Chapter 676: Battle for the Forest
The sky over Charleroi was gray and oppressive, the air thick with visible particles of coal dust and soot. When Colonel Fred first retreated here with his men, the suffocating atmosphere almost drove him to continue fleeing with his troops.
Charleroi was an industrial city built around coal mines, particularly the vast Cazier Forest Coal Mine. Heavy industries like steel smelting, glass manufacturing, chemical production, machinery, and textiles sprawled along both banks of the Sambre River. Massive chimneys belched thick black smoke into the sky, and polluted wastewater poured from large pipes directly into the river, staining its waters black and filling the air with a nauseating stench.
"Perhaps this is why they ordered us to hold this place," Colonel Fred muttered, lowering his binoculars as he stood by the riverbank.
He had attempted to trace the source of the blackened waters but failed—there was no end in sight to the industrial pollution.
Beside him, Lieutenant Colonel Enzo, his chief of staff, remained silent. Enzo understood Fred's point: High Command desperately wanted to retain Charleroi, a critical source of coal and industrial output essential to Germany's strained war economy.
Yet Charleroi's position was untenable. To the west lay thick forests; to the south, the rugged Ardennes mountains; from the north, French and Belgian troops were advancing relentlessly. And to the northeast stood Namur, occupied by Charles's elite armored divisions. Holding this isolated city seemed tantamount to suicide.
"Colonel," Enzo finally spoke up cautiously, "perhaps we should establish defensive positions along the Sambre River. That might allow us to hold out until reinforcements arrive."
Fred laughed bitterly, shaking his head. "Reinforcements? You still believe they'll send reinforcements?"
"But...," Enzo hesitated, glancing around nervously. "The General Staff stressed the importance of holding this city. They wouldn't abandon us completely."
Fred sighed wearily. "Come on, Enzo. Opposite us in Namur stands Charles's best unit—the First Armored Army. And our own First Tank Division was reassigned to the Somme offensive against the British. Tell me, what other units remain to reinforce us here?"
Enzo fell silent, realizing Fred was correct. Although a few roads and small pathways connected Charleroi to Liège, the route was effectively blocked. Any attempt to reinforce Charleroi would be immediately detected by Charles's reconnaissance aircraft. And if any reinforcements appeared, the French armored forces would swiftly intercept and destroy them on the march.
"That's why Charles's tanks haven't attacked us yet," Fred continued sarcastically. "He's not afraid. He's waiting for us to draw reinforcements from Liège into his trap."
Enzo paled at this realization. Reinforcements would mean falling into Charles's hands, but without them, what awaited the Charleroi garrison? Death—or captivity?
Noticing Enzo's concern, Fred softened his tone reassuringly. "Don't worry, Enzo. There's still a way out. We'll survive."
Fred's gaze shifted toward the dense forests covering the Ardennes to the south. "We just need to position our forces facing the mountains. Understand?"
Enzo blinked in confusion, following Fred's gaze southward. "You mean the Ardennes are our escape route?"
Fred nodded slowly. "Exactly. Tanks need roads. They can't maneuver freely through mountains and dense forests. The Ardennes provide our only viable retreat path."
Fred had never seriously intended to defend Charleroi; doing so was impossible. His plan was simple: keep two battalions in the city to create the illusion that it remained heavily defended. Meanwhile, the main force would relocate secretly toward a place called "Black Village," nestled at the foot of the mountains, surrounded by coal heaps and blackened terrain.
By digging trenches and camouflaging soldiers with coal dust, they could blend seamlessly into the environment. In an emergency, setting the coal heaps ablaze would create thick smoke screens, rendering French aircraft and tanks ineffective. From there, the troops could easily retreat deeper into the forest.
At that moment, a messenger handed Fred a telegram. "Colonel, a message from High Command. The Chief of Staff has promoted you to Major General. Your unit will become the 31st Division under your command. He urges you to hold Charleroi firmly until conditions allow for a coordinated counterattack to retake Namur."
Fred took the message without reading it, stuffing it dismissively into his pocket with a cynical smile. A counterattack on Namur? It was a hollow promise, just another attempt by High Command to push his exhausted, isolated troops to fight to the death and weaken the enemy—nothing more.
"Sir," another messenger suddenly rushed forward. "Major Fiender reports encountering French troops in the forest!"
Fred's face turned pale. Fiender was the commander of a reconnaissance unit Fred had dispatched into the Ardennes. If French forces had already penetrated the mountains, their planned retreat route was at risk.
"Are they certain they're French troops?" Fred asked anxiously, hoping it might merely be Belgian partisans misidentified as French.
The response that arrived minutes later dashed his hopes: "Confirmed, sir! They are indeed French soldiers, and in significant numbers. Major Fiender requests further orders."
Further orders weren't necessary—distant gunfire and explosions echoed faintly from within the forest. The two forces had already engaged.
"Send immediate reinforcements!" Fred ordered hastily. "We must secure the forest entrance at all costs!"
"Yes, sir!" the messenger turned to relay the command swiftly.
Fred paced restlessly, anxiety gnawing at him. How many French troops had already deployed into the Ardennes? If substantial enemy forces were present, his entire retreat route would be blocked.
A terrifying image flashed through Fred's mind: German troops desperately fleeing into the forest under attack from Charles's tanks, only to be ambushed by French infantry hiding among the trees. Without cover or warning, his men would be slaughtered mercilessly.
"No!" Fred abruptly halted, turning urgently to Enzo. "Organize the men immediately. Prepare to retreat into the forest—now!"
"Yes, Colonel!" Enzo responded instinctively, then quickly corrected himself, remembering Fred's promotion. "I mean, yes, General!"
Fred waved impatiently, annoyed by this irrelevant detail amid their desperate situation. Didn't Enzo understand their lives were at stake?
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