre River, the Second Army Group's subsequent penetration into Gallic territory would be infinitely smoother. Furthermore, according to Military Intelligence Department analysis, the Gallic Fifth Army Group main force was stationed in Hirson. It would take them at least two days to mobilize and march from there to Charleroi. The only forces that could arrive quickly would be their cavalry units…
Ultimately, the Army Group Commander decided to gamble again. He ordered Ludendorff to concentrate his main force on intercepting the Grand Duchy of Flanders' reinforcements, allowing the Army Group main force to capture Namur without distractions, clearing the path for the subsequent offensive. Simultaneously, he ordered the Instruction Assault Battalion to hold Charleroi and slow down the Gallic advance. To increase their odds, he also urgently requested coordination from the Third Army Group, which was advancing on Dinant to the southeast.
Generaloberst Max von Hausen of the Third Army Group was quite obliging. Especially upon learning that the 'Imperial Guards First Instruction Assault Battalion' had already occupied the strategic position of Charleroi, he immediately dispatched the First Imperial Guards Cavalry Division for rapid reinforcement.
But the issue was that this would also take time. Morin only knew the general course of events and was unaware of the detailed negotiations between his superiors, or how much effort Ludendorff had expended on his behalf… So, he currently just wanted to say one thing to the plump General:
"Ludendorff, where are my reinforcements?!"
In the southeast of Charleroi's South City, after a rapid maneuver using their horses, Captain Léo led the Dragoons to the assault staging area. Captain Lafontaine, who was responsible for the riverbank maneuver, soon left with his squadron of cavalry.
The two remaining Dragoon Squadrons advanced slowly for a distance, and then Captain Léo suddenly raised his right hand.
"Halt!"
The entire Dragoon Squadron stopped instantly. The warhorses pawed the ground restlessly and snorted. The cavalrymen gripped their Berthier Carbines, vigilantly scanning their surroundings.
The edge of Charleroi City lay just ahead. A few low stone houses were scattered along the road, forming a small hamlet. The entire hamlet was eerily quiet. No people or vehicles could be seen, and the doors and windows of the houses were tightly shut, as if it were a ghost town. Too quiet.
"Lieutenant, send a small squad ahead to reconnoiter," Léo ordered his Aide-de-Camp in a low voice.
"Yes, Captain!"
A Cavalry Sergeant immediately took ten Dragoons and, after observing for a moment, spurred his horse forward. Their carbines were off safety, ready to fire at any moment.
Léo led the rest of the men to temporarily conceal themselves in a copse of trees beside the road, waiting for news from the reconnaissance squad. He glanced back at his left flank again. Colonel Molière and his Cuirassiers were still over 500 meters away in a wheat field, dismounting for concealment while slowly advancing.
The Colonel seemed fully confident in this operation; even during the march before they split off, he had been laughing and chatting with his Aide-de-Camp, as if this were just a casual armed parade. This blind optimism intensified Léo's sense of unease.
Just then, a sharp shot rang out from the village ahead! It was the sound of a Berthier Carbine firing!
Captain Léo's heart sank.
"Enemy attack! Everyone dismount! Prepare for battle!"
(End of this Chapter)