Chapter 966
The Devers looked up at the sky, then looked down at the tired but excited faces under the city. He said calmly, "Everyone, you have worked hard! Please follow the rules of the Diónia Military Law regarding the construction of camps during wartime. Half of the soldiers from each legion are responsible for the defense on the mountain, and the other half, under the command of the engineers, will speed up the construction of the camps. Go and execute it. "
The order of the Devers was far from their expectations. Amyntas, Matonis, and the others were slightly disappointed, but they still responded loudly, "Yes!"
Watching the generals go away, the Devers thought of something again. He looked around and asked, "Where is Tormid?"
"Your Majesty, he has rushed to supervise the construction of the camps," Printos replied.
"Go and find Tormid immediately. Ask him to inform the commanders of the legion to allocate some soldiers and the engineering battalion to repair the original port of Minoa as soon as possible so that the Sicilian fleet can be stationed there. I will leave this matter to you."
"Yes, Your Majesty!" Printos accepted the order and left.
The Devers turned back and continued to stare down the mountain.
At this time, a large number of Carthage infantry were arriving at the west bank of the Pletani River. The Carthage cavalry that had gathered on the riverbank had retreated to the rear on both sides, giving way to the front. All the soldiers were lined up along the riverbank, gradually forming the embryonic form of a military formation …
The Devers's eyes finally focused on a group of generals on horseback in front of the Carthage infantry phalanx on the west bank of the Pletani River. In the middle, there was a general wearing a golden helmet without a tassel, a golden breastplate, a dark red armor skirt, and a blue cloak. He pointed to the hill and said something. The people around him gathered around to listen.
The Devers looked solemn and whispered, "Brother Mara …"
The person the Devers saw was indeed Brother Mara. At this time, he was squinting at the mountain: Diónia soldiers were constantly emerging from the ruins of Minoa, forming a line of defense …
"Sir, the people of Diónia don't seem to have any intention of fighting us." One of the generals made a judgment.
"If it were me, I wouldn't have ordered the soldiers to fight right after marching," another general reminded him.
Brother Mara raised his eyebrows and said nothing.
It was only when he saw that the Diónia soldiers not only had no intention of descending the mountain, but had even begun to set up a redoubt in front of their defensive formation that he had no choice but to issue an order, "Leave the cavalry to continue to monitor the enemy's movements, and be careful of any sudden attacks! Lead the soldiers to build the camp! "
… …
While the Devers led the army westward along the south coast, the Dionysian Army, with Legio III as the main force, did not rest for long after entering Agilion. On the second day, the newly formed Sikere Army took the lead and continued westward.
Strangely, they didn't see any Sikaer tribes along the way, nor were they attacked. Two days later, the army successfully arrived at the central city of Sicily — Enna.
It was another empty city.
Lizaru and Epictetus, who had been through many battles for a long time, did not feel happy. Instead, they became more cautious and sent more scouts and Sikaer warriors to investigate the enemy's movements.
A day later, Lizaru received news that a large number of Carthage soldiers and some Sikaer warriors had gathered near the city of Kefaloition. The preliminary estimate was that the number of soldiers was more than 30,000.
Lizaru might seem rough, but he was actually meticulous. Whether it was leading Legio III alone to defeat the Cautini in Campania, or attacking Rome from the bridge to the city of Rome while splitting up his troops to defeat the reinforcements from the north, these battles undoubtedly reflected this characteristic of his. This was the first time he had served as the temporary commander of several legions. After entering this unfamiliar mountainous area, he became quite cautious. After receiving this news, he immediately discussed with Epictetus and Creyru, and finally decided that the army would continue to stay in Enna until the detailed deployment of the enemy forces in the west was clear, and this news would be reported to His Majesty the Devers in the south coast.
… …
Although it was already the beginning of November, the sun was still scorching at noon by the Minoa Sea.
The Devers and a few high-ranking generals of the army stood by the temporarily repaired port, enduring the scorching sun, patiently waiting for a large fleet to enter the port.
As the passenger ships docked one by one, countless soldiers boarded the pier. The deserted harbor suddenly became lively.
"Your Majesty, they're here," Heniboris reminded softly.
"Let's go and welcome the hero who conquered the Samonai!" The Devers smiled and walked forward with large strides.
The others followed closely behind.
"Your Majesty!" Alexis also walked in front of the Devers and solemnly saluted.
"You've worked hard!" The Devers looked at him with unusual emotion. After returning the military salute, they even took the initiative to give this general, who had made many contributions, a strong hug.
"Alexis, you're a little slow. We're only missing you!" Amyntas' mood was a little complicated, but this did not affect the friendship between him and his old comrade. He also gave her a warm hug.
Then, Matonis, Olivers, Trotiras, and the other generals greeted him one by one.
"Your Majesty, Commander Melisande of the Tenth Legion reporting for duty!" Melisande nimbly saluted, his voice unusually loud.
The smile on the Devers' face became even brighter. "Oh, Melisande, you've performed very well in the previous battle! I believe your parents will be very proud of you after seeing the battle report! Have you returned home after the battle with the Samonai? "
"Not yet."
"Then, win more contributions in the upcoming battle with Carthage and return home full of glory." The Devers patted his shoulder and encouraged him.
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
Then, Melisande braced himself to greet the other generals. Most of the generals present were his stepfather Felicius's comrades. When they spoke to him with the tone of an elder, he always felt a little awkward.
Another person walked up and bowed to the Devers in a special manner. "Greetings, Your Majesty, Your Majesty!"
"Great Leader Boret, I didn't expect you to personally lead the troops here. Thank you so much!" The Devers hurriedly helped him up and said with joy and gratitude.
"For more than ten years, Bothtia has always been under the protection of Diónia. With Your Majesty's generous assistance, the tribes of Potentia have survived many difficult times. We have always regretted not having the chance to repay this great kindness. Now that we have this opportunity, of course, we must do our best!"
Boret's words were spoken with sincerity. The Devers listened and nodded, but then smiled and corrected him. "Diónia and Potentia have long been a family. Let's not talk about kindness and gratitude like outsiders. Let us continue to fight side by side like brothers."
"Yes! Yes! "Boret nodded repeatedly in response.
The Devers turned his gaze to another person next to him. "You are … Leader Tadoni of the Abenilum?"
"You still remember me?!" Tadoni was a little surprised.
"For the past few years, you have led the Abenilum team to participate in the Hades Celebration in Turií. How could I not remember?" The Devers smiled and said seriously, "This time, it was thanks to the great help of the Abenilum that we, Diónia, finally won the Samonese War!"
"You don't have to be so polite. We are already a family, aren't we?" Tadoni replied straightforwardly.
The Devers was stunned for a moment, then laughed and said, "Yes! You are very right! It was a slip of the tongue! I will drink a glass of wine as punishment at the banquet later! "
Then, the Devers met with the leaders of the reinforcements of Caudini, Pentney, and Caraceni.
Then, the Devers made an exception and held a simple banquet in the main tent of the camp to welcome the reinforcements of Potentia and Samonese. The whole atmosphere was quite warm.
When the banquet was over, the guards removed the leftovers, then placed the map of Sicily in the center of the main tent, and began the military meeting.
Tormid, the staff officer of the Ministry of Military Affairs, stood in front of the map with a wooden stick in his hand. He first bowed slightly to the Devers, and the Devers nodded to him. He turned to face the crowd and said, "Everyone, His Majesty asked me to first tell you about the current situation between us and the enemy in Sicily … In Minoa, where we are, we have gathered the First Legion, the Second Legion, Legio IV, Legio VI, the Rome Reserve Brigade, the First, Second, and Third Cavalry Legions of nearly 50,000 people. Now, we have the Tenth Legion, the reinforcements of Botentia, and the reinforcements of Samonese, a total of 16,000 people, for a total of 66,000 people. In the lowlands west of Minoa City, the army led by Carthage's military commander, Margo, has built a camp there. According to the information detected by the scouts and sentries in the past two days, there are about 60,000 infantrymen and more than 7,000 cavalrymen there — "
"More than 7,000 cavalrymen?!" Melisande exclaimed. He immediately realized his impoliteness and cast an apologetic look at Tormid.
Tolmid took over the conversation and said, "Yes, the Carthaginians have a lot of cavalry, and they are very strong. This is why the Carthaginians have been setting up a battle formation at the foot of the mountain, wanting to fight with us. However, His Majesty has always avoided fighting them at this time."
As he spoke, Tormid pointed the wooden stick at a town icon not far north of Minoa City on the map. "This is the town of Sikere — Kafaloytian. According to the information reported by the scouts in the mountains, there are more than 30,000 Carthage – Sikere allied troops stationed there. Our Legio III, the Lucaria Reserve Brigade, and the Sikere warriors, a total of 20,000 people, have occupied Enna and are confronting them. "
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