By the time Alobomas realized that something was wrong with the situation in the city, these rumors had already spread throughout the city, implying one thing: the former governor Hennis was a good person, and Alobomas was a tyrant who wanted to turn the people of Laos back into slaves to exploit!
Alobomas was furious. He sternly demanded that his subordinates immediately arrest those who spread the rumors and calm the situation down as soon as possible.
But at this moment, news came that "Saru, the chief administrator of Vigg City, was leading troops to advance towards Laos," and at the same time, Bagule, the chief administrator of Grumantum, led 3,000 reserve soldiers newly recruited in the Lucania region to Nium.
Alobomas immediately became nervous.
… … … … … … … … … … …
On the third day after the Battle of Taranto, the ship of the Spartan envoy Chrisopus sailed into the Gulf of Taranto.
Before setting off, Chrisopus had carefully understood the situation of the Great Greek War. He knew that the Syracuse navy had blockaded the entire Gulf of Taranto, causing the Daonian League to be unable to enter the sea with a single sail. Therefore, he was prepared to encounter Syracuse patrol boats, but he did not expect that he would encounter Daonian patrol boats. The sails of the patrol boats were painted with a pattern of "a flamboyant black hair entwined with a double-stranded fork," which impressed him deeply.
At this time, the Daonian patrol boat was no longer a freighter or a fifty-oar speedboat that had been modified, but a true top-notch warship in the Greek city-states—a trireme.
The patrol boat intercepted Chrisopus's ship, asked about his intentions and destination, and ignored Chrisopus's protests. They also boarded the ship to search for any hidden armed personnel or weapons.
At this time, Chrisopus asked loudly: "When I passed by here a few days ago, I saw many Syracuse warships patrolling the bay. Where have they all gone?"
Chrisopus's question was a bit rude. The captain on the side nervously squeezed a handful of sweat. The captain of the Daonian patrol boat who boarded the ship gave Chrisopus a cold look. If he hadn't been concerned about his identity as a Spartan envoy, he would have cursed him out loud. He sneered a few times: "Where did they go? Where else could they go! Either they fell into the sea and fed the fish, or they were imprisoned in Thurii!"
When Chrisopus heard this, he, who had always been steady, was surprised and widened his eyes: "You defeated the Syracuse navy?!"
"You don't seem to believe it." The captain stood on the ship's side, spat a mouthful of thick phlegm into the sea, and said proudly: "Two days ago, our King Davos led us to defeat the Syracuse navy with fewer troops. Their defeated soldiers fled back to Siris, but it won't be long before we completely eliminate them! By then, this sea will belong to us Daonians!"
Chrisopus was shocked.
He did not expect that during his voyage away from Sparta, a naval battle had taken place here that was enough to change the entire situation of the Great Greek War! At the same time, he also noticed another thing that surprised him: "You just said that Davos became king?!"
The captain immediately put on a straight face: "Be careful, Spartan! The name you mentioned is the King of the Daonian League, the Son of Hades, the invincible Great Greek general, the protector of the Daonian people. Please give enough respect and awe, otherwise we will detain your ship, and you will not enjoy the treatment of an envoy, but will enter Thurii as a criminal!"
Hearing the Daonian's threat, if it were Phibidas, he would have been furious, but Chrisopus was steady enough. He stopped talking, but his heart was like a storm, churning endlessly…
On the way to Thurii, Chrisopus and the sailors and sailors who were Pisians still found it difficult to accept the news that "the Daonian fleet defeated the Syracuse navy" (Spartan citizens only had one profession—warrior. Therefore, the job of sailors in the Laconia Gulf was also done by Pisians who were not Spartan citizens. Spartans would not allow Helots to be sailors, because this meant unpredictable danger). But as they approached Thurii, they were surprised to see countless triremes densely covering the sea, seemingly practicing formations, with shouts and chants covering the entire sea area…
Chrisopus and everyone on the passenger ship were shocked by the magnificent sight in front of them. Everyone had similar questions in their hearts: Are these all triremes belonging to Daonia? Didn't they just end the battle with the Syracuse navy? How could there be so many warships? Did they also get aid from the Persians? …
That was the truth. The Daonian fleet originally had about 150 triremes. Later, it captured more than 150 Syracuse warships, plus another 35 triremes captured from Taranto. The Daonian navy now has a total of more than 330 triremes.
Securian had been worried these past two days. He had to arrange for shipwrights to repair the warships damaged in the battle. At the same time, because so many warships had been added, Thurii did not have so many sailors to equip them. Without people, no matter how many ships there were, they would not be able to be used. He racked his brains and finally came up with a way to recruit sailors.
At this time, the crisis in Heraclea had been resolved, Metapontum had also been recovered, and Castron had once again firmly decided to follow Daonia. After obtaining Davos's permission, Securian sent people to recruit sailors from these three allied states, and soon more than 60 warships were able to be put into use.
However, these newly recruited sailors had no experience in driving triremes after all. Therefore, Securian had been busy training the expanded fleet these past two days. Because the Daonian fleet's secret weapon in the naval battle—the crow's bridge—had been exposed, he no longer needed to hide it, but let the entire fleet appear in the bay.
So Chrisopus and the others were curious to see that many warships in the Daonian fleet had a long "wooden board" erected on their foremast.
It seems that Daonia really defeated the Syracuse navy! Chrisopus looked solemnly at the Daonian warships that were splitting waves on the sea, thinking about the impact of this major news on his mission to Thurii.
After repeated deliberation, he found that this victory had instead increased the possibility of a truce between Daonia and Syracuse, which cheered him up.
The Spartan passenger ship entered the mouth of the Crati River and was ordered to disembark at the port. This was because since the Thurii military port was built on the banks of the Crati River, the docks in Thurii had been closed for secrecy, and no ships were allowed to pass through the military port to reach Thurii City.
If Chrisopus had come to the port of Thurii a few days ago, he would have been surprised by the liveliness of the port today, because the previous naval blockade by Syracuse had made the port of Thurii very deserted. No merchant ships arrived, and no merchant ships left. A large number of free people who depended on the port for survival had nothing to do. Most of them were later recruited into the fleet as sailors, into the logistics and transportation department of the military affairs department as laborers, and into the agricultural department to help citizen families who lacked labor in the fields because their masters were Levy. Therefore, not only were there no merchant ships in the port, but even the labor force had been almost completely transferred, and the entire port seemed to have been abolished. Even after the victory in the naval battle, considering the upcoming military action against Syracuse, Davos, after careful consideration, insisted on continuing to blockade the port, despite Marigis's opposition, until the war with Syracuse started again.
Only today did cargo ships sail into the port again. A large number of laborers urgently transferred from the military affairs department entered the dock and unloaded bags of grain from the cargo ships. These grains were all donated by the three allied states of Castron, Heraclea, and Metapontum after learning of the news that "Daonia's grain was tight and called on the people to donate."
Chrisopus had experienced the Peloponnesian War, the Asia Minor War, and the current Corinthian War. He knew the damage that war could do to trade. What's more, the port of Thurii had been blockaded before, but he did not expect that the port of Thurii would be so busy today. He was surprised and asked the Thurii officials who had come to greet him.
After learning the truth, Chrisopus couldn't help but be a little surprised: Daonia's allies supported Daonia in such a disadvantaged situation so unreservedly, just because of a naval victory?
Walking out of the port and passing through the somewhat empty market, the carriage carrying Chrisopus and several attendants was about to drive onto the avenue.
Here, Chrisopus and his entourage saw a spectacular scene: the road and both sides of the road had been occupied by countless Daonian people, young and old, male and female, each holding wooden boxes, carrying packages, or leading pack animals, fully loaded with wealth, marching mightily towards Thurii City…
Chrisopus was very curious, so he asked the coachman.
"Those are the people of Amendolara going to Victory Square to donate their wealth, so that our alliance has the ability to carry this war to the end and defeat those evil Syracusans! We Thurii people have already donated yesterday. It is said that the Bruttians are also donating, but not in Thurii Victory Square, but in Cosenza…"
Looking at the coachman's proud expression, and then looking at the people on the avenue talking and laughing, as if they were not going to give up their family property, but to participate in an important gathering… This made Chrisopus involuntarily think of the scene when the Spartan people sent their relatives to the battlefield, and the words of farewell began to echo in his heart: Either return victorious, or be carried back on your shield!
How similar the scene was at this time! The Daonians were not only not afraid of war, but also had the determination to carry the war to the end! But unlike Sparta's hundreds of years of historical accumulation, this city-state alliance had only been established for less than six years! Chrisopus felt a chill. He didn't know whether he was worried about his mission or inexplicably worried about Syracuse's obviously superior army…
Since Davos was not in the Senate at the moment, Chrisophus and his companions did not need to enter the city and went directly north to the military camp.
When passing the second triumphal arch outside the north city gate, Chrisophus stood under the gate and looked up at it for a long time before leaving.
The Turii military camp was located on the north bank of the confluence of the Coseni and Thyrrenus rivers. At this time, the Turii military camp was no longer the simple camp with tents and fences that it was when the city of Turii was first built, but a fully functional fortress.
Abatis, moats, earthen ramparts, wooden walls, and watchtowers erected every 20 meters on the wooden walls constituted the outer defenses of the military camp. Inside the camp were rows of brick and tile barracks, each capable of accommodating a squad of soldiers. The beds were made into bunk beds, so the space inside the rooms was relatively spacious.
In addition, there were stables for the cavalry, armories, weapon repair workshops, kitchens, small hospitals, and even waterwheels that drew water from the Thyrrenus River into the camp's bathhouse (which could only provide cold water baths for the soldiers).
Of course, there was also the most important and indispensable part of the military camp: the command headquarters, consisting of the supreme commander's residence, senior military officers' residences, and a conference room; training grounds, including light infantry training grounds, heavy infantry training grounds, cavalry training grounds, and weapon testing grounds (mainly for the assembly and testing of large siege engines), a large training ground (for combined arms training, formation drills, and troop reviews); in addition, there were several special training grounds, a city defense training ground (for training in building camps, defense, and siege, the land in this area was often dug up and filled in again, leaving it scarred and desolate), training grounds on both banks of the Thyrrenus River (for training in wading across the river and landing operations, which were equipped with a dozen small cargo ships), and a mountain training ground (for training in mountain warfare, this training ground was not in the military camp but in the mountains west of the camp, beyond the hot spring bathhouse).
For Daonia, which was founded on military strength, the military camps built near various cities within the League were the most well-equipped and advanced training camps among the various countries, city-states, and races in the Mediterranean during this era, especially the Turii military camp. As the center of the League, Turii had the most citizen soldiers, so the military camp had to train 5,000 people at a time and could fully accommodate 50,000 people. There were 500 soldiers stationed there year-round, not including some League public slaves.
It was because of the existence of these military camps that countless farmers, herdsmen, fishermen, merchants, and others who had no war experience were transformed into qualified legion soldiers after repeated rigorous training in the military camps for one or two years. This enabled the Fifth Legion, which had never been on a real battlefield, to hold its own against the elite soldiers of Syracuse, who were constantly at war.
At this moment, Chrisophus saw the wooden wall, which was ten meters high, extending endlessly to both sides, with no end in sight, and could imagine the scale of this military camp.
This is obviously a city! He couldn't help but ask in surprise, "This is your military camp?!"
"That's right, this is the Turii military camp. Citizens of Turii, Amendolara, and Bisinia receive training here," the officer replied.
Chrisophus looked up again at the sentries patrolling back and forth on the wooden wall and the archers on the watchtowers gazing into the distance. The heavily guarded military camp made him feel uneasy: "Let's go in."
Then, the officer stopped and turned to Chrisophus and his entourage, saying seriously: "Given that we are currently at war, the military secrets in this military camp cannot be leaked. King Davos requires that you must wear masks to cover your eyes before you can enter the military camp." As he spoke, he took out a black mask from his pocket.
At the same time, the camp's drawbridge was lowered with a creak, and the camp gate opened, with a fully armed team of soldiers marching out.
Chrisophus's entourage had already exploded in anger: "Daonians, do you know what you're saying?!"
"You actually want us to cover our eyes! When we Spartans are sent to any place, the city-state's rulers and generals respectfully come out to greet us. This is an insult to us Spartans!"
"Daonians, aren't you afraid of incurring the wrath of Sparta by doing this?!"
The Daonian officer was not afraid of the Spartan delegation's accusations and sneered: "A few years ago, a Spartan envoy threatened us Daonians with the same words and was driven out of Turii. If you are unwilling to comply with our request, then we will have to regretfully ask you to leave Turii."
The entourage suddenly fell silent. They knew that the person the officer was talking about was Phibidas. After this guy returned to Sparta from Turii, he became a laughingstock among the Spartans for a long time. They didn't want to become like that, so they all looked at Chrisophus.
This is a demonstration by Daonia! Chrisophus sighed inwardly.
Chrisophus was not Phibidas. Among the Spartans, he was one of the few who truly possessed diplomatic qualities, so the Council of Elders entrusted him with the important task of traveling to Magna Graecia. At this moment, seeing that the situation was not good, he took a deep breath, his gaze colliding with the Daonian officer's as if it were a substance, and said in a deep voice: "I accept your request, but I hope to see your king soon!"
… … … … … … … … … … … …
Five years later, Chrisophus saw Davos again in the conference room of the Turii military camp. This young man, who was only 24 years old, was now the king of Daonia. He sat in the center of the room. Apart from a circle of stubble on his chin, his appearance had hardly changed, but the impression he gave Chrisophus was completely different from when they parted.
After Chrisophus entered, Davos sat quietly without moving, watching him with a solemn expression. An aura of majesty emanated from this young king, slowly pressing down on Chrisophus like a steep mountain.
It seems this is a formal meeting. Davos is not prepared to talk about personal feelings with him, because Davos is flanked by other people.
This forced Chrisophus, who had just taken off his mask, to speak first to break the oppressive silence he felt: "Spartan envoy Chrisophus, on the orders of the Council of Elders, is on a mission to Daonia and hopes to receive due respect and hospitality."
Cunogolata, who was sitting on Davos's left-hand side, said with a serious expression: "As the leader of the Greek League, Sparta should have maintained peace among the Greek city-states. However, you rely on your strength to bully the weak and stir up wars everywhere. Such a city-state is not worthy of Daonia's respect!"
Although Chrisophus had been uneasy before, he really did not expect Daonia's attitude towards Sparta to be so poor. Although he was unhappy, he had been on missions to other city-states many times and was considered experienced, so he quickly replied: "In the struggle for interests between city-states, who can say who is right and who is wrong? Besides, that happened in the Eastern Mediterranean and has nothing to do with Magna Graecia."
Scombrolas, an old man with white hair on Davos's right, stood up and accused: "We don't want to interfere in your Greek mainland affairs. But Sparta has interfered in our war with Syracuse, assisted the hateful Syracusans, trampled on our land, and massacred our people. That makes them our enemy! We have no respect for enemies, only anger!"
Do they know?! Chrisophus looked at Davos in front of him.
Davos had a stern expression, his sharp eyes fixed on him.
Chrisophus calmly argued: "Although Sparta and Syracuse have an alliance, Sparta has never interfered in the affairs of the Western Mediterranean, nor has it ever sent troops into the Western Mediterranean. Sparta has no hostility towards Daonia! …"
"Phibidas." As soon as Davos opened his mouth, he said a name that Chrisophus was afraid to hear. His tone was cold and unhurried as he said: "A Spartan general, the brother of Eudamidas, also once traveled to Daonia, but now he appears in the Syracusan army and commanded the right wing of the Syracusan army in the battle with the Southern Italy League. Don't tell me that this was his own initiative or that he was already exiled by Sparta. As far as I know, he was still leading troops in battle in Corinth a few months ago."
Davos's words blocked all the possibilities that Chrisophus wanted to quibble about. Chrisophus was surprised that Daonia had such detailed information about Phibidas. At this moment, he had nothing to hesitate or worry about, so he changed the subject and said bluntly: "I am here this time for the peace of Magna Graecia. Sparta hopes that Daonia and Syracuse can stop the war, sign a peace agreement, and allow the people of Magna Graecia to rebuild their homes!"
"Did I hear wrong?! Sparta is actually starting to care about our Magna Graecia!" Scombrolas's mockery went unheeded by Chrisophus, his eyes fixed on Davos.
"Has Dionysius agreed?" Davos did not show surprise, but asked instead.
"I came to Turii first to seek your opinion before going to Syrakousai," Chrisophus replied.
"What are the terms of the truce?" Cunogolata interjected.
Chrisophus carefully stated the plan he had considered along the way: "Although Daonia has won a naval victory, you must admit that Syracuse has already gained a great advantage in Magna Graecia. They have already conquered the other city-states of Magna Graecia and are now about to enter your territory, and your Daonia is still unstable internally… Therefore, my suggestion is—"
Chrisophus looked at Davos and said seriously: "Both sides should implement a truce at their current positions."
After Chrisophus finished speaking, the conference hall was silent. He immediately added: "Of course, you can also put forward your own truce conditions, and we Spartans will be responsible for coordinating."
"What about Siris and Terina?" Cunogolata asked loudly, his face looking grim.
"I think Syracuse will let these two city-states restore their independence. After all, Syracuse is in Sicily, not Magna Graecia," Chrisophes replied without hesitation.
"Independence?!" Scombrius sneered twice: "Let Syracuse, like you Spartans in the Greek city-states of Asia Minor, support one 'Ten-Man Tyranny' government after another?!"
Chrisophes' expression changed slightly.
At this moment, Davos spoke: "Would you like to hear our conditions?"
"Speak," Chrisophes said, feeling slightly nervous.
"As long as Syracuse withdraws from Magna Graecia—" Davos' words made Chrisophes feel a burst of joy. He was about to respond when he heard Davos emphasize his tone: "And let Messana, Catana, Naxos, and Tauromenium all become independent one by one, dissolve that Sicilian League, and most importantly, exile Dionysius. These are my conditions, and they are not negotiable! If Syracuse agrees, we will agree to a truce!"
Chrisophes originally thought Davos was joking, but seeing his resolute expression, and the emotional excitement of the others after Davos said these words, he realized he was serious.
The meeting hall was silent for a while. Chrisophes looked disappointed: "The conditions you have proposed are impossible for the Syracusans to accept. It seems that you Daonians intend to continue this costly and deadly war!"
"This war was provoked by the Syracusans. Dionysius led his army to invade Magna Graecia, occupy the land of the Daonian alliance, and slaughter the people of Magna Graecia, like a vicious wolf breaking into our home, eating and drinking its fill, and wanting to leave safely. It's not that easy!" Davos suddenly stood up and said decisively: "I once made a promise to the people, 'To kill all the Syracusans who invade Magna Graecia!' To this end, all our Daonian citizens have made up their minds to fight the Syracusans to the death! Hades is above, and he will bless us not only to annihilate the Syracusan invading army and restore our alliance! We must also fight to Sicily, save those Greek city-states oppressed by Syracuse, and completely pull out the fangs and claws of this vicious wolf, so that it will never be able to oppress any Greek city-state!"
Davos' words not only shocked Chrisophes but also surprised the elders present. It was the first time they had heard Davos talk about his vision for the aftermath of this war.
"Davos," Chrisophes said anxiously, addressing him by his name as a reminder: "I can understand your eagerness for revenge, but Syracuse is not a vicious wolf, but a fierce lion! If you miss this opportunity for peace, I fear that you will not be able to kill this lion, but instead, it will pounce into your house and injure or kill everyone!"
There was a clear threat in Chrisophes' words.
Davos only replied faintly: "Then we will only know after a thorough fight, who is the fierce lion after all?"
Chrisophes heard Davos' determination to fight Syracuse to the death and wanted to persuade him further.
Davos had already said loudly: "In Persia, you and I fought side by side. I should have entertained you well this time, but unfortunately… Now is a time of war, you and I are enemies, not friends. I'm sorry, I can only let you leave! When this war is over, come again and we will have a good reunion!"
Chrisophes knew that his mission had failed and said dispiritedly: "I'm afraid we won't have another chance to meet…"
Davos smiled faintly: "I believe you will come again!"
… … … … … … … … … … … …
After Chrisophes left the military camp, he remained serious and silent.
When he entered the port, boarded the ship, and left the dock, without his instructions, the captain did not know where to go and had to ask loudly: "Chrisophes, are we going to Siris next?"
Chrisophes came back to his senses from his contemplation and said decisively: "No, return directly to Sparta."
"Return?!" The captain felt puzzled. He vaguely remembered that the inspector's mission was to bring about a truce between Daonia and Syracuse, and he had only just gone to Daonia.
"The Daonians are arrogant and conceited, refusing to make peace, and even dreaming of defeating the Syracusans. I think this newly established city-state alliance will soon perish!" the attendant mocked loudly.
"Perhaps, it seems that Sparta can only rely on itself during this period," Chrisophes said, but in his mind, the firm and confident face of Davos always appeared. This similar expression had appeared before the canyon annihilation battle in Persia, before the Battle of the Kentrites River… It had appeared many times at meetings where the expeditionary force encountered difficulties and conducted military discussions. Davos used this expression to persuade the leaders to adopt his suggestions and help the mercenaries out of their predicament. And this time, although Syracuse has a clear advantage on land, he always felt uneasy…
Chrisophes stood at the stern of the ship, watching the port of Thurii gradually move away from his sight…
He knew in his heart: From then on, the humble young man who asked him for advice and who he admired was gone forever. Davos is now the King of Daonia and has become the mortal enemy of Syracuse, and naturally also the enemy of Sparta, his enemy…
… … … … … … … … … … … … …
Davos led the elders of the Senate to busy themselves preparing military rations, training the army, and replenishing the legion soldiers (the First and Second Legions also suffered some losses after these battles). The Daonian fleet was also busy recruiting sailors, training newly joined warships, and conducting formation training. The whole of Thurii was mobilized.
And in the south of Daonia, Syracuse launched the second large-scale siege of Croton.
While besieging the city, Dionysius left 10,000 men on the northwest side of the camp to defend against possible raids by the Daonian army from Asproustum. At the same time, he ordered all the Syracusan cavalry and mercenary cavalry to move around in the northern Croton Plain, and even further to the swampy plain of Crimisa, first to observe the movements of Thurii in the north, and second to harass Crimisa, preventing its garrison from sending troops to aid Croton.
Although the pontoon bridge on the Neto River had been burned down and the entire river was under the control of the Syracusan navy, it was impossible for the Daonian army to cross the river in a short time, but the cautious Dionysius still had to make more preparations. On the sea outside the port of Croton, Leptines led more than 200 warships (including the detachment that came from Messana) to stand by. Dionysius strictly ordered him to desperately block the Daonian fleet's reinforcements to the city of Croton.
When everything was ready, the horns sounded, the drums vibrated, and amidst the continuous roar of stone bullets fired by hundreds of crossbows hitting the city walls, more than 70,000 Syracusan soldiers pushed more than a dozen large siege towers, dozens of siege vehicles, and all kinds of large siege equipment, as well as countless long, specially made cloud ladders, approaching the city walls from the north, west, and south.
In addition, Dionysius also ordered the army to escort and drive more than 4,000 non-Crotonian prisoners. While the Crotonians were busy defending against the attack and had no time to take care of other matters, instead of building lookout and long-range archery platforms as before, they urgently built a sloping ramp from outside the moat directly to the parapet on the city.
The Crotonians also realized the urgency of the situation. Not only did all the soldiers go to the city walls, but the Daonian crossbow team was also on standby, and all the civilians who could wield shields and spears were also organized by Lysias and were ready to reinforce at any time.
A grand and extremely fierce siege battle began…
… … … … … … … … … … … …
In the administrative mansion of Asproustum, Epithenes, the legion commander of the Fourth Legion, asked anxiously: "Philius, are we really not going to help Croton?! The brothers in the legion are all holding back their anger, wanting to avenge Dracos and the dead brothers! According to the news reported by the scouts, this time the Syracusans have made full preparations, and almost the entire army has been dispatched. Without our help, the Crotonians may have considerable difficulty coping!"
Philius pointed to the south calmly and said: "Although the Syracusans have gone to attack Croton, Dionysius has not forgotten us. The road leading to Croton in the south is tightly sealed by their constructed camps, and there are heavy troops guarding it. Do you want both of our legions to be lost there? And we have also received orders!"
Epithenes was speechless. He paced back and forth in the living room, and then said irritably: "I just don't understand, Lord Davos—"
Agasia, who was on the side, interrupted him and reminded him: "Now it is His Majesty Davos!"
"Okay, His Majesty Davos," Epithenes shrugged, looking indifferent. In his opinion, there was no big difference between a lifelong magistrate and a king: "His Majesty Davos, why did you have the mountain reconnaissance team send us orders, requiring 'us to defend the city of Asproustum and not to attack rashly'! Obviously, we have already won the naval battle, and we can immediately let the fleet go south and defeat the Syracusan fleet again. In this way, our army can build a pontoon bridge on the Neto River and threaten Syracuse from the north, preventing them from attacking Croton with all their strength!"
"After a major battle, the general army needs at least four or five days of rest before taking further action. I think the fleet should be the same," Philius defended Davos based on his consistent experience: "So our current task is to defend Asproustum, appease the soldiers, and wait for His Majesty to lead the army to arrive and join him. Since even the Syracusan navy, which we thought was impossible to defeat, has been defeated by His Majesty leading the fleet, then the Syracusan army is even more impossible to defeat the legions commanded by His Majesty!"
"Alright, you're the commander, your word is law." Epithenes shrugged at Pheraeus again, then turned to Agasia and complained, "I say, Chief Administrator, can't you get the brothers some wheat flour? If not, oats will do. At least we can make porridge. The brothers have been eating dried beef for two days straight, and now even taking a dump is a struggle."
"As the commander of the Fourth Legion, you know that half of the Fourth Legion's soldiers come from here. How could the people here mistreat their own relatives? But Asproustum is a small city with a small population, and it doesn't produce much wheat. The people's surplus grain has already been eaten up by you guys in the past few days. Where would we get more grain?" Agasia said helplessly.
"Bear with it. The Syracusan cavalry has cut off our supply route. I've already sent a scout team to inform His Majesty that 'we are having difficulty with our food supply.' I believe it won't be long before His Majesty arrives with a large army, and the food problem will be resolved." Pheraeus also comforted him.
"Wait! Wait! Always waiting!…" Epithenes' mood had become increasingly agitated since Dracos' death. He didn't want to stay in the official residence any longer and said loudly, "I'm going to check the situation on the city walls."
With that, he strode out.
Agasia looked at Pheraeus, who was sitting in a daze. He deeply felt that Dracos' death had a great impact on both of them, and he himself was no exception. Back then, he had invited Timason, Cleandros, and other former comrades to Daonia, but these people had independently attacked Crimisa, triggering the Second Croton War. Although Croton was ultimately defeated and Daonia's power expanded, Davos never blamed him, but he himself felt extremely guilty. From then on, Agasia devoted a lot of energy to political affairs to forget the guilt in his heart. Through several years of experience, he became the second of the former mercenary veterans to be appointed as Chief Administrator (the first was Hylos) because of his good administrative skills.
With the accumulation of political experience and being stationed in Asproustum, dealing with Croton for a long time, he was well aware of how unwilling the Crotonians were to lose their hegemony in Southern Italy. Especially after their strength had recovered somewhat in recent years, they had often opposed Daonia in the Southern Italian League. Therefore, he had another speculation about King Davos' order of 'no rash attacks': His Majesty seemed to intend to let Syracuse weaken Croton. But in that case, did Daonia have the ability to defeat Syracuse independently?!
… … … … … … … … … … … …
The siege of Croton continued fiercely.
The Syracusans used the archers at the top of the towering siege towers and the belly-bows inside the towers to clear the defenders on the city walls while slowly approaching the walls.
In the past two or three days, the Crotonians had also discussed some ways to defend against the siege towers, such as using ballistae to focus their attacks from a distance, and using rockets to attack. After the siege towers got close, they would throw oil jars and burn them with fire. At the same time, they also made a kind of long, iron-clad square wood to push the siege towers and prevent them from getting close to the city walls…
Even with such efforts, several siege towers approached the city walls, lowered their wooden bridges, and Syracusan soldiers poured onto the city walls through the siege towers, engaging in fierce fighting with the defenders.
Lysias urgently sent reinforcements, and after a fierce battle, they drove the enemies off the city walls one by one.
While the Crotonians were focusing their main forces on defending against the siege towers, the Syracusan soldiers repeatedly climbed onto the city walls via scaling ladders, engaging in fierce battles with the defenders.
The Crotonian and Therrine, Siris allied forces were stubbornly defending.
By the afternoon, the Syracusan siege rams had shattered Croton's north gate, but the Crotonians had already blocked the gate with stones and wood.
However, the combined use of several other siege rams and ship-mounted rams ultimately led to the collapse of a section of the city wall, causing heavy casualties among the defenders on the wall.
The Syracusan soldiers took the opportunity to quickly climb up the collapsed slope, wanting to rush into the city.
Fortunately, the reserve team organized by Lysias arrived in time. This team, composed of free citizens, the elderly, and teenagers, relied on their large numbers and the will to defend their homes to barely resist the fierce attacks of the experienced Syracusan soldiers.
As evening approached and the sky gradually darkened, the allied leaders, Lysias and Hippocrates, looked happy, thinking they had finally made it to the end of the day's battle.
However, Dionysius had no intention of withdrawing his troops and returning to camp. He had the slaves push wooden carts, loaded with wood, asphalt, resin, and oil-soaked hemp, to the moat, set them on fire, and immediately ignited piles of large fires, illuminating the entire city wall.
Dionysius immediately ordered: sound the attack horns, beat the war drums, and continue the siege!
The defenders, who were already struggling and thought the battle should be over, saw the Syracusans retreat in one wave and then attack in another, endlessly, and the defenders' morale plummeted.
The Syracusans' unremitting siege efforts finally paid off. Under the soldiers' urging, after sacrificing countless lives, because of the weakening of the defensive forces, the ramp built by the prisoners finally piled sandbags onto the city wall.
The long-awaited Syracusan soldiers rushed onto the city walls and engaged in a fierce battle with the defending soldiers who came to intercept them. Dionysius, who was anxious, even put his guards into the battle on this section of the city wall.
The defenders could no longer hold on and began to retreat, allowing the Syracusans to gain a foothold on the city wall and quickly expand to other directions.
"Quick! Go find Lysias! Tell him to send reinforcements, or the north gate won't hold!" Ascamas shouted angrily at the messenger.
However, at this moment, Croton's north, west, and south sides were all under heavy attack, and the east port had to defend against a large number of enemy ships cruising in the near sea, and the only reserve team was struggling to resist the enemy attacking from the breach in the city wall. Where would there be any extra reinforcements?
Just as the Crotonian generals were watching helplessly as the enemies pouring onto the city walls wreaked havoc, because of the shortage of troops, "Boom!… Boom!…" There were several more loud noises, and another section of the city wall was collapsed by the siege rams. In the dust, accompanied by the shouts of the Syracusans, the Crotonians, fighting for their homes, finally showed fear on their faces and began to shout in panic, taking advantage of the cover of the night: "Run! The enemy is coming in! The city has fallen!…"
The reserve team, whose morale was already low, collapsed, and soon the defenders on the city wall began to retreat…
The Syracusans broke through the barriers of the city walls and rushed into the city. The entire northern city defense was completely breached.
Lysias, Hippocrates, and other high-ranking officials painfully saw that the panicked soldiers ignored their dissuasion and ran past them like a tide, fleeing into the depths of the city. The people on both sides of the street also supported the old and carried the young, fleeing together. Cries, screams, and screams resounded throughout the city…
Seeing that the enemy was clearing the defenders on the city walls and was advancing towards the city center, Lysias was anxious, but he was completely confused and didn't know what to do.
At this time, long dragons composed of torches appeared from the depths of the city: "Go to the Temple of Apollo!!! Go to the Temple of Apollo!!!…"
This orderly shout reminded the Crotonian people in panic. Under the light of the torches, they staggered to the acropolis near the center of the city—the Temple of Apollo.
Lysias and his party also rushed over.
"Who told you to do this?!" Lysias asked the soldiers holding the torches urgently.
"It's General Milon!" the soldier replied.
At this time, Milon was not a general at all. His task of defending the port was requested for him by Ascamas, but this did not prevent the soldiers from respecting him.
Lysias had no time to worry about these things at this time. On the contrary, he was grateful to Milon in his heart. If he had not taken timely measures to guide the people to the acropolis, the consequences would have been unimaginable.
He looked back at the city wall, which was full of fire, and watched some of the soldiers still desperately resisting the enemy's attack, with screams rising and falling, and his heart was cut like a knife.
He reminded the soldiers beside him with concern: "The enemy will kill you soon, you must also rush back to the acropolis as soon as possible!" After speaking, he and others merged into the chaotic crowd. They must rush to the acropolis as soon as possible to appease the panicked people, maintain the order of the acropolis, and at the same time organize the people to hold the last fortress of Croton—the acropolis.
… … … … … … … … … … … …
"Lord, we won! We broke through the city of Croton!!!" Damocles was extremely excited.
Dionysius also couldn't hide his joy. After receiving the blessings of the attendants, he immediately prayed to Apollo piously to express his gratitude.
In a chorus of cheers, Phibidas, who was lost in thought, seemed a bit out of place. Today's siege gave him a great shock, not only the ingenious and powerful siege equipment, but also the organization of the entire huge siege team was quite orderly, but what shocked him was Dionysius' ruthlessness.
Dionysius actually killed the soldiers and teams who failed to attack and fled the battlefield. This was simply unbelievable! In traditional Greek warfare, there was never a practice of dealing with deserters. Even Sparta did not have such a tradition. After all, the atmosphere of combat honor in the entire Spartan society would leave deserters nowhere to hide. But Dionysius not only did it, but more than once, forcing the Syracusan soldiers to disregard life and death and desperately attack, and even created the miracle of breaking through the city of Croton, a strong state in Magna Graecia, in one day.
This made Phibidas look at Dionysius, whom he previously thought was not good at field battles, with new eyes, but such a victory was probably based on Dionysius' disregard for the number of soldiers' deaths.
As a battle-hardened Spartan warrior, Phibidas had been observing the entire siege. He roughly estimated that the Syracusan casualties were probably close to ten thousand! Such a huge number of casualties was far beyond what Sparta could bear. Even if Sparta organized all its allies into a large army, they could not use such bloody means to besiege a city, because that would inevitably lead to the allies rebelling. Therefore, this was where Phibidas felt helpless and alarmed: Dionysius, the tyrannical and cruel tyrant of Sicily, had too much control over his troops!
"There are no more obstacles ahead of us. Next, we should attack Daonia!" Dionysius, having captured Croton and relieved a weight from his mind, turned to look at the north in the darkness, his words full of anticipation.
Right, there's also Davos! Dionysius's words reminded Phibidas. He was also full of anticipation: But without Croton's help, can Daonia, with its inferior forces, withstand a battle?!
… … … … … … … … … … … …
It was already four in the morning. Except for the patrolling sentries, the soldiers of the Thurii army camp had already fallen into a deep sleep, but the rapid knocking on the door broke the tranquility of the camp.
"Your Majesty, urgent military situation! The Syracusans have broken through the city of Croton!" The captain of the guard, Martius, said urgently.
"The city of Croton has been breached?!" Davos's sleepiness was completely driven away by this shocking news. He found it hard to believe: "Who sent back the news? Is it true?!"
"The mountain scouting team sent back the news. In addition, Aristilas also brought the same news."
Syracuse conquered Croton, which had ten-meter-high walls and a sufficient number of soldiers, in just one day. Syracuse's siege ability was so strong that Davos was shocked. The joy he felt during the day from receiving the news that "Bergam was killed by his clansmen and his tribe surrendered" was swept away. He immediately made a decision: "Martius, go and summon Antonios, Amyntas, Matonis, and Capus to discuss matters immediately! Also, send someone to call all the senators!"
"Yes!" Martius accepted the order and hurried away.
Davos did have the intention of "making Croton and Syracuse consume each other, to buy more time for Daonia." This would give him more time to train the newly formed troops better, prepare the logistics supply more fully, and wait for the stability of the Bruttian region and the resolution of the Laos rebellion. Then Daonia would have more citizen soldiers joining the expeditionary force, the territory of Daonia would be more stable, and he would have more confidence to defeat Syracuse.
However, plans always fail to keep up with changes, Dionysius… Davos stood outside the house, looking at the endless darkness in the south, clenching his fists…
… … … … … … … … … … … … …
The next morning,
On the large training ground in the Thurii army camp, which was usually empty, was now occupied by the First Legion, the Second Legion, the Seventh Legion, the Spear Battalion, and the logistics transport team. Whether soldiers or transport personnel, everyone stood upright, silently looking at the drill platform in front.
Davos, dressed in military uniform, stood on the platform, looking around at the tens of thousands of soldiers below. He said loudly: "Warriors of Daonia, since the outbreak of this war, you have followed me east and west, unafraid of hardship and sacrifice, fighting bravely, repelling the fierce Samnites, and annihilating the cunning Tarantines, ensuring the safety of the northern border of the alliance. You are the heroes of the alliance!
We should have held a grand triumphal ceremony for you, but the war is not over yet. The culprit who started this war—the Syracusans—have already broken through the city of Croton yesterday. They are about to set foot on our land, burn the flames of war to our homes, and turn us into their slaves! As Daonians, what should we do?!"
As soon as Davos finished speaking, a thunderous roar erupted from the field: "Defeat the Syracusans!!!"
"Defeat them!!! Kill them all!!!… …"
… …
Davos waited for the excited soldiers to quiet down a little, took a deep breath, and shouted loudly: "Warriors, we are about to rush to the south to meet the evil Syracusans. Daonia, in order to thank you for the great contributions and sacrifices you have made to the alliance, I and the Senate have decided—"
Davos paused for a moment, took another breath, and shouted loudly: "After the victorious end of this arduous war, the freemen who participated in the war will become probationary citizens, all probationary citizens will become full citizens, and the city-state citizens will receive double rewards according to your merits!!!"
The training ground boiled again, and this time it was an overwhelming cheer: "Long live Daonia!!! Long live King Davos!!!… …"
After all, whether it is freemen or probationary citizens, the reason why they are willing to fight for the Daonian League in the face of a powerful enemy is because they feel that the existence of this alliance can guarantee their rights and bring benefits to their future. Davos is cashing in on what they want in advance, which will inevitably make them fight more bravely in order to achieve this goal as soon as possible, especially the Spear Battalion, which is mainly composed of freemen.
In the face of the Syracusans' powerful offensive, Davos did not hesitate to use any means to boost the morale of the soldiers and increase Daonia's chances of winning. As for where the "land" needed to be divided among so many new and old citizen soldiers would come from, Davos did not have to worry at all: If we defeat Syracuse, are we still afraid of not having land?!
After Davos finished his speech, he immediately announced the expedition.
The camp gate opened, and the soldiers of the First Legion, the Second Legion, the Seventh Legion, and the Spear Battalion walked out of the camp in neat formations and marched east.
The freemen of the transport team had to rush to the Thurii granary, where there were mountains of military rations donated by the Daonian people and allies in the past two days. They would use pack horses to transport them to the port, and then use a large number of freighters to transport them to the port of Crimisa to unload. Due to the victory in the Battle of Tarentum, Daonia had already won control of the sea within its territory, so with sea transport, logistics transportation became much more convenient.
Before the long marching column reached the city of Thurii, it was greeted by countless people. They stood on both sides of the avenue, curiously asking: "Where are you going? Is… are you going to attack the Syracusans?!"… …
After receiving an affirmative answer from the soldiers, the people became excited. After a series of great victories, they no longer felt the fear of the Syracusan army in the south. Instead, they hoped that the Daonian army could drive them away as soon as possible so that the alliance could restore peace as soon as possible.
Upon hearing the news, the people continued to arrive, and the number of people became more and more, but they consciously did not block the avenue and affect the progress of the team. Instead, they formed a long parallel stream of people on both sides of the avenue, extending all the way to the wooden bridge over the Crati River.
They cheered for the departing soldiers, searched for their relatives, prayed to Hades for him, and offered beautiful wishes.
Amidst the attention and blessings of the people, the soldiers became more energetic, especially the freemen of the Spear Battalion. This was the first time they had enjoyed such an honor, and they all straightened their backs and held their heads high.
"Oh, is this a newly formed legion?! Why haven't I seen them before?!"
"Why aren't they carrying weapons?!"
… …
The curious inquiries of the people were mixed with the greetings of relatives.
"Tapirus! Tapirus!… …" An excited voice clearly entered the ears of Tapirus, the captain of the Spear Battalion (he was promoted later in training due to his outstanding performance), amidst the noisy waves. He quickly turned his head and saw the person he was looking for at a glance in the dense crowd—Maesia, his wife.
She was excitedly waving her arms and shouting affectionately: "Tapirus, I will pray day and night at the Temple of Hades for you, so that you will return safely soon!"
Tapirus did not speak, but waved his arms in response, but his heart was filled with passion. Both he and Maesia were born as slaves and met in Christoia's restaurant. The same experiences brought them closer quickly and supported each other. The second year after Tapirus gained freedom, Maesia was also praised by Christoia for her outstanding performance and was released from slavery. Soon, the two married under the witness of the goddess Hera.
At this moment, Tapirus looked affectionately at the figure of his wife who was still chasing the team on the side of the avenue, and a voice echoed in his heart: Wait for me, Maesia! When I come back, we will become citizens of this great alliance! We will have our own land! We will build a beautiful house! And we will have four or five children!… …"
The team marched quickly to the city of Thurii, and the First Legion broke away from the main force and went straight east. They were going to the naval base on the Crati River, boarding the "Raven" warship, and sailing south with the fleet to find the Syracusan navy and clash with them again at sea.
The main force turned to the wooden bridge over the Crati River.
In front of the wooden bridge, the senators also came to see off the troops. They were not as optimistic as the people, because the people did not know the news of the fall of the city of Croton, and this news was like a big stone pressing on the hearts of every senator, making them toss and turn last night and not sleep well all night, their hearts full of worries about this war.
"Your Majesty!" Cunogolata, Cornelius and other senators bowed deeply to Davos again, just like they did before the naval battle: "The battle with the Syracusans, we leave it to you!!"