Chapter 215
During the War of Peloponnesus, Athens sent an army to Sicily. In the end, they were defeated by the allied forces of Syracuse and Sparta, and more than 6,000 people were captured. At that time, Sparta was faced with the difficult situation of being attacked passively at sea and being unable to break through the Long Wall of Athens on land. They also did not have the 6,000 captives to attack the city of Athens. If the Devers did so, he would be considered to have set a precedent. He was afraid that the words "sinister and cruel" would become his label. Not only would it make the city-states of Great Greece secretly vigilant, even the citizens of Diónia who originally respected him would gradually alienate him. This would undoubtedly be a major blow to the reputation of the Devers. Therefore, with a grand goal in mind, of course, he would not make this kind of mistake of throwing away watermelons and picking up sesame seeds. Since victory was already in his grasp, he did not mind taking Crimissa a little later. Therefore, as soon as the battle ended, he ordered a reserve brigade and more than 5,000 freedmen to escort the captives back to Turín, leaving only two legions and two reserve brigades to be stationed in Castellón.
Compared to the previous night, the citizens of Castellón who were happy about the victory were more than willing to vacate their rooms. They even prepared a sumptuous dinner and invited the soldiers of Diónia to stay. Compared to the legions who entered Castellón, the soldiers and freedmen who were equally tired and hungry, and had to escort the captives and walk for another hour or two at night back to Turín were much more miserable. However, this was the first time they participated in a battle, and it was such a large-scale battle. As participants, they were all proud to be able to achieve victory. Not only did they walk with their heads held high, but even their scolding of the captives was sonorous and powerful. They wished they could immediately return to the city and find an acquaintance to boast about their heroic deeds.
As captives, the Crotone people were in the most miserable state. In order to prevent them from escaping, all of their armor and clothes were stripped off. They hurried through the night naked. When a gust of sea breeze blew, they, who had long exhausted their body heat, could not stop trembling like a pendulum. Once they slowed down, the spears of the soldiers escorting them would lash at their bodies like whips, and the pain was unbearable.
Krebs was also one of the captives. Even though he was lamenting his bad fate after becoming a captive once again, he was still glad that he was still alive compared to his comrades who had either died in battle or drowned. Hence, he comforted his fellow captives and said, "Even though the people of Diónia are despicable, they are trustworthy. As long as we do as they ask, we will definitely be able to return to Crotone alive!"
Even at night, the people of Turín still came out to greet the victorious troops. After a day of uneasy waiting, they saw the returning soldiers and Crotone prisoners, and they understood that the Dionysian Army had won the battle.
Unlike Castellón, most of the Turín people were shouting the name "Devers" to celebrate this hard-earned victory. This was because they knew that it was His Excellency the Consul who stood against the majority in the Senate and triggered this battle ahead of time. That was how they obtained the final victory!
The senators heaved a sigh of relief, especially Felicius. As the chief military officer appointed by the Devers to guard Turín, he did not have a single soldier under him. He was constantly worried that the fleet of Crotone would see through their disguise and land at the port. Now, with the return of the three reserve brigades and the freedmen, he finally had some confidence. Furthermore, with this crushing defeat, the Crotone might not even be able to protect themselves. How would they dare to land and fight in Diónia's territory?
Cunogorata and some of the Turín senators asked the soldiers about the entire battle. As Turín, the Diónia Alliance's defeat of the Crotone gave them a sense of pride and satisfaction.
That night, all those who participated in the battle, be it the reserve citizens or the freedmen, were regarded as heroes by the people of Diónia. They enjoyed warm cheers and lavish rewards. While they felt proud of themselves, they also strengthened their confidence to become citizens of Diónia.
… …
The chief general of Crimissa, Antares, was sleeping soundly at home when he was woken up urgently. When he heard the news of "the Crotone army's defeat", he could not believe his ears. Yesterday, he saw with his own eyes the huge fleet of Crotone at the port. There were nearly 40,000 troops (he included the freedmen and slaves who were transporting the supplies). It was an army that Greece had never seen before! They should have swept the Diónia Alliance. How did Crotone lose in just one day?! How could Diónia have more soldiers than Crotone?! Did Tarantum join the battle?!!! … "
Antares, who had countless doubts in his mind, quickly put on his clothes and rushed to the north gate. Eurykpus, Preades and the others were already waiting there.
Under the illumination of the fire, the Crotone people were seen running from the north like stray dogs. Their footsteps were weak, and they were in a trance. Their faces were filled with panic and exhaustion. Their helmets were gone, their breastplates were thrown away, and their shields and spears were nowhere to be seen. They stumbled into the city gate and lay down on the ground. They shouted weakly, "Is there anything to eat? Is there anything to eat? … "
Seeing the pitiful state of the Crotone people, Antares and the others were instantly worried.
Finally, they saw Myron, who had retreated. Although he was also in a sorry state, he was in good spirits.
"General Myron, what should we do next?!" Antares asked anxiously. This was the question that the Crimissa people were most concerned about at the moment.
Myron did not answer immediately. Instead, he asked, "Is there anything to eat? I'm starving to death! "
When Antares and the others saw Myron and the escaping soldiers wolfing down the dry and cold bread, they more or less felt a little disdain in their hearts.
Myron was not in the mood to observe what the Crimissa people were thinking. He ate while thinking about how to appease the Crimissa people. After trekking through the swamp, without the enemy chasing after them, he gradually regained his composure. On the way back, while regretting the series of mistakes he made before the battle due to underestimating the enemy, which led to the defeat of the battle, he had been thinking about how to deal with the attack of the victorious Diónia … Corimisa was undoubtedly the most important link to turn the situation around!
He wiped the bread crumbs from his mouth with his hand, stood up and took in the expressions of the people around him. "Everyone … I'm sorry, we fell into the ambush of the Diónia. In the battle with them … we suffered a defeat. Although I don't know how many people we lost … it's definitely not less …"
Countless soldiers struggling in the water appeared in Myron's mind. He clenched his fists in pain, letting his nails dig into his palms until they bled. "And the casualties of the Diónia soldiers … are much less than ours …"
What?!! Everyone was shocked. An army of tens of thousands only caused little damage to the Dionysian Army, while they suffered heavy losses. It was unbelievable! How did they fight this battle?!!
"Could it be that the Daionians have sent out more soldiers than we have? Or did Tarantum also join the battle? "Antares asked anxiously.
Myron smiled bitterly. He did not want to tell the truth, but even if he did not, when the Diónia arrived, the Crimissa people would soon find out. By then, they would be even more dissatisfied with the Crotone. It was better to be honest and let the Crimissa prepare early so that both sides could work together. So, he told the truth. "The Diónia should have sent out about the same number of soldiers as us. Tarantum did not join the battle …"
"Are you Crotone people made of flour?! Why are you always so easily defeated by the Diónia! "Preades roared angrily.
He roared out the thoughts of the Crimissa leaders. The last failure put Crimissa in a difficult position. The Crimissa emissary finally made a promise: they would no longer be enemies with Crimissa, and only then did they rescue the captives! This time, Crimissa broke his promise and helped the Crotone attack Diónia who had once spared Crimissa. If they failed again, what would Crimissa do?
Myron opened his eyes wide and stared at him angrily. When he was young, he was a champion of the Olympia many times. Later, he served as the chief general of the Crotone for a long time. The power that he carried made Preades a little afraid. He avoided Myron's sharp gaze and boldly said, "If it wasn't for you Crotone people waging war against Diónia, saying that 'we will definitely teach Diónia a painful lesson'! We Crimissa trusted our allies. (The last agreement between Crotone and Diónia stipulated that Crimissa existed as a neutral city-state. But Crimissa was deeply influenced by Crotone and thought of itself as an ally of Crotone. That was why they declared war against Diónia. Now you have lost, and lost so miserably! What will Crimissa do now?! "
"That's right. If it wasn't for your coercion, how would we dare to provoke Diónia!" Someone in the crowd echoed loudly.
What coercion! You Crimians still want to follow the Crotone and gain some benefits from Diónia! Myron sneered in his heart, but he could not say this out loud. Otherwise, it would only intensify the conflict.
"So what do you want? To negotiate with Diónia? " Myron looked around at the crowd and solemnly said, "Now that Diónia has the upper hand, they will only want more. Will the Devers slaughter the people of Crimissa after they take down the city of Crimissa to avenge their mercenary comrades? Will they turn Crimissa into a city-state controlled by them like Neutum? "
After Myron finished, the faces of the people of Crimissa, including Attalos, turned ugly.
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