The Irish Royal Palace near Limerick, known as the "Forest Palace", has two main roads and several paths leading to the outside world, one of which runs east-west for an unknown number of years, and the oak, elm and birch trees on both sides of the road are luxuriant and leafy, with different shapes, early spring or late autumn, walking or cycling, people can find a fairytale-like dream feeling here. Pen "Fun" Pavilion www.biquge.info

The "Dragon's Lair", a sprawling underground fortification used to protect members of the Irish royal family, with several hidden exits just off the path. When the First Battle of Limerick took place on May 18, 1933, Natsuki stood under a hundred-year-old oak tree. On this special occasion, the king, who was deeply loved by the military and the people, wore neither a crown robe nor a golden helmet gown, he wore a K22 army helmet, a 27-year summer field uniform without rank, and an old M1883 revolver like an ordinary Irish reserve officer, and there was no heroic halo on his body, but from the turn of the war of independence to the torrent of territorial disputes, from the religious conflict of retribution to the majesty of economic take-off, He has become a hero in the eyes of the Irish, a man who can stand tall and swallow mountains and rivers, and a great man to rival St. Patrick.

In recent years, Irish public opinion has spared no effort to promote democracy, people from all walks of life are keen to participate in politics, parliamentary elections have gradually changed from political supremacy to public opinion, the king's will has less and less interference in internal affairs, and he and his British queen have no longer been exposed in the public eye, and the news related to it is often associated with caring for people's livelihood and promoting national prestige. This holy monarch will lead the country through difficulties and to new glory......

"Oh, that's terrible, it looks like the British plane crashed near St. Brendan Square, which is an area with a high concentration of dairies, and their warehouses still store hundreds of tons of butter and cheese, and the fire caused by the explosion will probably cause us unimaginable damage." Looking at the billowing black smoke rising from the city of Limerick, the Irish royal family's lifelong adviser to the retired Field Marshal Ammo Perev couldn't help but lament.

In the smoke of gunpowder, the Irish and German fighters had the absolute upper hand in numbers and scenes, and the surviving British fighters were too busy to take care of themselves, and those British bombers were simply being slaughtered, so they dropped bombs and turned around and fled in a few miles away from Limerick, and tons of bombs were dropped in the open fields on the outskirts of the city, causing negligible damage to farmland, pastures and irrigation facilities, and only a few bombers insisted on flying over the city of Limerick to drop bombs. The dozens of bombs they dropped and the warplanes that crashed into the city made Limerick appear to have suffered a lot of trauma, but in fact the damage was much lower than previously expected.

Perev's wail made people feel a little unlucky, and the king's military adjutant, Colonel McWalter, said: "The marshal need not worry too much, Your Majesty has arranged for the garrison to prepare for rescue and extinguishing the fire in advance, and the fire should be effectively controlled." ”

Dart von Wirks, a member of the Allied command who was present and was about to retire from the Luftwaffe, replied: "Judging from the comparison of the losses in the battle, this is already quite a remarkable victory, and I believe that the whole world will be shocked by the statistics of the results." ”

Seeing that all the surviving British planes had turned eastward, Natsuki put down his binoculars and said in a gentle tone: "The French say that a national capital that has not experienced war is like a pair of armor without sword marks, and their capital has experienced more wars and turmoil in history than any other country. Everyone has been to Paris and noticed the mottled bullet marks on the façade of the Louvre, which the French do not see as tarnishing the beauty of the palace buildings, but rather as a historical color. From this point of view, what is happening to Limerick today is not necessarily a bad thing for the city, for the country, and for the Irish people living in this era. ”

"At least people don't have unrealistic luck anymore." Colonel McWalter answered.

Perev clasped his hands in front of his chest and said angrily: "Yes, just a few days ago, I attended an old friend's birthday party, and talked about the possible war, and people felt that Britain would completely decline whether they won or lost, and the key to determining the outcome of the war was the result of the naval battle between the warring parties in the Atlantic. The people all wanted the island of Ireland to be safe from the fire, they believed that the Irish Air Force and the German fighter units stationed in Ireland were strong enough to defend themselves against the enemy, so most of them remained in Limerick, and now they must be shivering behind the windows, and they must have remembered what I said to them - it is unforgivable selfish to wait for victory without any effort, and to go to war on the existing conditions of Ireland, everyone must contribute their own selflessly, In this way, you can form a power that will discourage the enemy. Once Ireland is defeated and occupied, then everything we have today will come to naught. ”

"Your Excellency is not wrong at all." Xia Shu praised, "Everyone wants to sit back and enjoy it, what cohesion is there in such a country? What combat effectiveness does such an army have? ”

Several people present agreed with this, and General von Wielx of the Luftwaffe then inferred with reverse thinking: "But then again, the British have been forced to the point where there is no way out this time, and their resistance will be stronger than ever, and today's battle may not be able to discourage them from continuing to bomb Limerick!" ”

A few minutes after saying this, an important military situation was heard ahead: the second wave of British aircraft was flying over the St. George's Strait, and the trajectory was the same as that of the previous wave, but the size of the aircraft group continued unabated!

"The British are going to eat us!" Perev said hatefully, "Do they have to raze Limerick to give up?" ”

"If Ireland cannot be allowed to pay a heavy price for entering the war, how can the other Allied powers be allowed to carefully consider the situation of the war?" Natsuki objectively analyzed, "The London Armistice Treaty of 1915 gave each of the participating countries a share of the spoils, and what country didn't want to cut a piece of meat from the British?" If Austria-Hungary, Italy, Ottoman Turkey, Spain, and Bulgaria had followed Germany into the war, Britain would have to confront the whole European continent, the Americans would have massed their military forces thousands of kilometers away, the Russians would have chosen to stand by the situation, the Japanese would not intervene at all, and within a few months, or even weeks, the British front and their confidence would have collapsed...... So, an all-out air strike on Limerick is their only way out! ”

General von Weicks took off his monocle and gently wiped it with a flannel cloth: "Knowing this, we should have suggested that the German General Staff send a few more aviation divisions to Ireland, so that the main force of the British Air Force could be exhausted in a few days after the start of the war." ”

Having said that, no one is sure what kind of combat strategy the British will adopt until the dark clouds of British planes fall into the air, after all, the intelligence collected by all sides is still insufficient, and the efforts made by the British side in secrecy and covert deployment are undoubtedly relatively successful.

"4 aviation divisions is already a lot." Natsuki was relieved, "The Luftwaffe's active forces were only 22 air divisions, most of which were engaged in the offensive, and at the same time had to guard the long defensive line from the coast of Flanders to Jutland, and if the British chose to launch a large-scale night air raid on Berlin, the strategic results would be no less than the razing of Limerick." ”

While the leaders were standing in safety and directing the country, Irish pilot Ensign Hugona Martin had just landed his ME-50 at Military Airfield 6 on the northern outskirts of Limerick. His heart was beating at a breakneck speed until the plane came to a standstill, and he almost fell as he climbed out of the cabin.

"Hey, Second Lieutenant Martin, how many fights have you had?" The oncoming ground staff asked.

Martin opened his mouth, not knowing how to answer. How many British planes were shot down yourself? He tried to remember, but his head was full of scenes of battle. The British bombers were like lambs waiting to be slaughtered, but those British fighters were not easy to deal with, at least two or three times, he was almost shot down by the British.

"Ugona Martin!" A majestic voice freed Second Lieutenant Martin from his dazed state, and standing in front of him was none other than the combat commander of his "bull squadron", Captain Shuttal, a fighter pilot of the first class.

A strong arm wrapped around Martin's shoulder: "Hey man, now is not the time to reminisce about the results of the battle, the follow-up troops of the British are already on the way, and we only have a quarter of an hour to rest." ”

"What? A quarter of an hour? Martin's eyes widened, although there had been such an intensity of continuous attacks in the past, but after all, it was a training exercise, and the mental and psychological oppression may not even be one-tenth of the actual combat.

The sturdy squadron leader ignored his astonishment, but patted him on the shoulder and said, "You performed very well today, and you will be able to enter the ranks of ace pilots with two or three more planes." ”

After the captain finished speaking, he walked towards the other pilot, and Martin was still stunned in place - two or three planes are the trump card? The trump card is more than ten, so you have already laid down seven or eight fights before? Two bombers at the beginning, followed by a fighter, and then encountered a real challenge, being besieged by two "gladiators", and finally fought their way through it with the help of their partners, and faced another "mountain eagle...... After many hard battles, his mental and physical strength were close to collapse. Suddenly came back to his senses, his body was already soaked with sweat.

Thinking of his golden partner, Second Lieutenant Ward who piloted the "Bull Five", Martin hurriedly looked around, and the tarmac was full of busy figures racing against time, but there was no familiar thin and tall man, and he didn't see the ME-50 painted with the No. 5 tactical pattern.

At this moment, the squadron leader who had walked away earlier hurriedly ran over: "Martin, do you have any news from Ward?" ”

Martin looked dazed, and there was a look of panic in his eyes.

The squadron leader crossed his hands on his hips and bit his lip vigorously: "Billy said he seemed to see Ward's plane shot down, but I remember hearing his call sign in the communication channel when I returned." ”

Martin shook his head.

The squadron leader spitted: "Damn! We've lost O'Callaghan and Bull No. 7, Brennan's Bull No. 3 is injured, and now Ward is ...... Later we will only have five fighters able to take off. ”

Martin subconsciously asked: "There are more of the enemy's second echelons than the first?" ”

Squadron Leader Shutal let out a deep "um" and stared at Martin for a long time before he spoke again: "At least half the scale!" ”

Suddenly, Martin felt that it didn't matter if he could become an ace pilot, and if there was another fierce battle, he wondered if he would be able to return to this airport, and if he would still be able to stand in this position and talk to his colleagues. I remember that I once vowed to spill blood in the sky, but now I can't pick up such a lofty ambition, but my heart is confused and I don't know what to do.

(End of chapter)