Chapter 6 Side Quest: Retake Position D17

"What is going on? How did you lose your position?"

Glancing at the direction from which the officer had just sprinted, Andrei immediately felt a surge of dread. The man had come from the trench on his flank! If that section was lost, his own trench would become a completely exposed salient, facing a frontal assault while simultaneously being flanked. In such a situation, even if his soldiers were made of iron, they could never hold this line.

Andrei realized instantly that he had to retake that lost position immediately; otherwise, the enemy would soon be pouring out of the trenches behind him.

After gasping for air, the officer spoke urgently: "Captain, it’s not that the boys aren't fighting hard—it's the enemy's Dread Knight squad! My men couldn't penetrate their power armor at all. Before we could even throw our grenades, my brothers were turned into sieves!"

Andrei’s face turned pale upon hearing this. If he had heard correctly, did the man just say "power armor"? Who could tell him what kind of absurd world he had transmigrated into? They were fighting trench warfare with World War I-era equipment, dealing with multi-legged armored vehicles, sorcerers, and augmented soldiers—and now, power armor?

Great, just great. The only world he knew that was this ridiculous was Warhammer 40,000. Could he really have become a grunt in the Imperial Guard?

Before Andrei could speak, the bearded veteran stepped forward: "Captain, give me twenty good men, and I’ll take that position back right now! It’s just power armor—it’s not like I haven’t seen the stuff before. Just give me plenty of grenades!"

Andrei nodded and turned to the ten players standing nearby, as well as the soldiers further away who were still firing outward. "Get twenty of you! Go take back that lost position! Watch out for the enemy's power armor!"

At the same time, the players each received a sub-quest notification:

[Sub-quest: Retake the enemy-occupied D17 position and eliminate the enemy Dread Knights! Total Reward: 500 Merit Points! Participation: 0/20]

[Note: All quest rewards will be distributed based on the damage output ratio of the participants. The higher your output, the larger your share of the total reward!]

To get players to work hard, one had to offer incentives; otherwise, who would bother with sub-quests? As for how to distribute the rewards, Andrei had decided to use the system's output statistics—the more capable, the more you get.

As soon as the quest was issued, the players exploded with activity. It was impossible to tell how fast their reaction times were, but within three seconds, all twenty slots were filled. Simultaneously, ten brave soldiers from the world’s local forces also signed up, joining what they perceived to be an incredibly perilous mission.

Compared to the locals, the players didn't care about the danger at all. So what if there was power armor? What was there to be afraid of? To the regular soldiers, power armor meant a near-certain death sentence, but to the players, it only made them more excited.

Once the suicide squad was assembled, the bearded veteran led them out. But after only a few steps, he couldn't help but frown. He realized that while these soldiers were brave—perhaps even beyond his imagination—their tactics were absolutely abysmal. They just sprinted forward blindly, lacking even the most basic tactical formations or covering fire. It was as if they weren't charging into battle, but rushing to their own funerals.

"Hey, slow down! Are you all waiting to be mowed down in a single burst?" the veteran shouted, trying to stop the reckless fools at the front. But the man in the lead just shrugged dismissively. "Old man Boris, don't you worry! Just watch me pull off some fancy moves!"

Then, to Boris’s astonishment, the soldier pulled a bayonet from behind his back, fixed it to his submachine gun, let out a primal roar, and charged forward at an impossible speed.

"Suka Blyat! Is this kid trying to get himself killed?" Boris was genuinely shocked. Putting aside how the guy could run so fast while carrying all that gear, the sheer stupidity of a mindless bayonet charge left him speechless.

The Black Eagle soldiers who had just occupied the trench suddenly heard a fierce roar. Before they could figure out what was happening, a madman came charging out of the side corridor. Seeing the enemy soldier’s crazed expression and his desperate bayonet charge, the Black Eagle soldiers were caught off guard and immediately raised their rifles to fire.

However, to their horror, the bullets that should have dropped the man instantly seemed to fail. They landed three shots at point-blank range, hitting the enemy in the abdomen and thigh, but the soldier didn't slow down. He rammed into them like a bull, drove his blade into a man’s chest, and twisted it hard.

Without missing a beat, the soldier pulled a bundle of grenades from his pack and tossed them at the remaining two Black Eagle soldiers, blowing them to pieces before they could react.

Having finished his charge, the soldier checked his nearly depleted health bar and let out a sigh of relief. "Damn, the damage from these NPCs is insane! Lucky I have that 'charge damage reduction' perk, or I would’ve been a goner for sure!"

He shouted in the chat for a medic to bring him a medkit. Meanwhile, the other players rushed over. Ignoring the wounded player waiting in the corner for healing, the other assault-class players roared and launched their own bayonet charges.

Following closely behind, the veteran Boris caught up, gasping for air, thinking that the stamina of these recruits was truly absurd. Just then, he saw the man standing in the corner—the one who had taken out three enemies in a single charge, dripping with blood yet still standing tall.