Chapter 1004
If they entered the watergate of the port of Carthage, there were many commercial docks on the coast for merchant ships to dock (of course, the innermost circular military port was protected by walls, so ordinary ships could not enter). However, Lili Bay was first built as a military fortress, so the coast was also built with 5-meter-high walls and spaced towers. Only in the innermost part of this rectangular port were there more than 10 docks, and the distance from the watergate to the docks was about one mile. Once an enemy ship broke into the port, the defenders on both sides of the walls and towers would launch rockets, making it impossible for the enemy ship to escape.
At this time, the patrol ship led the way in front, and the cargo ships filed in behind. One ship after another, they formed a long line and slowly sailed toward the dock.
When they were about to reach the dock, the captain of the patrol ship suddenly heard a "Dang! Dang! Dang! " The bell rang. He was stunned at first, but then he remembered that it was the warning bell from the lighthouse. "Enemy invasion?!"
He immediately turned his head and looked back, but he saw that the orderly fleet had become scattered. Some of the cargo ships spread out and rushed to the dock quickly.
They were fooled! This fleet was the enemy in disguise! The captain of the patrol ship suddenly understood, and his heart suddenly panicked.
In fact, the lighthouse keeper, who had been watching the fleet enter the port, noticed that something was wrong with the fleet. It was not because the cargo ships were disorderly and speeding up to the port, but because before that, he noticed that many cargo ships had suddenly stopped moving forward and were docked next to the natural breakwater. Then, the linen cloth in the middle of the ship was automatically lifted, and many people got out.
The goods that were being transported were people! The lighthouse keeper certainly knew that they had been fooled. After he sounded the alarm, he was a little curious in his heart: Why would these cunning enemies dock the cargo ships there?
Although the narrowest part of the natural breakwater was 40 meters wide, after the outer wall was built, the inner wall was not built. However, the embankment was rebuilt with special bricks, mud, and gravel, making it firm, straight, and steep. Moreover, it was 7 meters high. It was almost impossible to climb to the top of the natural breakwater from the ship. Moreover, other than the city walls, towers, and lighthouses, there was also a small military camp built on the breakwater. There were 100 light infantrymen stationed there to deal with any emergency in time. Although it was already night time and the light infantry in the barracks were already asleep, the alarm bells were ringing. It was believed that they would soon get dressed and rush out of the barracks to provide assistance.
However, the lighthouse keeper apparently forgot that there was another building on the natural breakwater in addition to the barracks — a small temple. It was not only a sacred place for the soldiers stationed on the "breakwater" to pray to God, but every morning when the port opened, the lighthouse keeper would go to the temple to pray for peace. This had become a necessary sacred ritual in the port.
Although the temple was small, it combined the characteristics of Carthage and Greek temples. It was a typical temple colonnade, and it was very close to the inner embankment.
All the cargo ships in this fleet were from Carthage, which was the rescue fleet that was captured at Palemos last night. However, most of the crew members were from Alenia. They had used the same method to sneak into Saint Iberia and Saros ports not long ago. They had accumulated a lot of experience, which was why they were able to fool the vigilant patrol captain. The seven cargo ships at the front were all carrying materials, while the cargo ships at the back were all carrying the soldiers of the Mountain Reconnaissance Brigade.
At this moment, Terentus and his men were standing on the cargo ship that was moving up and down along with the waves. They were swinging the rope in their hands. With the light from the torches lit by the crew members, they looked up at the outline of the temple on the embankment and threw the rope upward. The rope hooks drew an arc in the air and flew toward the temple. Some of the hooks successfully wrapped around the pillars. Terentus and his men immediately grabbed the rope hooks and climbed up the embankment nimbly.
In the blink of an eye, more than a dozen enemies had climbed up the embankment, but none of the soldiers in the barracks had come out. The lighthouse keeper who was watching from the top of the tower was dumbfounded. He immediately shouted to the people at the bottom of the tower, "Hurry up and close the gate! The enemies are coming! "
Seeing that they were running down the tower in a panic, the lighthouse keeper started to hit the bronze bell hanging on the wall.
Terentus, who was standing at the bottom of the temple, raised his head and looked at the nearby lighthouse where the bell was ringing. He then pointed at his men who were climbing up and shouted, "The ten of you, follow me and take the lighthouse! Fokinicus, lead the others and get rid of the enemies in the barracks. Then, we will meet up at the lighthouse! "
"Yes, captain!" Fokinicus replied loudly.
"Follow me!" Terentus waved his hand and led the way toward the lighthouse. The ten soldiers followed closely behind him.
When they arrived at the bottom of the lighthouse, the thick door was already closed.
Terentus did not panic. He extended his hand behind him and said, "Rope hook."
A soldier quickly passed the rope hook that he had prepared to him. He grabbed the end of the rope hook and aimed at the stone window that was shining with light. With a little force, he threw the rope hook in. Then, he pulled back and let the rope hook hook onto the edge of the window. He then started to climb up.
The other soldiers also started to throw rope hooks at the other windows of the lighthouse.
While Terentus was climbing up quickly, he suddenly heard a soldier shouting, "Captain, be careful!"
He saw a figure appear at the window above him. He instinctively pressed his body against the stone wall and heard a whooshing sound. Then, he felt a burning pain on his back. The enemy's javelin had landed on his back, and the sharp tip of the javelin had sliced through his clothes.
The situation was dire. The second javelin would be coming soon. Terentus, who was in midair, would not be able to avoid it. His desire to live made him unleash a great amount of strength. He pushed against the stone wall with both feet and quickly pulled on the rope. He climbed up at a speed that was a few times faster than before. When he got close to the window, the enemy had already taken out the second javelin and was about to throw it at him.
He quickly pulled out his short sword and hurriedly stabbed it forward.
The enemy could not dodge in time and was slashed on his cheek. He cried out in pain and took a few steps back.
Terentus took advantage of this gap and held onto the windowsill with his left hand. With a forceful push, his entire body flipped into the tower. He somersaulted on the ground and stabbed the short sword in his right hand again. It pierced the chest of the enemy.
In the blink of an eye, the outcome of the battle was decided.
The enemy fell to the ground in shock. He did not seem to want to believe what had happened.
Terentus had managed to escape in such a dangerous situation and turn the tables quickly. It could be said that he had unleashed the abilities that he had trained hard for more than ten years to the extreme.
Now that he was out of danger, he felt his hands turn numb. He thought about how he had almost gone to the Underworld Prison and broke out in cold sweat.
However, he did not have the time to rest. Instead, he grabbed his short sword and charged at the other enemies.
Usually, at night, there would only be one lighthouse guard on duty in the lighthouse at Lili Port. During this period of time, there were a few more guards in order to open the water gate so that the Carthage fleet could enter and leave. There were no soldiers in the lighthouse. However, for the sake of defense, the designers of the city did not build stone stairs to go up and down the city wall. Instead, they merged the end of the city wall with the lighthouse. This way, the soldiers in the military camp had to go through the lighthouse if they wanted to go up the city wall. At night, the patrolling soldiers on the city wall could also enter the lighthouse directly.
Fortunately, there were only five soldiers in Lili Port. How could they be a match for the ferocious mountain scouts? They were quickly killed by the mountain scouts and the others were captured. However, one of the ten soldiers who attacked the lighthouse was stabbed by a javelin and was on the verge of death.
Terentus led the soldiers and the captives to the lower level of the lighthouse. They rushed to a device that looked like a huge millstone and pushed it with all their might. The water gate that was lowered slowly rose again.
Then, another soldier rushed to the top of the lighthouse. He took out a torch that he had prepared, lit it, and raised it high.
In this way, there were two burning flames on the lighthouse. The flames pierced through the dark sky and spread to the distant sea. More than a hundred warships of the Sicilian Fleet of Diónia were anchored in the west. A small number of warships were chasing after the fleeing Carthage cargo ship.
"Sir, our signal is coming from the lighthouse in Lili Port!" The captain, who had been waiting anxiously on the deck of the flagship, shouted excitedly.
"Then what are you waiting for? Speed up immediately. Our target is Lili Port!" Cecelian could not hide his excitement.
The soldiers of the Second Legion on the deck understood that the sneak attack on Lili Port was a success. They were all rubbing their palms in excitement. However, due to military orders, no one shouted out loud.
In the north, more than a hundred warships of the Third Fleet were also rushing towards Lili Port.
… …
As Imisere had been thinking about "sending reinforcements to Palemos last night", he had sent slaves to the port several times in the evening to ask if the Lili cargo ship that went to Palemos had returned.
The answer was always, "No."
His confidant comforted him, "The cargo ship that went to rescue Palemos not only has to avoid the patrol of the Dionysian fleet on the south coast, but it also has to avoid being discovered by the Dionysian fleet on the north coast which is closer to it. It is impossible for it to return so early …"
Imisere thought that it made sense, so he did not send anyone to pay attention to the port anymore. In the end, he fell asleep because of his physical and mental exhaustion. When he was woken up by his slave, he asked in a daze, "Has the cargo ship returned?"
"Master, there is a bell at the port!"
"Bell?!" Imisere was shocked and woke up from his drowsiness. "There is an enemy invading the port?!"
He jumped out of bed, grabbed his clothes, and shouted to his slave, "Quickly prepare the horse! Quickly! "
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