After giving the order to withdraw, Davos turned around and headed to Syracuse's camp.
On his way towards the camp, bodies of dead and wounded soldiers littered the road; their blood gathered into a thin stream as it flowed into the sea and stained the coastline. Smelling the smell of death, flocks of crows came pecking at the fresh flesh and blood and even when they saw people coming, the crows didn't hide but just “cawed”. Under the setting sun, it reflected the bloody, revolting, and tragic battlefield filled with corpses, making the excited Davos sombre at their victory.
When Davos arrived at the Syracusan camp, he could see numerous wounded Theonians lying there, all of whom received it during their pursuit. On the other hand, those wounded during the battle had been rushed to the medical brigade of the Theonian camp on the north bank of the Neto River to receive treatment. In contrast, the physicians of Aprustum were the ones treating the wounded soldiers in the Syracusan camp. However, as they were understaffed, many soldiers had to lie in wait in resentment.
After Davos saw the situation, he immediately dismounted his horse and strode over after.
“Your Majesty?!”
“It's his majesty Davos!”
“His majesty!!”
“Lord Davos!!”
. . . . . . . . . . . . .
As soon as Davos approached, the wounded soldiers all cheered with excitement.
“Warriors, I came to treat your wound.” Davos said with a gentle expression, “We will treat all of you and soon be well, so please be patient!”
A wounded soldier then loudly said, “It's a blessing for us to receive your treatment, your majesty! Don't worry; we won't make a sound and interfere with your treatment!”
“That's right! We will all stay quiet!” The other wounded soldiers echoed.
After finding the soldier, who had just spoken, familiar. Davos asked, “What's your name?”
“Tapirus, your majesty. I was the supervisor of Cheiristoya's Restaurant in the city of Thurii. This time, I was drafted into the sarissa brigade as a centurion.” The wounded soldier replied. After Davos issued the order to pursue the enemy, the soldiers of the sarissa brigade found it inconvenient to run with their sarissa, so they also threw away their weapons like the enemy. Furthermore, since they weren't wearing any armour, they naturally ran faster and allowed them to catch many fleeing Syracusans. Just that Tapirus was unlucky, the wounded soldier he caught up with was fierce and refused to surrender. He drew the sword hanging from his waist and slashed at Tapirus' thigh, and if not for Tapirus' soldiers swarming and beating the enemy down, he would have gone to the underworld by now.
“Oh, I know you.” Davos remembered seeing this man in his own residence before, so he began checking Tapirus' wounds.
Besides theoretical knowledge, Davos was also experienced in treating diseases and wounds as he often went to help the medical staff when they were short on hands during the six-month campaign in Persia. Even his guards were familiar with the medical items and procedures, so whenever Davos began his treatment, Martius would instruct his men to find clay pots to boil water, clean clothes, cut down trees, make wooden boards, etc.
Blood gashes when Davos cuts a bone-deep opening in Tapirus' left thigh with a sharp Greek kopis.
After telling Tapirus to bear the pain, Davos lifted and bent Taprius' left leg, then stretched his hand to press around the wound. Afterwards, he smiled and said, “Tapirus, it seems that Hades cares for you. Although your wound is big, it didn't damage the main artery or slash the tendons and bones, so you will soon recover.”
Although Tapirus didn't understand those medical terms, he was still happy with the news and repeatedly thanked Davos.
Afterwards, Davos stood up and told Martius, “Once the water boils, clean up his wounds and then bandage them…”
Martius nodded in understanding.
Davos then went to a wounded soldier, who had been screaming the loudest because of the pain, and knelt. The soldier was a young Bruttian warrior whose face was pale and panting while looking at Davos. But after the wounded soldiers promised to keep quiet, the young Bruttian warrior clenched his teeth without uttering a sound. Still, beads of sweat covered his boyish face as his right shoulder drooped down abnormally while his right leg bent outward, which looked painful. Davos then touched the boy's right shoulder with one hand and the foot with the other,
Davos was told that the young Bruttian warrior was too excited when chasing the enemy that he didn't slow down when crossing the Targines River. As a result, he slipped on the river bank and landed on his right shoulder first, resulting in dislocation. But due to suddenly falling, his comrades behind him had no time to avoid him and ended up stepping on his right calf, which resulted in a fracture.
When Davos placed his hand on the young Bruttian’s shoulder, it made him tremble.
“What's your name? Where are you from? And which legion?” Davos asked softly.
“Mu…Muklo…I live in Consentia, and came with…with strategos Hieronymus…” The wounded soldier endured the pain and stammered. Although he had a stronger accent, he was fluent in Greek among the Bruttians. He then stressed, “My father is a….centurion of the fifth…fifth legion!” as he seemed ashamed that he was not a legionary.
“You and your father are wonderful citizens of Theonia!” Davos praised from the bottom of his heart, knowing that living in Consentia meant that the soldier's family had left the tribe and became true citizens of Theonia.
“But…but when I came here, I found out that…that my father had died in the battle…battle in Scylletium…” Perhaps the gentle gaze of Davos affected him; Muklo said the words he had been holding in his heart for the past few days as tears finally fell in his eyes.
Davos also became gloomy because of it, so he comforted him by saying, “Muklo, you haven't lost your father. He had just become a spirit and gone to the peaceful Elysium. Every year during Hades' Day, you can go to the Temple of Hades in Consentia to pray for him; maybe he will come to meet you in your dreams…”
“Is that true?!” When Muklo heard this, his eyes lit up as he seemed to forget the pain and looked at Davos with hope.
“Of course, it's true!” Davos reassured him while taking advantage of Muklo's happy and relaxed state to suddenly apply force in his hands, resulting in Muko screaming, frightening everyone around.
“Hoo, you can now move your right arm. However, you shouldn't exert strength on it for these two days!” Davos instructed.
Muklo turned his right shoulder in surprise and nodded again and again.
“Lift your right foot a bit so that I can see it.”
“Your majesty, can my foot still be healed?!” Muklo immediately did as Davos' told, while asking with expectation and anxiety.
Davos didn't immediately answer him as he closely inspected Muklo's right calf. Although it was badly bent, the damage to the innermost tissue wasn't severe, and there was no obvious hematoma, so the blood vessels shouldn't be affected. After reaching out to Muklo's calf again, he carefully pressed and squeezed it.
Out of his extreme trust in Davos, Muklo held back the pain and didn't utter a word.
After examining it, Davos confirmed that there were no large fragments or broken tendons in Muklo's right calf, so he breathed a sigh of relief and then said with certainty, “Be at ease. After treatment, you would only need to rest for three months, and your calf will be as good as before!”
Muklo finally smiled and thanked Davos sincerely, “Thank you very much, your majesty!”
. . . . . . . . . . . . .
By the time Agasias received the report and called more physicians from Aprustum, Davos had already treated more than a dozen wounded soldiers. And with these physicians taking over, he no longer continues the treatment. Instead, he talked to Agasias about important matters, “This camp can't accommodate all the soldiers here, so we need to send the more than 20,000 people to rest in Aprustum tonight, especially the wounded!”
“Don't worry, your majesty. I have already asked the city hall people to arrange this matter!” Agasias' answer caused Davos to look at him with surprise. After all, seeing the problems and taking the initiative to solve them is the quality of an excellent administrative staff. Hence he really didn’t expect the outgoing Agasias to grasp it.
When Davos looked at Agasias' somewhat aged face(He had just, in fact, turned 40), it made him wonder if he had moved on from the things troubling him, so he couldn't help but feel a bit emotional.
As the sky was about to get dark, the pursuing soldiers, who returned to the Syracusan camp, began setting up the tents abandoned by the fleeing soldiers. After lighting all the bonfires, the whole camp became noisy…
After all, the soldiers returned to the camp with the Syracusan prisoners, who were stripped of their armour and clothing, following their previous practice, leaving them naked and exposed in the late winter evening, causing them to shiver from the cold. Furthermore, the Theonian soldiers escorting them showed no mercy and would even poke at them with their spears once they slowed down or were disobedient, causing them to scream.
And the others just watch them from the side, laughing and even swearing at the prisoners.
Davos also did not stop the soldiers as he knew that the soldiers needed a place to vent their anger. After all, from the time the Syracusan army landed in Magna Graecia until today, no less than 10,000 Theonian soldiers and civilians have died at their hands, especially on the outskirts of Aprustum and Krimisa, which almost became ruins. Besides, these prisoners were lucky compared to the seriously wounded Syracusan soldiers who fell on their way to Scylletium and were ignored even when they continuously screamed and finally had to close their eyes and wait for their death.
Davos thought for a moment and said, “Agasias, temporarily put aside Aprustum's matter tomorrow and take these prisoners back to Thurii.”
