Chapter 50
On the second day of the march, Davus was riding on his horse. His mind was filled with the memories of last night's fun with Krystoya. Not only was Krystoya beautiful, her figure was indeed as sexy as her appearance. Her smooth, snow-white skin and undulating curves made him unable to let go of her. Coupled with her extremely flexible body, he indulged in it, trying his best to vent the 19 years of accumulated desire in his young and strong body. It lingered until late at night. If it wasn't for Olivers covering up for him outside, he was afraid that his good deed would have been broken into, so he also let Olivers off the "crime" of eavesdropping outside.
When the passion was over, Krystoya lay in his arms and shyly expressed her willingness to be with him. Devers felt that the barrier between him and the world seemed to have shrunk a lot. This concern also made him think about what to do in the future. Devers came from a modern society and was an adult. He knew that passion could not last. Krystoya was born into nobility and had enjoyed a luxurious life as Cyrus the Younger's concubine. But now he was just a mercenary, an ordinary civilian in the Greek society. He was not even a citizen. He had no fixed residence and drifted around. It was okay for a short period of time, but it was hard to guarantee that Krystoya would not dislike him in the long run. Of course, he buried this thought in his heart. Now was not the time to think about it, because the most important thing at the moment was to return to Greece safely and alive.
The appearance of the Persia ruined his good mood.
This time, Tisa Vernis changed its strategy. Instead of attacking, it was harassing. The Persia followed the mercenaries closely, keeping a safe distance. From time to time, a group of archers would rush up, shoot a round of arrows, and then immediately retreat. It did not cause much damage to the mercenaries, but it kept their nerves in a constant state of tension, affecting the marching speed and morale.
The leaders could do nothing about it. The only thing they could do was to mix the catapults, archers, and heavy infantry so that when faced with the fast archers of the Persia, they would not dare to be too arrogant.
At the same time, the Greek mercenaries encountered other difficulties. As they got closer to the Dukea Mountains, the plains gradually turned into hills, and the terrain became rugged. The Greek army could no longer maintain a complete formation, especially when crossing the river and trekking through the narrow mountain roads. The entire formation was completely broken. The Persia cavalry took advantage of the situation and used their bows and arrows to cause more confusion among the mercenaries.
The chiefs, after some discussion, were obliged to separate from the vanguard the small band of mercenaries who had joined Chalisthorpes (for hitherto the Persia's attacks had mainly come from the rear and the flanks), and to form four or five companies of about two hundred men each, to be stationed in the flanks and inside the rearguard. Once there was a big gap in the formation, or when it was compressed because of the narrow terrain, they rushed out and formed a new rearguard, blocking the charge of the Persia cavalry and providing a barrier for the archers and stone throwers who arrived later.
In this way, as the mercenaries marched, they tried all kinds of ways to deal with the Persia cavalry. This situation lasted for four or five days. When a continuous mountain ridge appeared in front of them, the whole army breathed a sigh of relief, because they all knew that the cavalry could not go up the mountain.
They trudged through the rugged mountain road, crossed the first mountain ridge, and came to the foot of the second mountain ridge. The team stopped to rest because they were tired.
Most of the soldiers took off their armors, wiped their sweat, and sat down to rest. The guards of the supply camp also had to check the damage of the pack animals and carriages. The whole army gathered in the narrow area between the two mountains, ready to rest for a while, recover their strength, and then continue marching.
The attack came suddenly. Countless arrows and flying stones whistled through the air, catching the mercenaries by surprise. The soldiers screamed, the women screamed, and the pack animals ran around. The whole team was in a mess.
The first to react were Chalisops and his eight hundred Sparta warriors. Because these Sparta warriors did not throw away their weapons and armor like the other soldiers after they went down the mountain, and because of their regular rigorous training, they were physically strong. When Chalisops found out that the attack came from the second mountain ridge, he immediately ordered, "Sparta, advance!"
The Sparta warriors immediately followed him, raised their shields and rushed to the top of the mountain.
The Persia light infantry shot fast, wave after wave of arrows slanted down the mountain.
After the initial chaos, the mercenaries also reacted quickly. After all, they were veterans of war. They quickly grabbed the round shields beside them and hid themselves under them. Only the people of the supply camp, besides the guards, were mostly either slaves or women who had been plundered. They had no combat experience, and under the influence of fear, the majority of them did not run away, but instead screamed and ran. Because of this, under the dense rain of arrows, there were many injuries.
At this time, Devers was burning with anxiety. In order to be careful of the impact, he did not go to find Kristoya. Now that the situation was urgent, he did not know if she was safe.
"Asistes, inform the team officers to form a shield wall and move towards the supply camp and the medical camp!" he shouted.
"Yes, leader!"
In fact, there was no need for him to give the order. Felicius, Capus, and Antonios had already led the troops to raise the round shields above their heads, forming a shield formation and moving towards the center.
Olivers and Matonis immediately raised their shields and rushed forward to protect Devers.
Devers shouted, "Marigi! Marigi, are you okay?! "
"I'm fine!" Marigi shouted behind him.
"Protect him, don't let him get hurt!" Devers ordered.
Although Matonis looked down on this Persia man, he had always carried out Devers's orders meticulously.
At this time, he was already the acting captain of the guards. Under his orders, Giogris and the others rushed forward to protect Marigi.
Marigi stared at the back of Devers without saying a word, his eyes full of gratitude.
Devers did not have time to look at Marigi's situation. He half-knelt and tried to look in the direction of the supply camp, which was in chaos.
He anxiously rushed to the center, and when he saw that the medical camp had also set up a shield formation, he breathed a sigh of relief. In order to avoid suspicion, he first shouted, "Herpes! Herpes! "
"I'm here!" Herpes's voice came from under the shield formation. "We are all fine!"
Hearing this, Devers completely relaxed. At this time, Hilos came over and briefly explained the situation to him. The reason why the doctors and female slaves in the medical camp were safe had something to do with Krystoya. When the first wave of arrows rained down, she immediately called for them to hide under the cart, and Hilos then commanded more than a hundred wounded soldiers to form a shield formation to protect the safety of most people.
Hilos praised Krystoya's quick and calm response in the face of danger, and this gave Devers a deeper understanding of this woman. Perhaps this was why she was the only one among Cyrus's concubines who had escaped from the Persia's raid.
The supply camp was much worse off. Mercies was not injured under the protection of the guards, but many slaves and women were hit by arrows, and several of the pack beasts were killed. Faced with Mercies' sad face, Devers, who had already gotten used to life and death, did not send anyone to protect the non-combatants who had already scattered in all directions. Fortunately, the Persia's attack did not last long, because the troops led by Kerrissops were about to reach the top of the mountain.
Of course, the Persia would not fight the mercenaries head-on, and they quickly retreated.
Kerrissops left the Sparta soldiers at the top of the mountain as a precautionary measure.
After going down the mountain, Kerrissops gathered the leaders to discuss a response. He said, "The Persia are all light infantry, and we can't catch up with them. Although they have retreated, it is likely that they will continue to attack us with bows and arrows on the third and fourth mountain. Our troops are too large, and it will be difficult to avoid them. "
Although it was a discussion, he had actually thought of a countermeasure on the way back down the mountain. "I have carefully surveyed the top of the mountain just now. These mountains are not high, and they do not occupy a large area. We can send a team to the back from the right side of the next mountain, and then I will lead my soldiers to the front as the vanguard. If the Persia want to occupy the high ground and continue to attack us, we will cut off their retreat. "
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