Chapter 13: Captain, Did You Fail Because of the Smoke Bomb?

“Boris, what time is it now?”

Andrei glanced at the sky, but the battlefield was shrouded in smoke and haze, making it difficult for him to see the sun clearly. He had no choice but to ask Boris.

Upon hearing this, Boris widened his eyes in surprise.

“Sir, I’m just an ordinary sergeant. Where would I have a pocket watch? You’re a noble lord—don’t you have one on you?”

Boris said with a hint of self-mockery, glancing at the gold chain around Andrei’s neck.

Such a valuable item wasn’t something an ordinary soldier like him could afford. Even if he spent a whole year’s salary, he wouldn’t be able to buy a watch like that!

Though Andrei felt a little embarrassed by the remark, he maintained a calm exterior and replied:

“There’s no way around it. I’d like to check my pocket watch, but it’s broken.”

“That blasted bombardment! If I’d known, I wouldn’t have brought such a delicate thing to the battlefield. Just a couple of blasts and it’s shot!”

He pulled out the watch to show them. Though it looked intact on the outside, the gears inside were completely jammed, frozen in place. Maybe with some repairs, it could be fixed.

“It can’t tell me the exact time. If you can just tell me roughly how long until dark, that’ll do. I’m dizzy from the shelling and don’t even know when night will fall.”

Andrei found it odd. Usually, people kept a photo of their beloved inside the watch cover. American soldiers in war films often did this, expressing their feelings through it.

But for some reason, the pattern on his pocket watch was an icy blue six-pointed snowflake beneath a cross-shaped longsword. The intricate design seemed symbolic, though its precise meaning eluded him.

He hadn’t figured out whether it was a family crest or something else, but judging by previous clues and guesses, he had a rough idea that he must be of noble descent.

Otherwise, how else to explain that while others were just ordinary privates, he was already a captain?

Without a distinguished background, that wouldn’t be possible.

Boris didn’t realize Andrei was still pondering his true identity. Hearing Andrei ask roughly how long until dusk, he estimated:

“Soon, it shouldn’t be long now. It’s not yet summer, so night falls earlier.”

Damn it—“soon” could mean anything.

Though Andrei wanted to ask for the exact hour and minute, he realized he didn’t even know the timekeeping units in this world and decided to keep silent, assuming nightfall would come in about an hour.

Feigning calm, Andrei nodded and pointed to the crude hand-drawn map on his person:

“From now on, let’s try to break through northward. We aim to get into the nearby woods first, then find a way to cross the forest and reach the road on the far side.”

“As long as it’s dark, and if the enemy soldiers aren’t completely insane, they probably won’t dare chase us into the woods. That way, we’ll have a chance to escape.”

Boris frowned after hearing the plan, feeling it was rather unreliable.

It’s true that the woods would be safer—armored units can’t enter the forest, and infantry wouldn’t risk venturing into unfamiliar woods at night.

But the problem was, how exactly were they supposed to break through the encirclement and reach the forest?

There was still a considerable distance from their trench to the woodland!

After a brief exchange, Andrei turned to address the soldiers around him.

“Alright, soldiers, who has smoke grenades? Bring them out!”

“We’ll hide in the northern trench for now. When the enemy approaches, throw smoke grenades as soon as they get close, then engage them in close-quarters combat!”

“If we can get into hand-to-hand fighting, their artillery won’t be effective, and machine guns won’t fire recklessly. If we have enough smoke grenades, we’re bound to break through!”

The soldiers looked puzzled, wondering who among them might have smoke grenades.

Though cheap, smoke grenades were clearly not standard infantry equipment. None of these reinforcements carried any.

However, the players overheard Andrei’s words and immediately broke into excited smiles, pulling out their own smoke grenades and typing in the chat:

“Heh heh heh, everyone, this important NPC knows his stuff—he’s aware of the Smoke Devil tactic!”

“Smoke grenades are great! As a five-year battlefield veteran, I can say we definitely have a voice on this!”

Not all players carried smoke grenades, but many did.

After all, Andrei’s chosen player template was based on Battlefield 1, and experienced veterans would certainly know the Smoke Devil tactic.

Seeing so many players brandishing smoke grenades, the ordinary soldiers around were bewildered.

What’s going on? Why do all these people carry smoke grenades? Could this stuff really be becoming widespread?

Noticing the confusion, Andrei waved his hand dismissively.

“Don’t be surprised. I had thought up a tactic using smoke grenades earlier, so I specially arranged to get a batch from the rear. Didn’t expect we’d still have plenty left for the retreat!”

But no sooner had Andrei finished speaking than another officer in the group looked at him skeptically and asked:

“So, Captain, you were a maverick at the military academy, ignoring the textbooks and inventing your own tactics, even got held back a year because of it—is this smoke grenade tactic your handiwork?”

What the hell? Held back a year?

Andrei blinked. When did he have this glorious record at the military academy? Did he even attend one?

He just waved his hand awkwardly.

“That’s enough. That’s not important. Lieutenant, if you have doubts about my plan, then present your own!”

“If you have a way to get everyone out safely, by all means, speak up!”

Hearing this, the lieutenant who’d spoken earlier hurriedly waved his hands.

“Sorry, sir, I was just speaking offhand. I heard that rumor elsewhere.”

At that moment, the distant bombardment that had enveloped the battlefield ceased, leaving a sudden silence that made Andrei’s heart race.

He quickly shouted to those around him:

“Soldiers, get ready! Everyone with smoke grenades, you’re at the front! Use the smoke to cover our charge!”

“Whether we live or die depends on this battle!”