Chapter 31 Promotion and Authorization

"I think, Patroclus will use the 500 Soldiers of the Mountain Reconnaissance Brigade more in his hands. They are the key to the decisive victory."

...

The officers watching the battle whispered, and the two protagonists on the field were still staring at the map, thinking hard.

At this time, Thormed said again: "I announce that the tactical assessment has officially begun!"

"Dang!" A crisp bell rang, and the two protagonists stood up at the same time and took a few steps back. Ten soldiers carried several wide wooden boards into the arena and erected them on the wooden map, isolating them from seeing the whole picture. Of course, Sextus has the advantage of defense. He can see a wider range of the map, while Patroclus' line of sight is limited to the southwest corner of the map.

Several tactical executives also stood beside the two protagonists holding tactical chess pieces. These tactical chess pieces are small wooden sculptures such as heavy infantry, light infantry, javelinmen, cavalry, etc. When they are placed on the map, they are serious. The tactical assessment of the game has a little fun of the game.

At this time, Matonis picked up two dice and threw a "7". After the referees picked up the table for comparison, they said loudly: "Day 1, heavy rain!"

After listening to the two protagonists, after thinking, they used a white pen to learn the measures they took on the first day on the small wooden boards they carried, and then the executor took their boards to the referee bench.

The referees, after looking at the order given on the board, ruled that it was feasible.

So, the executor started placing tactical pieces on the map according to the order on the board.

Matonis threw another brilliant shot, then glanced at Patroclus and exclaimed, "Heavy rain on day 2!"

There was a small commotion among the surrounding officers watching the battle, but Patroclus's expression did not change. After thinking about it, he wrote down his decision again.

……………………………………

Just when most of the officers in the Turii Barracks gathered in the tactical training room to watch the two of them conduct their assessments, King Davos, accompanied by the Minister of Military Affairs Alexis, came to the Turiel Barracks.

The commander of the First Army, Leotidides, who had received the news, rushed to greet him.

After learning that there was a tactical assessment going on in the barracks, Davos instructed Leotizides not to inform them for the time being, and took the guards to the military conference room to wait first.

"Prosous, who do you think will win?" Davos chatted with Leotidides when he was idle.

"Patroclus is quick-witted, decisive and bold in action; Sextus is careful and steady, and he is very calm. Both of them are excellent officers. According to the information I have received, in this assessment, Seke Stus is in charge of defense, and Patroclus is in charge of offense, this allocation is in line with their fighting style, but fighting in the mountains, defense is more dominant, Patroclus may need a bit of luck to win."

"Yeah, luck is an important factor in determining the outcome of the war, and it has to be decided by the gods. But in the assessment, it is determined by the luck of the referee..." Davos said jokingly After saying a word, he changed the topic: "What do you think about whether to send a legion to the border to build a fortress defense this time?"

"Your Majesty, I don't think it's a problem to send each legion to the border for more than half a year. In fact, each legion does not stay at the border for too long, and there are nearly 20 legions in the kingdom. Years later, besides, these legionnaires have multiple slaves in their own homes, and they have enough labor in their homes to take care of housework..." Leotizides replied without hesitation.

Henepolis curled his lips aside,

In my heart: Of course you Prosusus would say so, in your eyes, is there anything other than military! Since you served as the commander of the First Legion, the citizens of the entire Turii region have been complaining about your tossing, and they have given you the nickname "Iron Man"...

Davers had an expression of listening intently and nodded from time to time.

The two chatted for a while, and Davos seemed to remember something and asked, "Prosous, haven't you been home in the past six months?"

Leotizides was stunned for a moment, and then replied: "Your Majesty, I just took over the First Legion, and I want to get acquainted with this Legion as soon as possible, so—"

Davos waved his hand and persuaded with concern: "Don't worry too much, from the current situation, there will be no major war in the kingdom in a short time, and the first legion will not be sent to the battlefield in a short time. You have time to get acquainted with the First Legion. You still have to make time to go back to accompany your family! Your home is in the city of Turii, not far from it. I went to the Ministry of Military Affairs! Those who didn't understand the situation thought that I, Davos, imprisoned you here, I don't want to suffer this grievance!"

Davos said jokingly, then patted Leotidides on the shoulder, and said in a gentle but irresistible tone: "Tomorrow you will go home and rest for a few days, and let yourself relax. , let the soldiers relax too, okay?!"

Leotidides hesitated for a while before saying reluctantly, "Yes, Your Majesty."

"That's right, you have to know how to combine work and rest!" Davos laughed.

The corners of Henepolis' mouth curled slightly.

The two were talking when Martius, the chief of the palace guard, walked into the military conference room: "Your Majesty, the tactical assessment has ended."

"Who won?" Henepolis asked curiously.

"Sextus won." Martius reported to the equally curious Davos: "Patroclus was unlucky, for several days before the battle it was raining heavily, preventing his army from crossing the river. , but he still insisted on letting the engineering battalion build a bridge, attracting the army of Sextus to block on the other side, but secretly branched off part of the army to set up rafts in the upper reaches of the river, and took the risk of forcibly crossing the river.

Although Sextus arranged for a lot of sentries to monitor the upstream river bank and found this situation, and he soon sent an army to block it, but the referee ruled that because of the distance, Sextus' army Unable to arrive in time.

Although Patroclus' army successfully crossed the river, many soldiers were drowned by the swollen river. Sextus led the army decisively back to the mountains, and Patroclus immediately established a defensive camp on the other side of the river, and it took several days for the entire army to cross the river. In the process of advancing to the mountains, his army was constantly harassed by the light infantry of the Samone sent by Sextus, slowing their advance.

And Sextus used this time to build a simple defensive cottage on a dangerous terrain on the only road, and hoarded heavy troops. The two sides launched a fierce offensive and defensive battle here. Due to the narrow mountain road, Patroclus' superior forces could not be fully deployed, and at the critical moment, heavy rain was thrown many times, which seriously affected the attack of Patroclus' side, so the time By the time it was over, his army had still not been able to break through the blockade.

However, the 1,000 soldiers he secretly sent, mainly composed of mountain scout soldiers, attacked the main camp of the Sextus army by climbing mountains and detours. However, because the main force of Sextus was still there, and Patlock Ross's rations have been exhausted, so the referee finally ruled that Sextus won... but the referees unanimously ruled that they both passed the tactical assessment based on the performance of both sides. "

After listening carefully, Davos said with emotion: "Although it's just on paper, it also made them realize the difficulty of fighting in the mountains! ... However, since this tactical assessment is based on the Samonay Mountains as the background , so did the magistrates consider that sending troops to fight should avoid the spring rainy season?"

"I asked Tolmead, and he said that the combat time was set in summer, so when designing the table, only two of the 12 weather options were related to rain, namely light rain and heavy rain, but they were in the assessment. Worst throw ever."

After Martius finished speaking, Davos was also a little surprised. After a while, he shrugged and said, "This just shows that the fickleness of war is beyond our control. I think today's tactical assessment is very good, very good. gave them a lesson..."

Davos was talking when there were noisy footsteps outside the door.

Davos stopped talking, took his exclusive helmet from Henepolis and put it on his head.

The Minister of Military Affairs, Alexis, led Chief of Staff Thormid, Commander of the Second Corps, Matonis, and other generals into the conference room, and after saluting Davos respectfully, stood to the side in turn.

Then Patroclus and Sextus came in. They already knew what was going to happen next, so they were very excited, and after giving Davos the military salute, they stood upright.

Davers looked around the room and said solemnly, "Let's start."

The Minister of War Alexis stepped forward, unfolded the papyrus scroll bound with black cloth strips in his hand, and read aloud: "In view of the outstanding achievements of Patroclus and Sextus in the past, and the passing of the generals with excellent results. In the official assessment, after consultation and decision by His Majesty King Davos and the Ministry of Military Affairs, the two were promoted to the commanders of the army!"

As soon as his voice stopped, there were cheers around him, and there were smiles on the nervous faces of the two of Patroclus.

Alexis continued: "And Patroclus was appointed commander of the XIV Corps (mainly in the region of Latam), and Sextus was appointed as the commander of the XVIII Corps (southern Iberia). Take office without delay!"

Felixius and the others on the side were a little surprised: it is reasonable for the two to be promoted to legion commanders, but it is rare in recent years that they are given practical tasks immediately after promotion!