Volume 5: The Hegemon of Southern Italy, Chapter 108: The Fall of Motya

“Cheers!!!” All the guests in the tavern drank the joyful wine.

“Also, the Senate has issued a notice——” The patrolman looked around and said solemnly: “Freemen who have participated in Daonian military training can immediately register at Victory Square. The Ministry of Military Affairs is calling up two thousand freemen to go to Besidia to assist the Army Corps in combat——”

“Why didn’t you say so earlier! Only two thousand slots—they’ll probably be snatched up in no time!”

“Let’s go! Let’s go!” The tavern immediately filled with complaints. After a flurry of activity, most of the diners had already fled.

Dickpolis and Theos looked at each other in bewilderment.

…

At Victory Square at that moment, it was a sea of people.

The Census Department first had to confirm that the registering freemen were indeed those previously registered. Then court staff investigated the archives to ensure they had no record of violating laws or regulations during their residence in Daonia. Next, training camp officers from the Ministry of Military Affairs selected freemen who were physically strong, younger, and had performed diligently in previous training. After passing all these steps, the Census Department confirmed again, added remarks and signatures to their files—this served as the basis for shortening the time it would take them to become preparatory citizens in the future.

With this entire procedure underway, there were hundreds of alliance public officials present, and various files were piled into small mountains. To prevent accidents, they even called in over a thousand Army Corps reserve soldiers, fully armed to maintain order.

In fact, more than ten thousand freemen came to the square, but they largely maintained order—not because they feared the glaring soldiers, but because they knew that even if they weren’t selected this time, there was no shortage of meritorious opportunities in Daonia. For example, the temple under construction in Amendolara lacked labor and was also recruiting freemen; the construction of the Crimissa–Asperustum road was similarly recruiting freemen… For large construction works like these, the alliance provided only three meals a day with very little pay, but they still helped freemen achieve their desire to become Daonian preparatory citizens sooner.

However, if a freeman disrupted the public order of the alliance or violated Daonian law, his path to becoming a Daonian citizen would become extremely difficult, and he might even be expelled from Daonia. Therefore, even if not selected, these freemen at most grumbled a few words under their breath and dared not take any extreme actions. If anyone felt there was unfairness in the selection process, they could appeal to the notary office set up by the Ministry of Supervision on the other side of the square and request a review.

Standing outside the Great Council Chamber of the Senate, watching the bustling scene at Victory Square ahead, Philistos suddenly said: “Actually, I think it would be better to send the Army Corps reserve soldiers to Besidia to assist the Second Army Corps. They have undergone strict training, with little difference from regular Army Corps soldiers. Compared to these freemen, they are more combat-effective and more obedient to orders.”

Mariji beside him retorted: “If you send out all the citizen soldiers, Thurii will be left empty. What do we do if an enemy attacks or a major riot occurs?”

Philistos was momentarily speechless, then said hesitantly: “Aren’t all the cities around Thurii either our own alliance cities or allied states? Where would an attack come from?”

“We can ambush Besidia, so why can’t others ambush Thurii?” Mariji was being specious, but what he really thought was: Philistos is good at military matters, but completely stupid when it comes to politics. Lord Davos is leading the main army away; at home there must always be troops to garrison. Now the members of the Senate are more complicated than before. If someone causes trouble, they must be suppressed immediately.

At this moment, Mesis stood on the same side as Mariji, but his explanation came from a different angle.

“Send reserves?!” He exclaimed loudly: “Easier said than done! Philistos, you need to know that Davos and I spent a lot of effort to prepare grain for this war! Not only have we spent all the silver coins in the treasury, but we also owe a huge debt to the citizens, and that’s enough to support only four Army Corps for four months of campaigning. The grain ration for a reserve soldier is the same as that of an Army Corps soldier—at least three catties of grain and two salted fish per day. But these freemen’s rations are much simpler—just enough to keep them from starving. Philistos, use your head! Don’t think about fighting all day. If there’s no food to fight with, I think you’ll all starve to death!”

Mesis and Philistos were old acquaintances; Philistos understood the fat man’s temperament, so he didn’t take offense but instead humbly accepted the advice.

Behind them, Antaoris was still stunned by the victory news he had heard that morning.

“Antaoris, didn’t you say that the city of Besidia had a geographical advantage and was nearly impossible to capture? But how did the Magistrate capture it so quickly?” Euricpus asked in confusion.

“I don’t know either. The messenger who came back didn’t tell us the details of how Besidia was taken.” Antaoris’s mind still recalled the dangerous scene when he had walked the riverside path. He said helplessly: “Besidia indeed has natural defenses and is very hard to conquer. But our Magistrate is the God-Touched One of Hades, blessed by the Lord of the Underworld. Perhaps no difficulty can stop him. When he returns victorious, you can ask him in detail.”

“It seems the Magistrate is indeed very skilled at commanding citizens in battle. Euricpus, why don’t we apply to join these Daonian Army Corps?” Pleiades suggested.

“I’ve already inquired. The unique legion system created by the Magistrate is very different from ordinary city-state military systems. Each military position promotion has strict assessments. Even if someone is a senator like you or me, but is completely unfamiliar with Daonian legion tactics and formation usage, he still has to start training from recruit training camp…” Euricpus said this with considerable indignation. He thought: as a noble of Crimissa and now a Daonian senator, he was highly dignified. Yet according to Philistos, that mercenary-turned-head of the Ministry of Military Affairs, he would have to sweat and train alongside those poor freemen—how outrageous!

“So what if we train? Are we inferior to those freemen?” Pleiades was quite unconcerned.

Listening to the two arguing, Antaoris sighed with emotion: it seemed not only he had accepted the fact of becoming a Daonian citizen—Pleiades and Euricpus had too. He thought: although he had been a chief general of Crimissa for a few years, a small Bruttian tribe descending the mountains to plunder could give him and the city’s people headaches. But in Daonia, sitting in the Senate discussing matters, one could decide the life or death of the entire Bruttian race! It truly matched the old saying: “The higher you stand, the more scenery you see. Once you get used to fine cuisine, you naturally look down on hard coarse bread.”

On the other side of the platform, Kynogoratas and Cornelius were discussing another issue.

“Taking Besidia—it seems the day we conquer the Bruttii is coming soon!” Cornelius, who had watched Daonia grow from weak to strong over the past two years, couldn’t help but sigh.

Kynogoratas considered the issue more deeply: “Defeating the Bruttians is one thing, but handling them is a big problem!”

Cornelius thought for a moment and said uncertainly: “They should be governed the same way we govern the Lucanians, right?”

Kynogoratas pondered for a moment and said: “The Bruttians are still different from the Lucanians…” He stopped there and shook his head again: how far will the war go? What agreements will be signed? All unpredictable. Considering this now seems too early. However, if the Bruttian region is conquered, Thurii will be completely safe from now on!

On the island of Motya in Sicily, the war continued day after day in the same manner. The Motyans were a nation in arms; despite heavy casualties, they still did not yield. The Syracusans’ attack advanced bit by bit, though at great cost, they had not yet captured the whole city.

As time passed, Dionysius grew more and more irritable. He even executed two of his personal guards on the flimsiest pretexts.

Finally, he realized that a frontal assault on Motya was not a good strategy. Accepting the suggestion of former mercenary commander Masias, he decided to organize a suicide squad to quietly climb into the area defended by the Motyans under cover of night.

Fortunately, his gamble succeeded. The suicide squad opened the city gates, letting the main Syracusan force rush into the city. After a brief but fierce battle, the Motyans’ resistance was finally crushed.

At that moment, the Greek soldiers had no desire to seize loot. Too many comrades had died in the previous battles; they only wanted revenge. Moreover, they vividly remembered the atrocities of the Carthaginian general Hannibal (not the Hannibal of Roman times; there were many generals named Hannibal in different periods of Carthage; this one was also famous, the head of the Magonid family) in Himera ten years ago. They resolved to be as ruthless as the Carthaginians had been toward Greek cities, and so the massacre began.

After a full day of slaughter, Dionysius finally stopped it—not out of mercy, but because he thought dead captives were worthless. So the victors turned from the pleasure of killing to looting. They stripped the Carthaginian city of everything valuable and sold all captives into slavery.

Dionysius left a detachment to garrison this corpse-strewn empty city, and another detachment to continue besieging Segesta. He led the main army back to Syracuse. At this time, the Carthaginian forces in Sicily were reduced to a few coastal cities in the northwest corner, such as Eryx, Solus, and Panormus. It was not that he didn’t want to completely eliminate the remaining Carthaginians on Sicily, but the grain he had prepared for the army was almost exhausted, and it was already October—winter was approaching. He decided to return to the city for the winter and deal with Segesta next spring.

The fall of Motya was a great honor for Dionysius—it was an unprecedented great victory in the history of Greek city-states on Sicily. But for the Carthaginians, it was the greatest blow. Losing Motya meant that Carthage city on the African continent would directly face the Greek forces on Sicily, posing a severe threat to its security.