"Leader, rest assured, leave it all to !" Capito responded arrogantly. He truly enjoyed the feeling of being entrusted with nurous responsibilities.
"Leader, if the soldiers are allowed to choose voluntarily, I’m afraid there won’t be many left in the Third Legion!" Oluus warned loudly.
"That’s right, Leader!" Camillus also protested: "Most of the Third Legion are new recruits now, and the majority are poor citizens from Pisenum. They’ve barely spent any ti here and are still unfamiliar with our forces. I’m afraid they’ll all choose to stay behind!"
The Third Legion suffered heavy losses in the battle at the Womans River. Originally, Maximus had planned to restore the legion’s full strength gradually after stabilizing the forces. However, the rebel army’s successive victories in Pisenum attracted a flood of enthusiastic impoverished citizens to join. The majority of rebel leaders saw their forces swell rapidly, but Maximus remained steadfast and unimpressed. He eventually relented under the persistent pleas of Camillus and Oluus, opting to lift the restriction and allow the Third Legion to accept new recruits. Within two days, the legion beca fully manned, and Camillus finally took on the role of a genuine Legion Commander.
"The Third Legion is different from the Engineering Camp and the dical Camp; they are all soldiers. If they don’t want to follow us, then we must allow them to leave. Don’t force them, or it could lead to future troubles and jeopardize our smooth arrival at the destination. Understood?!" Maximus said sternly.
"Understood." Camillus nodded reluctantly.
Maximus coughed lightly. "However, you two can rest assured, as Spartacus has promised he will notify the other forces that soldiers willing to leave Italy can join our march. Even though most will likely choose to stay behind, there should still be thousands willing to leave. When that happens, these troops will be prioritized for the Third Legion. But you two must promise that they will be quickly settled and managed properly during the march without causing any trouble!"
Camillus and Oluus exchanged glances and responded in unison, "No problem!"
"Additionally... the Guard will likely see many departures as well." Maximus looked at Pequot. The Guard had also suffered significant losses during the Womans River campaign, but it had been permitted to recruit new soldiers. "They will also be prioritized for allocation to the Guard."
"Thank you, Leader." Pequot responded calmly. While others had been expressing their opinions earlier, he had remained silent, considering it unnecessary to speak on the matter.
As an Illyrian, Pequot naturally had no desire to remain in Italy. His forr subordinates weren’t Illyrians or Gauls; they would also undoubtedly choose to head north. As for the newly recruited soldiers who had joined only days ago, he felt little attachnt. If they wanted to leave, so be it—he had no regrets.
"Leader, if we march north on our own, where will we go after leaving Italy?"
"Yes, Leader, this is exactly the ti for you to tell us—where is our new holand?"
Fesaros’s words struck a chord among the group, as everyone shared the sa sentint.
Previously, Maximus often spoke to them about the advantages of leaving Italy. Yet whenever they asked, "Where are we going?" he would habitually dodge the question.
"Indeed, the ti has co to tell you all." This ti, Maximus didn’t evade the question. He spoke solemnly, "Acronis, bring over the large map."
"Yes!"
A large wooden panel was brought before the group. On it was a map of the diterranean personally drawn by Maximus using a pen and ink, based on mories from his previous life. The map included not just Italy but also the Iberian Peninsula, Greece, Little Asia, Egypt, Nubia... Only Italy was marked with mountains, rivers, and nurous towns; other areas were only labeled with nas.
Nonetheless, the map amazed everyone in the tent. Even Acronis, who could not read, whispered in excitent to Volenus after glancing at the map and widened her eyes in astonishnt. She mumbled softly, "So this is what the diterranean looks like! Egypt! Egypt is here!..."
Others, including Flanitnus, Quintus, and even the lofty Capito, gathered around the map with similar expressions of astonishnt. This map was far more detailed, precise, and visually impressive than the ones drawn by Ro.
Acronis, noticing the group’s shocked expressions, felt a surge of pride, as he had contributed significantly to assisting Maximus in creating the map. He stood straight with an air of self-importance.
Quintus examined the Italy section of the map carefully while marveling internally: To his knowledge, this young leader had never left Italy, yet he had drawn such an incredible diterranean map. It was simply astounding! Just when Quintus believed he fully understood Maximus, the latter managed to astonish once again. Was this soone truly born with innate wisdom? Or had he been favored by the gods?!...
While Quintus was deep in thought, Flanitnus directly asked, "Leader, when did you create this map? Why have I never seen it before?"
"Just two days ago, after setting up camp, I found so ti to work on it," Maximus responded nonchalantly. "Due to the rush, I didn’t have ti to investigate details about each place, so so areas may not be accurate. Let’s make do for now."
Flanitnus crouched to examine the map closely and said seriously, "I’m not sure about other places, but I do know Nubia, Iberia, and Inner and Outer Gaul relatively well. The regional outlines on this map aren’t much different from those I’ve seen on military maps before. I think this map should be highly reliable.
However, I do want to ask, Leader, how were you able to draw such a comprehensive diterranean map? Even in Ro, few would have the ability to do so."
Maximus didn’t answer directly. Instead, he raised his voice sternly, "From the mont I escaped the Gladiator School, I began contemplating where we could build a holand if we ever managed to leave Italy.
The location must be sowhere that Roman forces cannot reach for a considerable ti, surrounded by other powers that aren’t too strong to threaten our safety. At the sa ti, it must allow us to thrive and expand..."
Everyone beca more alert, focusing their attention on Maximus.
"When we were in Sarabia, I finally made up my mind about where we would go—" Maximus began to explain but noticed Pigeris making exaggerated facial expressions. He glared at him to signal calmness.
"The reason I’ve kept this a secret is that the place is quite remote. If word were accidentally leaked, and the Romans prepared for it, it could cause imnse trouble. But now is the ti to reveal our destination. I hope you will keep this secret and refrain from discussing it with others. Also, lead your troops wisely and follow to our new holand!"
As Maximus spoke, his emotions grew fervent. After all, this location represented the fruit of countless sleepless nights reflecting on history from his past life. He extended a hand and pointed to a spot on the map, declaring loudly, "Our new holand is here!"
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