When Jas heard the news of Charles' victory, he was in his office at the Schneider Armants Factory. Jas had a peculiar habit: he enjoyed the constant sounds of machines whirring, and of tal clanging and colliding. To him, it represented strength, power, even authority—much like the cannons he produced. His office was spacious but plainly decorated. Aside from the essentials like a desk, chairs, a lamp, and a bookshelf, he had a small open eting area with an oval table, on which stood a model of a 75mm cannon.
Jas preferred this simple style, believing it reminded him to keep pushing forward. For him, this was the foundation for his enterprise's long-term success.
At that mont, he was sitting at his desk, absentmindedly flipping through a few photos of Charles' Mark I tank. Jas couldn't understand how this ugly, awkward machine could pose a threat to the Saint-Chamond tank and beco its most formidable and only true competitor. Could it actually succeed on the battlefield? Though he often dismissed it, deep down, a lingering unease remained. After all, this was Charles—a man who had already achieved things on the battlefield that others couldn't dream of.
His secretary, Pauline, entered with a telegram. Her blue eyes, behind her glasses, showed a hint of alarm as she carefully announced, "Mr. Jas, Charles… has won."
"What?" Jas looked up at her in shock, pulling out his pocket watch and checking the ti. He could hardly believe it. "But it's been less than two hours since the battle began!"
"Yes," Pauline confird quickly. "One hour and forty-seven minutes, to be exact. The news has been confird—the Germans surrendered, and we've recaptured Lafoux."
Jas furrowed his brow, agitated, as he pulled a cigar from his case and lit it, considering the situation by the window. He ordered, "Call Eugène in here."
"Yes, sir," Pauline replied.
Eugène, the head of Schneider's design departnt, was the creator of the Saint-Chamond tank. Soon, he entered Jas's office, dressed in a work uniform, with oil-stained gloves on and a few smudges on his face.
Jas frowned. "Have you been tinkering with the machines alongside the workers again?"
"Sir," Eugène replied, "it's the only way I can create sothing better."
Jas shook his head, gesturing for Eugène to take a seat in the eting room. He then tossed the photos of the Mark I tank onto the table in front of him. "Then let tell you," Jas said, "your work still isn't good enough."
Eugène glanced at the photos, imdiately understanding the issue. "No… Impossible," he murmured as he examined the images. "That tank defeated the Saint-Chamond?"
"Beyond a doubt," Jas replied sharply. "We lost, Eugène, and in a thoroughly decisive way. Charles won the battle in just one hour and forty-seven minutes—with that tank. anwhile, our tanks lost forty-three units without advancing an inch. Most didn't even make it past the main road."
Eugène thought for a mont, then looked up at Jas. "I need more details, sir—the whole operation. Can you provide them?"
Jas glanced at Pauline in the adjoining office, who quickly retrieved a file and handed it to Eugène. "Here's so information we obtained from reporters. Specific data is yet to be verified," she said.
"Thank you, Pauline," Eugène replied, barely glancing at her as he absorbed the docunts.
Jas waited patiently for about ten minutes without interrupting, showing a rare glimpse of his respect for talent. He understood that giving soone ti and autonomy often mattered more than a high salary. Though he'd once considered bringing Charles under his command, he knew that Charles wasn't the type to work beneath anyone else—his talents were forged for himself, and he was born to be a rival.
Finally, Eugène exhaled, setting the docunt aside. His gaze drifted off, as if deep in thought, processing what he had read.
"Well?" Jas asked. "Any ideas?"
"He's soone who can design and fight, sir," Eugène replied, a hint of awe in his tone. "He knows the battlefield, understands its demands, and then builds his tank to et those demands. It's as if that tank was custom-made for his tactics. Charles is a genius in both fields."
Jas nodded, having sensed this as well. "So, our defeat ca down to not knowing how to fight?"
"In a way, yes," Eugène acknowledged. "We know our equipnt well in the workshop and on blueprints. But they're ant for the battlefield, and we've allowed our designs to beco disconnected from reality."
He lifted a photo of the Mark I. "Charles' tank, on the other hand, is born from the battlefield itself. It strikes a perfect balance. It may lack a powerful cannon, but it makes up for that by maximizing its strengths."
"Can we beat him?" Jas asked. "Should we bring in so military experts? Or perhaps send you to the front lines to gain firsthand experience?"
Although Jas's last remark was intended as a joke, Eugène responded earnestly. "If that's what's needed, I'd be willing. How else could one create equipnt truly fit for the battlefield without witnessing it firsthand?"
Jas let out a sigh. He'd forgotten that Eugène was the kind of person willing to go to any length for his designs, regardless of the cost.
"Maybe we don't need to go that far," Pauline interjected, stepping out of her office. "We could try a simpler approach."
"What approach?" Jas asked, intrigued.
Pauline strode forward in her high heels and pointed to a photo of the Mark I. "I'm not entirely sure, but if Charles's tank was designed specifically for the battlefield, perhaps it reveals the necessary principles and direction for a battlefield tank. We don't need to copy it, but we could follow its design logic."
She paused, then added while indicating the data in the file, "For instance, we should consider replacing the electric transmission engine. It adds five tons of weight compared to a conventional engine without offering significant benefits. And there's the armor thickness—the idea that thicker side armor is better might have been a mistake with the Saint-Chamond."
Jas and Eugène exchanged glances, seeing the agreent in each other's eyes. Pauline was right. The design principles were right there in plain view, but they'd missed them.
At that mont, Jas rembered Francis's nearly defunct tractor factory and the soon-to-launch Holt 120 model in Britain. The forr could provide them with a technical foundation and skilled workers, and the latter would allow Schneider to advance further, surpassing Charles's Holt 75 in no ti.
Money was no obstacle for Jas. What he needed was to stand at the pinnacle of the field—to defeat Charles.
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