Chapter 425
Phoebidas stopped talking. Dionysius's arrogance made him, a warrior from Sparta, the overlord of Greece, uncomfortable.
"Phoebidas, for this upcoming battle of the largest scale in Greek history, I need the help of Sparta's best warrior to make it easier for us to win this battle!"
Phoebidas could not refuse Dionysius's invitation. Just the phrase "the largest battle in Greek history" alone was enough to attract his greatest enthusiasm.
… …
On the same day, the Devers asked Legio III's First Brigade, Lizaru, to lead three heavy infantry brigades, a total of 3,000 soldiers, and 1,000 soldiers from Elia to garrison Poseidonia. At the same time, they would guard the nearly 10,000 captives. For this reason, the Devers also sent fast horses to Picossis and informed Antares to arrange for men to escort these captives to the rear of Lucania.
Then, he led the First, Second, and Legio III's soldiers, a total of about 24000 soldiers, and marched east along the Sele Valley.
The march was not smooth. Not only was the road difficult, but they also encountered the Samonai from time to time.
At first, when they received the report from the scouts, the Devers thought that the Samonai wanted to use the complex terrain of the mountains to harass the army, so they sent out the light infantry and light armored soldiers of the three legions to guard the two flanks of the marching army.
Unexpectedly, when the soldiers rushed forward, they found that the enemy's resistance was weak, and they were easily captured.
The first thing the captured Samonai people did was to open their mouths and ask for food. They called the soldiers who could understand the Samonai language. After asking them, they found out why they were there and immediately reported it to the Devers.
Only then did the Devers know that the Samonai army outside Potentia had been defeated because of the night attack. This was a huge surprise!
Originally, the Devers only asked Izam to send a lot of mountain scouts to disguise as the Samonai defeated soldiers. They planned to sneak into the Samonai camp at night, spread rumors, and shake the morale of the army. Of course, if it was possible to burn the Samonai's supply, then the following battle with the Samonai would be considered a sure win. For this reason, he wrote a secret letter to Potentia, hoping to get some help … Of course, this was just a casual move. He did not have high hopes that it would succeed.
He did not expect the Samonai to be defeated just like that! This made the Devers, who had a clearer understanding of the history of "the Samonai were the strong enemies of the early Rome" in his previous life, a little shocked.
But soon, the army met the scouts who rushed back from Potentia to report the news. The Devers confirmed that the Samonai had been defeated, and they also learned that the captain of the scouts, Printos, played an important role in the operation last night. He was the one who planned the night attack and took the initiative to contact Pollett in Potentia …
After listening to the story of the night attack, the Devers could not help but praise the captain of the scouts, "Lizzam, you have a very good subordinate!"
Lizzam said seriously, "He is better than me!"
"When the country is in danger, it is time for heroes to emerge!" The Devers were filled with emotion, and at the same time, he remembered the name Printos in his heart.
Looking at the Samonai who were so hungry that they could not even walk, they thought about how they had been through a night of chaos and shock. Their camp was burned down, and they were washed away by the rain. They were tired, hungry, and shocked. They did not have any fighting strength left. The battle in Potentia was basically over! The Devers made this judgment, and instantly felt a lot more relaxed. He immediately ordered the light armor and light infantry of the legion to attack the Samonai decisively if they encountered them.
At the same time, he sent people to Potentia quickly, and asked Puamoth to prepare a camp for the army in advance. Usually, when marching in the war zone, the Legion of Dionysia would stop in the afternoon and start to build a camp. But today, the Devers had to march boldly and strive to reach Potentia within a day.
In the evening, the vanguard arrived at the outskirts of the city of Potentia. They were surprised to see that under the dim sky, two 'fire dragons' stretched parallel to the west mountain pass from the city of Potentia. They were at least two miles long. Those were the people of Potentia holding up torches to welcome the Dionysian Army and to light the way for the troops …
After the Devers knew the situation, they immediately rushed to the front, and just happened to meet Puamoth and a group of tribe leaders. "Honorable Lord Devers, all the people of Potentia warmly welcome you and your army!" Under Boret's instructions, Puamoth respectfully saluted the Devers, and the leaders behind him followed suit.
The Devers did not sit still on their horses and accept the salute of their allies. Instead, they hurriedly jumped off their horses and quickly returned the salute. With a slightly apologetic and emotional tone, they said, "It is really my fault for leading the army to disturb your peace so late at night! I did not expect you to disregard your own safety and welcome us in such a warm way, even though the territory of Potentia is not yet safe. I am really … Thank you! On behalf of all the soldiers, I express my heartfelt gratitude to the people of Potentia and all the leaders! "
"No, Lord Devers! It should be us, the people of Potentia, expressing our gratitude to the soldiers of Diónia. " Puamoth felt that the Devers could understand his painstaking efforts and felt that their hard work was not in vain, but he did not show it. Instead, he said emotionally, "Compared to the great kindness of Diónia in saving Potentia, this little thing we have done is nothing!"
"We are allies," the Devers said with a gentle smile. "Allies should help each other like brothers!"
"That's right! That's right! " Puamoth nodded. He wanted to say more, but Boret, who was beside him, interrupted, "Lord Devers, will we affect the soldiers' advance by talking here?"
The Devers was reminded. He looked back and saw that the army had stopped advancing. He quickly said, "Leaders, I am so sorry! Please come with me. "
"Oh, it was our negligence." Puamoth hurriedly led the people to make way for the army.
"Tormid!" the Devers turned around and shouted.
"Sir!"
"Pass the order. Let the drummers and trumpeters play the 'Victory March'. Celebrate this moment of victory with our allies!" the Devers said loudly.
"Understood!" Tormid immediately turned around and left.
The Legion of Dionysia paid great attention to the smoothness of military orders. They strictly used bugles and drums to convey orders. Therefore, there were only a few dozen trumpeters and drummers. There were two and a half legions here, with a total of 24000 soldiers. There were more than a hundred drummers and trumpeters. After receiving Tormid's order, they retreated to the side of the road.
As members of the legion who did not participate in combat, they did not only have the task of conveying military orders in battle. During the march, in order to lift the spirits of the soldiers and forget their fatigue, they would play music to help the troops march.
For this reason, during the Alliance's military training, other than practicing with the soldiers during phalanx training, they would gather alone to practice playing music at other times. Of course, they would be present in the various large-scale celebrations of the Alliance. Therefore, even though they did not directly participate in combat, they were still respected.
At this time, some of the trumpeters changed to the bamboo flutes at their waists, while some of the drummers changed to small copper pipes. Everyone performed their duties and began to play music.
The "Victory March" was a march that Dyvers was familiar with from his previous life. He hummed it and asked the musicians of the Alliance to compose and adapt it. Although it did not have the varied melody and grandeur of the symphony from his previous life, it was still a rare piece of music in this era.
In the quiet night, when the lively and cheerful but rhythmic melody was played, it quickly resounded in the sky above Potentia …
When the people of Potentia heard it, they felt relaxed. During this period of time, the sadness of losing their loved ones and the worry of the destruction of their homes seemed to be temporarily put aside. They could enjoy the joy and joy of defeating a strong enemy and obtaining victory.
And the tired soldiers of Diónia lifted their spirits, straightened their chests, and welcomed the inspection of the people of the Alliance with their best spirit.
"Legion, advance!"
At the forefront of the marching formation were the 300 personal guards of the Devers, led by the substitute captain Rodom (Martius was recovering in Turií). He raised the military flag representing the Supreme Commander of the Devers with both hands. At the top of the flag was a golden statue of Hades wearing a crown, sitting steadily on a throne, holding a double fork in one hand and a ball in the other. Compared to the gloomy and ferocious statue of Hades on top of the military flag, this one showed the dignity of a king. The black flag under the statue was embroidered with the name "Devers" with golden silk thread.
Behind the guards was the flagbearer of the First Legion. However, he was not followed by heavy infantry, but by light infantry and light armor. This was because on the mountain road, once they encountered an enemy, the fast-moving light armor and light infantry could quickly respond. In fact, most of the Samonai people captured on the road were due to them.
After the First Legion was the supply team, then the Second Legion, and hundreds of Samonai people captured on the way. Then came the Legio III, and finally some light infantry, light armor, and cavalry. The reason why the cavalry was arranged at the end was that part of the mountain road could not be ridden. They had to lead the horses and walk. Moreover, the mountain road was narrow. If thousands of horses picked up their feces and urine, it would seriously affect the marching speed of the troops behind. The light infantry was mixed to prevent the Samonai people from attacking the rear.
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