Volume 6: The Meeting of Two Heroes, Chapter 23: Reactions from All Sides

Bourkos was unmoved, his expression pained as he said, "I never imagined there would be so many people involved in this illegal land occupation… Honestly, I’m shocked!… And I feel my own negligence all the more! If I don’t resign, the Senate won’t be able to justify itself to the citizens… I also hope the Senate will investigate me to confirm my innocence!"

As Davos listened, his mind churned with thoughts. Years ago, he had known about the corruption of Polyxides and others. He had held back, allowing the problem to fester and involve more people, because on one hand, for Polyxides and his ilk to achieve their goals, they had to buy more slaves and free more slaves—exactly what Davos wanted to see. On the other hand, most of those capable of such dealings were the nobles and wealthy citizens of the various cities; only they had the means and connections to accomplish this. Davos seized the opportunity to round up all those who secretly resisted the laws he had enacted to benefit the common people. So in recent years, it wasn’t that no one had noticed the problem, but that several key public officials under Bourkos had been bribed to cover it up, while Davos himself had quietly suppressed it until now, when the lid was finally lifted. Deep down, he felt guilty toward Bourkos.

"Daddy! Daddy!…" At that moment, the half-closed door suddenly burst open, and little Crotonkatax, now over four years old, ran in. "Come play with me!"

As he spoke, he scrambled onto Davos’s chair.

Davos quickly hugged him, speaking gently, "My little Klo, I’m talking with Uncle right now. I don’t have time at the moment. Go play with your brother Adoris, okay?"

"Brother is reciting poems; he doesn’t have time to play with me. He said if he doesn’t memorize them well, the teacher will make him stand tomorrow… Sister is helping Mom plant flowers. No one pays attention to me!…" Little Klo wrapped his arms around Davos’s neck, whining, "Daddy, will you come play with me, please?"

Bourkos, seeing the usually formidable Chief Magistrate so helpless with his child, was both surprised and moved. He stood up and said, "Lord Davos, you don’t need to persuade me anymore. My mind is made up. I’ll take my leave now."

"Alright." Davos stood up, holding his son in one arm. "I agree to your resignation as Agricultural Affairs Officer, but I won’t allow you to slack off! Now that the alliance has so many affairs to handle, I can’t manage everything alone. You must continue to come and help me!"

Bourkos was silent for a moment before saying, "I’ll think about it…"

"Don’t think about it. You are a senator of Daonia—it’s your duty! When this matter is over, you’ll go serve on the Alliance Public Officials Management Committee!" Davos said with an assertive tone that left no room for refusal.

Bourkos neither agreed nor refused. At the door, he hesitated and asked, "How will the Senate deal with Polyxides?"

He asked about the Senate, but the decision really rested with Davos. Davos answered vaguely, "As for the punishment of Polyxides and the others, it will be decided by the court after trial…"

Bourkos sensed that Davos had no intention of letting Polyxides and his associates off easily. He sighed quietly, for he had also heard the news of Polyxides colluding with Syracuse.

"Little Klo! Little Klo!…" At that moment, a beautiful woman’s figure appeared before Bourkos.

"Milady!" Bourkos recognized her as Davos’s second wife, Agnes, and quickly bowed in greeting.

Unlike Cheiristoya, who knew all the senators of the Senate well, Agnes recognized few of them and merely returned the courtesy politely.

"Mother Agnes! Mother Agnes! You’re back!…" Little Klo cheered, flailing his arms as he pushed out of his father’s embrace and ran excitedly toward her.

Finally freed, Davos accompanied Bourkos to the front of the mansion.

"Lord Bourkos." Davos looked out at the dark streets and said solemnly, "I still remember the first time I met you—you were running about trying to save Thurii, doing your utmost to do what you thought was right, unafraid of criticism from the Thurii Council. Now Daonia may seem strong, but it faces many difficulties, and there are powerful enemies coveting us. At this time, we cannot retreat. We must unite and face the challenges head-on to get through this dangerous pass!"

Bourkos stood at the door… After a moment, he met Davos’s expectant gaze and said, "I understand."

…

The next day, the results of the Senate’s internal interrogation shocked the senators: Polyxides and others had illegally occupied land and colluded with officials—that was serious enough—but more importantly, Polyxides had indeed been in contact with Syracuse, and he wasn’t the only one. Oryphus, Massisacus, Euricpus, and others had also accepted gifts from Syracusans.

The senators found the matter extremely thorny.

The moderates, led by Kynogoratas and Cornelius, proposed a secret trial for Polyxides and his group, followed by sending envoys to Syracuse to protest and make Dionysius curb his ambitions…

The radicals, led by Antonios and Amyntas, demanded a public trial, so the people would know the crimes of Polyxides and his associates, as well as Syracuse’s ambitions. They also wanted to send envoys to Syracuse demanding an apology and compensation.

Davos ultimately proposed holding a public trial in Victory Square. His reasoning: The case of Polyxides and his group had already caused an uproar not only in the city but throughout the alliance. Rumors were spreading in every city, causing unrest, and even Daonia’s allied city-states were watching. The Senate needed to restore the truth to the citizens and also remind the Daonian people that the Daonia Alliance was still in a precarious situation, so that no one would slack off!

The Senate agreed.

At dusk that day, Chief Magistrate Antaoris of Pyxous received an urgent letter from Davos.

In the letter, Davos explained in detail the reasons for the arrests of Euricpus, Pleiades, and others from Crimissa. He also declared that they would receive a fair and impartial trial. Moreover, he praised Antaoris highly: "In your two years as magistrate of Pyxous, you have not only stabilized the Lucanian population within the city, smoothly integrating them into Daonia, but also developed the port of Pyxous, promoting commercial prosperity. The Senate expresses its gratitude for your achievements in the Lucanian region!…"

Standing on the rooftop of his mansion, Antaoris finished reading the letter, his heart full of emotion. He had some vague understanding of the affairs concerning Euricpus and Pleiades. These two colleagues from Crimissa were eager to join the Daonia army and lead legions into battle. But unfortunately, by the time they entered the Daonia army, Daonia’s foreign wars had ceased; they had no opportunity to accumulate military merits, and they had to familiarize themselves with new combat methods. Training alongside new recruits was hard enough, but with the five legion commander positions already filled and many others waiting in line, neither had enough battle achievements or experience to hope for leadership of a legion. The fact that they had been made company commanders was already an extraordinary favor from Davos, given their status as senators. Yet they felt it was a disgrace to hold such low positions while being senators alongside Antonios, Philistos, Capus, and others. So they repeatedly went to Davos, asking to be promoted to higher military posts. Davos rejected them with a single sentence: "In military matters, everything is carried out according to the Daonian Military Code." From then on, they harbored resentment toward him.

They had come to Antaoris several times, hoping that as the leading figure of Crimissa, he would join forces with Polyxides to propose convening the Assembly. He refused. He did have some resistance to Davos’s control over the Senate, but Davos had not restricted his work; on the contrary, he had given him a broader stage to exercise his talents…

Gazing at the busy harbor in the distance and listening to the harsh Greek accents of the people on the nearby streets… This was the place where he had sweated for years!

In the glow of the setting sun, a sense of accomplishment welled up in his heart…

Returning home, he immediately wrote a reply to Davos, thanking him for his recognition of his work and firmly supporting the Senate’s judgment and decision regarding Polyxides and his group.

Early the next morning, a large wooden platform was erected in Thurii’s Victory Square. Thurii’s patrol, along with a temporarily detached battalion of the First Army Corps, was responsible for maintaining order throughout the square.

Daonian people who had gathered from various places filed into the square. Among them were mostly ordinary Daonia citizens, some newly made preparatory citizens who had not yet received their allotments of land, some freedmen who had been released from slavery in other city-states and transferred to Daonia, some wealthy foreign merchants, and family members of those arrested…

At the center of the great wooden platform sat the senior judge, Tritodemos. Logically, Davos, as the Daonia Chief Magistrate and also Grand Judge, should have presided over such an important trial, but for reasons known to all (Polyxides had always been at odds with him), he did not attend, invoking the principle of avoidance; nor did any other senator.

To Tritodemos’s left front sat the jury. It consisted of fifty members: merchants, public officials, farmers, herders, sailors, artisans… citizens from all walks of life, including Lucanian citizens and Bruttian citizens. According to the Daonian Law’s stipulated proportions regarding the wealth classes, races, and occupations in the jury, the presiding judge randomly selected them from the citizen registration book, striving for fairness.