Chapter 567: General Morin’s Interlocking Stratagems

Half an hour later, the captured White Army lieutenant was blindfolded again, his hands bound behind his back.

A Thunder Warrior picked him up by the collar like a chick, carrying him out of the semi-buried bunker. They bypassed the outer perimeter defenses and arrived at the riverbank.

Hearing the rushing water, the White Army lieutenant's life began flashing before his eyes. He assumed he was being taken to his execution.

In that moment, he felt a twinge of regret for his aggressive outbursts earlier. However, the regret didn't last long.

In his mind, these enemies were the "Rebels" who had overthrown the Empire and murdered the Tsar. Dying at their hands meant dying for his country!

Yes... he was a steadfast, battle-tested warrior of imperialism.

But then, the lieutenant felt his boots step into the water. The river quickly rose to his ankles, then his knees.

Are they going to drown me? Typical 'Rebel' tactics...

The thought flashed through his mind. Suddenly, he was hoisted into the air and began crossing the river, floating in the water.

Two Thunder Warriors wearing sealed rubber suits waded into the water holding large bags containing weapons, ammunition, and supplies. One dragged the lieutenant, while the other kept watch.

Without using lights or making extraneous noise, they swam swiftly to the east bank. The White Army lieutenant was then shoved hard into the mud.

The ropes binding his hands were cut, and the blindfold was yanked off. A voice behind him whispered in heavily accented Russian, "Don't move. Don't look back."

The lieutenant was about to speak when a leather map tube was shoved into his hand.

"This is a gift for General Denikin."

"Walk straight ahead from now on. Do not turn back."

"After a hundred paces, you are free."

The lieutenant stood frozen, but he still mustered the courage to ask, "What exactly are you trying to do?"

Before he could continue questioning them, he felt a gun barrel press against his spine.

"Keep walking, or I will shoot you right now."

The halting Russian sounded again. Only then did the White Army lieutenant start walking.

Initially, he managed to maintain the dignity of an old Imperial officer, but after a dozen meters, his pace quickened.

After roughly thirty meters, a gust of night wind made the soaked lieutenant shiver violently. He abandoned all pretense and bolted in the general direction of his side's lines.

There were truly no gunshots from behind, nor any sounds of pursuit. After running another dozen meters, unable to suppress his curiosity, the lieutenant stealthily glanced back.

The riverbank was empty. Not a soul was in sight. The enemies who escorted him across the river had vanished.

He swallowed hard. The instinct for self-preservation retook control of his brain, urging him to keep running.

Less than thirty meters from him, hidden in the tall grass, two Thunder Warriors lay prone.

They had already shed their sealed rubber suits and buried them in a pre-dug pit nearby.

Their ghillie suits broke up most of their silhouettes. Their eyes, enhanced by Morin's "Super Soldier Serum V1.0," allowed them to track the lieutenant's every movement clearly in the dark.

The Thunder Warrior on the left whispered upon seeing the White Army lieutenant's action.

"He looked back."

The one on the right grumbled but stayed silent.

"I win. Two packs of cigarettes."

"He just glanced. That doesn't count as turning back."

"His whole head turned around. How does that not count?"

"I meant turning around and walking back."

"You never specified 'walking back' earlier."

"We'll talk about this when we get back."

"Don't try to weasel out of this. If you have a problem, we can settle it on the training ground."

Waiting until the White Army lieutenant was far away, the two shouldered their packs, grabbed their weapons, and began to move.

Escorting the man across the river was just a side task for them. Now that the White Army officer was gone, they had to commence their armed reconnaissance mission for the night.

Without their "Mj?lnir" armor, Morin required the Thunder Warriors to engage in combat from long range whenever possible.

The Thunder Warriors' physical capabilities not only allowed them to carry enough ammunition for sustained operations...

...Their recoil control was drastically improved. Like Morin, they could handle automatic weapons like laser guns. Furthermore, their enhanced brains gave them extreme precision in calculating lead on moving targets.

Thus, the two carried an MG14 light machine gun and an M1915 semi-automatic rifle, both fitted with new suppressors. The semi-auto rifle was also equipped with a Zeiss 4x optical sight.

Although armed reconnaissance missions naturally called for traveling light, for Thunder Warriors, this loadout truly qualified as "light gear."

East bank of the Dnieper River. Soldiers in the White Army forward positions dozed in the trenches; only a few sentries kept watch ahead.

Just when everyone thought the night would pass as quietly as the previous ones, the sentries suddenly heard footsteps approaching from the flank, accompanied by a stumbling figure.

A sentry responsible for flanking security immediately raised his rifle and aimed, but didn't fire right away.

After all, they dispatched roaming patrols every night, and these patrols sometimes returned via the flanks during unexpected situations.

"Who goes there?!"

The approaching figure didn't answer, just kept running toward the trench.

"Password!" The sentry put his finger on the trigger.

"Don't shoot! I'm Lieutenant Ilya from the 6th Division, 25th Regiment, out on night reconnaissance!"

Hearing the name and rank, the sentry hesitated for half a beat, but another sentry nearby had already pulled the trigger.

The gunshot rang out. The White Army lieutenant dove hard to the side, hitting the dirt and cursing loudly.

"You idiots! I'm on your side!"

The bullet hit the ground less than a meter to his right. Shaken, Lieutenant Ilya sat on the ground, clutching the map tube tightly.

Soon, confirming there were no other figures, several White Army soldiers surrounded him with raised rifles. After verifying his identity, a duty NCO pulled him up.

Once steady on his feet, the lieutenant swept his gaze over the soldiers and harshly demanded to know who fired.

Seeing the others glance at one man whose position still smelled of gunpowder, Lieutenant Ilya kicked the sentry who fired.

"Are your eyes just for breathing?"

The kick sent the sentry tumbling back into the trench, but he didn't dare fight back.

"Lieutenant, you didn't answer with the password..."

"I just escaped from the enemy! How the hell would I know the new password!"

"Enough!"

The duty NCO quickly stepped between them.

"Lieutenant, where is your squad?"

Mentioning his recon squad dampened Ilya's anger somewhat. His expression turned complicated.

"The others are all dead. I'm the only one who made it back."

Ilya paused, then continued, "I have critical intelligence. Take me to the regimental commander immediately."

"Now?"

"Yes! Now! If military intelligence is delayed, are you going to explain it to the regimental and division commanders for me?"

The NCO didn't dare argue further and led Ilya into the communication trench. He was soon escorted to the regimental headquarters.

Upon hearing his story, the White Army 25th Regiment commander's first reaction was that the man had defected, drawing his pistol immediately...

Only when Ilya pulled the map—personally marked by Morin—from the tube and placed it on the desk did the commander stop short of pulling the trigger and executing the "traitor." But the situation only grew more bizarre.

The regimental commander repeatedly scanned the map, particularly the marked river crossing points.

"Are you sure the enemy gave this to you?"

"Yes, Commander!"

Hearing Lieutenant Ilya's affirmative answer, the commander's expression grew even stranger. Although he didn't raise his gun again, he walked a circle around Lieutenant Ilya, eyeing him suspiciously.

"So you're saying you were captured without a fight during a night reconnaissance mission, and these Saxons caught you and then just sent you back?"

"Uh... I know it sounds unbelievable, but that's exactly what happened, Commander! You must believe me..."

The 25th Regiment commander raised a hand, cutting off Lieutenant Ilya's explanation, and pressed: "The Saxons not only let you go, but also told you to deliver this map to General Denikin?"

Lieutenant Ilya realized how absurd his story sounded, but it was the truth. He could only nod stiffly.

The commander finally stopped pacing, stood in front of Lieutenant Ilya, and glared at him.

"Do you think I'm easy to fool?"

"Sir, I'm telling the truth!"

Ilya frantically placed his hands on the desk, explaining desperately, "The enemy blindfolded me the entire time. I... I didn't even see their positions! Those 'Rebels' almost rushed up and beat me to death. In that moment, I thought I was going to give my life for General Denikin..."

"But then those Saxons arrived and stopped the 'Rebels.' After crossing the river, they shoved the map at me and told me to keep walking straight... I swear everything I said is true!"

"So you're saying the Saxons are rather friendly? And they didn't set any conditions?"

"No."

"Didn't ask you to work for them?"

"Absolutely not!" Lieutenant Ilya shook his head vigorously.

The commander stared at him for a while, then summoned his battalion and company commanders to cross-examine him individually.

These officers, who knew him better, stated that Lieutenant Ilya didn't seem to be lying, and his story checked out in various aspects.

The map tube he brought back and the map inside had no hidden compartments or discernible anomalies... But the more normal it looked, the more unsettling it felt.

After racking his brain, the regimental commander finally put on his uniform jacket. He worried that simply shooting Lieutenant Ilya might lead to the loss of critical information, causing an even bigger problem.

"Prepare a car... I will personally take him to report to brigade and division headquarters."

After half a night of torment, navigating through layers of reporting and scrutiny, the exhausted Lieutenant Ilya, now nursing a cold from his soaked clothes, was finally escorted into the Southern Army Headquarters.

He didn't immediately see Denikin or the other senior officers. Instead, he was taken to a room set up with an alchemical array.

A War Alchemist, face obscured by a cloak, inspected him closely, circling him twice, and ordered him to remove his coat and boots.

"Did you drink any water given by the enemy after being captured?"

"No."

"Eat anything?"

"No."

"Were you injected with any potions?"

"No."

The alchemist also examined the map, confirming it bore no curses, tracking spells, or other anomalies, and was truly just an ordinary map. Only then was Lieutenant Ilya cleared of any abnormalities.

The White Army officer, his steps faltering and sneezing repeatedly, had barely put his clothes back on when a squad of fully armed guards escorted him to wait outside the command post.

The map he brought back had already been delivered to Denikin, who was woken from a deep sleep. The Southern Army operations duty officers and other awoken officers gathered around the long table. No one rushed to offer an opinion.

The map didn't reveal much, but the three red markers representing river crossing points were glaringly obvious.

These points were locations the Southern Army had previously used for crossings, so they knew perfectly well these could be used for a counter-offensive. Not to mention the future timestamp written next to one of them.

Someone had even drawn a fucking smiley face next to it...

"What do you think this means?"

Denikin pressed his knuckles against the map, head lowered as he asked.

A staff officer hesitated, seeing no one else intending to speak, and braced himself to go first.

"General, could it be that after repelling our attack a few days ago, the Rebels across the river want to use this to provoke us?"

No one in the room responded. Chief of Staff Semyon shot the man a look—Being brave enough to break the silence is commendable, but what kind of garbage analysis is this?

Sure enough, Denikin's expression darkened further upon hearing this.

The two failed forced crossings were the Southern Army's greatest losses recently... or rather, their greatest losses since joining Kolchak for the final offensive.

Now the enemy had sent over a map marking crossing points. It truly felt like a provocation... Taking a wilder guess, this was essentially telling them directly: Next time, it's the west bank's turn to attack.

"Bring that captured officer in... Hah, the gall he has to come back."

The door opened quickly, and Lieutenant Ilya was dragged before the senior officers of the Southern Army. He didn't dare breathe too loudly.

Denikin picked up the map, scrutinized it again, and asked, "What else did those Rebels and Saxons say?"

"Reporting, General, nothing else."

Ilya didn't dare look up, keeping his eyes glued to the floor as he answered, "I was blindfolded the entire time after being captured. The enemy sent me back to the east bank and only told me to deliver this gift to you."

"Gift?"

Denikin chuckled twice, then slammed his hand hard on the desk.

"The Rebels asked you to run an errand, and you actually ran it for them?"

Ilya's shoulders shrank in fear. Trembling, he stammered, "General, I checked the map. There are no traps, no traces of alchemy on it."

"If they handed you a bomb, would you have obediently carried it back too?"

"No! General, I did not reveal any intelligence to the enemy! Your orders, troop deployments, reconnaissance range—I didn't say a single word."

Realizing the implications, Lieutenant Ilya began explaining frantically: "I planned to memorize the enemy's routes, but they kept me blindfolded the whole time. I really couldn't..."

But an enraged Denikin was no longer listening. He waved a hand at the guards.

"Drag him out."

Lieutenant Ilya hadn't registered what was happening yet. "General?"

The two guards already grabbed his arms.

"General, I didn't defect! I brought back critical intelligence!"

"I am loyal to the Empire! My father served in the Imperial Army too!"

"General!"

The voice was quickly cut off by the closing door. Less than a minute later, a sharp gunshot rang out outside.

None of the staff officers in the command room moved, but to them, the map lying on the desk suddenly looked incredibly glaring.

Chief of Staff Semyon waited a moment before smoothing out the map.

"Gentlemen, let's discuss business... First, we can be certain that the Saxons across the river sending this over definitely has a purpose..."

Hearing this, a major from the operations section spoke first.

"Your Excellency Chief of Staff, I believe this map is a smokescreen for their true deployment... Under normal circumstances, no one hands their operational plans to the enemy. Even if they are arrogant, they couldn't possibly go to this extreme!"

Another staff officer immediately followed up.

"I agree!"

"The Southwestern Front Headquarters' bulletin already made it clear: the Rebels have been continuously reinforcing Kyiv recently. Our reconnaissance also shows that troop strength on the west bank of Rzhyshchiv is decreasing."

"The opposite bank is likely worried we'll take the opportunity to launch a third crossing operation, so they intentionally sent this map to create the illusion they are preparing a counter-offensive."

At this point, someone pointed to the date marked on the map.

"This timestamp is only a few days away. Perhaps the enemy just wants us to shift our forces to these crossing points and waste time!"

"They might even be trying to force us to halt our offensive so they can comfortably redeploy more troops!"

"Good heavens! Could this timestamp be the exact moment they launch a massive counter-offensive in Kyiv?!"

Listening to everyone's speculation, Chief of Staff Semyon pulled out the recent reconnaissance summary report.

"The number of cooking fires observed across the river morning, noon, and night has decreased. Nighttime vehicular activity is also lower than a few days ago. Although we haven't confirmed where the troops went yet, they most likely moved to Kyiv. But this map arriving now is just too convenient..."

Semyon stared intently at the markings on the map, arms crossed, speaking slowly. This was the first time he found himself in such a convoluted situation.

It was entirely because the commander across the river was far too unorthodox.

"The more they want us to focus on these crossing points, the more it proves the real threat lies elsewhere!"

Several officers nodded in agreement. This assessment reconciled all current intelligence.

The National Army was concentrating forces to defend Kyiv, leaving Rzhyshchiv under-defended. Thus, they used a captured officer to deliver a map, employing tactical intimidation against the Southern Army.

The method was arrogant, yet fit the profile of an enemy that had just won a defensive battle, especially with an elite Saxon unit present.

The enemy perhaps believed that the elite unit and the armored airship alone were enough to deter the Southern Army from crossing—the battles over the previous days had indeed proven this.

Under these circumstances, the enemy could draw more Rebel troops to fill the lines in Kyiv.

With a general consensus reached, everyone looked toward Denikin, who had not yet spoken.

The Commander-in-Chief of the Southern Army, a veteran general with immense combat experience, stared at the map for a long time before finally speaking slowly.

"I concur with your assessment..."

Hearing this, the staff officers visibly relaxed. But Denikin tapped his finger on the marked crossing points.

"However, Field Marshal Brusilov's order to heighten vigilance is, I believe, justified. We cannot brush off the Southwestern Front Headquarters' directive."

"Dispatch reconnaissance squads to monitor the three marked locations. Increase sentry posts along the coast. Detach a regiment from the reserves and deploy them further downstream..."

After recording the orders, Chief of Staff Semyon looked up at Denikin.

"General, and the other areas?"

"Maintain current deployments."

Denikin pushed the map toward the operations officer.

"Continue monitoring troop strength variations on the west bank, especially finding out how many men they've transferred... The Rebels opposite us think they can scare me with a torn map. They lack the capability."

"Oh, and remember to inform the Southwestern Front Headquarters about the timestamp on this map. Perhaps the Kyiv sector really needs to be on high alert as that time approaches."

Almost exactly when the gunshot rang out outside the White Army command post, the same map was being discussed in the Instruction Brigade's main tent.

Rundstedt, Manstein, Klaus, and several Brigade HQ operations officers gathered around the table. Just as Morin finished outlining the specific arrangements, Rundstedt pointed at the red markers on the map.

"General, isn't the risk in doing this too high? As long as that released White Army officer survives to see Denikin, the contents of the map will fall into the Southern Army's hands."

"If the enemy actually believes the deployments on the map, these three locations are also the preliminary crossing zones selected by the Eighth Army and allied forces. If the White Army reinforces their defenses there, our allies will suffer much heavier casualties during the crossing."

Paulus, standing nearby, echoed the concern after hearing this.

"Especially these two downstream locations... The riverbank is gentle, allowing for the deployment of more bridging equipment... If we switch to other areas, a hundred thousand troops will have a hard time crossing quickly."

Only Manstein remained silent. He had already guessed Morin likely had further arrangements, though Morin hadn't even fully briefed him during the trip back.

Seeing that no one else was going to speak, Morin finally tore his gaze from the map and looked up.

"Who told you I was going to lead the Instruction Brigade across the river from these positions?"

"?"

Rundstedt was stunned.

"But General, the operational plan..."

"Think about it again. That's primarily the allied forces' crossing plan~"

Morin picked up his pointer and tapped the highways on the map.

"Our Instruction Brigade possesses a massive number of trucks, armored vehicles, and prime movers. We also just received ample supplies from the Army group. We are primed and ready for a long-distance, large-scale deep strike!"

"If we squeeze into conventional crossing points alongside the infantry and queue up for hours, then what's the point of equipping us with so many motorized vehicles?"

Rundstedt stared at the map, his mind quickly making the connection.

"General, you intend to launch a flanking crossing maneuver from another direction?"

"Bingo!"

"What?"

Morin took a set of drafting tools and rapidly began a dizzying array of map work.

A newly drawn march route bypassed the three conventional crossing points, extending south for over thirty-five kilometers—far from Rzhyshchiv and in an area completely unmarked in the joint plan.

The terminus landed at a bend in the Dnieper River.

"The assembled allied forces will draw the enemy Southern Army's attention here... I believe the obvious river crossing preparations will certainly concentrate their focus."

"The Instruction Brigade will depart two days early, creating the illusion of a massive force rushing to reinforce Kyiv, and then detour here to cross the river."

"Discovering multiple massive movements with completely disparate objectives in a short period will make the enemy hesitant, too afraid to act rashly..."

"Once the crossing is complete, the Instruction Brigade will execute a massive, non-stop tactical maneuver, plunging a knife directly into the Southern Army's kidneys and severing the retreat path of their frontline attack forces deployed along the river!"