Dervarič), was from Zelting, and of at least partially Slovene heritage. Mikl had a twin brother, Alois, who was killed in action in 1915 in Galicia near Lemberg, present-day Lviv in the Ukraine. As a child, Mikl spoke German, Slovene and Hungarian, and remained fluent in all three throughout his life. After entering a cadet school in Vienna in the Imperial-Royal Landwehr in 1908, he was accepted at the Theresian Military Academy in Wiener Neustadt in 1911. Described as slim, muscular, and tall, Mikl graduated on 1 August 1914 and was posted to the recently mobilised 4th Imperial-Royal Landwehr Infantry Regiment (LIR 4), which formed part of the Imperial-Royal Mountain Troops. World War I LIR 4 was a purely Carinthian regiment, and wore the mountain cap () and the Edelweiss badge. As part of the 22nd Rifle Division of the III Corps, Mikl's unit arrived at the area of Zolochiv, Galicia to take up a position on the Zolota Lypa River. Mikl was wounded in the first battle, on 26 August 1914; he was shot in the chest. He spent time in a military hospital and was then employed in the regimental replacement battalion as an instructor until 15 April 1915. On 2 June 1915, LIR 4 received orders to join the fighting in the Kolomyia region, where the Russian army launched an offensive and the Austrians suffered serious reverses. Mikl's company formed the regimental rear guard during the withdrawal from the Pruth river on 3 June. For his actions and "demonstrated personal bravery", Mikl was awarded the Military Merit Cross 3rd Class with War Decoration (). By late September 1915, LIR 4 had been transferred to the Bovec valley in the Julian Alps on the Southern Front, and Mikl had been promoted to Oberleutnant (first lieutenant) and placed in command of the 2nd Company. A fairly quiet winter followed, during which the Austrians undertook reconnaissance of the Royal Italian Army positions. In August 1915, Italian Alpini troops had captured an advanced position about southwest of the Rombongipfels peak, on a rocky outcrop called Cuklahöhe. From this position the Italians overlooked the positions of the 44th Rifle Division and its rear areas, which made movement almost impossible. Mikl's company was among the two companies tasked with capturing the Cuklahöhe, which the two units accomplished. For his leadership of the assault on the Cuklahöhe, Mikl was awarded the Order of the