Chapter 281

Matonis was concerned about other issues. He looked west for a while, frowned, and said, “It took the Taranto army so long to assemble! I also saw that many of their soldiers have probably just come of age. How much combat power can such an army have?!”

“Don’t have any expectations for them; we’ll have to rely on ourselves when the time comes. The only thing these squeamish Tarantines need to do on the battlefield is to clean up the battlefield and collect the spoils for us after we defeat the enemy,” Olivas said disdainfully.

“Olivas, don’t underestimate the enemy! Lord Davos said that the Messapians are not only brave in battle but also tenacious in character and difficult to deal with. We must attach great importance to this, unite with the Tarantines, and do our utmost to defeat them!” Georgis reminded him.

Georgis was originally a Battalion Commander of the Third Legion. However, according to the new legion organization regulations: The officers and soldiers of the First and Second Legions should be mainly composed of citizens, preparatory citizens, and freedmen residing in Thurii and Amendolara; the Third Legion is composed of the populace of Grumentum and Nerulum; the Fourth Legion is composed of the populace of Crimisa and Aprustum. This was mainly to facilitate army management, training, mobilization, and expedition, improving combat efficiency. Of course, it could also easily lead to regionalism and clique-formation within the legions, but Davos considered: At least in the early stages of the alliance, the pros outweigh the cons. The mentioned defects can be solved in the future by increasing the mobility of officers. Georgis still resided in Amendolara and had not moved elsewhere, so he was transferred from the Third Legion to the First Legion, still serving as Battalion Commander.

Olivas was used to bullying Georgis and wanted to retort unconvinced, but Alexis said, “Georgis is right. This war is different from before. It involves cooperation with other city-states, especially Taranto. We must not only attach great importance to it but also carefully handle the relationship with the Taranto army. Otherwise, at the critical moment of battle, if our allies do not fully support us, misfortune will befall us. You must know that Thurii is separated from here by a bay; it will be difficult for us to go back then…”

Alexis was a senior Battalion Commander, so Olivas couldn’t say much, and the other Battalion Commanders agreed with Alexis.

Amyntas slapped Olivas hard on the shoulder and said loudly, “To be honest, I don’t like these womanly Tarantines either! But for victory, we can only endure for the time being. After we defeat the Messapians, I’d really like to see if the Tarantines will say thank you to us!”

With that, he laughed heartily, and Olivas laughed too.

“Alright, everyone hurry back to your own battalions. The Taranto army is out too; we should form ranks and set off!” First Legion Commander Capus reminded everyone.

Not long after the massive send-off procession left the city gate, the women among them hesitated whether to continue forward because on the ground ahead sat or lay densely packed Theonian soldiers. They talked and laughed loudly, speaking rude words, and many were topless, making the conservative Taranto women feel shy.

The Taranto soldiers were also somewhat dissatisfied, pointing at the resting Theonians and making sarcastic remarks.

“Sure enough, rude bumpkins!” Diomilas hadn’t seen the Theonian army when they first arrived, but seeing this scene now, he also expressed his dissatisfaction. “Where is Davos? Let him assemble his ‘army’ immediately!” Diomilas emphasized the word “army” heavily to show his disdain.

“He should be over there.” Eumachus pointed to the largest and most dazzling of the more than ten raised banners ahead, guessing.

“The battle flag is made quite fancy!” Diomilas snorted and followed Eumachus on horseback.

Davos had taken off his armor like the people around him, wearing only a linen tunic underneath. He sat casually on the dirt ground, talking to the soldiers.

Guard Captain Martius first saw the approaching Taranto Archons and whispered a few words in Davos’s ear. Davos then turned around unhurriedly.

“Lord Davos, when do we set off?” Eumachus asked before Diomilas could speak.

Davos glanced at the displeased Diomilas and said indifferently, “It is time to set off. The soldiers have been under the sun for more than an hour; they are almost dried up.”

Diomilas heard Davos’s implicit criticism that the slowness of the Taranto army was the real reason for the Theonian soldiers’ looseness. He coughed dryly involuntarily.

“Sound the trumpet to assemble!” Davos didn’t dwell on this issue and issued the order decisively.

As soon as the trumpet sounded, the soldiers resting in various postures immediately sprang into action, helping each other put on armor. Officers at all levels began to call their subordinates back to the unit, and standard-bearers waved their flags and shouted the unit names to indicate the position for the soldiers.

For a moment, dust filled the air, and noise was everywhere, but soon tranquility was restored.

Displayed before Diomilas was no longer the messy scene of soldiers sitting in heaps chatting and sleeping, but rows of fully armed, neatly arranged infantry columns…

Diomilas sucked in a breath of cold air. As a Taranto general who had experienced many battles, he understood in his heart: To achieve this means the army has rigorous training and strong discipline.

Looking back at the Taranto side: soldiers and civilians were mixed together, still hugging and bidding farewell to each other. Some soldiers were even crying bitterly, looking nothing like men about to go to war to kill the enemy.

Diomilas couldn’t hold his face anymore. Without a word, he turned his horse around and rode back…

At this time, Triphias and Tudepris also arrived.

Davos, now fully armored, said seriously, “Before setting off, we need to discuss the marching order.”

He scanned the crowd. “My suggestion is: Theonia’s army marches at the very front, Heraclea and Metapontum in the middle, and Taranto at the rear.”

Eumachus understood Davos’s intention immediately: Once encountering enemy attack, the Theonian army will block at the front, giving the troops behind time to react and prepare.

This suggestion was indeed selfless. Eumachus nodded in agreement. Triphias and Tudepris had even less objection; their armies were the weakest, so being protected in the middle was exactly what they wished for.

“According to what you said last time, the terrain from here to Manduria is flat. I plan to divide the army into five columns, widen the interval between columns, and march abreast. This facilitates responding to sudden enemy attacks and shortens the time to reach Manduria. Moreover, sandwiching the baggage train in the middle is also conducive to protection,” Davos continued.

Eumachus hesitated. Don’t look at how easily Davos says it; if they haven’t trained for this, columns might mix together while walking.

“I have to discuss this with Diomilas before deciding,” he said cautiously.

The other two had no objections; they had few soldiers, making management easy.

“Also, regarding the scouts sent out, I suggest a mixed formation of Theonian and Taranto cavalry.” Not knowing the enemy situation at all times is equivalent to a commander having no eyes and ears. Therefore, despite hearing that Messapian cavalry was formidable, Davos still had Ledes bring two hundred cavalry by ship. As a transmigrator with knowledge of ancient military history, cavalry was a branch Davos wanted to cultivate heavily. Thus, even if there were losses, it was worth it to let the Theonian cavalry understand their gap and strive for it. At the same time, he brought Izam’s mountain reconnaissance battalion to understand and familiarize themselves with the terrain and mountains of this land for future needs.

Since the start of the war, Taranto had suffered heavy cavalry losses, and there was even a phenomenon of some nobles refusing to serve. Eumachus wished for this proposal.

When he went back to convey Davos’s suggestions to Diomilas, Diomilas thought briefly and replied, “What Theonia can do, Taranto can naturally do too!”

After reorganization, the Theonia-Taranto Allied Army began to set off.

In fact, after learning of the Greek army’s expedition, the Messapian-Peucetian coalition quickly withdrew the siege and retreated to a camp two li (approx. 1km) south of Manduria. Therefore, the Allied Army successfully entered the city of Manduria at dusk without any fighting, not even losing a scout.

Joining forces with the defenders boosted the soldiers’ morale greatly, especially the Tarantines. At the same time, the increase in strength led the commanders to discuss briefly and decide to rest for one night and press on to the coalition the next day. The only headache was that the small city of Manduria was suddenly stuffed with nearly 30,000 people, appearing somewhat crowded. Arranging accommodation for the soldiers was a brain-racking matter.

The next day, just as dawn broke, Tolmides led a mixed cavalry squad to approach the coalition camp to reconnoiter, only to find the camp empty.

He immediately sent men back to report the news. Meanwhile, under the guidance of the Taranto cavalry, he divided the cavalry squad into two groups. One went south toward Uzentum; the other went east toward Brindisi, continuing to search for enemy tracks.

Davos and the others learned the news and realized the enemy was fleeing, so they immediately assembled the army. During this process, cavalry reported again: traces of the enemy’s main force were found to the east.

The commanders’ first reaction was: The Messapian-Peucetian coalition is retreating to defend Brindisi.

“We cannot let them retreat to Brindisi. That would force us to siege the city, and soldier casualties would likely be severe! We must catch up with them and fight a decisive battle right here and now!” Diomilas shouted urgently. The tragic state of the previous capture of Brindisi was still fresh in his memory.