Reincarnated as Nikolai II

Historically, 1917 was a year of major German defensive operations on the Western Front.

By this time, Russia on the Eastern Front would have already been assigned a temporary gender and undergone gender reassignment surgery, whether circumcision or castration, and before Russia's surgery was complete, the Anglo-French Alliance would have tried to drive out Germany.

Looking at Germany's two-front war situation, they were launching a final offensive to cut off Russia's lifeline in the east while maintaining a defensive position in the west at the cost of casualties.

The last golden time was created as the Russian Empire's lifeline was cut off.

To not miss this golden time, the GPN and BEF forces were increased to their largest size ever, and almost all battles began with Anglo-French offensives.

The desperation shown in history. They probably had no choice but to come out of the trenches and charge, thinking they could never defeat Germany once the Eastern Front was completely over.

Then how are they this year, with more than half of 1917 passed?

"To my eyes, it looks very quiet and peaceful."

There were occasional battles and big events like the 'French Army Mutiny', but to my eyes, the Western Front seems to have forgotten its position.

"Do they not know that the Eastern Front is merely auxiliary?"

If capturing Berlin is physically impossible anyway, the war can only end by gaining superiority on the Western Front.

Why did Falkenhayn abandon the Eastern Front?

Why did we decide to bring down Austria-Hungary first?

The answer is simple. The Eastern Front can never be the main actor in determining the outcome of the war.

If you ask whether Germany on the Western Front was quiet this year, that's not the case either.

While there were no large-scale battles like last year, both sides were demonstrating new weapons obsessed with firepower, like ammonia mines and structure-destroying bombs.

With the development of aviation technology beyond army and navy, there were reportedly 600 civilian casualties in a large-scale air raid on London in June.

Submarine operations reached their peak, attempting to sink ships even in the presence of Atlantic convoy escorts.

However.

The same intensity as before is still hard to find even a speck of.

The grand advance operation and the Nivelle Offensive have disappeared into history.

The Battle of Arras, which broke the stalemate and neutralized Ludendorff's defense, did not happen.

There is also no victory at Vimy Ridge that brought glory to the Canadian forces, who were merely colonial troops.

There is no Second Battle of the Aisne to prove the development of French strategy and tactics, nor the Battle of the Hills of Champagne to disgrace Crown Prince Wilhelm's face.

This was that kind of year.

A year when both intensity and major battles disappeared.

A time that makes last year's fierce battles at the Somme and Verdun seem pale in comparison.

However, as always, there is a time limit to such silence.

America's entry into the war.

And the crisis of Austria-Hungary.

These two factors breaking the current situation are ongoing.

It was definitely Germany that felt the time constraint from this.

"...It seems all the German veterans from the Eastern Front have been transferred to the Western Front. Amiens is in danger."

Germany was the first to draw its sword.

"Amiens... The most strategic point of the French northern railway. Come to think of it, wasn't the Northern Army Group headquarters in Amiens? How could Amiens fall?"

"We can't know for now. But if Amiens falls..."

"Yes, we might have to fight another Battle of the Marne."

Germany made its final decision within the diminishing timer.

That decision aimed for the Anglo-French Alliance's neck, so they too would have to provide an answer, whether it be the Hundred Days Offensive or a similar counteroffensive operation.

Then what is our decision?

"I will attach as many troops as possible to General Brusilov."

"Good."

We are not the ones being chased, but rather the ones urging the timer.

The alliance between the Entente powers has long since broken. Stay tuned for updates on My Virtual Library Empire

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Of course, it's difficult to make simple comparisons since each country has different organizations, armaments, personnel, tactics, ranks, capabilities, and everything else.

Nevertheless, if we explain just by division numbers, the Anglo-French forces in 1917 did not exceed 250 divisions on the Western Front.

Even this is fortunate because history has changed and there are no battlefields like the Balkan Front or Salonika Front draining away from the Anglo-French forces; if it had been according to original history, they would have barely exceeded 200 divisions.

On the other hand, how was the Eastern Front before Ludendorff's offensive plan was decided?

"... Are you certain Roman's army has withdrawn?"

"Certain. Russian forces are being deployed to all fronts extending from Czechoslovakia-Hungary-Serbia."

"Those crazy bastards. Opening up a battlefield in the south where neither side can maintain supplies."

Previously, nearly 1.8 million troops were needed just to maintain a 'standoff' with Roman, not for an offensive.

However, once Hindenburg confirmed the safety of the Eastern Front, he picked out only the elite forces and brought them to the west, like a child carefully taking out only 500-won coins from their piggy bank to make it look like the volume hasn't decreased.

What does this mean?

It means that veterans who have been battle-hardened, not fresh recruits with no one to learn from because all their seniors died in 1916, are coming to the west.

And this means that forces of a scale that breaks the balance are being deployed to an area that was maintaining massive front lines with roughly matched numbers.

The addition of an unfair element to a battlefield that was equal.

A meteorite falling into the peaceful lake that is the Western Front.

The Stormtroopers that Ludendorff brought from the east were like that.

Foch at the Amiens headquarters, defending the north, even had this illusion at the sudden enemy large-scale artillery bombardment and infiltration force deployment.

"...Schlieffen?"

It felt like the nightmare of 1914 was returning.

"Hindenburg had hidden such forces? Is this possible?"

"It's the Eastern army! They pulled forces from the Eastern Front and turned them to the west!"

"But how? Is it possible to abandon Berlin?"

The appearance of assault troops breaking the existing standoff means one thing.

"...These damn bastards were fighting a fake war?"

An implicit armistice. Even if not to that extent, a decision not to add forces on both sides. This is the only reason those assault troops could exist.