The battle around the town of Le Sierra was fought by Italy and France for two days, and during these three days, the 39th Division of the French Army blocked the offensive of the 9th Army with huge casualties with inferior troops and equipment.

Eventually, under the onslaught of the 9th Army, the French defense line in the town of Le Sierra was finally broken through. Now one of the biggest targets of Army Group North's operation, Grenoble, has appeared in front of them.

However, it was not easy to take Grenoble, because in the course of several days, the French troops sent to Savoy had arrived one after another. As for the most important Grenoble, it was the key city of this reinforcement, and the French divisions of the 27th, 49th, and 67th had already arrived in the city.

Now they are building fortifications around Grenoble, waiting for the Italian attack.

And the main forces of Army Group North, which had just taken the town of Le Sierra, did not immediately launch an attack on Grenoble. Because the ammunition consumption in the previous battle in the town of Le Sierra was not small, it was necessary to replenish the ammunition before launching an attack on Grenoble.

Although the main forces of Army Group North temporarily stopped the offensive on Grenoble, the Eighteenth Army, which was responsible for capturing Annecy, had already launched an offensive.

"Boom Boom"

Heavy shelling enveloped Annecy, and shells from 75, 105, and 150 mm shells made it impossible for Annecy's predominantly brick houses to withstand the bombardment. A large number of the houses that had been hit had been reduced to rubble, and the French defending the area had to hide themselves in the rubble to prevent themselves from being discovered and attracting more shelling.

However, how could the shelling not bring casualties, this 150 mm shell accurately hit a well-constructed pillbox, not to mention the defenders inside the pillbox, the French soldiers outside the pillbox were also swept down by the bricks and wood chips brought by the shock wave, and a good Shura scene was presented in front of the surviving soldiers.

Hicaru did not feel that the French defenders were miserable, and he wished that the French officers and soldiers would be wiped out by artillery, so as not to put his and his men's lives in danger.

Of course, he knew that this was impossible, no matter how heavy the shelling was, there would be remnants of the defenders, and their task was to clean up these remnants of the defenders.

Of course, Hikaru wanted the shelling to last a little longer, especially for the many buildings in front of him, and it was better to have the shells clear them. Perhaps his wish was not heard by God, so the shelling gradually stopped after a while.

"Attack."

With a word from the leading officer, Shikaru led his platoon out of the starting position and pounced on the street that had turned into ruins.

"Woohoo"

As the Italians attacked, the entrenched French soldiers opened fire on them. The crisp sound of Lebel's rifle rang out on the battlefield, causing many charging Italians to fall to the ground.

The charging Italian soldiers shot back while running, but everyone knew that at this time, the accuracy was poor, and the only way to hit the opponent was to follow fate.

"Open fire for cover."

After running to a half-man-high stone wall, Hikaru immediately ordered his soldiers to cover fire.

With his order, an organized counterattack began.

I saw that the exposed French soldiers were hit by them one after another, which immediately reduced the firepower of the defending French army.

The reduced firepower of the defenders allowed more Italian soldiers to approach the enemy. Of course, in addition to that, the firepower of the support also came.

"Boom"

The sharp sound of mortar shells greatly boosted the morale of the Italian officers and soldiers, and although this curved artillery could not be aimed directly, it could follow the footsteps of the soldiers to launch support artillery attacks, which was of great help to them.

Not to mention that its rate of fire was fast, although the accuracy was not good, but with the dense fire coverage, the defending French army was a little careless, and while the defenders were suppressed, the Italian officers and soldiers also took the opportunity to pounce.

"The enemy is coming."

A French soldier on the defensive, when he saw the Italian soldier rushing at him, immediately shouted nervously.

"Woohoo"

With his shout, the defending French soldiers ignored the shells above their heads, and immediately raised their guns and continued to fire at the charging Italian troops.

The French opened fire and caused the Italian officers and soldiers to suffer a lot of casualties, but at this time they all understood that there was no way back, and any hesitation and retreat would cost them their lives, and the only way to survive was to rush into the position and get entangled with the French army.

Therefore, with the support of this spirit, the Italian officers and soldiers rushed forward in the face of casualties, and soon rushed to the front of the French position.

"Grenades!"

Both sides threw their grenades at each other, and then an explosion rang out, and many soldiers fell on both sides.

At this time, the grenade explosion covered the front of the position with a thick cloud of smoke and dust, and an Italian soldier rushed into the battlefield and fought the remaining French soldiers.

Hikaru took the lead and rushed into the position first.

"Kill!"

Holding a rifle with a bayonet, he stabbed the French soldier in front of him before he could react, and then picked up his rifle to knock out the defender who wanted to attack him. The rifle used to overforce the hand was also thrown away. At this time, several French soldiers who found him, armed with rifles equipped with bayonets, roared towards him.

Faced with this tense situation, Hicaru did not panic at all, he took out his purchased Browning pistol and opened fire.

"Smack, smack, smack"

Several gunshots in succession caused the French soldiers to fall, and their eyes were still unwilling.

At this time, other Italian officers and soldiers also rushed into the position, which made Hicaru breathe a sigh of relief, because he had run out of pistol bullets.

Picking up a rifle on the ground, Hicaru led his soldiers to continue to charge, intending to widen the gap and squeeze the space for the French.

The Italian army led by Hicaru was nothing more than an inconspicuous force on the battlefield. The whole city of Annecy was full of Italian officers and soldiers who launched attacks, and they fought fiercely with the French officers and soldiers defending the city.

Although the French officers and soldiers had a defensive advantage, the Italian army had a firepower advantage, and with the artillery, machine guns, mortars and other weapons outside the city, the Italian army was constantly encroaching on the French position.

In the face of the encroachment of the Italian army, the defending French army was of course unwilling, and its commander, Major General Søyer, organized two counterattacks in an attempt to stop the encroachment of the Italian army. However, the effect of the two counterattacks was not good, and the French army, which was detached from the protection of the position, did not have so much support firepower from the Italian army, and the result can be imagined, and the two counterattacks ended in a disastrous defeat.

At this time, the French army, in addition to continuing to hold on, could only ask for help. Unfortunately, Annecy was located in the northern part of the Savoy Mountains, and reinforcements had to pass through a small town called Aix-les-Bains, which was held by Cosenz himself with his 57th Division.

The two divisions reinforced by the French army did not have much to do in the face of the defense of the 57th Division, and the two sides fought back and forth around Aix-les-Bains. It is not known when reinforcements will have to wait until they will get there, at least as they are now.

The lack of reinforcements was also oppressed step by step, and the defenders in the city of Annecy were getting more and more difficult.

By the time the main forces of Army Group North were ready to attack Grenoble, the defenders of Annecy finally collapsed, and they were routed under the leadership of their commander, Major General Søyer, and fled all the way west.

And the capture of the city of Annecy also represented the completion of its mission by the 18th Army. Next, they just need to divide their forces and clean up the surrounding towns.

In addition, after learning of the fall of Annecy, the two reinforced French divisions had no motivation to attack. After a sudden counter-offensive by Cosenz, the two divisions retreated to Bele in the Rhône Valley. It was clear that after there was no way to prevent the Italian army from occupying Annecy, preventing it from breaking out of the mountains became the first priority.

However, just as the Italian army was about to make a big deal in the Savoy region, good news came from the north, the Germans had crossed the Marne and were advancing towards Paris.