The rooftops on the streets were filled with people. They called out the names of their families, interacted with the soldiers in excitement, and proudly introduced their husbands or fathers, who were marching, to their neighbors with pride, and made every soldier feel that they were returning home in full glory.
Philesius, who was advancing forward, passed his house, so he subconsciously looked at it. On the roof of his house were filled with people, when suddenly a young man shouted and danced around, it was Melisander! In the noisy crowd, he could still hear the shouting of Melisander, “That's my father! That's my father! Father! Father!!….” And by Melisander's side, was Delia, who was watching him with a smile….
Philesius smiled, a smile that came from the bottom of his heart….
The marching army then turned west, and here stood a huge arch made of white marble. Davos called it Arc de Triomphe(Αψίδα του Θριάμβου): The vault has the image of goddess of victory, and the stone walls on the lintel are carved according to the suggestion of Davos so that the later generations will remember the foundations that they had laid to found the Theonia City-State Union: The battle to annihilate the Lucanian alliance, re-capturing Amendolara at night, the surprise attack on the Crotonian army, and the ingenious take over of Nerulum, will be carved. However, due to the lack of time, they still haven't found a good sculptor, and the arch is still currently blank.
After passing through the Arc de Triomphe and continuing towards the west, the road gradually widens. At the end of the road is the newly built square, which was immediately put into use and it's still lacking a name because of the time being tight
Litom, who was holding the flag, quickened his pace, for he had already noticed the dozens of white clothed figures on the stage of the square. According to the prior instructions that he had received, he knew that those were Lord Davos, the archon that he respected, and the statesmen of the senate who were waiting for their arrival.
“Here they come! Here they come!….” Exclaimed Henepolis excitedly.
“Be quiet, son.” Avinoges held down the restless Henepolis and he then said to Davos, “Milord, thank you for taking care of Henepolis during this time!” After Henepolis arrived in Thurii, Davos did not make him stay in an inn, but had allowed him to stay in his own home.
“Henepolis is very sensible! He love to learn as well! His teacher, Ansitanos, likes him very much! And after he came, my house became a lot more lively!” Said Davos with a smile.
These past two days, Avinoges found out from Henepolis that Davos had taken good care of him. Avinoges is not someone who just talks about being grateful, so he secretly determined that he would repay Davos for his kindness in the future. He then changed the topic, “Milord, your warriors are coming!”
“They are not only the warriors of the Union, but also the warriors of our alliance, they are the one who will guard the security of the whole alliance!” Said Davos with a smile.
The polemarchos of Roscianum, Amikles, nodded in agreement. As a member of the Theonia Alliance, the leaders of Roscianum and Laos were invited to attend the Triumphant Return, and they all gladly accepted the invitation.
At this moment, when they saw the troops marching towards them neatly, they did not feel that Theonia Union was showing off its force to them, because Theonia Union as the leader of the alliance, would not be like Athens in the Delian League who would exploit its allies and ask for tributes. And Theonia Union will not interfere in the internal affairs of its allies like Sparta in the Peloponnesian League. As for sending troops to war, it is their obligation as an allied city-state and also a show of equality. Therefore, the stronger Theonia Union is, the safer they will feel as an ally.
Davos looked at the troops that are heading to the square and his thoughts was filled with imagination: Why did he not let the officers and strategos go first like the Romans in his previous life, and had instead let the soldiers be at the front?; First, it is in order to train the sense of honor of the soldiers and highlight the concept of equality in the Union, and the morale of the troops will be greatly improved. Second, it is to reduce the influence of the victorious strategoi on the people, so as to avoid some accidents in the long run. For this reason, he had also let Philesius be in the middle, and made several senior centurions enjoy the honor of riding in a wagon. Even so, this kind of novel way to celebrate their victory that has never been held in a Greek city-state is a great honor.
The salpinx resounded and the drums rang, and the soldiers began to enter the square.
“I can't believe it! Litom is unexpectedly at the forefront!”
“Who is Litom?”
“He is a famous hunter in the tribe of Bagul!”
“Look! He is the one walking at the front, and is actually ahead of the Greeks. The Union truly has no prejudice against us Lucanians!”
“Look! Look! Bagul! Bagul is unexpectedly riding in a wagon! So envious!!”
“When can I be like him?!”
. . . . . . . . . . . . .
Among the crowds on the square, were the Lucanians like Kesima, Ulasa and Hemon, who came from Nerulum, and had yelled and screamed and danced with excitement….
Naturally, Bagul could not see them amidst the dense crowd. The coachmen drove the wagon around the square, and after going for a round, they then drove towards the center of the square. Bagul's majestic figure is like a huge rock, which has aroused huge waves in the hearts of the Lucanian youths, ‘A warrior should enjoy such glory!’
When the drum beatings stopped and the square became quiet, the soldiers then looked at the Union's Archon who was standing tall on the stage.
Davos then stepped forward and said in a loud voice, “Warriors of the Union, in these 20-odd days that you have been away from your families and had rushed to the strange mountainous region. You had fought with the fierce enemy and captured Nerulum. At the same time, you helped our ally recover Laos and solved the problem of Thurii being attacked by the enemies from the mountains for many years. Thank you! The Senate thanks you! The Union also thanks you! The Senate and I would like to express our most solemn gratitude to your efforts and sacrifices!” With that, Davos took the lead and solemnly bowed to the officers and men that were in front of him.
Roars rang out in the square in a flash.
“All hail Davos”
“All hail the senate!”
“All hail the Union!!!”
. . . . . . . . . . . . .
The soldiers screamed with excitement.
“Because of your efforts, Theonia Union is now officially established! After the deliberation and decision of the senate, today's Triumphant Return will become a festival on the whole union to celebrate the birth of Theonia Union! And the military flag will become the flag of the Union, and will flutter all over the union!”
“Long live the Union! Long live the Union!! Long live the Union!!!….”
Listening to the cheers of the soldiers and the people, Davos believed that the national day and the national flag will surely unite all the people of all ethnic groups under the Union and add a lot of weight to the formation of a brand new race in the Mediterranean!
. . . . . . . . . . . . .
In the afternoon, Davos hosted a banquet for Timasion, Xanticles, Cleanor and Tolmides at his residence in Thurii, and they were accompanied by Agasias, Philesius and Hieronymus.
Eating new and delicious food, drinking mellow alcohol, and recalling the battles that they had fought together in the past. The mood of the banquet was quite warm.
At this moment, Cleanor belched and asked, “Davos, looking at your beautiful courtyard and you becoming the archon and the commander of the army, how enviable….erm….when can we be like you?!”
‘Here it comes!’ Agasias immediately aroused himself.
Davos laughed and then said with seriousness, “As long as you work hard to make contributions to the Union, it will not be a problem for you to become a citizen of the Union, get a land, and have the same life as me! In fact, there are wealthier people in the Union than me….”
“Contribution? What kind of contribution?! I have heard that it will take five years for one to become an official citizens in your Union, not to mention becoming a statesman of the Senate, which is even more difficult!” Complained Cleanor.
“Yes, the laws of the union are like this. All foreigners and freemen need to abide by this, and there are no exceptions!” Said Davos calmly with firmness.
“But-” Cleanor, pretending to be drunk, pointed to Agasias and said loudly, “Erm….that is not what Agasias had told us back in Ephesus, he said that ‘As long as we come to Magna Graecia, we will soon become citizens and get a land! And even become statesman of the Senate!’ It is because of listening to his words that we came to such a far away place. Now, you are telling us that it will take five years to achieve all this?! What is more, I heard that the Lucanian warriors in the Triumphant Return were slaves half a year ago, and manage to become official citizens only after half a year, and their leaders had also become statesmen. Are we inferior to those aborigines?!!”
The atmosphere in the living room suddenly became tense.
Agasias clenched his fist angrily. In order to attract Timasion, he had indeed said some inducing words, but it was not as exaggerated as what Cleanor is saying. He wanted to retort, but in such a situation, it would undoubtedly make the situation become more tense.
Agasias hesitated, Philesius also hesitated to say something, and Hieronymus frowned and looked at Davos. On the other side, Timasion, Xanticles, and Tolmides seemed to not hear anything and continued eating, but they secrealy pricked their ears up….
Davos' expression did not change, he then cast a comforting gaze to Agasias and said slowly, “Cleanor, rest assured. Just sit down and listen to what I will say….”
Cleanor tried to stir things up, but it was like setting a fire on a wet cotton cloth, which didn't seem to work….
So, he could only sit down angrily.
“To tell you the truth, why does it take five years for some people and only half a year for others? It's all about interests!” Davos looked at these mercenary leaders and said seriously, “Because the Lucanians were able to help the Union to pacify Nerulum, they can even help the Union to conquer more Lucanian territory, what is more, they have made a lot of contributions to the Union before. They have built the roads that you travelled by wagon, they then helped us defeat Crotone, and they also actively learn Greek and have tried to understand and comply with the laws of the Union. For such a group that are willing to integrate into the Union and can bring great benefits to the Union, it is natural that the Senate will give them citizenship in advance, and the people have no objection because they all know that the Union will get much more than what we paid!
Agasias is right. Although you don't have the advantages of the native people like the Lucanians, you are good at fighting and there will be no less wars in the Union in the future. As long as you win many battles and let the Senate see your value, it will not be a problem for you to become citizens in advance!”
