Chapter 207
The next morning, the reinforcements from the Siletorians and Triene arrived, and Crotone also received intelligence from Turií: about four thousand reinforcements from Amendolara had arrived in Turií, and the citizens of Diónia from the Xubari Plain had gradually gathered in the square. It was reported that there were about eight thousand people, and they then stationed themselves in the barracks in the north of Turií. There were no further movements, and it seemed that Diónia was still waiting for reinforcements from Neutum and Laos.
This news prompted Myron to take immediate action. Under his active push, the council passed a resolution to attack Turií. The chief general, Myron, would be the commander of the army, and another talented general, Philadelphus, would be the adjutant. They would lead about twenty-seven thousand soldiers, including twenty thousand heavy infantry and six thousand five hundred light infantry. Of these six thousand five hundred light infantry, four thousand were light armored soldiers wearing leather armor and wielding leather shields and spears. They did not have the ability to throw projectiles, and there were eight hundred cavalrymen. In addition to the regular army, there were also a large number of slaves and freedmen transporting supplies, making the actual number of troops as high as forty thousand.
For this reason, Crotone organized a large fleet at the port, and it took nearly three hours just to load the supplies and get the soldiers on board. It was not until noon that the troop transport fleet sailed north under the protection of Crotone's fleet. When they passed Crimissa, another five hundred soldiers joined them, making the number of troops as high as twenty-seven thousand and five hundred.
Because the whole process of boarding at the port of Crotone was cumbersome and rather chaotic, Myron was worried that the situation would be worse when they landed on the beach. He and Philadelphus were quite concerned about the information from Tratus that "the coastline of Diónia is monitored by cavalrymen". To be on the safe side, they did not dare to land on the coast north of Castellón. Instead, after passing the swamp, they immediately docked at the beach where the Timazon mercenaries had landed a few days ago.
Myron first let the cavalrymen disembark and expanded the area of security to a radius of two miles. After confirming that there was no enemy, they began to land on a large scale. Countless soldiers carried weapons and equipment, some even led War Horses, jumped off the cargo ship and walked to the shore. Because there were no docks, the slaves and freedmen had to carry food, tents, and other supplies to the shore.
As far as the eye could see, the whole beach was full of people, and it was a mess. People were shouting and horses neighing, and the officers were very anxious. The supplies were randomly placed here and there, which affected the soldiers' formation. Philadelphus beat and scolded the slaves. It took him a long time to organize the whole army and put everything in order. After such a torment, the men and horses were exhausted, and it was already dusk.
After confirming the nearby campsite, Myron gave a strict order. Each team had to build a sturdy camp and set up sentries. There was no room for negligence!
The defeat of Melansius was a lesson to be learned. This time, Crotone had the absolute advantage and had the initiative. As long as they pushed forward steadily, victory was just around the corner.
Tomorrow, we'll capture Castellón and turn it into a forward operating base for Crotone's army and fleet … Myron thought about the next military operation in his mind and gradually fell asleep.
… …
In the big tent of the Turís camp, Devers, Military Affairs Officer Felicius, First Legion Commander Capus, Second Legion Commander Drax, and Cavalry Captain Ledes were analyzing the enemy's situation.
On the wooden table in the center, there was a two-meter-square smooth wooden board. On it was a detailed map of Greece. Felicius held a wooden stick and pointed at the map on the board. He said, "Everyone, I just received information from the front. Crotone has sent about 30,000 soldiers. They've landed here, on the coast south of Castellón. It's estimated that they'll be able to attack Castellón tomorrow!"
"30,000 people?!" Cavalry Captain Ledes sucked in a breath of cold air. "Crotone has probably sent all the citizens of the city to deal with us!"
"What's 30,000 people?!" Drax shouted, unconvinced. "If the Third Legion can arrive in time, together with those freedmen, we'll have more than 30,000 people! And even without 30,000 people, Crotone is no match for us! "
"But Crotone's soldiers are all citizen soldiers!" Capus looked at Devers worriedly. "Sir, are we really not going to wait for the Legio III to arrive and go straight to Castellón?!"
Devers said calmly, "There's no time. This time, Crotone is determined to destroy Diónia. That's why they're already prepared and advancing so quickly! If we wait, it means that we're giving up on Castellón. Not only will it damage the reputation that Diónia has built up, but it'll also let the enemy enter the Xbari Plains. It'll also go against the promise we made before! We don't have the confidence to fight against Crotone's militia on the plains. And if we rely on the city walls to defend, it'll take too long. It's not good for our new alliance! " Devers took the wooden stick from Felicius and pointed at the curve of the Trionto River on the map. He said in a deep voice, "That's why we have to make full use of this river!"
Everyone present was clear about Devers's plan. Felicius opened his mouth and finally asked, "Sir Devers, will Crotone lead their army to cross the Trionto River?! I heard that their general, Myron, is an experienced general. "
Devers smiled and said seriously, "No plan can be guaranteed to be fully implemented. However, Myron was fooled by the fake news I released. Seeing how he's so eager to gather his army and wants to attack the city before we finish gathering, it's very likely that he'll fall into our trap. Of course, if he doesn't fall for it, we can also retreat to Turií and fight a long defensive battle with Crotone! "
"He'll fall for it!" Drax said the hope of the generals present. They also did not want Crotone to set foot on Diónia's soil.
"How many cavalry do they have?" Ledes asked an important question.
"About eight hundred," Felicius replied.
Ledes clenched his fist. Be it in terms of numbers or experience, his cavalry did not have the upper hand. It all depended on whether Sir Devers's amazing strategy would work.
"Brothers!" Devers looked at the generals who had gone through life and death with him and were eager to fight. He knew that there was no need to mobilize them. Their fighting spirit would definitely be high. Therefore, he said calmly, "It's getting late. Return to your teams immediately and act according to the previous plan! Hades will protect us. Everything will go smoothly tomorrow! "
"Yes!"
… …
That night, Crotone's camp was peaceful.
Early the next morning, the sky was clear and there was no rain. Myron woke up and felt refreshed. The intelligence from Turií had also arrived in time. Laos and Neutum's reinforcements had not arrived yet. In the afternoon, three thousand Turií soldiers were rushing to Castellón.
This secret letter should have been sent last night. At the same time, the Crotone warships cruising the coast of Turií in the morning did not see any signs of a large-scale troop movement on the Turií – Castellón Avenue … Myron pondered. Diónia should have already known the arrival of Crotone's army, but they only sent three thousand reinforcements when they were still in the midst of war mobilization. But they want to defend Castellón with just three thousand people?! As far as he knew, even with the addition of Castellón's soldiers, there would not be more than four thousand. Furthermore, the small city of Castellón was less than four meters tall. It could not stop Crotone's army from crossing the Trionto River and capturing Castellón. Myron even hoped that Castellón would send all their troops to stop him from crossing the river, so that he could deal the most damage to them in the wilderness and easily capture the city of Castellón. The weather and the enemy's situation were all in Crotone's favor. This was the blessing of Apollo! Crotone had to seize the moment when the Diónia alliance had not completed their war mobilization and the army had not yet assembled and arrived. They had to cross the Trionto River quickly, capture Castellón as soon as possible, and then fight the Diónia army!
After Myron immediately discussed with Philadelphus, they came up with a plan to cross the river.
Under Myron's repeated urging, the army quickly assembled. Among them, twenty-two thousand soldiers were led by Myron and marched northwest, while the other four thousand five hundred soldiers and five hundred horsemen were led by Philadelphus and marched north.
There were two ideal places to cross the Trionto River: one was located in the middle, where the water was shallow and the riverbank was flat, and the walkable section was more than two miles long. This was where the Devers crossed the river to ambush Melantius; the other was located downstream, west of Castellón, where the river was shorter and deeper.
The Crotone's plan to cross the river was that Philadelphus would lead five thousand men to distract and distract the enemy, but they would not cross the river immediately. Myron's army would cross the river at full speed through the wide section in the middle.
The Crotone army led by Myron was arranged in eight columns, forming a long line of four to five miles long.
Riding in the middle of the army, Myron's ears were filled with the noise of footsteps and the clashing of armors. But he found it pleasing. The huge army gave him enough confidence. He even had the leisure to think: Castellón and Crimissa were both built on the north bank of the river because they were originally the children of Sybaris. They were close to Sybaris and were wary of Crotone. After this war, they must be forced to move their cities to the south bank! As for Turií … If everything went well, he did not mind destroying it for the fourth time!
"General, the scouts crossing the river were surrounded by enemy cavalry. Four were killed and two escaped."
"Did you find anything?"
"They saw thousands of enemies marching along the north bank."
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