During a time of upheaval in the international community, the struggle between France and Austria over Egypt was also coming to an end. Once again, it became clear that in modern warfare, sheer numbers alone could no longer guarantee victory. Looking at the ever-increasing pile of distress telegrams on his desk, Governor Jacob was already beginning to despair. Reinforcements were impossible. Since the fall of the port, the French forces in Egypt had been left to fend for themselves. Originally, Governor Jacob had planned to use the troops at his disposal to tangle with the Austrian army for a year or so, buying time for the decisive battle in Europe. Now, less than a month in, all hope was gone. There was nothing he could do. From the moment Austria’s armored units entered the battlefield, all of Governor Jacob’s strategic plans fell apart. Faced with this unfamiliar enemy, Jacob was completely stunned. The fortifications painstakingly built by the French in Egypt were no match for the torrent of steel. They had been designed to hold back enemy infantry, but now they were up against airplanes, airships, and tanks. Infantry were merely auxiliary to these metal monsters. There was no doubt about it. Flesh and blood could not stand against a tide of steel. Every open-field engagement ended in French tragedy. The original force of 800,000 had already been shattered. Even after gathering the scattered troops, Governor Jacob dared not order them to regroup, because bringing them together would only cause the French army to be defeated faster. In an effort to delay as much as possible, Governor Jacob was forced to order his troops to find nearby cities or strategic terrain to garrison, avoiding direct confrontation with the enemy’s armored forces. Evading the torrent of steel did not mean the trouble was over. French troops stationed in cities fared better, since the colonial government had stockpiled supplies ahead of time and they wouldn’t go hungry for now. But for those stationed in the wilderness or strategic terrain, things turned grim. Those locations may have limited the enemy’s armored units, but soldiers still had to eat! The enemy’s air force kept a constant watch, making it nearly impossible to deliver supplies to those French units. That problem became a massive headache. In some sense, it wasn’t even a real problem, because Governor Jacob didn’t have much in the way of supplies. Without support from the homeland, the stockpile could only last a few months at best. Now that there were fewer men, the French troops stationed in cities could actually hold out longer. In a way, it was an ironic twist. If it had only been the collapse of the Egyptian front, Governor Jacob might not have been so mentally broken. It was, after all, something he had already prepared for. Even the government back home only expected him to delay the enemy, not to defeat them. What truly broke Jacob was the loss of hope, not only in the Egyptian battlefield but also in France itself. Jacob had personally witnessed the power of the armored units. These iron beasts were not only capable of slaughtering infantry in open battles but also extremely effective in storming fortresses. There might be ways to counter them, but that no longer concerned Jacob, who was now trapped in Cairo. By this point in the war, the French forces in Egypt had already lost their ability to fight. “Have our people reached British Ethiopia yet?” Governor Jacob asked. Perhaps out of duty, or perhaps out of patriotism, Governor Jacob had immediately dispatched messengers to inform the homeland upon encountering the Austrian armored units. The telegraph network to the outside world had already been cut by the Austrians. If they wished, the Austrians could even sever the telegraph lines connecting Egyptian cities. Now, the only way to communicate with the outside world was to break through the Austrian blockade and reach British-controlled Ethiopia, using British channels to send messages. The African continent was simply too vast, covered in jungles and sparsely populated. In theory, if one was cautious enough, slipping through the blockade was not impossible. The real obstacle to communication was distance. From Cairo to British Ethiopia was over a thousand miles, and the region was in chaos, making the chances of mishap very high. As one of Jacob’s trusted aides and the person in charge of the mission, Major General Aristide replied, “Judging by the time, the messengers we dispatched should have reached British territory by now. To be safe, I sent more than two hundred couriers. Even if some were lost along the way, others would complete the mission. But Governor, will this really help? If the enemy can deploy these secret weapons in Egypt, they surely have even more in Europe. Not to mention whether the message we send will be taken seriously. Even if it is, I doubt anything can be done about it in the short term.” This is a fact. Discovering a problem does not mean it can be solved. If simply discovering armored units were enough to counter the threat, then such units would not have been able to shine so brightly in the original timeline. “Sigh…” Governor Jacob sighed and said helplessly, “There’s nothing we can do. This news is too important. The homeland has no idea how powerful these metal monsters are. Our forces in Central and Southern Europe are still searching for the Austrian army to engage in a decisive battle. You’ve experienced it firsthand. If you’re unprepared and suddenly encounter these metal monsters in the field, the impact is immense. Now, we can only hope that the Austrians are not yet fully ready, and that the armored units they’ve deployed across Europe aren’t numerous. Hopefully, the information we’ve provided will be taken seriously back home. Otherwise, this European war will become France’s burial ground. If we lose this war, the great French Empire will become a thing of the past.” The reason Jacob stood out among many competitors to become a powerful governor, aside from his personal ability, was primarily because of Napoleon IV’s trust. Being a trusted aide is not easy. In other words, his personal fate and his family’s fate are tied to the Bonaparte dynasty. Even if France does not fall as a nation from this European war, the Bonaparte dynasty will certainly collapse. As a staunch supporter of the dynasty, Jacob will not have a good ending. If he had not been so deeply entangled in interests, he would not have chosen to resist to the bitter end in Egypt once the situation became hopeless. After all, one only has one life. “Woooooo-ooooooh-wooooooo-ooooooh…” The air raid siren sounded again, making everyone in the command center even more heavy-hearted. Air defense was practically nonexistent. Even the main forces in Europe lacked sufficient anti-aircraft guns, so colonial troops, treated as second-class, had even fewer resources. The anti-air weapons assigned to the Egyptian theater were mostly anti-air rifles. Although domestic arms dealers exaggerated the capabilities of these rifles, in reality, they were barely worth calling scraps. Aside from their relatively long range and the ability to shoot into the air, everything else was a drawback. For example, low accuracy, heavy recoil, frequent barrel explosions... The siren wailed, but the expected heavy bombing did not arrive. There were no familiar explosions. Instead, a sense of unease spread throughout the command center. Time seemed to freeze. No one spoke. The atmosphere in the room grew increasingly tense, almost to the point of overwhelming. “Governor, sir, the enemy outside has been dropping leaflets. Please take a look.” The soldier’s voice broke the heavy silence. Governor Jacob took the leaflet, gave it a quick glance, and his widened eyes and alarmed expression immediately betrayed his thoughts. After a moment, Jacob came back to his senses and spoke bitterly, “The enemy has begun to entice and threaten us. They’ve listed prices openly now. Ordinary soldiers who surrender before fighting begins will each be rewarded with one guilder. Officers who surrender with their units will receive additional rewards. Platoons get a 20 percent bonus, companies 30 percent, and battalions 40 percent. The extra reward is to be distributed at the officer’s discretion. Personal property will be safeguarded. All surrendered troops will be treated as prisoners of war in accordance with established protocols. If you resist stubbornly, no prisoners will be accepted once combat begins. There is only one chance—either live or die.” There was no doubt that this leaflet was designed to crush the last vestiges of morale in the French army and force them to surrender. No one wants to die, and Europe does not encourage pointless last stands. If there were still any chance of victory, Jacob might be able to rally his troops for one last fight. But now they were trapped in an isolated city, with no reinforcements and no hope in sight. To ask his men to keep fighting would be futile. Hearing the bad news, everyone in the command center wore mixed expressions, though most quickly composed themselves as if nothing had happened. Major General Aristide, visibly anxious, suggested, “Governor, we must immediately order all leaflets confiscated. If this spreads, we’ll be in an extremely vulnerable position.” There was nothing they could do. Everyone present could be certain that even if war broke out, the Austrian army would still take in prisoners. Otherwise, they would be forcing people to fight to the death. But the ordinary soldiers wouldn’t see it that way. By this point in the war, defeatist sentiment had already spread through the French army. Many no longer wanted to fight in a war that offered no hope. According to continental European tradition, noblemen who surrendered would be treated well, but ordinary soldiers were a different story. Hard labor and starvation were common, and in the worst cases, they might even be executed. Even if the Austrians eventually accepted prisoners, would anyone expect mercy after provoking the enemy? Killing didn’t always require a blade. Forcing someone into endless hard labor could be just as deadly. French morale was already low, and now Austrian leaflets might just be the final straw. The outcome was all but decided. Surrender was inevitable. Rather than throwing their lives away, why not give up early and collect a reward? Wasn’t that the smarter choice? Jacob shook his head and said, “It’s too late. We’ve already received the leaflets, and the soldiers outside got them even earlier. By now, the news has surely spread. Trying to confiscate the flyers now would only make things worse. The enemy’s promises are highly deceptive. We may not be fooled, but that doesn’t mean the rank and file won’t be. Our priority now is to stabilize morale.” Even as Jacob said “deceptive” and “fooled,” he didn’t believe it himself. The Austrians had indeed offered rewards, but they weren’t offering a fortune. All things considered, the French army in Egypt was only around 400,000 to 500,000 strong. Even if they all surrendered, the total bribe would barely be a couple million guilders. That wasn’t nearly enough to make the Austrians go back on their word. Besides, taking in prisoners isn’t free. Worst case, the Austrians could simply fold the costs into future ransom negotiations. In the end, the French government would have to pay the bill.
*** https://postimg.cc/gallery/PwXsBkC (Maps of the current territories of the countries in this novel made by ScH) Support the translation and read more chapters at https://ko-fi.com/dragonlegion
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Thanks for the chap!
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