Chapter 568: Something Big is Coming

Hearing Morin's general plan, Rundstedt, Manstein, and Paulus were struck silent.

It wasn't because they found flaws in the plan... Though, to be fair, it was incredibly audacious. A single reinforced brigade daring to stab an entire army group in the flank.

The primary reason for their silence was shock: How did General Morin devise a plan so perfectly tailored to armored warfare so quickly?

"What, no opinions?" Morin leaned casually against the table.

Rundstedt, the brigade's second-in-command, was the first to recover. "General, you said we'd depart two days early... If the allied forces' river crossing doesn't go smoothly, won't the Instruction Brigade be isolated deep behind enemy lines?"

"That's exactly why the departure time must be calculated with absolute precision."

Morin tapped the allied crossing points on the map. "The allied forces will need at least a day and a half to two days to prepare their crossing. The White Army will need another half-day to a full day to discover it and react... That time window is ours."

"Once the allied frontal crossing begins, Denikin will inevitably pull his attention back. At that point, it will be extremely difficult for them to react to a threat in their rear flank. Especially since we can rapidly annihilate enemy units we encounter, delaying their flow of information."

Rundstedt nodded and didn't press further, but he looked at Morin with a very complex expression.

Since joining the Instruction Brigade, he had participated in multiple battles and operational planning sessions. Every single time, the speed at which Morin produced a plan was absurd.

This young Major General seemed to entirely bypass the lengthy wargaming process. Give him the intelligence, and the plan materialized almost instantly.

It was as if he had a library of plans pre-loaded in his brain, suited for any tactical objective and battlefield environment, and simply needed to pick the right one off the shelf.

Crucially, every tactic he pulled out was genuinely sound, leaving no room for critique...

This time... including the extreme-speed reinforcement of Rzhyshchiv immediately upon arriving on the Eastern Front, it was all firmly anchored on the mobility advantage of armored forces.

As if he had been fighting with this type of unit for a decade.

"Alright, the broad strokes are set. You three fill in the details."

Morin slapped the table, jerking his chin at them. "Selecting specific crossing points, march sequencing, supply nodes, communication protocols—that's your job."

Manstein finally uncrossed his arms, his tone thick with resignation.

"General, you're playing the hands-off boss again."

"Wrong. This is called a rational division of labor."

Morin looked utterly justified. "I'm the Brigade Commander, alright? My main job is strategic conceptualization. Your job is to make it reality. If I do everything myself, what do I need you for? Besides, when we can't break through frontally, I'm the one who has to go up and tear a hole..."

Paulus: "See? You just want to charge the front lines! You finally admitted it!"

"Go, go, go, get to work." Morin ignored the accusation, physically shoving the three men out of the tent.

As Manstein stepped outside, he let out a long breath. Glancing back at Morin stretching inside the tent, he lowered his voice and muttered to Paulus.

"We're going to be busy."

Paulus adjusted his glasses, nodding in agreement.

"I've discovered a pattern."

"Hm?"

"Every time the General makes a new tactical plan, it's basically an exam for us."

Manstein paused, then offered a bitter smile and shook his head.

"Can't argue with that..."

Walking ahead of them, Rundstedt stopped and turned around upon hearing their exchange.

There was no exhaustion on his face; instead, he looked eager to get started.

"Lieutenant Colonel Manstein, when can I expect those topographical survey documents?"

"I'll organize them when I get back and hand them over."

"Good. I'll start drafting the framework for the communication protocols." Rundstedt nodded and strode off toward another tent.

Watching him go, Manstein couldn't help but exchange a look with Paulus.

New guys always have the most energy...

The following afternoon, the familiar roar of engines drifted from the direction of the Instruction Brigade's rear temporary airfield and armored airship maintenance platform.

The L15 armored airship, which had left Rzhyshchiv early to resupply ammunition and materials in the rear, had finally returned after four days.

Morin had received word of its imminent arrival early that morning. He, Ludwig, and several officers were already waiting near the maintenance platform.

The massive airship slowly descended. Mooring ropes were thrown down and secured to specialized winches by the ground crew. The landing process, continuously refined and optimized for efficiency during wartime, took less time than ever.

When the airship's lower hatch opened and the boarding stairs were lowered, the first figure to step onto the platform instantly lifted Morin's spirits.

Long blonde hair tied back, a crisp uniform, perfect proportions, and standing half a head taller than most male officers...

Leonia von V?rtis, Grand Master of the Teutonic Order. The "Golden Lion's" recognizability was always maxed out.

Trailing closely behind her were several other Teutonic Knights and a group of Order magitech engineers wearing dark blue overalls.

"Your Excellency Grand Master!" Morin stepped forward proactively, a highly enthusiastic expression on his face. "Thank you for your hard work, flying all this way."

Seeing Morin, Leonia quickened her pace. Stopping before him, a rare hint of a smile graced her lips.

"Major General Morin."

She extended her hand. Morin grasped it, feeling a surprisingly strong grip.

"I trust your journey was smooth, Your Excellency?"

"Very smooth~"

Leonia released his hand, tilting her head toward the airship.

"But I think you're more interested in seeing what I brought than hearing about the trip."

Morin followed her gaze. The massive cargo bay doors on the side of the airship were slowly opening. Inside, the massive silhouettes of objects secured by heavy chains were faintly visible.

"Two-Seater Armored Knights?"

Leonia nodded, the corners of her lips curling up slightly.

"Exactly. The new Knights you've been waiting for!"

Ludwig stepped forward, saluting his Grand Master. Leonia patted his shoulder in greeting. The three then walked toward the temporary camp set up next to the maintenance platform.

Morin had previously designated the area near the platform as the Teutonic Order's temporary garrison.

With Grand Master Leonia's arrival, and the Two-Seater Armored Knights still in the practical combat testing phase, Morin wanted to preserve the element of surprise. He didn't want these new weapons exposed too early.

"Perfect timing. This spot is a fair distance from the main camp, so you can conduct your training without drawing too much attention," Morin explained as they walked.

"As expected of you. Very thorough planning."

Leonia glanced around and bluntly agreed.

"We'll complete our acclimatization training here over the next few days. We won't cause you any trouble."

"No trouble at all," Morin waved a hand. "Honestly, your timing is impeccable... We've got a big job coming up—"

Leonia shot him a sideways glance, a smile playing on her lips, but didn't press for details right then.

After the friendly "summit between military commanders" concluded, Morin, Ludwig, Leonia, and a Deputy Chief Magitech Engineer named Fred gathered in a large, pre-erected tent.

Structural blueprints of the Two-Seater Armored Knight were spread across the table, alongside several combat reports Ludwig had previously submitted.

Ludwig had summarized the situation immediately after the battle and sent it to the rear, intercepting the arriving Teutonic Order follow-up echelon.

Leonia cut straight to the chase.

"I read Ludwig's reports while transferring to the armored airship. So, after multiple engagements, you've confirmed the RAK15 anti-armor gun cannot penetrate the frontal armor of the Russian heavy Knights."

Morin nodded, his expression grave.

"A 50mm AP shell at 400 meters only scrapes off a layer of outer armor. To inflict effective damage... I suspect even point-blank fire would struggle. The equivalent thickness of their main armor is 120 millimeters..."

Leonia fell silent for a moment after hearing Morin's description, then sighed. "Sigh... It seems our concerns were justified."

Morin: "Hm? You had contingencies prepared before you even left?"

"You could say that."

Leonia looked at Fred beside her and continued, "When we pulled the files on the Orthodox Paladin Orders from the Order's archives and confirmed their Armored Knights favored a heavy, defense-oriented style, we were already worried. Not just about the RAK15... but that all our current weapons wouldn't pose a sufficient threat."

Fred picked up a blueprint and turned to Morin.

"Major General, therefore, we made drastic adjustments to the armament of the latest version of the Two-Seater Armored Knight."

Morin leaned in closer as Fred pointed to the weapon hardpoints on both shoulders of the schematic.

"The original plan was to mount one RAK15 and two MG08s..."

"Now, we've changed it to mount a simplified 77mm field gun on both sides. We stripped the gun carriage, retaining only the barrel, breech, and a streamlined recoil buffer, embedding them directly into the weapon bays on the Two-Seater's shoulders."

Morin: "Good lord, two 77mm guns?"

"Yes, Major General!"

Fred nodded. "We also abandoned the previous 'right gun, left machine gun' layout. Now, both sides mount one cannon and one heavy machine gun, making it much easier for the Armored Knight to maintain balance."

"An MG08 heavy machine gun is retained beneath each cannon for anti-infantry and suppressive fire."

"For ammunition, they carry both high-explosive and shaped-charge armor-piercing shells... HE for structures and infantry, and shaped-charge AP specifically for high-value targets like Armored Knights."

Hearing this, Ludwig chimed in.

"What about ammo capacity? 77mm shells are much heavier than 50mm, and they take up way more space..."

Fred nodded and pulled out another blueprint.

"This is where we made the biggest modification... Due to the increased weight of the ammunition, relying entirely on the rear weapon officer for manual loading was unrealistic. So, we developed a mechanically-assisted loading system."

He pointed to a set of gears and rails on the blueprint.

"The ammunition is stored in a rear magazine. The weapon officer uses these rails to deliver the shell to the breech, then operates a loading lever to chamber it... The entire process takes about seven to eight seconds, faster with practice."

"Ammo capacity: twelve 77mm shells per side, twenty-four total... and five hundred rounds for each machine gun."

Morin quickly ran the numbers in his head. Twenty-four 77mm shells, a mix of HE and shaped-charge AP. Against those Russian "Linebreakers" with 120-140mm equivalent frontal armor, a 77mm shaped-charge AP shell hitting the right spot could absolutely achieve a one-hit kill.

However, storing ammunition directly in the rear compartment inevitably introduced the risk of catastrophic detonation if hit, adding a new weak point to the Two-Seater Armored Knight...

But compared to the massive boost in firepower, Morin deemed this "balance" acceptable.

"How much mobility was sacrificed? You strapped two 77mm field guns to it... even stripped down, those things aren't light," Morin asked the critical question.

"About fifteen percent slower than a standard Siegfried," Fred answered honestly. "The weight increase is simply too much. Even the upgraded radiant crystal combustion engine and magitech core are redlining."

"But we managed to retain melee combat capability."

Leonia added, "Melee weapons are still the standard array of enchanted armaments. And as you mentioned before, Friedrich, with a two-person crew—one handling melee, the other handling firepower—their offensive ferocity will be significantly amplified."

Taking all this in, Morin leaned back in his chair and let out a long exhale.

"Excellent."

Staring at the blueprints, he was already mentally constructing deployment scenarios for the new Knights in the upcoming operation.

Following these last-minute adjustments before departure, the Two-Seater Armored Knight had evolved into a heavy assault unit—sacrificing some mobility, but retaining melee capabilities and drastically amplifying its ranged firepower.

"Our next operational mission demands exactly this kind of hard-hitting, damage-absorbing assault force."

Morin looked up, meeting Leonia's eyes seriously.

"Your Excellency Grand Master, your timing couldn't be better."

Leonia leaned back, crossing her arms.

"Operational mission?"

Morin nodded. He unrolled a map of the area and rapidly began sketching out his pre-planned operation.

"Since your people are here, your weapons are here, and you came specifically for practical combat testing... it's time to bring you up to speed."

Morin's finger landed on the winding march route stretching thirty-five kilometers south.

Leonia's eyes followed the line to its terminus... a bend in the Dnieper River, then crossing the river, pointing directly at the rear flank of the White Army's Southern Army.

She didn't speak, but her raised eyebrows conveyed her thoughts perfectly.

"Major General Morin, you're planning something massive again?"

Morin twirled the pencil in his hand, shaking his head with a look of pure innocence.

"This time it really isn't me. The higher-ups handed down the job; everyone can testify to that... I'm just trying to figure out a way to do it beautifully."

Leonia stared at Morin for a long time before finally speaking, clearly intrigued by the plan.

"Tell me the details."