Mediterranean Hegemon of Ancient Greece Chapter 1012: Mago's Resolve

The Daionian garrison's defensive measures did not stop there. They gathered linen from homes across the city, stitched it into long sheets, and stretched it over wooden poles along the parapet walkways to form staggered awnings. These overhead covers caught most of the incoming arrows, javelins, and stones, sapping their lethal force and effectively shielding the defenders on the walls.

The Daionian defenders also erected numerous wooden frames along the battlements, hanging bronze pots filled with water. Once brought to a rolling boil over wood fires, the liquid was poured directly over the edge. Spiked with feces and urine, the boiling water splashed over the besieging Carthaginian soldiers and caused severe, festering sores that refused to heal—a viciously cruel tactic.

Stone projectiles periodically ripped through the air, causing a tremendous uproar wherever they landed. Arrows and sling stones crisscrossed in an endless barrage, casting a shadow over the city like a looming dark cloud. The Daionian soldiers held the walls, refusing to yield a single inch, while the Carthaginian troops surged against the fortifications in relentless tidal waves...

The battle was not confined to the surface. Over the past few days, Mago had ordered soldiers with mining experience to dig several new tunnels, pushing the subterranean advance straight toward the city's interior. Learning from previous mistakes, these sappers were now backed by heavily armed troops. Whenever the Theonians discovered a breach, the two sides plunged into even more grueling, blood-soaked combat beneath the earth...

The siege raged from morning until dusk without a single drop in the Carthaginian army's intensity. Following the deployment of the Phoeno-Numidian Infantry, the attackers managed to scale the battlements on several occasions, only to be thrown back each time by Daionian reinforcements.

Only when night finally fell did the Carthaginian army sound the retreat.

Though Okriton had seen combat in his youth, he had never witnessed a battle on such a massive, ferocious scale. Standing upon the Inner Wall and gazing out at the countless corpses and wounded soldiers littering the base of the fortifications, he could not settle his racing heart for a long time.

A short while later, he found Mago inside the main tent of the Carthaginian Camp. The military commander, having just finished directing the siege, was wolfing down his dinner.

Mago's gaze sharpened the moment Okriton walked in. He lowered his bread and asked bluntly, "Okriton, how did the negotiations go?"

But upon deeper reflection, it made sense: Lilybaeum had fallen, the maritime supply lines had been severed, and feeding an army of 100,000 men was becoming an impossible task. Even a hardliner like Mago had no choice but to bow his head to reality.

Okriton was glad to see this; it meant there was room for discussion.

"One of the conditions the Theonians set for a peace agreement," Okriton said, enunciating every word, "is that the army under your command, Lord Mago, surrenders to them!"

Mago's eyes flared, but he quickly reined in his temper. "The Senate will never agree to such an absurd condition!" he stated with absolute certainty.

"That isn't all. The Theonians also demand that Carthage cede Corsica, Sardinia, and the entire Island of Sicily!" Okriton continued, his voice heavy with emphasis.

"Daionia wants to destroy Carthage!" Fire danced in Mago's eyes, though his expression quickly darkened into solemnity. "It seems the Theonians have no intention of negotiating peace at all!"

"I don't see it that way," Okriton replied slowly. "Just as the Senate set its own initial terms, the Theonians are merely demanding an exorbitant price to open the talks. We can certainly continue to bargain with them. The real issue is that our recent military record is far too poor, leaving me without any strong chips for the negotiating table..."

Mago looked up, staring dead into Okriton's eyes.

Okriton calmly met Mago's blade-like gaze. His expression was icy, his tone chilling as he said, "Is there anything wrong with what I said?! If it weren't for you, Lord Mago, returning from a crushing defeat in the east and successively losing Palermos and Lilybaeum—dragging this entire campaign into the mud—the Senate would never have suffered the humiliation of seeking a peace treaty!—"

"When did I ever suffer a crushing defeat in the east?!" Mago slammed his palm against the table in fury. Bowls and cups clattered wildly, spilling his food across the floor. "I withdrew my forces from the east because our rations were failing! And the root cause of that is our incompetent navy losing control over the Sicilian waters, leaving our maritime supply lines severely threatened! This is all the fine work of that Annobas you people recommended! The fleet he commanded was routed time and time again, squandering nearly every Warship Carthage possessed. Meanwhile, the army under my command has yet to suffer any major losses, only to be forced onto the defensive because we are starved of supplies!" The sheer helplessness and bitterness in Mago's voice bled through in that final, unguarded outburst.

But Okriton clearly harbored no sympathy for him. He replied coldly, "Lord Mago, to meet your demands when this expedition began, the Senate bled itself dry. We conscripted nearly every able-bodied young citizen from Carthage and the Phoenician Allied States to muster your army of 100,000. This left the defenses of Africa completely hollowed out, utterly incapable of repelling the raids of the Daonian Fleet!

"Furthermore, to guarantee the grain supply for your massive army, the Senate scraped together the surplus food from nearly every household in Africa, leaving the treasury utterly depleted! Carthage made such immense sacrifices and efforts not so that you could content yourself with merely 'avoiding major losses' and shunting all the blame onto the navy. If you had secured just a few more victories to put real pressure on the Theonians, Daionia wouldn't have dared dispatch their navy to harass African soil. And they certainly wouldn't be demanding such extortionate terms at the negotiating table today!"

Mago was momentarily rendered speechless. A long moment passed before he regained his haughty demeanor. "In a few days, you will receive news of a victory!"

Okriton paused, caught off guard, before realization dawned on him. "Are you talking about Selinus?" he asked uncertainly. "I watched the siege today. How many soldiers did we lose? Three thousand? Five thousand?"

"We took heavy losses, yes," Mago declared with unwavering confidence, "but the Theonians' casualties cannot be light either. More importantly, we have extended our earthworks right up to the edge of their trench. When we launch our next assault on Selinus, our soldiers will be able to breach the walls directly and engage the Theonians in brutal, hand-to-hand combat.

"If the Theonians fail to reinforce their lines, we will seize Selinunte through sheer numerical superiority. And if they do send reinforcements, this city will become a continuously bleeding wound for Daionia! When that happens, they will have no choice but to drastically revise their negotiation terms!"

Though the two men were bitter political rivals, Carthage's current crisis meant that, for the first time, Okriton desperately hoped Mago's words would come true. His expression hardened as he said, "The Senate is eagerly awaiting the news of your victory. Let us hope we don't have to wait long!"

...

Deep in the night, a fast ship from Selinus sailed into the port of Minoa. Davos was roused from a heavy sleep by Martius. Upon reading the battle report penned by Amyntas, the king's drowsiness vanished entirely. He turned to Tolmides and Plintors, who had hurried to his quarters, and said, "The Carthaginian army has relentlessly assaulted Selinunte over the past few days. The garrison's casualties have been severe. Even Amyntas is struggling to hold the line, and he has written to request reinforcements."

Tolmides took the report in surprise. After scanning its contents, he passed it to Plintors. He fell silent in thought for a moment before speaking in a grave tone. "Your Majesty, the Carthaginian commander, Mago, has massed his forces outside Selinunte for a full-scale siege. Amyntas commands barely over ten thousand men. Even if he fights tooth and nail to hold off the Carthaginian assaults over a prolonged period, his losses will be catastrophic. We must remember that the vast majority of the First Legion hails from Thurii. The legion has already received two waves of reinforcements during this war; the citizens of Thurii have suffered tremendous sacrifices..."

Hearing this, Davos was deeply moved and remained in heavy silence.

Tolmides carefully observed the shifting expressions on Davos's face before offering a quiet suggestion. "I recall that during your campaign in Latium, when the Roman forces viciously assaulted the City of Ostia and inflicted heavy casualties upon our men, Your Majesty decisively ordered the city's evacuation and incineration. As a result, the Romans bled heavily for a pile of ash, completely shattering their morale. Now that we have captured Lilybaeum, it can more than fulfill the strategic role of the Port of Selinus. Could we perhaps consider... employing the exact same strategy when the time comes, and abandon Selinus entirely?"

Davos's eyes flickered at the proposal. He drummed his fingers lightly against the table, sinking deep into thought. A moment later, he raised his head and looked toward his other Staff Officer. "Plintors, what is your assessment?"

Feeling the gazes of the others shift onto him, Plintors carefully weighed his words. "I agree with Lord Tolmides's proposal, but we must not abandon Selinunte too prematurely. Your Majesty's current overarching strategy relies on maintaining a rigid land-based defense, baiting the Carthaginian army into launching costly offensives so that we can continuously inflict casualties on their soldiers and grind down their morale... Handing Selinus over to the Carthaginians too soon—even if we only leave them ruins—will needlessly invigorate their spirits. Furthermore, it will afford them the time and momentum to pivot their advance directly toward Lilybaeum..."

Davos listened quietly, mulling over the words for a long moment before a helpless smile tugged at the corners of his mouth. "I almost regret dispatching Amyntas to hold Selinus now. Back in Latium, I ordered him to abandon the City of Ostia. Now on the Island of Sicily... I will have to order him to abandon Selinus as well. Even if he ultimately obeys the command, given his fiercely aggressive fighting style and his absolute refusal to retreat, I fear this will eat at him for a very long time."