Girls und panzer: Carolus rex the emperor of steel

The day of the match arrives, and just like in the first round, both teams are positioned facing each other for the official presentation. I try to maintain a firm and professional posture, but my attention subtly drifts when my gaze falls on the girls from Blue Division.

Their uniforms… were too revealing.

No matter how hard I tried to focus on the enemy tanks, my eyes betrayed my determination, occasionally wandering toward the chests of the rival crew members. A mistake that did not go unnoticed.

Elbow jab.

Freya: "Keep your composure, commander," she whispered in an annoyed tone, never breaking her forward gaze.

Beside me, Astrid stifled a laugh, but her mocking smile said it all.

Astrid: "Like what you see, Erik?" she teased in a low voice, barely holding back her amusement.

Erik: "Agh, screw you." - I brought a hand to my face.

Gudrun, on the other hand, was entirely unfazed. She adjusted her glasses and focused on the Blue Division tanks, analyzing their composition with complete seriousness.

The girls from Blue Division, however, soon noticed my furtive glances and decided to have a little fun at my expense. Playful smiles, suggestive looks, and the occasional provocative wink became their weapons at that moment.

Viviana: "Don't be shy, commander of Carolus Rex," one of them said with a mischievous grin.

Elle: "Let's hope you look at us with just as much attention during the battle," she added with a flirtatious tone.

Tristana: "Or maybe we could give you an even better view… if you beat us," she finished, lightly biting her lower lip.

For a second, I felt the air around me charge with electricity. But instead of looking away or trying to change the subject, a confident smile appeared on my face.

Erik: "I'll gladly take you up on that offer." - I gave them a thumbs-up.

The girls from Blue Division giggled coquettishly. Some even exchanged glances among themselves, as if Erik's response had raised the stakes.

Well, if the damage is done anyway, I'll look wherever I want.

Meanwhile, in the stands, the situation sparked varied reactions:

Maho kept her cold and unshakable expression, but the furrow in her brow spoke for itself.

Maho: "That idiot…" she muttered to herself, crossing her arms firmly.

Katyusha, on the other hand, didn't even try to hide her annoyance. Her face turned red with jealousy, and with an indignant huff, she exclaimed:

Katyusha: "What is that stupid Erik looking at?! I'll make him stop staring!"

Nonna and Klara exchanged a glance and sighed, as if they had already anticipated this reaction.

Darjeeling, usually stoic and elegant, raised an eyebrow at the scene. It wasn't every day she saw a combat presentation turn into a flirting spectacle. She took a sip of her tea and, with a small smile, commented to herself:

Darjeeling: "Well, this is unexpected… but entertaining."

Mika, from a distance, watched everything with her usual tranquility. She said nothing, but inside, she couldn't help but laugh at the situation.

Miho, on the other hand, felt a strange sensation. She wasn't entirely sure what it was, but seeing Erik interact with those girls caused a slight discomfort in her chest.

In the Carolus Rex team, reactions also varied:

Freya glanced at me sideways, raising an eyebrow with a sly smile.

Freya: "So that's how it is, huh?" she murmured.

Astrid, still laughing, patted Erik on the back.

Astrid: "Ha! I like that confidence! But you better back it up on the battlefield, commander."

Erik: "Of course."

Gudrun just let out a sigh, never taking her eyes off the Blue Division tanks.

Gudrun: "Focus on the fight, Erik. You'll have time to flirt later."

The laughter from the stands and the teasing comments from other academies made it clear that this "presentation" had been more eye-catching than expected.

But now, the battle was about to begin.

Without losing my composure, I stepped forward a few paces and approached the Blue Division girls. I extended my hand with confidence and, to everyone's surprise, spoke in fluent Spanish, though with an accent different from theirs:

Erik: Espero que tengamos un buen enfrentamiento y les deseo suerte. "I hope we have a great match, and I wish you good luck."

For a moment, the group of girls fell silent. Not because they didn't understand, but because they hadn't expected it at all.

Several of them exchanged glances of surprise. Tristana was the first to react.

Tristana: ¿Pero qué tenemos aquí? ¡Hablas español! "Well, well, what do we have here? You speak Spanish!" she exclaimed, a mix of amazement and excitement in her voice.

Viridiana smirked maliciously and crossed her arms.

Viridiana: ¿Nos estabas escuchando todo este tiempo sin decir nada? ¡Qué pillo! "So you've been listening to us this whole time without saying a word? You little rascal!"

Elle, with a challenging expression, shook my hand firmly, never breaking eye contact.

Elle: Vaya, vaya… Un hombre con cultura. Me gusta. "Well, well… A man of culture. I like it."

The rest of the Blue Division girls started chatting among themselves in Spanish, some playfully, others testing if Erik truly understood what they were saying.

Tristana: ¿Y si lo ponemos a prueba? "Should we put him to the test?" she whispered with a conspiratorial grin.

Elle: Seguro que no entiende las expresiones españolas de verdad. "I bet he doesn't understand real Spanish expressions."

Viridiana: ¿Y si lo hacemos sonrojar? "Or maybe we should make him blush?"

Seizing the opportunity, one of them leaned in just a bit more than necessary while adjusting her uniform.

Viridiana: Dime, guapo… ¿te gusta nuestro uniforme? "Tell me, handsome… do you like our uniform?" she asked with a sweet, teasing voice.

Without letting myself be intimidated, I kept my confident expression and responded calmly:

Erik: Lo mejor de lo mejor, buen diseño, paleta de colores y sobre todo resalta mucho, me encanta we "The best of the best—great design, color palette, and most importantly, it stands out a lot. I love it, dude."

The girls laughed, delighted with the Carolus Rex commander's attitude.

Tristana: Mexicano?! "Mexican?!"

Viridiana: Cuidado, que a lo mejor nos roba el corazón antes de que acabe la batalla. "Careful, he might steal our hearts before the battle even ends."

Elle: Bueno, siempre podemos vengarnos en el campo de batalla… o después. "Well, we can always get our revenge on the battlefield… or afterward."

While the Blue Division girls enjoyed the situation, I noticed some stares from the stands.

Maho still had her serious expression, but now her gaze was a bit colder.

Katyusha, on the other hand, puffed up her cheeks and crossed her arms.

Katyusha: "Enough! That stupid Erik is way too relaxed with them!"

Darjeeling took another sip of her tea and smiled.

Darjeeling: "This is getting interesting."

And it looked like she was treating her tea as if it were popcorn while watching something entertaining.

Mika, still serene, hid her laughter behind a hand.

Miho watched the scene with a slight frown. That strange sensation in her chest was growing stronger.

In Carolus Rex, Freya observed me with a raised eyebrow.

Freya: "I didn't know he spoke Spanish…"

Astrid gave me a friendly smack on the back.

Astrid: "You have to teach me how to say something cool in Spanish later!"

Erik: "No, learn it on your own."

Astrid: "Oh. :( "

Gudrun simply adjusted her glasses.

Gudrun: "As long as he doesn't talk too much and focuses on the fight, I don't care."

The atmosphere between the teams was light and full of playful tension… but the moment the whistle blew, the fun would be set aside.

At least I had managed to ease the tension and strengthen ties with another school.

The battle was about to begin.

The battle was about to begin.

We got into our tanks and positioned ourselves at the designated points. The map or location this time was an urban setting, so I had some advantage, but I wasn't sure what tactics they would use, as there wasn't much information about it on the wiki. That meant we had to adapt to whatever was thrown at us.

"Panzer vor!!" —shouted the announcer.

Upon hearing the presenter's shout, we all moved to our positions, but this time, due to the urban map, we took different routes.

I ordered the BT-42s to go to the edges of the map to report incoming tanks and, at the same time, follow them.The Strv m/38s scattered along with their respective leaders.

Gudrun: "Commander, I've seen the enemy ranks. They're mostly German tanks with a few Soviet ones."

Erik: "Understood. Follow them discreetly. Make sure they don't detect you and report the enemy's location to Astrid and Freya periodically."

Gudrun: "Understood."

Acting that way beforehand helped relax the enemy and lower their guard.

I nudged Ingrid forward with my feet into a wide alley, giving the same instruction to the rest of the medium tanks, while the light ones could move more freely—except for the BT-42s, which I had planned to use differently.

I had the Strv m/38s harass and lure the Blue Division tanks into the alleys. Some of them got stuck or stood still for a moment while trying to turn, and during that time, the Sav m/44s fired at their sides, rendering them inoperable. White flags began to rise above them.

Some of our Strv m/38s that couldn't escape in time also ended up inoperable, along with some Sav m/44s.

Carmen: "That's strange… I'm only seeing light tanks or tank destroyers."

But by the time they realized their location, it was already too late.

The constant harassment from the Strv m/38s had disrupted their formation and tested their patience. Again and again, the small Swedish tanks annoyed them, firing and slipping away into the narrow streets before they could react.

Blue Division couldn't take it. Some of their commanders ordered an immediate pursuit, failing to notice they were being lured into an ambush.

When the first German and Soviet tanks of the enemy team tried to maneuver in the narrow alleys, they encountered a problem—their size and weight prevented them from turning quickly.

—"Shit, I can't move!"—"Reverse, reverse!"—"We're blocked!"

By the time they realized it, it was already too late.

The Carolus Rex Sav m/43s, well-positioned on the flanks, opened fire on the enemy tanks' sides. With much thinner side armor, the Swedish tank destroyers' shots wreaked havoc.

White flags began to rise over the inoperable vehicles.

But the enemy didn't sit idly by.

Some Blue Division crews reacted quickly and returned fire, managing to hit several Sav m/43s, taking them out of action.

Other Strv m/38s that couldn't escape in time after the harassment were also taken down.

Gudrun: "Commander, enemy tanks are approaching from the east."

Erik: "I figured as much," I murmured. "Have the light tanks lure the rest away."

I climbed into the hatch and gave Ingrid a few light kicks, signaling her to move forward.

Erik: "The rest, follow us. We're going to use a rather annoying tactic."

Meanwhile, Blue Division had already been notified that all the tanks that entered the city had been immobilized.

The plan had been to probe the enemy vanguard a bit, but in the end, they had been surrounded without even realizing it. Now, they had no data on where the enemy was.

Fiiuuuu—BOOM!

Suddenly, several projectiles began striking the ground where they were standing.

It was the same tactic used against Viking Fisheries, but how did they know their exact location to fire so accurately?

Elle looked around and noticed something odd about the trees in a nearby park—T-34-85 cannons were visible, while their chassis and turrets were hidden with grass and bushes.

Elle: "TO THE LEFT, LEFT!!!"

Just as the Blue Division turrets started turning, a shot came from another direction, as if waiting for them to move.

BAM!!

Centurion and T-34-85 fired simultaneously, taking out the remaining Blue Division tanks.

Elle's tank was knocked out, and the white flag rose over its turret.

The white flag waving over Elle's turret was the definitive sign—Blue Division had been eliminated. The crowd's reactions weren't long in coming.

Darjeeling: "My, that was faster than I expected." —She sipped her tea with elegance— "It seems Carolus Rex is much more cunning than most assumed."

Katyusha: "Ha! That's what happens when you walk into a well-executed ambush!" —She laughed, crossing her arms smugly— "Though I have to admit, the tactic of hiding the cannons was pretty clever..."

Maho: "If Carolus Rex hadn't detected the threat in time, the outcome could have been different."

Kay: "What did you think of that, Erika?" —she asked with a smile, noticing that Kuromorimine's vice-commander was still watching the screen with a frown.

Erika: "Tch… It wasn't bad, but it wasn't perfect either." —She crossed her arms— "He took too big of a risk relying on his team to follow orders without mistakes."

Mika: "But isn't that what makes a good commander?" —Mika asked in her usual laid-back tone, resting her cheek on one hand— "It seems he trusts his teammates, and they trust him."

Kay nodded with a smile.

Kay: "That's what makes a team strong."

Meanwhile, on the battlefield, Elle climbed out of her tank with a resigned sigh. She watched the smoke rising from her team's immobilized vehicles and clenched her fists.

Elle: "They hunted us like prey…" —she muttered to herself.

Erik's Centurion approached Elle, and he got down from the tank, extending his hand toward her.

Erik: "It was a good fight."

Elle looked at Erik's outstretched hand with a mix of frustration and respect. She gritted her teeth but eventually sighed and shook his hand.

Elle: "I suppose so…" —she said with a tired smile— "But next time, it won't be so easy."

Erik: "I hope so." —I replied with a faint smile— "Easy victories aren't as satisfying."

Elle let out a short laugh and shook her head.

Elle: "That's one way to look at it… But you're right. Make sure to keep winning so that when we meet again, I have the chance to return the favor."

Erik: "I'll keep that in mind." —I replied.

Then, with a smile, I reminded Elle of the agreement before the battle.

Erik: Antes de enfrentarnos, me habías prometido algo. "Before we fought, you promised me something." —I said in Spanish.

Elle blinked, surprised by the sudden language change and Erik's confident tone. It took her a second to remember what they had said before the battle, and when she did, a slight blush appeared on her cheeks.

Elle: ¿De verdad vas a hacerme recordarlo ahora? "Are you really going to make me remember that now?" —she asked, crossing her arms with a half-smile.

Erik: Un trato es un trato "A deal is a deal," I replied, keeping my confident expression. Y tú sabes que yo siempre cobro lo que me deben. "And you know I always collect what I'm owed."

The girls of Blue Division, still inside their tanks or peeking out from the hatches, exchanged glances among themselves. Viviana was the first to react, resting an elbow on the edge of her T-34 and smirking mischievously.

Viridiana: Uf, lo dice en serio~. ¿Qué hacemos, chicas? "Oof, he's serious~. What do we do, girls?"

Tristana: No podemos echarnos atrás, ¿verdad?  "We can't back out now, can we?" Tristana played with a strand of her hair, looking at me with a mischievous glint in her eyes. Prometimos una "vista mejor" si nos ganaba… "We did promise him a 'better view' if he won…"

Elle sighed, placing a hand on her hip, but she couldn't hide the half-smile on her face.

Elle: No sé si eres valiente o simplemente descarado, Erik. "I don't know if you're brave or just shameless, Erik."

Erik: Un poco de ambas "A little bit of both," I replied with a slight tilt of my head.

There was a brief silence before the girls of Blue Division looked at each other and nodded. Then, almost in sync, they began unbuttoning the top buttons of their uniforms, revealing more of their collarbones and showing a little more skin than they normally would.

Viridiana tugged lightly at her jacket, sliding it off her shoulders.

Viridiana: ¿Qué tal esto, comandante? "How about this, commander?" she asked in a sultry tone.

Not to be outdone, Tristana leaned slightly over the hatch of her tank, resting her arms in a way that accentuated her figure.

Tristana: Espero que lo estés disfrutando~. "I hope you're enjoying the view~."

Even Elle, albeit with a resigned sigh, brought her hands to her uniform, slowly and deliberately undoing a couple of buttons.

Elle: No te acostumbres "Don't get used to it," she said, looking at me with a mix of amusement and warning. Pero… un trato es un trato "But… a deal is a deal."

My crew, watching everything from our tanks, had varied reactions.

Astrid let out a whistle.

Astrid: "Damn, commander, you don't waste any time."

Gudrun adjusted her glasses, trying to hide her slight discomfort.

Gudrun: "This feels like a scene from a cheap porno…"

And just how the hell do you know that?!

Meanwhile, Freya simply laughed and crossed her arms.

Freya: "Hey, Erik, are you sure you don't want to transfer academies? Looks like they treat you pretty well here." She smiled, but her eyes didn't.

I simply enjoyed the moment, keeping a calm expression and analyzing each reaction.

I noticed that Freya was angry, but whatever, I do what I want.

Erik: "A spectacle worthy of victory," I said with a satisfied smile.

The Blue Division girls laughed among themselves, some clearly amused and others a bit embarrassed.

Elle: "Well, commander," she said, crossing her arms again, "we've given you what we promised. Now let's see if you can keep winning and earning more rewards."

Erik: "That's the plan," I replied before climbing back into my tank.

With the spectacle over, Carolus Rex advanced to the next stage of the tournament. But without a doubt, this victory left a lasting impression on more than a few people.

The screens in the observation room clearly displayed the scene unfolding on the battlefield. The various commanders, who up until that moment had been analyzing Erik and Blue Division's tactical performance, now had expressions ranging from disbelief to interest.

Maho Nishizumi, arms crossed, furrowed her brow slightly.

Maho: "Erik… is a scoundrel," she said in a neutral tone, though her eyes reflected a mix of annoyance and curiosity.

Beside her, Miho was completely red, covering her mouth with both hands.

Miho: "T-that's… is that even allowed in Sensha-dō?" she asked in a trembling voice.

Darjeeling: "Not if you strictly follow the rules, but it seems Carolus Rex has its own style," she answered while calmly sipping her tea. Though her expression remained serene, a small playful smile appeared on her lips.

Mika, as always, seemed relaxed and amused by the situation.

Mika: "Ah, so bets can be part of strategy too. How interesting~."

Kay, on the other hand, burst into laughter and gave Kinuyo Nishi a hearty slap on the back. Kinuyo was just as red as Miho.

Kay: "Damn, this guy really knows how to enjoy a victory! I like his style."

Kinuyo covered her face with her hands.

Kinuyo: "I can't believe they did that in the middle of a tournament! Such a lack of discipline!"

Anchovy, who had been watching with her mouth slightly open, suddenly snapped her fingers.

Anchovy: "Hey, that's actually a great idea! If we face Carolus Rex, we could do the same to motivate them to go all out."

Katyusha, who had remained silent until now with her arms crossed and an expression of disbelief, raised an eyebrow and looked at Anchovy with a mix of irritation and consideration.

Katyusha: "Tch, that sounds ridiculous… but if it works to distract Erik, we could take advantage of it."

Nonna: "Katyusha, I don't think it would work if you were the one doing it."

Darjeeling: "Or better yet, make them work harder to defeat us," she added with a cunning look. "There's nothing more effective than a tempting reward."

Maho let out a deep sigh, closing her eyes for a moment before looking back at the screen.

Maho: "…That idiot is piling up trouble for himself."

Miho could only nod silently, unsure of how to react to the situation.

In the background, a furious Katyusha was yelling at Nonna, but Klara and Nonna simply maintained their teasing smiles.

Meanwhile, on the battlefield, Erik settled into his tank, somehow sensing that the discussion in the observation room might come back to bite him in the future. But for now, he just smiled.

A victory was a victory, after all.