Chapter 466
Asuna bent down and spoke softly to the baby in the wheelbarrow, "You should at least come and see our little Eunice, right?"
Little Eunice, who had been quiet all this while, immediately squealed when she saw someone familiar approaching her. She flailed her arms and legs, kicking away the thick woolen blanket covering her body.
"Madam, look, even little Eunice is protesting!" Asuna said jokingly as she covered the baby with the blanket. Only in the Devers's Mansion, where they treated their servants kindly, and because Asuna was Cristoya's confidant, would she dare to speak like this.
Cristoya looked at her daughter, her eyes shining with a gentle light. She thought of something and sighed softly, "Little Crowe didn't get to see his father when he was born. Who asked Diónia to be constantly at war …"
As the three of them sighed, a cry came from the front yard.
It was little Crowe! Aegnis and Asuna's expressions changed, and Asuna hurriedly said, "I'll go and take a look."
"There's no need. Hernie and Cynthia are here, there's nothing to worry about. "As a mother, Cristoya was much calmer than Aegnis and Asuna.
Due to the expansion of the war, Diónia constantly transferred young adults to the frontlines. Many institutions in Turía had stopped operating due to a lack of manpower, and it was the same for the schools. The guards and instructors had either joined the new corps, became sailors, or joined the transport team. Although the instructors were not required to go to the battlefield due to Diónia's special laws to protect high-quality talents, they were still arranged by the city hall to go where they were needed and contribute to the war effort. For example, they became statisticians in the Ministry of Military Affairs, bookkeepers in the transport of supplies …
As a result, teaching in the school came to a standstill. Without the protection of the guards and instructors, the safety of the students could not be guaranteed. Hence, Ancetanos had no choice but to announce that the school would be temporarily closed.
For safety's sake, Cynthia, Adoris, and little Crowe were forbidden from going out. The little fellows, who had been cooped up at home, saw their big brother Henepolis return and excitedly pestered him to play.
Henepolis, who was still childlike, had no choice but to take them to the field in the front yard to play football. (Because the children had grown up and were full of energy, the Devers simply demolished the pool in the front yard and turned it into a small field so that the children could play happily and exercise at the same time.)
Little Krol, who was only four years old, naturally ran around excitedly with his brother and sister. He accidentally tripped and fell to the ground, crying loudly.
Adoris was having fun. He said impatiently, "There's no bleeding. What's there to cry about?"
Cynthia glared at him. Adoris immediately stopped talking. He had always been afraid of this sister who was two years older than him.
Cynthia rushed over and helped the crying little Krol up. She patted the dust off him and said gently, "Little Krol, you're a brave warrior. Warriors don't cry."
Little Krol, who often learned from Adoris to be a brave warrior, immediately wiped his face and pouted. "I'm not crying!" he said.
"Alright, let's rest for a while." Henepolis panted heavily and sat at the side of the field. Unlike the citizens of the Alliance, who often went through military training, he spent most of his time in the academy, looking up information and practicing writing. He lacked exercise in the first place, and as a ball snatcher, he ran back and forth with the energetic children. Soon, he was exhausted. "Let me tell you a story."
"What story?" Asked Adoris with interest. Henepolis was good at telling stories. He used to tell them to the children.
"The story of the goddess Persephone and the sea monster, the wife of Hades. I collected this when I went to Sicily. You must have never heard of it."
"I want to hear it!" shouted Adoris immediately.
"I want to hear it too!" shouted little Krol even louder.
Cynthia did not say anything. She quietly sat beside Henepolis.
When Aristiras walked into the house, he saw the three children sitting around Henepolis. They were listening attentively to his vivid story.
Looking at this heartwarming scene, Aristiras naturally recalled the news about 'Arob Mas' rebellion 'that he had just received, and he couldn't help but sigh in his heart …
… …
The morning of the 6th of December was sunny. There were no clouds in the sky, and there was a light breeze.
The Devers gathered all the soldiers of the First and Second Legions in the barracks. They then led them to the foot of the mountain where the Temple of Hades was located. Many people had already gathered there, including the elders of the Senate.
The Devers went up the mountain first, followed by the elders of the Senate and the two Legion Commanders.
The chief priest, Pleasinas, was already waiting in front of the temple. A group of people led by the Devers walked into the Hell Hall of the Temple of Hades with solemn expressions.
The Devers looked up at the statue of Pluto, who was holding a pitchfork in his hand. His black hair fluttered in the wind, and his eyes were wide open in anger. They felt a sense of familiarity. Ever since their rebirth, they had formed an indissoluble bond with Hades. Now, they were even resting with him. As long as Diónia existed, the royal family of the Devers would definitely be his family. They would worship him and receive his protection …
At this thought, the Devers knelt down devoutly and said in a clear voice, "O selfless God of Hades, your Kingdom of Diónia is surrounded by the flames of war and is in danger. Your descendants (the Devers themselves) are about to lead an army to fight a life-and-death battle with the people of Syracuse. We hope to receive your protection and return victorious!"
After that, the Devers stood up, lit an oil lamp, and respectfully placed it on the sacrificial table in the middle of the statue.
Then, Pleasinas led a black calf that was specially selected from the many Lucanian cows. It seemed to know its fate, but when the Devers pressed it with their left hand, it did not cry or jump.
The Devers took out their short swords and touched the calf's back. They hardened their hearts and stabbed the sword into the calf. The calf whined and fell to the ground, dead.
The priests quickly carried it to the sacrificial table, cut open its abdomen, and took out its internal organs to check. How could the internal organs of a healthy calf be diseased? Therefore, after the divination priest carefully looked through it, he said loudly, "Auspicious sign! It's an auspicious sign!! "
Everyone's expression relaxed, and a look of joy appeared on their faces. They chanted the hymn of Hades and watched as Pleasinus solemnly offered the fresh blood food in front of the statue …
Other than the Hell Hall, the Devers and the two Legion Commanders also worshipped the Temple of Heroes …
"Dong! … Dong! … "Nine long and vigorous bell rings came from the mountain. Each ring was powerful, and the people and soldiers at the foot of the mountain became excited.
"It's an auspicious sign! It's an auspicious sign!! " When the Devers and the others came down from the mountain, the foot of the mountain had already become a sea of joy, as if they had already won the battle.
Just as the Devers led the First and Second Legion to the military port, in the military port, Syklian was mobilizing nearly 30,000 sailors before the battle. "Brothers, you have trained hard for so long, and today, you are finally going to fight the enemy at sea. Yesterday, I was summoned by the Devers … His Majesty to discuss the battle at sea. There were also a few Legion Commanders with me. They actually dissuaded His Majesty from fighting with the people of Syracuse at sea. They said, 'Our navy has just been formed, we have no experience, we are not a match for the people of Syracuse.' I argued with them, but they reprimanded me, saying, 'Our navy has no achievements, we are not qualified to talk to them …' "
Syklian's words made all the sailors angry. He took the opportunity to shout, "Fortunately, the wise King of Devers said, 'He believes that the sailors of Diónia will fight bravely like the citizen soldiers and bring victory to the Alliance!' Brothers, let us not disappoint His Majesty's expectations. We will use a glorious victory to tell the proud Army that we are also heroes in the hearts of the people! And with this victory, we can also be like the soldiers of the Legion and obtain citizenship faster (because most of the sailors are free citizens)! We will get our allotted land faster! Brothers, for the sake of your beautiful future, let us do a good job and defeat the navy of Syracuse! "
"Defeat the navy of Syracuse!"
"Victory to the navy of Diónia!"
"Victory to His Majesty the Devers!"
…
The sailors who were fired up by Syklian's speech raised their arms and shouted. Their shouts attracted the attention of the people who had received the news and were rushing to the coast. Even the Devers who were on the way heard their shouts and could not help but laugh, "The morale of the navy is very high!"
Although Amyntas quarreled with Syklian yesterday, before the battle began, he threw those small disputes to the back of his mind. He said happily, "This is good, we have a higher chance of winning."
"Now, I order —" Syklian looked around at the sailors and took a deep breath. He shouted, "Drag the ship into the water!"
The sailors immediately ran to the dock where the warships they were in charge of were stored.
The warships that were not used for combat were stored in the dry dock and exposed to the sun regularly, so that the maggots that caused great damage to the ships could not survive. At the same time, the rotten boards of the ships were replaced and maintained to ensure the life of the warships. Hence, the military port of Turií was different from a commercial port. It did not have a dock, but a causeway with a certain angle was built along the river bank, and a dock was built on the causeway. After the warships entered the port, the sailors would drag the warships along the slope of the causeway into the dry dock for storage.
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