Chapter 422: Attack by Surprise
Charles raised his hand, holding it aloft for a moment before signaling forward. In the darkness, squads of French soldiers, rifles in hand, crouched low as they advanced silently toward the enemy's defensive line.
It was a perfect opportunity. The enemy's fortifications and bunkers were fully exposed under the torchlight. The sounds of German soldiers digging with shovels masked the approach of the French infantry, and the flames made it impossible for the German sentries to see any movement in the darkness.
The intelligence had proven accurate—the forces stationed in Antwerp were indeed a group of inexperienced recruits. They had no understanding of the realities of war and were unaware of its harshness, nor did they realize that they wouldn't get a second chance to make a mistake.
The French forces had made thorough preparations for this opportunity:
Rows of barbed wire were cut through and secured with steel cables, ready to be dragged away by armored vehicles. The infantry advanced through the gaps in the barbed wire, moving to within fifty meters of the enemy line. Snipers found their positions, and machine gunners took control of elevated vantage points.
Artillery observers measured the coordinates, performing multiple calculations to ensure extreme accuracy. Artillery positions, set up three kilometers away, were leveled to precision, and the guns were aimed at the enemy with pinpoint accuracy.
…
After over half an hour, Tijani felt there was nothing left to prepare. They were practically ready to assign numbers to each German soldier. Only then did Charles give the order for the armored division, waiting two kilometers back, to move forward.
One by one, the tanks rolled into position. The tank commanders poked their heads out to direct their vehicles forward, followed by armored cars and, finally, the Saint-Chamond tanks.
It was an awkward moment for the Saint-Chamond tanks.
Although the Charles A1 tanks also suffered from poor external visibility, they had two crew members: the commander, who also acted as the gunner, could reach the driver by extending his foot—kicking the left shoulder to turn left, the right shoulder to turn right, and the back to move forward. They moved steadily without issue.
The armored cars had the strongest external visibility and, as long as they moved slowly, had no problems at all. The Saint-Chamond tanks, despite modifications to remove the machine guns, still had five crew members and struggled in the darkness.
Fortunately, they were artillery tanks, tasked with staying in the rear and finding suitable positions to prepare for combat. This minimized the chances of any major mishaps.
…
Meanwhile, Major General Marcus was standing under a torch with his staff officers, reviewing the defensive layout and discussing ways to reinforce the bunkers.
"We don't need to worry about positions within the line of fire," Major General Marcus said. "With trenches and dual-layered bunker defenses, I believe no force can break through. The problem lies with the bunkers themselves."
Marcus pointed to several bunker locations on the map. "These bunkers have been bombed to rubble. We replaced them with pillboxes, but their firepower and defensive capabilities are far inferior to the original bunkers. The French will undoubtedly target these weaknesses as their breakthrough points!"
"I agree, General," one of the staff officers replied. "But I don't think we should focus on trench construction; trenches can't stop enemy shells. What we need is artillery—artillery that can suppress the enemy's own guns. That's the only way to secure these bunkers!"
The staff officer had great faith in the German 105mm artillery.
But Major General Marcus disagreed. "Charles has bombers, Rolf. Bombers will render our 105mm guns ineffective. We can't rely on them, so trenches are our only option. We'll dig additional trenches around the bunkers!"
Only trenches could provide cover from enemy shelling and airstrikes. Crude as they might appear, they were effective.
However, Marcus and his staff officer hadn't anticipated that the battle would unfold differently from what they imagined.
The key to "blitzkrieg" wasn't just tactical maneuvering—it had strategic significance.
Simply put, it meant "attack by surprise."
Though this seemed like a cliché, achieving it on the battlefield was no easy feat.
Charles had launched this night assault despite widespread objections:
"General, our troops have been marching and fighting all day. They're nearly exhausted and can't keep fighting."
"General, tanks aren't suited for night combat. Please reconsider!"
"General, we're running low on fuel. If the attack fails, we might not even be able to retreat—we'd have to either blow up the tanks or leave them for the enemy!"
Colonel Estigny was the most vocal opponent. He believed Charles was rushing recklessly, intoxicated by recent victories. He even barged into Charles's temporary office in the town of Mechelen.
"General, if we wait until daylight, our tanks will be fully refueled, and we'll have air support. This battle could be fought much more comfortably!"
"Why are we attacking with our weaknesses against the enemy's strengths?"
"Victory is just a step away, General! We can't risk losing our footing!"
…
Even Tijani was somewhat skeptical of Charles's plan to fight at night, as it seemed to contradict all the principles he had learned from "Charles's Theory." He was left confused, thinking he had understood the theory only to question it all over again.
Only one senior officer supported Charles unconditionally: Bronny, the commander of the First Armored Division. But his support was more about blind faith—if Charles made a decision, Bronny believed it was the right one.
In response to all the doubts, Charles said simply, "If we're fully prepared, does that mean the enemy is also fully prepared?"
Everyone fell silent.
Though a night battle would restrict the armored units, at least the French had prepared for it mentally and tactically, while the enemy was completely unprepared.
The Germans were still planning how to defend tomorrow, considering how many reinforcements to deploy, where to set up firepower, and how to respond to bombers—when suddenly, the enemy was right before them.
Every plan would be overturned, leaving surrender as the only option.
…
This was the situation confronting Major General Marcus.
As he argued with his staff officer over defensive strategies, the distant sound of engines rumbled through the darkness.
At first, Marcus thought it was his own vehicles transporting timber to reinforce the defenses.
But the sound grew louder and multiplied…
Marcus's face went pale as realization dawned on him. He looked up in shock at his staff officer, who also turned, wide-eyed, toward the darkness.
If the enemy were launching an attack at this moment, it was his fault. He had concluded that they wouldn't launch a night attack!
Marcus didn't have time to think further. He leapt up and shouted toward the trenches, "Extinguish the torches, immediately—"
A gunshot cut through the air, abruptly silencing his voice.
A bullet struck Marcus directly in the head. His body slumped to the ground like an empty sack, devoid of life.
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