The Rise Of An Empire In Ancient Europe

"We'll just have to wait and see," Davos said with a lighthearted smile, completely unconcerned with Lysias's threats. "But I warn you, next time you come, the terms I offer won't be as favorable as they are now! Also, I want to remind you that Crotone's enemies aren't limited to Dionysia... If the war continues, who knows what will happen?"

Lysias was shocked by this.

By noon, the first grain caravan arrived at the camp.

Davos breathed a sigh of relief. It also brought a letter from Cunogorata, stating that Locri's envoy had arrived at Thurii and proposed to the Senate that Locri form an alliance with Dionysia to jointly resist Crotone. The Senate, citing the consul's absence, had not yet responded. The envoy, exhausted from the journey and suffering from a high fever, was hospitalized and unable to travel directly south to find Davos.

Cunogorata put forward his opinion at the end of the letter:"Regardless of whether the Archon has the confidence to resolve Crotone independently, please be sure to consider that the city-state of Locri is second only to Crotone in strength, and it has the strong support of Syracuse. Eliminating or severely weakening Crotone, which will allow Locri to take the opportunity to annex Crotone's allies, will create a more powerful enemy for Dionysia..."

Davos read it over and over again, and then picked up another letter. This was a secret letter from Aristiras, delivered to Davos through a special channel. The letter mainly mentioned some of the things that happened in the city of Thurii in the past few days, including the arrival of the Locri envoy. It also mentioned events surrounding Dionysia. For example, after Diomirus, the Archon of Tarantum, led his army to capture Manduria, he ordered Archytas to attack the city of Bryndesi, where he continued to engage in fierce fighting with the Messapiens. Potentia was rallying the surrounding tribes, apparently preparing to march south to attack Grumentum.

The last piece of news caught Davos's attention: Syracuse's General Dionysius was leading 80,000 infantry, 4,000 cavalry, and 400 warships to attack Carthage. Including the wars in Dionysia and Crotone, the entire Greek world of the western Mediterranean was ablaze with war at the beginning of the year.

"80,000 infantry, 4,000 cavalry, and 400 warships?!" Davos's eyes widened as he carefully examined the figures on the letter. Although he had known Syracuse was the foremost Greek power in the western Mediterranean, the sheer might it displayed at that moment still struck Davos with a shudder. After all, Syracuse was located on the island of Sicily, not far from Thuriiko, only a two- or three-day boat ride away. Furthermore, when Hieron, the brother of Diron, the dictator who had brought Syracuse to prominence decades earlier, succeeded him as tyrant, he had already meddled in the internal affairs of other city-states in Magna Graecia—a fact that made Davos wary.

He once again picked up Cunogorata's letter, carefully rereading it, then pondered for a long time...

Upon returning to Crimea, Lysias naturally discussed his meeting with Davos, the Dionysian governor, with Myron. Myron was furious that the Dionysians had dared to demand such harsh peace terms from Crotone, yet also felt a deep sense of guilt.

All morning, Myron spent time on the city walls observing the Dionysian camp, pondering how to defeat the enemy. On both the south and north banks, the Dionysian soldiers continued to build their camps and push their defensive lines forward. Trenches, stakes, traps, and more were laid at intervals, creating the impression that it wasn't the Crotonians who were attacking Crimea, but rather the Dionysians.

Myron sometimes wondered: What tricks did the Dionysian commanders use to keep these aggressive, demanding citizen-soldiers willingly doing this hard, dirty work? The Crotonians would have quit and revolted long ago.

At noon, Askamas, commander of the Crotonian fleet, arrived at Crimea's harbor. Myron was finally excited. Askamas, one of Croton's ten generals, was also a close friend and a leading figure in the radical faction. Myron was confident he would approve of his plan and lend a hand.

After seeing Askamas off and receiving his approval, Myron finally breathed a sigh of relief. He was just about to lie down and rest when a guard arrived to report:

"There's been some enemy activity outside the north gate."

Previously, the Dionysian soldiers had been working a few hundred meters from the north gate, but now they had suddenly advanced within a hundred meters. They began leveling and compacting the ground, creating a large, flat area just out of range of the Crotone light infantry atop the city walls. Meanwhile, heavily armed light and heavy infantry flanked them to prevent the defenders from forcing their way out of the city.

In this era, catapults hadn't yet been invented, and with the moat and walls at such a distance, it was impossible for the Crimean city to pose any threat. Therefore, the Crotone soldiers, watching from the walls, looked on curiously, unfazed.

Myron, already somewhat exhausted, was also watching all this, eager to understand: What exactly were the Dionysians up to?

The Dionysian soldiers began carrying four- and five-meter-long tree trunks, placing them at the edge of the flat area. They hammered each trunk into the soil at intervals, connecting and securing them with ropes. Soon, they had built a wooden frame about 30 meters long and 5 meters wide.

"Don't tell me the Dionysians want to build houses here. Aren't they afraid we'll burn them down?" a Crotone soldier quipped, immediately drawing laughter.

Then, the Dionysians, one by one, carried heavy sacks and placed them neatly on the edge of the wooden frame, stacking them carefully...

"Hahaha... I think the Dionysians don't just want to build houses, they also want to make bread!" another Crotone soldier joked, pointing at the sacks of grain and flour. More laughter followed.

Thousands of Dionysian soldiers were working, and in a flash, they had erected a wall made of sacks. The wall's height quickly reached the same level as the Crimean wall, and it continued to rise.

Seeing this, Myron's face darkened. His lieutenant beside him shouted:"Oh no! The enemy is building a high wall to attack us!"

The Crotone soldiers, who had been watching casually, suddenly understood and began to panic. The Dionysian light infantry included many powerful slingers with long range. Now, with this cleverly constructed platform nearly two meters higher than the four-meter-high Crimean wall, their light infantry could rain down arrows and stones with devastating effect.

If the enemy attacked, their slingers and archers could stand on this high platform and suppress the defenders, forcing them to evade rather than focus on defense.

Myron was sweating profusely. This platform must be destroyed! But he also knew the enemy would defend it fiercely, so he decided to set the time for a surprise attack in the evening.

Soon, however, he saw the Dionysians begin digging trenches around the platform and filling the center with soil.

Myron was nearly driven mad: the Dionysians were simply rats, always digging holes to save their lives!

By dusk, the Dionysians had built a small camp around the high wall. Myron finally abandoned the decision to launch a surprise attack. He didn't want to waste his soldiers' lives on a hopeless operation, and he already had a hint of retreat in his heart.

The next morning, the bugle blasted from the North Camp of Dionysia. Soldiers from various companies of the Second Legion carried ladders and formed small squares, lining up in a fish-scale formation a hundred meters from the city walls.

Davos stepped onto the earthen ramp and stood on the platform for the first time. He subconsciously stomped his feet twice, finding it relatively stable.

The idea of building a platform had come to him since he first saw Crimea. The three-meter-high walls were too low. However, building an earthen ramp taller than the walls was difficult because it was prone to collapse. Fortunately, the engineers had come up with a clever solution: using tree trunks and ropes as a frame, supported by sacks of earth, and then filling it with soil—a quick and sturdy solution.

From his vantage point, Davos had a clear view of Crimea's northern walls. Seeing the soldiers stationed there, he asked Epithenes beside him:"Can our archers reach the enemy?"

"Commander, there's absolutely no problem!" Epithenes said confidently.

Davos nodded. "Then attack!"

"Release!" Epithenes commanded, and the archers on the platform launched their first volley of arrows. The slingers, positioned behind them, also began swinging their slings.

The siege had finally begun!

Myron, standing atop the north gate, was now filled with fighting spirit. Facing the volley of arrows and rocks, he shouted:"Defend!"

He had specially assigned heavy infantry to guard the section of the wall facing the platform. They raised their round shields to protect their heads...

On the southern bank of the Crati River, on the Sybari Plain near the sea, stood a newly built village. Aguilas was its mayor—the lowest official in the Dionysian administrative system. According to the newly enacted law, the mayor was elected by the citizens of the village for a one-year term.

However, becoming a village chief was no easy feat. Candidates had to meet several requirements: first, they must be formal citizens of Dionia; second, they must pay taxes on time and have no record of major violations; and finally, those who had served in the military, achieved military merit, and made special contributions to the Dionia Alliance were preferred.