Mediterranean Hegemon of Ancient Greece

Davos didn't hesitate to nod when faced with Garni's expectant gaze. He then said in a firm tone, “For allies who are truly friendly with our Theonia, Theonia will never let them suffer grievance! Garni, you can rest assured as I will send an envoy to Beneventum to show my support for you and declare that any tribes that want to act against you will be the enemy of Theonia! We will also condemn Hirpini, Caudini, and Pentri for their veiled resistance to our agreement over the past few years!” Said Davos, then he signalled the scribe to record the matter.

Garni was so thrilled that he thanked him repeatedly. At last, he could put down the stone in his heart.

But Davos then said, “What I am worried about now is that the Hirpini tribal coalition knew that your Abellinum has a good relationship with Theonia, yet they would still hold the ceremony against you. So if he wasn't worried about making Theonia dissatisfied, does it mean that Lesguk doesn't have any intention to renew the agreement?”

Garni's mind shook as what Davos said was the thing he was most worried about. However, he convinced himself that this was Lesguk's strategy to test Theonia through Abellinum's affair to gain the initiative and make some modifications to the agreement. After all, Theonia's strength is known to all, and any power would have to measure their own weight if they could withstand Theonia's wrath before trying to offend them.

Davos smiled and said, after seeing Garni's nervous look, “In fact, whether Hirpini was willing to renew the agreement or not has no impact or loss to us in Theonia, but for the Samnites-” Davos revealed a compassionate appearance and sighed, “You have a long tradition of loving to live in the mountains, but living in the mountains have difficulties, like having not enough arable land to grow food. And even though animal husbandry is feasible, you must watch out for the wild animals and pray that the winter isn't too cold. Otherwise, your livestock will have a hard time surviving, just like the previous two years when the winter in the mountain is much colder than that in coastal areas. As for hunting, it isn't enough to feed many people. That's also why your father joined the other Samnite tribes to launch an attack on Potentia ten years ago, not only because of the incitement of the Syracusans but also your need to obtain more land to feed your growing population to survive…”

Davos' words caused Garni's heart to ache as ten years ago, he was still just a brave warrior, fighting under his father, Berani's protection…

“But war isn't the only way for the Samnite tribes to survive, as you could also strengthen friendly trade relations with other forces, which not only can let you gain more food but also do not have to worry about losing the war and sacrificing your people. You, Abellinum, are the best example; as far as I know, your life now is much better than other Hirpini tribes. Even the children born and survived in these years are also more than other tribes, so at this rate, after another ten years, Abellinum will once again become the largest town among the Hirpini tribes!…”

Garni's heart surged as what Davos said was exactly what he thought. After all, regaining the position as the great chieftain of Hirpini, who once belonged to Abellinum, was his important goal.

“And the most important conditions for a tribe's survival and growth are adequate food and good medical skills!” Davos said in a serious tone, “Back then, those forces around the Samnites like Campania and Lucania were afraid and unwilling to have contact with you, so you had to rely on plundering to solve your problem of survival. Yet now, even though we are the only force willing to make friendly exchanges with the Samnites, the Samnites reject our good intentions and even say something like blasphemy against the gods? ! The priests of Hades stayed in Abellinum for many years. Yet despite the hardship of life in the mountains, they still helped so many sick Samnites without compensation! How many Samnites in need were helped?! To you, Hades is a foreign god, but so what?! All major Greek deities were once foreign deities, but through long-term contact with Egypt, Persia and other nearby forces, they finally became our Greek deities. Now, some Campanians are even worshipping your god, Savoni, to protect their livestock. Furthermore, the things Hades is in charge of don't conflict with those of your Samnite gods, as you don't have a god presiding over death and the underworld! So why can't you try accepting Hades?!…”

Davos' sincere words caused Garni's restless heart to ease. After all, he was conflicted in taking the initiative to contact Theonia, even though the situation forced him. But after listening to Davos' words at this moment, he benefitted a lot, so he felt guilty and wanted to explain.

But Davos waved his hand and said, “We won't force the other Samnite tribes to accept Theonia's kindness if they aren't willing, but I am worried about Abellinum!”

Garni was startled, and soon, his eyes widened, “Your majesty, do you mean that Lesguk would wage war against Abellinum?!”

“Once Hirpini doesn't renew its agreement with Theonia, they would likely retaliate against Abellinum, who disobeyed the overall decision of the tribe. And I don't need to say more about your conflict with Lesguk.” Davos looked at him and continued, “Once that time comes, and we show our support, it may cause a second war between the kingdom and the Samnite! But a war with Samnite isn't what we want, so the Senate might find it difficult deciding whether to support you!”

Garni was anxious hearing that, “Would Theonia just let Lesguk lead an army to attack my Abellinum? Don't forget that our friendliness with Theonia caused the other Hirpini tribe to abandon Abellinum!”

Davos remained calm while ignoring the agitated Garni. Then he slowly said, “This is just a guess on our part. Hirpini’s tribal coalition led by Beneventum might also be unwilling to risk losing Theonia as an ally and choose to renew the agreement. But in any case, for your Abellinum, the danger will still be there. However, there is a way…to make Abellinum completely safe-” Davos said until there and stopped talking.

Garni immediately asked, “What can we do?”

Davos didn't answer directly but calmly asked, “You people of Abellinum should have a lot of contact with Potentia. What do you think is the difference between the current Potentia and the Potentia ten years ago?”

‘What's the difference?…’ Garni's past impression of Potentia flashed through his mind: One of the biggest differences would be their attitude towards the Samnites. In the past, the Potentians feared the Samnites, but now they not only did not fear them but also took the initiative to contact the Samnites, just like the Potentian Genta they met when coming here who wanted to trade with Abellinum. In the past, Potentia was as poor and backward as Samnite, and the tribes would rarely interact with each other if there were no significant events. But they saw a vibrant town with temporary fairs and permanent small markets between the many tribal settlements after passing through Potentia some time ago. The reason for that was Theonia's help in building some roads, which made the interaction between the Potentian tribes quick and easy…

Garni was silent for some time. Then with a hint of vigilance on his face, he said in a hesitant tone, “Your majesty, you want Abellinum…to become a free city of Theonia…”

“Once Abellinum becomes a free city, there won't be any change besides belonging to Theonia in name while getting many benefits, just like Potentia.”

While Davos easily said those tempting words, Garni remained silent.

“Of course, that is just one of my suggestions.” Davos smiled and didn't continue to urge him, “You can go back and think about it. In fact, it isn't only Abellinum who has encountered such problems, but also Laconia. And we gave them the same suggestions.”

‘Laconia’ Garni felt the name was quite familiar. After thinking about it, it seemed that it was a town in Caudini, which was located in the mountain area north of Irna…

Garni was surprised, but his mood relaxed a little, ‘It seemed Abellinum wasn't the only one facing the dilemma of fighting against the Samnite's tradition…’

. . . . . . . . . . . .

In Theonia's territory in Sicily, although the Ministry of Military only had one legion here (the Eighth Legion), there were two military camps: One in Tauromenium, which generally served more as a fortress, as it could not accommodate too many soldiers. The other was on the northern edge of the Catanian plain between the cities of Catania and Sikuri, and it was the main camp of the Eighth Legion.

Currently, the Eighth Legion's camp was so crowded, unlike the deserted place it was in the past.

Galademus led a convoy into the military camp. And even though the soldiers coming and going out of the soldier's barracks of similar size and style on both sides of the road, it still didn't affect Galademus' travel to where he wanted to go. After all, the Ministry of Military transferred his affiliation to the Eighth Legion before getting transferred to Naxos. Thus he came to this military camp many times to train and could be said to be familiar with the place even though he was only a reserve.

While walking on the slightly busy road, Galademus seemed to hear someone calling his name. After looking around, he saw a familiar figure.

Theokases rushed to him smilingly, “Thank the goddess of luck for letting me meet you here.”

“If it weren't for you, I wouldn't have brought the newly harvested grains here,” Galademus complained.

“What does it have to do with me?” Theokases looked at the long convoy.