In the early morning of the fourth day of the Federation's entry into the war, when Weiss followed the battalion commander, Major Boon-Salgott, to the regimental headquarters to confirm the patrol route for the day, he was informed that the scheduled patrol duty had been cancelled. The defense of the area will be handed over to the units of the 157th Reserve Division, and the Baston Student Regiment will be fully deployed north to carry out new missions in the border area.

"According to the latest available information, our 9th Corps and the 1st Provisional Wessex Brigade have recaptured the city of Lowndes from the Norman army. It is the closest city in Wessex to us, and the first Wessex city we have recaptured with the Wessex army. The Norman army's early offensive was ferocious, which caused the front to stretch too long, and now they have put the main force in the direction of the capital of Wessex, with only a few corps in the southeast of Wessex, and it is expected that our 3rd Army will be able to advance at a relatively fast pace, and will certainly contain a lot of Wessex troops along the way. As a front-line alert patrol force, the task of our regiment will be very heavy during this period of time, so everyone must be psychologically prepared! The regimental commander, Colonel Capes, gave his battalion officers a "vaccination" in a tone that was not arrogant or impatient.

"What about the Western Front?" Major Salgett asked. The Western Front refers to the Western Front of the Commonwealth, which for centuries has been a natural border between the Commonwealth and the Norman Empire. However, the two powers only had a direct border of less than 30 miles on Mona, which stretched for thousands of miles in the Monamolin Mountains, and from north to south were scattered the kingdoms of Fries, Basel, Kempten, Falain, and the Ishnir tribal confederation. In the last war, the Norman army used these five weak neutral nations to attack the Free Confederation of Ulster. After the end of the war, the five countries regained their independence and sovereignty and declared permanent neutrality – their neutrality was guaranteed by the International Peace League and the three great governments, and seemed to have a more solid and reliable guarantee, but the North Fries crisis once again reminded people that the so-called guarantee is nothing more than a means for the big powers to check on the small ones. The truth is always in the hands of the strong.

After the Ulster Free Federation and the Norman Empire declared war on each other, the northern border between the Federation and the Kingdom of Wessex immediately became a battlefield on the northern front between the two sides, and the Federation Army and the reorganized Wessex troops who withdrew into the territory of the Federation took the initiative to attack. The northern front is in full swing, but the western front is surprisingly calm, the terrain is not suitable for combat troops to deploy, the two fleets face each other across the peak, either side wants to break through here, must pay a great price. The Norman Empire did not infringe on the neutrality of the Kingdom of Basel, the Kingdom of Kempten, the Kingdom of Falaline, and the Ishnir Tribal Alliance, which was suitable for the passage of large armies, and the Federation of Liberal Democracy could not be forced to borrow beyond the law and morality. As for the Kingdom of Fries, which has been involved in the war, although it has concluded a military alliance with the Norman Empire, it does not have the obligation to go to war against the Federation until the Union army attacks the territory of the Norman Empire.

"There is no new situation on the Western Front for the time being." Colonel Capes replied, "If the positioning of this war is to return to the pre-war posture, then the main battlefield will be in Wessex, and the Western Front may only be a 'sit-down war.'" ”

Major Alfret Casen, commander of the 4th Combat Battalion, who partnered with Lune Schmidt, said: "I do not believe that the Normans will be content with some of the territory and resources of Wessex, and that when the city of Tik is captured and the northern battlefield is cleared, they will certainly attack the Federation with all their might." ”

Colonel Capes said, "Maybe it is, maybe not." Let the generals of the Joint Staff worry about what they should worry about! What we think and how we look is just our thoughts and opinions, and no one cares. ”

This is a bit unpleasant, especially when the cadets of the military academy who are strong in blood and strength hear it, they can't help but feel that this old senior is a character with a negative attitude and short-sightedness, Wei Si also felt this way at first glance, but if you think about it carefully, it is the so-called not in his position and not in his own position, although the middle-level officers must have the overall situation in mind, in comparison, paying attention to the present is a more pragmatic and competent performance.

After talking about military affairs, Capes named the four deputy battalion commanders: "Dragon, Otto, Jofen, and Lune, after two weeks of getting along, the four of you have made a very good impression on me. There is no doubt that you are the most gifted and capable of this class of students, and I believe that you also have the most potential for upside. Through the experience of war, you will understand many things that cannot be obtained from classes and exercises, and with this foundation, your military career will be smoother than ours, so you must not only seize the opportunity to overcome difficulties with your courage and faith, but also be careful and cautious to avoid unnecessary losses caused by lack of experience. As for the strength of the Norman army, I know that some of you have already fought against it, and you have a very intuitive understanding of this, so I will not repeat it here. ”

The four trainees responded with humility: "Thank you for the reminder, we will keep it in mind!" ”

Capes calmly ordered: "Okay, everyone go back and arrange the relocation affairs, and when the handover is completed, the troops will be drawn immediately!" ”

The crowd stood up: "Yes!" ”

This time, the Basston Student Regiment was officially integrated into the combat unit, and the four combat battalions plus the baggage company were all assigned according to the standards of the federal army. Weiss's 1st Combat Battalion has a full complement of 495 people, including 105 cadets and 390 reservists. Except for the sharp knife platoon, which is mainly composed of student soldiers, the rest of the companies and platoons are all student soldiers as the backbone and reserve soldiers as the basis. With the gradual completion of military mobilization, the reserve corps was replenished one after another, and the first echelon of reservists assigned to the Basston Student Corps were all first-tier reservists who underwent a week of defense military training every quarter, so they had certain basic military skills, and they were all between the ages of 18 and 27, and were second only to retired soldiers and personnel of local paramilitary units in the reserve arsenal of the federal army.

In the afternoon of the same day, the advance unit of the 157th Reserve Division arrived at the Basston Student Corps station. Eighty percent of the personnel are reserve troops from various echelons, and they basically had no combat effectiveness at the beginning of their formation, and they needed to be trained in the process of assembly, mobilization, and garrisoning. Under normal circumstances, it takes two or three months of running-in training to meet the basic conditions for going to the front line.

Looking at the disheveled and loose marching ranks of this reserve force, and the faces of young and old in the ranks, Weiss couldn't help but feel worried. The war games with representatives of the Royal Norman Army Academy taught him the power of the Normans in terms of combat strategy, and the reason why the Norman army was able to quickly crush the Wessex army was that in addition to the new weapons of the aviation force, the flexible and unexpected tactical strategy was also the key to victory. Think about it, if the Normans give full play to their air superiority and intersperse with a large depth of open space and ground, the 157th Reserve Division, a federal army that is not ready for battle, will encounter a Norman army like a wolf and a tiger, I am afraid it will be tantamount to a flock of sheep meeting a pack of wolves, how can this battle be fought?

Just as Weiss was deep in thought, someone next to him asked in a loud voice, "Hey, buddy, where are you from?" ”

"We are the reserves of the 12th garrison." Someone in the ranks replied loudly, "Some are from Neuchâtel, some are from Lorraine." ”

Lorraine? Federal state of Lorraine?

Weiss hurriedly followed the sound, and the answer was a middle-aged man with a short beard, his face was square and thick, his shoulders were wide and round, he was not tall, but he looked extraordinarily stocky, and his honest face was actually filled with a bright smile!

Surprised, Weiss took a closer look at the rest of the group. Although the long march on foot exhausted the untrained reservists, most of them were smiling between the Q&A. Some people take the lead, and the rest take the baton:

"We're from Lorraine! Gusburg in Lorraine! ”

"Noglaets of Lorraine!"

"Caversal of Lorraine!"

"We are from Neuchâtel! Kauts of Neuchâtel! ”

"Maukru of Neuchâtel!"

The officers of the Baston Student Corps stood under a large tree on the side of the road, as if they were conducting a special military parade. Someone found the fellow and warmly offered his blessings:

"Hey, I'm here too! Fields in the northern district of Maukru! ”

"I'm Maglos on the outskirts of Maukru! Good luck, Mr. Fielders! ”

"Good luck too! Mr. Magros! ”

This humane scene swept away the gloom in Weiss's heart. He suddenly realized that the fundamental reason why the situation has developed to this point today is not that the top leaders of the Federation blindly avoid war, but that the struggle between the Norman Empire and the Kingdom of Wessex over the North Friesian region, and even the Norman Empire's counterattack against the Kingdom of Wessex through the Norman-Fries Treaty of Alliance, did not violate the core interests of the Ulster Free Federation - the spirit of freedom embraced by the citizens of the Federation. As the war progressed, all levels of the Federation, although anxious, did not use war to defuse the threat of war. Unexpectedly, the Norman Empire defeated the Wessex army to the ground, occupied the southern and southeastern regions of Wessex at an astonishing speed, and approached the northern border of the Confederacy, threatening the national security of the Confederacy. In order to defend their homeland and defend their freedom, the people of the Federation have no hesitation in joining this war that they cannot avoid, no matter how strong the enemy is, they have nothing to fear.

"It's going to be a tough war, but I'm confident that the Federation will win the final victory." Colonel Capes's voice came from behind the officers of the Basston Student Corps.

The officers made way for Colonel Capes.

The colonel walked unhurriedly among the officers, stopped, and quietly watched the marching procession of friendly troops: "The reason why the Norman Empire closed the borders and did not allow the Norman people to communicate with us was because they were afraid that our faith in freedom would be transmitted to them. Because those who are free will never submit to the tyranny of the king, the Norman Empire can defeat us again and again on the battlefield, but it cannot conquer us. Everyone, remember my words today: we can lose, but we must not give up the fight! No matter how desperate our situation is, as long as faith is there, hope is there! ”