Chapter 181

The Fifth Knight, Moltke, is not known for his physical prowess.

Its dedicated aircraft is developed more like a front-line command center and heavy firepower delivery platform.

It has relatively low requirements for physical fitness, but extremely high requirements for mental agility, command experience, quick adaptability, battlefield control ability, and the intuition to operate Knightmare.

In the Development Department of Vera, which is directly under the European Britannia, the iterative Knight of V will be equipped with specialized intelligence analysis devices, cutting-edge communication equipment, and sophisticated anti-jamming and eavesdropping electronic devices. It will be a heavily armored type, with thick armor protection. In addition, prototype [FLOAT SYSTEM], [Blaze Luminous], [Multi-function Folding Shield], [High-Power Hadron Cannon], and [Hive Missile System] have also been crammed on by Vera.

The Rohn, Eighth Knight was far away in District 11 on a conscription mission, naturally also had new opportunities.

However, compared to the meticulous craftsmanship and cost-free technological upgrades of Mao Qiqing's new vehicle, the design of Luo Enqing's new vehicle appears much more 'ordinary'.

The former is more in line with Vera's style and is also paving the way for Vera's custom Knightmare machine design.

This was also requested by Lord Ron himself. His combat style in piloting the Knightmare emphasizes agility and ferocity, and the new vehicle is considered to be above average among the Imperial Knights of the Round's iterative models.

Vera solemnly said, "Mo Qiqing, are you ready to wield my gleaming blade?"

"I will use it correctly."

Lord Moltke simply crossed his arm across his heart, saying, "I will not fail you."

His tone conveyed a calm, resilient confidence.

Since his princess, his lord, and his second most loyal subject want to fight, then so be it. He will do everything in his power and even die for his cause.

Upon hearing this, Vera nodded and smiled.

"In the name of iron and blood, the Britannia cavalry will surely trample across all of Europe."

"The Brandenburg Eagle will surely tear open the throat of that vain Gallic rooster."

Vera didn't say much, tilted her head, gave a friendly look, and then walked to the next person to be tested.

Watching the Third Princess walk past him with her dignified and imposing figure, Moltke lowered his arm in greeting, a hint of relief flashing in his eyes, and a rare smile appearing on his face.

It was an undisguised, heartfelt smile, radiating the most genuine pride and joy from the inside out.

Unexpectedly, His Emperor Charles actually assigned both him and Ron to serve under the Third Princess...

Although he and Ron were originally Princess Vera's private military instructors at the Gemini Palace, they were, in a sense, staunch supporters of the "Third Princess faction" who had watched the Hohenzollern family and the princess of the Britannia royal family grow up.

It's important to know that the Knights of the Round were historically under the direct control of the Emperor.

There were times when they were stationed and subordinate to a certain prince, a certain governor, or a certain army commander, but these were mostly temporary assignments.

Even in border areas, war zones, and colonies where there is a need for long-term deployments, rotation is required.

This is an unspoken rule that existed before the Blood Emblem Rebellion in the Imperial Calendar 1998.

Logically, Ron, who was stationed in European Britannia for the past two years, should have returned home this year.

Interestingly, not only was he sent here by the emperor, but Ron was not rotated or transferred away either...

However, it does make sense.

The Knights of the Round are not currently at full strength.

Unable to launch a global offensive from Britannia, they are expanding their operations while also rotating players.

After all, the effects of the Blood Emblem Rebellion are still being felt.

On one point alone, the Knights of the Round in the year 1998 of the Chinese calendar were at full strength.

Six Knights of the Round, including the First Knight of the previous generation, were killed in the rebellion, and three Knights of the Round were executed in the subsequent purge for remaining neutral.

At this point, the Knights of the Round were facing a generational gap.

Lord Bismarck, then the Fifth Knight, was promoted to First Knight for his meritorious service in defending the city gates and protecting the king, while another Knights of the Round Table, Lord Bertolix Franks sided with Charles, was promoted to Second Knight.

As for the Sixth Knight, Marianne, who made the most outstanding contributions during the rebellion.

Because she killed the previous First Knight to protect the Emperor, she was valued by Charles, married in a grand ceremony, and regained the title of Sixth Knight, becoming a royal consort.

Unprecedented, only two Knights of the Round remain!

Fortunately, because of the presence of the Third Princess, Vera, the new Junkers of America, led by the Hohenzollern family, took a firm stand and really went all out to protect Emperor Charles through the crisis. As a result, Vera's maternal grandfather, the former Duke of Hohenzollern, was injured.

Moltke and Ron impressed Emperor Charles with their outstanding performance in the rebellion, and were thus appointed as the Fifth and Eighth Knights, respectively.

Like Lord Bismarck, they were among the most senior Knights of the Round in their time.

His Majesty Charles's decision to send them both to Europe was most likely a convenient move.

Since he and Ron are well-known throughout the empire as staunch supporters of the Third Princess, it would be better to promote them as a reward for Princess Vera's military achievements over the past few years.

Jpg, around the time of the Chinese calendar 2010.

But what if His Majesty approves Princess Vera's application to appoint a third Knights of the Round?

Mao Qi seemed to be deep in thought.

A review of the wars instigated by the Third Princess in recent years.

The Imperial Calendar states that the Finnish War began in 2014.

Successfully captured the Karelian Isthmus, seized Vyborg, annexed Petsamo and Sara, protected the ice-free Murmansk in the far north, threatened Helsinki, and killed tens of thousands of Finnish Iron Army and EU elite mountain troops.

The Crimean War was launched in 2015 according to the imperial calendar.

They successfully seized the Crimean Peninsula, broke through the Dnieper River defense line, and occupied and consolidated the important bridgehead town of Kherson on the west bank of the river.

The successful cross-Black Sea raid on Istanbul resulted in the occupation of all Ottoman Turkey in Europe, as well as a portion of the Anatolian peninsula bordering the Black Sea straits, effectively blockading the Black Sea.

By renaming Istanbul back to Constantinople and changing the crescent moon symbol atop Hagia Sophia to a Greek cross, he aimed to win the favor of Greece, Bulgaria, and Romania, thus opening up the Balkan war zone.

In the year 2016 of the Chinese calendar, a full-scale military operation was launched against Ukraine, the most crucial thorn in the side of the European Republic Alliance's eastward expansion into Eastern Europe.

They broke through the EU's long-established border defenses and invaded the Uzbekistan-China region using innovative tactics, iterative communication systems, and reconnaissance capabilities.

Taking advantage of the EU army's communication chaos and the most vulnerable moment when its forces were frequently mobilized, the EU launched a swift offensive, capturing the two eastern provinces of Ukraine and occupying half of southern Ukraine. Several battles were fought in the fortress city of Kharkiv, resulting in hundreds of thousands of casualties among the EU army.

Encirclement and suppression of reinforcements, deep penetration, and pincer attacks were employed in Kursk, Sumy, Poltava, Poltava, Zaporizhzhia Berdyansk, and other locations, launching large-scale campaigns far exceeding the scale of the District 11 counterinsurgency war, further transforming this fertile black soil into hell.

In the year 2017 of the Chinese calendar, after the snow and muddy period between winter and spring, the war in Ukraine continued.

After various attempts at counter-offensives and counter-offensives failed, and the EU forces suffered heavy losses, they officially finalized the strategy of "no matter how many routes you come from, I will only go one way." The breakthrough point was chosen to be Narva, a city in northeastern Estonia, which is only a little over 100 kilometers away from Saint Petersburg.

Kamikaze Special Attack were recreated in Europe during this Narva Offensive.

The EU military formed the WZERO Unit by recruiting refugees from District 11 in Europe, specifically to support elite forces.

With no way out, they launched a surprise airship landing in the dense forest, employing a suicide bombing tactic. This caught the Order of Saint Raphael Knights, one of the four major knightly orders stationed in the war zone, completely off guard, resulting in the loss of several ace pilot squadrons and heavy losses.

At that time, several months had passed since the assassination attempt on Governor Clovis of District 11 by terrorists calling themselves "ZERO" and the so-called Black Knights during the Shinjuku Incident, and the mourning ceremony in the Imperial Capital Pendragon was about to begin.

The Rohn, Eighth Knight, has returned to his homeland to report for duty, but he has not yet taken up his post. Princess Vera has also left Saint Petersburg and gone to live in her palace in Murmansk, preparing to return home via the Arctic route.

The EU army timed this perfectly...

As his thoughts raced, Moltke narrowed his eyes, which were as cold as steel.

And this WZERO Unit.

To avoid public outrage due to excessive casualties and to reduce the actual need for casualties among the United European Army, will they conscript refugees from District 11, who are not counted as national war casualties, to fill the gaps?

They've fallen, you Frenchmen.

It appears that EU soldiers are war-weary, their morale is low, and they are showing signs of fatigue.

If the offensive is maintained, even without Princess Vera's diligent internal training: driving technological breakthroughs and industrial upgrading in European Britannia, continuously reducing battlefield casualties, and increasing the retention rate of veterans in the army...

It should be no problem to break through their Eastern Europe defenses and get their horses to drink from the Elbe River before the end of the year 2018 in the lunar calendar.

With the glory of conquering the EU, reclaiming the honor of lost territories, and crushing the power of France, the Third Princess will surely ascend the throne!

Thinking of this, Moltke's eyes gradually became more and more fervent as he looked at Vera's tall figure.

That is the kind of unparalleled achievement that every soldier longs to make!

Unsure of what her teacher Moltke was thinking, Vera smiled calmly, only feeling the gaze on her face, and looked at the Grand Master of the Order of Saint Michael.

With black hair, blue eyes, a robust build, and a face as resolute as a rock, he undoubtedly proved to be a knight who had conquered battlefields.

Vera stood with her hands behind her back, glanced around, and said succinctly, "Lord Manfredi, time is short and the task is heavy. I'm transferring you from Constantinople to the Narva front to assist Lord Farnese, and I require you to immediately join the counter-offensive. Do you have any objections?"

Farnes was the Grand Master of the severely damaged Order of Saint Raphael Knights, and also Fred's close friend.

"With pleasure, Your Highness."

With a hearty laugh, Manfredi stood at attention, pounded his chest, and bowed respectfully, saying, "Where your sword points, our hearts follow."

Vera nodded. "Very good."

She then turned to look at Shin Hyuga Shingo had been waiting for a long time.

"Lord Shangering, how much do you know about Bushido and 'Kamikaze'?"

Lowering his gaze, Xia Yingge respectfully raised his hand to his chest in a salute. "I've heard a little about it. The so-called Bushido is to eat the king's food, be loyal to the king's cause, and bear the king's worries. Kamikaze is the legendary storm that saved Japan from the District 11 people's legend when they were fighting against the horse-riding peoples who swept across the entire Eurasian continent."

"In that case, I can confidently entrust that task to you."

Vera seemed satisfied with Xia Yingge's answer and said, "Did you know about the Eleven Task Force beforehand?"

"Yes."

After responding, Xia Yingge bowed and listened attentively.

"Suzaku Kururugi, the son of the Prime Minister of the fallen District 11, is on the first list of three thousand people. I want you to monitor him, guide him, and train him to become an Eastern samurai belonging to Britannia, like Lord Shangering. You and he will be tasked with shaking and annihilating the EU army's WZERO Unit. One objective: a month from now, I hope the rumors of the so-called 'Hannibal's Spectre' will disappear."

Hannibal, the Carthaginian general who attacked the ancient Roman Empire. European Britannia, eager to claim itself as the successor to Rome, saw this sudden attack on the capital, Saint Petersburg, as akin to the Hannibal's Wraith.

"Yes, Your Highness."

Xia Yingge simply accepted the order.

"Hmm. You may leave."

Vera waved her hand, turned and left the red carpet, walking straight towards the car parked at the edge of the tarmac. The Fifth Knight, Moltke, and Manfredi followed behind.

"Your Highness, who is the third Knights of the Round who is about to arrive?"

"It's my classmate from the officer training school with Cornelia, the Ninth Knight Nonette Eliya Graham ... North, Central, and South, three army groups, three Knights of the Round, just right..."

The sound gradually fades into the distance.

Shin Hyuga Shingo kept his head bowed respectfully until Vera's large entourage of military officers had passed by and his adjutant's call rang in his ears. Only then did he raise his head to conceal his emotions, his brows furrowed as he gazed at the southwest sky above Saint Petersburg.

"Hannibal's Wraith..."

The others, well, all pay homage to history. There's also the setting of Britannia occupying Istanbul; this is the official setting, but the specific time isn't mentioned. Anyway, in the Imperial Calendar of 2010, they definitely didn't occupy the District 11 before that, which is a reasonable deduction.

I explained the butterfly effect of Vera's birth. Moltke and Ron are not in the original book, and the sequence I chose is the empty seat in the Knights of the Round from the original book.

Damn it, I don't know why, but inspiration only comes after midnight...

177

Chapter 177 All hail Vera!

Britannia Royal Calendar 2017 / France Revolutionary Calendar 228.

Eastern Europe front.

In June, the EU forces' raid on Saint Petersburg failed, and the Narva - Tallinn theater of Narva Operation in Estonia ended.

This was originally a temperate primeval forest zone that should have been lush, green, and rich in water and grass.

Falcons soar high in the sky, overlooking the ravaged land.

To the west lies a vast wilderness dotted with rivers and lakes, with scattered buildings dotting the cement country roads. Burned-down shops and roofless houses have been reduced to ruins.

In the lake and wetlands, there are destroyed tanks and armored vehicles, as well as the wreckage of damaged Knightmare armored cavalry. Judging from the head outlines, there are Britannian Army's "Sunderland" and EU Army's "Alexander".

The trenches stretch for several kilometers from north to south, cutting through the burned forest. Anti-tank trenches, dragon tooth cones, and other military obstacles crisscross the area and are densely distributed at the intersection of the main and branch roads between the rivers and lakes. People, like ants, fill the trenches in twos and threes, some moving and some still.

On the battlefield, dark blue flags fluttered.

Against a blue background, a pair of wings resembling a white dove or a rooster spread out in the center, with twelve symmetrically flapping feathers, and the stylized capital letters "EU" embedded on top. This is the flag of the European Republic Alliance.

Buzz... Buzz...