Chapter 31: What Suits You Best Is Truly the Best

When Lelouch returned to the rear base of Blankenberge, clutching the "Stormtrooper Preparation Plan" he had spent the last few days drafting, he felt a slight tremor of nervousness.

Having read his fair share of transmigration novels before arriving in this world, he knew that many protagonists who traveled back to the First World War would immediately attempt to climb the army technology tree by building tanks to crush the enemy. After all, the advantage of a tank is something anyone on Earth can understand. Its practicality aside, the key is that it lowers the comprehension cost for bystanders, making the warfare look spectacular and impressive.

Lelouch had certainly considered building tanks, but after careful deliberation, he decided to shelve the idea for the time being. For one thing, he hadn’t transmigrated into the body of an emperor or a general with vast military-industrial resources at his fingertips, allowing him to command his subordinates to do whatever he pleased. When he arrived, he was merely a corporal. Although he had won some promotions and the trust of the Crown Prince of Bavaria through strategic foresight and planning, that trust was still limited to the realm of grand strategy. His reputation and credibility for "directing weapon and military development" still needed to be built from scratch. He wasn't arrogant enough to think he could use a few pages of proposals to convince the Crown Prince to cough up millions of marks and order the Bavarian engine factories to develop tanks.

It was better to develop some smaller items with lower thresholds, shorter cycles, and quicker results to prove his worth. This would also make it easier to maintain control over projects and avoid doing the legwork for others later when it came time to actually build tanks. If he threw out the tank concept now, even if it succeeded, the leadership would not be in his hands; at best, he would only earn credit for a "suggestion."

Furthermore, there was a more critical reason: the current Battle of Ypres had no use for tanks. Before the Belgian army collapsed, they had blown up the Yser Canal dikes in desperation, flooding the area and creating vast stretches of quagmire. In the original history, the four meat-grinder battles between the German and Allied forces in the Ypres Salient over the next three years would all take place in muddy terrain. Even when the British eventually built tanks, they found them useless on this battlefield. In such muddy, flooded zones, one only needs lightweight equipment capable of maneuvering through complex terrain. With the abysmal mobility of early tanks, they would have been stuck in the mud the moment they entered the Ypres battlefield, rendering them utterly useless.

Therefore, he decided to start by making small improvements to equipment required for stormtrooper tactics to earn some credit and resources. Tanks could wait until this battle was over and he moved to a different theater. Besides, Lelouch knew clearly that to win this war, he had to deal with internal issues as well as external enemies. He had to develop and strengthen his own power. If he ended up acting as a pawn for others, only to bolster the prestige and strength of Kaiser Wilhelm II or the warlords within the Junker officer corps who viewed people as disposable, he would only increase the difficulty of future internal purges.

With these considerations in mind, Lelouch determined to take his plan and seek an audience with the Army Group Commander. Although he had retreated to Blankenberge with the 12th Division, finding Crown Prince Rupprecht of Bavaria to report in person was no easy task. The 6th Army's sector was vast; the Crown Prince could be in Antwerp, or if he were at the front, he could be in Zeebrugge or Bruges.

Lelouch inquired with the division commander, Major General Karl, and broadly explained his intentions. The Major General made a few calls for him and then said, "Go directly to the coastal defense headquarters in the city; the Prince is there inspecting defenses."

Lelouch thanked him, and Major General Karl kindly dispatched a car for him. Ten minutes later, Lelouch arrived at the coastal defense headquarters. The entrance was heavily guarded with several MG08 heavy machine guns, and anyone would be stopped. However, because Lelouch was in Karl's car—and the guard captain recognized it as belonging to the Crown Prince's own brother—he was allowed through after his credentials were checked.

A few minutes later, someone led Lelouch inside. The guard captain cast a side-eyed glance: just who was this captain? The commander had specifically stated that he was on a highly confidential mission today and would see no one.

Lelouch navigated several turns, entered a sturdy underground bunker complex, and soon met Crown Prince Rupprecht in a war room. To his surprise, he also found Admiral Hipper, who had previously been trapped in the port of Antwerp, present as well.

The Prince beckoned him over: "What brings you here? Is there something urgent to report?"

Lelouch promptly handed over his plan: "Based on my experiences in Ostend over the past few days, I have summarized some insights and thoughts regarding how the troops can better coordinate infantry and artillery. Some of the concepts involve improvements to new weaponry, so I wanted to seek your guidance. I believe these improvements will be useful for the upcoming Battle of Ypres."

"Is that so? You've only been in Ostend for a week, and you've already come up with new ideas? Very well, I will look at it when I have time, and you can explain it in detail then." The Prince glanced at it and set the document aside on his desk.

Lelouch assumed the Prince had other confidential matters to attend to and, feeling slightly awkward, prepared to withdraw. The Prince, sensing his hesitation, laughed heartily: "I am indeed here to handle a sensitive matter today, but there is no need to keep it from you—it involves Franz as well. He wants to take this opportunity to verify your conclusion from last time: that the naval wireless codes have been cracked by the British."

Lelouch suddenly realized why Hipper was here. He turned to the Admiral with curiosity: "Oh? How does the Admiral intend to verify this?"

Hipper described his plan: "I’ve been in Antwerp for the last week, and since I have nothing but time, and those battlecruisers took a few heavy shells, they are being secretly repaired in the docks. I have sent a telegram to the rear headquarters requesting an expansion of the Antwerp shipyard, claiming my ships are severely damaged and, lacking professional equipment, will be out of commission for at least half a year.

"This should cause David Beatty's battlecruiser fleet and the British Channel Fleet to further lower their guard, believing our naval threat is negligible. Then, now that the heavy coastal defense guns here in Blankenberge have been installed and calibrated, I thought, why not have the Prince intentionally send a few more urgent telegrams to the rear, asking for more construction crews and transport, claiming the guns aren't ready yet but are close?

"I suspect that if the enemy intercepts this, they won't be able to resist the temptation to shell and destroy the site on the 'eve of the Blankenberge fortress's completion.' They’ll want to delay our progress so their fleet can continue to show off along these coastal ports for another month or two. If they don't come now, they'll miss their chance once the site is fully operational. The Prince agreed with my plan. As long as the timing isn't too off, even if the enemy realizes they've been tricked, a difference of just two or three days will make them attribute it to intelligence delays rather than suspecting that we know they have our codes.

"As for us, we weren't a hundred percent certain before that the enemy had cracked our codes. But if they fall for it right on the mark, we can be absolutely certain."

Lelouch finally understood. It wasn't easy; it seemed that deviousness was contagious. He had set traps with Hipper twice, and now he had corrupted Hipper to the point where the Admiral could draw inferences on his own! Having trained such a devious protégé, Lelouch felt quite gratified.

Curious about the details, Lelouch pressed further: "How long did your fake telegrams say the fortress would take to complete?"

Hipper smiled triumphantly: "The telegram says if the resources are coordinated well, it will be finished in a day or two. So if they take the bait, they should arrive today. They captured Ostend last night, so moving east to shell this place today is perfectly feasible. We even sent a fake telegram as a cover, asking the Prince to reprimand his younger brother for failing to hold Ostend long enough, leading to the coastal guns not being finished in time."

Lelouch subconsciously turned to look at Crown Prince Rupprecht, his eyes filled with even greater admiration. Even the Prince had been corrupted! What a sense of accomplishment! To make the setup more realistic, the Prince was willing to pretend to reprimand his own brother. If Beatty took the bait, he certainly wouldn't be wronged.

"In that case, I am honored to join you in watching this spectacle." Not wanting to spoil the mood, Lelouch decided to hold off on reporting his own plan and simply watch the enemy's misfortune with the leaders.

...

The group chatted in the underground bunker for an hour or two, exchanging pleasantries and gossip. By four in the afternoon, enemy battleships actually appeared on the horizon! They had come to shell the Blankenberge coastal batteries. Naturally, the Prince and his staff didn't go up to the observation deck; that was too dangerous. They stayed in the bunker, monitoring the situation via field telephone.

"Report! Enemy battlecruiser fleet and several old pre-dreadnoughts spotted!" the lookout reported.

"Calculate the coordinates. Don't let the 280mm guns fire yet; let them get closer! Start with the 210mm guns to feign weakness!" Hipper, who commanded the coastal artillery as a naval officer, gave the orders. Today was different; it was an ambush based on an information gap, and they couldn't scare the enemy away by firing too early. It was better to let the enemy take the initiative, let them shell for a while until they felt safe, and draw them closer to the shore. Even if they realized something was wrong, it would be too late to run. The 210mm guns were older and lacked the range to threaten battleships, but they were perfect for the "lure."

...

Shortly after the 210mm guns opened fire, David Beatty and the newly appointed commander of the Channel Fleet, Rear Admiral Horace Hood, genuinely grew contemptuous of the coastal fortress.

"Indeed, they only have the legacy 210mm guns; the larger ones haven't arrived or been installed yet. Bring the ships in, push them beyond the 210mm's maximum range, and shell them!"

If the German guns hadn't fired, Beatty and Hood wouldn't have been so bold. But once the "donkey kicked," the tiger knew its strength was "nothing more than that," and it opened its jaws to feast.

Several battlecruisers and pre-dreadnoughts pushed to within 12–15 kilometers, adjusting their fire. But just then, the 280mm and 305mm coastal heavy guns opened fire.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!" Giant shells began to land around the slow-moving ships. Beatty and Hood had slowed down for accuracy, thinking they were safe. The sudden attack left them horrified: "Full speed! Turn around! Get out of range!"

But it was too late. The accuracy of the coastal batteries far exceeded that of the shipboard guns. Within a few volleys, the gunners had found their mark.

The power of coastal artillery is staggering. In World War II, the Norwegians used a single WWI-era Krupp 280mm gun to severely damage a German 10,000-ton Hipper-class heavy cruiser, causing it to lose power. Now, using WWI guns against WWI ships—or even pre-dreadnoughts—was devastating.

Beatty's flagship, the *Lion*, was hit by a 280mm shell, and within minutes, it took three or four more. The superstructure was heavily damaged, the secondary deck was blown away, and the smokestacks were destroyed, causing boiler pressure to drop and speed to plummet. By the time it turned, it was slow and took several more hits to the stern, blowing away cranes and lifeboats and tearing holes that let in thousands of tons of water.

This damage was far worse than what the *Lion* sustained at the Battle of Dogger Bank in the original timeline. She would likely be in repairs for a year. The *Lion*-class were the British navy's newest battlecruisers, and only their heavy armor allowed them to crawl away at 15 knots.

The pre-dreadnoughts weren't as lucky. The *Hannibal* was hit by five 305mm shells, taking on thousands of tons of water and drifting like a dead fish. The *Venerable* was hit by even more, and while it managed to limp away, it was a total loss, destined for the scrapyard.

The *Hannibal* was finished off by German destroyers Hipper had placed in ambush at Zeebrugge. Hipper explained to Lelouch: "Ten days ago, at the reception for us in Antwerp, you mentioned that 'the precision strike role of torpedoes will weaken, and the role of long-range cleanup and finishing blows will increase.' You suggested I ask the armament department for slower, longer-range torpedoes for finishing off ships. We didn't waste these days; we modified the speed controllers of our existing torpedoes. These slow-speed torpedoes can drop from 30 knots to 24 or 18, increasing range from 5 kilometers to 10 or 14. We used today to test them."

Lelouch marveled at Hipper's efficiency. Even without the rear factories, he had modified a batch of torpedoes in ten days using shipyard craftsmen. It was a remarkable display of scientific spirit.

Crown Prince Rupprecht, listening in, looked at Lelouch with renewed approval: "You gave Franz such valuable advice after I left? It seems you really have insight into military equipment. Very well, let’s make a bet—as long as these slow-speed, long-range torpedoes perform well, I will adopt the suggestions in your proposal."

Lelouch felt a surge of heat. Hipper had returned the favor perfectly.

Soon, the *Hannibal*, drifting dead in the water, was targeted by the German destroyers from 12–13 kilometers away. They fired a spread of torpedoes and held their positions. Over 15 minutes later, two torpedoes struck the *Hannibal*.

"Two hits! Enemy ship is accelerating its sinking!"

The group was overjoyed. This was a massive victory: one new battlecruiser crippled for over half a year, and two pre-dreadnoughts permanently out of action.

After verifying the results, Hipper took the initiative to forge a fake secret commendation for the construction troops to cover the "miraculous" repair of the coastal guns. To keep the act going, he would even have to promote some officers who hadn't actually done anything.

Crown Prince Rupprecht looked at Lelouch and finally said, "Tell me about your plan! How to adjust tactics, which equipment to improve, and what tactical effects you expect—be detailed! I will provide whatever support I can!"

Lelouch seized the moment: "The core of my plan is to strengthen communication between front-line assault troops and the rear, shorten response times, and delegate the authority to call for precise artillery support to lower levels. To achieve this, we need to optimize our equipment: first, lighten our heavy machine guns into light machine guns that infantry squads can carry. Second, equip the troops with large quantities of hand grenades and grenade launchers, and further miniaturize our radios so that they can be carried to the lowest combat units. We also need several new types of weapons..."

Lelouch spoke eloquently, taking advantage of the Prince's newfound trust to smuggle in a wealth of his own agenda.