Chapter 938
When Diónia defeated Rome and forced the southern city-states of Etruria to surrender, the northern city-states were also watching from the sidelines. They were even worried that this southern kingdom, which was stronger than Rome, would become a great threat like the Celts. So when the news of the complete destruction of Rome came, the higher-ups of the northern city-states of Etruria could not sit still. They hurriedly sent messengers to Rome to inquire about Diónia's intentions. Now that they could form an alliance with Diónia, it was exactly what they wanted.
The Devers put down his glass and looked around at the excited messengers. Suddenly, he remembered something and took the opportunity to say, "Consul Catemontalos, the three cities of Antium, Villette, and Saturnicum that were forcibly taken away by the people of Rome last year have been recaptured by us, Diónia. Please go back and inform the exiled Wolsey citizens of these three cities to return as soon as possible and take over their city-states!"
"Uh …" One of the purposes of Catemontalos' visit to Rome this time was to discuss the ownership of these three cities, but he did not expect that the Devers would return these three cities to Wolsey without any request. For a moment, he did not know what to say. After a moment, he said excitedly, "Thank you, Your Majesty, for your selfless help to Wolsey! Thank the people of Diónia for their great help to Wolsey! As far as I know, many of the warriors of Diónia were injured or even killed in order to help us recapture these three cities. For this, the Wolsey Alliance is willing to offer a large amount of wealth to Your Majesty to make up for the loss of Diónia! Although I know that these things cannot fully express the gratitude of the people of Wolsey to Diónia … "
After listening, the Devers said sincerely, "Wolsey and Diónia are allies, and Diónia is fulfilling its obligation as an ally to help you recapture your lost cities. I am very grateful for the gift of the Wolsey Alliance, and I deeply feel the friendship between Wolsey and Diónia! But I think that this batch of resources should be left to the people of Wolsey who have suffered from the war and urgently need to rebuild their homes! "
Hearing this, Katai Montalos was even more moved and was about to say something. Nemeri, who was next to him, suddenly stood up and said, "Your Majesty, we, the Helniki, are also very grateful."
Devers waved his hand and interrupted him with a serious expression, "Nemeri, if you're going to give Diónia any resources, you don't have to say anything. I know that in this war with the Rome, the Helnici have suffered the most losses. Not to mention rebuilding your homes, even food is quite scarce. I'm afraid that even getting through the winter will be a big problem for you! So, I've decided to give you a batch of food to help you get through this difficult time. If you encounter any difficulties in the process of rebuilding your homes, you can come to Rome and ask us for help. The governor of Rome will do his best to help you! "
Nemeli was stunned. He wanted to say something, but the words were stuck in his mouth. He moved his lips and soon began to choke.
Katai Montalos expressed his gratitude in a timely manner. "Merciful King of Diónia! The people of Wolsey thank you! We are extremely honored and proud to be an ally of Diónia! "
Seeing this scene, the other emissaries, who felt the same, also felt relieved. Not only did they greatly lower their guard against the powerful Diónia, but they also thought that if Diónia could treat Wolsey and Helnici like this, then when their own race also became an ally of Diónia, they believed that they would also receive the same treatment!
Thus, the atmosphere of the entire banquet became even more enthusiastic and joyous, and the guests and hosts were all happy.
… …
For a period of time after that, Tapirus was busy negotiating with the emissaries and signing the covenant of alliance. During this period, something else happened.
When Katai Montalos returned to Wolsey and conveyed the words of Devers to the Wolsey Alliance, they began to mobilize the previously exiled Wolsey people to return to their homes.
However, the people of Saturnicum refused to return. The reason was simple: the town was cursed by the demons and had a plague, so it was no longer suitable for them!
Even though the governor of Rome, Asistes, assured the Wolsey emissaries that after a long period of observation by Diónia's doctors, the territory of Saturnicum was already safe and there would be no more plague.
However, most of the people of Saturnicum still refused to go.
After several discussions, considering that the war had caused the Wolsey population to plummet and that the entire Wolsey territory was now sparsely populated, the higher-ups of the Wolsey Alliance finally decided to gift the territories of Villette and Saturnicum to Diónia as a small token of appreciation for the selfless assistance of their ally! (The reason why Villette was added was because the Wolsey people were worried that if it was only Saturnicum, it would be more like an evasion of responsibility and would appear insincere. They did not add Antium because they considered that in the future, Antium would have close ties with the Rome territory of Diónia. As the Wolsey town closest to Rome, Antium would undoubtedly receive great development in both land and sea, so the Wolsey Alliance was somewhat reluctant to give it up.)
… …
While the Devers were entertaining the emissaries of the forces around Rome, Sextus, who had just returned to Rome and had just reunited with his family, strolled to the foot of Capitolin Mountain.
Capitolin Mountain had become the acropolis of Rome because of the temples of Jupiter and Juno, the Lord God of Rome. However, the vast majority of the people of Rome rarely had the opportunity to go up the mountain to worship, and this was also the case for Sextus, who was once a platoon leader in Rome.
However, today, Sextus saw that although there were also soldiers standing guard at the checkpoint leading to the top of the mountain, they no longer prohibited people from going up the mountain. Therefore, the entire mountain path was bustling with people going up and down the mountain.
On his way up the mountain, Sextus met some acquaintances. They greeted him warmly, of course, with envy and flattery. "Hey, Sextus, you're back! I heard that you're going to be a commander. Congratulations! Your father is now an official of Diónia. Your family is really rich now! Please take care of us in the future! "
"Sextus, congratulations on winning the war again. This time, you'll be able to get a lot of land!"
"Sextus, my son, Curtis, you know, although he's not 18 years old yet, he's already stronger than an adult. Can you let him serve in the army in advance?"
…
Sextus was too tired to deal with them. In the end, he had to walk with his head down to avoid being recognized.
When he reached the top of the mountain, he quickly walked to the location of the Temple of Jupiter. The magnificent temple in his memory had disappeared, and what was in front of him was a large, clean, and flat open space paved with marble slabs. It was as if the statues of the gods in the temple were just an illusion and had never existed. Only the cracked black marble could be associated with the tragic fire at the top of the mountain that his father had mentioned.
Sextus originally wanted to come here to pay his respects, but there was not even a trace of the ruins. No wonder people who went up the mountain rarely came here. Instead, they walked to the edge of the cliff and overlooked the panoramic view of the city of Rome.
He looked around in a daze. Suddenly, he saw many people busy at the Temple of Janus, the God of War of Rome, on the other side of the mountain. He could not help but walk over.
As he got closer, he saw that many people were from Rome. They were cleaning up the ruins. There were also a few people from Diónia. They were using tools to measure the ruins and using wooden boards to record and draw.
Among these people, Sextus saw a familiar figure.
"Storo!" he shouted.
Storo turned around and saw him. He nodded in greeting.
Sextus rushed up to him and looked at the young man, who was once known as the youngest and most promising of the Roman civilians, but now looked haggard. He could not help but ask, "You … How have you been recently?"
Storo was silent for a moment and said softly, "I've joined Diónia. There's nothing to worry about …"
"I heard from my father …" Sextus said sincerely. "I'm very sorry about your father and your father-in-law! I hope you won't be too sad! "
Storo smiled bitterly and sighed. "My father was infected with the plague. It was a punishment from Jupiter. No one can be blamed for it. But I heard that he was well treated and taken care of by the doctors of Diónia in the barracks of Saturnicum … "
"That's true!" Sextus interrupted. "Not only your father, but all the soldiers of Rome who were infected with the plague were well treated and taken care of by the doctors of Diónia. That's why many of the infected soldiers of Rome survived!"
"Yes. Even as a son, I could only stay away from my father who was infected with the plague. For this, I am very grateful to the people of Diónia!" Storo said calmly without fear.
"And I heard that my arrogant relative who was infected with the plague has completely recovered after receiving treatment?"
"You're talking about Servius, right? That's right. He has indeed gotten rid of the plague and has basically recovered."
"That's good news. At least my wife's sister doesn't have to stay in my house anymore. I can have some peace now." Storo smiled bitterly. "As for my father-in-law, I've tried to persuade him to surrender many times, but he refused all of them. In the end, I was actually prepared for it …"
Speaking of this, he could not help but recall the importance and care that the great noble of Rome had for him. He could not help but look gloomy. He said in a heavy tone, "It's a pity that his body was burnt to a crisp and could not be identified from the other corpses. They could only be buried in the big tomb next to Mars Square … These days, my wife goes there every day to worship …"
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