Chapter 545
After sending off Hipparinus, Philistos sat on the wooden chair and stared blankly for a while …
When the Diónia emissary came to Syracuse to protest, although Dionysius and Philistos paid more attention to Diónia, they did not really regard them as an evenly matched opponent. But now, he never expected that 80,000 troops and more than 400 warships — such a powerful force that could sweep through Sicily — would be defeated by the independent Diónia in Greece! If Dionysius and he had known that it would be such a terrible result, they would probably have delayed the attack for a few more months and made more preparations. But now it was too late for regrets! Only by doing their best to win this war, otherwise the fate of Syracuse …
Philistos' mind flashed with the images of the destroyed Katanai, Naxos, and Carthage, who was forced to sue for peace. He could not help but shiver. The situation in Sicily was very calm now, but who knew if this calm would give birth to a bigger storm?
He put away his worries and prepared to summon the finance minister to discuss the issue of money and food for the second expedition. But he saw Hipparinus, who had already left, rush in again with an unconcealable panic on his face.
Philistos' heart suddenly skipped a beat, and he heard Hipparinus say anxiously, "I just received urgent news from my men. The Diónia have landed in Sicily, and they have captured Mejalo!"
Bad news came one after another, hitting Philistos like a giant hammer, making him dizzy. He put his hand on the wooden table and asked bitterly, "Is this news true?!"
"I think you will soon receive the emissary of Sicily's request for help," Hipparinus said anxiously.
Philistos was stunned for a moment, then suddenly shouted to his subordinates, "Quick! Go and call Herollis, Marcia, Calidemus, and the other lords back! "
… …
There were still the same few people in the meeting room, but the atmosphere was more solemn. The news that the army of Syracuse was defeated in the battle shocked everyone, but it happened in Greece after all. But now that the flames of war had reached Sicily, the sense of urgency was even stronger. What worried them even more was that the fact that Diónia dared to send troops to Sicily meant that they had the confidence to completely defeat Syracuse's army in Great Greece. Dionysius's situation in Great Greece was very bad.
"How many Diónia landed on Naxos?" Masias asked the most important question.
"My men have reported that there are about six to seven thousand of them, and most of them are wearing black armor. Intelligence on the Dionysian Army indicates that only the soldiers of their so-called 'official corps' are allowed to wear such armor. Also, they attacked very quickly. It only took a little more than an hour for Mealor to be captured. Although some of the Naxos slaves rebelled, it's clear that this is no ordinary Dionysian Army! "Hipparinus warned in a serious tone.
The others furrowed their brows even tighter.
"No matter how strong this Dionysian Army is, we must destroy it as soon as possible!" Felistos looked at everyone with a serious expression. He slammed the wooden table with his left hand and reminded them loudly, "The defeat of our army in Great Greece has probably caused some of the city-states in Sicily to have other ideas. Now, the news that the army of Diónia has landed in Sicily will only cause the seemingly peaceful situation in Sicily to become turbulent. The rebellion of the Naxos slaves is a clear proof of that! We must destroy this army as soon as possible and use this victory to tell the other city-states in Sicily that Syracuse is still strong! This is the only way to maintain the current situation. Once this panic spreads, it will bring us endless trouble! "
"I will immediately go outside the city to mobilize the soldiers. We can immediately recruit about six thousand soldiers. Also, the one thousand mercenaries on Ortygia Island — "
Before Masias could finish, Hipparinus interrupted him, "The mercenaries on Ortygia Island cannot be mobilized. They are there to ensure the safety of Lord Dionysius and his family, as well as all of you!"
Harolis raised the corner of his eye imperceptibly.
"Can the citizen soldiers in the city be gathered tomorrow?" Felistos turned and asked.
Harolis shook his head, "It will be very difficult. The rioting people outside the city hall have yet to subside. I estimate that it will take at least three days to gather them in the square … "
"Do your best!" Felistos did not have much hope in the first place, so he said to Masias, "I'll send someone to inform the allied states in the north urgently now. Let Taunis, Leontini, Katanai, and Sicuri gather their troops. You'll lead the army north tomorrow and bring the armies of these allied states under your command along the way. The Diónia have invaded Sicily and occupied Mealor. The next threat will be the governance of these city-states. They should be going all out. We will also gather troops to reinforce you later … "
"With the addition of the troops of these allies, especially Katanai, I think it will be enough to deal with the Diónia!" Masias said confidently, "I will rush back to gather the troops now." With that, he simply got up and walked out.
"Lord Calidemus, go to the southern allies and urge them to provide troops as soon as possible. After gathering the troops, immediately lead them to Mealor!" Felistos continued.
Calidemus knew that the situation was urgent and did not argue with Felistos. He immediately agreed.
… …
Harolis finally managed to persuade the people gathered outside the city hall to leave. It was already dusk when he returned to his mansion, exhausted.
When the door closed, his seemingly exhausted energy immediately recovered. He quickly walked to his study, followed by his most trusted slave, Tista.
As soon as he sat down, Harolis hurriedly asked, "Any news from there?!"
"Yes, Master." Tista carefully handed over a papyrus that was folded into a small square.
Harolis quickly opened it. To outsiders, it was densely packed and strange symbols, but he knew very well that this was the mysterious "Devers Number" that was popular in Diónia.
He suppressed the excitement in his heart and said to Tista, "Go outside and wait for a while."
After Tista left the study and closed the door, Harolis took out the book "History" from the bookcase. According to the numbers provided on the paper, he found the corresponding page number, line number, and word number. But this was not the end. A few small ink dots at the front of the paper marked the real target of the words found. Connecting these words together was the message that the head of intelligence of Diónia in Sicily wanted to convey. Such a complicated secret document was made so that even if Harolis's trusted slave was captured and the paper was taken away, Hipparinus would not be able to understand the secret contained in the paper. If he was careless, Hipparinus' men might even throw it away as a slave's scribbles.
In fact, Harolis had studied this for a few days before he could master it. He could not help but sigh: the people of Diónia were so meticulous and orderly in this aspect, far better than Syracuse, which had decades of espionage history. This gave him some confidence in Diónia.
And now, the performance of the people of Diónia on the battlefield made him even more confident.
When he had finished reading the secret letter, he wrote a reply in the same way. Then he called Tista in again and said, "Tomorrow morning you are to take two jars of wine to Filosanus and tell him yourself, 'The weather is warm. Let him come out more often.'"
Tista immediately repeated Harolis's words. Harolis nodded in satisfaction and carefully handed the folded papyrus to him. "After delivering the wine, hurry to the winery and sit guard. Once someone matches the code, pass this to him."
"Understood, Master." Tista was already familiar with this task. However, after he received the order today, he did not leave immediately. Instead, he asked hesitantly, "Master, I heard that Dionysius has been defeated in Greece. Will Dionysius's rule here be overthrown?"
Looking at the longing in Tista's eyes, Harolis knew that this slave was originally a citizen of Katanai. However, because of Dionysius's massive invasion, his home was destroyed, his family was killed, and he himself became a slave. His hatred for Dionysius ran deep. Because of this, Harolis trusted him and let him do these things. "
"I will!" Harrolis answered without hesitation. Tista then left the room in high spirits.
At this time, a scene from a few months ago appeared in Harolis's mind. At that time, there was a merchant from Cyrenaica who wanted to buy wine. As the quantity was too large, Harolis decided to personally negotiate with the merchant.
Unexpectedly, on the day of the meeting, the young merchant dismissed his attendants and said solemnly, "Honorable Master Harolis, I am a citizen of Diónia. My name is Antraporis. I bring the sincere greetings of the Consul and Devers of Diónia to you …"
Using Harolis to pass the message at the wine shop outside the city and letting the slave wander around the port often to divert the attention of the intelligence department … This was his idea.
The outcome would be decided in a few days! Harolis was nervous and excited. He clenched his fists …
… …
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