My soldiers are all Fourth Calamities!

37. The enemy's only route

Rochester tapped his finger lightly on the map, finally stopping at the location of Kiev.

"If the enemy's target is Moscow, then the forces stationed around Kyiv will block Denikin, preventing their two forces from joining together. Simply put, Ukraine is the springboard for attacking Moscow. Without the springboard..." He withdrew his hand and pointed to another marker, "As for that 'Church of Peace'—it drags hundreds of kilometers of supply lines across the plains to attack a resource-poor Moscow? No, its target can only be Korosten and Kyiv. Railways, food—everything they desperately need is here."

Timoshenko's chief of staff nodded and said, "Comrade Rochester's analysis is similar to what I thought, but we still need to hear what the command has to say about the specific situation. Let's wait for the command to give instructions before we can discuss the next steps."

After a moment of silence, Timoshenko addressed everyone present, saying, "Comrade Rochester, please stay. The rest of you, please leave and await further instructions from Comrade Joseph at headquarters."

The wooden door was thick and made a dull thud when it closed.

The noise was shut out, leaving only the smell of burning tobacco in the room.

Timoshenko didn't move, and Rochester didn't leave either; the chief of staff watched the two of them.

"You go out too," Timoshenko said to the chief of staff.

"Should I go out too?"

"I was talking to Comrade Rochester about some personal matters, unrelated to the front lines."

The chief of staff paused for a moment, gave Rochester a meaningful look, and then walked away.

"Leaving all that analysis aside," Timoshenko finally spoke, leaning forward slightly, "I want a direct answer. If we take the initiative—not to mention blowing it up, what are the chances of crippling that land-based warship? Are you confident?"

Rochester paused for a moment.

Rochester: ?

Do you mean I should paralyze the war behemoth?

Rochester had a sense of déjà vu—it was like going back to his past life playing Battlefield 1, leading a group of teammates to blow up enemy armored trains with explosives.

"Commander, you must be joking," Rochester chuckled dryly, trying to brush it off.

"Isn't he just a bigger can of food?" Timoshenko said expressionlessly.

".......ah?"

"Haha, just kidding." Timoshenko waved his hand, paused as if considering his words, and finally decided to get straight to the point: "Recently, I've observed a phenomenon, not only you, but also your soldiers. Their recovery speed from injuries is astonishing, and their loyalty to you is unbelievable. In short... your troops seem to trust you unconditionally."

Upon hearing this, Rochester became somewhat nervous, although he did not believe that Timoshenko could discern anything unusual or anything else.

But this feeling was really strange to Rochester—an indescribable feeling.

"That's how it should be between comrades."

Timoshenko glanced at the door, lowered his voice further, and leaned forward slightly: "Company Commander Rochester, don't be nervous. I mean... did you accidentally release some kind of magical spell?"

"Unintentionally, magic?" Rochester scratched his head.

"When I participated in that 'war to end all wars,' I heard that some commanders on the Western front possessed certain innate qualities that could enhance soldiers' combat effectiveness, influence morale, and even accelerate the recovery of friendly forces."

Where did this imperial priest come from?!

Unleashing the Emperor's Light instantly allows ordinary soldiers to overcome their fear and even enter a state of frenzy, greatly enhancing their combat effectiveness.

Timoshenko continued, "This is a rare magical art, unique and without obvious characteristics. It is not limited by birth or status. It can be said without a doubt that anyone, from a messenger on the battlefield of the 'Second Empire' to a noble family serving in the military, could possess these traits."

Rochester: ?

Messenger on the battlefield of the "Second Reich"...

This identity... it sounds so familiar...

Timoshenko changed the subject again, "However, I've only heard about it; I don't know anything about magic."

Although the people in this world cannot notice the "players" that appear out of nowhere, certain abnormal behaviors of the players will still be noticed.

But Rochester couldn't immediately tell whether Timoshenko's words were good or bad.

But from another perspective, this is an opportunity. He could package the system as a powerful magic spell, and then legitimately control those players in the future.

This would also prove his worth, and most importantly, he had Timoshenko, his "mentor," right in front of him.

From a negative perspective, this ability is a bit too outrageous and too attention-grabbing.

Some leaders will not allow such people to exist.

That familiar figure with the iconic beard reappeared in his mind.

Rochester considered for a moment before giving a vague answer: "I'm not sure either. But we encountered a magic-based unit recently. Their physical strength far exceeded that of ordinary soldiers, and they needed to use some equipment. It shouldn't be magic; I don't know much about that."

Timoshenko was silent for a moment, then nodded.

"Go back and rest first," he said. "I have a general understanding of the situation. If there are any new developments, come find me directly. You must come find me. The stronger a person's magic, the more likely they are to have some kind of... Anyway, let's take the 'Second Empire' for example. If such a person really exists, he would definitely become a terrifying leader. Of course... of course... I've only heard about it. Anyway... that's all."

Rochester's heart tightened as he briefly recalled his state of mind when he was in a frenzy on the battlefield.

That shouldn't be a big problem, right?

This kind of bloodthirsty state seems quite common. Although Rochester uses "Warhammer of the Soviet Union" to criticize this absurd world, it can't really be Khorne or Tzeentch or anything like that... right?

Rochester shook his head.

impossible.

If that were true, I would have been affected long ago.

Rochester returned to his lounge, lay down in a chair, closed his eyes, and prepared to take a nap.

......

......

......

Half an hour later, the order from the rear command center arrived.

Everyone was summoned back into the meeting room. A hush fell over the room as they listened to the proceedings.

"Take the initiative?"

"Directly engage the land-based ships?"

How many of us are there?

"Any reinforcements? Will Comrade Joseph be coming?"

"Cough cough cough."

A buzz of discussion filled the room. Timoshenko cleared his throat and coughed a few times, and the room instantly fell silent.

"The enemy landship's range far exceeds ours," he said, looking around at everyone. "Even if it doesn't come for us, it will attack other friendly forces. We must take the initiative and keep it at bay. The Western Army Group is fully assembled; once we contain this landship, they will launch a general offensive."

"Are we going to fight land-based ships?"

Everyone looked at each other.

No one has ever had this experience.

This level of weaponry has always been the "patent" of the "Western Front".

If we really had to fight this thing...

For this new regime built on the ruins of the old empire, its foundation was far too weak—the only advantage of the old empire was its large population, a vast sea of ​​gray livestock, which was also built up by sheer numbers in that "war that ended all wars".

Timoshenko observed everyone's reactions but said nothing.

He can understand.

He himself only graduated from the Oranienbaum Machine Gun School, which is not considered a good school.

But no one in the room showed any fear.

Except for Rochester.

He had no doubt that he was about to become a key offensive force.

Starting with weapons of war? How long has he been in this world?

In the silence, for reasons unknown, Timoshenko suddenly looked at Rochester.

Then Timoshenko's chief of staff also looked over with a meaningful expression.

Then came the other generals.

Ultimately, everyone's attention turned to Rochester.

what...

What does it mean?

"No, why are you all looking at me like that?"

I'm just a can opener, can a land-based ship be used to open cans?

He also wanted to come up with an idea.

As the saying goes, "Even if you haven't eaten pork, you've at least seen a pig run," but the problem is—he has neither eaten pork nor seen a pig run.

The chief of staff broke the silence first: "Commander Rochester, you are the most tactically astute person here. Your adjutant, your soldiers, and these two—" He gestured to the side, "Company Commander Andrei Ivanovich Yeremenko and Company Commander Vasily Konstantinovich Blyukher have both mentioned your tactics to me many times."

Rochester: ?

That's what they've said.

Even if it's not going to work, I'll force it.

Although he didn't know exactly what kind of structure this land-based ship was, he had seen similar things in various works of art...

Rochester had a lot of Gundam series in mind, and his first impression of land battleships also came from these works.

He suddenly thought of something, quickly walked to the map, and slid his finger along the contour lines, finally stopping at one spot.

Sluch River.

It is about 100 to 120 kilometers west of "Korosten".

This is the widest, deepest, and most insurmountable natural barrier in the west.

A land-based warship traveling from the direction of Rivne and Lviv must pass through the Sluch River to reach Zhytomyr.