Chapter 1026
"Woo!" When Hasdrubal heard the loud bugle call from the Diónia garrison behind him, he was ordering his generals to gather their troops as soon as possible and retreat in better order. As he had fought the Dionysian Army many times, he knew that the bugle call meant an attack, so he was a little surprised. 'Are the Diónia people crazy? If it weren't for the city walls, they would have been killed long ago. How dare they attack us?! '
"General, if the Diónia people are really coming out to fight back, that's a good thing! As long as we defeat them, we can seize the opportunity and successfully attack the port! "One of the Iberian generals rushed to remind Hasdrubal.
This was immediately agreed by the others, and Hasdrubal had the same intention, so he immediately changed his order. "Go back at once and let your soldiers slowly retreat. Once the Diónia garrison is lured out, we can launch a counterattack."
As soon as the generals left with the order, Hasdrubal received an order from Margo.
"The Numibians have started a rebellion in the camp?!" Hasdrubal was shocked as he looked at the sudden rise of black smoke in the northwest direction. He now understood why the Diónia garrison suddenly attacked. It turned out that they wanted to take advantage of the situation!
He thought the same as Margo, that the Numibian rebellion would soon be quelled, so he did not want to obey Margo's order to lead the army back to the camp. Because of the "stupidity" of the Diónia garrison, the opportunity to capture the port was right in front of them.
While he was hesitating, he received another order from Margo.
The Diónia army is approaching the camp?! Hasdrubal was shocked again. He finally understood why the Selinus garrison took the initiative to attack: they want to do their best to delay the siege troops led by me and prevent me from returning to the camp!
Of course, Hasdrubal could distinguish between the camp and Selinus. Just the fact that there were provisions and supplies in the camp was enough for him to make up his mind. "Hurry up and inform the generals to immediately lead the troops back to the camp!"
Not long after, the messengers returned with a shocking piece of news. The Diónia garrison was very large, and they were attacking Carthage's troops fiercely.
Is the Diónia garrison trying to stall us? Or was he really launching an attack? Hasdrubal was so confused by the news that he decided to go to the frontlines to see what was going on.
Before attacking the inner walls, not only did Mago appoint Hasdrubal as the commander of all the attacking troops, but he also emphasized that Hasdrubal could not charge at the front like he usually did.
It was his first time commanding such a large army, and Hasdrubal obeyed. He stayed at the rear. When the battle was going well, he did not feel anything was wrong, but when the situation became complicated, he could not keep track of the situation at the front.
… …
After the bugle was blown, the three gates on the left, middle, and right side of the walls opened wide. The Legion of Dionysia lined up in columns and rushed out. Carthage's army deliberately retreated, giving them more time and space. This allowed the Diónia garrison to boldly form a formation in front of the walls.
And so, Carthage's soldiers were surprised to see the enemy rushing out of the city gates, then moving left and right in an orderly fashion, soon forming a continuous line.
Carthage's generals felt uneasy, and began to prepare to give the order to attack. Just then, Hasdrubal's messengers arrived and ordered the troops to return to the camp immediately.
The generals were dumbfounded. Retreating in front of the enemy was taboo, but Hasdrubal's order was firm and strict, as if something more important had happened.
Some of the generals carried out the order, while others, such as the Lusitanian and Celtic leaders, refused to carry out the order, saying that Hasdrubal had given two completely different orders in such a short period of time, which was completely out of his mind.
The Carthage army's disagreements in carrying out the orders resulted in some troops retreating, and some attacking. Before the battle even started, the entire army was in chaos.
The Diónia's various commanders seized this opportunity and immediately launched an attack. The legionnaires shouted the name of Hades and charged at the enemy like a tidal wave.
Although his vision was blocked by the soldiers, the thunderous roars shocked Hasdrubal, who had just caught up. He immediately realized that what the messengers said was true. The attacking Diónia army was not only numerous, but also had high morale. But at this moment, both sides were already fighting, and it was too late to change the order.
The Legion of Dionysia on the left, center, and right sides of the army that had never fought in Sicily before, such as Legio III, Legio IV, Legio VI, and the Lucaria Reserve Legion. After landing in Sicily, they had been staying in the barracks. Other than training, they had heard news of victory after victory, and were envious of their allies fighting on the frontlines. So when the order to attack was given, these legionnaires, who had rested for more than a month, roared thunderously, ran like the wind, and charged like tigers. After a loud crash, shields were broken, spears were broken, and Carthage's soldiers were either stabbed or knocked down. Due to the constant changes in orders, the formation of Carthage's troops was in chaos. Only the Lusitanian and Celtic warriors managed to hold off the charge of the Legion of Dionysia.
Under the city wall in front of the port area, from the east to the west, there was not a single spot where the Carthaginian army was not attacked. There were surging black figures everywhere, and deafening sounds of fighting could be heard everywhere.
"Quick! … Hurry and inform Kisego! We need reinforcements here. Tell him to bring the troops here immediately! " Hasdrubal shouted anxiously at the soldier who had given the order.
With that, he rode his War Horse and galloped back and forth behind the battle formation. Together with his subordinates, he loudly boosted the morale of the soldiers, encouraging them to persevere in the battle and that reinforcements would arrive soon.
In response, many Diónia soldiers at the rear followed the plan and shouted in Carthage's language in unison, "The Numibians are rioting! They're burning down your camp. Run! Or you'll be surrounded! … "
When the Carthage soldiers heard the enemy's shouts, they became more and more panicked. They had indeed seen black smoke rising from the rear and wondered what was going on. Moreover, they had been fighting for most of the day and were almost exhausted. Even the Philip Infantry, who were known for their tenacious fighting spirit, did not have the mood to fight anymore. Their morale plummeted, and the soldiers began to retreat.
Only the Lusitanian and Celtic warriors were still fighting tenaciously. But when the neighboring allies began to flee and the enemy began to attack their flanks, preparing to surround them, these fierce natives of Iberia had no choice but to put down their pride and turn to flee.
This large-scale assault battle lasted for less than 20 minutes before the outcome was decided. The Iberian army was completely routed, and the Dionysian Army was in hot pursuit.
The Carthage army had more than 40,000 soldiers, and the Dionysian Army had more than 50,000 soldiers. Nearly 100,000 people were chasing and killing each other in the city of Salinus. The whole city was like a boiling kettle that was about to explode. Dust filled the air, and the noise was deafening.
The continuous screams from behind made the Carthaginian soldiers run for their lives, even pushing and shoving each other. The ruins of the residences in the city, as well as their vision that was blocked by the dust, made them even more anxious. There were people constantly falling and being trampled on …
When Margo went to the camp, he left some soldiers on the outer wall of Salinus. When the earth shook, the sound waves surged, and thousands of soldiers approached, the soldiers standing on the city wall were stunned. Even though there were black figures moving everywhere under the city at this time, throwing a javelin or shooting an arrow would not miss the target. It was an absolute opportunity to kill the enemy, but no one chose to do so. They felt like they were a small boat facing a huge storm that was about to hit. If they hesitated even a little, the boat would be destroyed and the people would die. Therefore, the soldiers on the city wall chose to flee without hesitation.
So far, it took Margo nearly two months, countless manpower, and a lot of sacrifices to capture the city of Salinus. The Dionysian Army took just over half an hour to recapture everything. They did not stop there and continued to pursue.
… …
When Margo returned to the camp, he immediately climbed the outer wall of the camp to observe the approaching Dionysian Army. He saw the two flags of the Kingdom of Diónia shining in the sun, and immediately realized that the king of Diónia was most likely in this army. As the Dionysian Army got closer to the camp, the experienced Margo noticed that something was wrong with the army. At least half of the soldiers of Diónia did not behave like elites. This suddenly gave him a strong idea: why not go out of the camp to face the enemy? This may be a great opportunity to defeat the king of Diónia and turn the tide of the war!
At this time, he received the news that the garrison of Diónia in the port of Salinus had attacked, and Hasdrubal's army could not return soon.
At the same time, the Numibian cavalry who rebelled in the northwest of the camp noticed that the army led by Stikamo was coming in a hurry. They did not dare to fight and quickly fled the camp. Stikamo did not pursue them. Instead, he led the soldiers to put out the fire that was spreading.
The army led by Kisego had arrived at the Numibian camp in the southeast of the camp and was quelling the riot there. The entire Carthage camp had basically been restored to stability.
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