........................
Quintus was right in his guess; Andres indeed had that intention when he was forced to retreat. He deliberately let his team fall behind and created so confusion to lure the enemies from the inner camp to strike, so he could justifiably demand that the other teams that had just left return for support.
To achieve this goal, he was willing to accept losses for his team. It was his last effort for this war; however, the rcenaries stayed in the inner camp, allowing them to leave.
Reluctantly, Andres led his team to evacuate from the rcenary outer camp, which had been seized with countless sacrifices. He passed through a camp almost burnt to ashes, and traversed the battlefield, which was a cause of imnse grief and defeat for him. Finally, he arrived on the west bank of the Kolana River, and reined in his warhorse, turning his head back with a look of unwillingness.
Under the sunlight, the swamp was steaming with mist, making the rcenary camp in the far distance appear illusory and vague...
Suddenly Andres felt: This war was his last chance to eliminate this rcenary army. If he gave up, it would be endless trouble in the future...
Thinking of this, his hands clenched tightly, and hatred surged in his heart: It’s all that damned Brochi and the Maziyi people’s fault, short-sighted, only caring for themselves, ignoring the interests of Segestica...
The hatred in Andres’ heart continued to grow, and the mane he held in his hand was pulled tighter and tighter.
The warhorse neighed and suddenly lunged forward.
Caught off guard, Andres fell into the river with a splash.
He struggled to get up, but a hoof stamped heavily on his chest, and the blow was so painful he could hardly breathe. Instinctively, he opened his mouth to call for help, but the cold river water poured in as soon as he did...
"Great Chief! Great Chief!!..." Before Andres lost consciousness, he saw the guards rushing towards him in panic from all sides...
...........................
In the courtyard of the Alde Tribe’s main house, Acoupaigos was sitting on a wooden chair, resting with his eyes closed.
He had bustled and fought in his youth, but as he aged, illness plagued him. Especially in autumn and winter, his body felt suffocated and pained in his limbs, making sleep difficult. Only basking in the sun brought so relief.
Cleobrotas hurriedly approached him and excitedly whispered: "Great Chief, Maximus has won again! They have repelled the Pannonian army!"
Acoupaigos opened his eyes, raised his head, and saw his confidant’s joyful face. He said with so surprise: "Yesterday, didn’t Budocaribas send soone to say that the Pannonians had broken through the temporary camp and trapped Maximus and his n inside, in a very dangerous situation, asking if we should send reinforcents to rescue them? How co today the Pannonians are defeated?"
"Great Chief, this news was also brought by a ssenger from Budocaribas, whom I happened to encounter at the gate, so I relayed the ssage to you. After the Pannonians occupied the outer camp of the Nix Tribe, they got negligent. Maximus had arranged a team hidden in the mountains in advance who launched a surprise attack at night, burning the entire Pannonian camp, forcing them to retreat the next day."
"So that’s how it is." Acoupaigos said with slight disappointnt: "The Pannonians were forced to retreat just because their camp was destroyed, and it wasn’t a crushing defeat like last ti."
"Great Chief, this ti, the army led by Andres exceeded 30,000 people. The Nix soldiers led by Maximus were just over 10,000. Being able to fend off Andres’s army was already beyond our expectations.
Additionally, the scouts sent by Budocaribas observed many wounded in the Pannonian camp, indicating their casualties were not minor either..."
Cleobrotas sincerely praised: "Judging from these recent battles, the team led by Maximus is indeed excellent at fighting. With them holding the eastern front, we don’t have to worry about further attacks from the Pannonians!"
"...Yes, they are indeed very adept at fighting. They’ve almost brought Segestica to its knees in just over a month..." Acoupaigos sighed aningfully and asked: "You ntioned Nix several tis just now; what is this Nix?"
"Oh, Maximus established his own tribe and nad it Nix. Recently, when people from our tribe went to et him, he always referred to himself as a Nix person."
"Nix... Nix Tribe... It seems that Maximus is determined to take root here!..." Acoupaigos softly murmured the na "Nix," his expression becoming sowhat complicated. He was about to say more but then saw his eldest son Aristakas approaching in a hurry.
"Father, those outsiders have defeated the Pannonians once again!"
"I’m already aware of this."
Aristakas eagerly said: "Father, the Segestica people have suffered repeated defeats, severely diminishing their strength. We should seize this opportunity to gather warriors from each tribe, form an army, and reclaim our land by the Kupa River! If we delay, I’m afraid those outsiders will occupy all of it, and then it will be difficult for us to regain the land!"
Acoupaigos glared at him and questioned: "Who put you up to saying these things to ?!"
Aristakas did not dare et his father’s eyes, lowering his gaze but stubbornly replied: "No... no one put up to it. I just believe we should do this! At the ti... when we signed the alliance treaty with those outsiders, we shouldn’t have agreed to that clause, about everything they take from the Pannonians belonging to them! Nonsense! Now it turns out that if we want to reclaim our own land, it’s like we’re thieves!"
"Shut up!" Acoupaigos roared in anger, then coughed repeatedly: "If... if it weren’t for signing that treaty with Maximus, allowing them to secure the eastern front for us against the pressing Segestica people, I’m afraid the Pannonian army would have already reached our village today!
...Cough... We’ve been at war with the Segestica people for several years, and don’t you yet understand what kind of person that leader of the Segestica is? He’s soone who never rests until he achieves his goal!
The Segestica may now be weakened, and if we send troops to attack, perhaps we could indeed reclaim the land, but so what! The Pannonians still have six or seven big tribes, and they have a tribal alliance. Andres could easily borrow reinforcents, and if he leads the army back, can you withstand it?!"
"I—" Aristakas was at a loss for words.
"Then not only will you sacrifice our remaining warriors, but you’ll also offend those outsiders. If they beco displeased and no longer willingly defend us against the Pannonians, or even secretly sabotage us... wouldn’t that create another powerful enemy for ourselves?"
Acoupaigos’ stern admonishnt left Aristakas dumbfounded. He paused for a mont, then stamred: "The land by the Kupa River... we could temporarily give it up, and we previously abandoned the land east of the Kolana River, which still lies vast and deserted, unclaid by anyone. Yet in the mountain ranges north of the Murenica River, many of our tribes live crowded together. Why don’t we let them cross to the east bank and reclaim the original land."
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