Davos smiled. “My answer is that I accept Thurii’s offer.”

Though he had braced himself for this, Burkos couldn’t suppress the look of sheer joy that washed over his face.

“Don’t celebrate too soon,” Davos cautioned, immediately dousing him with cold water. “This is only my personal decision. I still have to persuade my captains and soldiers. After more than a year of campaigning in Persia, many of them have grown weary of war and are desperate to return home.” He paused, then added, “I will do my utmost to convince them. Of course, the higher your offered wage, the more persuasive it will be.”

“Two gold darics a month, per soldier!” Burkos declared without hesitation.

Davos did a quick calculation in his head. “How many men do you need?”

“As many as possible, of course!” Burkos blurted out.

“Hah, spoken like a man with deep pockets. If I were to bring five thousand men, the monthly cost of wages and provisions would be astronomical. Can Thurii truly afford it?”

“As I said, Thurii is one of the most prosperous city-states in Magna Graecia! Even if you brought ten thousand, Thurii could easily support you for a year on its own!” Burkos said with absolute confidence.

“Alright, I hope that’s the case,” Davos said with cautious optimism. “And how do we get to Thurii? How many ships do you have?”

“I have already spoken with the ship owners of Byzantium. Once the payment is made, we can have as many ships as we need!”

“And the Spartans here? Will they agree to let us leave for Thurii?” Only now did Davos ask the question that concerned him most.

“I have been authorized by the Spartan Gerousia (Spartan Council)[1]. Furthermore, Cleander, the governor of Byzantium, sees your presence here as a headache. He will be more than happy to see you leave,” Burkos answered, his voice brimming with confidence.

With that, Davos gave his crisp assent. “It seems you have arranged everything. In that case, I will inform you tomorrow morning of the number of soldiers I will be leading and we can discuss a more detailed contract.”

“Excellent. I will return in the morning. I hope to receive good news from you!” Though the negotiation had a rocky start, it had ended in success. Burkos departed in high spirits.

“My love, are you truly planning to go to Thurii?” asked Crystoia, who had been listening quietly all this time.

“Yes,” Davos said, turning to her, his eyes shining with an excited light. “Crystoia, this could be our chance! A chance to go from being fish in the sea to the fishermen casting the nets!”

***

Matonis sat on the ground, his heart a mixture of excitement and curiosity. Since becoming a platoon commander, he had never once been included in any discussion or decision-making process within the camp. This time, the herald, Axistes, had urgently summoned all the platoon commanders to a meeting. Could it be for a major announcement?

He glanced around and saw Olivas not far off, laughing and joking loudly with someone. The fact that this upstart was now also a platoon commander, equal in rank to him, was a constant source of irritation. “Olivas!” Matonis shouted. “This is a military council, not your personal tent! Keep quiet!”

Olivas turned and grinned. “Well, if it isn’t the valiant Matonis. Have you punished those two soldiers of yours for violating the regulations and robbing a citizen of Byzantium?”

The words hit their mark. A fire of rage ignited in Matonis’s belly, but he dared not shout back.

Since their entry into Armenia, Davos had become a pivotal leader among the mercenaries. His military genius had not only earned the respect of the other generals and soldiers but had also completely won the hearts of the men under his direct command. With this authority, he had begun to systematically reorganize and reform his contingent.

During their march through Armenia, the mercenaries had been in constant, small-scale conflict with the local tribes, and casualties, including among the captains, were not insignificant. Furthermore, the mountainous terrain of Armenia and the subsequent regions of Phasis and Taochia made it difficult to deploy large formations. Responding to these conditions, Davos first consolidated his fourteen hundred-man companies into seven two-hundred-man cohorts. Each cohort was then subdivided into four fifty-man platoons. This structure not only streamlined command but also offered greater flexibility in mountain warfare. A single platoon now had sufficient combat strength to repel small enemy bands, while a full cohort, with its four platoons, was capable of undertaking independent missions—it could engage the enemy with two platoons from the front, send another to flank, and hold the fourth in reserve.

This reorganization dramatically increased his force’s combat effectiveness. Some soldiers even boasted in private, “Our Davos is not only favored by Hades, but he has been inspired by Athena herself!”

Next, taking advantage of the vacancies left by dead or wounded officers, Davos promoted capable and loyal men. Hylos was now a cohort commander, while Matonis, Olivas, Georgis, and others had become platoon commanders, solidifying his control over his troops.

Then, he began the second phase of his reforms: establishing a code of military law to impose strict discipline on the soldiers. For mercenaries accustomed to a life of freedom and laxity, this was almost a death sentence. But the circumstances were unique. A significant number of the conflicts with local tribes had been sparked by soldiers indiscriminately stealing and looting. Therefore, enforcing military discipline was the most effective way to reduce such clashes. But Davos didn’t stop at just policing behavior; he also instituted regulations for marching, encampment, and reconnaissance. He had been astonished by the simplicity of the mercenaries’ camps, which sometimes had no defensive fortifications at all. He decreed that whenever they made camp, they must dig trenches, erect palisades, and build earthen ramparts.

At first, the soldiers grumbled. They were already exhausted from marching and fighting, and the thought of being forced into such back-breaking labor felt unbearable. Yet after two nighttime raids by mountain tribesmen, during which other mercenary camps were routed and suffered heavy losses in both men and property, Davos’s contingent was kept safe because they were protected behind their trenches and ramparts. Only then did the soldiers begin to accept the regulations sincerely. Davos understood he could not push them too far. Desertion in the face of the enemy was a capital offense in every army, ancient or modern, but he knew that imposing the death penalty would almost certainly provoke mutiny. Instead, he used lighter punishments: flogging (and even then, not too severely) and fasting. For the honor-obsessed Greeks, being stripped of their trousers and beaten on the buttocks in front of their comrades was a matter of extreme shame. Barring exceptional circumstances, they would do their best to follow the rules.

Naturally, some soldiers couldn’t stand the new discipline and left for other units. Combined with the casualties, Davos’s force should have shrunk considerably. The entire Greek mercenary army, which had started with thirteen thousand soldiers, numbered only nine thousand by the time it returned to Byzantium (a figure already fifty percent higher than in the historical account, a testament to Davos’s significant impact). And yet, the number of soldiers under his command remained almost the same as when he had first taken charge, at approximately fourteen hundred men.

There were four reasons why his numbers had not dwindled. First, Davos managed his army with fairness and impartiality. Officers and common soldiers were treated alike, with no special privileges. All spoils from battle and plunder were distributed by Marigi based on merit, while Davos himself took nothing. Second, his unit had the highest combat effectiveness and the lowest casualty rate, especially after his reforms. For soldiers who hoped to make it home alive, he was a powerful and reliable leader. Third, the medical corps he established had saved a great number of wounded soldiers, half of whom chose to remain with his army—a result in which Crystoia’s subtle guidance played a significant role. Fourth was Davos’s personal charisma. The “Hades’ Favored One,” a military genius shrouded in mystery, he was nevertheless approachable and kind to his men, even using his own warhorse to carry the wounded on multiple occasions. His soldiers were happy to follow his command, affectionately calling him “Our Davos.”

Now, after more than half a year of campaigning under unique circumstances, the mercenaries had gradually adapted to what Davos considered a relatively simple code of military law, but which for them was already quite strict. Therefore, Matonis knew that his soldiers, having violated the regulations Davos had laid down before their arrival in Byzantium, would certainly be punished. For a man who was fiercely protective of his own, this was a bitter pill to swallow. But he had no more time to dwell on it. Davos, followed by Marigi, had just swept aside the tent flap and entered the meeting.

***

Author’s Note: The event where over ten thousand Thurian citizen-soldiers were annihilated by the Lucanians is historically true, though it occurred about a decade later than depicted here (the exact year is uncertain). The reasons for this event will be mentioned later in the story.