In the early hours of September 1, just after dawn, a group of uninvited guests arrived outside the town of Rabat, in the western part of the island of Malta.

Captain Hoffmann, the commander of the 1st Regiment, 1st Battalion, 1st Company of the 7th German Parachute Division, hid on a mound north of the town and knelt on one knee and looked through a telescope at the town of Rabat to the south.

According to the information sent by the battalion commander before departure, Captain Hoffman knew that the town of Rabat was located in the west-central part of the island of Malta, with about 7,000 inhabitants in the town, and was a transportation hub connecting the north and south of the island of Malta.

Captain Hoffman saw that the town of Rabat was located on a high ground, surrounded by shrubs and sparse trees, as well as farmland cut into patches by shrubs and roads.

Looks like it's going to be street fighting again, I hate street fighting! Captain Hoffman searched carefully for several minutes and found no British positions outside the town of Rabat, and it was clear that the British had made up their minds to use the buildings in the town of Rabat as defenses for street fighting.

After a few minutes, the German units outside the town of Rabat were in place, and Captain Hoffmann finally received the order to begin the offensive.

Using the hazy light and shrubs as cover, Hoffman led a company that quietly approached the last bush outside the town of Rabat from the northeast.

There is a gap in the bushes, and the soil on the ground is smooth and solid, and it is obvious that this is a road specially carved out by the local residents.

Captain Hoffman lay down on his stomach and looked forward, the open space more than 200 meters ahead was full of grass, seven or eight craters of various sizes were scattered on the grass, the mutilated corpses of four cows were lying on the edge of the craters, and the air was faintly filled with a disgusting smell of corpses.

There is a well more than 150 meters in front of the left, and next to the well there is a machine gun position made of sandbags and wooden boxes, but there are no figures and weapons in sight, and it seems that it has been abandoned.

More than 50 meters forward after crossing the well, there is a dirt slope. Behind the dirt slope is the residential area of the town of Rabat.

Knowing the terrain outside the town, Captain Hoffman immediately gave a few simple orders, and then said to Kurt, the sniper next to him, "You are hiding behind the bushes here." Try to snipe enemies in the opposite building. ”

Kurt nodded silently, his gaze quickly scanning over the buildings in Rabat. Identifying several buildings where British machine guns might appear, he ducked behind bushes and pointed his gun at the window of one building.

Kurt had barely taken his place when a few sparse gunshots were heard in the distance, followed by a dense burst of machine gunfire.

Hearing that the friendly troops had fired the first shots of the battle, Captain Hoffman immediately waved his hand to the platoon leader next to him and made a gesture and gave the order to attack.

A platoon of paratroopers bent over, armed with M1 rifles and MP40 submachine guns. Jumping over the bushes towards the town of Rabat, the paratroopers of the second and third platoons also attacked from different directions.

As soon as a platoon of paratroopers rushed out of the grass for more than 50 meters, the figures of British soldiers flashed on the opposite slope and in the windows of the building.

Amid the shouts of the British, the gunfire quickly rang out, and the rain of bullets flew towards the attacking paratroopers.

Under the rain of British bullets, the paratroopers had to use the undulating terrain and craters as cover to avoid the bullets, and the offensive momentum stalled, until the friendly MG-34 machine guns behind them were reactivated.

Under Captain Hoffman's astonished gaze, the machine gun emplacement, which had been thought to be abandoned, suddenly came to life, and three British machine gunners set up a Brown light machine gun on sandbags and fired wildly at the German paratroopers exposed on the grass. The two paratroopers were caught off guard and knocked down in a pool of blood.

The machine gunners of the two MG34 machine guns immediately turned their guns and swept towards the British machine gunners behind the sandbags, instantly pressing the British machine gunners to the point of not raising their heads, about a minute later. A fifty-millimeter mortar - a shell whizzed and fell behind a sandbag.

With a roar, a pot-lid-shaped steel helmet flew into the sky from behind the sandbag.

The two paratroopers took the opportunity to rush to the sandbag to take a look, and after confirming that the British machine gunner behind was dead, they used the sandbag as a cover to shoot at the British behind the dirt slope.

The crosshairs of the sniper Kurt's scope were aimed at the window of a two-story building, behind which a British machine gunner was firing frantically at a German paratrooper on the grass with a Brown light machine gun.

Holding his breath slightly, Kurt pulled the trigger of the 98k rifle in his hand, and clearly saw the British machine gunner's head jerk back, as if it had been struck by an invisible hammer, and then disappeared into the window.

The secondary shooter is also dead, they should not dare to come, Kurt said silently at the window with the muzzle of his gun.

After the main and secondary shooters of the machine gun were killed one after another. Sure enough, just as Kurt expected, there was no third shooter at the window.

Kurt changed the location of the sniper. Turning the muzzle of the gun to the British troops in the dirt slope and other buildings, after killing six more British soldiers. Seeing that his comrades in front of him had rushed to the dirt slope, he stopped shooting.

Seeing that his subordinates had broken into the town, Captain Hoffman immediately picked up the MP40 submachine gun behind his back and ran towards the dirt slope with the company members, and the machine gunners in a platoon also carried the MG34 machine gun and followed him.

Beyond a few craters, over a disemboweled, blue-black intestine draining from a cow's carcass, and over the dirt slope, Captain Hoffman managed to meet the paratroopers at the bottom of a two-story building.

An M24 grenade flew into the window of the first floor with white smoke, and after the explosion, the two paratroopers deftly climbed through the window and jumped into the smoke-filled room.

Three other paratroopers rushed in through the side door of the building, and short gunshots and screams were soon heard from inside.

After the noise in the building subsided, a paratrooper poked his head out of the window on the second floor and shouted to Captain Hoffman downstairs, "Captain, you can come in." ”

Captain Hoffman dodged into the building and saw two British corpses in the living room.

The two bodies lay on their backs on the carpet in the center of the living room, an Enfield rifle thrown beside them, blood gushing from the bullet holes in their chests, and their khaki uniforms were stained red to the size of a palm.

A biting chill rose in the heels of Captain Hoffman, who was holding a revolver and was clearly an officer, from the horrific condition of another corpse.

The corpse of the British officer rushed down and hung on the back of a long brown sofa, a large bloody hole burst out of the back of his head with blond hair, and red and white liquid flowed out of the back of his head under the influence of gravity, gathering in a puddle on the cushions of the sofa. The red ones are the blood, and the white ones are the brains.

The unlucky guy was actually shot in the head. Captain Hoffman didn't have time to make any more exclamations before he rushed to the second floor.

Flashing past a British prisoner being escorted downstairs, Captain Hoffman jumped to a bedroom on the second floor. Hiding behind the wall next to the window, looking into the town.

After more than ten seconds, Captain Hoffman's eyes were fixed on a two-story building more than a hundred meters in front of him, which was significantly higher than the surrounding houses and higher than the other buildings, making it a commanding height nearby.

One, two, and three had at least three machine guns firing outwards on the second floor of the building, which, in conjunction with the British machine-gun fire points on the street next to the building, neutralized the nearby German paratroopers.

Captain Hoffman called a herald and left the second floor with a few words of command, an MG34 machine gun crew occupying the window where he had stayed. Shoot at the British in the distance.

Captain Hoffman and his men ran out of the building, to the north side of the building, and asked for a truck mirror from the orderly.

Sticking his rearview mirror out of the corner, Captain Hoffman quietly checked the street.

After waiting patiently for a few minutes, Captain Hoffman waited for the smoke grenade he had requested.

After a serpent's spitting hiss, Captain Hoffman saw that the street was already covered in white smoke.

Throwing the rearview mirror in his hand into the hands of the orderlies, Captain Hoffman rushed through the five- or six-meter-wide street with one lunge to meet up with the five or six paratroopers in the second platoon across the street.

Come with me, occupy this building, Captain Hoffman gets down on one knee. Pointing to the second floor behind the low wall, he said to the paratroopers who were crouching behind a waist-high low wall.

Led by Captain Hoffmann, the paratroopers approached the side door of the building behind the wall, using the low wall as cover.

An overturned oak table blocked the doorway, and behind the table there was a couch. Two or three British soldiers hid behind, occasionally showing their heads and shooting at the German paratroopers outside the door with rifles and pistols.

"There are people upstairs, and as soon as we get close to them, throw grenades down." A paratrooper sergeant pointed to the window on the left side of the second floor.

Hoffman glanced at the window, confirmed with the sergeant where the British soldiers were dodging, and called an anti-tank rifle crew.

The stout muzzle of the 13mm PZB39 anti-tank rifle fired two shots at the wall to the left of the window, and the brick debris flew across the brick wall, instantly creating two large holes, and a figure behind the wall flashed through the window and fell to the ground.

Two paratroopers took the opportunity to rush downstairs, and two grenades flew in through the window on the second floor and the side door on the first floor, and after two loud bangs. The paratroopers worked together to remove the tables and sofas blocking the doorway and rushed into the building.

Captain Hoffman was sticking to the wall outside the door on the first floor as usual. Listen carefully to the voices in the building.

The sound of gunfire, the explosion of grenades, and the roar of mixed German and English in the building did not subside until five or six minutes later. All that remained was wailing in English.

Three wounded German soldiers were either supported or carried out of the building by their comrades, and two British prisoners followed with their heads in their hands in a dejected expression.

Captain Hoffman dodged into the building, ran to the second floor to observe for a while, and then followed the second platoon to continue to advance into the town of Rabat.

After two small, adrenaline-pumping battles, the paratroopers of the second platoon conquered two more buildings.

Captain Hoffman was now separated from the two-story building he had set aside only a courtyard, a stone wall, and a street, a total distance of less than thirty meters.

The unusual two-story building was clearly an important stronghold of the British army in the vicinity, and British troops were firing from all the windows on both the first and second floors.

Captain Hoffman observed for a few seconds and quickly sketched out a battle plan in his mind, he called in all three anti-tank guns of the company's anti-tank group, the only sniper Kurt, and all four machine guns in the second platoon, and used strong fire to suppress the fire of the British troops facing his side in the opposite building.

Countless bullets fell on the windows of the building, and the stone chips flew and sparks scattered, and the British troops in the windows did not dare to show their heads at all, and were completely suppressed by the German paratroopers.

The paratroopers outside the building quickly seized the opportunity to rush to the bottom of the building, and as usual, a series of grenades asked for directions.

Countless clouds of smoke and broken glass shot out of windows and doors, and the smoke did not wait for the smoke to clear. Seven or eight paratroopers bravely rushed to the first floor of the building. Looking at the vigorous figures of his subordinates, Captain Hoffman showed a satisfied smile on the corner of his mouth, and reached out to take out a pack of cosmic brand cigarettes from his chest pocket. One was given to each of the orderlies and heralds around him, and several people waited for the outcome of the battle together.

Five minutes passed. Ten minutes passed, and the battle in the opposite building was not over, and no British prisoners were escorted out, but the bodies of two German paratroopers were carried out.

Annoyed, Captain Hoffman ordered a herald to inquire about the battle, and a moment later the herald ran back.

"The British on the second floor refused to surrender, they blocked the only staircase and kept throwing grenades down, the staircase was very narrow. At most, two people can pass side by side, and the people in the second row can't rush up, and now there is a stalemate. The herald quickly explained the situation in the building.

In such a desperate situation, you can't even surrender? This is not like the style of the British, Captain Hoffman was surprised.

He ran to the other window of the building and looked around, and saw puffs of smoke rising from the flanks of Raft to the left and right.

It seems that the troops of the friendly neighbors have advanced to a deeper front, the first company has lagged behind, and the British in this building must be dealt with as soon as possible to keep up with the progress of the friendly forces.

Captain Hoffman withdrew his gaze, frowned and thought for a while, then shouted to his men and ran downstairs with me.

A few minutes later. When Captain Hoffman reappeared, the herald behind him had an extra ladder on his shoulder.

The three heralds worked together to carry the ladder and follow Captain Hoffman to the outside of the two-story building, setting up a ladder in the wall.

Captain Hoffman impatiently shoved a corporal away. Ignoring the dissuasion of his subordinates, he carried an MP40 submachine gun up the escalator and went straight to the second floor.

Leaning against the wall on the second floor, Captain Hoffman quietly peeked inside, there was a bathroom, and there was no one.

By chance, Captain Hoffman deftly climbed through the window, then pounced on the bathroom door, and behind him, two paratroopers jumped in.

Captain Hoffman listened carefully to the sounds outside the bathroom door. The shouts and gunfire of the British troops were close at hand.

He quickly gestured to the two paratroopers behind him, signaling that there was someone outside the door. Two paratroopers carried the M1 rifle behind their backs. He pulled out the Ruger pistol at his waist.

Captain Hoffman took a deep breath and jerked open the bathroom door and rushed outside.

Outside the bathroom is a dormitory with four bunk beds side by side.

Four British infantrymen, led by a second lieutenant, were pasted behind the wall of the doorway. Nervously staring at the staircase outside the door, unprepared for Captain Hoffman's presence.

Seeing Captain Hoffman and the murderous submachine gun in his hand, the muscles on the faces of the five British officers and soldiers quickly twisted and deformed, and there was a look of despair in their eyes.

The two sides of the hostility you look at me, I look at you, the air is full of the oppression of death.

The eyes of the five British officers and men kept wandering between Captain Hoffman and the muzzle of the gun in his hand, beads of sweat on their foreheads sliding down their cheeks like a waterfall.

"Put down the gun." Captain Hoffman said lightly in English.

Captain Hoffman's words were like heaven in the ears of the five British officers and men, and the five of them hurriedly threw down their weapons and raised their hands to Captain Hoffman.

Captain Hoffman slowly lowered the muzzle of his gun, and the muscles on the faces of the five British prisoners gradually relaxed.

Captain Hoffman was about to speak, when a mutation struck.

An M24 grenade emitted white smoke through the door and fell to the ground in a terrifying death curve in the air.

Captain Hoffman instantly felt the hairs on his body stand on end, and his mind went blank.

In the nick of time, a pair of large hands reached out from the bathroom door, grabbed Captain Hoffman's shoulders and dragged him into the bathroom.

It was only after a loud bang that Captain Hoffman realized that he had regained his ability to think.

By the time Captain Hoffman walked out of the bathroom again, the battle in the building was over.

Standing in front of the bodies of five British officers and soldiers lying on their backs covered in blood, Captain Hoffman looked at the British second lieutenant for a few seconds, then crouched down, brushed his right hand over the face of the British lieutenant, and closed his eyes.

Captain Hoffman let out a long sigh and left, leading his men to launch a new offensive deep into the town of Rabat

At twelve o'clock in the afternoon of September 1, Lieutenant General Dobby walked restlessly around his underground headquarters.

"Haven't you heard from the defenders in the town of Rabat yet?"

"It's been an hour since there was no news, and the town of Rabat may have been lost."

"Immediately have the 2nd Battalion of Irish Riflemen halt the search for the enemy near Valette, march on the town of Rabat, monitor the movements of the Germans there, and, if possible, retake Rabat." Lieutenant General Dobby ordered angrily.

"What's the news from London?" Lieutenant General Dobby then asked.

"The forces of the Luftwaffe were so strong that the H Fleet in the direction of Gibraltar and Alexander's Mediterranean Fleet did not dare to approach Malta during the day, and London ordered us to hold out until dark."

"Hold on until dark? Could it be that the Navy dared to approach Malta after dark? Even if they could get close to Malta, what could they do? Lieutenant General Dobby said angrily.

"The Italian naval guns and the German bombers were joining forces to destroy the beachhead of the defenders in the north, and the 2nd Battalion of the Devonshire Regiment and the 2nd Battalion of the Queen's West Kent Regiment were no longer able to hold and sent telegrams demanding a retreat."

"No, they can't retreat, tell them to hold out until dark, at least until we retake the town of Rabat, otherwise they have no way back, order the 1st and 2nd Heavy Artillery Companies to cooperate with the 2nd Battalion of Irish Riflemen to retake the town of Rabat, and try to reopen the connection with the north before dark." Lieutenant General Dobby ordered. (To be continued)

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