Chapter 702
As night fell, Lieutenant General Nicholas, along with his routed troops, finally reached Rethel.
To be precise, he wasn't fleeing—he was retreating while blowing up bridges, tearing up roads, setting obstacles, and placing scattered units in ambush along forest lines and hills.
Upon arriving at Rethel, the first person he sought out was Major General Hector, commander of the 73rd Infantry Division stationed there.
"We have to prepare ourselves," Nicholas said tensely. "Charles's troops are most likely heading here!"
Nicholas looked quite disheveled—dust covering his uniform, a blood-stained bandage wrapped around his forehead from a grazing wound sustained during the fighting at the Meuse River.
Major General Hector looked at him with a puzzled expression. "General, I heard you've been laying down obstacles all the way here."
"Yes, of course I have," Nicholas replied, eyes wild with urgency.
"But don't think that will stop him."
"If you believe that, you're making a huge mistake, General."
"Do you know how many troops I had at the Meuse? Three infantry divisions and one artillery division—over seventy thousand men. And he still shattered us like glass!"
Hector didn't reply. He just gave Nicholas a look of silent resignation.
Another general driven mad by Charles…
This seemed to be a common trait among Charles's defeated opponents—they would completely lose confidence in themselves and begin to see Charles as some kind of omnipotent god.
"Relax, General," Hector said calmly. "Charles commands an armored corps. His forces rely heavily on roads. There's only one major road from Mézières to Rethel, and it passes through forests and hills. I believe—"
"I believed that too at the Meuse!" Nicholas snapped, cutting him off. "Start taking action, General. We should build a new defensive line in the opposite direction!"
"Yes, sir," Hector replied, straightening.
But inwardly, he scoffed.
If Charles really reaches here, we shouldn't be building reverse-facing defenses—we should be planning our retreat. By then, our supply lines will be cut to pieces.
It was obvious to Hector now—Nicholas was no longer suited to command.
Just then, a staff officer walked over and handed Hector a telegram.
He glanced at it—and then broke into a laugh.
Handing the message to Nicholas, he said, "You don't need to worry, General. Charles hasn't attacked Rethel. His forces are advancing along the Meuse. They've already captured Buzancy."
"Buzancy?" Nicholas froze. He rushed to the map on the desk and found the location.
His face went pale, and he collapsed into a chair.
"Oh God… His target isn't Rethel. It's Verdun. We're finished!"
…
Charles personally led the bulk of the First Armored Division along the Meuse in a thrust toward Verdun.
One of the advantages of following the river was that it was impossible to get lost. They could also seize bridges along the way, cutting off reinforcements from the east bank.
More importantly, the Meuse could serve as an excellent supply route.
At midday, Colonel Estigny's mechanized regiment arrived in Mézières. Charles ordered him to rest there, organize militia forces, and oversee the riverine transport of supplies.
It wasn't difficult. All they had to do was gather the available boats into convoys and sail them upriver under the cover of night.
The German forces on the east bank were in disarray—blocking the river hadn't even occurred to them.
Meanwhile, Tijani led the main mechanized division to take Buzancy.
The city was practically deserted. Only a single German infantry battalion remained, along with a field hospital and a number of wounded soldiers withdrawn from the front.
Tijani's men captured them with ease and seized a modest supply of medicine.
Not a large supply—because the Germans were already experiencing severe shortages. Their medical stockpiles were nearly depleted.
(Above: Buzancy's location)
Buzancy was ideally located between Mézières and Verdun and near both rivers. The furthest bridge was only a little over 30 kilometers away.
Tijani's strategy was to use Buzancy as a base and take advantage of the mobility of mechanized troops. With air support from fighters and bombers, they would remotely blockade bridges on either side and protect the supply line.
Meanwhile, the First Armored Division didn't rest through the night. Charles allowed only a one-hour break before pushing onward to Verdun.
He told Browning:
"Do you know what slowing down means? It means we'll meet more Germans—ones that may have already built up proper defenses. And breaking through those will cost us blood."
"So the choice before us is this: face exhaustion… or face death."
Browning, a veteran of Charles's previous deep thrusts, understood this well. He roared to his men:
"Move! Or we die!"
"The Germans' rifles are pointed south—their backs are to us!"
"If we're fast enough, they won't have time to react. Victory is waiting for us up ahead!"
…
For the tank crews, marching and fighting continuously for a day was no small task.
Even though the First Armored Division was well-prepared, with every tank having a backup driver, both men were nearly worn to the bone.
Charles once saw a driver who couldn't even feed himself—his hands were shaking too much to hold the bread.
But somehow, the moment he climbed back into the tank and took hold of the controls, his strength returned.
In the end, their suffering proved worthwhile. The First Armored Division encountered virtually no organized resistance.
German reinforcements tried again and again to form defensive lines—but before they could entrench and stabilize, Charles's armor swept them away.
It was a flaw in German tactics.
At a time like this, they should not have been following textbook procedures—digging trenches, setting up tank traps, stringing barbed wire.
Such defenses only worked when they were continuous and complete. If even one gap existed, an armored division would simply punch through it.
Those works required days to construct.
And Charles only needed two days to reach Verdun.
With overnight marches, it might take as little as a day and a half.
The correct response from the Germans should've been to pre-place large minefields—infantry mines or anti-tank mines.
(Note: Even infantry mines can disable tanks by blowing off their tracks.)
Of course, Charles wasn't about to give them such advice.
(End of Chapter 702)
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