In the wargaming room today, mountains, rivers, towns, and roads were arranged on the massive sand table according to the preset battlefield environment.
Morin and the other students of the same grade at the War College were divided into Red and Blue sides to simulate a Division-level confrontation.
Four students with the longest service records were designated by the instructor as the overall commanders, each commanding one division’s worth of troops.
Morin and the other students played the roles of various subordinate units under these ‘Division Commanders.’
As a Battalion Commander, Morin was ultimately assigned four wooden unit markers representing company-level combat units.
With a command from the wargame instructor, the exercise officially began.
The ‘Division Commanders’ of both sides quickly formulated their operational plans based on the map and the preset intelligence.
On the sand table, the Red and Blue unit markers began to maneuver slowly toward the predetermined battlefield.
The initial phases of reconnaissance, maneuver, and contact were all perfectly by-the-book, following the standard procedure taught in the War College textbooks.
The forward units of both sides met in a river valley in the center of the map, and a small-scale firefight immediately erupted.
Just as everyone expected a traditional, head-on confrontation where the main forces would line up and clash directly.
Morin, who had been holding his forces in reserve, finally began to move.
While his own ‘Division Commander’ was still hesitant about committing all main forces to the frontal battle, Morin volunteered to lead his battalion in a bold, wide flanking maneuver and surprise attack from the flank of the entire Division-level front.
After receiving permission from the ‘Division Commander,’ he directed the four company unit markers representing his battalion to detach from the main line, disappearing into a dense forest on the flank of the sand table.
He did not rush for quick results. Instead, he patiently commanded one of his companies, meticulously probing the enemy’s defensive deployment, with the instructor verifying his actions each time.
Soon, he keenly spotted a weak point located at the junction of the enemy’s line.
It was an area jointly defended by two of the enemy’s battalion-sized units, but a small gap had appeared in the defensive line.
“A perfect spot…”
Morin confirmed the terrain and acted without hesitation, meticulously dividing his four companies for specific missions.
One company would serve as the frontal assault unit, launching a feint attack to draw the enemy’s attention.
One company would serve as the flanking assault unit. While the enemy’s attention was diverted, this company would strike through the gap.
One company would serve as the deep penetration unit, following closely behind the flanking assault unit, driving deep into the enemy’s rear along the breach.
The final company would serve as the reserve, ready to provide support or block any potential enemy reinforcements.
“Captain Morin, what are you doing?”
The ‘Division Commander’ responsible for his sector, a Captain with a small mustache, frowned and asked.
“According to the drill manual, a battalion-sized unit must maintain its integrity during operations! Splitting your force like this will severely weaken your combat effectiveness!”
Morin didn’t look up, only answering calmly: “Sir, please trust my judgment.”
The next moment, the pointer in his hand moved.
On the sand table, the unit markers representing Morin’s forces began to move in a dizzying display of high-speed infiltration and maneuver.
Some of his commands even left the instructors directing and adjudicating the exercise struggling to keep up.
No sooner had the frontal assault unit made contact with the enemy than the flanking assault unit had silently pierced the enemy’s junction and was attacking the enemy battalion headquarters from the rear flank.
Simultaneously, his deep penetration unit had already charged into the enemy’s rear area, immediately consolidating and constructing hasty blocking positions on the spot, firmly cutting off the enemy battalion’s line of retreat.
After this smooth sequence of operations, the battalion designated as the attack target instantly fell into a chaotic state of being cut off, surrounded, and command failure on the sand table.
However, at this point, several students representing the enemy commanders collectively protested.
“Instructor, I object! His unit couldn’t possibly achieve this!”
A student playing the role of the enemy Battalion Commander stood up excitedly.
“It is simply unrealistic to complete such complex infiltration and deployment in such a short time! His unit would collapse from command confusion alone!”
“Exactly!” another student agreed. “Furthermore, my unit would immediately organize a counterattack upon discovering a breach in the flank, not just sit there and wait to be destroyed!”
The instructor leading the exercise also frowned.
He had to admit that Morin’s tactics were somewhat unconventional.
They were entirely outside the scope of the College curriculum, resembling more of an idealized assault doctrine that existed only in theory.
All eyes in the room instantly fixed on Morin.
Facing the skepticism of the crowd, Morin remained unusually calm.
He merely looked up, slowly scanned the room, and began to speak in a tone that simply stated a fact.
“Gentlemen, my command structure here is not mere theorizing.”
“Because in the Kingdom of Aragon, not long ago, the company I commanded, using similar infiltration tactics, cooperated with allied forces to successively defeat multiple regimental-sized units of the Kingdom Army and the Britannian Expeditionary Force.”
“We ultimately pursued them, captured the Vallecas Heights, and advanced to the gates of Madrid.”
At this statement, the entire wargaming room fell into a complete dead silence.
Many of the students playing the enemy commanders wanted to refute him…
But what could they use to refute him?
He wasn’t talking about some vague theory but recounting real combat experience that was fresh and still raw.
The First Class Iron Cross gleaming on his chest was the strongest evidence.
Just as the atmosphere became tense, an old but strong voice suddenly sounded from behind them.
“Let him continue.”
Everyone turned to see the Vice-President of the College, General Horndorff, standing by the sand table.
The old General’s face was unreadable. He simply looked at Morin and said calmly.
“Captain Morin, continue the simulation based on your actual combat experience.”
“Furthermore, order the other units on your side to fully cooperate with his actions.”
With the Vice-President’s endorsement, the simulation continued.
The subsequent development of the situation turned entirely into a textbook case of dissection and annihilation, orchestrated by Morin.
Under his direction, his assigned battalion acted like a sharp surgical knife, precisely slicing through the enemy’s defense line.
The nearest ‘Battalion Commander’ on the Red team, after a brief shock, immediately understood.
He stopped being bound by frontal defense doctrine and decisively ordered his troops to press forward, further expanding the breach Morin had opened.
The defending Blue side students were caught completely off guard.
They frantically pulled troops from other directions, attempting to plug the widening hole.
However, the result of patching one leak by creating another was that more vulnerabilities and gaps appeared in other sectors of their defense line.
These new gaps were quickly spotted and aggressively exploited by the other Red team students, whose courage had now been bolstered.
In an instant, the Blue team’s front line on the sand table became like a dam hollowed out by termites.
Be prepared on the front, and the rear will be weak. Be prepared on the left, and the right will be weak. If you are prepared everywhere, you will be weak everywhere.
Before long, the Blue team’s first division was adjudicated by the exercise instructor to be ‘annihilated’ in the ensuing confusion of repeated infiltration, division, and encirclement.
With the first division’s forces removed from the sand table, the balance of power was completely broken.
The remaining Blue team division was powerless against the superior and high-spirited Red team.
Especially after Morin repeated his tactic, leading several allied units on yet another impossible route to infiltrate and divide the enemy, the outcome of the exercise was no longer in doubt.
When the instructor announced the final victory for the Red team, the entire wargaming room was silent.
Whether the students of the victorious Red team, the defeated Blue team, or the instructors leading the exercise, all were deep in thought.
The fighting style Morin demonstrated was fundamentally different from the traditional, honorable, head-on clashes they were accustomed to.
It was more flexible, more lethal, and much less conventional.
After the wargaming exercise, Morin was taken by General Horndorff alone to his office on the top floor of the College’s administrative building.
The office had a subdued style. Outside the massive floor-to-ceiling windows, one could overlook the entire War College campus.
The old General did not speak immediately. Morin, after observing the room, went to the small service area and poured a cup of hot coffee.
General Horndorff smiled faintly as Morin brought the coffee to him. He then shook his head and gestured to the sofa by the window, indicating for Morin to sit down.
“Captain Morin, I finally understand why His Imperial Highness the Crown Prince and the War Office value you so highly, even going against convention to force you into the War College.”
General Horndorff held his teacup, looking out at the students training on the parade ground, his voice tinged with emotion.
“What you demonstrated on the sand table likely exceeds the comprehension of most Imperial Army officers.”
“And it is truly not armchair theorizing. It is valuable experience gained with blood and lives on the Aragon battlefield.”
Faced with the old General’s praise, Morin’s expression remained unchanged.
After a moment, he stood up and walked to General Horndorff’s side, expressing his concerns with a serious demeanor.
“General, begging your pardon, it is precisely because of this that I feel even more worried.”
“Through my studies here, I have realized that not just the War College, but the majority of our Imperial Army officers are mentally trapped in the glory of the Saxo-Gaulish War.”
“This rigid thinking will cost us dearly if we encounter a stronger enemy on the battlefield in the future.”
Morin paused, summoning his courage to speak more pointedly.
“Regarding the classic combat examples you advocate in the ‘Imperial Military Tradition’ course… respectfully, they bear a very large difference from the combat I experienced in the Kingdom of Aragon.”
The unstated implication was clear.
The methods you are teaching are already somewhat outdated.
(End of this Chapter)