Chapter 53
Chapter 53
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 53
Chapter Title: Rommel's Crisis (2)
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Russia had redeployed nearly half of the Southwest Front's forces to the Northwest Front facing East Prussia.
Endless supply trains clogged the stations, and shouts echoed from every direction.
The front lines staggered as if flesh had been torn from them.
Reallocating half their forces created immense chaos and side effects that gnawed away at Russia's strength.
The Austro-Hungarian Empire caught its breath in the meantime and even succeeded in localized counterattacks.
Nevertheless, the Russians—at least Nikolai Nikolaevich—believed it was worth it.
It was necessary to block the filthy claws of the 8th Army.
Of course, Germany...
"Huh?"
"We barely grabbed two armies after all that chaos, and they're back?"
...knew nothing. They just felt suffocated.
Seeing the 2nd Army defeated at Tannenberg and the 1st Army crushed at the Battle of the Masurian Lakes simply refilled made their heads spin.
Strategically speaking, it greatly lightened the burden on Austria-Hungary, and the 8th Army had been twiddling its thumbs, so it was actually a good turn of events.
Well... this was Germany...
"This means we absolutely can't send Rommel off now."
"Yes, we need every proven talent we can get. We'll have to politely decline the General Staff's personnel orders."
The staff officers, who had watched the petty tug-of-war between the General Staff and 8th Army HQ over Rommel with a hint of pity, did a complete 180.
They figured Hindenburg and Ludendorff had seen this coming.
"So the Commander and Chief of Staff foresaw the Russians massing up!"
"Ah! That's why they fought so hard to block Rommel's transfer orders!"
"I thought it was just ugly politics. I need to reflect on that."
"Hah, impressive..."
"..."
And among them...
"Did they really predict this?"
...was Rommel, eyes wide open.
He averted his gaze from the admiring looks brimming in the eyes of Hindenburg, Ludendorff, Max Hoffmann, and the others.
Even their subtle silence felt like a wordless "We knew it all along," making the staff's eyes sparkle even more.
Of course, they hadn't known. Who could have predicted this?
But Rommel's delusion continued unchecked.
'I must have underestimated these men called the heroes of World War I without realizing it.'
He'd thought it was just insubordination against the General Staff, but to think they'd spotted the Russian reinforcements!
That's why they'd ignored his warnings about the risks and made him mad!
"This is truly astonishing. I'm impressed."
'They even judged I'd be essential in the upcoming fierce battles. To value me so highly...'
Rommel was moved.
It was a thought that would have left Hindenburg and Ludendorff with ambiguous expressions if they'd heard it.
"Since the Commander, Chief of Staff, and everyone else has worked so hard for this, I'll do my utmost in return."
"Y-Yes, you do that."
As Rommel spoke in a resolute, earnest tone, Ludendorff stammered his reply.
Rommel nodded and turned his eyes to the operations map beside him.
Suddenly recalling something at the sight, Major Hoffmann asked him,
"Come to think of it, Rommel, weren't you the one who advised against attacking the 1st Army?"
"Yes, it was an idea General François kindly endorsed."
Mention of General François brought subtle expressions to the Chief of Staff and the others.
There had been news that François, once awkward due to his insubordination, would soon be promoted to 8th Army Commander.
Major Hoffmann glanced around before asking Rommel,
"What do you think now? With another 400,000 to 500,000 enemy troops likely deploying, just like the 1st and 2nd Armies to the east and south."
"What's the point of the question?"
"Do you think the Eastern Front is in a dangerous position now?"
"In the long term, yes."
Ludendorff's brow furrowed at Rommel's immediate answer without hesitation.
As he opened his mouth to speak, Hindenburg gently pressed the Chief of Staff's shoulder.
Rommel caught the scene out of the corner of his eye before explaining,
"If we assume a prolonged war, the advantages of our mobilization plan diminish greatly."
The other staff officers, who had been about to argue, fell silent at his words.
The German mobilization plan's greatest strength was its speed, which shone in a short war focused on quick decisive battles.
But if the war dragged on, the situation would increasingly favor Russia. Even with slower mobilization, they could field more troops overall.
"No matter how many soldiers we mobilize, Russia can mobilize more, so in the long term, we must assess the Eastern Front as dangerous."
Rommel, who would normally speak concisely, was pressing his sincere convictions into his advice.
He was repaying the 8th Army HQ's "faith"(?) in him.
To such a Rommel, Hindenburg sent an enigmatic gaze hiding unfathomable emotions.
"However."
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
I took a moment to catch my breath and continued.
"In the short term, it's an extremely favorable situation."
"Why is that?"
Hoffmann, who had been listening tensely, tilted his head.
It was understandable. The assessment had flipped dramatically.
But the reason was very simple.
"The Russian army's supply capabilities are severely inadequate. And yet, they hurriedly redirected armies operating on the Austro-Hungarian front here."
"Ah."
"Russia's rail network was undoubtedly tuned to their precise mobilization plan. Then they just dumped 500,000 more troops on top of it."
"Their supplies must be a total mess."
It was solid reasoning.
Everyone had already realized before Tannenberg that Russia's logistics were horribly poor.
It's probably even worse now. At least back then, they'd followed the mobilization plan, and the rails were in better shape.
"So, what do you think we should do now?"
This was a conclusion the staff could have reached among themselves.
"Simple."
Now came the important part.
"We must mobilize the entire army as quickly as possible and launch a grand counteroffensive."
"!"
"!"
Hoffmann froze, Ludendorff stopped grumbling behind him, and the listening staff widened their eyes in shock.
"The Russians in front of us now are a highly dangerous enemy with combat experience, but their combat effectiveness is severely weakened."
Russia's human wave tactics and artillery were no threat at the moment.
"Moreover, this is the offensive opportunity since the war began—perhaps one that won't come again."
"B-But the troop disparity..."
"The disparity will persist, and if we truly want victory on the Eastern Front, we must overcome it."
They all seemed overwhelmed by my radical proposal.
But they had to trust me completely.
"The most efficient, strategic moment to overcome that disparity is right now. And that's not all."
Arrows proliferated in my mind, biting and vanishing repeatedly.
I carefully repositioned the pieces on the operations map as I continued.
"If we conduct a maneuver war toward Poland..."
Is it possible? No, it is.
"It eliminates the encirclement threat to East Prussia, allows us to encircle the Polish sector instead, and secures a geographically optimal position for smoother coordination with the Austro-Hungarian Empire."
"No! We already know that!"
BAM!! Ludendorff slammed the wall, unable to hold back any longer, and bellowed.
I looked at him calmly.
"The problem is we can't do it! We're struggling to hold our current front—how do you talk about expanding it?!"
"I'm calculating based on the premise that we can easily defeat the Russians first. In other words, this works."
"Hey!!! A guy who didn't even go to war college dares lecture me on calculations right in front of me?!"
Ludendorff's face turned beet red as he roared.
Sorry as I was for him, now that I knew the 8th Army HQ trusted me, I couldn't stop giving advice.
A man has to uphold his principles.
"Of course, the 8th Army alone couldn't dream of it. We'd need help from the newly formed 9th Army in Silesia."
"No...!! That's not...!!"
"Hold on."
Hindenburg intervened, his cold gaze fixed on us.
With the Commander stepping in directly, the Chief of Staff had no choice but to back down, dissatisfied.
"Hmm."
Hindenburg slowly approached and peered down at the reorganized operations map and pieces.
Then he turned sharp eyes to me.
"You seem confident."
"Yes."
"Confident enough to stake your military career on it?"
The intense pressure hit me, and I sharpened my focus.
Then I answered with utmost clarity.
"Yes."
The arrows in my head were perfectly crushing the enemy and paving the way.
There was no need to hesitate.