The Collapse of the Female Soldier

Fatso感到非常委屈.

Tears streamed down his face amidst the pouring rain.

Life had become unbearable.

They wouldn't let him leave when they were fighting, but when they finally did, he couldn't. After showing him the way out, they abandoned him here. As he cried, Jason knew he wasn't stupid. He picked up his gun and ran straight into the depths of the jungle. His agile movements resembled those of a fat rabbit.

As long as the Imperial mechs didn't enter the jungle, Fatso had an eighty percent chance of escaping back. If these mechs followed the Federal mechs in pursuit, it would be even better.

Fatso could sprint across open terrain at the fastest speed. Once he plunged into the not-so-rapid Su-Pong-Man River, relying on his fat and armed swimming prowess, Fatso could easily return to the camp where he was stationed. He could eat a few big pieces of roasted meat, drink a cup of hot chocolate or tea, and if he was lucky, he might even find some alcohol. Jason quickly shook his head and dismissed these foolish thoughts. Thinking about these things in this exhausted, hungry, and heartbroken state would only make Fatso feel even more despondent.

First, he had to find a place to hide. If those heavy mechs arrived at the battlefield and didn't chase north but instead stayed to mop up scattered single mechs, this forest would unwittingly become their base of operations.

Fatso could almost imagine himself being caught, skinned like a sheep, hung from a tree, and whipped for his fat.

It was truly miserable.

He vaguely oriented himself and sprinted all the way. To increase his chances of survival, he had to acquire a few tools.

The original base of the Federal Armored Forces was not far from this forest. Fatso quickly arrived at the camp. After rummaging through some boxes, he found several single soldier grenades, a large compressed solid energy block, and a discarded energy gun.

Most importantly, there was an automated mechanical arm used by the engineering maintenance soldiers. With it, Fatso could assemble all sorts of strange vehicles from any parts he could find in the shortest possible time. In twenty previous escape attempts, fifteen of them had been successful using this method. The supplies this time looked much more plentiful than before.

However, the weight of these items was not something Fatso could carry alone. He quickly dug a hole with the maintenance mechanical arm and buried everything except the grenades. Then Fatso lit a fire without hesitation and ran away.

By the time the fire ignited the ammunition in the order set by Jason, this poor and lonely engineering maintenance soldier had already reached a stinking swamp in the center of the forest.

In just a few minutes, he completely buried himself in it, leaving only a hollow tube leading to the edge of the swamp to avoid infrared and biological radar monitoring. Relying solely on his anti-detection combat suit was not enough. Fatso reduced his breathing and heart rate to a dangerous level. This was one of the many strange techniques taught by the bear instructor at the reconnaissance training camp.

Jason had an extraordinary talent for these strange techniques. He had always felt that if he could stay until the end of the war in this way, he wouldn't mind burying himself deeper.

Outside the forest, the Imperial mech squad arrived exactly as Fatso had expected.

They did not continue their pursuit but contacted scattered single mechs in the area and began to converge their forces. According to their operational plan, this area would become their forward base for attacking New Rome City. This meant that if Fatso wanted to wait for them to leave and then crawl out of the swamp, he might as well carve another tombstone for himself.

Poor Jason didn't know this. As soon as he relaxed, fatigue rushed over him like a tide, and he quickly fell asleep in the swamp.

...

At this moment, the Lere Federal Headquarters was in chaos.

Phones rang incessantly, the central computer processed tens of thousands of frontline messages, and the operations staff looked ashen-faced, inputting real-time war information into the virtual sandbox.

The image of Milock Star, floating above the hall, was riddled with holes. The red symbolizing the Imperial Army spread rapidly across this virtual planetary image, astonishingly fast. Over sixty immigrant cities had been surrounded, with more than forty already captured. Sixteen had been completely destroyed, marked by a dark gray color.

With the Federal ground defense forces losing almost all their aerial strength, they were now in disarray. Large chunks of virtual icons representing Federal forces were being divided and disappearing rapidly by the red Imperial forces.

Inside the command office, General Mihailovich was reporting the situation to the President who had come to the headquarters.

"So far, the Federation has completely lost control of five immigrant planets. The 11th and 12th space fleet stationed in the Galileo system have been almost completely destroyed. The only survivors are one Orion-class battleship, several light cruisers, and a Titan-class carrier that survived because of a duty rotation. The Milock Local Fleet stationed in the Newton system has withdrawn from the Atlantis Star Region after losing fifty percent of its warships, as approved by the General Staff."

General Mihailovich's voice was hoarse. Since the undeclared war with the Cachalin Empire began half a year ago, due to the Federal's long-standing unpreparedness for war, they had been unable to organize sufficient defense forces or plan for a counterattack. Facing the most severe test in its history, the Lere Federation, with three major star domains and eight star systems, was now in dire straits.

Against the well-prepared Cachalin Empire, the military strength of the Lere Federation had always been at a disadvantage. Moreover, the dovish dominant government and parliament had been overly relaxed about the aggressive history and bloodline of the Cachalin royal family. Proposals from the military to increase the budget had been repeatedly rejected.

Shortage of funds, aging warships, insufficient training.

What frustrated General Mihailovich even more was that a large number of academy-trained commanders in the military had never experienced the baptism of war. The Lere Federation had been too peaceful for too long. The glorious heroes of the older generation who had shone in the War of Independence had become mere names in history textbooks and statues on military academy lawns.

Now what the Lere Federation needed was time. A total mobilization order had been issued. Factories and shipyards were working at full capacity to produce new mechs and warships. Batches of new recruits were entering military camps for training, and time would bring the dawn of victory to Lere, wouldn't it?

"The First Mixed Army Group composed of the Fourth, Sixth, and Seventh Space Fleets has completed its assembly in the central star domain of Lere. Due to the blockade of the jump points by the Cachalin Empire's space fleet, it is no longer possible to reinforce the Newton system by forced jump. Therefore, the General Staff has ordered the blockade of jump points between Lere and the Atlantis Star Region and ordered the First Mixed Army Group to defend in place."

Looking at the President, who frowned while holding a teacup, without any expression, General Mihailovich continued, "The First and Second Fleets drawn from the Great Assembly Star Region are assembling in the rear, and it will take some time to replenish warships and ammunition personnel. The Third and Ninth Fleets have been ordered to depart and detour through public star regions to find new jump points to the Atlantis Star Region. The Fifth and Tenth Space Fleets are still responsible for guarding the safety of the capital's main star."

"Local fleets everywhere have begun comprehensive reorganization, and it is expected that five to six composite fleets will be expanded after replenishing warships and personnel."

President Hamilton finally put down the teacup in his hand and waved his hand, saying, "Tell me about your difficulties. What do I need to do? As long as the military needs it, I will support it unconditionally."

After pausing for a moment, the President continued, "The domestic situation is now very unstable. Five immigrant planets, nearly three hundred cities, hundreds of millions of people—once lost, they are lost. There is a high demand from the public for a counterattack. The opposition parties are also fanning the flames. If Milock Star falls again, we will be completely passive, and there will be no forward base for a strategic counterattack."

Seeing General Mihailovich about to speak, the President waved his hand to stop him, stood up, and paced to the window, facing away from the general, saying, "I know what you want to say, but we have no retreat. If Milock Star cannot be held, I will be the first President in Federal history to resign in disgrace, and you will be the first general to be removed from office. No sacrifice, no victory. Even if it's a gamble, we can only go all in."

Turning around, the President gestured for his secretary to hand General Mihailovich a document and continued, "This is the total strength the Federation can muster within three months of total mobilization. I believe that if we can hold on for these three months, we can achieve strategic balance. With nearly twice the resources and production capacity compared to the Cachalin Empire, we can launch a full-scale counterattack within a year."

"No sacrifice, no victory," General Mihailovich repeated this phrase over and over again.