To repel foreign foes, first secure peace within

"Bang!"

A sharp gunshot split the night sky, followed by a hail of gunfire from all around.

A grenade was thrown into a tent, and in an instant, a violent explosion tore it apart.

Yet no screams came. Before long, the gunfire gradually subsided, and a group emerged from the dense woods, heading toward the tents that had been riddled with bullets.

Footsteps echoed in the silent night.

They flung aside a tent flap, only to find no one inside.

Even the soldiers who had just changed shifts had vanished.

"This is bad. It's an ambush."

The men sent to investigate instantly realized something was wrong. Just as they were about to warn their teammates guarding the perimeter, the mound of earth beneath their feet suddenly bulged unnaturally.

"Boom!"

The exploding mine hurled the surrounding soil and the men's bodies high into the air. The unlucky man who had stepped on it broke into several pieces as he flew.

"Retreat!"

Those on the perimeter saw the flash of the explosion and realized something was wrong as well. They wanted to retreat, but it was already too late.

A masked member of the Stormtroopers had already crept up behind them.

The punch dagger in his hand stabbed viciously into an attacker's back.

"Shhk."

The sound of a blade piercing flesh rang out. The man was killed without even making a sound.

The punch dagger slowly slid out of the man's body, and the Stormtrooper looked toward another attacker, who was so frightened that he had dropped his gun.

He strode toward the man, his punch dagger hanging down, a drop of crimson blood falling from its tip to the ground.

"Don't."

Soon, another sound of a throat being pierced came from the dense woods. Time passed, and a few scattered gunshots rang out among the trees before gradually falling silent.

"Clip-clop."

Hoofbeats sounded from within, with gunshots ringing out from time to time. Each shot also marked the passing of a living person.

Eitel sat in a clearing in the woods, where the campfire on the ground had long since gone out.

Looking at the black bread in his hand, hard enough to bludgeon someone to death, Eitel let out a long sigh.

Manstein looked at Eitel and the bread, seeming to want to speak but holding back. They had known that civilian life at home was difficult, but they had never expected it to be this difficult.

"Manstein, do you think this war was a mistake?"

Eitel's calm tone left Manstein frozen in place.

"Well, Your Majesty, I don't know."

Manstein struggled for a while before finally managing those words. Eitel closed his eyes.

"War is evil, but the reason we face these problems is that we haven't won this war."

His Majesty Eitel's words flowed into Manstein's heart like a stream.

If they could win the war, would things be different?

"Reporting to Your Majesty, all the attackers on the perimeter have been shot dead. Only a few ringleaders remain, whom we captured alive."

Rommel emerged from the dense woods to one side. Behind him, several shabbily dressed men followed with their hands raised and guns trained on them.

"These prisoners have all been disarmed."

Rommel saluted Eitel before speaking. Hearing his words, Eitel nodded.

"Lower your guns."

"But Your Majesty, these thugs must be kept under control before-"

"They are not thugs. They are my subjects!"

Before Rommel could finish, His Majesty Eitel cut him off. A trace of anger in Eitel's words made Rommel's heart jolt.

At His Majesty Eitel's command, the Stormtroopers aiming at the men immediately lowered their guns, though their eyes remained fixed on the attackers.

They looked ready to shoot them dead at any moment.

After watching the Stormtroopers lower their guns, Eitel stood and walked up to the young man at the head of the group, chuckling.

"That's a fine French salute."

At Eitel's words, the young man leading them glared at him hatefully.

"Stop pretending, you emperor."

The young man spat hard as he spoke, but Eitel, who had been prepared, dodged it.

Seeing this, a Stormtrooper kicked the young man to the ground.

"Don't be so violent." After waving the soldier back, Eitel crouched down and looked at the defiant young man.

"Let me guess. You're probably not with the Social Democratic Party. This seems more like the Spartacus League's style."

"Only your guns aren't fast enough, or ruthless enough."

At this, Eitel looked at him with interest. "Don't worry. I'm not your enemy."

"Tell me, what's your name?"

Eitel's question received no answer from the young man. He merely turned his head aside, refusing to respond no matter what Eitel said.

Seeing this, Eitel gradually lost interest as well. He stood up and summoned Rommel and Manstein.

"Thank you for your efforts tonight. Go get some proper rest. I'll leave these men to you."

"Give them something to eat, and prepare some clothes for them as well."

With that, Eitel headed toward another camp in the woods. This was another countermeasure Rommel had devised.

The field cavalry regiment following behind them had set up another camp in a concealed location, while Eitel, Manstein, and the others set up a camp farther ahead.

Once their camp was ready, they quietly moved to the concealed one, leaving only a few soldiers changing shifts at the original camp to make it look as though everyone was resting there.

As things stood, the plan had been very successful. At the very least, it had allowed them to take down these attackers without shedding any blood of their own.

Only after His Majesty Eitel had disappeared from their sight did Rommel move.

Rommel then took a ration from his field bag, crouched down, and placed it in front of the young man.

"His Majesty the Emperor is different from those people."

"Please believe me. Only His Majesty the Emperor can lead us out of the quagmire of war."

With that, Rommel stood up and headed toward the camp with Manstein.

The night deepened. Only after a long time did the young man pick up the field ration from the ground, a complicated expression on his face.

It was dry and hard to swallow, but it was far better than the "stones" they had been gnawing on before.

The next day.

Eitel put on his uniform and stepped out of his tent. The soldiers around him were all up already, packing up everything in the camp.

Rommel approached His Majesty Eitel, leading a black warhorse.

Once Rommel reached him, Eitel swung a leg up and mounted the horse.

"How are those men doing?"

Eitel asked casually. Rommel raised a hand, and the men behind him, awkwardly dressed in German uniforms, shuffled over.

At the sight of them, Eitel immediately laughed.

"You actually look quite handsome in uniform. Really."

The young man from the previous night took two steps forward.

"I know you were only forced to take the throne, but the German Empire no longer needs an emperor."

"The future belongs to the workers. Believing in the Bolsheviks is the German Empire's only path."

Eitel chuckled as he listened to the young man's words.

"Who gave you that courage?"

"The October Revolution in Tsarist Russia?"