I Became a Tycoon During World War I - Chapter 208

Chapter 208: Devil's Camouflage

It was about two-thirty in the afternoon when the rain on the Samock Straight stopped.

The gray sky began to brighten, and Colonel Matteo thought the weather might clear up. The temperature had risen slightly, but just then a gust of wind blew in, and suddenly, white snowflakes began drifting down, mixed with some raindrops.

However, this didn't affect Colonel Matteo. He closed the hatch and retreated back into the A7V tank, once again "enjoying" the high temperature and suffocating smoke inside.

He envied the infantry; at least they didn’t have to suffer the lack of fresh air like tankers did, even at the moment of their death.

"Order the troops to look for advantageous terrain!" Matteo shouted to the signalman. "At least thirty more tanks are still on the straight, and if the French are cornered, they may rush out all at once!"

"Yes, Colonel!" the signalman responded and immediately stuck his head out from the top, signaling to the nearby tanks.

This was the method of communication for the A7V tanks—only the command tank, led by Colonel Matteo, was equipped with a radio.

Soon, fifteen A7V tanks lined up along both sides of the straight road, forming a large arc with their gun barrels aimed at the exit.

As the A7V tanks waited silently for enemy tanks in the barely visible snowfall, the signalman stationed at the radio reported: "Colonel, General Felix is calling. Charles' forces have broken through at Rhodes and are advancing toward us. They will arrive in about an hour and a half, and they have at least thirty tanks!"

"Charles' forces? 'Mark I' models?" Colonel Matteo asked, his eyes lighting up.

"Yes, the 'Mark I' models," the signalman answered. "The front-line troops have confirmed, and they didn’t see them equipped with cannons, only machine guns!"

The soldiers inside the tank cheered, shouting excitedly:

"We’re going to have some work to do!"

"Let’s have another 'Mark' feast!"

"I love the Mark. Is this Charles’ preference? He has a thing for machine guns!"

...

Colonel Matteo didn’t respond to them. After a moment of thought, he ordered the signalman, "Leave the third tank unit behind. The rest of the tanks will withdraw and follow me. We’ll go deal with the 'Mark I'!"

"Yes, Colonel!" the signalman responded and immediately relayed the orders.

The first and second tank units soon reacted, turning slowly and clumsily on the rough terrain, then following behind Tank 501.

The tank force traveled along the road for over ten minutes, and then Colonel Matteo ordered them to stop.

"Maintenance, ventilation, get ready for battle!"

Ventilation was a major concern—not just because of the tankers' breathing, but also because it affected the visibility of the driver, gunner, and machine gunners.

Colonel Matteo wanted the tank force to be in peak condition, even if their opponents were the 'Mark I' tanks without cannons.

One tank after another came to a halt. The hatches flew open, and dense, visible smoke poured out as though the tanks were on fire.

The tankers rushed out, greedily inhaling the fresh air. Some of them even coughed.

But they didn’t mind. They waved to each other, excitedly shouting:

"Are we really going to fight the 'Mark I'?"

"Of course, I heard they have over thirty of them!"

"I can’t wait to beat Charles. This is the best news I’ve heard!"

...

The A7V tank was designed specifically to counter Charles' "Mark I." The German tankers were trained in only two things: basic operational training and understanding the data on the "Mark I."

Everyone, including Colonel Matteo, believed that the "Saint-Chamond" and the CA-1 weren’t even true tanks. They could easily be dealt with by infantry and artillery. Anti-tank rifles and 77mm field guns were more than enough to blow them to bits.

Only the "Mark I"—specifically, Charles' tanks—could put up a fight.

For this reason, Tank 506, the "Morpheus," had a devilish camouflage painted on its gun barrel, depicting the devil carrying away a "Mark I."

Colonel Matteo didn’t exit the tank. He climbed to the top, opened the hatch, and leaned out to observe the road ahead with his binoculars. He was worried that the enemy might suddenly appear in front of them.

When he put away the binoculars, he looked up at the sky. Two "Avro" planes were circling above.

Would they relay the information about the A7V tanks waiting here to the "Mark I" tanks? Would they change course knowing the tanks were waiting ahead?

With this in mind, Colonel Matteo ordered the crew to board the tanks. The ten A7V tanks slowly advanced along the road with the rumbling sound of their engines.

Two infantry battalions arrived just in time to support them. The infantrymen, holding rifles, followed closely behind the tanks, sometimes having to jog to keep up.

Although the A7V tanks were large, each of their road wheels was equipped with balanced spiral spring suspensions, offering some shock absorption. As a result, their stability, comfort, and speed were quite good, with a maximum speed of 10 kilometers per hour.

After about twenty minutes, the force arrived at Samock Town. Colonel Matteo breathed a sigh of relief—there was no sign of the enemy yet.

A few hundred meters east of Samock Town was a fork in the road, which also led to Trelam, but it took a longer detour.

Colonel Matteo worried the enemy might speed through this way.

But then he reconsidered. That road led deep into German-controlled territory, and since the "Mark I" would need to change tracks to use it, it was unlikely to reach its destination.

The tanks continued in a long line down the road.

Colonel Matteo checked the time. He estimated that the enemy would need another ten minutes to arrive, which was enough time to seize an advantageous position.

However...

The sound of several cannons firing reached them. Three A7V tanks immediately billowed smoke, and one appeared to have been hit in the fuel tank and caught fire. The crew, covered in flames, escaped from the tank, flailing their arms and crying out in agony.

"What’s going on?" Colonel Matteo asked.

"Samock Town, Colonel! The enemy is lying in ambush there!" someone replied.

"Turn toward the town! Turn toward the town!" Matteo ordered loudly. "Watch out for enemy artillery. Have the infantry move up and deal with them!"

"Yes, Colonel!" the signalman passed the order along.

Colonel Matteo's first reaction was, "That must be enemy infantry artillery."

The enemy's "Mark I" tanks didn’t have cannons, so the ones firing would certainly be infantry guns.

This wasn’t a huge problem—an infantry charge could end the fight quickly at such close range.

But as the A7V tanks slowly moved toward Samock Town, what they saw left Colonel Matteo stunned... It was a tank! A tank that Colonel Matteo had never seen before!

They were much smaller than the A7V, with a turret. The turret had both a machine gun and a small-caliber cannon. The three destroyed A7V tanks were clearly their handiwork.

Colonel Matteo’s heart sank. He realized he might have walked into a trap set by Charles!

Table of content - Next Chapter >>>