Chapter 267 Terrible Disease

From their mouths, the defending soldiers learned that Antium had been captured by the Dionian army, and Satnicum had become the only Roman town still resisting, which caused waves in the hearts of the soldiers. .

It was under such circumstances that Quintus made his own decisions, without the knowledge of Camillous, and despite the opposition of other generals, he secretly led 4,000 soldiers out of the city at night, in an attempt to attack the Dionysian camp, hoping to obtain a Victory boosts morale.

As a result, not long after he left the city, he was discovered by the secret post arranged by the mountain reconnaissance brigade at the periphery of the camp.

Davos quickly mobilized the army for encirclement and suppression.

Seeing that the situation was not good, Quintus hurriedly ordered to retreat, and personally led the team to block the pursuers. In the end, he was killed in the battle. Nearly half of his troops were killed, wounded or captured. The failure of this sneak attack caused a great deal of morale of the Roman soldiers. With a big blow, they began to shake the words that Camelus said "...as long as we stick to it, our turning point will come..." These words they had firmly believed before were shaken.

In the harvest month of September, when the people of other city-states were rejoicing, the city of Satnikum seemed lifeless. I think about things on my mind and rarely even talk to my teammates.

On the streets of the city, you can see filthy vomit and soldiers lying on the side of the road in twos and threes. Outside the wounded barracks in the square is even more crowded with people. They ignore the pungent stench and the flying mosquitoes. They insisted on seeing a doctor, and their heart-piercing coughing sound almost resounded throughout the square...

In the bedroom of the city lord's mansion, Camelus suddenly opened his eyes in a nightmare.

The confidant slave who was standing uneasy in front of the bed immediately shouted happily: "Sir, you are awake!"

Camelus moved his neck with difficulty, looked around, and said in a hoarse voice, "...water...water..."

The slave hurriedly picked up the water jug ​​that had been prepared, then lifted his head with one hand and fed him water.

After drinking some water, Camelus felt better and asked in a low voice, "...How long have I slept this time?"

"Two...two days." The slave said with a slightly dejected expression.

Hearing the words, Camelus' face was gloomy: the time of drowsiness was getting longer and longer, and he seemed to feel that his organs were beginning to rot, which gave him a sense of urgency.

"Outside... how is the situation outside?!" As soon as he said the words, he realized that he was confused. How could the slave know this, so he changed his mouth and said, "Where is Lucius?"

"Lord Lucius is sick." The slave's body trembled.

Camelus was stunned for a moment, and he cared more about Satnicum City than his son at the moment, so he continued to ask: "Go and call... Titus."

Titus was temporarily in command of the army on his behalf, so he often reported to him on the battle.

"Master Titus is also ill. He hasn't come here to see you for two days." The slave said eagerly, his face turning pale.

"Titus is also ill?!" Camillous was stunned for a second. Decades of war career made him feel a little bit of vigilance. He immediately asked: "And... Who is sick?!"

"Lord Licinius! Lord Servius! I heard that there are still quite a few soldiers! Lord, will this... will this..." The slave's face showed a look of panic, and there was a look in his eyes. Fear, but never dared to spit out the word.

Camelus was horribly pale,

He said in a deep voice, "Go immediately and call the generals who are not sick...cough...all!"

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"Do you suspect a plague?!" Hearing the word spit out from Mejus's mouth, Camelus suddenly widened his turbid eyes, and his dry throat made the loudest sound since he was awake, although there was already a trace of suspicion before, I still don't want to believe that this is true.

"Lord Dictator..." Mejus, who was already battle-hardened, looked very panicked at the moment, he said with a trembling voice: "...In my decades of military career...I have also seen one or two plagues. ...And this time...this time is very similar to the previous one...the same fever...headache...vomiting...diarrhea...the whole body is weak...and there are soldiers constantly showing such symptoms..."

Camelus closed his eyes in pain, and the generals such as Mejus and Aulus did not speak any more, and focused their helpless eyes on the old man who had completely lost his ability to move.

After a long time, Camelus slowly opened his eyes, stared at the roof, his face was full of sadness, and he murmured: "Great Jupiter! . . . You are about to give up... give up Rome. ?!"

As soon as his words fell, all the generals in the room burst into tears.

Camelus turned his head with difficulty and looked at the generals surrounding his bed with a terrifyingly calm expression: Surrender to Olia...

The generals headed by Aulus and Mejus were shocked when they heard the words, and subconsciously expressed their disapproval: "Lord Dictator, we must not surrender! We can continue to fight..."

Camelus sighed and said in a low voice: "Before the plague spreads throughout the city... Surrender to Dionia... At least some people's lives can be saved... This is me... Camelus as the Roman dictator... the last order..." After he finished speaking, he closed his eyes, and two lines of muddy tears flowed slowly down the crisscrossing ravines on his face.

The house was silent.

After a while, the generals walked out of the bedroom, thinking about their own thoughts, and walked out of the city lord's mansion in silence.

"Do we really want to obey the dictator's order and surrender to Dionia?!" A general finally couldn't help but asked loudly.

"What else can we do if we don't surrender?! We are trapped in the city and have nowhere to escape. In the end, we will only be infected with the plague, and our souls will not be able to find peace after death!" Another general couldn't bear the pressure in his heart and lost control of his emotions. He actually raised his head, looked up at the sky, and loudly questioned the gods he usually worshipped devoutly: "Jupiter, aren't you the protector of Rome! Now Rome is about to perish, and where are you?!"

When the others heard it, no one tried to stop the blasphemous behavior of their colleagues, but their faces were even more sad.

At this time, Aulus suddenly said: "The plague can infect our Roman soldiers, and of course it can also infect the Dionysians! We can take the opportunity of surrendering and let the Diorians also suffer from the plague. Perhaps this is Rome. A turnaround!"

Mejus and the others were startled for a moment, and then their eyes lit up: The main force of Dionia's army was under the city. If they were also infected with the plague, and most of the soldiers died, would they still be able to control the newly conquered Ladium area? !

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In the tent of Camp Dionia, Davos was looking at a battle report just sent from Campania, and soon a smile appeared on his face.

"Your Majesty, Alexis sent the good news?" Henepolis asked softly with some curiosity.

"The chief of Pentney sent a messenger to Alexis, asking for a truce and peace! The Kautinis also sent messengers to Zantiparis, expressing the same meaning." Davos took the letter lightly. He clapped his arms, his tone was brisk.

"No Karacheni?" Henepolis asked.

"Among the four Samonei tribes, the Caracheni are the most conservative and stubborn, but they are also the weakest. This time their losses are not small. They think they are hiding in the mountains, and we can't do anything about them. Hmph, don't forget. , if there is no assistance from other tribes, other neighboring mountain races, such as Masai, Helniki...will be willing to settle the old accounts with them." Davos smiled contemptuously: "By then , the Caracheni will come to us on their own initiative."

Saying that, he handed the battle report in his hand to Henipolis, and then asked Kroto Katax next to him: "Kruto, how do you think Cautini and Pentney should be dealt with specifically? Samonei tribe?"

Since last time Davos had described his initial defeat and planning for the four major tribes of Samona, Krotokatax had also thought carefully these days, so he faced Davos' test here. Teaching, he said with some confidence: Father... The Samonais were once our allies, but they tore up the covenant, provoked war, and looted the people of the kingdom and allies... So this time we have to increase our confrontation. The punishment and control of the Samonai race to prevent them from rebelling again in the future!

My suggestion is that the great chiefs of Pentney and Kautini must go to Turii to be severely punished, the other chiefs of the tribes must be punished accordingly, and the tribes must be held hostage.

As your father said before, the Pentene and Kautini tribes must be completely vassals of the kingdom. The land we occupy now in Kautini will be owned by the kingdom, and Kautini will only keep Voltu. The land north of the Nora River served as a buffer between the kingdom and the mountain races of the Sidisini and Oronci, and the new chief of Kautini had to be chosen from among the original Nakonian tribes.

We don't have much land in Pentney now, but Pentney must cede the mountains adjacent to the Downey area so that we can build a fort there. . . .

In addition, these two tribes shall not restrict the priests of the kingdom to build temples in the mountains, and shall not restrict the trade between the people of the kingdom and the Samonei people..."

"Your Majesty, His Royal Highness Kloto has spoken very comprehensively and thoughtfully!" Thormid praised repeatedly.

Davos nodded with a smile: "It seems that after the last exam, although you have been busy with me in Latam these days, you have been thinking about how to deal with the Samonai tribe. In this suggestion, you I have already considered the problem from the perspective of the kingdom's interests, and the plan I gave is more detailed, specific, and maneuverable, which is very good!"