The Soviet flare burned for more than twenty seconds before slowly extinguishing, while the German soldiers got up and continued advancing. The closer they got to the village, the clearer the music and chatter became in their ears. Although Lynn couldn't understand a word of Russian, he could feel the relaxed and cheerful atmosphere on the other side. Yes, the Soviet-German War had been going on for almost four years since 1941, with millions of Soviet soldiers dying on the battlefield. The once mighty enemy had even reached the outskirts of Moscow, but with the concerted efforts of the military and civilians, the situation gradually turned, eventually leading to a counterattack into German territory. How could the mood of the Soviet soldiers not be affected?
Despite getting closer to the village, Lynn found it increasingly difficult to estimate the number of tanks and vehicles because all he could see were vague dark shapes! He wondered whether the Soviet tank crews were all gathered in the village for rest or if a considerable number remained on alert in their tanks.
As the group approached the village, the tall officer suddenly stretched out his left hand, prompting the soldiers to quickly lie down, even if it meant landing in mud or ditches. This time Lynn was somewhat lucky; he found himself lying on a patch of semi-dry grass under his chest and abdomen. He murmured to himself, "Looks like it's time for the Soviets to set off some fireworks again?"
However, the Soviet flare didn't appear, and shortly after, Lynn saw a small group of Soviet soldiers walking along the road towards them, with the leader holding a flashlight. It seemed that the Soviet patrol wasn't very vigilant, perhaps because they were nearly ten kilometers from the front line, or maybe they didn't expect the heavily battered German troops to organize a nighttime infiltration. They marched in a neat column, vulnerable to being easily wiped out by a burst of machine-gun fire from the front. As for their weapons—PPSh-41 and Mosin-Nagant rifles—they were casually slung over their shoulders.
In just a moment, the Soviet soldiers approached to within thirty meters of where Lynn and his companions lay. Lynn observed closely from his position; there were nine soldiers in total, likely comprising a complete infantry squad. They chatted quietly, occasionally breaking into relaxed but not piercing laughter. The dwindling starlight struggled to penetrate the darkness, and the limited beam of the flashlight only illuminated objects within a few meters. From Lynn's vantage point, he could see two "night warriors" closer to the road. The large square boxes on their backs seemed conspicuous, and they held assault rifles, tracking the movements of the Soviet soldiers from the beginning. Lynn realized that if the Soviets spotted them, the "night warriors" would likely open fire before the Soviets could react, swiftly killing the patrol with the guidance of their infrared night vision goggles. However, this would almost certainly expose their position.
As the enemy approached, seemingly oblivious, a flicker of fire suddenly danced in the darkness on the village's edge. With a sharp "pop," reminiscent of uncorking champagne, a flare shot overhead, eventually bursting into a blinding light beyond the trees. The small squad of Soviet soldiers turned their intrigued gazes toward it. Suddenly, one of them seemed to notice something unusual on the ground and quietly alerted his comrades while shouldering his rifle. Lynn's heart skipped a beat as he grasped the gravity of the situation. As the flare reached its zenith, its brilliance began to fade, and in an instant, the two "night warriors" closest to the road swiftly assumed firing positions, their MP44s slung over their shoulders, while their right hands wielded compact yet seemingly elongated pistols, firing at the target in quick succession. Shortly after, two more "night warriors," also positioned near the road, joined in a similar fashion. In mere seconds, the nine Soviet patrolmen fell like dominoes, not a single shot fired.
The gunfire ceased, and the distant flare exhausted its final spark, quietly extinguishing...
Be it Western action flicks or Hong Kong cop dramas, the coolest scenes always involve the swift elimination of enemies by the forces of justice. Yet, such lone heroics seemed disconnected from the grandeur of World War II. Thus, when Lynn witnessed four German soldiers swiftly dispatching nine Soviet soldiers with suppressed pistols, his mind momentarily staggered in a state of temporal disarray. It wasn't until the deep, charismatic voice of the tall officer rang out in the darkness, and the surrounding soldiers instinctively surged forward, that he snapped back to reality, grabbing his rifle and charging ahead. Even if not now, the Soviet troops in the village would eventually detect the patrol's anomaly. Swift action was the German soldiers' only path to victory.
The distance of a mere two to three hundred meters would typically take half a minute to cover at a normal sprinting pace. However, with heads lowered and bodies hunched, their movements aimed at maintaining stealth, the German soldiers only achieved two-thirds of their usual speed. Fortunately, before leaving the cover of the woods, they had discarded water bottles, bayonets, shovels, and other objects, so their footsteps were muted as they ran, the music still playing its leading role in their ears.
Though their spirits were relaxed, this was still the front lines. The Soviet troops had set up various alerts around the village, reinforcing the German trenches and barbed wire left behind. Machine guns were positioned atop sandbag emplacements. Soviet soldiers, wearing steel helmets, either patrolled slowly along the perimeter or stood sentry against sandbags, walls, and other objects. As the German soldiers neared, they also noticed the anomaly and began shouting to alert their comrades. In the darkness, even before these Soviet soldiers could organize defensive fire, the German "night warriors," equipped with infrared night vision, had already "tagged" each one with their MP44s. The burst mode of the assault rifle softened the advantages of rifles and submachine guns, and the 30-round magazine far exceeded the firepower of the previous MP38 and MP40. With just five expert night soldiers on the attack, most of the Soviet soldiers on this side of the perimeter were swiftly eliminated, thus covering the entry of their comrades into the village without infrared night vision goggles.
Like ancient cavalry charging into an enemy encampment, the sudden appearance of German infantry caught the Soviet soldiers off guard. Many who had been singing joyously around the campfire barely had time to grab their weapons before being mowed down by a hail of bullets. In such close combat, the drum magazine capable of holding 71 rounds in the "sh**" became a deadly weapon in the hands of the German soldiers. Many simply charged forward without aiming, and the ferocious roar of the submachine gun completely drowned out the cries of the Soviet soldiers being hit. Bullets splattered sparks as they swept past the campfire, and in the flickering light, the sight of Soviet soldiers being shot down was reminiscent of helpless sheep in front of wolves.
Lynn, bringing up the rear, charged into the village without hesitation. However, he didn't swap his rifle for an MP40, nor did he blindly follow the main force in a frenzy of shooting. Instead, he closely followed two "night warriors," charging towards the makeshift parking lot on the other side of the village. Upon nearing, he could finally discern the models of these Soviet vehicles clearly: the T-34 remained the backbone, heavy tanks were scarce, but there was a rare sighting of a squadron of light tanks parked on the side. They mostly served reconnaissance and patrol missions amidst the current flood of Soviet armor. The number of fully tracked self-propelled guns was slightly fewer than tanks, and from their appearance, they seemed to come in several variants, some carrying thick and short barrels, while others possessed heavy direct-fire cannons that struck fear into enemies. At this moment, they, along with the surrounding tanks and trucks, stood still, like a group of slumbering steel monsters.
Of course, Lynn knew how ferocious these monsters would become once awakened, so he, along with his comrades, had to do everything to prevent such a scenario from unfolding.