Chapter 437
There were victories and defeats in a battle, and there were also joys and sorrows. While the Allied Army was tasting the bitter fruits of their defeat, the people of Syracuse were enjoying the joy of victory.
In Dionysius's tent, candles were lit, and the generals were gathered together. They ate and talked about today's battle …
"All of you, stop fighting! Phoebidas is the main contributor to our victory! " Dionysius sat at the head of the table. He looked around and pointed at Phoebidas. "I didn't expect that Diónia general to deploy so many soldiers on their left flank. If it wasn't for Phoebidas's strategy, our right flank would've been breached before our reinforcements arrived!"
"You're right, sir!" Fasipesas immediately agreed. "When I led my army to attack the enemy's flank, I was shocked. The thickness of the enemy's formation … Some of them were more than 50 rows. I've never seen anything like that before … The length of each row was … was …" Fasipesas couldn't find the right word to describe it. He gestured with his hands and said, "It's even longer than this tent! Not only did such a powerful force not defeat our right flank, it even tired the enemy out! That's why I led my soldiers in a small charge, and the enemy was easily defeated! … "
The crowd couldn't help but gasp in admiration.
Although Phoebidas felt proud of himself, he didn't boast about himself in front of everyone. Sparta wouldn't do something so superficial. Besides, he was only fighting for Syracuse. Glory or not didn't matter. He was only enjoying the joy of the battle. Being at the forefront of the battlefield, he was so tired that he didn't want to talk much.
"Leptinus, your performance this time was beyond my expectations!" Dionysius looked at his brother and said loudly with relief, "When the attack of the mercenary army led by Endidimennas was blocked, you didn't run away. Instead, you bravely shouldered the responsibility and repelled the enemies who came to intercept us, ensuring that our attack on the enemy's right flank and rear went smoothly. We were able to obtain victory in this battle because of your contributions! In addition, your fleet also boldly attacked and obtained the first victory after our victory — Triene! "
Dionysius was generous in his praise of Leptinus, not only because of his brother's performance, but also because he wanted to show those who criticized his nepotism that he, Dionysius, had the correct way of using people.
"My lord, it's all thanks to General Leptinius' help this time!" Endimennas took the opportunity to flatter Leptinus, and at the same time, he tried to explain his mistake. "I did not expect the Greeks to keep a troop in the heat of the battle. Instead of sending them into battle, they launched a surprise attack on us …"
"That's why we didn't win this battle easily. That Diónia general isn't simple!" Dionysius sighed. He had seen his elite troops being pushed back by the Legion of Dionysia when he was at the rear of the formation in the middle of the battle. Moreover, there were more than a thousand casualties in the middle of the battle. This shocked him and made him feel uneasy. "It's a pity that we couldn't keep more Diónia soldiers …"
The two mercenary leaders were embarrassed by his words. The more straightforward Celtic leader, Garba, explained in a strange Greek accent, "We tried our best, but the Diónia soldiers didn't run away at all. Instead, they lined up in formation and fought with us. We lost … many of our people …"
"Those Daonians stretched out their formation and guarded the riverbank, forcing us to fight them head-on. It's very difficult for cavalry to fight against heavy infantry head-on …" Akhilita also tried to explain from the side.
Dionysius glanced at the two of them. He only wanted to teach these two rebellious foreign leaders a lesson. He did not want to fall out with them. "In any case, you managed to hold back more than a thousand Diónia soldiers. In the end, you killed and captured them, including a legion commander. I think this is probably the biggest military loss the Diónia Alliance has ever suffered since its establishment!"
"My lord, that's because the Diónia Alliance was founded not even as old as my youngest son!" The other general of Syracuse, Astagras, sneered. "Next, we will give them more defeats until this alliance is completely destroyed!"
Astagras' words elicited laughter from the crowd.
Amidst the laughter, a cold voice rang from the seat on the left of Dionysius. "I've seen the weapons left by the Diónia soldiers on the battlefield. To be honest, I don't think you'll be able to gain any advantage even if you fight against the infantry of the Diónia Legion again. "
These words aroused the dissatisfaction of the people in the tent.
"Sparta, you're overestimating the Diónia soldiers!" Astagras yelled.
"I'm telling the truth." Phoebidas ignored the dissatisfaction of the crowd and said bluntly.
At the same time, he strode out of his seat, disregarding the strange gazes of the people around him, and assumed the posture of a heavy infantry soldier. Then, he said in a serious tone, "According to the traditional habits of heavy infantry soldiers, the round shield in my left hand can be used for both defense and offense. As for the spear in my right hand, I can raise it high and stab my opponent over the round shield. If the spear breaks, I can pull out my curved saber and slash it … However, the way the soldiers of the Legion of Dionysia fight is different from us. I've brought the long shield and short sword that the soldiers of the Legion of Dionysia use. Unfortunately, they were forced to stay outside the tent by the guards."
Speaking of this, Phoebidas did not forget to secretly mock Dionysius. Because Dionysius was an expert in assassination, he was also wary of being assassinated by others. He had been assassinated many times in the past, so he was very cautious in this aspect. He had made a rule that anyone who wanted to meet him and discuss business with him must be searched by the guards. Weapons were not allowed to be carried.
Once, another brother of his (who was sent by him to be the tyrant of the neighboring country) came to the palace to talk about an important matter. The brother asked for a spear from the guards and was about to draw a map on the ground. As a result, Dionysius was enraged and immediately executed the guard.
At this time, Dionysius did not care about Phoebidas's sarcasm. He was more interested in what he was going to say next. He generously ordered, "Go and bring in the dagger and shield of Diónia."
When the dagger and shield were placed in front of Phoebidas, he picked up the shield with his left hand and held it in front of his chest. He explained, "The shield of Diónia is long enough to better protect the body of the soldier. Therefore, the soldier does not have to worry about defense, but can focus on how to kill the enemy."
As Phoebidas spoke, he made a stabbing motion with the dagger. After a few stabs, he stabbed the dagger into the wooden table. With a "chi" sound, the tip of the dagger went in completely.
"What a sharp dagger!" Leptineus, who was sitting next to Phoebidas, exclaimed in surprise. He curiously went over to pull the dagger out and examined it carefully. There were some small nicks on the edge of the dagger, and the tip was a little bent. It was obvious that it had been hit many times, but it still gave off a chill.
"This dagger is too short! Before the Diónia stabbed my soldiers with it again, we would have stabbed them to death with our spears! "Astagras retorted forcefully.
"Yes, it's shorter. But the Diónia soldiers have the protection of the shield, and the spears may not be able to hurt them. And when the two sides are pushing and shoving, the spears can no longer be used, but this dagger can easily stab the enemy … "Phoebidas held the shield and looked at the dagger in Leptineus's hand. He was not calm. The round shield of the Greek phalanx was paired with a spear. This set of heavy infantry tactics had been passed down for hundreds of years, and had proved to be so effective that it was difficult for other countries in the Mediterranean region to match it. And yet, a city-state alliance that had only been established for a few years could develop a new set of heavy infantry equipment and tactics in such a short time, and could even fight against traditional tactics. This made him feel terrified!
So it was because of the weapons and equipment! Dionysius was a little agitated. He had thought that his most elite army was no match for Diónia's newly built legion, and he was really traumatized. Now, after listening to Phoebidas's analysis, he suddenly realized that as long as it was not a problem with the quality of the soldiers, it could be remedied.
"Phoebidas, how do you think we should deal with the infantry of Diónia the next time we encounter them?" Dionysius humbly asked the Sparta man for advice.
"From the weapons and equipment of the Diónia soldiers, they don't have much of an advantage when they are in a stalemate with our heavy infantry at mid-range. But once the two sides are in close combat, the short swords and long shields will be able to play their greatest role. This requires us to not adopt the pushing and shoving tactics when fighting in phalanx, but to leave a certain distance for the frontline soldiers, and use the dense spear formation to prevent the infantry of the Legion of Dionysia from getting too close. This way, the soldiers of Syracuse can use their proficient spear techniques to gain the upper hand in the thrusts of both sides … "After carefully studying the battlefield, Phoebidas had been thinking about how to deal with the impact of this new type of heavy infantry. After all, he had never really fought with the Legion of Dionysia face-to-face. It was just a speculation based on his years of combat experience.
But it was enough for Dionysius to breathe a sigh of relief. He said to his generals, "Did you all hear that? The next time we fight the soldiers of Diónia, we will deal with them according to Phoebidas's method! "
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