Chapter 738: The Cipher Bureau
While the Deyoka family sat chatting casually about the recent battle, the phone rang.
Camille, light on her feet, beat Deyoka to it and picked up the receiver.
The family's telephone usually rang for Camille. Neighbors often called her to ask about Charles—or rather, they just wanted to build a relationship with her, knowing she was Charles' mother.
But this time, the call wasn't for her.
She answered with a polite "Hello?" and then, cupping the receiver, turned toward Charles:
"It's General Gallieni."
Charles set down his half-finished glass of milk and stepped forward to take the call.
"Got plans for the afternoon, Lieutenant General?" Gallieni asked casually.
"Yes," Charles yawned. "I plan to spend the whole afternoon asleep in bed."
"Well then," Gallieni replied cheerfully, "go sleep at the École Spéciale Militaire de Saint-Cyr!"
"What?" Charles was stunned. "You're saying… I'm going to military school?"
Gallieni laughed. "You're a funny man, General Charles. If you were enrolled at the military academy, do you think there's anyone left who could teach you anything?"
"Well, that's…"
"I think it's time you visited the academy," Gallieni continued. "You should know—Kobdo has been handling this matter for some time. As the most credible founder of modern military theory, you need to give a lecture. It'll help spread your doctrine."
Charles suddenly remembered—yes, Gallieni had tasked Kobdo with compiling Charles' military theories into teaching material. Kobdo himself had been in charge of publicizing those theories at the academy.
Charles understood the intent.
Military academies produced the officers of tomorrow. To fundamentally reform the military, he had to change how they thought—how they saw command and combat.
Even an indisputable victory wasn't enough on its own.
But Charles wasn't interested.
He knew it was easy to defeat enemies.
It was incredibly difficult to change deeply ingrained ways of thinking instilled since youth.
"Don't worry," Gallieni said in a relaxed tone. "Your victories have already spread worldwide, including to the military academy. You've become an idol there—they're all dying to meet you."
"Really?" Charles sounded skeptical.
"Of course. You can trust me!"
And with that, Gallieni hung up.
For some reason, Charles had a bad feeling about this. It felt like Gallieni had just tricked him.
Even in modern times, what universities taught still often lagged far behind society. They thrived more on tradition, bureaucracy, and inertia than actual practical relevance.
Paris City Hall.
In one of its most secluded corners—a fourth-floor tower isolated from the rest of the building—stood a heavily guarded unit.
Armed guards watched over its only entrance. The tower, 26.8 meters high, touched only the sky above and the empty air beyond its windows.
Once the guards stood at the door, no one inside could move freely.
This was the French Cipher Bureau—the most low-profile and mysterious agency in all of France.
Its secrecy surpassed even the infamous "Deuxième Bureau."
The public knew about the latter, but not the Cipher Bureau.
Inside, the mechanical clicking of decoding machines filled the silence.
Everyone worked wordlessly, their minds saturated with digits, letters, and cryptographic puzzles.
Ordinary language had faded from memory—now they communicated mostly through written reports.
Among them was 27-year-old Lieutenant Georges Painvin.
(Image: Lieutenant Georges Painvin, cryptanalyst. In 1918, he successfully broke the German ADFGX cipher.)
Lieutenant Painvin was staring at the latest issue of Merit Daily, his mind churning.
Why? Why had this happened?
He had broken the German code.
He knew that the 82nd German Infantry Regiment stationed near Lis had fled in panic.
If Charles had attacked from that opening, it would've been easy to link up with the main French force.
But…
Charles had followed what everyone assumed was a "conventional" plan, pushing along the Meuse all the way to Verdun.
Was Verdun more valuable strategically?
No. Breaking through near Lis would've also allowed him to encircle and capture Verdun.
Was attacking Verdun easier?
Certainly not. Charles' forces had faced extreme danger during the maneuver—risking annihilation.
Without his use of bombers and the newly invented incendiary bombs, they might not have broken through at all.
Then maybe the Germans had already sealed off the gap near Lis?
Painvin hadn't heard anything about that.
He pulled out a few previously decrypted German telegrams and flipped through them one by one.
They were all requests to seal the Lis sector—none confirmed it had actually been done.
If they had sealed it, there would be no need to "hope" for reinforcements.
Then, a terrifying thought exploded in Painvin's mind:
There's only one explanation—Charles didn't know about the gap. Not at all.
But why?
Why would they keep this information from him?
The French army's victory benefited everyone—didn't it?
Then Painvin understood.
Victory helped France, yes—but Charles' victories undermined their control over France.
Those bastards!
Painvin shut his eyes in pain, burying his face in his hands.
He felt like a pawn in the schemes of vampires and executioners.
He had almost gotten Charles killed—almost sent the entire 1st Armored Corps to their deaths, along with countless civilians and soldiers who fought for France.
"Hey, Lieutenant."
Captain Charles emerged from his office and called out.
"You're scheduled to teach this afternoon at Saint-Cyr, right?"
The Cipher Bureau had a branch at the military academy.
It helped recruit promising cadets for intelligence work.
"Yes, sir," Painvin quickly stood and replied.
"You don't have to go anymore," Captain Charles said, holding up a telegram. "Charles is giving a speech at the academy this afternoon. To the entire school."
Painvin's mind went blank.
Charles?
Speaking at the academy?
Captain Charles turned to go, but Painvin rushed forward to block him.
"Captain," he stammered, "I… I'd like to attend the speech."
"You know," he added, "the Germans might start analyzing Charles' tactics. If we understand them better, it could really help our codebreaking work."
Captain Charles paused, then nodded.
"Good idea." He approved. "Bring the academy team with you—and take notes."
"Yes, sir!" Painvin saluted crisply.
After the captain left, Painvin noticed his palms were slick with sweat.
It felt like he'd just committed treason.
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