Mediterranean Hegemon of Ancient Greece Chapter 1169: Cruising the Saronic Gulf

In the center of this gulf lay an island called Aegina. Over a century ago, it had been a powerful Greek state, particularly in naval power, and it had caused Athens no small amount of grief. It wasn't until Themistocles advised Athens to pour more than half its wealth into developing a navy that Athens gradually gained the upper hand in their sea battles. Ultimately, during the rule of Pericles, Athens entered its golden age and finally conquered Aegina—with Sparta opting not to intervene—making it an Athenian territory.

With Aegina annexed and Salamis Island—located not far to its northwest—also belonging to Athens, the northern waters of the gulf fell entirely under Athenian control.

Although Secilian had made a staggering decision, he hadn't lost his reason. He wasn't arrogant enough to let his fleet's Warships charge into the northern waters to provoke Athens—an act that would likely drag the neutral city-state into the war and cause unnecessary trouble for the kingdom. Instead, he ordered his Warships to sail past the southern side of Aegina Island.

This, too, was a risky move. The waters south of Aegina were dotted with small islands and reefs, making the channels quite narrow. Unfamiliar with the local sea conditions, the 1st Fleet's Warships had to form a long column and advance at a slow pace. If a hostile fleet from any of the Greek city-states launched a sudden attack now, the head and tail of the First Fleet would struggle to support each other, inevitably resulting in heavy losses.

Only Athens possessed formidable naval power in these waters and the surrounding areas. Furthermore, based on intelligence from the Ministry of Military Affairs, Secilian knew that Aegina Island housed an Athenian Military Port where several Warships were docked. Consequently, his earlier ease had vanished, replaced by mounting tension.

The 1st Fleet swiftly shifted into two columns, threading the gap between Aegina Island and Messana Island. Immediately after, they carefully navigated around the southern side of Agistri Island. Only then did they gradually increase their speed...

Meanwhile, the southern coast of Aegina Island was packed with Athenians. Their eyes were glued to the sea as one Trireme Warship after another sailed endlessly past right beneath their noses, their faces universally expressing shock.

"How... exactly how many Warships are there?!"

"I've been counting this whole time! 205 have already gone by, and the line behind them is still so long. There has to be at least 400!"

"Four hundred Warships is nothing special," someone scoffed. "Athens once had a total number of Warships far exceeding this! Besides, even if we have far fewer ships than they do now, we could still defeat them in a naval battle using our superior sailing skills!"

"It's good to have confidence, young man, but don't blindly belittle the enemy," an older man replied. "We are all sailors here. Take a close look at how they sail before you judge. The Daonian Fleet shouldn't be familiar with the local sea conditions, yet their speed isn't slow at all, and the distance between each row of Warships and the one behind it remains perfectly steady... Up ahead in that narrower section, the two Warships in each of their columns are turning with incredible ease. They barely slow down, and they haven't collided once... All of this proves that the Daonian Fleet is highly trained. Their sailors' seamanship is nothing to scoff at; we must take them seriously!"

"Hey! You idiots!" another shouted. "The fleet of the Theonians has already reached our doorstep, and you still have the leisure to stand here blindly gawking? Shouldn't we be launching our Warships to protect our homeland?!"

"What does a woman like you know?!" a man retorted. "Look at the direction the Daonian Fleet is heading—it doesn't look like they are coming for Athens at all. Besides, we haven't received any deployment orders from the Executive Committee of Generals yet. If we rashly attack and trigger a war between Athens and Daionia, we might actually be convicted of a crime by the ecclesia!"

...

While the Athenians stood on Aegina Island debating among themselves, the vanguard of the 1st Fleet had already rapidly approached the Port of Cenchreae, located on the eastern side of the Isthmus of Corinth. The land here curved inward, forming a small bay. The Daonian Warships immediately blockaded the mouth of the bay to prevent any vessels from escaping.

The 1st Fleet arrived at an opportune time. Just after five troopships from Asia Minor had entered the Port of Cenchreae, two more fleets of transport ships from Asia Minor arrived near the Port of Corinth. Upon receiving the news that the Daonian Fleet had appeared in the Saronic Gulf, they fell into a guilty panic. Swarming frantically into the port to escape, they caused chaos and severe congestion at the entrance, making it temporarily impossible for the port to close its water gates.

The 1st Fleet's Warships seized the opportunity to surge into the harbor. They rammed every vessel they could see flying the flags of the Asia Minor city-states, even those already docked at the piers. During this process, to clear their navigational paths, they inevitably capsized other ships as well...

Absolute chaos reigned within the Port of Cenchreae. People on the shore ran around in panic, screaming and shouting... However, for a time, the Corinthian port officials couldn't find any effective measures to stop the Daonian Warships from wreaking havoc inside their harbor.

Corinth's naval strength was considered quite decent among the city-states of the Greek Mainland. However, the Saronic Gulf east of the Isthmus had always been the domain of the Athenians, so all of Corinth's Warships were docked at their main western port—Lechaeum. Even if their fleet had been in the eastern port this time, they simply could not compare to the sheer number of Daonian Warships continuously pouring into the harbor.

In addition, over a dozen Corvus Warships docked at the piers one after another. Fully armed fleet infantrymen immediately disembarked. Yet, they neither pursued the port's civilians nor attempted to seize control of the port itself. Instead, they formed a neat phalanx of nearly 500 men, gripping their shields and swords. Holding their ground, they shouted in unison, "We only attack the cargo ships transporting troops and supplies for Sparta! We harbor no ill will toward Corinth! We only attack..."

The shouts of the fleet infantry seemed rather absurd and laughable, but in the midst of the chaotic situation, they actually achieved their intended effect. The Corinthians hesitated. Deterred by the imposing presence of the landed Daionian soldiers, they neither launched fire arrows from the watchtowers nor tried to find a way to close the water gates...

Not long after, a bugle horn sounded from the flagship of the First Fleet's squadron. All the Daonian Warships inside the port swiftly began to withdraw.

The Corinthian citizens in the port finally regained a fraction of their composure. However, the surface of the harbor was littered with shattered planks and the wreckage of ships. The desperate cries of sailors struggling in the water echoed endlessly—a truly tragic sight...

The Daonian Warships successfully evacuated the Port of Corinth, allowing Secilian to breathe a sigh of relief. Just as he was about to issue the order for the fleet to withdraw from the Saronic Gulf, the lookout atop the mainmast suddenly shouted, "A fast ship to the northeast has raised a yellow flag!"

Secilian's heart skipped a beat. He understood that this meant a naval force with fewer Warships than the 1st Fleet was approaching. In this massive gulf, there was only one city-state daring enough to make such a move: Athens.

Secilian grew excited. "Raise the Starry Sky signal!" he bellowed. "The fleet will advance toward the northeast!"

Receiving the order, the captain of the Flagship rushed to the stern and asked urgently, "My lord, are you preparing to go to war with Athens?!"

"Calm down, Acritus," Secilian said to comfort him. "The Athenians' intentions are unclear. I am merely making preparations. If they dare to launch an attack, then we can take the opportunity to strike back!"

The war horns sounded, and black flags were hoisted. The 500 Daonian Warships that had been clustered outside the Port of Corinth rapidly fanned out, centering themselves around the flagships of their respective squadrons. As they organized their formations, they sailed together toward the northeast.

Before long, dozens of Athenian Warships appeared in the sights of the captains leading the vanguard of the 1st Fleet. This did not affect the Daonian Warships in the slightest; all vessels continued to advance at a steady pace.

The same was true for the Athenian Warships.

Six li... five li... four li... The distance between the two sides rapidly closed. By this point, the Athenian sailors could surely feel the stark disparity in numbers compared to the Daonian Fleet. However, their glorious track record of winning multiple battles while outnumbered gave them courage, especially with the victory monument standing tall on Salamis Island not far away.

Decades ago, right in this very gulf, the Greek Combined Fleet—spearheaded by Athenian Warships—faced off against a Persian Fleet several times their size. Ultimately, they secured a brilliant victory, forged a military miracle, and saved Greece... This legendary tale had inspired generation after generation of Athenians. The Athenian crews ordered out of port today harbored at least a small sense of anticipation, which helped offset the tension in their hearts.

As the distance between the two fleets continued to shrink, even Secilian couldn't help but feel tense. It wasn't that he was afraid of the dozens of Athenian Warships ahead. Rather, as a high-ranking kingdom general of his caliber, he couldn't just fight for the thrill of it. He had to consider how the shifts in the Greek political landscape caused by crushing the Athenian Fleet would impact Daionia's ongoing military operations in the Peloponnese. Yet, given the immense complexity of the situation in Greece, he had absolutely no way to predict the outcome.

Fortunately, just as the distance between them closed to two li, Secilian received a report: the Athenian Fleet had halted their advance!

Secilian hastily gave the order: "Halt the fleet's advance!"

Separated by a mere two li, the Warships of both sides fell into a quiet standoff.