Chapter 577
When Dionysius saw the black-armoured enemies charging towards him, his heart sank. Seeing that the situation was not good, he immediately blew the horn to retreat.
Antonios considered that the soldiers had not recovered from the long march, so he did not give the order to pursue. Instead, he ordered the troops to rest.
Hercules, who had escaped, saw the Diónia soldiers taking off their armour and eating their rations as they rested on the ground in Syracuse. Hercules had mixed feelings.
But no matter what he thought, he had a smile on his face as he gratefully said to Antonios, "Apollo has blessed us! Thank you, Diónia, for your timely aid! If not for you, sacrificing our lives is a small matter, but Syracuse would be reoccupied by the evil Dionysius. This would be a disaster for the people of Syracuse and Diónia who are fighting against Dionysius! "
"Dionysius is the cause of war. The people of Dionysia and Syracuse, who yearn for peace, do not want him to wield power and start a war. I brought my troops here for only one purpose — to expel him from Syracuse. As for what to do next, we will listen to your opinion." Antonios pointed out the hidden meaning behind Herollis's words. Not only did he not care, but he also answered seriously, "Dionysius is the cause of war. The people of Dionysia and Syracuse who yearn for peace do not want him to wield power and start a war.
Antonios' low profile allowed Hercules and the rest to heave a sigh of relief, so Hercules' response was much more straightforward. "General, I hope that you can lead your troops and help us recapture the main city that Dionysius has occupied."
Antonios immediately agreed to Hercules' request. After letting the soldiers rest for a while, he immediately set off towards the southeast of the city.
In fact, Dionysius had already led the mercenaries to retreat towards Ortygia Island. When he saw the Syracuse soldiers appear, he knew that his troops would not be able to resist them in a short period of time.
He did not expect Dionia's reinforcements to arrive so quickly, and he had been regretting it. Last night, when he learned that Hrolis and the others had defeated his pursuers at the Eppole Highlands, he should not have been busy organizing the slave soldiers and dividing Hrolis's troops for the sake of safety. This had wasted a lot of his precious time. Instead, he should have immediately led all the mercenaries to Eppole, annihilated Hercules and his men, occupied the north wall of Syracuse, and blocked the way for Diónia to move south!
It was too late for regrets now. Dionysius' cautious character had led to his ultimate failure. Seeing that he was about to win, he was regretful to the extreme.
Antonios led his troops forward quickly, and he quickly experienced the vastness of Syracuse. Of course, there were few people. Of course, this had something to do with the fact that Dionysius had transferred a large number of citizens, sailors, and support personnel to Greece. expedition.
It took nearly an hour for the Diónia Coalition Army to reach the main city. The mercenaries who were driving and pillaging the people saw their arrival and hurriedly fled to Ortygia Island.
Hercules and the others who rushed over were crying because the entire square was covered with corpses and injured people. Most of them were the families of the rebel soldiers and the people who had supported them the most.
Antonios led his troops to the isthmus of Ortygia Island. Seeing the towering fortress and the tall, sturdy wall behind it, to prevent too many casualties, he gave up the attack and retreated behind the newly built wall.
… …
The situation in Sparta was just as bleak.
Sparta had been fighting on two sides. Achiledas led the allied forces and mercenaries to continue fighting the Persia in Asia Minor. The war in the Isthmus of Corinth on the Peloponnesus Peninsula lasted for a long time. Although the main force of the war was either the allied forces or mercenaries, Sparta's own citizens suffered many casualties.
The Council of Elders had no choice but to order citizens over the age of 50 to put on armor, take up shields and spears, and serve as patrols in Sparta to prevent the Black Rogues from moving. They even decided to carry out the "Hunt" in advance (that is, to kill the Black Rogues in a planned way to reduce their population and ensure the safety of Sparta).
The dark clouds of war shrouded Sparta, and the people were in a state of high tension.
At this moment, Phoebidas, who had returned to Sparta, met Agesiledas in the king's residence.
The Sparta king, who had made a huge name for himself in Asia Minor, Central Greece, and the Isthmus of Corinth, had long won the respect of Sparta's citizens. Some even called him "the hero of Sparta after Lysander." At this moment, he looked a little tired. He leaned against the wooden chair, straightened his right leg, and bent his lame left leg. This was his habit, so no one could see the problem with his left leg. He leaned forward and listened attentively to Phoebidas's experience in the Western Mediterranean with Dionysius.
The wooden chairs the two sat on were next to each other, which showed how much he valued Phoebidas. Although there was no feast of fruits and wine (Phoebidas often enjoyed such treatment in Syracuse), this simple environment made Phoebidas feel more at ease.
Phoebidas tried to narrate the entire process of the Great Hellenic War from a neutral point of view. He then picked up the crude clay pot beside him. The pot was filled with cool river water. He took a big gulp and immediately felt his parched throat moisturized.
Agesiledas recalled Phoebidas's narration and imagined thousands of soldiers from both sides fighting one war after another on the land of Great Hellenic War. He could not help but let out a long sigh. "I didn't expect the huge Great Hellenic War to end in less than half a year, and the result was completely beyond our expectations!"
"That's right. Who would've thought that the puny Dionia would emerge as the final victor!" Phoebidas was also emotional. After all, when Syracuse's army landed in Great Hellenic War, they were unstoppable. At that time, the elders of Sparta were probably worried that Syracuse would win too easily, including Phoebidas himself. Who knew that the result would be the opposite? Many Sparta people's jaws probably dropped.
"According to your judgment, can Syracuse still turn the tables?" Agesiledas asked with a hint of hope. After all, Syracuse was Sparta's ally for many years. Its defeat would mean the collapse of Sparta's original strategy in the Western Mediterranean Sea. It might lead to a complete change in Sparta's foreign strategy. Agesiledas had to be careful.
"It's basically impossible." Phoebidas answered directly. Then, he hesitated for a moment and said, "Unless … the gods bless us and let the Dionysian Army spread the plague …"
In the eyes of outsiders, during the years when Dionysius was the overlord, Carthage's army had besieged Syracuse twice (the first time was not long after Dionysius became the general, around 406 BC). In the end, the Carthage's army was infected with the plague, and they were defeated in the end. This gave outsiders the impression that Dionysius was also blessed by the gods. However, in reality, there was a large swamp area south of Syracuse's port area near the Anapus River. Every time Carthage's army set up camp in this area, a large number of mosquitoes would find many hosts for the bacteria to spread.
For the Dionysian Army, the possibility of a plague was extremely low. This was because the "Military Law of Diónia" required that the army was not allowed to set up camp near the mosquito breeding grounds. After a battle, the corpses of both sides had to be cremated and buried in time. The soldiers had to drink the water after it was boiled. Moreover, the supply camp carried lime (produced from the Turií stone mine). After the camp was set up, the dirty places in and around the camp had to be disinfected …
The Devers from his previous life, of course, knew the cause of the plague. After taking so many measures, they basically reduced the possibility of the plague to the lowest.
Agesiledas, of course, did not know this, but a mature commander would never place his hopes on an "unpredictable god". Phoebidas's words had actually sealed the end of the war in Greece.
Agesiledas punched his left leg with a solemn expression and asked, "Do you think Dionysius can defeat the rebels and regain control of Syracuse?"
"It'll be very difficult!" Even though Phoebidas had been with Dionysius for a few months, he had only met the rebels once. He still spoke in a matter-of-fact manner, "Dionysius has lost his powerful, loyal mercenaries and his enormous navy. He has also abandoned the army and become a deserter. Not only has the people of Syracuse abandoned him, but most of his allies in Syracuse have also abandoned him. Moreover, there are still Diónia's troops stationed in the cities near Syracuse. Dionysius is surrounded by enemies and has no reinforcements unless we, Sparta, send reinforcements to support him! "
"Sparta has no reinforcements to send," Agesiledas said straightforwardly.
This was within Phoebidas's expectations.
"It's a pity. We've supported Dionysius for so many years, but in the end …" Agesiledas let out a long sigh and showed a regretful expression.
"We can support the rebels in Syracuse instead. Their leader promised me that they are willing to let Syracuse ally with us, Sparta, and send reinforcements to us after the war in Greece to help us defeat the allies who rebelled against Sparta."
Phoebidas's words did not make Agesiledas happy. He muttered, "For us, this is a choice that we have no other choice. But … this new regime in Syracuse is probably a democracy. "
Phoebidas recalled the "ten generals" he saw in Syracuse's city hall and nodded. "Should be."
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