"You played well yesterday, the commander is very happy", Skye Hamm, commander of the 3rd Army in the Western Theater, turned over a corpse wearing a blue military uniform on the ground with his foot, looked at it with a frown, and said to Tom Levy, the commander of the 3rd Division behind him. Yesterday's enemy attack was repelled by his Third Army, and the record was not bad, and Paul Chung's mood seemed to have changed beautifully because of it.

"It's an adult who conducts well," Tom Levy replied with a smile. After yesterday's fighting, Skye Hamm decided to come to the front line to inspect and supervise the fighting. After moving the headquarters of the entire Third Army from the rear to the chest wall, he took the lead, apparently making up his mind to fight the other side.

"Okay, don't be modest", Skye Hamm patted Tom Levy on the shoulder, "I heard that the enemy is still moving today?" ”

"Well, both the observation post and the outside spies have picked up signs of enemy maneuvers. They seem to have changed their forces and assembled in front of our front. We estimate that in the last two days, they will also attack. ”

Skye Hamm looked up at the sky, the morning thorn hills were clear, and it was a rare good weather.

"Okay, I won't bother you anymore, prepare for battle, I put the first division behind you. If there aren't enough people, or if the battle situation is anxious, there will always be someone behind you! ”

Tom Levy nodded, and sent his Legion Leader back to Legion Headquarters. Although yesterday's battle was the first contact between the two sides, everyone was very involved in the fight, and there were some casualties on our side. However, relying on the current combination of iron shield defense and gun formation, Tom Levy does not have too many worries about holding the Thorn Hills. After all, Ronninger and the Central Military District have been fighting in the east for so long, isn't there no progress?

Not long after returning to the divisional headquarters, a cup of hot tea was not even available for a cup of tea, when the herald's report interrupted Tom Levy's silence.

"Commander, the enemy has begun to assemble again!!"

"Don't these bastards even know how to take a break?"

After scolding, Tom Levy also knew that the other party must be in a hurry to open up the situation. While instructing the operational staff officers to be calm and defend in the established way, he walked up to the command platform. Because of the advance of the Third Army Corps, he placed his division headquarters behind the six chest defense lines, and through the high command platform, he could directly see the situation on the battlefield.

After a day of fighting, the enemy did not seem to be tired. However, Tom Levy could tell from the enemy's flag that the opposing attacking troops had changed. This is also normal, in this kind of offensive and defensive battle relying on the iron shield defense line, the defending side will always have an advantage over the attacking side in terms of troop losses.

However, there was something that Tom Levy minded, and he looked at the big black guy who was in front of the enemy line this time, and asked Kate Felton, the chief of staff who was following him.

"What's that?"

"I don't know, I didn't mention this in the previous intelligence, it looks like some kind of new weapon", Kate Felton also sensed the threat from the huge facility, "It looks like it's not small, I don't know how to use it?" ”

"Let's see, if it's a new weapon, you have to be careful in today's battle."

Tom Levy admonished, carefully looking at the new equipment on the other side, and was faintly worried.

What the hell is that thing for?

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"Quick, quick, where's the plank? Planks to keep up! ”

Atta Welsh, a researcher at the Arms Research Institute of the Republic of Negro, changed his tone in a nervous voice. The project of this steam cannon is a project personally grasped by the director of the institute, Tim Gray, and is highly valued by the parliament and the president. This debut, I can't afford to mess it up.

Following Atta Welsh's order, the members of the Weapons Research Institute's working group responsible for maintaining the steam cannon quickly placed a piece of wood nearly three meters long under the six-wheeled wheels that carried the steam cannon. Because the steam cannon and its means of delivery were too heavy for the unhardened land of the thorny hills to bear the weight of such weapons. In order to put the steam cannon into use, Atta Wales had to manually lay an improvised boardwalk for the steam cannon's six-wheeled carts, paving one piece and advancing another.

The drums of the assault sounded in the air again.

"Are we in time?"

Atta Welsh's assistant, Koman Sweet, an assistant researcher at the National Weapons Research Institute of the Republic of Negro, looked at the steam cannon that was moving slowly like a snail, and heard the drums in the air, and couldn't help but feel a little anxious.

"It's definitely too late," Atta Welsh, who had fully communicated with the generals who launched the attack before the battle, was not worried about this issue, "this time it is the troops who cooperate with us, not us who cooperate with the troops, and no matter how slow we go, these soldiers will not be able to surpass us." Only in this way can the power of the steam cannon be brought into full play. ”

"Oh, let's hurry up then!"

Koman Switt nodded, and went back to urging his colleagues and the soldiers who were helping. But it is not easy to lay such a long plank, and with the sound of drums and the urging of Si Te, it seems to be more and more slow.

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Unlike yesterday's rapid pace of attack, today's Negro Republic army seems to be more gentlemanly. They followed the slow beat of the drums, little by little, and the distance that they could have covered in half an hour yesterday has been walked for two hours today, and they have not yet reached the end.

"What's going on? Why are they so slow? ”

Tom Levy, commander of the 3rd Division, stood on the command podium, holding a glass of water in his hand, a little puzzled. He was under the impression that the troops of the Negru Republic had never launched such a snail attack. With the speed of this attack, if he had cavalry in his hands, he could even launch a cavalry counterattack.

"I don't know, but it seems to be waiting for those big guys", Chief of Staff Kate Felton told the truth, "the news from the front, those big guys seem to be very heavy, and you need to keep laying the boardwalk to move forward, otherwise you will sink in." Their troops seem to be waiting for the speed of those big guys. ”

"It looks like an enlarged steam cannon, and it could be very powerful. Let's talk about it, pay attention when defending, and be prepared for the iron shield defense line to be breached, understand? ”

"Understood."

Kate Felton turned to give the order, leaving his division commander behind, frowning as he looked at the massive dark creations.

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With great effort, and twice as long as usual, Atta Wales and his team finally pushed the steam cannons to a firing range, a hundred and eighty meters from the enemy's iron shield line. In order to be able to increase the effectiveness of the shot, they did not choose the limit distance of two hundred meters, but went into combat readiness at such a position as one hundred and eighty meters, which could put great pressure on the enemy.

"Hurry up, put down, put down, resistance shovel, drag shovel, knock me into the soil!!"

Atta Welsh's assistant Coman Sweet is still calling the shots. The staff and soldiers of the steam cannon service group separated the two thick resistance shovels that had just been close to the rear of the cannon on the march and inserted them into the dirt behind the cannon. Someone locked the wheels of the six-wheeled board car with a special wedge. The soldier in charge of loading stuffed fist-sized shells through the muzzle. The steam engine, which had long been lit, was accumulating, and let out a low snort.

"It's not going to blow up, is it?"

Seeing that the steam cannon was starting to charge, Assistant Researcher Coman Sweet muttered a few words and stepped back. The other members of the working group standing around the cannon also seemed nervous, and subconsciously moved away. Only the soldiers, who did not understand the power of this cannon and the dangers that came with it, were still working in an orderly manner.

In the interval between the preparation of the steam cannon, the drums in the air were heard. Atta Wales could even hear shouts from the other side.

"Why didn't the cowards on the other side come? Is it a? If so, come over and let the uncle do it! ”

"The soft egg hiding behind the turtle shell, you have the ability to come out and fight like a man!"

Although the language used was incomprehensible, the insults on both sides on the battlefield seemed to be self-intelligible. Atta Wales even heard that his generals had gone to find some soldiers who could speak Reyn and use them to curse the war. However, although these people scolded lively, it was still the weapons and the soldiers themselves who decided the victory.

"!!! in place"

"!!! in place"

With a sharp hissing of the steam pressure relief valve, the five steam cannons that Atta Welsh brought to the front this time were ready to fire. Atta Wales looked at the graffiti on the iron shield opposite and raised his hand high.

"Prepare !!!!"

Assistant Researcher Koman Sweet translated Atta Welsh's gesture into a command.

There was a sudden silence on the battlefield. The soldiers on the other side and on their own side were all looking at these big guys, waiting for it to show its power that was not inferior to its own size.

Atta Welsh's hand waved high.

"!!! release"

"Boom, boom, boom!"

After four loud roars, the high-temperature and high-pressure steam pushed the metal projectile out of the barrel of the cannon, and at a speed that no one could react to, it slammed straight into the opposite iron shield defense line. The heavy iron shields squeaked with an overwhelming squeak as they were hit, and they were knocked down in one fell swoop.

"Reload again!! Statistical results!!! ”

Seeing the effect of the shelling, their own soldiers let out a cheer, and from behind the iron shield on the opposite side, there was an exclamation. It is clear that the power of the steam cannon exceeded the expectations of both sides. Atta Welsh looked at the holes created by the two shells in the opposite iron shield defense line, and the other did not penetrate for some reason, but instead pushed down the front iron shield, and with the results of knocking down the three or four iron shields around him, he quickly gave the order.

The drums in the air began to beat again, and their soldiers began to move forward, but everyone carefully moved out of the area in front of the steam cannon. The power of this weapon seems to be so great that no one wants to be hit by that kind of shell.

"Teacher, a steam cannon has exploded!"

Just as Atta Welsh was basking in the joy of a successful test launch, a quote from Assistant Researcher Koman Sweet extinguished his excitement. He followed Coman Sweet's gaze and saw that the steam cylinder of the steam cannon on the far edge of his left had exploded, revealing a large gap. Several soldiers fell around the cannon, not knowing whether they were alive or dead.

"The strength of the material is still not good......"

Atta Wales muttered under his breath. In a hurry to put it into battle, the steam cannon was not fully designed. One of the most important is the cylinders and cylinders that can be loaded with high-temperature and high-pressure steam, and the materials cannot be completely passed. After increasing the strength of the cylinders and cylinders by increasing the volume and thickness as much as possible, the steam cannon still could not get rid of the problem of exploding the chamber when firing. In order to solve this problem, continuous progress in materials science is required, and the answer cannot be found in a short period of time.

Although a cannon was blown up, the enemy was clearly frightened by this weapon. After the second shot, Atta Wales could feel the panic on the opposite side, although there were only three more holes in the opposite iron shield and a knocked down iron shield. And after two rounds of firing, their own soldiers also entered the combat distance, and the gunshots rang out.

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"What seems to be an enlarged version of the steam hand cannon?"

Tom Levy, commander of the 3rd Division, stood on the command podium and watched the battle not far away. The soldiers of the Neglo Republic were demoralized by the new weapons, while their own soldiers were a little overwhelmed. At the same time, because two of the first Iron Shield breastwork lines were destroyed by enemy weapons, many blue-clad soldiers were rushing through those two gaps into the rear of the first Iron Shield Lines. Although the platoon of gunmen lined up in front of the second iron shield line kept knocking them down. But the enemy does not seem to have given up on the offensive because of this.

"It should be, it seems that it is not small", Kate Felton, chief of staff of the Third Division, nodded, "What should I do, the first line of defense may not be able to hold it if it goes on like this." ”

"The enemy's weapon seems to be difficult to move", but after a while, Tom Levy found the shortcomings of the opponent's weapon, "It's just to break through the first line of defense, they can't hold it." Tell the people of the 1st Division behind me that I need all the reserves, ready to launch a forced counterattack, I want their kind of weapons! ”

"Good!"

Kate Felton answered loudly and turned his head to give orders, and Tom Levy looked at the five huge weapons, thinking about his possible countermeasures.

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"Attack, attack!!"

Although not a soldier, Assistant Researcher Koeman Sweet seems to be involved in the fight. He cried out excitedly when he saw a steady stream of his own soldiers rushing into the Iron Shield Breastwork and the battle seemed to be moving in his favor.

"Head, what are we going to do, do you want to keep shooting??" , as if he didn't find it enjoyable, Koman Sweet turned his head to fight, his eyes full of excitement.

"If we don't fight, now our enemies are mixed with the enemy, and we can't fight", Atta Wales mentally assessed the advantages and disadvantages of this weapon, "This weapon is too poor in mobility, it can only fight positional warfare, and its stability is not very good, and exploding the chamber will cause unnecessary damage." However, the power is okay, and it can definitely penetrate the enemy's iron shield. However, it seems that it would be better to be less powerful......"

Atta Wales looked at the holes in the shields and thought they weren't as good as the shells that knocked them down. But why do some shells penetrate and others knock down iron shields? Is it related to the angle of incidence?

Atta Wales pondered on the battlefield. And while he was thinking hard, a sharp horn sounded from the opposite side. Atta Wales was stunned for a moment before he realized the meaning of the trumpet.

That was the horn of the attack.