Chapter 324
In the exaggerated description of the messenger, one of the siege weapons could throw a round stone the size of a jar hundreds of meters away and accurately hit the city wall. The powerful impact could cause damage to the city wall, and after a long period of time, the city wall might even collapse. The other weapon was like a mobile sentry tower. It was built higher than the city wall, and the archers at the top of the tower could easily attack the defenders on the city wall. Once it got close to the city wall and lowered the drawbridge, the enemy could easily rush up to the top of the city wall … The combination of these two siege weapons was a nightmare for any city, but they were both owned by Diónia!
Pienlen was not only worried about Kenapitia, he was more worried about Cosenza. In his original plan, in the worst case scenario, he could retreat to Cosenza and use the strong city wall to resist the attack of Diónia until the enemy ran out of food and retreated. However, the messenger's description had shaken his decision. He did not want to be trapped in the city and be bombarded by dozens of siege weapons by Diónia … Therefore, Kenapitia must be defended. Otherwise, if Diónia captured it, Cosenza would be attacked from both sides.
But at this moment, the natural moat had been lost, and Diónia had a great advantage in strength. The Bruti Alliance was in a difficult situation. It was too passive to rely on defense alone, and the possibility of failure was too high. Therefore, Pienlen was more inclined to take the risk and attack. As long as he could defeat the main force of Diónia, all the difficulties would be solved!
He looked at Abyssinia, which had already surrendered, because it was the closest to the center of Diónia – Turií. Diónia's main force would definitely attack from here.
After thinking about it repeatedly, he finally made the final decision: send 2,000 reinforcements to Kenapitia, and at the same time persuade Burgam to return to Anbalia. He also sent a messenger to Vig, hoping that the two elders of the alliance, Burgam and Cydorum, could bring as many warriors as possible to support the battle between the Bruti Alliance and Diónia.
… …
The Devers stayed in Abyssinia for another two days in order to wait for the supplies to arrive and meet the needs of the battle.
Although Abyssinia was very close to Turií, transportation was rather difficult due to the limited road conditions. The Devers learned their lesson and ordered the soldiers to carry five days' worth of rations each.
On the morning of the third day, Devers led the First Army Corps, the Second Army Corps, the Mountain Reconnaissance Brigade, the Cavalry Brigade, the Heraclea Army Corps, the Castellón Army Corps, the Abyssinia Army Corps, the Army Reserve Corps, and two thousand freedmen … Other than a small portion of the Army Reserve Corps stationed in Ciudad Abyssinia, there were about 24000 people, including those who were sent to fight in Cosenza. They lined up in a long line and marched westward along the mountain path.
When Pienlen received the report from the cavalry, it was already close to noon: the Diónia army had entered the Cosenza Highlands, and they had seen the eye-catching flag of the Diónia Consul.
This news made Pienlen restless, and he immediately called for an emergency meeting. Other than Petaru, Firotaru, Burgam, and Cydorum who had just arrived last night, Pangeru was still struggling to resist the enemy's attack in Knapetiya, and Nicourou had died in battle. Only five of the seven Elders Council members were present, which inevitably made the people in the hall feel sad.
"I think the Diónia army will set up camp in this area when they arrive at Cosenza in the afternoon." Pienlen's finger drew a circle about six miles east of Cosenza's icon on the map, and he said excitedly, "With Amara's blessing, we should take advantage of the discomfort they will feel after entering Cosenza, and take the initiative to attack while they are setting up camp, forcing them to fight!"
Cydorum understood what Pienlen meant by "discomfort". The area where Cosenza was located was high, so it was not a problem for outsiders to move normally. However, if they were to exercise strenuously for a long time, they would easily feel tired and have difficulty breathing. On the other hand, the Bruti warriors, especially the people of Cosenza, had adapted to this environment since they were young, and they would not have any abnormal movements.
Moreover, he already knew the situation in Knapetiya, so he did not have much hope of defending the city to the death.
He and Burgam looked at each other solemnly, and finally agreed.
So they went back to gather their teams, and nervously waited for the arrival of the Diónia army.
However, only half an hour later, Pienlen urgently sent someone to summon them again.
"Elders, I have just received news that the Diónia army has stopped advancing near Punate River, and has begun to set up camp!" Pienlen said anxiously.
Punate River! Cydorum and Burgam hurriedly looked at the map placed in the middle of the hall.
Punate River was more like a stream than a river, and it eventually merged into the upper reaches of Krati River. The area it flowed through was relatively flat, and the key point was that it was almost in the middle of Abyssinia and Cosenza.
"We are so far away from Cosenza, and it's still so early. Are we going to rest already?!" Burgam muttered to himself in confusion.
"Those traitors of Abyssinia! God Amara will punish them! "Phirotaru said angrily.
Cydorum understood the reason for the high priest's anger. In his memory, the terrain near Punate River was not as high, and the impact on people was not as obvious.
He hurriedly looked at Pienlen and asked, "What are you going to do, great leader?"
Pienlen cursed along with the high priest. He also believed that the Diónia army must have leaked the secret to Abyssinia, which ruined his plan.
He thought for a moment, then looked at the crowd and said with a serious expression, "Now, Kenapetia is being attacked by the enemy every day, and the Diónia army may break through at any time! As for us, should we let the enemy advance slowly and gradually adapt to the weather and environment here, or should we make up our minds and focus on attacking them?! It's up to you! "
Cydorum and Burgam looked at each other again, and their eyes gradually flashed with determination. "Do we still have a choice?"
"God Amara will protect the descendants of Brutus!" Phirotaru loudly chanted …
… …
The Devers chose to set up camp near Punate River out of caution.
When Bagylipi reminded him that outsiders who entered the Cosenza area would experience some discomfort, a word immediately appeared in his mind — altitude sickness. The higher the altitude, the thinner the air, and the lower the oxygen content. People would become tired because of the lack of oxygen. Of course, compared to Tibet in the far east, the altitude of the Cosenza Plateau was nothing, but in an intense battle, it could very well become a decisive factor.
Now that the Devers had the upper hand, there was no need to take risks. They only needed to steadily advance towards Cosenza, let the soldiers gradually adapt to the altitude sickness here, and familiarize themselves with the geographical environment here. At the same time, they would gradually put pressure on Cosenza so that it would not dare to send reinforcements to Kenapetia.
Although he could not grasp the battlefield situation in Kenapetia in time, out of trust in Hilos and Legio IV who had two types of siege weapons, he believed that in Kenapetia, the Fourth Legion would have the absolute advantage. Once Kenapetia was breached, the Dionysian Army would advance from the east and west. Not only would it increase their advantage, but it would also intimidate the entire Brutus region, which might directly lead to the disintegration of the Bruti Alliance. They might not even need to fight to make the Bruti surrender!
Although the idea was beautiful, the Devers did not let down their guard. According to the "Diónia Military Law", he did not let all the soldiers participate in the construction of the camp. Instead, he only let the soldiers of the First Legion and the Reserve Legion start working first, with the freedmen assisting. The Second Legion and its allies, as well as the warriors of Abyssinia, were responsible for guarding the camp.
"Why are we the first to build the camp this time? We are the First Legion of Diónia! " Het Barus stared at the soldiers of the Second Legion who were sitting and resting in front of him. He complained while digging the soil.
"Maybe it's because the Second Legion just finished the battle with the Bruti Alliance the day before yesterday, and the commander gave them a reward!" Percials guessed.
Leotychides listened to the conversation of his teammates, and his thoughts ran wild. Although the Sparta people also paid more attention to the camp, it was not as important as Diónia to the extent that he thought it was paranoid. When the troops arrived at an important place, the first thing they would think about was how to build an extremely sturdy camp. There were even engineers to measure and check, and if they did not pass, they would be punished … Even though he had practiced many times in the new recruit training camp, and he had put it into practice in Tarantum, he still felt a little uncomfortable.
"If we, the First Legion, were to attack Abyssinia instead of the Second Legion, we would have done a better job! It's all because the commander is unfair. He gave this crucial task to the Second Legion, while we, the First Legion, are either climbing mountains or marching. I don't know how much we've walked these days, but the soles of my feet are blistered! … "
Het Barus vented his frustration, and then someone slapped him on the head. "Het Barus, stop talking nonsense and work hard! If we lose to Olivers's team because of you, Captain Martonis will not let you off easily! "Captain Sitarsis scolded.
When Martonis was mentioned, Het Barus did not dare to say anything else.
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