ancient greece mediterranean ruler

Chapter 954 Marching into Western Sicily

"I was very happy after receiving the order from Lord Siplos in Herna!" Brelu said sincerely: "Lord Lizaru, Lord Epithenes, you don't know that the Carthaginians took Sikel The tribe has suffered a lot! Your arrival gives us a chance to revenge on the Carthaginians! Everyone has been looking forward to your arrival!" Crelu said, pointing to the Sikel soldiers following him in the rear. Everyone looked eagerly at the Dionysian marching troops with their flags fluttering, their military uniforms neat and majestic.

The two legion commanders were also looking at the auxiliary troops recruited by Kereru: most of them were Sikel light infantry wearing short-sleeved singles and holding javelins. There were also a small number of people holding leather shields and spears and wearing A light armored soldier wearing black leather helmet.

Seeing that the two legion commanders were confused about the attire of these light armored soldiers, Crelu explained: "They are all Sikel citizens who have joined the kingdom in recent years. They are also recruited to participate in military training at the Katanai military camp. He is considered a reserve soldier of the legion."

"How many people do you have?" Lizaru asked directly.

"There are a total of 4700 people, 780 of whom have become citizens of Dionia, and the others are all ethnic groups of various tribes." Crelu replied.

Lizaru and Epithenis looked at each other, with a smile on their faces.King Davos had previously asked Kreru to summon the Sikelians to assist them in fighting, but they did not expect that Kreru would summon so many soldiers, including the full Third Legion and the Lucania Reserve Corps. 16 men, plus nearly 000 additional Roman soldiers who were incorporated into the legions, adding up to a total strength of 1000 men.

For them, this was already a huge number, giving them full confidence in defeating their enemies in the mountains.

"Two legion commanders, it's getting late. Let's get the soldiers into the city quickly." Keluru reminded.

"I think it's better to camp outside the city. We have two legions. I'm afraid this city won't be able to live there." Epithenes shook his head and said. When he saw the city from a distance, he had been in Observation, although Agilion was once the central town of the Sikel people, the city wall is not too high, and it is still made of wood. It seems that the area is not too large. Considering that there are still residents in the city, this suggestion is made.

Unexpectedly, Brelu said bitterly: "You don't know that when the Carthaginians retreated, they forced the Sikel tribe in and around the city of Agilion to follow them to the west. Anyone who resisted was cut down by them. Head...Agilion is now an empty city, and there are enough empty houses in the city to house the soldiers..."

No wonder these Sikel warriors have such eager eyes!Epithenes once again glanced at the soldiers standing behind Crelu. He thought this was a good thing, because hatred would bring strength to people. When these Sikel soldiers fought against the Carthaginians in the future, they would definitely use all their strength. go.

"Do you know where the Carthaginians have retreated to?" Lizaru was more concerned about the movements of the Carthaginian army.

"According to some West Kel tribes, the Carthaginians retreated to Enna. What is the specific situation? I have just summoned the army and have not conducted more detailed investigation." Crelu explained.

"Pick out ten Xikel warriors from your team who are very familiar with the mountainous terrain and lead our reconnaissance team to find out the details of the enemy as soon as possible so that we can formulate an attack plan as soon as possible." Lizaru immediately told Clay Lu made a request, and he also said to Epithenis: "We should not rely too much on Izam. He has to serve His Majesty first, and then there will be a delay when he relays the information to us. It is better for us to obtain the information ourselves. Comes faster."

Epithenes nodded in agreement, and said, "Let's advance to the city. The soldiers have been marching for a long time, and it's time to rest."

"Enter the city!" Lizaru waved back.

Standing at the forefront of the marching column, the flag bearer of the third army waved the banner of the army and led the soldiers into the gate of Agilion.

The Sikel warriors standing at the head of the city and on both sides of the road expressed their welcome in their own way.

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Later, an army led by Davos arrived in Jera.

This famous Greek city-state on the south coast has now been burned to ruins by the Carthaginians. This was Mago's idea. Even if he led the army to evacuate, he did not want the Dionians to use these empty cities.

Not only did Jela suffer this tragic fate, but Ekonum, Agrigento, and Minoa also did not escape the same fate. Only Agilion was an exception. Cornis's request, after all, Agilion is the town where his fathers lived, and he also looks forward to the future when the Carthaginians drive away the Dionians, and he will re-use Agilion as the royal city of the West Kells. Of course he didn't want it to be destroyed, and it wouldn't be conducive to establishing his prestige among other West Kel tribes.

In order to continue to have the allegiance of Arconis, the Carthaginians agreed to his request.

Davos already knew about the destruction of Gela in advance, but because the Carthaginians retreated in a hurry and did not patiently and thoroughly destroy the city after burning it, the walls of Gela still stood relatively intact. .

Yesterday, Davos had ordered Sekerian to send ten warships to land here, and the crews carried out a relatively thorough cleaning and simple repairs to the entire city.Therefore, although it was already dusk when Davos led the army to arrive, the already tired legionnaires did not need to build camps anymore and entered the city directly. They each entered the assigned area, set up their tents, and rested.

Moreover, Davers learned from the news constantly sent back by the Mountain Reconnaissance Brigade: There are no traces of the Carthaginian army within a few dozen miles, and the only city of Camanlina that may be hostile has only more than 1000 troops stationed in it. Syracuse soldiers cannot pose a threat to the Dionysian army.

However, Davers still reminded the commanders of each regiment to strictly follow the requirements for camping in enemy-occupied areas during wartime, arrange necessary defensive facilities, and arrange sentries and patrols to prevent enemy night attacks.

And on this day, after Alexis, the commander of the Apulian theater, completed the defense deployment of the area he was responsible for (letting the No. 11 Legion to guard the Dauni area to deter the recently surrendered Samnites, and at the same time prevent In the event of an attack on the other side of the Adriatic, the Ninth Army will be responsible for the defense of Meshapi and Pucetti areas at the same time), leading the fully replenished Tenth Army and the Third Cavalry Army, as well as Four reserve groups, with a total of nearly 4 people, boarded ships at the port of Tarantum and sailed to Sicily.

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The war lasted for almost a year, and there were many casualties among Dionian citizens. Even the Turiyi region, with a population of nearly 30, was greatly affected. After all, it provides the first and second legions. The source of troops, and these two legions were the main force in the battle, and the casualties were always high. After a while, a batch of urns of dead soldiers and seriously injured soldiers were transported to the port by passenger ships.

At this time, people in Turiyi Region are most afraid of being visited by officials from the Household Registration Department, because that means that their relatives have left them.

The Ministry of Military Affairs will notify the next batch of citizens according to the roster to be ready and be drafted at any time. Their families are no longer as full of hope as at the beginning of the war that their loved ones will repeatedly make military exploits and win rewards and honors, and begin to become uneasy. .

The number of people wearing black veils began to increase inside and outside the city, and cries echoed on the Subali Plain from time to time. There was an endless stream of people going to various Hades temples every day: there were people praying for the souls of their relatives who died in the war to be able to Some arrived at the Elysee Paradise safely, some prayed that their relatives who were still fighting could return home safely, and some prayed that the war could end as soon as possible...

The priests of Hades are also very busy. Not only do they have to conduct grand ashes placement ceremonies for these citizens who sacrificed their lives for the country, they also have to comfort the grieving relatives and solemnly assure them that the Elysee Paradise is the home of these heroic warriors. The final destination of the soul!
More often, they used divination and oracles to comfort the restless people.

The trade in several markets inside and outside the city began to decline significantly, mainly because the relatives of the deceased apparently did not have a strong desire to consume in a short period of time. This is of course also related to Dionia's funeral culture.

Although due to the strength of the Dionia Navy, the sea routes are basically kept smooth, but the downturn in the market also directly affects the prosperity of the port, and the reduction of merchant ships arriving at the port directly affects the income of the people in the port. It affects their purchasing power and leads to the weakening of consumption ability... This is a vicious cycle caused by war.

The only good thing is that there has just been a bumper harvest this year, and people have enough food surplus at home, so the fluctuations in food prices on the market have little impact on them.

Only two markets became more prosperous at this time.

One is the weapons and iron market.Since the army achieved final victory in several battlefields, most of the weapons seized were sold to domestic arms merchants at low prices. The merchants sold them directly or sold them after being cast and manufactured, and the prices were lower than usual.In order to establish meritorious service and achieve better development in the kingdom in the future, most Dionian citizens will purchase some weapons and equipment as backup when going to the battlefield.

Another one is the slave market.Among the prisoners captured by the Dionian army, a small number were not released in the end for various reasons, such as crossing the Adriatic Sea by boat and attacking the former Messape, Pucetti, Soldiers recruited by Downey's fugitives...these slaves were eventually resold to slave traders.

　Thanks to Sniper No. 11 for the tip!Your support is my motivation to write! !

　　
　
(End of this chapter)