Survive as a World War II Soldier - Chapter 138



Only Noblemtl

#138

“Distribution?”

“Yes. We are procuring food locally, but it seems like fuel and ammunition are difficult.”

After capturing Marseilles faster and easier than expected, McNair was doing his best to keep up with the mad dash of Patton and de Gaulle and provide supplies.

The problem was that even the capable McNair was somewhat lacking in keeping up with the crazy guys.

They say they left the occupied territory to defend,

“What kind of defense force is this? They’re stragglers.”

To be honest, the reason they were able to advance so quickly to Lyon was not because the Germans were incompetent, but because they were so normal.

No one would have thought that there would be crazy people who would ignore the supply and just run straight ahead.

“How incompetent must those guys be that they couldn’t even tell me that they lost!!!”

“It can’t be just them, there must be a follow-up force behind them.”

As a result of a judgment based on common sense, the German army gave up fighting and surrendered.

In particular, there were those who helped them make quick decisions, namely, the local resistance fighters.

Southern France, which was under Vichy France’s sphere of influence until the end, had more and stronger resistance groups than other regions.

“The resistance uprising is fierce.”

“There is no hope like this. We should retreat quickly…”

The Germans didn’t know it, but in terms of infantry numbers, the local resistance fighters far outnumbered Patton and de Gaulle.

Anyway, thanks to this, Patton and de Gaulle were able to push all the way to Lyon without being blocked and without even a proper battle.

And the follow-up units, especially the supply units, were on the verge of death.

“This is a telegram from Lieutenant General Patton.”

McNair frowned as he glared at the paper the adjutant handed him.

“Isn’t that the same thing you said yesterday? You want me to hurry up and hand over the supplies?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“Then clean it up.”

McNair waved his hand, asking what he was reading, even though he knew what it was saying without looking. However, when the adjutant hesitated at his gesture and continued to stand, McNair asked in an irritated voice.

“Why? What else is there?”

“Yes, that is···.’

The moment I spoke, I knew that a roar would burst out of McNair’s mouth, but I couldn’t help it.

And of course.

“Hey, hey. You crazy bastard!!!”

Patton, who arrived in Lyon, was throwing a tantrum, demanding that supplies be provided as soon as possible, as he was about to start fighting.

-If the soldiers are not doing well, they can boil leather belts and eat them, but the tanks won’t eat anything but oil. The commander told us to go to Paris quickly, but would we use it if we’re held back by supplies? If it’s difficult to resolve the situation, ask the commander, and he’ll definitely give you a good solution. –

“If it’s difficult, ask the commander? Are you saying that I’m being nagged at now because I’m incompetent? These guys are really···”

That’s right.

Patton’s words were literally intended to ask MacArthur for a solution to this dilemma, but they were enough to be interpreted differently by McNair and his subordinates.

“Hey, you little shits. Do I have to listen to this kind of stuff?”

“no.”

“Let’s do our best, let’s do our best.”

Naturally, McNair’s anger seeped down his spine.

At the same time, stocks of headache and stomach medicine in the supply rations were rapidly dwindling.

And the remedy worked.

“Wow. The true capabilities of the US military are beyond my imagination.”

Patton grinned and stuck his stomach out at de Gaulle’s exclamation.

“You don’t trust us, do you? This is nothing to us American soldiers.”

Of course, deep down I was thinking differently.

‘As expected, senior. I believed in you.’

##

At that time, London.

“There’s a problem.”

“Again? Patton requested supplies, and McNair handled them without a problem?”

I heard from both sides that the supply was difficult because the advance was too fast, even if it was faster than expected. Patton and McNair were in chaos.

And objectively, it wasn’t because McNair was incompetent, so he was thinking of sending orders to Patton to moderate his pace.

But then came the unexpected: McNair’s reaction.

“I will distribute it no matter what. So please trust me and wait for me.”

How can I tell you that it’s okay and to take it slow when you’re doing this so slowly?

In the end, I had no choice but to answer that I would believe it. And indeed, McNair and his officers did.

I later heard that the drivers not only injected stimulants into the trucks, but also took turns driving them 24 hours a day.

I, as well as others, could not help but be amazed by the story of how he spread the word with absolute evil.

But, there’s another problem.

“Patton and De Gaulle are advancing too fast. I don’t know if I can keep up with my Black Orchestra friends.”

“Oh, there were those.”

So, even within us, we had different opinions about contacting the Black Orchestra ahead of Paris.

The State Department was delighted when they heard my story.

“Assassinating Hitler? If it succeeds, wouldn’t the war end immediately?”

“Yeah, but is this really possible?”

Some expressed their concerns, from the possibility of success to the potential problems that could arise if such contacts were discovered by other countries.

“Britain is British, but if the Soviet Union finds out, there will be chaos.”

“Yes. You broke the promise you made at the Casablanca conference…”

Of course, such opinions were only a minority. After all, aren’t promises between countries always meant to be broken? And what’s more important than anything else is our American interests.

“Isn’t the purpose of the Casablanca Treaty ultimately to push Germany forward without compromise?”

“That’s right. We’re not joining hands with Hitler!”

As a result, the State Department actively approached the Black Orchestra and achieved the desired results.

The one who was of great help in this process was Rommel.

To ensure the safety of his family remaining in Germany, the news of Rommel’s survival was kept a secret.

“I don’t have any connection to the Black Orchestra, but I do know a few people who are definitely part of it.”

Contrary to his reputation for being on bad terms with the Junker generals, Rommel had quite a personal relationship with some of them.

“They have been secretly asking for my conversion in the past, so if they know of my existence, it will be a great help in gaining their trust.”

Rommel seemed quite excited about joining hands with the Black Orchestra to plot the assassination of Hitler.

Well, the State Department was similar.

“Wouldn’t it be the best if you could just succeed?”

“Well, that’s true.”

Bradley and others’ eyes narrowed at my indifferent words.

“no way···.”

When asked if I thought I would fail, I snickered and asked back.

“Do you think you will succeed?”

“yes?”

“That’s it···.”

I clicked my tongue at the answer that he was not sure, but that he hoped for success.

“Everyone should return one star that’s hanging there. If you get out of there, that’s great. But shouldn’t you be prepared for the worst, when you fail, not when you succeed?”

Everyone nodded their heads in confusion when I said that it is basic to always prepare for the worst.

“But since the Commander says so, the chances of success feel quite low.”

So, in fact, I know the outcome, don’t I?

In addition to Operation Valkyrie, which was so famous that it was even made into a movie, there were dozens of assassination attempts, and not a single one was successful.

Even that is only what is known, and some say that the number may be over a hundred.

Of course, there were many parts that were different from the history I knew. As a result, it was possible that the butterfly effect that occurred led to the successful assassination of Hitler.

However, based on my experience so far, I would advise against expecting such things unless I specifically intervene. So,

“What about you? Do you think you’ll succeed?”

“no.”

Everyone answered my question with dark faces.

“And you’re only causing trouble for me?”

“No, I think I would do it if the Commander said it would be successful.”

“Huh, am I some kind of prophet? Stop talking nonsense and let’s do the math again.”

In the first place, it was not Hitler’s death that the State Department was trying to get in touch with and obtain through the Black Orchestra.

“The chaos that would result from an assassination was our goal, wasn’t it?”

“Yes. It could take at least one day, or as long as three days, and our goal was to negotiate with the authors in Paris during that time.”

Paris was different from Marseille.

Marseille is not a meaningless city, but how can it be compared to Paris?

As long as Hitler was holding on, it was absolutely impossible to take Paris back. In the original history, Hitler had said that if Paris could not be saved, it should be reduced to ashes.

It was then that the famous phrase, “Is Paris burning?” came about.

Of course, even then, in order to save his men, Dietrich von Choltitz, the commander of the Paris garrison, negotiated and decided to hand over Paris to the French resistance and withdraw. Thanks to this, he earned the nickname of the Savior of Paris, and although he was later captured, he avoided being tried for war crimes, unlike other officers.

But only after I set my sights on Paris did I learn that Choltitz was not yet the governor of Paris. Because of my intervention, Normandy had started early, and Choltitz had not yet arrived in Paris, but was fighting hard with our army in Normandy.

That’s why I joined hands with the Black Orchestra.

Because the two cousins ​​currently in charge of Paris, Otto von Stulpnagel and Carl Heinrich von Stulpnagel, were both members of the Black Orchestra.

Among them, Karl Heinrich had a particularly deep relationship with Rommel.

“The problem is that there is a good chance that we will arrive in front of Paris before their operation in Germany even begins.”

“If this happens, Hitler will definitely not stay still.”

“If we make a mistake, the elite forces gathered in Normandy may move.”

“Hmm. If this is the case, we will eventually need to cooperate with those in Normandy.”

As expected, Tommy came running after hearing the news.

“Paris. Our troops are in Normandy right now…”

“It seems a lot different from the objectives of the Dragoon Operation that I first heard about.”

Churchill and Montgomery, who had been attacking each other as if they were going to kill each other until recently, have now teamed up to protest to us.

The main objection was that the purpose of the Dragoon Operation was to diversify the Allied supply routes, so why was the target changed to Paris?

however,

“Wouldn’t it be possible to supply supplies only after occupying Paris and securing control over French territory?”

“If we just unload in Marseille, will the goods just be transported here?”

“We also need to use the railways, roads, and other infrastructure. Is that just going to happen?”

“And didn’t our commotion in the south take some of the pressure off Normandy?”

The Tommy guys had to protest back and get verbal back.

“We’ve finally taken Caen… When are we going to go to Berlin?”

Then this time the British bastards attacked from a different direction.

“I heard you made contact with the Germans···.”

“Isn’t this a breach of promise? If the Soviets find out….”

It was the other side that responded with the mean-spirited threats to give us something to shut us up before the Soviets found out and started a fuss.

“Oh, that’s it. We did it, what’s the problem?”

“What, what?”

“We didn’t even include you back then!”

So, the leaders who met in Casablanca, talked and made promises, and those were the US, the UK, the Soviet Union, and those guys who listened to you, right?

Back then, we French guys were beggars and we passed them over because they didn’t listen to us or anything.

“So we don’t remember agreeing to that promise you made?”

Churchill was at a loss for words in response to the French bastards’ venomous reply that they would do anything they could to get Paris.

So while I was keeping the British guys quiet, Patton and De Gaulle were keeping the Germans quiet.

Although they were supplied, it would not be an exaggeration to say that they were barely able to repel the German forces in Lyon, thanks to the enthusiastic cooperation of the local resistance fighters.

As there were many resistance fighters in Lyon, the German military’s oppression was also severe.

No wonder the Gestapo chief of Lyon, Nikolaus Barbie, was called the ‘Butcher of Lyon’.

“The Free French Forces are here.”

“The US armored unit is right in front of us.”

“Then we can’t just sit still either.”

“Saying the obvious. Let’s kick those Jerry guys out right now.”

“Wow!!!”

“Let’s get our freedom back!”

Originally, Lyon was a city with a deep-rooted spirit of resistance, to the point that in the 19th century, textile workers staged large-scale riots against exploitation and oppression by the government and companies.

When news of Patton and de Gaulle’s arrival nearby came, not only the resistance but also ordinary citizens joined in, causing large-scale riots, and the German army could no longer hold out.

No, it didn’t look like he had any intention of holding on.

“Even if we stay here, there’s no way we can defeat those American soldiers.”

“Wouldn’t it be better to retreat under the pretext of a riot?”

“That’s right. Why would I have to die here?”

“Let’s go to Dijon.”

The German army had no reason or mission to risk its life to defend Lyon. Therefore, Patton and de Gaulle were able to easily take Lyon.

And finally, de Gaulle was able to achieve his long-cherished dream by participating in Operation Dragoon.

“Take up your weapons, citizens!

Get in line! Forward, forward!

“Let us wet our furrows with their dirty blood!”

“Forward, forward!”

“Let us wet our furrows with the blood of the Germans!”

“Let’s get wet!”

De Gaulle, who entered the city of Lyon following the endless procession of tricolor flags and the loud chanting of La Marseillaise by countless people, was the true leader of France.

Meeting the mayor in the square of Lyon, de Gaulle shook his hand and praised the citizens of Lyon.

“Lyon is definitely the capital of the resistance.”

“Wow!!!”

“De Gaulle, de Gaulle.”

“Viva France!!”

De Gaulle responded to the cheers of the people by waving his hands high and raised his voice once again.

“It is time to give Paris back its freedom. Let’s all go to Paris!”

“Let’s go to Paris!”

“Let’s drive out the Germans.”

“Viva France!”

In an instant, the Free French forces swelled several times in number.

And when McNair and his subordinate officers heard this news, they also increased their dosages of stomach medicine and headache medicine.

“Damn, how many times has your mouth grown?”

Lamentations erupted here and there, saying that even pouring water into a bottomless pit would be better than this.

“But I can never lose. I can’t lose to that bastard Patton!”

McNair, with his blazing eyes and gnashing teeth, seemed to be fighting a different opponent than us.

One person underground, ten thousand people above ground