"You're saying that this helmet can greatly reduce the number of casualties?"
Bolonik was rather dissatisfied with the uniform changes Claude was in charge of. The way he saw it, changing the red uniform to a dull, brownish-grey one was a disservice to soldiers.
Bolonik was used to wearing the bright red uniform of Aueras, so he was a little conflicted about the new color.
Claude didn't have any good ideas either. There weren't that many fabrics to choose from. Fine linen in summer, wool in winter, and a mix of spring and autumn. Those were the only two he could choose from.
He wanted to dye it in olive green, which he was most familiar with, but he didn't have that color. In the end, he could only reluctantly settle on a brownish grey.
Compared to the original bright red military uniforms, it was as if the guards of honor at the entrance of the palace had suddenly become armed guards hired by the local tycoon in the countryside.
Fortunately, he had the style to make up for the lack of color. He used the uniform of the German SS during the second world war as a reference. It was one of the two uniforms that he felt were the most aesthetically pleasing to the eye and was widely acknowledged by the netizens in his past life.
The other was the country's military uniform from his past life. That was one of his biggest regrets in his past life. He always thought he should've signed up for the army during his first year of university, but he didn't take the chance.
Claude didn't really mind Bolonik's dissatisfaction. A soldier who had been through life and death on the battlefield didn't care about how pretty their uniforms were. What mattered most was that they could reduce the number of casualties.
At the very least, the brownish-gray military uniform would not be as conspicuous as the bright red military uniform on the battlefield, making it a good target for the enemy.
It was a pity that he couldn't make camouflage clothes, but he could make ghillie suits out of various cloth strips for snipers.
Now that Claude was going to change his military cap to a grey helmet, Bolonik found it even more unsightly. Wasn't he wearing a tortoise shell into battle?
To be honest, this helmet really did look like a tortoise shell …
"This is a helmet only worn during wartime. You can still wear a military cap during normal times."
As for whether or not it can greatly reduce casualties, we'll just have to test it out in actual combat to see if it works. "
As a result, the high ranking officers of the military command moved to Lanhu City's military industrial field, where there were ready-made trenches and ammunition testing grounds.
A dozen or so wooden men were dressed in military uniforms and helmets and placed in the trench, with only their helmeted skulls exposed.
The first to start was the firing of muskets. They didn't use the new rifles they had just been equipped with, but the Aubass 3 standard matchlock.
A platoon of soldiers stood a hundred meters away from each other and fired three rounds of shots. Then, the soldiers ran over and carried the ten or so wooden men from the trench to the generals.
The facts were right in front of them. Except for the three wooden men who were hit in the face and were judged to have died on the spot, the rest of the wooden men only had scratches on their steel helmets. None of the bullets could penetrate the steel helmets, not even a small dent was left.
In this era where people were used to using lead as guns, steel helmets were indeed their nemesis …
Bolonik used his finger to rub the bullet marks on his helmet. They could see that the bullets had brushed off the helmet and rubbed away the greyish-brown paint on it.
So, Bolonik had an idea and ordered the soldiers to put one of the wooden men back in the trench while he tried shooting with the new rifle himself.
Bolonik quickly emptied his magazine. His marksmanship wasn't bad and he was able to hit targets a hundred meters away.
After six shots, the soldiers brought the wooden target back and reported that two of the six bullets had grazed the helmet, while the other one had grazed the helmet and left a long mark.
The remaining three bullets hit the front of the helmet and left three small dents, but they still didn't penetrate the helmet.
"Looks like you're right. This thing may look ugly, but it's very effective. It can indeed save our soldiers' lives on the battlefield." General Bolonik maintained the straightforward demeanor of a soldier and spoke the truth.
"Don't be hasty. We haven't tested the effects of the grenade yet."
Claude ordered the soldiers to put the wooden men back in the trench and put on their helmets. Then, he ordered the grenade to fire three rapid rounds.
It was a squad of four grenade throwers. The three rapid rounds meant that they had to throw three rounds at the trench in the shortest amount of time possible, for a total of twelve grenades.
After the deafening explosion, the soldiers went forward to retrieve the broken wooden men from the trench.
This time, the dozen or so wooden men looked more dilapidated. Three or four of them were missing arms and legs, and the military uniforms they wore were also torn by the shrapnel from the explosion, leaving behind many cracks.
Based on these cracks, it could be concluded that under such a ferocious attack, at least half of the Wooden Men's team was killed or injured.
What surprised the senior officers of the military command was that the heads of all the wooden puppets were still intact. Traces of shrapnel could be seen on the steel helmets that had been taken off. The most obvious example was a thumb-sized shrapnel stuck in one of the steel helmets. Although the shrapnel had penetrated the steel helmet, it had only penetrated less than a centimeter into the interior of the helmet.
If a soldier was really hit by such a projectile, then the wound on his head would only be a minor injury. At most, his scalp would bleed a little.
Bolonik weighed the helmet in his hand. "This thing doesn't seem to be that heavy. Claude, have you thought of using this to make some breastplates? That way, our light cavalry will have better protection during raids."
"Huh?" Claude was taken aback. "I … I've never thought about that …"
General Eiblont chimed in from the side, "That is indeed a good idea. Although our Thundercrash regiment is mounted infantry, focusing on mobility and concentrated firepower to attack and defend, we will occasionally use light cavalry to assault.
With this breastplate made of steel plates, it will definitely be able to provide a good defense against gunfire when we break into the enemy's large group. "
It wasn't that cavalry breastplates had never appeared in the kingdom before, but the breastplates in the early days were all made of thick iron plates. If it was too thin, it wouldn't be able to block the bullets fired from a flintlock. If it was too thick, it would be too heavy, reducing the flexibility and mobility of the cavalry. Even when dismounting from a horse, it would become a heavy burden.
Using specially made iron to make breastplates would be too costly, so the kingdom stopped making cavalry breastplates in the end.
General Bolonik nodded. "I estimate that this breastplate is at most four to five kilograms. This weight won't affect the agility of our soldiers. We can try it out first. If it's suitable, the Monolith Army can also equip breastplates. This way, we'll have a lot of advantages when we attack and fight with bayonets …"
Claude scratched his head. He had a feeling that he would end up with a scene of fully-armored soldiers charging into enemy lines with bayonets.
After some thought, he said, "Mister Weyblon will be in charge of that. Ask him if it's possible. The most important thing is how many of these special steel plates we can produce. I'm going to place an order for 200,000 helmets."
Bolonik waved Weyblon over and said, "It's fine. Let's make some helmets first and try making some breastplates. Let's see if they'll be a burden for our soldiers and if they'll be effective in actual combat."
In the middle of the 3rd month of Year 599 of the Sacred Light Calendar, a shocking piece of news arrived.
Shiks had declared war on Aueras on behalf of the eastern nations of Freia. In other words, Shiks, Nasri, Canas, Sidins, and Rimodra had all declared war on Aueras at the same time. It was the second time the flames of war had been ignited in the eastern region of Freia. However, no one knew if the war would last another five years.
The first five-year war was fought by Aueras against Nasri, Canas, Sidins, Rimodra and Askilin, forming an alliance against Aueras.
At that time, Aueras was powerful and the wealth they had accumulated over the past two decades gave the kingdom's soldiers great confidence. They weren't afraid to take on the five of them alone. The outcome of the war proved that.
While it was a pyrrhic victory, they were still the victors.
Now, Shiks had replaced Askilin. The one with the upper hand was the eastern alliance of Freia.
The addition of Shiks boosted the military prowess of the four nations even more.
Shiks had been utterly humiliated by the two corps of the autonomous region during the colonial war on Nubissia and became a laughing stock in the eyes of the other nations.
However, it was undeniable that Shiks was still a powerful regional power on Freia. Their military might wasn't to be underestimated.
The current Aueras was in its weakest period in history. The five years of war in the east had depleted all of the kingdom's accumulated wealth and the outbreak of the colonial war made it impossible for the kingdom to replenish its economy.
The struggle between the two kings also messed up the stable political situation of the kingdom, so everyone had to pick a side.
The civil war that followed reduced the kingdom to ruins and the tyranny of the victorious Stellin XI plunged the kingdom into chaos. It was only when Frederick I rebelled and took over the throne a few years ago that the kingdom regained a sliver of vitality.
What followed was the debt war imposed by Nasri and the threat of famine in two-thirds of the kingdom's prefectures due to crop failure.
It wasn't easy for them to obtain a large amount of food and produce from the autonomous region. Just as it seemed like they would be able to tide through this crisis, good news came from the frontlines. Most of Nasri's invading forces had been wiped out and they were forced to retreat. Just as they were about to launch a counterattack on Nasri, they received the bad news that the eastern nations of Freia had declared war on them!
Nobody was optimistic about Aueras's future. The difference in military power was just too great.
The spectating nations believed that Aueras would at most struggle for a few months or even half a year before surrendering or suing for peace.
If they were lucky, they would only have to cede a few territories. If they were unlucky, they might even lose the kingdom.
"This is a trap!
This bullsh * t Eastern Regional Alliance is setting a trap for our kingdom. The Debt War is their bait! "General Bolonik roared and slammed the table as he paced back and forth in the conference room.
Sadly, even though the autonomous region and Aueras were already open to the outside world and smugglers would come and go every month, the information they received still came from the colonies on the west coast.
Even Gryphon in Whitestag had obviously kept the bad news under wraps. It seemed they didn't want the autonomous region to know that the kingdom was about to be attacked by five nations.
"The cause of the war was when two divisions of the royal guard arrived at the frontlines. They worked together with Reddragon to lure the enemy deep into the Kingdom of Nasri. They defeated a standing corps of the Kingdom of Nasri in one fell swoop and wiped out most of the enemy. Then, they launched a counterattack.
The Nasri garrison was defeated and fled. The royal guard reclaimed the last prefecture lost by the kingdom and chased the enemy's vanguard into Nasri territory. "
Birkin, who had just returned from Loki Mountains, read the west coast newspaper in his hand and continued.
"The eastern nations of Freia, led by Shiks, used our unprovoked invasion of their member nation, Nasri's border, as an excuse to declare war on us.
According to Pioneer Tribune, the four eastern nations led by Shiks have long planned to intervene in the debt war. That's why they were able to send eight standing corps to Nasri's borders as soon as the war was declared. "
Claude rapped his fingers on the table. "Even if the eastern alliance had planned this long ago and used our invasion as an excuse to activate the mutual defence pact to declare war on us, what did our kingdom do?
What did our kingdom do? Don't tell me they blocked the news and didn't let us know about it? "
Birkin replied, "We've already withdrawn all our troops from Nasri's borders and set up defensive lines in the four prefectures connected to Nasri. At the same time, we've sent envoys to the five nations of the eastern alliance to put out the flames of war before it burns.
However, the commentator of the newspaper didn't look favorably upon the kingdom's action of seeking peace. He believed that the eastern nations' alliance was established to target Aueras. It wasn't easy for them to find an excuse for war, so they wouldn't let it go so easily.
"For instance, Majid III of Shiks has declared that Aueras, the source of the war in the east, must be wiped out."
Eiblont slammed his fist on the table with a loud bang, giving everyone a fright.
Eiblont gritted his teeth and said, "Why is this Majid III of Shiks everywhere? He's the one who started the war!
Is it because they can't attack us anymore? Is that why they're targeting us instead? If they have the guts, send another ten standing corps to continue the colonial war! "
Claude burst into laughter. Forget ten more standing corps, even twenty of them wouldn't be able to do anything to the region. On the contrary, Claude was quite confident that he could wipe them out in one fell swoop.
After three years of peaceful development, the region's military had grown the fastest. Not to mention two corps, even the garrison troops were equipped with new rifles. All they lacked was the new light infantry cannons.
"Don't look at me," Claude said with a smile, "It's not that Shiks doesn't want to send ten standing corps, but they don't have the means to transport them over. They don't have the strength to do so even if they want to, and they don't have a place to station them.
Why don't we send an envoy to Majid and tell him that we're giving him Port Vebator and have him send ten standing corps to continue the colonial war? Do you think he'll agree? "
General Bolonik, General Skree, General Beechlin, and General Eiblont in the conference room also laughed.
They knew that Claude was joking. Majid III wasn't that stupid to send them to their doorstep and give the region another few hundred thousand free labourers.
Eiblont, on the other hand, was still a little dissatisfied. "It's a pity we can't join the war. Otherwise, Thundercrash's strength would be enough to wipe out all the armies of the eastern nations. As a soldier, it really doesn't feel good to see a war happening right before our eyes and not be able to show off."
"You're just being arrogant …" General Birkin mocked mercilessly. "It's nothing more than relying on the legion equipped with all the new weapons and thinking that they're invincible. That's why they feel itchy and want to show off on the battlefield.
Don't forget the most important thing. Our corps relies on our logistics the most. If they're strong enough, we can take on ten of them easily. If they can't, we'll collapse.
Without bullets and cannons, our new rifles and cannons aren't even as good as fire sticks. "
That was true. Back when they used matchlocks, they could make do with anything when they ran out of gunpowder. Even rocks could be used as guns.
Gunpowder was even more casual. Even the gunpowder used for cannons could be used as gunpowder for matchlocks.
In a battle, it would be considered an intense battle if the musket could fire thirty times.
But now that they were equipped with the new rifles, even if it was a real battle, the soldiers could pull the trigger and fire dozens of bullets in the blink of an eye.
There were also the cannons' shells, which were ten times bigger than bullets. They could hit far, explode loudly, and explode with great power. Not to mention the projectiles, even the shields and wooden carts used to block the solid iron projectiles would be wiped out. This was also the reason why General Eiblont was so confident that he was invincible. But if they ran out of cannons and the logistics could not keep up, it would be over. The new cannons were not as good as the old ones, which could only fire canister bullets …
General Bolonik said bitterly, "We're too far away from the kingdom. We can't join the war even if we want to …"
There was a knock on the door, interrupting the meeting of the Five Military Heads in the conference room.
"Come in," General Skri said.
The one who came in was the staff officer on duty in the military headquarters. He delivered a messenger hawk. "Report, urgent letter from Port Cobicus. The kingdom's envoy has arrived at the Dominion. I heard they're here to ask for help …"