Volume 4: The League of Dionia, Chapter 28: Davos's Visit (Part 2)

Compared to the disaster of being imprisoned for half a year, the suffering Scombrus and these Amendolara senators had endured was nothing.

Only the Thurii senators, listening to the various beasts howling in the mountain forests at night and thinking about the insects and ants burrowing in and out of the soil, felt their hair stand on end. But since the magistrate himself was setting the example by sleeping on the ground wrapped in a woolen blanket, they could only reluctantly follow suit. Tossing and turning, unable to sleep, they heard the voice of that Lucanian senator Vespa: "Magistrate, may I ask... after taking Nerulum, does the alliance intend to continue marching north?"

Though his voice was low, it was exceptionally clear in the darkness.

A sleepless Thurii senator couldn't help but say, "Taking Nerulum to prevent the Lucanians from attacking Thurii is enough. Marching further north is impossible. Look, this mountain road is so difficult. Transporting food will become very hard, and we're unfamiliar with the terrain to the north. The mountains are rugged and uneven—our heavy infantry can't deploy, making us easy targets for Lucanian ambushes. I don't want to see... the tragedy of the Thurii army being annihilated by the Lucanians repeat..."

Recognizing the voice, Davos knew it was the Thurii senator Eanilus. His family was famous in Thurii for shipbuilding, once owning two shipyards in the port of Thurii that could skillfully build triremes. Unfortunately, all were destroyed when the Crotonites burned the city. They were now rebuilding the shipyard. One of his younger brothers had died in battle when the Thurii army marched on Laüs.

"Eanilus is right. We don't intend to march north for now. We need to establish a firm foothold in Nerulum, let the Lucanians of Nerulum gradually integrate into the alliance, and allow more Lucanian tribes to the north to recognize our alliance. All of this takes time."

Davos's words made Vespa breathe a sigh of relief. He feared Davos might get carried away and continue north after taking Nerulum, forcing his tribesmen to bear the brunt of the fighting, resulting in heavy losses.

But Eanilus caught the implication in Davos's words: "Magistrate, from what you're saying, do you plan to eventually attack the Lucanian region north of Nerulum?"

"Of course. When the news of our victory reached Thurii earlier, weren't you all clamoring to defeat all the Lucanians? And I recall someone even said we should take Poseidonia!" Davos said with a smile.

"That was me," came another voice. By the campfire light, Davos recognized the speaker as the Thurii senator Massisacus.

Massisacus sat up beside Eanilus and said sheepishly, "That was a momentary impulse. After walking this road today, I realized why the Thurii army was annihilated back then—not just due to the commander's negligence, but also because of the harsh conditions here..." Massisacus's family had grown wealthy through mining. Before Croton's attack on Thurii, they had kept over a thousand mining slaves and contracted a stone quarry from the city-state. After the war, fewer than fifty slaves remained, and they now primarily worked on polishing and carving stone for temples, the Senate Council Chamber, and the Great Square.

Noting that most of the senators had been woken up and were gathering around, Davos spoke earnestly: "What do you mean, a momentary impulse? Why can't we march north and take Poseidonia and Pyxous?! Laüs is merely our ally. We need our own port cities on the western coast. That would make our maritime trade much more convenient and greatly increase our treasury revenue. Pyxous and Poseidonia have good harbors. Due to racial differences, the Lucanians haven't fully utilized them. But our alliance can easily do so. Don't you agree, Senator Eanilus?"

"Yes, Lord Davos. But..." Eanilus hesitated, wondering if he should say that this might be too risky.

Davos had already turned to Vespa: "I've heard there are several small iron mines in the Lucanian region, is that right?"

"Indeed there are. They are mainly located in the mountainous area between Potentia and Grumentum," Vespa said with a hint of pride. "That's why the Lucanians, unlike the Bruttians who can only use crude spears, can also produce armor and short swords."

"Iron mines—and perhaps other minerals too, like copper, tin, lead... waiting to be discovered. Add in timber, furs, livestock, and so on. The Lucanian mountains hold great wealth as well. Don't you think so, Massisacus?" The darkness hid Davos's meaningful faint smile.

"Yes... yes!" Massisacus's voice grew somewhat excited.

"Most importantly, we Magna Graecians love the sea too much. Our cities are all built along the coastline. While that makes it easy to gain maritime wealth, it also makes us vulnerable to attack and difficult to defend. The alliance should push boldly inland, expand our living space, and merge with Lucania. That way, even if a very powerful enemy invades and we cannot hold the coastal cities, we can retreat into the mountains. With the Lucanian citizens as our support, the mountains become our home. We can strike any enemy daring to attack the mountains rashly and eventually defeat the powerful foe!"

After Davos's cautionary words, no one spoke in the darkness. Only rapid breathing could be heard. After a long pause, someone asked, "Magistrate, do you believe a powerful enemy will come to attack our alliance?"

"At this moment, isn't Croton a powerful enemy? A hundred years ago, was Sybaris not strong enough in Magna Graecia? Yet it too invited enemy attacks! In the past, powerful Athens was attacked by the Peloponnesian League! When a city-state grows strong, other cities—either out of fear or because their position is challenged—will inevitably try to hinder its development or even bring it down! This is a world of chaos. We must do everything to strengthen ourselves, or else, like Thurii before, a single defeat in battle can cause its decline..."

Those around, especially the Thurii senators, fell into thought...

"Why don't we attack Grumentum now?! We all know that Grumentum and Pixis just had a battle, with heavy losses on both sides. This is the perfect opportunity to strike!" Scombrus, having accepted Davos's viewpoint, immediately became somewhat aggressive.

"If two brothers in a family are fighting, and an outsider comes in to steal things, what do you think the brothers will do? Continue fighting, or join forces to drive the outsider away first?" Davos countered.

"You mean our attack will cause the Lucanians to unite against us?!" Scombrus quickly realized.

"Yes, very likely!"

"But we've already entered the Lucanians' home!" Protesilaus continued, borrowing the metaphor.

Davos replied calmly: "Yes, but we can tell them, 'We are retaliating because you came and stole from us last time. We'll only take this much and no more. We can also sign an agreement not to steal for a certain period. Having Nerulum is enough for us.' Even if they suspect, they'll choose to believe it, because compared to Greeks who are not very interested in the harsh mountainous region, the threat from their hostile kinsmen is greater. If they lose that war, their entire tribe will be annexed, and their families will become slaves. To defeat their opponent quickly before turning their strength to drive us out, what will they do?"

Protesilaus's eyes lit up, and he exclaimed, "The fighting among them will become even fiercer!"

"Thus, on Lucanian soil, more tribes impoverished by war will appear..." Davos paused, then said apologetically, "Lord Vespa, I hope you can understand."

Vespa shook his head bitterly and said softly, "Tribe-to-tribe warfare here is common."

"Yes, before, these weak tribes had no choice. Now they do. On one side, a large tribe that exploits them harshly for the sake of victory; on the other, the peaceful and stable life in Nerulum. Which they will choose is obvious." Davos earnestly requested Vespa, "To unify Lucania as soon as possible and stop the mutual slaughter in these mountains, I hope that after you arrive in Nerulum, Lord Vespa, you will visit many of those tribes and tell them about the goodwill our alliance has toward the Lucanians. Let them get to know us and be more willing to join us..."

Vespa was silent for a while, then forced out, "I'll try my best."

...

The next day at noon, the group finally emerged from the defile and arrived at the Lao River Fortress.

After carefully inspecting the fortress, Davos praised the soldiers of the Second Battalion's First Company for their diligence in holding the Lao River Fortress and completing the final defensive tasks. He then announced that when his visit to Nerulum concluded and he returned to the fortress, they would accompany him back to Thurii and march at the front of the triumphal procession.

The soldiers cheered in unison.

Upon hearing this, the soldiers of the First Battalion and Hetushu's soldiers muttered in slight resentment: "A bunch of rookies, just lucky. If we hadn't been guarding Thurii..."

Though the First Battalion soldiers grumbled, it didn't stop their northward march.

The terrain now opened up considerably, roughly one to two stadia wide. To the east were mountain ridges, to the west the Lao River. Though the river wasn't wide, most of its banks were steep cliffs, with great differences in water flow and deep, swift currents. It would be difficult for a large force to ford to the other side.

Little Heracleides surveyed the terrain along the way and shook his head with a sigh: "Building a bridge upstream on the Lao River will probably be very difficult!"