Chapter 79 Running Locomotive
Chapter 79 Running Locomotive
Outside the Lieden Ost railway station.
The artillery regiment that was preparing to support the front-line library battlefield received an order to change direction and surround the train station. Twenty-four heavy artillery pieces spewed flames, and the waiting hall in sight was completely reduced to ruins. A shell drew a striking arc in the air and then disappeared at the end of the arc, accurately blasting off a section of the railroad track.
Inside the train station, the four members of the action team came to the front of the armored train. Grey Knight Rayman put the porcupine down. The tall young man was dying at this moment. His arm was cut off at the root, and a broken tough knife remained in the gap between his ribs. His back was covered in blood and flesh, and the corpses of several flies could be vaguely seen.
"We don't need the rear carriages anymore, let's just drive the front car out."
Grey Knight Leiman stood up and walked to the rear, holding a tough knife that he had seized. White light spread across the blade, and with one slash, the iron hook connecting the front of the train and the carriage broke.
The howling gale caused by the explosion blew against the outer wall. The Grey Knight moved back and forth skillfully. As white smoke rose, the clanging sound became more and more intense. The front of the car moved quickly, and because there was no carriage to drag it down, the speed increased significantly.
Rounds of artillery fire bombarded the train station.
When the front of the train drove out, there was a loud bang and it almost overturned. The rails were incomplete. If it was a whole train, this would be enough to cause a rollover accident.
Tommy looked out the window. The sense of crisis reported by the Wildebeest Riders was gradually subsiding. They were gradually moving away from the city of Leden, but the situation was still not foolproof.
"This direction is behind the Prussian front. If the enemy wants to stop us and blow up a large section of the railway tracks, we will be completely isolated and helpless."
Grey Knight Lehman finished his work and sat back on the ground. "The railroad is our lifeline. The Prussians will not give up easily until Leden is completely lost."
Jiang He lowered his eyes and said nothing. The other party was too sure. Two single-color knights going deep behind enemy lines was equivalent to causing destruction at random locations. The Prussian high-ranking officials might be able to tolerate this, but the decapitation tactic was definitely the first thing to prevent.
But if the Grey Knight wanted to lead the team to be annihilated, it would be a bit redundant at this moment. After all, just now was the best opportunity. Whether it was to kill by force or to choose to capture, Grey Knight Leiman could play a decisive role.
The armored train was traveling at high speed, and when it passed the checkpoints along the way, the soldiers stationed there would often fire several rounds of volleys after firing warning shots. However, ordinary bullets had no deterrent effect on the armored walls.
The breath of the porcupine on the floor was getting weaker and weaker. With his strength, it was no problem for him to fight against or suppress an elite knight, but encountering the situation before was extremely dangerous.
Jiang He pondered for a while, took out three alchemical vitality potions from his pocket, and poured them all into the porcupine's mouth.
Tommy was amazed at his comrades' generosity. One alchemical potion was worth 10 D-level military merits, which roughly translated to the lives of 30 Prussian soldiers. The Quartermaster Department only sold these alchemical products and did not buy them back. The exchange amount had not changed since the war began.
The vitality potion was like blood, pouring into the porcupine's dying body. The wounds began to heal slowly, the infected and blackened rotten flesh fell off on its own, and its breath became stable.
A quarter of an hour later, the porcupine's eyes lit up again, and he said hoarsely, "I'm sorry, I thought you were a deserter before."
Jiang He said calmly: "I did run away."
The porcupine said without any embarrassment: "There must be a compelling reason."
"Drink some wine and rinse your mouth first." Tommy took out a flat aluminum hip flask from the bullet bag on his waist.
Porcupine took it with a trembling hand and said seriously: "You are definitely a brave warrior to be able to fight side by side with Mr. Red Knight."
Tommy's mouth twitched. In fact, he and Rhine ran together. Facing them were many knights and infantry divisions led by Chongjian. There was no hope for their own four or five hundred people to hold on. The headquarters ordered them to fight until dawn, which was completely deceiving them to die. The only thing to be thankful for was that no one held accountable afterwards.
After a while, the porcupine managed to cheer up.
Jiang He said, "Your thorns can be used as alchemical materials. Pull out some and give me some."
"No problem." Porcupine nodded and immediately began to pull out the quills on his body. He has always been one of the material suppliers of the camp's quartermaster department. The quills are the main material for alchemical bullets such as fragmentation bullets, armor-piercing bullets, and sharp bullets. Gray Knight Rayman said: "The first step of our mission has failed. Next, we have to find a chance to return to Leden City after being behind enemy lines."
Jiang He said bluntly: "From the beginning, you came here for the train station, so it was within your expectations to get on this train."
Grey Knight Rayman was silent.
Tommy said, "If you don't want to hold the line, we'll have to go our separate ways."
The porcupine looked left and right, then looked again, and finally closed his eyes and pretended to be dizzy.
Grey Knight Lehman sighed, took out a map from his jacket pocket, and said, "The city of Lieden is the largest logistics hub before the Prussian Somme Front, and there are a large number of private training camps in the rear."
"The largest of them has more than 10,000 people, all of them are Prussian youths, relying on a gunpowder depot. Most of them have only been handling guns for a few weeks and their combat effectiveness is weak."
"My goal is to destroy the powder magazine and earn a lot of military merit in one fell swoop."
"As for the plan for the Sword of the Reverse Tree, an ancient, even if he is one of the best knights ever, cannot withstand fighter planes and artillery. I have decided to take the lead myself."
Porcupine opened his eyes and said with difficulty: "Should we kill those new soldiers?"
Grey Knight Rayman nodded: "I don't have any psychological burden. They are soldiers when they pick up guns. They will kill our soldiers on the battlefield. If it weren't for my limited ability, I would even plan to operate behind enemy lines."
Tommy asked, "How are the military merits divided?"
Gray Knight Leiman said solemnly, "Red Knight and I will each take 40%, and you two will share 20%."
Jiang He did not express his opinion. He still had doubts in his heart. The real problem was that the action team had not encountered any effective resistance so far, and the Grey Knights were avoiding the important issues.
Of course, he didn't refuse a big military reward.
Two hours later, the car drove out of the city of Lieden and entered the plain. Looking out the window, the Prussian trench line in the distance was spread out on the ground, scattering waves of bullets and reaping the lives of the British charging soldiers. Even now, the warring parties still have a mysterious "love" for trenches and death charges.
The foursome jumped off the bus midway.
Porcupine regained most of his mobility, but the vitality potion was not enough to restore his lost arm.
"Mr. Red Knight, I have heard before that only the best warriors in your team can serve as your assistant. Please allow me to take over this honor."
Tommy's face turned pale when he heard this. In his opinion, compared with the serious injury at the train station before, this was the real approach of death.
Jiang He said seriously, "Then you are Charles XVI now."
The porcupine nodded heavily, a sign of recognition.
The sun sets and the sky darkens.
Grey Knight Rayman led the team forward. After a long journey, they climbed the mountain and arrived at an abandoned village. At the foot of the mountain was the target's gunpowder depot and training camp.
(End of this chapter)