Chapter 501
The Devers sighed and placed his hands on Felicius' shoulders. He said sincerely, "Even if I were facing Syracuse's military advantage, with the ocean under their control, and with a terrifying opponent like Dionysius as their commander, I would still lose in such a terrible situation! Furthermore, you managed to protect the majority of the soldiers of two legions. At the same time, you cooperated with Crotone to hold on until reinforcements arrived, giving us hope of turning defeat into victory. I'm not the only one who should thank you! The entire Diónia should thank you! "
These words made Felicius' eyes brim with tears of relief.
"Dracos's death is not your fault! I know him. He's never one to admit defeat. Whether it was taking the initiative to cover the retreat and getting captured, or crashing into the ground and dying, it was the choice he thought was the best! All we can do is capture Dionysius and use his head as a sacrifice to Dracos's spirit! "
"Yes! … Yes!! "Felicius nodded.
"How are the soldiers of the Fifth Legion feeling?" The Devers asked with concern. The Fifth Legion was a legion made up of Brutians. The soldiers had personally witnessed the death of the legion's commander, who had single-handedly created it. Moreover, the Brutian region was in turmoil during this period of time. Dyvers was naturally worried about their condition.
"The soldiers can't wait to fight with Syracuse and avenge Dracos!" Felicius answered immediately.
"That's good." The Devers encouraged him. "I met your wife when I left Turií. She asked me to bring you a message. 'She and her child are doing well. I hope you can lead the soldiers to drive the enemy out of Greece as soon as possible!'"
When Felicius arrived, he was depressed. His head was lowered and his body was shrunken. However, when he left, he was relaxed and took large strides.
Dyvers looked at his back as he left, thinking to himself, 'Felicius's personality is too gentle, and his will is not strong enough. He really is not a general who can take charge of an area. In the future, I'll just have to work in the Ministry of Military Affairs.'
He actually had another reason to thank Felicius. The failure of the Battle of the Ramator River had greatly weakened the Greek forces in southern Greece. They no longer had the ability to resist Syracuse. However, it was the same for Diónia.
… …
The Dionysian fleet continued to sail south and approached the sea near Locri City.
It could be said that among the port cities on the east coast, only the port of Locri was still frequently visited by merchant ships. It was even busier than before the war. Due to the blockade and suppression of the Navy of Syracuse on the ports of the Southern Alliance, merchant ships traveling on the eastern and western Mediterranean could only transit or trade at Locri Port.
"Lower the sails!" Secorian looked at the sails in the distance. His eyes flashed with a cold light. "Attack!"
With the sound of the horn, the warships of the fleet gradually spread out. The sailors excitedly increased their oars. The merchant ships posed no threat to them. It gave them the thrill of bullying noobs. Moreover, it could also train their combat experience.
Pushed by the high-speed oars, the speed of the warships reached a terrifying 13 knots. The other merchant ships could not escape without the help of the wind. Compared to the three-tiered warships, the size of the merchant ships was like a child facing an adult. They were no match at all. Soon, they capsized under the impact of the warships.
Broken ships, people crying for help, and goods of all sizes floated on the surface of the sea. The ships in the distance saw the tragic scene and fled in all directions in fear. Soon, other than the Dionysian fleet, no other ships could be seen on the surface of the sea outside Locri Port.
Secorian led the fleet to and fro outside the port a few times before leaving.
Locri was furious, but there was nothing it could do. Two days ago, the people of Syracuse had taken away 30 of their three-tiered warships in the name of fighting against the Dionysian fleet. Seeing the enemy ships flaunting their prowess outside the port, everyone had a bad feeling.
"It seems like the Syracuse fleet has lost again!" Demodocas said with a gloomy expression.
"Yes!" Panticapaeus said worriedly. "From now on, the warships of Diónia will control the east coast. This will be a huge blow to our maritime trade! I'm more worried that Syracuse will lose to Diónia on land. After all, the young Consul of Diónia has returned to Turií. "
"It's impossible for Syracuse to lose on land!" Demodocas retorted without hesitation. "You and I have seen Syracuse's 80,000 strong army with our own eyes. No Greek city-state can resist them, including Sparta!"
Although he said that, Demodocas was still a little annoyed. He knew very well that due to Dionysius's support, Demodocas had controlled the highest authority in Locri for many years. He was already the "tyrant" in reality. Because of this, he ruthlessly suppressed his political enemies and cruelly suppressed those who opposed him. The people were dissatisfied with him. During this time, this dissatisfaction had intensified. In order to ensure the supply of supplies for the army and part of the Syracuse army, he had imposed a higher "special war tax" on the people of the city-state to increase the income of the treasury to purchase war supplies. Once the Syracuse army was defeated, he could not imagine what the seemingly peaceful people would do under the provocation of his political enemies.
"The city is too empty now. If the Diónia army lands here, we'll be in danger!" Demodocas suddenly said, "We must transfer the troops stationed in Medmar City back."
Panticapace was stunned. "What about Medmar City?"
"Lijim's army has already suffered heavy losses. Even if they want to attack Medmar City, they won't be able to take it down quickly. We can send reinforcements at any time," Demodocas replied.
… …
The Dionysian fleet continued to sail south. Soon, they reached the southernmost tip of Greece.
Sykerian's ship was at the forefront of the fleet. He carefully led the fleet around the tip of the peninsula, turned north, and entered the Strait of Messina.
After sailing for a while, they approached Lijim.
It was already dusk. Although Sykerian was more curious about Messina, the port of Messina was at the narrowest part of the strait. It was at least ten miles away.
Previously, when the Syracuse people rebuilt Messina, which had been destroyed by the Carthage people, they moved the city. The port was also abandoned for a time. However, it was quickly occupied by the immigrants of Syracuse, Locry, and their allies, and they developed it vigorously. Before the war broke out in Greece, Syracuse had stationed a fleet to maintain the port's security, control the ships entering and leaving the strait, and seal off the port of Lijim. Although a few days ago, all the three-tiered warships in the Messina fleet were transferred to Sirium to participate in the naval battle with Diónia, leaving only about 30 small and medium-sized warships in the port, it was still not something that Lijim could fight against. If Syracuse's fast ships had not noticed the arrival of the Dionysian fleet from afar and quickly withdrawn their warships to the port, Sykerian's fleet would have definitely seen Syracuse's warships cruising outside the port when they arrived at Lijim port. By then, a battle would have been unavoidable.
Considering that it was getting late and that he had something to do with the King of Devers, Sykerian temporarily resisted the urge to let the fleet continue north. Instead, he led the way to Lijim port.
The people of Lijim had not seen any foreign ships enter the port for two months. Once they heard that the Diónia fleet had arrived, they were overjoyed and rushed out of the city to the port.
Under the guidance of the Lijim patrol ship, Sykerian's fleet entered the military port. The Diónia sailors were still disembarking when the people of Lijim swarmed over and surrounded the warships, asking loudly about the situation outside.
It was no wonder that they were so anxious. It had been more than a month since Lijim had been sealed off by the Syracuse fleet. They knew nothing about the outside world. Usually, it was difficult to completely seal off a coastal city. After all, warships could not be soaked in the sea for a long time. They needed to be repaired regularly, dragged ashore to bask in the sun, and cleaned of ship maggots. They also needed to go ashore to rest, eat, and drink water. However, Messina was too close to Lijim. The two cities were only a dozen miles apart on the other side of the strait. The people of Syracuse were determined to completely deceive the people of Lijim and cause them to panic. Hence, they divided the fleet stationed at the port of Messina into several groups and took turns to seal off Lijim without a break. In addition, the land route between Lijim and the outside world was blocked by Rockley on the east side, while Rockley's army was stationed in the city of Medmar on the west side, blocking the way. Since the defeat of the last battle, the allied forces of Lijim and Taurina had completely retreated to the south of the Maro River.
Hence, the arrival of the Dionysian fleet was a great surprise to the people of Lijim, especially when they learned that the Dionysian fleet had completely defeated the navy of Syracuse and became the new ruler of the coast near Greece. Cheers erupted in the military port. The people of Lijim surrounded the sailors of Diónia. They sang and danced as if they were holding a celebratory parade, welcoming the people of Diónia into the city of Lijim.
That night, the chief general of Lijim, Atilyrus, invited Sykerian to a banquet.
At the banquet, due to the request of the guests, Sykerian told the story of the naval battle of Taranto, causing the people to cheer and praise …
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