"Report! Commander, our blocking force has been pushed back, and the enemy is advancing on our right flank!"
Although Philius was mentally prepared, he still felt a pang of palpitations upon hearing this news. He anxiously stared at the front, where dust and mist filled the air. The shadows of people and the clamorous voices were still the same as before. The Daonian legion, on which he had placed high hopes, still showed no signs of breaking through the enemy…
"Commander, what… what should we do?" the adjutant asked nervously.
Philius remained silent. At this moment, the allied forces had no extra strength to block the enemy's reinforcements!
He still held a glimmer of hope in his bewildered mind, but this hope was quickly shattered.
"Report, Commander, enemy reinforcements have appeared on the right flank! There are… there are tens of thousands of them! They are fiercely attacking Croton's rear guard. The Crotonians… the Crotonians can't hold on… they have already begun to collapse…"
"What!!" Philius and his entourage were struck as if by lightning, each of them stunned.
Philius, who had been through many battles, was the first to regain his senses and immediately shouted hoarsely, "Retreat! Sound the retreat! Retreat immediately!!"
Since the allied forces were destined to lose, then… he had to bring the Fourth and Fifth Legions back safely as much as possible! Under Philius's painful gaze, the retreat bugle sounded throughout the rear of the allied forces.
This bugle call not only startled the Daonian soldiers but also made the officers at all levels unbelievable.
"Has Philius gone mad?! We are about to break through the Syracuseans' defenses, yet he dares to order us to retreat at this time!" Drakos roared with anger. Even after the messengers told him the reason for Philius's choice to retreat, he couldn't accept it for a while.
"Give me a little more time! A little more time! Wait until my legion breaks through the enemies in front before retreating! The Daonian legion has never been defeated before, and we cannot lose this honor in our hands! This is a disgrace!…"
Listening to the legion commander's painful roar, the surrounding people sadly lowered their heads.
… … … … … … … … … … …
"We… we have been defeated…" After listening to the messenger's words, Epinites tightly clenched the mane of the warhorse under his crotch, so hard that the docile warhorse neighed and pawed the ground with its front hooves, but he was completely unaware.
"…Move the flag," he squeezed out these words with difficulty, tears already glistening on his face.
When the bugle sounded,
the legion soldiers also had to look at the flag's instructions. This was because the battlefield was noisy, and it was difficult to distinguish between the enemy and ourselves. With the flag's instructions, it could be confirmed without error.
"Look! The flag is moving!!" The Daonian soldiers who looked back were in an uproar.
Not only the legion flag, the battalion flag, but also the company flags waved backward one after another…
… … … … … … … … … … …
"Congratulations, Your Excellency! The Great Greeks have collapsed, and you have won the victory in this battle! This is a great victory. From now on, you have the final say on this land!" Faced with Damocles's praise, Dionysius was not too complacent. With more than 70,000 people against more than 50,000, victory was expected. But what he didn't expect was that Syracuse's most elite heavy infantry was completely suppressed on the battlefield by the so-called "legion" of Daonia. The key was that it was still the Fourth and Fifth Legions composed of foreigners (Dionysius was relatively careful in collecting Daonian intelligence). If they were to encounter their boasted First and Second Legions, what would the Syracuse heavy infantry do?
Therefore, even after winning the victory, Dionysius remained vigilant: "Although the enemy has collapsed, the battle is not over. Continue to urge the reinforcements on both wings to continue to pursue, killing and capturing more Great Greeks, especially the Daonians!"
"You take all the messengers and find Akhelitas and Gabas for me. Tell them that I am very angry that they did not follow orders and assist in attacking the enemy's right flank. Unless they immediately pursue those enemies in black armor and kill as many of them as possible, capture them, otherwise, they should not even think about getting a single silver coin as reward!"
… … … … … … … … … …
Aphiartes had also practiced how to retreat in previous military training, but he didn't expect to use it the first time he participated in a battle. He painfully smashed his long shield at the enemy, held his short sword, and turned to run. The enemy threw a saber that hit his back, and he staggered, almost falling.
Aphiartes quickly got up on his hands and feet. His squad had run more than ten meters away from the enemy's formation. He looked at the fluttering military flag and eagerly caught up.
The moment you turn around and run away, the danger is the greatest. Some soldiers were stabbed down by the chasing enemies. Seeing their teammates fall to the ground and call for help, the legion soldiers, who have always emphasized unity, could not save their teammates at this moment. They ran wildly, only hoping to distance themselves from the enemy.
When the squad leader's voice of "Quick! Quick! Quick!…" clearly reached his ears, Aphiartes's nervous mood temporarily relaxed a little. The officer saying "Quick! Quick!" does not mean letting the soldiers run around. According to the "Daonian Military Law", they should try to gather under the nearest military flag during the retreat and follow it together to avoid causing excessive confusion and losing organization.
As he ran, Aphiartes heard the footsteps behind him gradually decreasing. Looking back, he saw that he had distanced himself from the enemy a lot, and some had even stopped chasing. Thinking about it, it makes sense. Within an hour, bearing heavy armor, and fighting continuously, their physical strength had long been exhausted. The Daonian soldiers were fighting for their lives, and armed cross-country running was one of the important projects in their usual military training. The Spartans also did this training since childhood. The Syracuse soldiers who had already won the battle obviously did not have the desire or the ability to pursue.
Aphiartes's nervous mood became more stable.
But after the main force continued to run backward for a while, it gradually slowed down.
It turned out that the Fourth Legion's position was to the right, adjacent to Trina. Enamendes led the Campanian mercenaries from west to east, trying to encircle the fleeing Trinians. At the same time, the sailors of the fleet parked on the river bank saw that there was a bargain to be picked up. In order to get spoils, they also went ashore to participate in the interception, making the net of pursuit more and more dense, pressing the large group of panicked "fish" of Trinians to flee eastward, naturally squeezing the retreat space of the Daonian Fourth Legion.
"Quick! Quick! Quick!…" Standing on the bank of the Corace River, Epinites anxiously urged his legion soldiers to cross the river quickly, regardless of whether the soldiers could hear his shouts in such a chaotic scene.
And Philius, standing on the opposite bank of the Corace River, was even more distressed. He did not expect that in order to limit the enemy's cavalry maneuver, he chose this river as a barrier for the rear guard, but now it has become a restraint blocking the retreat of the Daonian Legion. Although the river is neither wide nor deep, thousands of panicked soldiers rushed in together, instantly trampling the river bank into a muddy mess. Once a panicked soldier fell, it would not only be a disaster for him, but also a disaster for the soldiers behind him.
Countless soldiers were entangled together in the riverbed, completely out of order. Everyone pushed and squeezed each other, and the scene was becoming more chaotic…
Philius seemed to see the reenactment of the tragedy in the Persian Gorge that year. His shouts and reminders were so small in this ten-mile-long river section that they could be completely ignored.
Philius was filled with remorse and dared not look anymore. When he turned his head, he saw a row of buglers and drummers behind him. In an instant, a flash of inspiration flashed through his mind: "Quick! Quickly play the 'Battlefield March'! Play the 'Battlefield March'!…"
He shouted as if madly, scaring the buglers to hurriedly put the trumpet mouthpiece hanging on their right shoulders to their mouths. Because of nervousness, the first note was out of tune, but gradually they played more and more fluently and more and more powerfully.
The "Battlefield March" was also adapted from the symphonies that Davos had heard in his previous life. It uses majestic, powerful, and fast melodies to show the fearless spirit of soldiers rushing to the battlefield and killing the enemy. When this melody echoed in the Corace River section, the soldiers of the Fourth Legion who heard it were awakened by the courage and honor in their hearts, and gradually regained their sanity, and the chaos in the riverbed was also reduced…
At the same time, Philius ordered the light infantry who had retreated from the river bank to go down to the riverbed, line up in dense formations, separate the Trinians, reduce the interference to the orderly retreat of the Daonian Fourth Legion, and even, in emergencies, they could use force to drive them westward. At this moment, Philius had no choice but to harden his heart and treat his allies.
"Commander, the Fifth Legion… the main force of the Fifth Legion has not yet reached the river bank!" An adjutant rushed to report.
"What?!" Philius felt his head was about to explode. One wave had not settled, and another wave was rising. Even the good-tempered him couldn't help but get angry: "What is Drakos doing?!"
… … … … … … … … … …
Because of Drakos's unwillingness, he hesitated on the issue of retreat. Most of the soldiers heard the bugle, but seeing that the flag was not moving, they did not dare to retreat.
It was not until Drakos discovered that the troops on the left and right sides of the Fifth Legion were all retreating backwards that the Fifth Legion was about to become an isolated army, and then he hurriedly ordered a retreat.
Originally, the retreat of the Fifth Legion should have been smoother than that of the Fourth Legion, because Croton's fierce attack had almost turned the right-wing army of Syracuse into a semicircle. Of course, the left-wing formation where the Croton army was located also became an arc. The Croton soldiers at the leftmost end were originally facing south and facing north, but in the end, they almost turned to face west and face east. After being attacked by the reinforcements of Fasipessas, the direction of their rout was mainly towards the southeast.
The Siris soldiers led by Asesias were closer to the middle road, because their mother state of Siris was not far to the east. Most of the Siris soldiers did not know that there were enemy reinforcements blocking them in the east, or they instinctively fled to the east, and as a result, they squeezed together with the Crotonians.
In this way, the Fifth Legion should have had relatively ample space to retreat northward. However, the Fifth Legion had barely begun its retreat when it was targeted by Syracuse's mercenary cavalry.
After being reprimanded by Dionysius, the Numidians and Celts had to buck up and rush from east to west to pursue those men in black armor. The relatively few stragglers along the way made it easier for them to ride, and then they spotted the retreating Daonian Fifth Legion.
The soldiers of the Fifth Legion remained relatively concentrated and orderly during the retreat, which was clearly unfavorable for a cavalry charge. Even the fierce Celtic cavalry wouldn't be foolish enough to directly charge into a dense heavy infantry formation. However, the cunning mercenary cavalry had their own methods. They once again formed into columns, urging their horses close to the Daonian soldiers, shouting loudly as they swiftly swept past the Fifth Legion's ranks, continuously hurling javelins from their hands…
The rapid sound of hooves, the unsettling screams, and the Scream cries of comrades… made the already demoralized soldiers of the Fifth Legion even more panicked. They accelerated their retreat, wanting to escape the terrifying enemy cavalry behind them as soon as possible… The Fifth Legion's retreat began to descend into chaos.
Seeing this situation ahead, Drakos decisively made a decision. His First Battalion was right behind him. He turned his horse around and shouted, "Brim, take your First Battalion and follow me! Hold back those damned cavalry! Let the other brothers retreat safely!"
Brim, the former leader of Bithynia, a tough guy among the Bruttians, and now the commander of the Fifth Legion's First Battalion, replied without hesitation: "As you command, Legion Commander!"
The signal for attack was not sounded, for fear of affecting the retreat of other soldiers. However, the First Battalion's banner pointed in the opposite direction of the retreat, followed by the company banners and platoon banners all pointing towards the area where the enemy cavalry was rampaging. Under the shouts of the officers, the soldiers of the First Battalion turned around one after another…
While other soldiers were fleeing in panic, the Fifth Legion's First Battalion bravely faced the enemy!
Leading the way was the fully armed, horse-riding Legion Commander Drakos, followed by First Battalion Commander Brim.
Drakos looked back at the soldiers of the First Battalion behind him, who were flustered but still determined to follow him, and his face was filled with satisfaction: "Worthy of being the men of Bithynia! My finest soldiers! My finest battalion (because the soldiers of the First Battalion all come from the city of Bithynia)!"
"It is an honor for our First Battalion to fight alongside you, sir!" Brim straightened his chest.
Drakos nodded and loudly issued an order: "Two lines of horizontal formation! Maintain formation and retreat slowly! Do not let a single enemy slip past!"
At this moment, Drakos completely forgot about the question of life and death.
His eyes were only on the mercenary cavalry whistling past in front of him.
… … … … … … … … … … …
Dionysius, who had always studied Daonia's past battles, took the opportunity to learn from Daonia this time. He used the high mobility of the mercenary cavalry and the two reinforcements, who were fresh on the battlefield and full of energy, to continuously pursue the Southern Italian League's defeated soldiers, continuing until dusk before finally withdrawing his troops back to camp.
The route for the defeated soldiers of Terina to escape back to their city was blocked by the Lamato River. In addition, with warships lying in wait in the river, most of the soldiers were forced to retreat north along with the Daonian army in the center, under the double pursuit of the Campanian mercenaries and the sailors of the Syracuse fleet.
The scouts sent out by Terina in a panic escaped back to the city and reported the news of the defeat in the battle to the garrison stationed in the city, and everyone was plunged into great panic.
General Blumaras, in view of the fact that the main force could not return and Terina was isolated and weak, was forced to make a painful decision: abandon Terina and withdraw the soldiers to the city of Knapetia in the Daonian League.
The Syracuse warship lookouts patrolling the harbor discovered the unusual movements of the Terina garrison. After the Terinians had gone far away, they sent sailors ashore to test the waters, and as a result, they easily occupied an empty city.
In this way, at dusk after the Battle of the Lamato River, the Syracusans occupied Terina, gaining an excellent foothold in the center of Magna Graecia for their army. The supplies needed by the Syracuse army could be transshipped through the port of Terina by sea, which was both convenient and safe.
But Dionysius was not satisfied. He set his greedy sights on Siris, which was not far from the battlefield.
The soldiers from Siris who participated in the battle were in a relatively miserable situation. They crowded together with the defeated soldiers of Croton as they fled east, wasting valuable time, and the route back east was cut off by the reinforcements of Fascipesa. Pheididas led some Syracuse soldiers to pursue them relentlessly despite their fatigue, resulting in some of the defeated soldiers from Siris being killed in battle, some surrendering, and some being coerced by the defeated soldiers from Croton to flee north. Only more than 3,000 people escaped back to the city of Siris.
The Daonian Fourth and Fifth Legions in the center were relatively far away from the enemy's flanking reinforcements, and with the help of friendly forces (involuntarily), the retreat was relatively smooth. Apart from some setbacks when crossing the Colace River, they did not suffer much loss.
However, the Syracuse mercenary cavalry caused them the greatest losses. Although most of the cavalry was blocked by the Fifth Legion's First Battalion led by Drakos, it also slowed down the retreat of Drakos and his battalion, causing them to eventually fall into the encirclement of the Syracuse pursuing troops and fail to escape…
Daonia's greatest piece of good fortune was that the cautious Phelisius, although he had agreed to the coalition's battle, had kept a trick up his sleeve after discussing it with Ansitano: he had considered the possibility of defeat. Therefore, after the army was lined up, he had Ansitano lead the baggage trains, engineer battalions, medical battalions… and other auxiliary personnel of the two legions out of the camp and march north, retreating to a place between Asproustum and the battlefield.
Phelisius's plan was: if the battle was won, the Syracusans would be driven out of the Eufemia Plain, and it would not be too late for the baggage trains and other auxiliary units to return; but if it failed, they could no longer retreat back to the camp, but should retreat to the city of Asproustum according to Devers's instructions before the battle, and make new defensive arrangements.
Therefore, while the Syracuse army was pursuing the defeated soldiers, the slow-moving Daonian auxiliary units were already on their way to the city of Asproustum, thus avoiding the fate of becoming prisoners of the Syracusans because the camp had no soldiers to defend it.
… … … … … … … … … … … …
Perhaps Apollo could not bear to witness such a tragic battle between Greeks and allowed the sun to fall behind the mountains early, and darkness quickly took over the entire world.
Unfortunately, Apollo's sister, Artemis, the goddess of hunting and the moon, was lazy and did not let the moon hang high in the sky, so Hades controlled the night.
In principle, the Allied forces should feel fortunate to have the protection of Hades, who was worshiped by the Daonians. At least the rampant Syracuse mercenary cavalry did not dare to come out and pursue them in the pitch-black night, but the darkness also created many difficulties for the Allied forces' retreat.
In the darkness, the defeated soldiers could not see the military flags and the officers' plumes, so they could not reorganize. Except for the Daonian legions, which were in slightly better condition, the other defeated soldiers were completely disorganized. In fact, this area was the edge of the hills, and the ground was uneven, with potholes and bumps. The exhausted, hungry, panicked, and blindfolded defeated soldiers could easily fall, and if they could not get up in time, they would be trampled by the soldiers behind them, so many soldiers were injured.
Thousands of defeated soldiers marched forward in the darkness, mourning the death of their comrades, shouting the names of their officers, and worrying about their own safety…
Marching forward in the darkness, they felt for the first time that the distance from Asproustum and Tarentum to Siris was so long…
Late into the night, Agasia, the chief administrator of Asproustum, who had learned of the defeat in the battle, urgently sent cavalry and citizens with torches to light the way for the defeated soldiers along the way. Subsequently, Tarentum also took corresponding measures, and the defeated soldiers were finally freed from the darkness and panic.
All night long, the two cities were busy receiving the defeated soldiers…
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And this night, for the people of Siris, was also a sleepless night.
Since Siris was not far from the battlefield, the news of the defeat in the battle spread throughout the city in the first place, and the people immediately fell into panic.
By dusk, more than 3,000 citizen soldiers had escaped back to the city, and after that, only a few scattered defeated soldiers returned. The morning departure was a huge army of 14,000 people, but less than a third of the number returned in the evening, and the whole city was in sorrow.
Chief General Pletines was even more regretful: If he had known, he should not have forced the Daonians to hastily engage in battle!
But now the crisis in Siris has only just begun. Among the Southern Italian alliances, the city of Siris can be considered a large city, which used to make the people of Siris proud, but now it has become a trouble for the people of Siris, because the defensive forces are seriously insufficient. And according to the descriptions of the defeated soldiers, they were defeated by the Syracuse reinforcements that suddenly appeared on the battlefield. Then the Syracuse military strength on the battlefield is probably more than 50,000 people. With such a large Syracuse army taking advantage of the momentum of the victory in the battle, who will be Dionysius's next target of attack?
Pletines and the members of the council have always believed that it must be Siris! Because it is too close. Now that Daonia and Croton have just suffered a crushing defeat, they will definitely not be able to send troops to rescue Siris again in a short period of time. If Siris wants to escape from the upcoming attack by the Syracusans, it can only rely on itself.
Therefore, an emergency citizens' assembly was held in the city of Siris. The citizens, who had not yet washed off the dust of battle and were frightened, would make an important decision for the life and death of the city-state…
In battle, there is defeat and victory; with pain, there is also joy. While the allied soldiers were tasting the bitter fruit of defeat, the Syracusans were enjoying the joy of victory.
Inside Dionysius's tent, the candlelight was bright, and the generals gathered together, dining and chatting about today's great battle…
"Don't argue! The most important contributor to our victory today should be Phibidas!" Dionysius sat at the head of the table, looked around, pointed at Phibidas, and said loudly, "I really didn't expect that Daonian general to deploy so many soldiers on their left flank. If Phibidas hadn't taken the correct response, I'm afraid our right flank would have been breached by the enemy before our reinforcements arrived!"
"The lord is right!" Fasi Pesas immediately echoed, "When I led my troops to attack the enemy's flank, I was very surprised because the thickness of the enemy's formation… some even reached more than 50 ranks. I have never seen such a thing before… The stacked length is enough to… enough to—" Fasi Pesas couldn't find a suitable adjective for a moment, gestured with his hand, and said, "Longer than this tent! But such a powerful force squeezed our right flank, not only did not crush the right flank, but exhausted the enemy! So, I led the soldiers in just a small charge, and the enemy easily collapsed!…"
The crowd couldn't help but exclaim in admiration.
Although Phibidas was a little proud in his heart, he did not boast in public. Spartans would not do such superficial things. Besides, he was only fighting for the Syracusans, and glory or not didn't mean much. He was just enjoying the fun of this great battle, and being at the forefront of the battlefield, he was now too tired to say more.
"Leptines, your performance this time exceeded my expectations!" Dionysius looked at his brother and said with great relief, "When the mercenaries led by Endydimas were blocked from attacking, you did not escape, but bravely took responsibility, repelled the enemies who came to intercept, and ensured the smooth attack on the enemy's right flank. We were able to win this battle, and your contribution is indispensable! In addition, your fleet also boldly attacked and won the first victory after our battle victory—Trina!"
Dionysius praised Leptines without reservation, not only because of his brother's performance, but also to show those who criticized him for nepotism the correctness of his Dionysius's strategy of employing people.
"Lord, this time is thanks to General Leptines's help!" Endydimas took the opportunity to flatter Leptines, while also trying to defend his mistakes: "I didn't expect that when the battle was so intense, the Greeks still retained a force and did not put it into battle, but launched a surprise attack on us…"
"So, this battle was not easy for us to win. That Daonian general is not simple!" Dionysius sighed somewhat, knowing that he had personally seen his elite troops being pushed back step by step by the Daonian legion from the rear of the central formation.
Moreover, according to the post-war statistics, the casualties of the soldiers in the central formation also exceeded a thousand, which really surprised him and made him uneasy: "It's a pity that we couldn't keep more Daonian soldiers…"
As soon as these words came out, the two mercenary cavalry leaders felt a little ashamed. Gaba, the Celtic leader with a more straightforward personality, opened his mouth to defend himself with a strange Greek accent: "We have done our best, but those Daonian soldiers simply do not run away, but instead form a formation and fight with us. We have lost… many tribesmen…"
"Those Daonian people lengthened their formation, guarded the river bank, and forced us to fight them head-on. It is very difficult for cavalry to fight heavy infantry head-on…" Acheritas also defended from the side.
Dionysius glanced at them. He only wanted to knock on these two unruly foreign leaders, and he didn't want to fall out with them: "In any case, you have held back more than a thousand Daonian soldiers, and finally eliminated and captured them, including a legion commander. I think this is probably the biggest military loss since the establishment of the Daonian League!"
"Lord, that's because the time since Daonia was established is not as long as my youngest son's age!" Another Syracusan general, Astagoras, sneered: "Next, we will give them more failures until this alliance is completely destroyed!"
Astagoras's words aroused laughter from everyone.
In the laughter, a cold voice sounded from the seat on Dionysius's left: "I have seen the weapons left by the Daonian people on the battlefield. To be honest, I don't think you will gain any advantage even if you fight against the Daonian legion infantry again."
These words aroused dissatisfaction among everyone in the tent.
"Spartan, you think too highly of the Daonian people!" Astagoras shouted impolitely.
"I'm telling the truth." Phibidas ignored the dissatisfaction of the crowd and said unceremoniously.
At the same time, he strode out of his seat, ignoring the strange gazes of others, and posed in a heavy infantry attack position, saying seriously: "According to the traditional habits of heavy infantry combat, the round shield in the left hand is used for defense and can also be used for impact; and the spear in the right hand, I can raise it high and stab the opponent over the round shield; once the spear is broken, then pull out the curved saber to chop… However, the Daonian legion soldiers have a different way of fighting from us. I brought the long shield and short sword used by the Daonian legion soldiers, but unfortunately, they were forcibly left outside the tent by the guards."
Speaking of this, Phibidas did not forget to satirize Dionysius secretly, because Dionysius was good at assassination, and at the same time, he was also on guard against being assassinated by others. In the past, he had encountered assassination attempts many times, so he was very cautious in this regard. He had stipulated that anyone who wanted to meet him and discuss matters with him must be searched by the guards, and weapons were not allowed to be carried.
Once, another brother of his (who was sent by him to serve as the tyrant of a subsidiary neighboring country) came to the palace to see him. When talking about an important matter, he casually asked the guard for a spear, preparing to draw a map on the ground. As a result, Dionysius was furious and immediately executed the guard.
At this time, Dionysius did not care about Phibidas's sarcasm. He was more interested in what he was going to say next, and generously ordered: "Bring in the Daonian short sword and long shield."
When the short sword and long shield were placed in front of Phibidas, he picked up the long shield with his left hand and protected it in front of his chest, explaining: "The Daonian long shield is long enough to better protect the soldier's body, so the soldier does not need to spend energy worrying about defense, but can focus on how to kill the enemy."
As Phibidas spoke, he made a stabbing motion with the short sword. After he stabbed a few times, he inserted the short sword into the wooden table, and there was a "chi" sound, and the entire tip of the sword was completely inserted.
"What a sharp short sword!" Leptines, who was sitting next to Phibidas, exclaimed in surprise, and curiously went over to pull out the short sword and carefully looked at it: The blade of the short sword already had some small gaps, and the tip of the sword was also a little bent, which showed that it had been hit by weapons many times, but it still made people feel cold.
"This short sword is too short! Before the Daonian people can stab my soldiers, we will have stabbed the opponent to death with a spear!" Astagoras forcibly retorted.
"Yes, it is relatively short. But the Daonian soldiers have this long shield to protect them, and the spear may not be able to hurt him, but once the two sides are pushing, the spear can no longer be used, and this short sword can easily stab the opponent…" Phibidas carried the long shield and looked at the short sword in Leptines's hand, his mood was very uneasy: The Greek phalanx's round shield with a spear, this set of heavy infantry tactics has been passed down for hundreds of years, and has been proven to be so effective that it is difficult to find an opponent in other countries in the Mediterranean region. And a city-state alliance that has only been established for a few years can develop another new set of heavy infantry equipment and tactics in such a short period of time, and can confront the traditional ones, which cannot help but make him feel terrible!
It turns out that it is because of the weapons and equipment! Dionysius was a little excited. He originally thought that even his most elite army was not as good as the newly built Daonian legion, and he was really hit hard in his heart. Now, after listening to Phibidas's analysis, he suddenly realized: As long as it is not a problem of soldier quality, it can be remedied.
"Phibidas, what do you think we should do if we encounter the Daonian legion infantry again next time?" Dionysius humbly asked this Spartan for advice.
"Judging from the weapons and equipment of these Daonian soldiers, they have no advantage in a stalemate with our heavy infantry at medium range. But once the two sides get close and fight in close combat, the short sword and long shield can play the greatest role. This requires us not to adopt pushing tactics when conducting phalanx battles, but to leave a certain distance for the soldiers in the front row, and use a dense gun formation to make the Daonian legion infantry dare not get too close, so that the Syracusan soldiers can use their skilled spear skills to gain the upper hand in the stabbing between the two sides…" Phibidas had been thinking about how to deal with this new type of heavy infantry shock after carefully referring to the battlefield. After all, he had never really fought the Daonian legion face to face, but only made a speculation based on his many years of combat experience.
But this was enough to make Dionysius breathe a sigh of relief. He said to his generals: "Have you all heard! Next time we fight the Daonian soldiers, we will deal with them according to Phibidas's method!"
Fasi Pesas, Astagoras, and other Syracusan generals said yes one after another, of course, this was mostly a perfunctory response.
Dionysius, of course, wouldn't undermine the morale of his subordinates for the sake of a Spartan. He only needed to understand how to deal with the Daonian legion infantry next time. So, he said with a smile, "Of course, after this disastrous defeat in the battle, it's hard to say whether the Daonians will have another chance to engage us in a battle."
These words made Phibidas feel puzzled. He directly asked, "Why do you say that? The Daonians didn't suffer major casualties, and with the strength of their city-state alliance, they can completely organize another army that is no weaker than Syracuse's."
Dionysius smiled and said, "Phibidas, you are indeed very talented in military affairs, but defeating and destroying a country is not something that can be achieved by fighting alone."
He raised his head, his sharp gaze seeming to penetrate the tent, seeing the Daonian Consul who was trekking in the Lucanian region... A mocking sneer appeared on his face as he said proudly, "The invasion of the Samnites is already enough to give Daonia a headache, but the victory in today's battle will inevitably have a huge impact on Magna Graecia! And Daonia's troubles have only just begun. Before Daonia can extricate itself from its troubles and concentrate all its forces to stop us, what we need to do now is to quickly conquer the other city-states of the South Italian League, invade Daonia, make its people panic, and make its affiliated cities waver due to unease..."
Dionysius said decisively, "And then easily conquer—subdue—it!"
"What the lord says is right! If we conquer Magna Graecia sooner, we can return home sooner!" Fasipas shouted in agreement.
"Let us toast to the early conquest of Magna Graecia!" The usually low-key Leptines also became somewhat excited by Dionysius's encouragement.
"We should go and kill more Magna Graecians and seize more spoils!" Akiritas said with a wide grin, his expression slightly ferocious. He didn't have much interest in conquering Magna Graecia. After all, no matter how much land was occupied, it wouldn't be given to his tribe. What he needed was more food, money, and even slaves to strengthen his tribe.
Celtic leader Gabas also had the same thoughts.
When everyone else raised their glasses, Phibidas reluctantly stood up. He couldn't be sure: If Syracuse easily defeated Daonia, would it be good or bad for Sparta?
The celebration in the tent didn't last long because the envoy from Siris arrived.
The citizens of Siris suffered heavy losses in the battle, and now they sent an envoy late at night, the purpose of which was obvious.
Dionysius deliberately didn't appear for a long time, making the neglected envoy restless. As soon as Dionysius appeared, he immediately made a request to the Sicilian tyrant for Siris to surrender to Syracuse.
Dionysius had planned for this long ago.
He deliberately dismissed it with disdain and angrily told the envoy that Siris had always actively resisted Syracuse and its ally Locri. Now that it had suffered a crushing defeat and was about to have its city captured, it wanted to surrender, which was not sincere. Siris must pay the price for its previous mistakes in order to make him feel the sincerity of the people of Siris.
The envoy was obviously not as young and arrogant as the envoy who had come to deliver the declaration of war before. He immediately pleaded in a low voice.
Only then did Dionysius's expression soften slightly, indicating that if Syracuse was to accept Siris's surrender, it must send one thousand sheep, fifty cattle, and 30,000 catties of grain to the Syracuse camp by tomorrow morning. Only then would Syracuse accept Siris's request for a truce.
Upon hearing this, the envoy from Siris immediately cried out: The amount of supplies Dionysius demanded was enormous, and Siris simply couldn't gather the supplies within half a day, hoping to reduce the amount by half.
Dionysius said with a cold expression: This is precisely the time to show Siris's sincerity. If these supplies are not delivered to the military camp by tomorrow morning, Syracuse will launch an attack on Siris in the afternoon!
The envoy from Siris hurriedly returned to the city and informed the council of Dionysius's tough demands.
Circumstances were stronger than people! Faced with the overwhelming army, the upper echelons of Siris, after fierce debate, decided to agree to Dionysius's conditions and once again sent several generals, led by Pretines, to the Syracuse camp to negotiate the terms of Siris's surrender.
Dionysius made some concessions, and the two sides quickly signed an agreement and swore oaths to the gods.
Pretines and others temporarily breathed a sigh of relief and hurried back to the city to prepare the supplies. It wasn't that Siris couldn't produce these supplies, but after handing over these things, the people of Siris would have a harder time for the rest of the year. But no matter how difficult it was, it was better than having Syracuse destroy the city. Moreover, in order to get Siris to surrender and join the Syracuse army to fight against its former allies, Dionysius also gave Siris some enticing conditions, such as ceding the eastern part of the Oufemia Plain, which originally belonged to Terina, to Siris...
Syracuse's absolute victory in this battle made the terrified Siris council feel that the South Italian League, led by Daonia, had a bleak future. And as the first South Italian League city-state to surrender to Syracuse, Siris would also receive many benefits.
So, from that afternoon to evening, the entire city of Siris was busy...
Early the next morning, the people of Siris drove herds of cattle and sheep, and carts loaded with grain, out of the city in an endless stream. Of course, accompanying them were several generals, including Pretines, and their entourage, who were going to discuss with Dionysius the dispatch of troops to participate in the war.
When only half of the long line had left the city, a large number of cavalry appeared on the originally empty fields outside the city, and they fiercely charged towards this unarmed group.
This sudden blow caused the people of Siris to panic and flee for their lives. Countless cattle, sheep, and carts blocked the city gate, causing the gate to be unable to close and the drawbridge unable to be raised.
"Dionysius has deceived us! He wants to seize our city!" Pretines realized this, but it was already too late.
Dust filled the air ahead, and the sound of footsteps rumbled. The main force of Syracuse was rapidly approaching the city walls...
"Dionysius, you have broken your oath, deceived the gods, I curse you to be gouged out of your eyes and your heart, and your bloodline to be cut off!..." Pretines was stabbed in the chest by a Numidian cavalryman with a javelin, and fell off his horse. Before he died, he turned all his hatred into this vicious curse.
The Syracuse army easily broke through the unprepared city of Siris, and this army, composed of citizens of Sicilian Greek city-states, mercenaries, and foreigners, did not stop there...
The people of Siris frantically wanted to escape this fallen city, but the harbor was full of Syracuse's fleets, and there were countless foreign cavalrymen patrolling outside the city, and they had nowhere to escape...
As a result, the atrocities that the people of Syracuse had once committed in Sicilian city-states such as Catania and Naxos were now being staged in Siris in Magna Graecia—a massacre.
Dionysius did not stop his soldiers, and even condoned them. This army, which had become accustomed to plundering due to his long-term deliberate indulgence, had been severely controlled by him some time ago. After experiencing continuous forced marches and battles in the great battle, it needed a release... Of course, this was only one of the secondary reasons.
More importantly, he was short of money! Seriously short of money! It was even difficult to pay the mercenaries' salaries after three months, and looting was the quickest way to make money.
In addition, he needed to amplify the impact of this battle, and he wanted to tell the people of Magna Graecia in a shocking way: This would be the tragic end for those who opposed him!
The Syracuse army looted the entire city, and of course, a large portion of the looted wealth belonged to Dionysius.
In addition to the countless people of Siris who were killed during the looting process, he also decided to turn nearly 70,000 people of Siris who had been captured, including the free people of the port, into slaves and transport them to the Syracuse slave market to be sold for money.
Except for a few people who were neither killed in the looting nor sent away and sold as slaves. Dionysius specifically ordered the guards to find them and protect them. They were the Siris envoy Saliscius and his family who had threatened him before.
Dionysius took them to the Siris Square, and in front of tens of thousands of Siris prisoners, he cruelly used a sharp military knife to cut Saliscius and his family all over, leaving them covered in blood and gore.
Amidst Saliscius's dying curses, he loudly announced: "Any Magna Graecian who insults me, who insults the people of Syracuse, will suffer such a fate!"
He raised his knife and chopped off Saliscius's head.
Tens of thousands of people of Siris fell silent.
The reason why he did not destroy the city of Siris like he destroyed Catania was because the location of Siris was more important than Terina. Not only because the city area was large and could accommodate his more than 70,000 troops (more than 3,000 people were killed or injured on the Syracuse side in the battle), but also because the east coast of Magna Graecia was his main direction of attack. He would use Siris as an important forward base for Syracuse's attack on Daonia and Croton. Syracuse's army, navy, especially food and supplies, could be concentrated here, which was a springboard for the next step of marching north.
Of course, Dionysius, although he had no desire to attack the west coast (referring to the Brutian region), which was high in terrain, had rugged roads, and was entirely occupied by foreigners, he also had his own considerations.
He found dozens of soldiers from different Brutian tribes from the prisoners, as well as Lucanians, and met them with a friendly face, telling them through translators: The people of Syracuse came to Magna Graecia not to enslave them, but to liberate them from the harsh rule of Daonia and give them the freedom they once enjoyed! Moreover, as long as they were willing to rise up and resist Daonia and fight for themselves, Syracuse would give them more fertile land, such as the Oufemia Plain and the Sybaris Plain, after the war...
Dionysius not only released them but also gifted them some presents.
These Bruttian and Lucanian warriors originally thought that being captured would lead to a miserable fate, but they didn't expect to receive such treatment, repeatedly thanking the heavens for their blessings.
Filled with gratitude towards Dionysius, most of the warriors still embarked on the road back to Aspurustum, but a few hesitated for a long time and decided to go west, bypassing Crapetia and crossing the mountain trails between the Ofanto Plain and the Bruttian Mountains to return to their hometown…
… … … … … … … … … … … …
On this day, the losses of the defeated Daonian Fourth and Fifth Legions returning to Aspurustum totaled more than 4,000, with more than half of them lost during the retreat.
In particular, the complete annihilation of the First Battalion of the Fifth Legion, including the disappearance of the Fifth Legion Commander, Drax, was a huge blow to both the entire army and the high-ranking officers such as Pheryllus and Epithenes.
The extremely self-reproaching Pheryllus, after all, was an old general who was accustomed to life, death, victory, and defeat in the Persian campaigns. After the defeat in the great battle, he immediately realized that the situation was extremely unfavorable to Daonia. He had to cheer up and quickly re-establish an effective defense to prevent the Syracuse army from invading Daonian territory, buying time for Davos to return with the main force. Therefore, in Aspurustum, he reorganized the Fourth and Fifth Legions after the defeat and personally served as the commander of the Fifth Legion.
Epithenes also put down his pride at this moment and actively cooperated with Pheryllus in training soldiers, discussing with the administrative officer Agasia on how to strengthen the city's defenses.
At the same time, Pheryllus also sent a crossbow artillery unit and an engineering battalion to Croton to enhance the Crotonians' defenses, because the Syracuse people had crossbows. If Croton didn't have them, it would increase the difficulty of defending the city. According to the newly compiled "Daonian Military Law," the chapter on city defense specifically mentioned the principle of "using crossbows to counter crossbows." Croton, as an important ally on Daonia's southern border, must not be occupied, otherwise, the consequences would be unimaginable, so Pheryllus no longer cared about the military affairs department's request that the crossbow artillery technology should not be leaked.
In addition, Pheryllus also sent a fast horse to chase back the team escorting more than 500 Locrian prisoners to Thurii, hoping to use these prisoners to exchange for the Daonian soldiers captured in the Syracuse army.
The failure of this battle also made him more cautious. He also sent a urgent letter to the Thurii Senate, because he was worried that the Syracuse people would bypass Croton and directly attack Crimisa, which was small, sparsely populated, and relatively weak in defense. He hoped that the Senate could send a newly built legion to garrison Crimisa. In this way, Aspurustum, Crimisa, and Croton would be mutually supportive, and their defenses would be thicker, more layered, and safer.
The Trina routed soldiers led by Siproes did not follow the Daonians into Aspurustum in the end.
Instead, they entered the city of Croton, because Aspurustum was small and could not accommodate so many people for a long time. Moreover, the addition of Trina soldiers would also strengthen Croton's defensive power. Croton was overjoyed and did not care about the rations consumed by the Trina people.
It should be known that the armies of Croton and Trina were brothers in misfortune in this battle, just lining up on the two wings of the allied forces, and were the direct targets of the enemy's reinforcements and interceptions. Under the joint pursuit of the Campanian mercenaries and the Syracuse sailors, less than 4,000 Trina people escaped in the end. The Crotonians, under the attack of the Syracuse reinforcements and the continuous pursuit of the mercenary cavalry (after the Numidian and Celtic cavalry were desperately intercepted by the First Battalion of the Fifth Legion, in order to vent their anger and redeem themselves, some of the cavalry held back the Daonians, waiting for the infantry to encircle them, while the other part turned northeast to pursue the Sybarite and Croton routed soldiers), only more than 8,000 people finally reached the city.
Both sides lost nearly half or more of their citizens.
In addition to his grief, Siproes was secretly glad that he had made the right decision in advance to have the Trina people evacuated to the Bruttian region of Daonia, so he no longer needed to worry about their safety.
The people of Croton, who had experienced a disastrous defeat a few years ago, were once again plunged into great sorrow, and in addition to their grief, they were even more worried about the Syracuse army stepping on the land of Croton. Could Croton withstand the attack of this huge army?
The Croton army, plus the Trina routed soldiers, and less than 2,000 Sybarites, totaled about 14,000 people. In addition, the council urgently mobilized freemen to participate in the war, and it was estimated that 20,000 people could defend the city, so the generals of Croton had some confidence.
At the emergency, expanded thousand-person council, when someone mentioned: Croton has now suffered heavy losses, should we consider a truce with the Syracuse people, just like the previous truce with Daonia, in order to restore strength?
This proposal was opposed by most people, and even Lysias, who had always been accustomed to conforming to the situation and compromising, refuted it righteously. He said loudly: "Everyone, Syracuse is different from Daonia. The tyrant Dionysius will never use a relatively equal truce agreement to sign with us under such a great advantage. He will definitely want to make our great Croton his servant, make us pay high tributes, make our citizens shed blood for his conquests, and even change our democracy into a dictatorship like Syracuse, just like he did in other Greek city-states in Sicily!…
Moreover, after Croton becomes a so-called allied city-state of Syracuse, we will also face the bullying of our mortal enemy, Locri, because Dionysius married the sister of Locri's chief general, Demodocus. Locri is an accomplice in Syracuse's invasion of Magna Graecia. Its status in Dionysius's eyes is naturally much higher than that of Croton. In this way, Locri can use Dionysius's power to humiliate us and even seize the interests belonging to Croton! Citizens, facing such a very likely future, are you willing to submit to Syracuse?!"
"Fight Syracuse to the death! Even if Croton is destroyed, we will not become Dionysius's slaves!…" The citizens shouted angrily, and finally reached an agreement on the issue of war and peace.
At this moment, the messenger sent by Pheryllus arrived in the city of Croton. He not only brought the crossbow artillery unit, but also brought the promise made by Pheryllus on behalf of the Daonian Senate: Daonia will fight side by side with Croton to jointly resist the Syracuse people! Croton can make any request to Daonia if it has any difficulties, and Daonia will do its best to help solve them!"
Daonia's promise and its actual actions (bringing the crossbow artillery team) moved the citizens of Croton and greatly eliminated the Crotonians' long-standing vigilance against Daonia. For the first time, the Croton people felt a sense of unprecedented security in having a strong ally behind them.
… … … … … … … … … … … …
Pheryllus's messenger galloped non-stop on the avenue, and after changing horses three times at the post stations along the road, it took only half a day to bring the important battle report of "the defeat of the allied forces" to the Thurii Senate, and it quickly spread throughout the city.
Although the people of Thurii were not as sad as the people of Daonia in Aspurustum and Crimisa, after all, the soldiers of the Fourth and Fifth Legions who participated in the war mostly came from the Bruttian region, Aspurustum, and Crimisa, but their shock was far greater than that of these three regions. Since the establishment of the new city of Thurii, they have always received news of victory in every war. Having become accustomed to victory, they heard of defeat for the first time, and panic spread among the people…
On the same day, many people went to the Temple of Hades to pray, hoping that the King of the Underworld would bless the alliance with peace. In the afternoon, even the people of Amendolara and Bisignano flocked to the temple…
… … … … … … … … … … … …
While the Senate was urgently convening a meeting to discuss countermeasures, in Davos's residence, Christoia was discussing with several business executives under her the possible impact of the defeat of the allied forces on her industries.
"Madam, Syracuse should soon march towards Croton, and Aspurustum will also become a battlefield. In order to ensure the safety of the bank, should we… should we temporarily withdraw the gold and silver stored in the Aspurustum bank from there?" The bank manager suggested cautiously.
"The bank in Aspurustum must not be withdrawn!" Christoia said firmly: "You must understand that in the eyes of the people, the Christoia Bank is not my personal property. It represents my husband—Davos, the magistrate! In this critical situation, even the magistrate's property is to be withdrawn, then do the citizens of Aspurustum still have the confidence to persevere! Hmm! The bank there must not only not be withdrawn, but must also open on time every day!
In addition, you must also ask the bank employees in that city to face every customer with a more confident smile. If the Aspurustum City Hall is financially tight and needs money, even without interest, it must be lent to them!"
The bank manager was stunned when he heard the last sentence, and then said helplessly: "Madam, I understand."
"How is the situation with the restaurants?" Christoia turned to another manager.
"Because of this war, there are now many more customers in various restaurants than before, especially the restaurants in the port of Thurii. After the sea trade route was cut off by the Syracuse fleet, the most popular places for those idle sailors and laborers besides the arena are the restaurants, so the restaurants there are full every day, and there are not enough seats, so some small conflicts often occur. I have discussed with the captain of the port patrol, and he will send more people to strengthen the patrols in that area.
"However, the restaurant is now facing a difficult problem. Wheat flour and fish are in short supply, and we cannot provide some of the food that customers want, which has led to many complaints…" the restaurant manager explained the situation.
"Alas, there is no way around it! Because of the war, the entire alliance's supply of grain and sea fish is very tight, and we are not the only ones having a hard time…" Christoia sighed and said earnestly: "I suggest that a notice be posted on the door of every restaurant to explain the reason to the customers and apologize to them. At the same time, I suggest that customers order more beef and mutton, such as rinse beef and mutton, fried beef, roasted lamb legs… Andrea wrote to me from Grumentum that there are too many cattle and sheep raised in the Lucania region this year. If they are not consumed in large quantities, it is a small matter for the cattle and sheep to lose weight in winter. If they encounter excessively cold weather, many may freeze to death, which would be a great loss to the herders, so we must try to buy as many livestock as possible from Lucania…
Moreover, considering that now is a difficult time, and the people of the entire alliance are facing food shortages, we will be resented by the people if we obtain high profits at this time! So I decided to lower the price of all food and only earn a small profit to pay the employees' salaries. Before the war is over, we must work together with the people of Daonia to overcome the difficulties!"
"Yes, Madam! I will carry it out immediately!" The restaurant manager's response was much more straightforward.
Christoia yawned. Seeing that her mistress was a little sleepy, Asuna immediately stepped forward to stop the meeting and asked the managers to go back first.
"Madam, you are about to give birth, why are you still working so hard! You have to think about the child in your belly!…" Asuna complained while supporting her.
Christoia gently held her round belly with both hands and said softly: "So many things have happened in the alliance, so naturally there will be more things to deal with. It won't work if I don't deal with them. In a few days, Andrea will rush over to temporarily take over these matters for me, and I can safely give birth to the baby…"
"It's great that Madam Andrea is coming!" Asuna said happily. She helped Christoia walk slowly in the backyard to relieve the swelling in Christoia's legs caused by sitting for a long time just now.
"Andrea will also bring her two children back to Thurii (one of whom is the son of her ex-husband) so that Bagule's father can see his grandson and satisfy his longing…" Christoia said with some emotion: Andrea had been married before and had a child. Now she is married to the family of a foreign leader. Andrea has made great efforts to be accepted by Bagule's large family and to get along harmoniously…
"Adoris and Little Crolo will be very happy!" Asuna said with a smile.
Christoia suddenly remembered and asked, "Has Agnes come back?"
"Not yet.
Madam, I think it's because the battle failed, not only has the number of people going to the Temple of Hades increased, but the number of believers in the Temple of Hera has also increased, so Madam Agnes has not finished her work…" Asuna guessed.
"Nonsense!" Christoia frowned slightly and said anxiously: "She is also pregnant, how can she not take care of her body! Send someone to call her back and tell her it's my order!"
"Yes!" Asuna knew that her mistress meant what she said, so she hurried to call another maid.
At this moment, the backyard door was pushed open.
"Mother, I'm back." Cynthia carried her satchel filled with school supplies, took the initiative to step forward, and helped Christoia.
"Where's Adoris?"
"He's playing rugby with his classmates in the school square."
"I hope he doesn't come home after dark like yesterday."
"He won't. I've already warned him." Cynthia comforted Christoia, and then asked with concern: "Mother, is there any news about Father? This afternoon, everyone knew that we had been defeated in Siris, and they were not in the mood to attend classes. They also asked me one after another, 'When will Father lead the army back?'"
Christoia turned her head to look at her adopted daughter, whose height had almost reached her shoulders. She recalled her vigilance towards Davos when they first met, but now she was proud of him. She couldn't help but feel gratified: "Don't worry, your father will return in triumph soon!"
"Yes!" Cynthia nodded vigorously.
"Mom, I'm back!" A clear child's voice came from outside the door.
"This little troublemaker is back!" A doting smile appeared on Christoia's face. During this period, because she was approaching childbirth, Christoia was unable to accompany the energetic Little Crolo, so she had to let the maids take him to the square to play every day.
"Mother, I'll go accompany my younger brother." Cynthia stepped forward sensibly.
Then the maid who came in shouted excitedly: "Madam, good news! Good news! The messenger from Lucania is back, saying that the master has won a great victory in Poseidonia! Saying that… he has eliminated more than 20,000 enemies…"
"That's great!" Christoia couldn't help but shout. Davos had been leading the army on an expedition for so long, how could she not worry! But as the mistress of the house, she usually had to pretend to be calm. This time she was really relieved…
As soon as she finished shouting this sentence, she felt a warm current between her legs and her abdomen began to swell with pain.
Having had a childbirth experience once, she immediately stood firm, supported herself on the stone table with her hands, and said in as steady a tone as possible: "Asuna, Asuna, I'm going to give birth, hurry, hurry and notify Herpus…"
… … … … … … … … … … … …
Just when the Davos mansion was in a flurry of activity for Christoia's delivery, the news that "the consul led the army to a great victory over the Samnites in Lucania" was like a warm breeze that soothed the somewhat panicked emotions of the people of Thurii. Among the people who worshiped at the Temple of Hades, someone publicly shouted for the first time the slogan "Let Lord Davos be king."
However, at dusk, the messenger galloping from the south once again broke the gradually calming mood of the people. The shocking news that "the Syracuse army broke through the city of Siris, not only looted the entire city, but also turned all the people of the city into slaves" once again shocked the people of Thurii, and also shocked the Senate, causing the senators who were still hesitating to quickly make a decision: to agree to Philius's proposal and send the newly built Sixth Legion to Crimisa to protect the safety of the Daonian territory.
… … … … … … … … … … …
That night, while the people of Thurii were tossing and turning, unable to fall asleep, a newborn baby was born in the Davos mansion.
"Madam, it's a healthy and lovely girl!" Asuna held the newborn child, who had been wiped clean, had her umbilical cord tied, and was wrapped in clean linen, and came to the bedside carefully to show it to Christoia.
Christoia, who was already exhausted, turned her head with difficulty, looked at her daughter who was waving her hands and crying loudly, and a kind smile appeared on her sweat-covered pretty face.
"… Eunice… Her name is Eunice…" Christoia remembered her agreement with Davos.
Everyone who had been waiting anxiously outside the bedroom breathed a sigh of relief when they heard the good news of "mother and daughter safe."
In this era, childbirth is a major event and also a difficult one. Difficult labor is a common occurrence in childbirth. Although Davos told Herpus and other doctors the childbirth precautions he had heard from his previous life, and also advocated bringing together experienced midwives in Daonia for professional training to make them doctors specializing in childbirth in hospitals… The implementation of these measures has allowed the newborn mortality rate in Daonia to be controlled to a certain extent, but its mortality rate is still not low.
"Little Crolo, you have a sister!" Agnes stroked Little Crolo's head and said softly.
"Sister?! Can I play with her often?!" Little Crolo asked happily.
"Not now, you can when she gets older." Agnes explained to him while covering her slightly bulging belly. She sincerely hoped that she would be able to give birth to a child smoothly in a few months.
"Great, it's a sister!" Adoris also shouted happily. Little Crolo pestered him to play every day, and he didn't want another younger brother, or he would be annoyed to death.
Cynthia was also very happy. She could finally have a little follower like other female classmates.
Eunice was welcomed by the whole family from the moment she was born.
… … … … … … … … … … …
The next day, while the Thurii Senate was summoning the newly built Sixth Legion soldiers in Victory Square, preparing to send them south to garrison Crimisa, the Syracuse envoy Damocles strode into Caulonia.
Damocles brought Dionysius's final ultimatum to Caulonia: surrender immediately, otherwise Siris would be its example!
All along, Caulonia, as the front line of the Croton Alliance against Locri, its people were full of confidence in defending the city, mainly because behind it was the full support of Croton and its other allies. But this time the great battle failed, Daonia and Croton retreated, and Siris and Terina were captured, and the forces supporting it were lost.
Now Caulonia is already deeply besieged. Moreover, they had long heard that Syracuse's siege ability was very strong, having captured the Carthaginian Sicilian stronghold of Motya, and the news that had just arrived was even more shocking: Siris fell in half a day (the Syracuse and Locri armies strictly blockaded the city of Caulonia, so that no one knew that the fall of Siris was due to Dionysius's betrayal), which made the people of Caulonia lose confidence in defending the city. At the same time, the tragic experience of the people of Siris also frightened them.
The people of Caulonia believed that even if Daonia and Croton had a chance to counterattack in the future, Caulonia would have already fallen by then, and they themselves would have become slaves and sold far away to other places. Even if the city of Caulonia was restored, it would be meaningless to them…
Finally, the Citizen Assembly unanimously decided to surrender to Syracuse!