Mediterranean Hegemon of Ancient Greece Chapter 1192: Conquering Sparta

Cephisodorus moved his right hand slightly, feigning ease as he spoke. "I caught a stray spear. Fortunately, it missed the bone and the bleeding has stopped. I'm fine now, though I won't be able to salute you for the time being."

"Once the field hospital arrives, have them treat it properly. You're the hero who defeated the Spartans. Don't let an infected wound turn into a severe fever from mere carelessness, only to miss out on enjoying any of your honors..."

"Are you showing concern, my lord, or cursing me?!" Cephisodorus grumbled.

Secilian was always casual with the senior officers of the First Fleet. He laughed. "Skip the salute for now. You can make it up later. What's the situation?"

"The Spartans sent an envoy to request peace talks. I couldn't make the decision, so..."

"We've utterly crushed the Spartan army. They have absolutely no strength left. Our soldiers could easily stroll in and occupy the City of Sparta right now, and they want peace talks? They must be dreaming! Drive the envoy away. We're marching into the city."

"The envoy says he is Xenophon, a close friend who joined the Persian expedition alongside His Majesty Davos."

"His Majesty's friend?" Secilian finally looked a bit more serious, but he pondered for a moment before replying, "I doubt His Majesty would ever sacrifice the kingdom's best interests for a personal friendship... Go tell this... Xe... Xenophon, that Daionia accepts no peace talks unless Sparta surrenders immediately."

Cephisodorus left to deliver the message and quickly returned. "My lord, he agreed to Sparta's surrender, but—"

Secilian tilted his head back and appraised him from the corner of his eye. He sneered. "Not letting us enter the City of Sparta or capture any Spartans—what kind of surrender is that?"

"Sparta surrenders to Daionia, relinquishes control of all its subject city-states, and retains only its original territory. We will even accept some Daionian reforms to the Spartan political system. Furthermore, Sparta will maintain a mutual defense pact with Daionia. No matter who Daionia goes to war against, Sparta must fight alongside you," Xenophon said, his tone neither haughty nor humble. "General, when Athens was defeated and surrendered to Sparta during the Peloponnesian War, the terms they accepted were much like these. The surrender terms Sparta is now proactively offering are even more stringent, which is enough to show our sincerity. Is that not enough?"

Secilian remained skeptical. "These terms you mention... have the Spartans agreed to them?"

"They have granted me full authority. They will absolutely not object!" Xenophon said firmly.

Secilian sneered again, staring straight at him. "To be completely honest, I don't believe in this surrender of yours, because Sparta's main army is still in Arcadia. You only need to stall for a day or two, and they can quickly return," he said bluntly. "Heh, that's why both the Spartan commander on the beach earlier and you now have insisted we stay out of the City of Sparta—to make it easier for them to rush back to the rescue!"

"General, since the Spartans agreed to surrender, they will honor their word! They will never renege!" Xenophon shouted excitedly, as if he had suffered a grave insult. "They are the descendants of Heracles! They swear by the name of Heracles that they will never violate the treaty!"

"You talk as if Spartans honor their promises the way we Daionians do, but I don't believe you." Secilian shook his head mockingly. "Back when so many of your Greek city-states gathered to sign that King's Peace, you swore oaths to the gods too, didn't you? Yet it wasn't long before you Spartans violated the treaty and launched a surprise attack on Thebes..."

Xenophon was momentarily rendered speechless before he anxiously asked, "Then what must we do to make you believe us?"

Secilian ignored him and turned to Cephisodorus. "The soldiers have rested long enough. Assemble them immediately. March into the City of Sparta and arrest every single Spartan!"

"Yes, sir!"

Panic seized Xenophon. He lunged forward and grabbed Secilian's sleeve, pleading earnestly, "Wait! General, you cannot do this!..."

Secilian forcefully shook his arm free. "And him! Arrest him too!"

Following their orders, the fleet infantry and the soldiers of the Seventh Legion quickly formed a long, loose line. They trampled through wheat fields, vegetable patches, and vineyards, advancing past scattered, empty thatched cottages...

As they neared the denser clusters of houses, they stopped in surprise. Stepping into the gaps between the buildings were crowds of the elderly, women, and even children. Every single one of them was clutching a spear, a short sword, or even a wooden club, glaring angrily at the approaching army.

The entire Daionian Army ground to a halt.

When Secilian received the news, he fell silent for a moment before issuing a grim order. "As expected of Sparta, a nation built on martial might. Since they have taken up arms, they are the enemy! Tell the soldiers not to be careless, and certainly not to show mercy. Attack them immediately! But if they throw down their weapons and stop attacking, there will be no more killing. They are only to be captured, understood?!"

"Understood!"

........................................................................

In the king's office at the Royal Palace in Thurii, Davos was listening to a report from Aristiras, his head of intelligence. "Your Majesty, over the last two days we have received secret reports from Greece. The Athenian ecclesia has passed a resolution to join the Greek League and is preparing to declare war on us. A military mobilization is currently underway across the entire Attica region, and they are stockpiling massive amounts of military supplies. At the same time, they are cooperating with the priests of Delphi, dispatching envoys to neighboring city-states in an attempt to unite them all and declare war on us..."

Hearing this, Davos furrowed his brow slightly, but his expression quickly relaxed into calm composure. He murmured softly, "The Athenians might constantly preach about 'freedom, equality, and resisting tyranny,' but compared to the Spartans—who are dragged down by the Helots and spend more of their energy securing their own lands—the Athenians' ambitions are vastly greater.

"They want to control the Aegean Sea because it is the source of their wealth. They also want to control the Euxine Sea because it is the source of their grain. They even plotted to seize Magna Graecia so they could threaten Sparta and the Peloponnesian League. They were also allies of Egypt, helping them fend off Persian invasions... Athens wants to forge a kingdom that controls the entire Mediterranean Sea!

"This idea has barely changed from Pericles down to the men holding power in Athens today. It was bound to clash with our kingdom's interests and ultimately lead to war... This was always within our expectations."

"But our armies are still fighting Sparta in the Peloponnese. Athens choosing to strike right now will cause us a great deal of trouble," Aristiras couldn't help but say.

Davos didn't respond directly. Instead, he asked, "Aside from Athens, which other Greek city-states have joined this league?"

"Elis secured promises from the priests of Olympia and Pisa, and has decided to join this league. Corinth and Megara seem to have felt the threat of our fleets, and have explicitly joined as well. Argos is still hesitating; mainly, their people do not want to help the Spartans. The Phocians were influenced by the priests of Delphi and have also joined. After Phocis and Athens joined, the Locrians quickly followed suit.

"Thebes publicly announced that we are their ally and that we helped them during their most difficult time. They stated they cannot violate the vows they made to the gods and declare war on us, but they also will not turn their spears against neighbors who once helped them. Therefore, they are maintaining neutrality. Influenced by Thebes, the majority of the Boeotian League city-states have also chosen neutrality.

"The priests of Delphi and the Athenian envoys both went to lobby the Thessalians. Current intelligence indicates that Jason is still hesitating and has not stated his position. In addition, Athens has dispatched envoys to western Central Greece in an attempt to rope in the natives of the Acarnania and Aetolia regions. We haven't received any news on the exact situation yet... That is the overall picture."

After listening to Aristiras' detailed briefing, Davos tapped his fingers lightly against the desk. He pondered for a moment and said, "Pelopidas of Thebes secretly sent me a letter outlining the reasons why Thebes had to make this choice. Considering the environment Thebes is in right now, choosing to remain neutral is already taking on a lot of risk. I can understand their decision.

"Athens officially joining this coalition against us means that the majority of the Ionian city-states led by Athens will declare war on us. Jason might still be watching from the sidelines, but since he harbors ambitions to become the hegemon of Greece, he should know that this is his only great opportunity to push back Daionia and achieve his goal. In the end, he will join them too..."

At this point, his tone became exceptionally forceful. "Having all these Greek city-states that oppose us gather together to fight us is actually a good thing. We can save time, wipe them all out in a single sweep, and completely bring the Greek Mainland under our control!"

Then, a kind look surfaced on his face. "The situation in Greece is becoming complicated, but this will serve as an excellent trial for Crotokatax. I believe that with the assistance of senior commanders like Plintors and Secilian, the army he is leading in the Peloponnese will not be in any great danger."