Mediterranean Hegemon of Ancient Greece Afterwords

When I uploaded the final chapter of

I still remember five years ago, after a long period of sheer boredom, finally making up my mind to rewrite this story about ancient Greece. I wanted to make up for the guilt of dropping my previous work and fulfill a long-held dream of mine.

At the time, I had only a rough outline in mind when I hurriedly began writing. I never expected this journey to last nearly five years—including the initial planning and building up a backlog of chapters—and span almost four million words. Over such a long period, my personal and professional life underwent significant changes, and I faced many difficulties throughout the writing process. I thought about giving up countless times, but my passion for the story and that lingering dream told me I had to persevere. Moreover, I had countless wonderful readers accompanying me on this lonely path. Your constant encouragement and support kept me fighting to the very end.

However, my lack of experience with completing such a massive novel also exposed a few of my shortcomings.

I believe there are a few main flaws:

First, the characterization was lacking. Most of the characters were mere symbols and failed to leave a lasting impression. Second, Daionia's rise to hegemony was too easy. The unprecedented new systems established by the protagonist should have severely impacted the ancient West, but the resulting conflicts were depicted too superficially, lacking complex development or deeper exploration. Third, I lacked comprehensive control over the story's grand historical progression. I struggled with deciding what to skim over and what to detail. The countermeasures and armed conflicts initiated by various factions in response to Daionia's rise were not portrayed reasonably enough...

As for the reasons behind these flaws, I think the primary one is my own limited ability and talent. I couldn't plan and control the overarching narrative as masterfully as top-tier authors, who can also brilliantly churn out tens of thousands of words a day. The second reason is a lack of time. Especially after my backlog ran out, I had to work during the day and handle household chores at night. I could only rely on fragmented pockets of time to rush out daily updates. Just getting the chapters out felt like completing a quota, leaving me no extra time to finely sculpt the characters and plot.

Another major reason is my declining stamina. Writing requires a massive amount of energy, and when I write, I like to immerse myself in every character I conceive. I imagine their shifting emotions, their dialogue, and their reactions in battle... My mind is constantly racing. Over a decade ago, when I wrote

I have rambled on for so long because I am truly reluctant to let go. I am reluctant to end the novel I poured my heart and soul into, and I am reluctant to part with all of you who have supported and encouraged me. I hope we can reunite when I upload my next novel. However, the wait might be quite long. Before preparing the next book, I need to take some time to rest. After all, for over four years, I haven't had a proper break—not even during the Spring Festival.

Finally, let me tell you a little secret. In my original concept, after Daionia defeated Persia and became the hegemon of the Mediterranean Sea, there was supposed to be an epilogue concluding the story. However, after thinking it over again and again, I eventually deleted it to leave things to the reader's imagination and to avoid an abrupt ending.

Now, I will share the general plot of that deleted epilogue with you:

The year was 2020. During a massive urban renewal project in Xianyang City, Country Z, a construction team unearthed an ancient tomb in the western part of the Wei River Plain. After archaeological experts appraised the artifacts inside, they concluded that the tomb actually belonged to the Daionia Empire, which dominated the West over two thousand years ago. Furthermore, it was highly likely to be the cenotaph of Davos, the founding emperor of Daionia.

This news shocked not only the international archaeological community but the entire Western world.

Historically, Daionia was a massive empire spanning Europe and Asia, ruling the West for three hundred years. At its peak, its territory encompassed all of Western Europe, North Africa, Asia Minor, and most of the Near East, while its influence even extended into Eastern Europe and India. Although it eventually fell apart due to internal decline and barbarian invasions, successive generations of ambitious Western European monarchs dreamed of recreating its former glory. Countless Western writers and poets fantasized about and eulogized the greatness of that era. Yet, no matter how hard they tried, the entire West remains a fractured landscape of small nations to this day, unable to achieve unification. The great cause accomplished by Daionia has always remained a beautiful longing for the descendants of the West, making artifacts from the Daionia Empire highly revered.

When the news spread across the world, it was met with angry skepticism from countless Western citizens: How could the cenotaph of Emperor Davos, whom they revered as the greatest emperor of all time, be buried in Country Z, thousands of miles away!

But soon after, the descendant of Europe's oldest and noblest royal lineage—the current patriarch of the House of Davos—publicly declared that this was highly possible. He also released excerpts from the closely guarded records of the Daionian emperors' words and deeds. He emphasized that the founding emperor, Davos, had repeatedly mentioned a distant eastern nation to the second emperor, Crotocatax, known as the "Benevolent." In his later years, Davos also expressed his yearning for the distant East to the third emperor, Christod, known as the "Wise." Davos claimed that Hades had delivered several oracles to him in his dreams, stating that after his death, it would be best to bury his clothes and crown in the distant eastern nation to ensure the empire's lasting peace.

Following this, Europe's most authoritative archaeological association announced that they had carefully examined all historical records of the Daionia Empire. They discovered that during the reign of the fifth emperor, Saliseus, known as the "Conqueror," a massive delegation of envoys had indeed been dispatched. They were reportedly sent to search for the distant eastern nation, but there were no historical records of them after that.

Soon, a Western archaeological team, led by the descendants of the House of Davos, joined the archaeological team in Country Z. In response to the demands of the global public, the entire excavation process was broadcast live.

A rusted Golden Crown, a helmet, a golden breastplate, a sword, and a set of decayed and tattered brocade robes... As each item was extracted from the tomb, the patriarch of the House of Davos vividly recounted historical anecdotes related to the artifacts, leaving the audience in front of their televisions completely mesmerized.

It was now entirely confirmed that this was indeed the cenotaph of Emperor Davos.

The viewers eagerly waited for the Eastern and Western archaeologists to use modern technology to restore these objects to their former glory.

A few days later, the Golden Crown, helmet, breastplate, and sword had all been cleared of rust and were shining brilliantly. The Western experts discovered that identical inscriptions were carved into all these items. However, the experts from Country Z stared in wide-eyed shock: the inscriptions were none other than the simplified characters of Country Z!

...

Hehe, can you guess what those words were?

My dear brothers and sisters, let's meet again in the next novel!