Fortunately, behind the wooden wall stood watchtowers rising more than a meter above the ramparts. Supported by the covering fire of arrows and javelins from Tspites’s light infantry and freedmen below, the southern section of the wooden wall had managed to remain relatively secure thus far.

Tspites loosed an arrow. It struck a Bruttian warrior attempting to breach the wall squarely in the chest. The seemingly thick leather armor was pierced completely, and the enemy collapsed lifelessly.

Tspites reached for another arrow out of habit, only to find his quiver empty.

“Go fetch a new quiver, quickly!” Tspites shook his numb and aching right hand and barked at the guard beside him.

In moments, the guard ran back hurriedly, handing him a quiver filled with ten arrows. “Chiliarch, the quartermaster asks you to use them sparingly. His supply of arrows is running low.”

“How could we have used them so fast?!” Tspites exclaimed, slightly displeased.

“I asked him the same thing. But he said that between the light infantry and the freedmen, we have over two thousand archers. One quiver per person is twenty thousand arrows, and almost every archer has emptied a quiver by now… He also said… said that ‘arrows are bought with money, and they aren’t cheap! Because the Second Legion’s plan included defensive operations, Lord Mersis allocated us thirty thousand arrows; otherwise, he would never have let us be this wasteful!’” The guard relayed the message with a hint of grievance.

Although Tspites was indignant, the baggage train’s quartermaster was currently under Mersis’s jurisdiction. The thought of that stingy fat man gave Tspites a headache. He shouted loudly, “Brothers! Even if the arrows run out, there’s nothing to worry about! We still have our kopis and spears! Am I right?!”

“Right!!!”

***

The stalemate of the siege battle filled Pianlun with anxiety. He turned to look at the warriors resting in the rear, hesitating whether to commit the final 5,000 men to the fray. But the battlefield was narrow, and the space beneath the wooden wall was already overcrowded; adding more men seemed futile.

Just then, he heard a thunderous crash from ahead, followed by a wave of cheering.

“The wooden wall collapsed! The enemy’s wall collapsed!!…” The warriors beside him jumped for joy.

Pianlun turned around excitedly to look: A large breach had appeared in the center of the southern section of the fortress wall. Bruttian warriors were scrambling over one another to pour into the gap…

“Don’t panic! Don’t panic!…” Brim shouted loudly to soothe the bewildered Besidiae warriors.

Bagilipi was too old to fight, and his tribe’s warriors were led by his nephew. Thus, among the three leaders commanding the Besidiae forces, Brim was the oldest, most senior, and held the highest prestige. Although he had little desire to fight the Consentians, being on the battlefield forced him to struggle for his people’s survival.

“Hold your positions! The wall won’t collapse further!…” Brim shouted. He knew perfectly well that the breach had occurred due to the warriors’ negligence—the wooden wall had been burned by oil and battered by rams, causing that section to be destroyed and the earthworks to collapse.

“Guard the front! Ignore the enemies rushing in; the Theonians behind us will deal with them!…”

He spoke with such confidence because he had already seen fully armed Theonian soldiers arrayed in formation behind the breach. The speed and discipline of the Theonian army’s maneuver surprised him.

For the soldiers of the Third and Fourth Battalions of the Second Legion, the collapse of the wooden wall was a blessing. Finally, they could make up for the regret of not being on the walls to kill the enemy.

When the Bruttian warriors scrambled up the collapsed earthen slope, kicked aside the broken palisades, and rushed into the fortress, they were shocked to find themselves facing an iron wall formed of countless bronze shields and a forest of sharp spears. Amidst the rhythmic beating of war drums, the Theonian soldiers steadily thrust and retracted their spears. Every thrust potentially claimed a life…

The Bruttian warriors who rushed in could neither form a battle line with their comrades nor rely on officers for organization. Individual bravery was useless against the collective assault of the Theonian army. To make matters worse, they had to defend against arrows from the watchtowers overhead and javelins from the Besidiae warriors.

In the short time since breaching the wall, Bruttian casualties skyrocketed. Terrified, they tried to retreat, but their escape route was blocked by the mass of excited warriors still pouring in from the rear.

The Third and Fourth Battalions of the Second Legion advanced steadily, constricting the encirclement. The Bruttian warriors were packed so tightly together that they struggled even to swing their weapons.

Pianlun had initially been overjoyed to see so many Bruttian warriors rushing into the breach. However, the scene soon seemed to stagnate; warriors hovered at the breach but could not advance further. Unease began to creep into his heart.

Then, he watched in shock as the Bruttian warriors at the breach suddenly scattered in a rout. Ranks of Theonian soldiers in gleaming armor surged out from the gap. They launched a flank attack on the other Bruttian warriors who were fully committed to the siege. Soon, the rout was no longer confined to the breach but spread across the entire Bruttian offensive line…

Seeing this, Pianlun felt a chill run through him. He extinguished any lingering hope of victory. He realized the truth: The Theonian army occupying Besidiae is absolutely not the non-mainstream force of a few thousand soldiers that our chieftains estimated. It is very likely the so-called “Legion” the Theonians proclaimed!

“Retreat immediately…” He shouted the words painfully.

However, just as he managed to rally the defeated troops and return dejectedly to camp, he received even worse news.

“What did you say?! A rebellion broke out in Consentia?!”

“Yes, Great Chief. The Sedum, Sasi, Buwa… over a dozen tribes suddenly led their people to attack the inner city early the morning after you left with the army. If Chief Kadulk hadn’t arrived in time with his troops, I fear they would have breached the inner city! Now they occupy the western part of the outer city. The High Priest sent me to inform you immediately, hoping you can swiftly quell these rebels and restore peace to Consentia!” the messenger said anxiously.

“Understood. Go back and tell the High Priest not to panic. I will return with the army immediately. Tell him to hold the inner city with Kadulk!”

Pianlun made a swift decision.

Previously, to closely monitor and rule these disobedient tribes, the “Council of Seven Elders” had decided to force them to relocate to Consentia’s outer city. That decision had led to this very situation. This rebellion sounded a warning bell for Pianlun: The Theonian invasion had already impacted the various tribes of the Bruttian region, especially those who had been dissatisfied with the alliance and forced to submit. He had to act quickly to prevent the situation from deteriorating further.

He sent Petaru to execute the order to break camp.

Soon, Bergum burst into the main tent, shouting excitedly, “Did I hear wrong? Pianlun, you are returning to Consentia?! We’re leaving just like this, letting these Theonians continue to build their fortress here?!”

“Elder Bergum, under these terrible circumstances, what else can we do? Continue attacking the fortress?!” Pianlun was no longer as agitated as when he first heard the news. He asked calmly, “Behind those walls likely lie six or seven thousand strictly trained Theonian soldiers, plus over two thousand Besidiae traitors who defected to them. Add that heavily defended fortress… do you think we can take it with just the men we have?! Remember, we lost nearly two thousand men in today’s battle alone! Two thousand! That’s equivalent to most of the Ambalia warriors you brought!”

Bergum slumped into a seat… After a long silence, he raised his head, his voice dry as he murmured, “Are we just going to watch the Theonian army pass through Besidiae and break into our homeland…”

“Then let them come!” Pianlun roared, his eyes burning with intensity. He looked straight at Bergum, stepped forward, and gave him a powerful embrace. In a voice as hard as iron, he said decisively, “We will go back and muster all the Bruttian warriors! We will fight a battle to the death against the Theonians on the Consentia Plateau! This battle will determine the rise or fall of the Bruttian people. The Goddess of the Plateau, Amara, will protect us!”

“The Plateau…” Reminded by Pianlun, Bergum reignited his fighting spirit. “Yes, we have Amara’s protection! And we have the Consentia Plateau!…”

***

Meanwhile, the high-spirited Cincinnag, having received the allegiance of numerous tribes in northern Grumentum, marched smoothly southward. Upon reaching the south, however, he finally encountered resistance.

The tribes that had migrated from Niutum were the earliest to submit to Theonia. Compared to Pyxus, which lay far to the west of Grumentum, they identified more with and trusted Theonia. They drove out the envoys sent by Cincinnag and united, preparing to resist Pyxus.

Enraged, Cincinnag prepared to lead his army to attack these disobedient tribes. But then news arrived: There is movement in Grumentum city to the north. About two thousand Theonian soldiers have sortied from the city.

This made Cincinnag worry that while attacking the southern Lucanian tribes, he might suffer a sudden flank attack from the Theonians. He was forced to withdraw his army.

As soon as the Pyxus troops withdrew, the Theonians immediately retreated back into the city.

This pattern repeated for two consecutive days. Cincinnag concluded: The Theonians in the city are merely putting on a show. They have neither the guts nor the will to attack me.

Consequently, he ordered Gnaenat to take two thousand warriors to keep watch on Grumentum city, while he himself prepared to lead the army to conquer the southern tribes.

At this moment, however, a messenger arrived from Pyxus city with bad news: A thousand Eleans have invaded Pyxus territory. They are destroying farmlands and burning settlements. Due to limited forces in the city, the defenders dare not sortie rashly. Pyxus urgently requests Cincinnag to return and reinforce!

Upon hearing this, Cincinnag flew into a thunderous rage.