Edward Shen, also known as "Billy Shen," became a celebrated war hero whose exploits were even made into a film. However, due to his Chinese heritage, his achievements were quickly forgotten. After the war, he couldn't even secure stable employment, working odd jobs and laboring his entire life. He eventually passed away in a rundown boarding house at the age of 57, leaving behind only five shillings as his sole legacy.

Charles realized he needed someone like Edward by his side. Shen's keen observational skills, swift reactions, and almost supernatural sixth sense, honed through years of hunting, made him an ideal companion in battle. With Shen's abilities, Charles wouldn't have to worry about handling every threat himself.

Charles turned to Richard and said, "Colonel, I could use a guard, someone like him."

"Certainly, Colonel," Richard replied, then hesitated, casting a glance at Shen. "But he doesn't speak French. As your guard, that might pose a problem…"

Shen quickly stepped forward, a hint of nervousness in his voice. "I can learn, Colonel. It won't be an issue. I only need to learn basic commands and communication."

Richard looked over to Charles for confirmation.

"That's no problem," Charles agreed without hesitation. "We have plenty of interpreters around."

And just like that, the arrangement was made.

As they returned to the western front, Charles asked Shen through an interpreter, "It seems like you aren't too keen on staying with your unit?"

"That's right," Shen replied without hesitation, his tone edged with frustration. "I'm better than most of them. Colonel, you might think I'm bragging, but it's true—when I watch the instructors, they look like amateurs. If they were my enemies, I could easily take them down. And yet…"

Shen glanced at his rank insignia, a clear indication of his frustration.

Charles instantly understood: discrimination, double standards, and unequal treatment. Shen was highly skilled—enough to lead a unit or even organize a special forces squad—but he was still stuck at the rank of sergeant.

It was clear that Shen realized he had no future in the Australian military, no matter how well he performed, and so he was hoping to find better opportunities with the French forces alongside Charles.

Charles gave a small smile. If it had been someone else, they might not have had a chance at advancement, given that such biases existed in France as well. But by sheer luck, Shen had encountered Charles.

"Well, you're in luck," Charles thought to himself.

That day, as Charles predicted, the Ottoman forces did not attack. But Tijani was restless, pacing the command center as he muttered aloud, "We were supposed to surround the enemy, but now we're the ones surrounded!"

"Our defensive lines are barely two hundred meters from theirs. No matter which side we attack, their artillery can shell us from behind, and their machine guns can mow us down from the rear."

The French defensive position consisted mainly of two trenches, one running east and one west, separated by just over a hundred meters. If the French soldiers were to jump out and charge west, as Tijani mentioned, the Ottoman forces on the east would easily target them from behind with machine guns and artillery.

Such an assault would be doomed from the start, potentially ending in even worse losses than the Ottoman attacks they'd repelled.

"General," a communications officer interrupted. "General Winter has sent a telegram. He says that Colonel's guess may be correct—our reconnaissance planes have observed the enemy practicing grenade throwing with sticks."

Tijani grunted as he took the telegram, giving it a quick glance before handing it to Charles. His frown deepened.

Charles skimmed the telegram, then said calmly, "This might actually work in our favor."

Tijani looked at him, confused. "How could this possibly be good news?"

Instead of answering directly, Charles pointed to the western edge of the defensive line at Point A. "We can assume that to avoid the battleship shelling, the enemy has stationed their main forces right in front of our lines."

"No need to assume, Colonel," Tijani replied, "it's obvious. Their main force is right there in front of us."

On the western front, the Ottomans hadn't built just one trench—they had constructed three, forming a complete defensive line. Even by conservative estimates, each trench would need at least 2,000 soldiers, putting the enemy force at around 6,000 soldiers on the western side alone.

"Then," Charles continued, pointing to the map on the eastern side of the line, "why not launch a landing here?"

Tijani stared at Charles, incredulous. "You must be insane! To land troops there, the transport ships would have to sail into Saros Bay under fire from Ottoman coastal artillery on three sides!"

The original landing was planned from the west to the east specifically to avoid this "death zone" in Saros Bay. Now Charles was suggesting a landing at the eastern end of the defensive line, which seemed like certain suicide.

But Charles replied calmly, "I didn't say the fleet would land there."

Tijani looked confused. "But without the fleet, how would we stage a landing?"

"Army forces," Charles replied firmly. "Our own."

Tijani chuckled. "Our own? Colonel, that's the sea out there. Are we expected to swim across?"

Mid-sentence, the realization hit him. "You mean… the amphibious landing boats?"

Charles gave a knowing smile.

Tijani gaped, sitting down as he stared at the map in front of him. Then he exclaimed, "My God, the enemy's trench line is so close—only a few hundred meters."

"They think that, with this trench in front of us, we'll have no way around it."

"They forgot we have the amphibious landing boats that can flank them from the sea, attacking from their sides and even behind them."

Excited, Tijani gripped Charles's shoulders, shaking him with enthusiasm. "Brilliant, Charles! You're a genius!"

"The outcome of the previous landing will repeat itself. The enemy is unknowingly making the same mistake."

"These fools—how could they not think the amphibious boats could land on their flanks?"

Charles was speechless for a moment, thinking, Didn't you overlook that possibility too?

Perhaps it was due to a rigid mindset—everyone saw Charles's amphibious landing craft as tools for sea-to-land assaults, never considering the possibility of a land-to-sea-to-land maneuver to outflank the enemy.

That was why Charles had said, "This might actually be a good thing."

If the enemy hadn't constructed this new defensive line to confine the French forces, the expansive Point A area, with its diverse terrain and dispersed troops, would have made an infiltration mission ambiguous, even placing Charles's troops at risk of being encircled.

But now, with the enemy consolidated directly in front of them in a linear formation, Charles had a golden opportunity.

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