I Will Stage A Coup D’état - Chapter 89



Only Krnovel

EP.89 Towards Africa (2)

As soon as he received His Majesty’s order, Baek Dong-seok, the commander of the Indochina Expeditionary Force, left all other preparations to his staff and flew to Cairo.

In Cairo were Lieutenant General Richard O’Connor, commander of the Eighth Army, and General Claude Auchinleck, commander of Middle East forces.

Baek Dong-seok greeted the British generals and discussed how to cooperate in the future.

“First of all, the battlefield in Africa is basically the same as the sea. Tanks and trucks are warships. The concept of a front line has no meaning here.”

Baek Dong-seok also understood that the desert had no value.

“The most important resource is water. Without water, no army can survive.”

So, operations in the inland where securing drinking water was difficult were not easy.

Even if wells were secured, operations in the desert, where there were no proper roads, were very risky.

“So, in the end, you’re saying we have to move along the coastal road?”

To summarize the story of the British generals, it was like this.

In that case, it would be virtually a single-axis operation.

Baek Dong-seok noticed why the British generals were explaining the battlefield environment.

‘So, let’s throw away our independent operational rights and move together, isn’t that what I’m saying? Why should we do that?’

Baek Dong-seok never thought of that.

“So what about the landing?”

“Landing?”

“Since the sea control belongs to our allied forces anyway, wouldn’t it be a good idea to expand the front line by raiding rear areas like Tripoli or Benghazi?”

The British looked puzzled when they heard that.

It was not because they did not think about landing, but because things did not go according to plan.

‘Who wants to use us as their second-in-command?’

Baek Dong-seok had absolutely no intention of giving in.

This is the operational control that Your Majesty worked hard to obtain.

Can you just pass that over?

The discussion was put on hold for the time being because Baek Dong-seok was making a fuss.

The British watched him for several days and tried to coax him, but to no avail.

‘Your Majesty trusted me and sent me, so I can’t let those bastards defeat me.’

The British generals realized that this Korean general was not an easy opponent.

“General Baek is a man who can’t even fit a needle. How can you persuade such a man?”

“That’s what the Army wants, but this is getting frustrating.”

General Okinweck reported to the Army that he had no choice but to recognize the independent operational authority of the Korean military.

On December 9, 1942, when differences between the two sides were almost resolved, Italian forces invaded Egypt from Libya.

Both Korea and Britain were taken aback by the bold attack.

“Why are these Italians so desperate to defend themselves? What did they do wrong?”

To explain the reason, it was necessary to briefly look at the situation in Rome.

The Italian ruler, Duce, was left in a difficult position by the outbreak of the Anglo-Italian War in August.

The Yugoslav occupying forces were suffering thousands of casualties every month from guerrilla attacks, and the Turkish expeditionary force was cut off from supplies, to the point where 300,000 troops were starving to death where they sat.

Here, the Ethiopian and North African garrisons were also blockaded by the British and Korean naval forces and were slowly withering away.

An army of over a million men was on the verge of evaporating without being able to accomplish anything.

If he continued to sit still, it was only a matter of time before he fell from power.

For both of them, a desperate measure was needed to overcome the difficulties.

Both sides sought German support as a means to overcome this.

Duce’s calculation was that if the Germans intervened, they could regain some control of the Mediterranean.

Germany reluctantly sent the 10th Air Corps, saying:

“This is the end. Remember, there will be no more.”

The intervention of the German Xth Air Corps had an immediate effect.

The route to Libya, which had been suddenly blocked, has finally been cleared.

Even if it wasn’t at night, the safety of ships sailing the central Mediterranean was somewhat guaranteed during the day.

As Duche got some air, his liver swelled a little again.

Isn’t it true that our military is in danger because the Allied Navy is stationed in the Mediterranean?

That was the right idea.

If so, the answer was simple.

All we have to do is push the enemy navy out of the Mediterranean.

how?

‘If we seize the Suez Canal, they will have no choice but to run away.’

This wasn’t entirely wrong either.

At least the Korean Navy had no choice but to retreat to the Red Sea for logistics reasons.

In that case, the lives of the Duke of Aosta and the East African army trapped in Ethiopia could not be saved, but the lives of the Libyan and Turkish expeditionary forces could be guaranteed.

Is that all?

The feat of conquering Egypt could have helped to restore some of the prestige that had been lost.

It was impossible for an incarnation of a pig like Duche to pass by with such high odds.

“Captain Giovanni Messe, I leave everything to you. Just do it well.”

Duche, with great determination, entrusted full authority to the most capable general he had his eye on.

Captain Giovanni Messe, who was given this important mission, could not hide his embarrassment.

“No, Duche. Are you telling us to attack first with our army? Right now, we don’t even have enough supplies to defend ourselves. You know our situation very well.”

“Oh my! The Libyan garrison has 250,000 troops. The enemy has only about 30,000 troops. If you look at the numbers, it’s a fight you can easily win, so why are you so scared? Even if the British army is well trained, they have a good chance of winning with that much of a difference in numbers.”

Although Duchess said so, he did not think that conquering Egypt would be as easy as eating cake.

Haven’t we learned from the French that overwhelming numbers do not guarantee victory?

When facing great powers, Italy performed woefully poorly.

Duche didn’t know that either, but this time he had to do it.

His fate and that of Italy depended on this attack.

“Okay, I’ll try. But you’ll have to give it some time.”

“Oh, you should follow what the uniformed expert says.”

Duche decided to give Messe ample time to prepare.

After three months, the two of them spoke again.

“How long are you going to make me wait!”

Duche could no longer bear the desperate cries of the Turkish expeditionary force as they withered to death and the critical gaze from home.

“No, our military is not ready yet.”

“It’s noisy, let’s go now.”

Messe had been stalling for time because he didn’t want to attack, but there was no other way since things had come to this.

“It’s an all-out offensive.”

General Messe led the 80,000-strong Italian army across the Egyptian border.

The Allied forces were greatly embarrassed by the Italian attack, which came with a proud air and raised a cloud of dust.

But the inside story wasn’t that great.

The modernization of the Italian army was hopelessly delayed by the occupation of Yugoslavia, the Turkish invasion, the Ethiopian War, and the Spanish intervention.

Of the 80,000-strong invasion force, only one battalion was motorized.

Most of them were old, outdated trucks.

Most of the ‘modern Italian’ invading force was crossing the desert on foot.

“It’s hot. How long do I have to walk?”

“Water. Let me drink some water!”

As a result, the invading force was defeated before even getting 100km in.

This was because there were not enough trucks to bring in food and supplies from the ports in the rear for the 80,000-strong expeditionary force.

If the supply lines were stretched any further, the Italian army would be doomed to destruction without even having to fight.

To strike Suez with such an army was a dream.

Messe stopped advancing here and took up defensive positions.

The best option would be to withdraw, but it seemed unlikely that the two forces, who were still urging the advance, would accept a retreat.

The British military command was completely unaware of this situation, so they sat down with Baek Dong-seok to discuss countermeasures.

“For the time being, defense is the best option. We’ll just buy time until our Korean advance guard arrives.”

Baek Dong-seok insisted on defense in a very strong tone.

This was not Baek Dong-seok’s personal thought, but was in accordance with His Excellency Lee Seong-jun’s instructions.

“Master, you must never allow the British to attack the Italians. If you touch them, the whole world will know that they are water balloons that can be popped with a single needle.”

“Yes, Your Majesty. I will never let that happen. I will hold O’Connor’s ankles to make sure that the British cannot attack the Italians.”

Baek Dong-seok actually spread false rumors to the British army.

“According to the information we have received from our Korean side, the Italian troops you see now are not all there are. So, until the reinforcements arrive, we should not provoke the enemy with a hasty offensive. If we launch an offensive right away and make a mistake, they will come rushing at us like poisoned rattlesnakes, and that would be a disaster.”

“Well, it’s true that the Italians are cornered, so it wouldn’t be good to mess with them.”

The British also agreed with the calculation that there was no immediate benefit to be gained by provoking the Italians.

In that case, it would be better to start the attack around late winter when the battle lines were formed.

‘Aren’t the Soviet Union and Germany fighting a bloody war anyway? In just a little while, the German Air Force will return to Russia, so let’s just hold out until then.’

In any case, Italy was destined to lose in the long run.

The British thought so, so they saw no problem in postponing the attack for a while.

Baek Dong-seok was secretly satisfied with the British people’s reaction and turned on his calculator to monopolize the credit.

‘Your Majesty wants to score as many points as possible from the sandbag that is Italy. To do that, it is right for us to start the offensive before England.’

If Korea were to suggest, even subtly, that it would conduct a reconnaissance of its power, the British would not refuse.

Then, we beat the Italians and score points.

Baek Dong-seok waited for that moment and put his heads together with his staff again.