Chapter 1177
"Your Highness, we can't retreat!" Printos immediately objected. "Now that the Sparta army is about to engage us in battle, if we retreat now, not only will the soldiers complain, but our previous efforts will also be in vain. The Sparta army will be able to catch a breather, and the other Greek city-states will look down on us. They might even form an alliance with the Sparta people and fight against us together. If that happens, it will be even more difficult for us to defeat the Sparta army!
Not only can we not retreat now, but we should also speed up our attack on the Sparta army before the Greek city-states are ready. As long as we can defeat the Sparta army, the situation will become favorable to us! "
After all, this was Cloto Catax's first time leading an army, and he lacked experience. Coupled with the bad news coming one after another, he panicked and chose to be conservative under the pressure. With Printos' reminder, he immediately realized that if he did that, the war would undoubtedly prolong. Not only would it consume a lot of the country's resources, but it would also increase the number of casualties. It would also disappoint his father, who had always been aggressive in battles.
Thinking of this, he pulled himself together and immediately said, "Lord Printos, you are right. We should speed up our attack on the Sparta army, but what should we do?!"
"Your Highness, first of all, we should send messengers to inform our garrison in Messenia to strengthen the defense of the northern border, and get ready to mobilize the Messenians at any time." Printos patiently suggested, "Secondly, we should send some scouts and soldiers to the west to investigate not only the situation in the Elise region, but also the movements of the Arcadia Union army, just in case.
After that, Your Highness, you should write a letter to the Sekerian king about our current predicament and urge him to attack the coast of Sparta.
At the same time, we will lead our main force into the Tegea territory. We will not take the initiative to attack the Sparta camp first. Instead, we will pretend to build a new camp at the border of Tegea and Sparta, forcing the Sparta army to leave their camp and fight us. "
"What if the Sparta army decided to stay in their camp and join forces with the Ellis army before fighting us?" Cloto Catax couldn't help but ask.
"Then we'll build a camp there and block the way for Sparta to return home. Then, we'll send some soldiers to cooperate with the First Fleet and invade Sparta's territory from the north. I don't think Sparta would want to see that happen," Printos said calmly.
After listening to Printos, Cloto Catax fell into deep thought and did not respond for a long time.
Printos could not help but ask, "Your Highness, do you think there are any shortcomings in my plan?"
Cloto Catax could tell that Printos was a little dissatisfied, so he quickly said apologetically, "Lord Printos, your suggestion is very good. I have no objections! I'm sorry, I was a little distracted just now because your plan inspired me and gave me an idea. "
Cloto Catax's apology not only made Printos feel better, but also made him feel ashamed of himself for being too narrow-minded. So he asked seriously, "Your Highness, do you have any good ideas?"
"When I was in Turií, I read the history of the major Greek cities in detail. The reason why Ellis expressed goodwill to us before was because although it was a member of the Peloponnesus Alliance, it had a grudge against Sparta during the Peloponnesus War because of the ownership of Leprion. Before the Corinth War, Sparta's army invaded Ellis' territory and forcibly occupied some of its territories. After the signing of the Great King's Peace Treaty, Sparta supported Pisa and forcibly transferred the right to host the Olympia that originally belonged to Ellis to Pisa. Since then, the people of Ellis hated Sparta to the core. So when they learned that our army was going to fight with Sparta, they were very happy and even sent Ionikus to Messenia with the fleet.
Now, the reason why Ellis agreed to join the Greek Alliance against us is probably because Pisa voluntarily surrendered to it, giving it the opportunity to completely unify the western region of Peloponnesus. But it forgot that if we were really defeated and withdrew from Peloponnesus, once Sparta regained its strength, it would still compete with it for the dominance of the western region.
So, we should send a diplomat, Karias, to Ellis and make a promise to them, 'We don't necessarily need Ellis to support us, but as long as Ellis can remain neutral, Diónia will support Ellis to become the leader of the western region of Peloponnesus.' Even if the people of Ellis don't agree to our proposal in the end, they will hesitate and argue, which will delay the military mobilization against us. What do you think, Sir Printos? "
Cloto Catax's suggestion made the eyes of Printos, who only focused on military matters, light up. He sincerely praised, "Your Highness, your suggestion is really wonderful! I think we should not only send Karias to Ellis, but also send him to other city-states to disrupt the situation in Greece that is beginning to be unfavorable to us. "
… …..
Cloto Catax and Printos hurriedly carried out their plan, but on the second day, they received news from scouts: the Sparta army was attacking the city of Tegea.
The Sparta army's initiative to attack made Printos feel that this was a good opportunity to fight the Sparta army. So, under his suggestion, Cloto Catax left 3000 soldiers to guard the camp and led the army to rescue the Sparta army.
The road to Tegea was relatively narrow and uneven, with high hills on both sides. The experienced Printos did not let Cloto Catax advance rashly. Instead, he suggested that they first send the mountain scouts to investigate the surrounding situation. Sure enough, they found the Sparta army lying in ambush in the mountains.
So, Cloto Catax sent out a mixed group of light armoured soldiers and light infantry to attack the Sparta army lying in ambush on the hills.
The battle was not fierce. The Sparta army did not have any Sparta warriors. Most of them were mercenaries, and they did not have any heavy infantry. After their whereabouts were exposed, they quickly chose to retreat in the face of the well-trained light armoured soldiers and light infantry of Diónia.
But the battle in the mountains delayed them. Seeing that it was almost dusk, the Dionysian Army had to find a place to camp and rest.
On the morning of the third day, the Dionysian Army continued their march, but in order to prevent ambushes and harassment from the Sparta army, they did not march quickly. It was not until the morning that the vanguard entered the territory of Tegea.
The Tegea – Mandinia Plains was one of the rare large flat lands in the Arcadia Region. It was a long and narrow area that stretched from north to south. Rivers crisscrossed it, and the land was relatively fertile. It was a famous wheat growing area on the entire Peloponnesus Peninsula, as well as the granary of the Arcadia Region.
The soldiers trekked through the mountains and came to the open plains. Seeing the lush green wheat fields everywhere, undulating in the gentle breeze, all of them felt refreshed.
Cloto Catax did not have the leisure to enjoy the scenery, because he had already received a report from a scout: the Sparta army was attacking the city of Tegea. The battle was very fierce, and it seemed that the Tegeans had suffered heavy casualties, and were on the verge of collapsing.
Before this, Printos and the other generals had analyzed the situation: Tegea had been under the protection of the Sparta army for a long time, and unlike the Mandinians, it did not meticulously build its own walls. Its walls had not been maintained for a long time, and there were no trenches or other defensive facilities outside the city. But Tegea was, after all, one of the largest states in the Arcadia Region. It had a large population, and it should be able to hold out for a while.
How could he die so quickly?
However, the reports from the scouts were all the same: Sparta's army had completely surrounded Tegea City, and Sparta's soldiers had already attacked the top of Tegea City several times. Corpses were strewn all over the city.
Without a doubt, under the assault of tens of thousands of Sparta's soldiers, Tegea City was in grave danger!
Cloto Catax and Printos would never allow Tegea City to fall into the hands of Sparta. First of all, it was still spring, and the people of Tegea still had plenty of food in their homes. This would greatly alleviate the food shortage of the Sparta army. Second, Sparta had conquered Tegea City, which was located in the center of the plains. Now that they had a firm foothold in the plains, they could continue to threaten Mandinia in the north and gain a certain strategic advantage.
Thus, Cloto Catax issued an order: "Increase the speed of the march, advance towards Tegea City!"
At the same time, the Diónia prince added another order: "Try not to trample on the wheat fields!"
Tegea City was only a few dozen miles away from the southwestern border. The terrain was flat, and the Dionysian Army's advance was relatively fast. By noon, the vanguard could already see the outline of Tegea City.
At this time, Cloto Catax received another report from the scouts: most of the Sparta army had withdrawn, and they had begun to arrange their soldiers to face the west.
The Sparta army is now preparing for a decisive battle with us! When Cloto Catax saw that his goal was about to be achieved so quickly, he was first overjoyed, but then he felt nervous. After all, the upcoming decisive battle would determine the success or failure of the Dionysian Army, as well as the life and death of tens of thousands of soldiers.
Of course, Printos was much calmer. He suggested that the army should temporarily advance, and at the same time, he requested to observe the formation of the Sparta army from a closer distance.
After hearing this, Cloto Catax also expressed his desire to go, and he even used the excuse that "my father often personally observes battles" to shut the mouths of those who tried to persuade him.
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