The final result was naturally just as Valikote had expected. Although the British and French allied forces now held an absolute advantage in numbers, having more men did not necessarily mean victory!
The situation on the Western Front once again fell into a stalemate. The British and French had superior numbers, while the Germans had stronger fighting power. The two sides remained evenly matched, and no victor could be decided in the short term.
To break this deadlock, Britain and France naturally turned their eyes elsewhere. Their first thought was to sweet-talk the Russians—if Russia was willing to exert itself, the Alliance definitely could not withstand a war on three fronts.
Unfortunately, the Tsarist government had only just gone through an internal struggle, and Nicholas II was busy cleaning up the aftermath. No matter how Britain and France tried to coax them, Russia could not possibly launch large-scale operations abroad before its internal conflict was resolved!
They then turned their gaze toward the southern front, only to find both sides fighting with blazing intensity. No winner could be determined there anytime soon either!
Valikote's sudden proposal naturally caught the attention of the British and French governments. After doing the sums, they realized that although the target was currently the Austro-Hungarian Empire, if Austria-Hungary was finished, could the Germans still hold on?
Thus, Valikote received an unexpected windfall. Britain and France decided to send another hundred thousand troops each to cooperate with him. To retain the initiative in the war, Valikote had no choice but to request aid from home once more.
"General Valikote is requesting reinforcements. What does the General Staff intend to do?" Ferdinand asked.
Acting Chief of the General Staff Klosov answered with complete confidence, "Your Majesty, we plan to draw eight infantry divisions and two heavy