The thunder of artillery erupted. The French forces that had just arrived at the front were immediately taught a lesson by the Anti-French Alliance's guns.
A shell falling from the sky landed less than a hundred meters from the French frontline headquarters. A spray of shrapnel swept away three officers who had come for the meeting.
Among them was Major General Anduin Uruen, commander of the French Ninth Division. Since the outbreak of the war, he was the highest-ranking French officer to be killed in action.
Upon receiving this terrible news, General Oudinot, who had successfully seized the position of frontline commander, wore a frighteningly grim expression.
"Colonel Rick, send men to scout the enemy's artillery deployment again. We must find out why their shells can reach this place."
Oudinot was also a seasoned battlefield veteran. The choice of headquarters location had been carefully considered; there was no way they would deliberately place it beneath the enemy's guns and wait to die.
Whether it had been an accident or something else, they had to move again. Otherwise, if an enemy shell landed while they were meeting, the French command system would be finished.
Colonel Rick answered with certainty, "General, there's no need to scout again. I personally verified the previous reconnaissance results. The enemy could not possibly have made large-scale adjustments in such a short time.
"Judging from the sound and the shell's power, this isn't army field artillery.
"The Rhine River is not far from here. The enemy must have turned their navy into mobile gun platforms."
The Rhine River carried a considerable flow, enough for small warships to navigate. And the navies of Belgium and the German Confederation happened to be miniature versions.
They were powerless against the French navy and could only tremble inside their harbors. Now