Mediterranean Hegemon of Ancient Greece Chapter 1159: The New Commander

Entrusted with Davos's instructions, Crotokatax clearly harbored no such thoughts. He walked straight to Leotychides, offered a solemn military salute, and said earnestly, "General Prosous, thank you for once again achieving great merit for the kingdom! My father understands why you asked to resign your command, and he hopes you won't take the matter to heart. He also asked me to deliver this letter, written by his own hand."

With a slightly exaggerated flourish, he drew the letter from his robes and slowly handed it to Leotychides.

The onlookers saw and heard the exchange perfectly. The army's generals, in particular, immediately grasped the implication: even though it had been proven that Prosous was a Spartan prince, he had not lost King Davos's favor.

Ever since Agesilaus's visit, rumors had spread through the ranks—quietly indulged by certain figures—leaving the troops unsettled. Even with Leotychides making every effort to restore order, the results had been poor. Rumor had it that Prosous would be stripped of his command and recalled to the capital for investigation and punishment.

Now, it seemed the rumors were only half right. General Prosous still enjoyed His Majesty's high regard, which would at least put the men of the First Legion at ease.

A flicker of emotion broke through Leotychides's usually stoic expression. He took the letter and said, "I thank His Majesty for his trust! I wish Your Highness all the best in the upcoming battles."

"General, you have achieved outstanding merit and know the situation in the Peloponnese well," Crotokatax replied sincerely. "I still have much to ask of you."

"Of course," Leotychides nodded, dispensing with false modesty.

Crotokatax then turned to the commander of the Fourth Legion. "Uncle Oliphus," he said with the same earnest tone, "this is my first time serving as a commander. I hope to have your assistance!"

"Thank you, Uncle Oliphus!" Expressing his gratitude, Crotokatax then turned to the Sixth Legion commander. "Legion Commander Trotidis, I am very glad to fight alongside you—"

Before Crotokatax could finish, Trotidis snapped a swift salute and declared loudly, "Your Highness, please rest assured. I will strictly abide by Military Law and execute every order you issue!"

Although Trotidis had also been a soldier in Menon's mercenary army back in the day, he hadn't served in Davos's company. Therefore, he hadn't forged the same deep bonds with Davos in Persia as Hylos, Matonis, and Oliphus had. Still, he was thoroughly content. He believed that compared to his comrades who had died, been crippled, or retired, his current status was already the greatest blessing Hades could have granted him. In fact, when Geogris retired and the Ministry of Military Affairs wanted to promote Trotidis to Fifth Legion Commander, he had refused, choosing to remain stationed in Scylletium. Now, he harbored no ambitions for the commander's post. Even though the appointee was a completely inexperienced Crotokatax, Trotidis firmly believed that King Davos—who had led them to countless victories—would never make a reckless appointment.

Having secured face-to-face commitments from two legion commanders in the expeditionary force, taking control of the army would be much easier for Crotokatax. In high spirits, he walked over to Tisias.

Seeing Crotokatax approach, Tisias immediately bowed respectfully. "Your Highness!"

Crotokatax quickly caught his arms to stop the bow. "Lord Tisias, you have worked hard! My father asked me to pass on a message. These are his exact words: 'Once you arrive in Messenia, you must visit Tisias. Tell him he has done an excellent job completing the kingdom's tasks! I hope he leads the other Daionian Citizens to continue their hard work so Messenia can develop faster and better, making it not only Daionia's firmest ally in Greece, but a highly capable one! If this can be achieved, the kingdom will never forget their contributions!'"

Tisias turned to address the crowd in excitement. "Did you all hear that? This is His Majesty's recognition of our achievements! His Majesty even encourages us to build Messenia into an even better place!"

"Victory to the King of Daonia!" the councilors who were originally Daionian Citizens shouted passionately, prompting the local Messenian councilors to echo the cheer.

While the Messenian councilors, led by Tisias, enthusiastically reported on Messenia's situation to Crotokatax, Oliphus and Trotidis met with Ctesus, Protors, First Cavalry Legion Commander Curtius, and Seventh Legion Commander Tagetinos.

"Plintors, we'll be relying heavily on you to assist His Highness with military affairs moving forward," Oliphus said. Although Plintors was a Staff Officer and technically outranked him, Oliphus considered himself a founding veteran of the army, giving his words a somewhat lecturing tone.

Plintors didn't seem the least bit displeased. Instead, he replied humbly, "No, Lord Legion Commander Oliphus. I cannot do it alone. It will require all of us to discuss matters together and work in unison if we are to secure final victory in this expedition to Greece!"

Oliphus froze, his face flushing slightly. When the Ministry of Military Affairs had issued the new appointments and he learned that Plintors would be the temporary Staff Officer for this army, he had understood that His Majesty clearly wanted Plintors to guide and protect Crotokatax. It was hard not to feel a twinge of jealousy. Yet, this high-ranking official from the Ministry of Military Affairs—a man over a decade younger than him—not only took the initiative to include everyone in discussions but also showed respect by using the proper titles required by Military Law. It only made Oliphus feel overly petty.

Just as he was hesitating over whether to smooth things over, Plintors spoke again: "Although His Highness lacks military experience, he is exceptionally intelligent, cool-headed, and enjoys the protection of Hades. He possesses the talent to become an excellent commander. Furthermore, before our departure, His Majesty repeatedly instructed me that I could offer His Highness advice—and even criticize or correct the orders he is about to issue—but I must never usurp his command authority!"

Oliphus's heart skipped a beat, and he fell silent for a moment. Then, his gaze swept past Plintors to the man standing behind him. "Ctesus, I never expected you to be the one taking over as the First Legion's commander!"

"I didn't expect it either!" Ctesus spread his hands with a teasing smile. "I had already retired, yet the Military Affairs Office called me back to be the First Legion Commander! Lord Oliphus, you know me—I didn't want to take this post. It's far too much hassle. Fortunately, it's only temporary. Still, being the First Legion Commander and outranking you... I have to admit, I'm quite happy about that."

Ctesus dared to joke like this because he and Oliphus had a good relationship. In his early years, Ctesus had served under Matonis. His naturally lazy disposition had caused endless headaches for the notoriously strict Matonis. Meanwhile, Oliphus—who had always been at odds with Matonis—would quietly send people to encourage Ctesus to keep slacking off...

Sure enough, Oliphus laughed and scolded him. "You bastard, Ctesus! A temporary stint as First Legion Commander has you sticking your tail up to the heavens! With your out-of-shape, retired body, can you even lead the First Legion properly?"

"You're two years older than me. If you can do it, of course I can," Ctesus fired back.

"You brat... keep talking tough. Wait until I host your welcome banquet tonight. I'll drink you under the table!" Oliphus laughed.

Ctesus fell silent at that, knowing his alcohol tolerance was terrible.

"Lord Oliphus, am I invited to tonight's banquet?!" Seventh Legion Commander Tagetinos chimed in.

During the Western Mediterranean War, Tegetilus had led the 9th Legion to conquer the entirety of Sardinia Island. Although the 3rd Fleet had played a massive role in this, Tegetilus's contributions were undeniable. Because of this, after the war, Davos had planned to transfer Tegetilus to the Ministry of Military Affairs to replace the aging Hieronymus as Chief Military Training Officer. However, Tegetilus refused, preferring to stay in the army. Consequently, Davos had to promote him to a higher-ranking legion (according to the kingdom's military tradition, the lower the legion's numerical designation, the higher its commander's status in the army, though this did not necessarily mean the legion itself had higher combat power). As it happened, Seventh Legion Commander Xanthiparis passed away from illness right around that time, so Tegetilus took over his position.

Not long after, Geogris was persuaded by Davos to become Quartermaster, leaving the post of Fifth Legion Commander vacant. The Ministry of Military Affairs issued another decree asking Tagetinos to take over, but he refused once more. He said, "I just arrived in Locri and haven't even memorized all the soldiers' faces yet. If I am transferred away now, I'll feel like a deserter. Let me do a good job as the Seventh Legion Commander first."

In the end, the Ministry of Military Affairs had no choice but to appoint the former Tenth Legion commander, Melisander, as the Fifth Legion Commander.

"Of course you're invited. How could we leave out a wine barrel like you!" Oliphus laughed. He then turned to Trotidis and said, "This is truly a rare occasion. The four legion commanders gathered here in Messenia are all old comrades from our time in Persia. Tonight, the four of us should dine and drink together, and have a good chat about the old days!"

Trotidis glanced over at Crotokatax, who was chatting with Tisias a short distance away, and said softly, "A dinner gathering is fine, but it's best if we don't drink. Although the army hasn't seen combat recently, we are still in a state of war, and drinking is forbidden. Not to mention, His Highness just arrived. If the few of us legion commanders gather to drink, I'm afraid that..."

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