Chapter 397
The Devers continued slowly, "During this time, the soldiers, labor, and supplies … will definitely be in chaos and lack of organization. Dionysius will not dare to take the huge risk of landing elsewhere, so he can only land at his ally, Locke Port. Then, when the Ministry of Military Affairs receives the news of Syracuse's attack, they can send our Fourth and Fifth Legions to Corunya to join the reinforcements of the other allies. They can make use of the narrow terrain of Corunya and the Ramato River to the south of Triene to build a strong camp to defend against the enemy's attack and buy time for me to defeat the Samonians. Then, I will lead the main force back to fight the final battle with Syracuse.
To facilitate the unified command of the Fourth and Fifth Legions, I will let Sir Felicius be the commander of the Fourth and Fifth Legions and be responsible for the battle in the south. "
The Devers chose Felicius because he was more experienced and had always been in charge of military affairs. He could make the stubborn Dracos and the jumpy Eptenis listen to him. However, he was not a strong character and might sometimes be swayed by the opinions of his subordinates. However, there was no other way. There were more capable generals in the army, such as the commanders of the Fourth and Fifth Legions. However, they were either as experienced as Dracos and Eptenis, such as Capus and Antonius, or they were less experienced, such as Hilos. If they were suddenly given the position, the two commanders might not be convinced, and it would affect the battle.
The elders seriously considered the Devers' plan of 'defend first and then counterattack'. Most of them felt that it was feasible. After all, they were very confident in the Devers's military command ability. They believed that as long as he was in command of the decisive battle with Syracuse, the chances of victory would be very high. At the same time, they also approved of the candidate proposed by the Devers to temporarily be in charge of the military affairs in the south. This was because Felicius had always been kind to people in the Senate, and everyone had a good impression of him. The elders of the legions did not have any objections. Felicius was still capable.
"Then who will take over the position of the governor of Cosenza? Or is it Felicius? "Cornelus asked, because at this time, Felicius was still the chief executive of Cosenza.
There was a precedent of "holding the posts of chief executive and military officer at the same time". Hilos had once held the posts of chief executive of Asprusstom and commander of Legio IV after the Second Crotone War. It was the same for Bagulle of the Grumentum.
However, the Devers said, "The battle with Syracuse will determine the survival of the Alliance. It is the most important matter, and we must do our best! Cosenza's chief executive can only be replaced by someone else! "
The Devers' gaze swept across the people in the Senate. Most of the non-legion elders showed a look of desire, especially the elders of Bruti. In fact, it was understandable. There were many cities in the territory of the Diónia Alliance, but there were three that were the most important: Turií, which was the center of the Diónia Alliance; Grumentum, the largest city in the Lucaria region, and also the hub of the northern part of the Alliance; and Cosenza, the central city of the Bruti region. Although the rank of the chief executive of each city was the same, the chief executive of these three cities was invisibly superior, and it was also a kind of honor.
Of course, the Devers understood what the elders were thinking, so he patiently explained, "Considering that once the war with Syracuse starts, the Bruti region and the Croton Plains will soon become the frontline areas of Diónia closest to the battlefield, the chief executive of these areas will need to cooperate with the military operations of the army to meet their combat needs, such as settling the wounded, providing new soldiers, transferring food supplies, and so on. Therefore, we need an elder with both administrative experience and understanding of the operation of the army, temporarily —" The Devers emphasized the word 'temporarily', not wanting to disappoint some of the elders, "As the chief executive of Cosenza, my suggestion is for Hilos to temporarily take on this position."
No one objected to the Devers' suggestion. Hilos's outstanding performance as chief executive of Asplustom was obvious to everyone. Only Petaru, Cadurk, and the others were disappointed. After Polyxis and the others were put on trial, the number of elders who objected to the Devers' suggestion decreased, so it was approved.
At this time, Hilos, who had just been appointed, asked, "Sir Administrator, if I go to Cosenza, who will take over my current position?"
"Sir Hieronymus, I hope that you can temporarily take on the position of military supplies." The affairs of the army were decided by the Devers, no one else could interfere, and the Devers had already thought of a candidate. After all, the war was about to start, so military training naturally had to stop.
"Okay," Hieronymus replied softly.
Although he did not express his feelings passionately, the Devers were very relieved. He knew Hieronymus well. Unlike Dracos who only wanted to command the battle, Hieronymus was a man of few words, but he was serious and reliable in his work. As long as he was given respect and space to display his talents, he would be able to do a good job quietly.
But considering that this was a war, the pressure on the logistics of the military supplies would be huge. The Devers still wanted to find him a helper, "Mercies, you have to help Hieronymus more often!"
Mercies immediately complained, "I can't even handle the things I'm in charge of, the finance of so many cities …" Facing the speechless gaze of the Devers, his voice gradually became softer, then he shrugged helplessly and said, "Alright, alright, I'll try my best."
The Devers then asked, "Sir Hieronymus, it doesn't make sense for Turín to have a war. How many reserve soldiers are there in total?"
"About 22,000," Hieronymus said without hesitation, as he was very dedicated to his job.
The Devers nodded, then looked at the crowd and said loudly, "Sirs, I suggest that we establish two reserve legions in Turín. Once the war breaks out, we can use these two legions to protect our city and deal with unexpected situations at the same time."
"I have no objections," Cunogorata said.
"I agree," Cornelus agreed as well.
Even these two Doyens, who were usually the most opposed to war, had agreed, let alone the other Doyens. The key was that after the Devers left with the first and second legions, Turín, which had no military strength, had made them feel unsafe. With two new legions, they felt much more at ease.
"Sir Consul, the number of soldiers in the new legions is sufficient, but they don't have the new legions' weapons and equipment. They might not even have the old equipment. You must know that most of these reserve soldiers are prospective citizens and registered freedmen. I'm afraid they don't have that much money to buy them," Hieronymus reminded.
The Devers thought for a moment and said, "You and Mercies, gather Dios, the legion's weapon shop, and a few other weapon merchants, as well as the manager of Christoya's bank, to discuss a feasible solution to the problem of the new legions' weapons and equipment. Try to unify them as much as possible."
"I understand," Hieronymus replied straightforwardly.
Mersith wailed, "We have to spend money again! Money again! "
At this moment, Cunogorata said, "If the war with Syracuse breaks out, it will be a costly war. Gold and silver will be needed in all aspects. Therefore, I suggest that the Senate can represent the soldiers and come to an agreement with the weapon merchants. The soldiers will temporarily owe the weapons to the weapon merchants on credit, and after the war is over, the money will be returned with interest … I believe that the credibility of the Senate of Diónia is still worth the money."
"Sir Cunogorata, your suggestion is too good!" Mercies immediately became happy and said, "As citizens of Diónia, these weapon merchants should make such a contribution to Diónia!"
"I don't care how you solve the problem of the new legions' weapons and equipment, but you must not force them. Otherwise, Tritodemus will talk to you," Devers reminded.
"Sir Consul is right. The citizens' property is protected by the Alliance's laws. No one can infringe on it!" Tritodemus warned.
Mercies' chubby face was full of smiles as he said, "Don't worry, Your Honor. As a senator and a noble among the citizens of Diónia, how could I make such a mistake? "
Devers ignored him. He walked to the center of the hall and stood still. He looked around at the crowd and encouraged them with a passionate voice, "My Lords, the reason why the Alliance of Diónia could become so powerful and prosperous in just a few years is because of your hard work and contributions! Now, we are facing the biggest challenge since the establishment of the Alliance. Syracuse, the Greek city-state that has been dominating the Western Mediterranean Sea for hundreds of years, is like a mountain in front of us, Diónia. Not only does it want to stop us from advancing, it wants to crush us! Senators of Diónia, the elites of the citizens, the leaders of the people, are we willing to submit to this mountain and be crushed by it? Or are we going to face it together bravely and overcome all difficulties?! "
"After we overcome it, Diónia will be on a flat road!"
"Defeat Syracuse, and Diónia will no longer have a powerful enemy in the Western Mediterranean Sea!"
"Even if all the citizens of Diónia have to live frugally, we will defeat Syracuse!"
"Under the protection of Hades, no matter how great the difficulties are, we can overcome them. No matter how powerful the enemy is, we will eventually defeat them!"
…
Under the leadership of Devers, the senators expressed their desire to fight to the death against Syracuse.
… …
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