Chapter 800
But the Rome's reinforcements soon tasted the pain of the curved wall they had built. They could not speed up.
Seeing this, the Dionian soldiers on the walls urged their comrades to hurry up and ascend the walls.
The 6th Corp's Light Armored Brigade's Captain, Kaerkus, came from Siletina. He wasn't an immigrant, but a native of Siletina. More than a decade ago, he was still an ordinary citizen of Siletina. He participated in the Battle of the Ramato River, but he was fortunate not to escape back to Siletina. Instead, he escaped to Crotone and survived the Southern Italian War. After that, he became a citizen of Dionysia and one of the most hardworking soldiers in the 6th Corp's military camp.
After being promoted to captain, he wrote to the Ministry of Military Affairs several times, requesting to be transferred to the Eighth Legion. However, the Ministry of Military Affairs never agreed. They were worried that the general, who had a deep hatred for the people of Syracuse, would have a conflict with the people of Syracuse after he went to Sicily.
As the commander of the raid, he was not worried when he saw the Rome soldiers attacking from both sides. He immediately ordered the soldiers on the wall to send two teams to form a dense formation and block the walkways on both sides of the wall.
The walkways on the wall of Rome were not wide, so Scipio The Great was able to successfully block the Diónia soldiers who passed through the siege tower and went up to the top of the wall. Now, Caerkus was also using this method to buy time for the follow-up troops to go up the wall. It was really an eye for an eye.
Even if more than a thousand soldiers from the Light Armor Brigade and the Mountain Reconnaissance Brigade came up, Caerkus was not going to attack from the wall. The walkways were narrow and long, and it would take a long time to break through the enemy's defense line. He had a better choice, because there was a stone staircase in front of him that led to the city.
It was precisely because the southeast corner was remote that Rome built a ramp here to make it convenient for the soldiers to arrive quickly. However, they did not expect that it would become a fatal weakness for the enemy.
Marcus and Barbus quickly realized this problem, but the First Legion and Legio VI's attacks had become more urgent during this period. It was obvious that they were cooperating with the sneak attack of this unit, so they had no more troops to send.
Barbus had no choice but to send someone to Scipio The Great for help.
At this time, the exhausted Rome soldiers who had been fighting for a long time were motivated by the belief of 'protecting their homeland'. They walked along the wall and headed towards the southeast corner in an aggressive manner.
But the Diónia soldiers, who were arranged in a dense formation and had been conserving their strength, were like two boulders blocking their way.
The other Diónia soldiers went up the wall very quickly, not only because of the 30 rope hooks, but also because the soldiers brought more ropes. After going up the wall, they untied the ropes from their bodies, tied them to the battlements, or pulled them with their hands, and hung them under the wall. Nearly a hundred soldiers climbed up the wall at a time, and soon, the southeast corner was filled with the densely packed Diónia soldiers.
Under Caerkus's order, a thousand light armored soldiers and scouts quickly stepped down the stone stairs and finally entered the city of Rome.
There were three routes of attack in front of them: the first route was to go north along the northeast wall, close to Monte Quirino, to support the First Legion, or to attack the center of Rome, the Senate. However, this route was long and narrow, and it was easy to be intercepted. The second route was to go northwest, through the road between Monte Quirino and Monte Vermina, and go straight to the center of Rome. However, the road was also narrow, and it was easy to be intercepted. Without understanding the situation inside the city, it was taboo to go deep into the city alone. The third route was the choice of Caerkus, which was to go west along the south wall and help Legio VI defeat the defenders in front of them.
In fact, not far from the stone stairs was one of the gates of Rome, the Porta Quirino, but the whole gate was filled with stones and mud. The walls of Rome were winding, and there were many gates (at least ten). There were not enough soldiers in the city to defend it. Therefore, yesterday, the Senate of Rome decided to mobilize the people to block all the gates to prevent them from becoming a breakthrough point for the enemy.
It would take a lot of time to clean up and open the gates, and time was the most precious for the Dionysian Army entering the city. So Caerkus did not stop and led the troops quickly to the west.
The light armored soldiers and scouts, who had always played a supporting role in the war, rarely took the lead in this important battle. Everyone was very excited and full of energy. It did not take long for them to pass through the Porta Vermina, and they bumped into the elderly, women, and children who were transporting supplies to the defenders on the city wall. The Diónia soldiers were like tigers entering a flock of sheep, easily knocking them down with their leather shields. The rest of the people fled in horror, throwing arrows, javelins, and oil cans on the ground.
When the defenders on the city wall saw this scene, they also shouted in horror, "The enemy! The enemy has entered the city!! … "
There was a great commotion on the city wall. The panicked soldiers could no longer fight with peace of mind. A few soldiers even ignored the dissuasion of their officers and left their defensive positions, wanting to run down the city wall.
At this time, someone shouted, "Reinforcements are here! Reinforcements are here!! … "
Scipio Africanus had urgently sent 300 heavy infantry, which was all he had at the moment.
But this force was not enough to pose a danger to the Dionysian Army entering the city. Caerkus made a prompt decision: let three companies quickly meet the enemy's reinforcements, and the other two companies went up the stone stairs on both sides of the Porta Vermina to attack the defenders on the city wall.
… …
"… The enemy has entered the city! The enemy has entered the city!! " The people in charge of transporting supplies ran back to the square in panic, shouting at the top of their lungs, causing chaos in the square.
The faces of the senators in the square also changed.
"Go and detain them. Don't let them shout and create chaos!" Maruginense was so angry that he immediately ordered the captain of the guards in charge of maintaining the order in the square.
Potitus, who had always been opposing him, did not stop him. He was in favor of using tough means at such a critical moment.
"Could it be that … the enemy has really … attacked?!" Ambrosius' voice trembled as he asked the question that was on everyone's mind.
"… Bring a person here for a detailed interrogation." Potitus looked quite calm, but his hand was shaking slightly with the help of his crutch.
At this time, the messenger sent by Scipio The Great arrived at the square. The cruel truth he spat out made the senators panic.
"Hasn't Scipio The Great already sent reinforcements?! These brave citizens … will definitely be able to kill all the enemies who are lucky enough to rush into the city! " Plennius shouted loudly. He wanted to dispel the fear in his and his colleagues' hearts, but his tone was so unconfident.
"If Scipio The Great was confident that he could defeat the enemy, he wouldn't have sent a messenger to tell us …" Maruginense sighed. He and Scipio The Great were from the same clan, and he had been working hard to guide this outstanding clansman, so he naturally knew him better. "And we don't have any extra soldiers …"
In fact, the senators had been constantly receiving reports from the defenders on the city wall. They knew very well that the situation was very serious. Maruginense's words only tore apart the last bit of hope in their hearts, causing them to fall into a terrible silence.
"Go to Capitoline!" Potitus no longer panicked. He said in a firm tone, "Don't worry, everyone. Just like when the Celts invaded, the Diónia may be able to occupy Rome, but they definitely won't be able to take down our Holy Land! Compared to the last time, the situation this time is more favorable. Camillus is about to lead the army back, and this time, the number of troops is far greater than a decade ago, and they are also better trained! The Diónia will be driven out faster, and victory will ultimately belong to Rome! … "
Potitus' words of reassurance made the elders less panicky.
… …
The people of Rome in the square received instructions from the senators and rushed back to their homes in a panic. They hurriedly packed up their belongings and food, preparing to escape to Capitoline Mountain to take refuge.
When the people living near the embankment rushed back to the street, they saw a horrifying scene. The stone slabs on the street that were used to cover the sewers were lifted up, revealing the dark and smelly sewers. On the street, hundreds of soldiers wearing black leather armor, holding black shields, and short swords were lined up with their backs facing them and facing the Tiber River …
"It's the enemy! They're coming in! " The people of Rome screamed in horror. Some women even fainted from fear.
Lizaru heard the noise behind him. He did not care about the elderly, women, and children at all. He did not even look back. Instead, he pointed the short sword in his hand to the front and shouted in a passionate voice, "Brave warriors of the Mountain Brigade, it's time to make a great contribution. Follow me and kill our way in!"
After that, he was the first to rush to the bridgehead of the Rome Bridge, and the soldiers followed closely behind.
Their shouts of Hades alarmed the Rome soldiers who were engaged in a bitter battle. The fierce attack of the first battalion of the Diónia Legio III was already too much for them to handle. Seeing many soldiers in the same black helmets and armor charging at them aggressively, the morale of these Rome reinforcements, who were mainly made up of slaves, immediately dropped to the bottom. They completely ignored Cassius' order to turn around and defend, and in an instant, they scattered and fled.
Their escape also shook the morale of the Rome soldiers who had been fighting so hard until now.
At the bridgehead, the Diónia soldiers, who were already very tired because of the continuous attacks, heard the shouts of Hades coming from the opposite side. All of them were reinvigorated, and their numb arms seemed to be re-injected with strength. Their attacks regained their fierce momentum again. This was the last straw that broke the camel's back.
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