Reincarnated as Nikolai II

Russia only needs to not lose Poland anyway, and Germany's goal is to protect Berlin, so they can withdraw forces as long as battles don't occur.

However, there's a condition - they must only withdraw enough forces to maintain balance between both sides. And both sides must do it simultaneously.

"The Russian Empire Special Forces (13th Army) has appeared in the south!"

"The Eastern Front's 10th Army is withdrawing from the front! Russia appears to be reinforcing all forces for the Slovakia-Hungary offensive!"

That difficult condition was observed on the Eastern Front.

Amiens headquarters.

The Allied headquarters controlling British, American, and French forces is located here, and right above is where American and British forces are landing.

However.

"...What about General Pétain's side?"

"The central front remains unchanged. They definitely came from the Eastern Front, and Hindenburg intends to end the Western Front before Austria-Hungary dies."

Foch didn't have any available forces in his hands to stop those assault troops right away.

"Chief of Staff, shall we abandon Amiens and withdraw the front?"

"..."

Although the Stormtroopers have just appeared on the front, their deployment at this crucial junction made Hindenburg's purpose immediately clear. The tactical brilliance and ruthlessness of the German High Command was evident in every movement.

If Verdun had been a grinding war of attrition, bleeding both sides white in its meat grinder, those elite assault troops represented something far more dynamic - an specialized army precisely crafted for neutralizing and penetrating the Allied defense line. Their light equipment, aggressive tactics, and superior training set them apart from the standard infantry units.

In other words, Hindenburg is trying to recreate the sweeping maneuvers of 1914, but with a force better suited to the realities of modern warfare. The strategic parallels were impossible to ignore.

Just as Moltke had boldly ignored the border battles and carried out the ambitious Belgian bypass in those opening months of the war, Hindenburg is now trying to break this massive, entrenched front by adding these shock troops that will destroy the existing standoff. Their infiltration tactics and concentrated assault power threatened to shatter the carefully constructed Allied defensive positions.

They must be stopped. The implications were crystal clear - if those assault troops cannot be contained and repelled, they will mercilessly trample our formation like a scythe through wheat, potentially cutting off entire army groups and throwing the entire Western Front into chaos.

Nevertheless, Foch couldn't easily order to stop them.

'How can we stop them? Concentrate forces? The moment we gather forces, gaps will form in all front lines and we'll be pushed back!'

If Ludendorff deliberately brought that level of forces for infiltration, this goes beyond forming a salient - it's meant to deploy forces inside the defense line through that salient.

"How much firepower has the enemy mobilized this time?"

"The artillery firepower spread across the front line is estimated to be at least 10,000 guns."

"Then looking at infantry alone, we must assume they have at least 1.8 million infantry forces."

Even simple calculations show defense is difficult. Despite the German army's artillery ratio increasing due to extremely increasing heavy artillery since 1915, German infantry still outnumbers us.

Reports flooding into Amiens even at this moment via telegraph.

"Yesterday's German artillery range is estimated at 390km²! Simultaneous bombardment across the entire north!"

"18,000 BEF casualties in just one day from artillery fire! Britain's Fifth Army decides to retreat!"

"German infiltration is occurring between the Third and Fifth Armies! Forces must be sent immediately!"

The flood of information pouring into Amiens was forcing Foch to make a choice.

Even amid this, resentment rises.

'Supreme War Council, these vermin bastards, why did they have to provoke Russia!'

Anger surges enough to clench his teeth, but now is not the time to be angry.

Now is the time to accept reality and withdraw.

"All northern forces prepare to retreat. Abandon up to Arras and focus on defense by forming a defense line behind."

No one in the Allied forces knew these turnip-eaters would prepare such a counterattack.

'No. Perhaps Russia, who was facing them, might have known even if unintentionally.'

However, it's too late now to resent Russia.

"...Bey."

"Yes, General."

"First relay the situation here in the north accurately to Commander-in-Chief Pétain and contact the Supreme War Council."

"What should I tell the rear?"

"What do you mean what! Tell those bastards to either get on their knees or bang their heads and move Roman on the Eastern Front! Otherwise, Amiens is about to fly away too!"

"...Understood."

Right now, the Western Front needs Russia's power more desperately than ever.

When the anger he had been holding back is forced to speak reality through his own mouth, it bursts out like a lion's roar.

However, thinking rationally.

'...Will Russia move now?'

Will Russia save France and Britain who have already abandoned Russia and chosen America?

"How many American troops are there currently?"

"Excluding volunteers, calculating just the AEF forces, about 50,000. However, among them, only the US Army 1st Division has combat experience, and they've been deployed to the trenches in the Nancy direction."

"The 1st Division's performance... Damn, that's it. Is that all of them?"

"A few months ago, with the passage of the Jones Act giving citizenship to participants, there are also Puerto Ricans."

"..."

"You can consider it similar to the level of the British Empire's Indian Army."

Truly. Did those rear politician bastards truly abandon Russia's hand believing in these kinds of bastards?
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Even after seeing Russian forces on the Eastern Front push back Austria-Hungary and German forces alone in 1915, they let them attack the Dual Monarchy?

Foch couldn't believe it.

Unless those military observer bastards were all on drugs and wrote their reports like crap, this couldn't be possible.

"Chief of Staff..."

"General Pershing."

"Since you promised independent command authority from October, now we US command will directly command American forces."

"...General Pershing, now is not the time to discuss such things."

"We've had enough of US forces being passed off to the defense lines left by Britain and France. Without a decision from the Supreme War Council, US forces have the authority to conduct independent operations."

Amid even losing all the territory gained from last year's Somme battle, the US command authority issue that had been constantly raised over the past 6 months bursts out.

"...Ah."

They say you can see who's swimming naked when the tide goes out.

As Russian forces ebb away like the tide, the reality of the Western Front is being starkly revealed.

For the first time this year, Foch began to feel a sense of crisis.

It was the fear that this war might possibly end in defeat.