Since Axistes had been engaged in local administration, Davos had been without a suitable Herald (Adjutant). Moreover, with the expansion of the war and the increase in the number of participants, the situation had become complex and confusing. He gradually felt strained handling it and urgently needed assistance. Tolmides was undoubtedly a suitable candidate. Davos first appointed him as Acting Herald, intending to let him slowly develop a staff team subordinate to the commander to assist him in handling military affairs during the expedition.

***

That Taranto scout did not return to the Aleon Hills immediately but ran to the Taranto column and reported the situation to Diomilas in an even more exaggerated manner.

Before Diomilas could respond, the surrounding officers and soldiers began to clamor: “My Lord, the Messapians are slaughtering our kin and burning our fields; we cannot ignore this! Those foreigners pretend not to see because it is not their city-state suffering losses!”

“That’s right! We cannot listen to the orders of foreigners! We must fight the Messapians and avenge our kin!”

“Go to the Aleon Hills, catch up with the Messapians, and kill them!”

…

The roars of the officers and soldiers gradually let more Taranto soldiers know the situation. This collective frenzy infected every Taranto soldier, which in turn increased the commotion in the ranks, threatening to spiral out of control.

Diomilas was also infected by it, but he thought more: After being elected Archon, I pushed for the war against Messapia. Now the war has caused heavy damage to Taranto. Because the war situation is critical, the Tarantines haven’t had time to settle the score yet. Now facing the boiling public opinion, if I turn a blind eye again, even if I retake Brindisi, the angry populace will expel me from the city-state, burdening me with lifelong humiliation!

Diomilas forcibly forgot the trace of fear Davos had left in his heart when he got angry. Facing the morale-boiling army, he made up his mind: “Order the whole army to turn left and advance rapidly toward the Aleon Hills!”

The soldiers erupted in cheers and immediately began to move.

The Tarantines broke away from the column. The first to notice something wrong were the Metapontines in front of them. In great shock, Tudepris immediately sent someone to rush to notify Davos ahead.

“Bastard! Damned bastard!” Davos lost control of his emotions upon hearing the news and cursed loudly. The thing he worried about most had happened.

But once his emotions stabilized a bit, he turned to the other Taranto Archon who had remained silent and said, “Lord Eumachus, the situation is critical now. I need you to rush over immediately to dissuade Diomilas and make him bring the troops back at once!”

Eumachus shook his head. “I know Diomilas. He is as stubborn as a rock. Since he has already decided to violate your order, it is impossible to persuade him back!”

Davos looked straight at him, holding back his anger, and said, “Are you saying you won’t go?!”

Eumachus’s eyes flickered. “I mean I can’t persuade him back; going is useless.”

“Tolmides!” Davos roared, startling the somewhat uneasy Eumachus.

“Here, Lord Commander!” Tolmides answered forcefully.

“Go find that bastard yourself and tell him: ‘If he doesn’t come back, I will immediately take my troops back to Theonia.’ Go quickly and return quickly!” Davos issued the order indignantly.

“Understood!” Tolmides nodded solemnly and mounted his horse.

“Da… Lord Davos, are you really going to—” Eumachus asked cautiously, but Davos shouted impatiently, “Shut up!”

Davos’s anger was hard to quell: Since I commanded troops, this is the first time a subordinate general has disobeyed orders! These two Taranto Archons act in concert; they are birds of a feather. In the future, I can no longer participate in joint armies like this. Since its establishment until now, nothing has gone smoothly. Most of my energy has been spent on how to balance the relationship with the Taranto army. Now I am dragged down by them and face the danger of defeat. Do I really have to return immediately?

***

“My Lord, if the Theonians really leave, our troop strength cannot withstand the numerous Messapian-Peucetian coalition forces!” the adjutant of the Taranto army said worriedly, watching the departing Theonian Herald.

“Don’t worry, the Theonians will follow! Doesn’t Theonia always claim to ‘keep promises’? Now they also want to become the leader of the Greek city-states in southern Italy. If they abandon their allies and flee the battlefield before the war even starts, once other city-states know of this cowardly behavior, who will be willing to trust Theonia!” Diomilas was confident on the surface but still uneasy inside.

Thus, he ordered again: “Let the soldiers advance a little slower.”

***

When Tolmides told Davos of Diomilas’s refusal, Davos had already regained his calm.

“Understood,” Davos replied indifferently.

“Lord Davos, what should we do now?” Tudepris asked hurriedly.

Davos looked around at everyone, taking in Eumachus’s concern, Tudepris’s unease, and Triphias’s casualness, then said resolutely, “Turn the whole army around. Reinforce that fool!”

Eumachus showed gratitude, and Tudepris also relaxed. Only Triphias asked urgently, “What if there really is an ambush in the Aleon Hills?”

“Then we have to go even more. Not to save Diomilas, but to save thousands of Taranto citizens!” Since he had already decided to reinforce, Davos naturally had to speak more beautifully. In fact, the reason he wanted to reinforce was not just the reason Diomilas stated. Heraclea had already moved closer to Theonia, and Metapontum was also wavering. But if the Tarantines suffered a disastrous defeat in this battle, they would no longer be able to stop the Messapians and Peucetians. These fierce natives could march north along the coast at any time, invade Metapontum, and threaten Heraclea. At that time, Theonia would have to send troops to rescue again. It was better to take advantage of being on the battlefield now to rescue the Taranto army, repel the Messapian-Peucetian coalition, and maintain the balance of power in this land. As the founder of Theonia, what did temporarily enduring disgust for the Taranto Archon matter for the strength of the alliance?

***

The Aleon Hills were actually the junction of two mountain ranges, so they were covered with hills of various sizes. Most of these hills were dozens of meters high, with rounded tops. Looking down from above, they resembled large green mushrooms, presenting a unique natural beauty.

But for people who wanted to pass through here, it was a disaster. Although the hills were not high, they were broad and steep, difficult to climb. Moreover, the hills were continuous, one after another. To pass with less effort, one could only travel through the gentle slopes between the hills, which made the route, originally not too far in straight-line distance, winding and tortuous. Furthermore, few people had passed through here for decades; green grass grew everywhere, long submerging the paths once opened.

Fortunately, with the scouts who had tracked the coalition leading the way in front and the smoke columns in the distance as markers, the Taranto army saved a lot of trouble finding the way. Along the way, except for soldiers complaining about the difficult mountain road, everything went smoothly; they didn’t even see the shadow of a Messapian or Peucetian.

And upon receiving news from the scouts catching up that the Theonian army had also entered the Aleon Hills, Diomilas smiled: Naive young man. Fight with me? You are still far behind!

He exhaled a breath of malice and looked into the distance. It was not too far from the soaring thick smoke; he estimated they could arrive after bypassing a few more hills.

On the grass, the corpses of Taranto civilians could already be seen, each death miserable. This stoked the anger of the soldiers. They seemed to hear the helpless cries for help and screams of their kin from not far away. Their originally tired bodies seemed filled with strength again. They involuntarily accelerated their advance, and the entire column, elongated by the narrow mountain path, became even more scattered and weak.

“Woo! Woo! …” The Messapian military trumpet suddenly sounded among the hills, striking every Taranto soldier’s heart like a heavy hammer. Diomilas, who had been smug about fooling Davos, instantly turned pale…

***

“Catch up to them! Don’t let them escape!” Tolmides shouted anxiously at his men.

Although the Theonian cavalry chased at full speed regardless of danger, with teammates falling off horses due to the rugged mountain path from time to time, the distance between them and the fleeing Messapian cavalry grew wider and wider.

Those few Messapians manipulated their mounts flexibly, as if the horse were part of their body, running at full speed in the narrow mountain path without seeing any hindrance. This made Tolmides and the others sigh in inferiority, finally watching helplessly as the Messapian cavalry went far away.

At this time, the shout of “Battalion Commander” came from behind Tolmides. He looked back and saw Ledes riding over.

Thus, he held the reins with one hand and saluted Ledes with the other. The Theonian cavalry was an independent branch with a total of less than a thousand men, not subordinate to any legion. Although Ledes was only a Battalion Commander, his status was equal to that of an infantry Legion Commander.

Ledes gazed at the retreating backs of the Messapian cavalry with a grave expression. He turned back to Tolmides and said, “Next, many Messapian and Peucetian cavalry may attack. We must block them with all our strength and prevent them from detecting the direction of the main army’s march for as long as possible!”

“Yes!” Tolmides responded immediately, but felt the heaviness of this task in his heart: I heard there are over a thousand Messapian cavalry, and their horsemanship is superb. This is not something the merely two hundred Theonian cavalry who came can block. Fortunately, there are hills everywhere here, unfavorable for the deployment of troops and cavalry outflanking; the enemy cavalry’s advantage in numbers cannot be utilized.

Ledes saw his nervousness and added, “Commander-in-Chief Davos has sent over two hundred peltasts to assist us. They will arrive soon.”