After a somewhat worrying bouncing, the "Stork" finally landed on the grass outside Monk Town. Before the propellers stopped spinning, the SS officers and soldiers who had been waiting there had already surrounded them.
"Ah ha, congratulations, Lieutenant Logan! The Fuhrer has sent a telegram. Based on wireless interception of the Allied forces, your battle report has been preliminarily confirmed. In light of the current situation, Operation Potassium Chloride is declared a success, and you are ordered to report to the temporary headquarters in Sedan after the battle!" Dieterich said excitedly, as if he himself were being commended!
Logan got off the plane, his legs still a bit weak, his expression somewhat dazed. If it weren't for the two German fighters appearing in time to drive away the British fighter, he might have become a lonely soul in the sky by now!
"The Leader of the Enthusiasts" draped his arm around Logan's shoulder and said, "Brother, from what I know about the Fuhrer, you'll definitely receive medals and a promotion this time. Perhaps you'll even return home as a national hero, revered by the people!"
"Oh?" Logan finally realized what the SS commander was so happy about. For soldiers, victory and honor were above all else. However, Logan, despite wearing a uniform, didn't have a strong intuitive understanding of it all yet. To him, everything here, especially this war, still felt like being in a very realistic game, almost too real to be true!
"The battle is over... Does that mean we're heading directly to Sedan now?" Without skipping a beat, Logan asked calmly.
To this question, "The Leader of the Enthusiasts" apparently hadn't considered yet. He thought for a moment, "Brother, I suggest you leave immediately. Ground troops are probably better suited for the battles here!"
If this were heard by "Big Dumpling," he would definitely be unhappy. While Logan loved parachuting, his time here was short, and he hadn't developed a strong sense of pride as a paratrooper yet. Moreover, Logan felt that what Dieterich said was quite reasonable: While paratroopers had impeccable individual qualities, asking them to engage in ground battles was like asking basketball players to be soccer goalkeepers—somewhat inappropriate!
"Oh, by the way, I think I saw tanks in the woods just now!" Logan remembered and spoke up.
"In the woods? Tanks? Where?"
"Um... on our way back, as for the specific location..." Logan turned to ask Stephen Berg, "Where was that woods? It was only about 4 or 5 kilometers away!"
The lieutenant thought for a moment, "It's hard to say, it seemed to be to the north, maybe a bit to the east. We were being chased by the hurricane and went in circles along the way! As for the distance, it should be about 5 kilometers!"
"Are you sure those were tanks?" Dieterich asked.
"In fact... I think they very likely were tanks, and not just one!" Logan replied truthfully.
"Hehe! You must be tired. Rest well!" Dieterich patted his shoulder, "Leave the rest to us!"
Logan felt conflicted, but looking at the fuel-depleted and damaged "Stork," what else could he say?
On the way back to town, Logan asked Stephen Berg to gather the paratroopers, while he went to check on the artillery. After the calibration shooting, the four cannons didn't need to fire at intervals anymore. When the gunners loaded the shells into the breeches and the signalman waved his small flag, they would roar in unison. Now, the Allied troops in Dunkirk were in for a rough time!
In a hornet's nest, there's sweet honey, but also stinging hornets. Deploying cannons here to shell the enemy's last escape port was likely to invite a fierce counterattack sooner or later. However, Logan thought to himself: The German advantage in the Dunkirk area was indisputable. As long as the follow-up troops could quickly expand the breakthrough on the canal line and reinforce, the Fuhrer's Guard Flag Unit would not only avoid being in trouble but might also become the prime hero of this battle!
Lighting a cigarette, Logan happened to see a slender figure by the well: "Little Sophie Marceau" struggling to carry a water bucket towards the German mess car.
"This work should be done by men!"
Without any room for negotiation, Logan "snatched" the water bucket and took the opportunity to strike up a conversation:
"What's your name?"
"Little Sophie Marceau" hesitated for a moment, and in a voice as light as a mosquito's, said, "Querly, Querly Leclerc!"
"Oh, what a beautiful name!" This might be the smoothest French sentence Logan could say.
The French girl didn't say "thank you" but turned to look at her loved ones still laboring by the well, and asked cautiously, "Can you let us go?"
Logan was taken aback for a moment. When he poured the water from the bucket into the water tank of the mess car, he said, "And then what? Where are you planning to go? There's fighting everywhere, bullets and shells flying around, and who knows, maybe even landmines! I think... staying here might be safer than wandering around!"
"Little Sophie Marceau" said tepidly, "Grandpa and grandma are old and can't work, Auntie's not well, and there's my little sister and brother, they're too young! And they're all very scared!"
Logan sighed. If he were the commander of this group of enthusiasts, it would be easy to talk to them, but the air force and SS, apart from their cooperation in arms, were generally unrelated in command. Did he have to beg Dieterich to spare these poor French civilians? How would Dieterich see him then? After all, this was a very powerful and worth befriending friend!
"Nowhere is safe from fear now, that's war! But... think about it, one side is working and getting food, while the other is leaving here hungry, hmm?" Logan offered this option with his limited French vocabulary, taking advantage of "Little Sophie Marceau" not having spoken yet, he took out a few pieces of chocolate from his bag.
"Here, your little sister and brother should be happy with this!"
The French girl hesitated for a moment but still accepted these delicious treats wrapped in foil. Seeing a German SS soldier looking at her from not far away, she quickly grabbed the empty bucket and ran back to the well.
Logan looked somewhat wistfully at her slender figure, seeing the two smaller children smiling with joy because of the chocolate, seeing the two old people and the middle-aged woman carefully sharing a piece, and also seeing "Little Sophie Marceau" not eating but tucking the remaining two pieces into her pocket.
"Lieutenant, everyone has assembled! The SS has prepared two armored vehicles for us, ready to go anytime!" Lieutenant Stefanberg interrupted Logan's observation somewhat inopportunely.
At this moment, there was another round of artillery fire from the artillery position.
"Lent, can you help me ask everyone for some biscuits and chocolate?" Without missing a beat.
"Hmm?" The parachute lieutenant was somewhat surprised but still ran over to where the parachutists were. When he came back, he carried a lot of field rations and chocolate bars—these foods were originally calculated to last them for three or four days, but luckily, this mission was completed in less than 24 hours. When they returned to the rear, there were sausages, ham, and plenty of beer. Who would care about dry biscuits?
Seeing these foods, "Little Sophie Marceau" was both surprised and delighted. Although the Allied forces stationed here earlier were their own people, due to being cut off by the German army, they also suffered from a lack of supplies. They might even have to get food from these civilians.
"I'm leaving, goodbye!" Logan still spoke in his broken French.
The girl remained silent, the fear in her eyes still not entirely dispersed, but she seemed to find a bit of confusion or even gratitude.
Germany and France, two ancient enemies, had been killing each other for a hundred years, with millions of soldiers and civilians dying at each other's hands. Could their civilians still live together peacefully or even love each other?
The historical answer was yes, there were no eternal enemies in this world.
Thinking of this, Logan's heart was filled with some hope again. Unfortunately, for now, all he could do was say goodbye.
When Logan arrived in front of the paratroopers, it was obvious that everyone had already heard the news of their retreat to the rear, and they all seemed relieved. Looking back on the past 20 hours, the action went unexpectedly smoothly, but every step was a matter of life and death. If the British had stationed troops next to the Expeditionary Force headquarters, if they had exposed their identities in the streets of Dunkirk or somewhere along the way, any minor accident could have led to the annihilation of the entire army!
Before leaving, Logan specifically bid farewell to Dieterich, and the two agreed to have coffee together on the Champs-Élysées next time.
Each sdkfz251 semi-tracked armored vehicle could carry 10 soldiers, and the two vehicles conveniently transported Logan and his paratroopers. Along the way, the paratroopers chatted enthusiastically, as if the battle had nothing to do with them anymore—at least for the time being.