“Although Croton has lost the pitched battle, we can still mobilize another ten to twenty thousand citizen-soldiers. If Theonia attempts to storm the city, we will surely inflict heavy losses upon them! Unable to take the city after a prolonged siege, they will be forced to sue for peace, and the initiative will return to us. We might even find opportunities to launch counterattacks during the defense of Crimisa and defeat the Theonians!”

Milon finished speaking, and the gathered men fell into contemplation.

“So, Crimisa City will become a battlefield again,” Orikepos said.

This remark jolted the Crimisa high command, but Milon quickly interjected, “Precisely. Crimisa City is the key to the coming war, but it will be defended by Croton soldiers. If the people of Crimisa feel endangered here, they can take ships to seek refuge in Croton first. We will provide them with good living conditions until the war ends and they can return. If there are losses to houses and property within the city, Croton will also provide compensation…”

Milon’s proposal was thorough, leaving the others speechless. Moreover, his words carried an implicit warning: Crimisa is full of Croton soldiers. Even if you want to negotiate peace with Theonia privately, you’ll have to ask if the shields and spears in the hands of Croton soldiers agree. Angering Croton will only make things worse!

“General Milon, Crimisa will fully support your engagement with Theonia here!” Antaoris quickly made a clear stance on behalf of the Council.

***

Early the next morning, Davos assembled two legions and two reserve battalions, totaling approximately 16,000 men (this refers to combat soldiers, excluding engineering, medical, and baggage battalions, cavalry, trumpeters, drummers, etc.), and marched toward Crimisa City.

In the morning, the Theonian army reached the marshlands.

Davos ordered the engineering battalion of one legion to stay behind. Their task was to survey the geography of the marsh, fill it in as quickly as possible, build roads, and construct bridges over the River Racoeli to facilitate the smooth passage of future supply convoys. They also had to consider the future construction of the Castellum-Crimisa highway. To prevent attacks from Croton, he left two reserve battalions to build a camp there, protecting not only the engineering battalion and the Castellum civilians involved in construction but also the supply line itself.

Then, Davos took the lead, wading through the marshlands with his soldiers.

In the afternoon, the Theonian army entered Crimisa territory.

At this time, over five thousand Croton soldiers were already waiting in full battle array on the walls of Crimisa.

Davos rode close to the city walls. After observing for a while, he abandoned the idea of an immediate attack and ordered camp to be set up.

The captain of the legion’s siege battalion immediately came to ask for Davos’s requirements for the campsite. Davos pointed to Crimisa City and said, “Surround it from the north first.”

The captain understood. He immediately led engineering technicians to survey the terrain and water sources, calculate the camp area based on the number of troops… and so on, selecting a site. Before long, he and his men began planting a thin wooden stake every 20 meters at a distance of 400 meters from the city…

At the command of Legion Commanders Capus and Drax, except for two battalions responsible for security and Ledes’s cavalry, the rest of the soldiers instantly turned into construction workers. Some felled trees, some dug trenches, some built earthen walls… The entire army operated in an orderly fashion. Even Davos picked up a pickaxe and joined in the digging…

From the city wall, Milon noticed the Theonian army wasn’t attacking immediately, which brought him a mix of disappointment and relief. However, the subsequent scene of the Theonians constructing their camp—so bustling and magnificent, and so close to the city—exceeded his expectations. A thought popped into his mind: Launch a sortie.

But the two units of fully armed heavy infantry waiting at ease, along with the cavalry patrolling below the city, made him dismiss the idea. He also didn’t believe the Croton soldiers, fresh from defeat, had the courage to leave the city and fight a field battle against the numerous Theonians.

He could see the Theonians intended to besiege Crimisa, but as long as it bought time, he raised both hands in approval of their approach.

The Theonians were highly efficient at camp construction. By dusk, they had dug a trench three li long and built an earthen wall, enveloping Crimisa City from the east, west, and north. Now, some soldiers were setting up abatis in front of the trench, while others pitched tents inside the wall… Originally, the engineering battalion’s wagons carried modular timber that could be quickly assembled into camp gates, watchtowers, and palisades (a “modular” suggestion Davos had made to the engineering battalion, refined through repeated experiments by engineers and carpenters). However, because wagons easily got stuck in the mud of the marshlands, they hadn’t been transported to Crimisa in time.

Even so, Milon was amazed. He naturally wouldn’t know that “camp construction” was a specific item in Theonia’s military training curriculum. Seeing the increasingly nervous expressions of his soldiers, he finally made up his mind.

Deep in the night, he decided to send 500 soldiers to raid the camp while the Theonians were sound asleep, exhausted from the long march and construction. Creating chaos, even if it only dealt a small blow to the enemy, could boost his troops’ low morale.

Based on observations from warships at sea during the day, the north side of the Theonian camp also had trenches. Milon feared that launching an amphibious attack from the coast north of the camp would leave no way to retreat if discovered. Thus, he chose the south side of their camp, facing the sea.

Five hundred Croton soldiers quietly approached the Theonian camp. Just as they were gingerly crossing the abatis zone, a sentry hiding behind the earthen wall spotted them by the light of torches planted on the wall. He quickly felt his way back to the tent, quietly woke his squadron leader, and then woke the others one by one.

“Laris, well done! Now, take my tag and run to the rear camp. Notify the cavalry that there’s an enemy attack!” Squadron leader Ctippus praised the recruit, who was still a reserve citizen, and handed him an egg-sized iron statue of Cerberus engraved with the legion, company, and squad numbers.

“Yes, sir!” Laris turned and ran out.

Ctippus had his men continue notifying other squads and Centurion Trotilas, while he took a few soldiers to the base of the wall to check the situation. Finding the enemy numbers weren’t large, he hatched a plan.

The Croton soldiers passed through the abatis zone, climbed over the trench, and surmounted the earthen wall. Seeing no movement in the enemy camp, they couldn’t help but feel excited. They began lighting the incendiary materials they carried. There was still some distance between the wall and the enemy tents, so they continued to speed forward cautiously.

Suddenly, the lead soldier’s foot sank. His foot was instantly pierced by a sharp object, and he screamed in pain. It turned out that behind the earthen wall, the Theonians had set up an obstacle belt. If the enemy breached the camp wall, this would delay their breakthrough speed, allowing for defensive reorganization and counterattacks.

Seizing the moment of enemy panic, Theonian soldiers rushed out from behind the tents, hurling a dense volley of javelins at the Croton troops. Many fell screaming. The remaining soldiers, losing all courage to fight, turned and fled in terror…

The Theonians pursued through the safe passage in the obstacle belt.

In the silent dead of night, the sounds of slaughter were exceptionally clear. Davos was woken up and quickly dressed and exited his tent. Just then, Martius, captain of the guard, arrived to report: “Report, Commander! A Croton sneak attack was repelled by the Third Battalion of the Second Legion. Ledes’s cavalry has already sortied; I believe the enemy won’t escape.”

Davos nodded, the distribution map of legions, battalions, and companies in the camp instantly appearing in his mind. “The Third Battalion of the Second Legion… that’s Georgis’s battalion, right? I recall his unit is stationed at the easternmost part of the camp, near the sea outlet.”

“Yes, Commander.”

“Georgis’s battalion performed well. They strictly executed the sentry duty regulations of the Military Law and reacted swiftly upon discovering the enemy. They should be rewarded! The sentry who discovered the enemy in time deserves an even greater reward!” Davos turned to Aristocrates, the scribe who had just arrived.

Aristocrates hurriedly recorded it to report to the military judge tomorrow.

“How are the other battalions?” Davos asked again.

“All battalions were notified in time and didn’t cause a major commotion,” Martius answered.

Davos was very satisfied that the troops maintained smooth communication and order even in the dark; the rigorous daily training had paid off. He laughed, “Croton wants to copy our sneak attacks? Unfortunately, we aren’t Croton. Go back to sleep, everyone. Save your energy; there’s plenty to do tomorrow.” With that, he turned back into his tent and soon fell asleep.

Martius exchanged a few words with the guards protecting the main tent and then left as well.

Only Aristocrates, on the battlefield for the first time, found it hard to calm his mind. He stared at the blazing brazier in front of the main tent, lost in thought for a while.

When night fell, erecting a brazier before the supreme commander’s tent was a regulation in the Theonian Military Code. According to Davos’s explanation: first, it facilitated reporting at night; second, in the event of night raids, camp riots, or other accidents, soldiers in chaos could locate the commander instantly, helping to stabilize morale and reorganize troops. In short, the commander was the anchor of the army’s morale and hope; letting soldiers see the commander’s tent anytime, anywhere in the dark helped dispel their fear of the darkness.

Listening to Davos’s soft snoring from inside the tent and feeling the heat radiating from the brazier, the tension and unease in Aristocrates’ heart rapidly dissipated…

Of the 500 men who sortied, only a few dozen escaped the interception of the Theonian cavalry and fled back into the city.

When Milon learned of this, he stood dazed for a long time. The seemingly simple and unfinished Theonian camp was guarded so strictly—it exceeded his expectations. This lesson finally stripped away his last shred of wishful thinking. From the bottom of his heart, he admitted: This Theonian force is a well-trained army!

He decided not to take any more risks and to focus entirely on defending Crimisa City.