Arc of Fire

Despite the early arrival of winter, which helped dissipate the muddy conditions, the Prosen Sixth Army Group was still short on ammunition on October 27.

That morning, the counterattack of the Sixteenth Army Group began.

Wang Zhong stood at the headquarters entrance, listening to the artillery fire coming from the west.

Because the artillery position was a bit far from the headquarters, the sound of the guns was deep, like a hammer wrapped in five cotton quilts smashing on the floorboards.

The north wind poured into Wang Zhong’s collar, making him shiver.

Yakov, seeing this, took off his scarf and handed it to Wang Zhong, "Commander, you wrap this around."

Wang Zhong, "No, no, I’m fine. I just need to button up my coat. It’s not that cold yet—I didn’t bring out my overcoat…"

As he spoke, he buttoned up his coat, which indeed warmed him considerably.

But Yakov didn’t take his scarf back, "If you fall ill, it will be a big problem, and my wife won’t let me off the hook. She’ll scold me for not taking good care of you."

Wang Zhong thought for a moment, then took the scarf and wrapped it around, "I’ll return it later. Did your wife make this for you?"

"Yes, we had just started dating, and she knitted it little by little under her mother’s guidance."

Wang Zhong touched the scarf, feeling the fine stitches with his fingers and smiled, "That’s nice. I’ve never received such a handmade gift from Ludmila."

"When the war is over, you surely will," Yakov said with a smile.

Wang Zhong nodded, then looked toward the west, quietly listening to the sound of gunfire.

At 0831 on October 27, after two hours of artillery preparation, on the outskirts of the Train Dispatch Yard.

With a cluster of whistle sounds, the soldiers of the Sixteenth Army Group, who had been lying concealed on the ground, all stood up.

They were wearing clothes that were a bit too thick for the current weather, and they strode forward.

The Antean battle flag fluttered at the front of the column, followed by the military chaplains of each squad.

The Church had issued an order not to let military chaplains lead the charge, but this order was not obeyed.

The enemy’s machine guns began to fire, which acted like a signal, causing the soldiers of the Sixteenth Army Group to start running.

The deafening battle cries overwhelmed the noise of the machine guns.

Yet the deadly sweep of machine gun fire still reaped the lives of the soldiers.

In just a few seconds, the first wave of Antean warriors suffered hundreds of casualties.

Then, the Prosen soldiers stopped firing to change their gun barrels.

The Antean soldiers rushed to the buildings, hurling hand grenades inside.

After a series of explosions, the Anteans, bayonets fixed, stormed through the blasted-open doors and over the shattered windows.

At the headquarters of the Sixteenth Army Group, corps commander Panfilov held the receiver, "Speak up! You’ve only taken half of the factory hall with a single charge? Why only half? I don’t want to hear your excuses, now drive the Prosens out of the Train Dispatch Yard completely!"

The person on the other end of the call shouted, "Impossible, the enemy has machine guns blocking all the roads, we can’t break through!"

Panfilov yelled, "Then push the cannon right up to the enemy’s bunker, and blast the hell out of them! Blast the hell out of them!"

"We’ve already placed the cannons where they can intercept enemy tank forces, should we move them?"

"No," Panfilov became frantic, "You blockhead, just pull one gun, knock out the enemy fire points one by one. Who told you to move the entire anti-tank artillery battalion? One gun, push it forward to hit those fire points directly, blast them out!"

At the Train Dispatch Yard, western factory.

Prosen machine guns on the second floor were continuously firing.

Judging from the sustained firing, there were likely two machine guns on the second floor, one shooting while the other changed barrels.

The Antean infantry in the factory could barely raise their heads due to the fire from these two machine guns, forcing them to crouch behind cover.

Then, over a dozen anti-tank gunners appeared, pushing a ZIS3 76mm anti-tank gun.

The machine gunners immediately spotted this highly threatening target, and bullets rained down on the cannon, instantly killing four gunners.

The gunner hiding behind the gun shield began to operate the cannon, aiming the barrel at the Prosen machine guns on the second floor. As he finely adjusted the aim, he pulled open the breech and looked out through the barrel, spotting the windows on the second floor—this shot was sure to hit!

"Load high-explosive shell!" shouted the captain from behind the shield.

The loader, who had been crouching behind the cannon with a shell in his arms, immediately excitedly loaded the shell into the breech.

The gun sergeant grasped the firing lanyard, shouted, "Ready!"

Another burst of machine gun fire came, and the gun sergeant was shot in the neck, blood spurting out three or four meters in a fine spray.

As the gun sergeant fell backward, the assistant gun sergeant grabbed the firing lanyard.

The assistant gun sergeant yanked the lanyard hard, and a blast from the cannon swept across the factory, picking up all the dust within a five-meter radius.

The shell directly hit the second-floor window and exploded.

One machine gun, along with its tripod, tumbled out, and through the smoke-filled hole, another machine gun could be faintly seen.

Infantrymen cheered as they rushed out of cover, sprinting across the railway toward the factory buildings.

Prosen soldiers also emerged from behind cover.

Prosen NCOs, firing MP40s, were then clubbed down with rifle butts.

Once it evolved into a melee, it was the area where the Anteans excelled—these men from the plains normally enjoyed wrestling and now forcefully threw the Prosens, along with their guns, to the ground, finishing them off with bayonets.

As the Prosens reached a certain threshold of panic, an "avalanche" occurred. It started with one man turning to flee, followed by the entire position, and finally, all the soldiers in the dispatch yard began to run. Discover more stories at

A Prosen officer drew his pistol and executed two "deserters," then saw a ferocious Antean soldier charging at him with a bayonet.

The officer also turned and ran, even faster than his troops.

By 2 PM on the 27th, the Sixth Army Group had full control of the train dispatch yard and the surrounding concrete buildings.

—

October 27 at 1741 hours, Abawahan Front Army Headquarters.

Wang Zhong, holding a handset, said, "Panfilov, remember, don’t bunch up your troops—three men per block is enough. If those three die, then send out another three."

On Earth in Steelgrad, the defending Russians were divided into small combat groups, each squatting in a city block. Their task wasn’t to block the Sturmtigers but to launch surprise attacks on their troops, causing as many casualties as possible.

As long as they depleted the enemy’s forces, the enemy couldn’t attack, and the mission to defend the city would be complete.

As for the outcomes of these combat groups, one could only say they were horrifying, as they essentially traded their lives for those of the enemy.

At this point, Wang Zhong could only copy the "successful experience" of the Earth’s Russians.

Sacrificing many was better than letting the city fall to the enemy.

The time had come to treat soldiers like dirt.

Over on the phone, Panfilov nodded, "Understood, our Army Group is perfect for the job—we have a high rate of submachine gun equipment, almost catching up to the Naval Infantry!"

Wang Zhong, "We’re relying on you. Remember, hold out as long as possible!"

"Yes!"

Wang Zhong hung up the phone and turned to Pavlov, "Any troops arriving today? What support can we provide to the Sixth Army Group?"

"Because the navigational capacity of the Valdai Hills River has been restored to pre-blockade levels," Pavlov picked up a map stick and gestured on the map, "ships are now delivering considerable forces every day."

Wang Zhong, "Good."

Pavlov then asked, "All to the front lines? Aren’t you keeping some troops for a counter-attack?"

Wang Zhong, "Let’s not consider that yet. When we have enough front-line troops that the Prosens can’t break through, then we’ll start gathering forces for a counter-attack."

Pavlov, "Understood."

After the Chief of Staff finished, he turned and busied himself again, leaving Wang Zhong alone sitting on a chair, looking at the map while eating edamame.

Wang Zhong also didn’t know where this Ceres chef had found the edamame, but it was quite tasty.

—

Prosen Sixth Army Group Headquarters.

The Army Group Chief of Staff, looking at the operational markers on the map, thundered, "Didn’t High Command’s information say that Rocossov is an Antean general who specializes in defense? Why has he started attacking? Look at how many offensives he’s launched this week?

"Just two large-scale attacks!"

General Frederick then slammed his pencil down on the map.

"Nonsense!"

General Frederick patted the Chief of Staff’s shoulder, "Look closely, the offensives by Rocossov are actually for defense. He hasn’t launched a massive attack on us, nor does he intend to encircle and annihilate us.

"They’re just localized attacks."

The general paused and continued, "But the fact that Rocossov can attack means he still has reserves, so I think our request to High Command for three more army corps is justified. We need these fresh forces to break into the city."

Chief of Staff, "I completed the telegram today, but there has been no reply yet—could it be..."

General Frederick, "Sending three army corps to us now will ensure we end the war! I’m sure High Command will understand this."

The Chief of Staff could only nod.

—

Within the Prosen Empire, Eagle’s Nest.

Emperor Reinhard slammed his hand on the table, "The Central Army Group has so many forces, and now they’re still asking me for reinforcement! What is the Army Group Reserve, eating their heads off?"

Celtic Marshal William spoke, "Your Highness personally ordered the reallocation of some Eastern Front troops to other lines, so that’s what they did. The immediate forces they can use are just a few divisions.

"And some forces are also being equipped with new tanks and need retraining. So the armored strength of the Central Army Group is currently far below that at the beginning of the year."

"Are you blaming me?" Reinhard challenged.

"No, of course not. I am just making a feasible suggestion, Your Highness," the marshal shrugged, "This is the situation now. The Central Army Group is asking for reinforcements, and the Sixth Army Group, currently attacking Abawahan, is also calling for reinforcements—three army corps at once."

The marshal did not continue but waited for the emperor to consider.

Emperor, "I need to think about this, don’t rush the decision. I need to think."

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