Chapter 261

“Oh, this is interesting!” Kanios smiled, subconsciously scrutinizing the man opposite him: slender figure, small face, with an aquiline nose, possessing a lively temperament beneath a scholarly weakness.

Noticing Kanios looking at him, the man raised his head and smiled. “I saw you at the distinguished guest inn in Thurii. My name is Cipros, and I’m from Terina.”

Kanios hesitated for a moment, then said quietly, “…I am from… Elea.”

“Oh, Elea.” Cipros didn’t seem too surprised. He looked at Kanios and said seriously, “I’ve been to Elea a few times. Speaking of which, our Terina and your Elea share a similar predicament. Terina’s territory is often raided by the Brutians, while Elea is constantly surrounded by Lucanians. The difference is, we have allies backing us, while you mostly have to fight alone.”

Cipros’s words struck a chord with Kanios. This feeling of shared misfortune made him feel favorably toward Cipros, and he unconsciously leaned forward slightly.

“You are representing Elea, coming to Theonia for aid, aren’t you?” Cipros continued.

Kanios hesitated again, then said, “Elea is here to seek an alliance with Theonia…”

Cipros noticed his reservation and reassured him, “Don’t worry, Theonia will definitely ally with you!”

Cipros’s words were startling. Kanios was shaken. Over the past two days in Thurii, having witnessed Theonia’s strength and prosperity, he had begun to worry: Would weak Elea fail to interest Theonia, or would Theonia be unwilling to provoke the fierce Lucanians?

At this moment, he discarded his caution and quickly asked, “Why are you so sure?”

“Because Elea’s location is extremely important,” Cipros speared a piece of tripe with a wooden skewer, threw it into his mouth, chewed carefully, and said, “It is beneficial for Theonia to unify the Lucanian region.”

“Theonia wants to occupy the entire Lucanian region? How is that possible?!” Kanios was greatly surprised.

“It’s certainly possible. Theonia’s political system dictates its ambition for expansion,” Cipros said with a complex but definite expression.

“Are you saying—” Kanios suddenly realized. He looked around and whispered, lowering his head, “Theonia has a tyrant.” City-states with tyrants were always cruel, greedy, and aggressive, as evidenced successively by the Syracusan tyrants Dilon and his successor Hiero decades ago, the former tyrant of Rhegium Anaxilas, and the current Dionysius.

Cipros shook his head. He was a thoughtful person. Since his last mission to Theonia, driven by curiosity about this emerging alliance, he had been analyzing the reasons for its rapid rise. “It’s not entirely like that. I don’t know if Davos, the Archon of Theonia, counts as a tyrant. Although he is the supreme power holder of the Theonia army and possesses sacrificial rights, as well as the highest administrative manager of the city-state alliance, as the First Senator of the Senate, the highest power organ, he has great influence, but he doesn’t do whatever he wants. His proposals require the majority agreement of the Senate to pass. The appointment of senior public officials of the alliance also requires election by the Senate, though he has the right of veto. Major matters like declaring war and making peace are also collectively decided by the Senate. Unlike a tyrant who can easily decide the life and death of citizens, his actions are still constrained by the alliance’s laws. However, there’s no doubt that he possesses greater power than the Kings of Sparta or the generals of democratic city-states…”

Kanios listened seriously, contemplating. “No wonder I heard that this Archon often enters and leaves the streets of Thurii alone without a bodyguard, unlike Dionysius, who lives in a palace protected by a mercenary guard of thousands. In that case, he seems like a… well… a democratic king.”

“A democratic king?!” Cipros heard this and slapped the table excitedly. “That term is very fitting! It precisely illustrates Davos’s position in the Theonia City-State Alliance! It is precisely Theonia’s unique Archon system that has led to Theonia’s rapid rise.”

“Are you saying that Theonia’s strength is solely caused by Davos?” Kanios asked in surprise.

“Uh… Davos is certainly a very capable Archon, but Theonia’s political system is also quite unusual—” Cipros rarely found a kindred spirit. Kanios’s question naturally prompted him to elaborate on his recent reflections. Feeling his throat dry from eating too much sauce, he swallowed and said, “Kanios, do you drink beer? The beer at this place tastes very good. I heard Davos specially directed his slaves to brew it after many experiments. This person is not only strong in military and political ability but also has unique insights in business. No wonder he is called the ‘God’s Favored One’!”

Beer was just a drink consumed by the lower class in city-states, but hearing Cipros say this, Kanios was somewhat intrigued.

“Two large jugs of beer!” Cipros shouted loudly.

A long-necked clay pot was placed in front of Kanios. Kanios picked it up, and a faint sweet aroma wafted up. He quickly took a sip. The cool, golden liquid slid smoothly into his stomach, dispelling most of the heat from his body. He couldn’t help but take another large gulp.

“It tastes good, right!” Cipros said proudly, seeing his reaction.

Kanios nodded, belched, and asked impatiently, “What is so different about the Theonian system you mentioned?”

Cipros didn’t keep him guessing any longer. He took a sip of beer and spoke slowly. “Whether it’s Croton or our Terina, the highest authority is the Citizens’ Assembly, which decides everything for the city-state. Next is the Council, which has reduced numbers. At least three or four hundred people attend meetings usually, discussing and resolving ordinary city-state affairs. The generals elected by the Citizens’ Assembly are merely the chief executors of the decisions made by the Citizens’ Assembly and the Council, right?”

“That’s right. It’s the same in Elea. The systems of democratic Greek city-states are generally like this.”

“Theonia’s system comes from Amendolara, and Amendolara… I speculate that after it broke away from Sybaris, it was influenced by Taranto, just like Heraclea and Metapontum. Since Taranto is a daughter city of Sparta, it changed ‘dual kingship’ to ‘dual Archons,’ and the Council of Elders to the Senate. However, the Archons are elected by the Citizens’ Assembly. But after Davos led the mercenaries to join Amendolara, the dual Archons changed to a single Archon for life, and the Citizens’ Assembly seems never to have been held…” Cipros said thoughtfully.

“Theonia abolished the Citizens’ Assembly?!” Kanios almost exclaimed. Before talking to Cipros, based on his past understanding—that Davos was a tyrant—Kanios would not have been surprised if Theonia had no Citizens’ Assembly. But Cipros had already told him that “Davos is not a tyrant and is still constrained by the Senate.” His perception of Theonia had changed to—this is a relatively normal city-state alliance. Hence, his reaction was somewhat exaggerated when hearing Cipros’s words.

“Theonia’s Citizens’ Assembly hasn’t been formally abolished, but it really hasn’t been held…” Cipros said slowly. “I think perhaps it’s because the situation of the Theonia City-State Alliance is special, so it hasn’t been held. After all, Theonia’s citizens are dispersed across several cities, and their origins are complex: there are Greeks, a considerable number of foreigners, Thurians, Amendolarans, Crimisans… Holding a Citizens’ Assembly is time-consuming and easily leads to endless quarrels over interests, making it impossible to decide anything…”

Kanios thought carefully and had to admit, “Perhaps. That might be an important reason. Take Elea, for example. Even though our citizens are few and have lived in the city for generations, many important issues cannot be agreed upon every time the Citizens’ Assembly is held, let alone an emerging alliance like Theonia, with complex citizen origins.”

Cipros gently patted the beer pot, hesitated for a long while, took a gulp of beer, and then continued, “You see, both Terina and Elea realize that the Citizens’ Assembly does have some shortcomings, but they only made small changes. However, Theonia completely sidelined the Citizens’ Assembly, utilizing the ability of Archon Davos and the rich administrative experience of the less than one hundred senators to quickly pass proposals and make decisions based on the interests favorable to the alliance’s development. Theonia enacted laws that the Citizens’ Assemblies of other southern Italian city-states could never pass. Two of them are very important! Theonia’s ability to rise so quickly as a newly established alliance is largely due to these two bills!”