Survive as a World War II Soldier - Chapter 142



Only Noblemtl

#142

“Running away is cowardly. You committed a crime? Then you should apologize and make amends.”

“compensation?”

Rommel was taken aback by the word compensation rather than forgiveness.

“Yes. Compensation. That way I can be forgiven.”

Rommel couldn’t help but laugh at the little girl’s question of “Don’t you know that, old man?” Rommel also knew well about the little girl who was MacArthur’s daughter.

How can I not know the name that appears in the newspaper articles every day?

I used to think I was just some poor little kid being used by my grandpa and dad in the White House, but now I see.

“What a reckless young lady.”

“Is that so?”

In fact, it was a semi-, if not completely impulsive action.

He must have had a little too much to drink, and he must have been a little young and didn’t know much. So I just let out a little bit of the anger inside him.

But the response to it was a masterpiece.

“My dad says that when something doesn’t go well, it’s because something is lacking.”

The little boy sighed as his eyes widened at the action of rubbing his thumb and index finger, then opened his mouth to add.

“Money, money.”

Surely you didn’t know what that action meant and just watched?

Now, for a thirteen-year-old kid, how capitalistic is she? I even thought to myself that she’s not called an American princess for nothing.

“But I don’t have money.”

It was half surprise, half joke that I was following the little boy’s words.

What on earth will that little kid say in response to his own words? It’s not really a proper solution, but something like that.

It was just an action taken out of frustration, wanting to grab onto even a shred of hope.

“You don’t have money?”

“Yeah. Where’s the money for a prisoner of war?”

Although he was kept under guard instead of being imprisoned in a concentration camp, the freedom he enjoyed was limited to the point where he could talk to a little kid like this.

The answer of the little boy who had been pondering for a moment was, as expected, a masterpiece.

“Then sell it. You can make money by selling anything. You’re famous, sir. Then you can sell that. Fame is an expensive thing.”

“Fame?”

“Yes. Just a thirteen-year-old boy visiting disabled veterans, saving up pocket money to donate, and writing letters.

So, with that money, we compensate those who made mistakes and did wrong. Apologies aren’t just about words.”

“Of course. Apologies come from the heart…”

“Ha. Why would someone who knows everything do that? Who apologizes with their heart? Not with money. They say the heart is invisible to the eyes. That’s why you have to be heavy-handed so that it can be seen with your eyes.”

It was a moment that made me genuinely curious about the MacArthur family’s home education.

Even though I am a citizen of a capitalist country, I briefly wonder if this is really okay.

The reckless little girl’s prescription struck a chord in Rommel’s heart.

“Don’t run away, and pay properly. Yes, that’s right.”

That was the moment when Erwin Rommel decided to sell himself.

##

Although she made the absurd remark that Rommel seemed somewhat lacking, Mary did not give me a proper explanation when I asked her why she thought that way.

just,

“It wasn’t because you were lacking that you lost to your father and became a prisoner, right?”

For a moment, I thought that I should point out that it was not me but Ridgeway who had captured Rommel.

I sighed as I realized that it was a roundabout way of saying that I would not say anything.

“Mary, do you dream of becoming a politician?”

“Isn’t that possible?”

I was taken aback by Mary’s wide-eyed response to my question.

“Aren’t you interested, Dad? I like the White House.”

“Everything requires accountability. The White House is not a place you can just walk into and live in.”

“I know. I’m not stupid. That’s why I write letters of condolence every day, go to the hospital and act cute in front of sick men, and donate the money I’ve saved up…”

I wonder if Mary felt like she was doing her best but that I wasn’t noticing. I could see her eyes turning red.

Looking at that···

“Come here.”

Since he’s still small, I hope he grows up brightly, seeing only good things and thinking only good thoughts.

It seemed like that wasn’t what the kid wanted.

But is the presidential seat a position worth challenging to grant a daughter’s wish?

“Do you want this father to suffer more than he does now?”

“Didn’t Grandpa say that Dad pushed him into that position?”

“what?”

“And now I see that Dad is just as lacking as that old man. Dad is an idiot, a fool, a sea cucumber, a sea squirt, a sea squirt.”

“what!!”

How are Rommel and I on the same level? I’m far superior.

I couldn’t help but frown at Mary’s appearance as she turned her head away and ran away.

##

Obviously, the reason I came to Washington was to attend the ceremony to receive the rank of Marshal and for the Christmas vacation···.

“Why aren’t there any days off?”

“You can sleep until you’re dead, so go to work, little brother. Don’t talk nonsense. After you’ve checked everything, give me your opinion.”

That fucking bastard kidnapped me to his office because he felt sorry for his little brother who just came back from the battlefield.

Well, it’s not that I didn’t understand.

It wasn’t to the extent that the Navy and Army planted spies in each other like the Japanese, but we weren’t on very good terms either.

In Europe, the army was the main force and the navy played a supporting role, but in the Pacific, the situation was different.

In a battle that takes place against the backdrop of a vast ocean and scattered islands, the main character is undoubtedly the Navy.

The problem, however, was that the war could not be ended solely by the navy.

As a result, there was considerable invisible friction between the Navy and the Army on the Pacific side.

So, the position that was created was the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, which Arthur III is currently holding.

There was some discontent expressed in some parts of the army.

“So how could you lose it to those seals?”

“Then is there anyone suitable?”

It’s not that there weren’t any people mentioned when asking if there were any people in the Army who would be okay standing on Nana King’s head.

“Mitchell···.”

“Are you crazy?”

Before I could even finish speaking, someone next to me pinched my waist harshly.

Mitchell’s health is good, but I don’t think the Navy guys will stay still.

In contrast, the Navy had Lee Hee in addition to Hyung. In the original history, Lee Hee became the first Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

And given the situation in the Pacific, the seals, and especially the King’s temper, there was no one quite like Arthur III.

The title of my older brother would probably work in the army too. Above all, it was because everyone, including me, recognized that Arthur III was a capable person.

And as expected, Arthur III has been leading the Pacific theater for the past six months, successfully mediating the strife between the army and navy.

Just as my intervention in Europe changed the course of the war and even the dynamics of the nations, many things also changed on the Pacific front.

Wake Island was one of them.

Throughout history, the US military has never attempted to recapture Wake Island.

The first reason was that it was located far from the main attack in the US military’s frog-hopping counteroffensive, and the second reason was that Wake Island’s defenses were too strong.

The Japanese forces that occupied Wake Island focused on fortifying the island, and the American military judged that it would be better to quickly advance to the Japanese mainland and accept its surrender rather than trying to recapture all of the islands.

However, there were things that were not taken into consideration when making such a judgment.

“It is said that there are still technicians working as prisoners on Wake Island.”

“I don’t know how long he’ll survive, but we have to save him.”

It was the existence of prisoners captured by the Japanese military.

The shock of Pearl Harbor was so great, and the subsequent war so difficult, that the care of American and civilian prisoners of war on islands occupied by the Japanese in the early days of the Pacific War had to be a secondary priority.

“If we are only considering strategic value, it might be better to occupy Kwajalein in the Marshall Islands rather than Wake Island and then go to Saipan and Guam.”

“But in that case, the prisoners of Wake Island must be given up.”

And this time, King made a different judgment from the original history.

“Recapture Wake Island and go to Guam.”

It was not simply the presence of prisoners that made such a judgment possible.

The Battle of Midway has disappeared.

The Battle of Midway, which occurred immediately following the Battle of the Coral Sea in naval history, was the starting point of the downfall of the Japanese navy.

However, the situation changed completely when we destroyed Yamato in the Battle of the Coral Sea.

“It will take more than half a year for Yamato to go out to sea again?”

“Ha. How on earth did Yamato end up like that?”

“Is Yamato the only thing that was lost? The Soryu, whose deck was blown away, will be repaired in a couple of months, but Hiryu and Shokaku···.”

The Japanese Army blamed the Navy for the failure of their mission to Australia.

“The southern operation was disrupted by an incompetent navy.”

“Yes, we need to conquer Port Moresby to get to Australia, but how are we going to do that?”

“The army’s elite soldiers are stranded in Rabaul.”

And there was a reason why the Japanese army rose up like wildfire and tore at the navy.

The first was that the goals for which the Southern Operation was initially launched were not being properly achieved.

“Damn it, Luzon. Fucking Luzon is the problem.”

“In the end, wasn’t it all because of the incompetence of the Navy guys?”

The Navy’s strategy of attacking islands along the Pacific coast while leaving difficult-to-attain islands like Luzon aside was very successful at the time.

With the subsequent great victory in the Battle of Guam, didn’t Admiral Yamamoto grow into a major figure that even Tojo would find difficult to manipulate?

But none of the Navy’s assurances about Luzon came true.

“Didn’t you say that you would die of thirst in a year?”

It might have been enough to surround and block supplies for a small island like Wake Island that was not self-sufficient, but Luzon was different.

First of all, it was an island where farming was possible. Moreover, the blockade of Luzon was not as perfect as the Japanese Navy had promised.

A bigger problem was Luzon’s air power.

What on earth were the American soldiers thinking, piling up aircraft on that island? And the submarines of the American fleet stationed in the Philippines…

“Supplies aren’t arriving properly from the south due to their attacks.”

“Chicksho. There was no attack on the fleet last time.”

Not all supply ships were attacked, and not all of those that were attacked were sunk.

“You want every supply convoy to have an escort fleet? Are you kidding me?”

“Is it any joke that the military factories are at a standstill because the resources are not coming in on time?”

“shit.”

The Japanese Navy’s power and scope of activity in the Pacific were bound to diminish further.

Moreover, relations with the Japanese Army, which took issue with every disruption in supplies, were worsening.

And the situation for the Japanese army was not good either.

It was good that Burma had been conquered, but the aftereffects of conquering too much territory in too short a time were beginning to hit.

“Local guerrillas are on the rise in the Indochina Peninsula?”

“Yes. That is···.”

The judgment of Imperial General Headquarters, including Tojo, was that by cutting off the Burma Road, the supply route connecting India and Chongqing, the Chinese military’s resistance would also be weakened.

In fact, the Chinese army lost its momentum immediately after occupying Burma as supplies were cut off. However, while China was losing momentum, authors who were harassing them appeared on the other side.

“Ho Chi Minh?”

“Yes. It seems like they are receiving support from the US military.”

“Does that make sense? That bastard is a communist.”

It wasn’t just Indochina. Guerrillas were spreading like wildfire throughout the occupied territories.

The ambitious landing on Luzon Island also hindered them.

When the Army successfully landed and established a beachhead on the northern part of Luzon Island, it thought it would soon take control of Luzon.

But that was a mistake.

“How many more soldiers do we have to cram onto that tiny island?”

“that is···”

There was talk in some quarters that the successful landing itself was a ruse by the US and Filipino forces to attract the Japanese.

Finally, and most seriously, was Joseon.

“Fuck”

“That’s why I said there was no need to treat the Joseon people well.”

In any case, the Battle of the Coral Sea was a ray of hope for the Japanese army, which was panicking in a situation where a bomb would explode instead of a fire at their feet.

If it were a normal greeting, they would feel sorry that their own fleet was defeated and would take off their shoes and step forward to find a solution, but that is not likely to happen.

For Japanese military personnel, the Navy’s defeat was an excellent opportunity to shift blame for their own failures and incompetence.

“All these troubles are the fault of those seals.”

“Because they didn’t provide supplies on time, the armies in various places were having a hard time.”

“They kept talking big about blockading Luzon, but there were holes all over it.”

“All this happened because we failed to drive the US Navy out of the Pacific.”

Given these circumstances, there’s no way a story like the Midway invasion, like the original story, would work.

That’s how the Battle of Midway came to naught.

As a result, the Pacific Fleet was freed up to attempt to recapture Wake Island and rescue the prisoners there.

And the recapture of Wake Island wasn’t that difficult.

It is 3,000 km from Wake Island to mainland Japan, 2,000 km from Saipan, and over 1,000 km from the Marshall Islands, which are relatively close.

Of course, distribution was not easy.

No, to begin with, it was difficult to maintain the supply line from the south to the mainland, so it was a mess, so how could Wake Island have been considered?

As a result, Wake Island, unlike its original history, was not properly fortified and easily fell into the hands of our navy.

And the first thing we did as soon as we recaptured the island was, of course, to repair the airfield.

“If we can just burn down the airfields in the Marshall Islands, there’s no need to occupy them.”

“Next up is Guam and Saipan.”

While the Pacific Fleet moved toward Guam and Saipan, the Army did not sit idly by.

That was how Arthur’s ordeal began.

You can do both.