Mediterranean Hegemon of Ancient Greece Chapter 1258: The Entrance Ceremony (2)

"All right, you two, please suspend your discussion," Davos said solemnly. "I assure you that Daionia will do its utmost to resolve the conflict on the Plain of Argos. Any individual or city-state that obstructs or attempts to sabotage the peaceful resolution process will be severely punished!"

Davos paused before continuing. "This is not the time for politics. Let's get back to the opening ceremony. Look, the third athletic delegation has already entered the arena!"

Plato and Xenophon exchanged a calm glance. Without another word, they turned their attention back to the field.

Although both were citizens of Athens and students of Socrates—and both had written works memorializing and promoting their teacher's philosophy—their once-friendly relationship from their student days had changed. Their divergent life experiences had shaped vastly different thoughts and ideals. Coupled with decades of separation, a considerable distance had grown between them.

Beside them, Davos felt a twinge of regret. He probably shouldn't have invited them both at the same time.

...

The third delegation to enter held a Wooden Placard aloft that clearly read: "Sacred Kingdom of Daunia — Africa Region." Some spectators from northern Italy, who rarely traveled far from home, might have been confused. When had the kingdom added another region?

In truth, this region had only been established the previous year.

The coast of the Continent of Africa was dotted with many Phoenician City-States. Initially, these were merely transit stations established by the Eastern Phoenicians while developing the commercial resources of the western Mediterranean; their original intent was not colonization.

But after Daionia defeated Carthage and seized several of its vital commercial resources, most of the Phoenician City-States in Africa had no choice but to align themselves with the Sacred Kingdom of Daunia, which boasted greater national strength and a vaster market.

Over time, the trade ties between Phoenicia and Daionia grew increasingly tight. With the prosperity of Hadrumetum—a former Phoenician settlement that was now a Daionian town—serving as an example, a scattering of other Phoenician City-States began requesting to join the Sacred Kingdom of Daunia.

Following the end of the Greek War, Daionia's power flourished even more. Anyone with a discerning eye could see that Daionian dominance over the entire Mediterranean Sea was no longer an insurmountable challenge. Under these circumstances, aside from a few large city-states like Phoenicia and Utica still stubbornly holding out, the rest of the Phoenician City-States on the Continent of Africa successively asked to join Daionia. Thus, under Davos's directive, the Sacred Kingdom of Daunia established another province—the Africa Region—temporarily centered around Hadrumetum.

More than half of the athletes in the African delegation appearing in the arena were Phoenicians. They had long heard of the Greek athletic festivals, but this was their first time participating. Brimming with novelty and excitement, they were exceptionally lively as they marched down the track.

Suffet Okriton of Carthage attended this opening ceremony. Sitting in the VIP section and watching the scene unfold in the arena, his feelings were incredibly complicated. Since Carthage had become a vassal of Daionia, its trade had not declined; instead, it had grown far more prosperous. After all, Daionia provided a much broader market.

However, Carthage's agriculture was shrinking drastically. One major reason for this was that Carthage had lost the inland territories of Numidia it once occupied. Furthermore, Daionia was able to supply them with an abundant amount of reasonably priced grain. This drove the vast majority of Carthaginians into commercial activities, making it impossible for Carthage to survive independently from Daionia.

Influenced by neighboring towns, there had been growing calls among the people within the City of Carthage in recent years "to fully merge into the Sacred Kingdom of Daunia, just like the other Phoenician City-States." The Senate, led by him, along with the Court of the Hundred, had long reached a tacit agreement to ignore these demands. Yet the pressure constantly loomed over them. He did not know how much longer Carthage could hold on to its independence...

The fourth to enter was the athletic delegation of the Sacred Kingdom of Daunia — Po River Region.

After conquering Cisalpine Gaul, Daionia designated the territory as the Po River Region. It was arguably the most fertile and expansive plain within the Sacred Kingdom of Daunia, yet also one of the hardest to stabilize. Daionia had spent nearly a decade exhausting every method available before gradually getting the Gauls to accept their rule. In this endeavor, Regional Administrator Capus of the Po River Region had contributed immensely.

Ever since the Daionian army conquered Cisalpine Gaul, King Davos had transferred Capus to the Po River Region. Having served there for nearly ten years, he had poured his heart and soul into stabilizing the area and integrating the Cisalpine Gauls into the kingdom. Now, sitting in the VIP section, he stared unblinkingly at the Po River Region delegation in the arena, his eyes brimming with gratification.

Since Daionia had only begun migrating its people to the Po River Region in recent years, the proportion of Greeks in the area remained quite low. Therefore, the vast majority of the delegation were Gauls. They were tall and solidly built with disheveled hair; some had faces smeared with war paint, while others were bare-chested. Facing the spectators, they occasionally let out roars and struck poses to show off their muscles.

In the eyes of some Greek VIPs, these were displays of untamed barbarism. But to the Daionian spectators, who were accustomed to the intense, violent clashes of the Rugby championship, this was a display of sheer character, and their cheers grew even more fervent.

The main events for the athletes from the Po River Region were horse racing and chariot racing. The next delegation to emerge was very likely to be their fiercest competitors, as these athletes hailed from the Kingdom of Daunia's famous animal husbandry region—Bruttii.

Following the Bruttii delegation, the Campanian League entered. Today's Campanian League was essentially reduced to Neapolis and a few neighboring subservient towns. The other city-states originally in the league had successively joined the Kingdom of Daunia. In a way, Neapolis's current predicament was somewhat similar to Carthage's.

The next delegation to enter was the Sacred Kingdom of Daunia — Eastern Campania Plain Region. For this delegation—a mixed force composed of Greeks, Etruscans, and Samnites—their strongest event was the javelin throw. Of course, they would still have to compete fiercely against the Samnite delegation.

Closely following them was the Corinth delegation. But when they appeared on the field, the vast majority of the spectators were stunned. Behind the placard-bearing youth walked a mere two athletes. Compared to the previous delegations—which ranged from a dozen people to nearly a hundred—the disparity was far too drastic.

Although Corinth was merely a single city-state compared to the preceding regions and leagues, it was the host of the Corinthian Games. Its citizens revered sports and possessed formidable strength in traditional athletics. Because of this, Daionia had allotted them a substantial participant quota in their invitation.

"It seems the Corinthians still have strong objections to Daionia hosting the games. If it weren't for Daionia's formidable strength and your position as the leader of the Greek League, the Corinthians likely wouldn't have sent a single athlete," Xenophon commented, a hint of gloating in his tone.

Davos smiled faintly. "If the Corinthians don't participate, it won't have any impact on these games," he said with absolute confidence. "But it will be a massive loss for Corinth and the Corinthian athletes! The Theonian Rugby Games are destined to become the grandest celebration in the Mediterranean Sea. They will serve as a massive theater for every city-state, region, and athlete to showcase themselves to all the nations of the Mediterranean! Wouldn't you agree?"

Xenophon and Plato looked at the tens of thousands of spectators surrounding them—people hailing from all over, representing myriad ethnicities—and at the athletes in the arena, who were just as diverse. Both men simultaneously fell into deep thought.

The polite Daionian spectators still cheered for the two Corinthian athletes, but mingled within those cheers was no small amount of laughter.

Sitting in the VIP section, the Corinthian general Cleonion was so ashamed he wished the ground would swallow him whole. Not only had Corinth perfunctorily sent a mere two athletes, but they had also intentionally delayed their arrival. By the time they realized the other city-states had all sent substantial delegations, it was too late to notify Corinth to change course.

The general still clearly remembered how the Corinthian delegate stationed at the Greek League Council in Thurii had reacted to the news. The delegate had cursed the Council of Corinth right to his face, calling them a bunch of short-sighted fools who would inevitably pour all of Corinth's efforts over the past few years down the drain.

What efforts had Corinth made?

Following the Greek War, the Corinthians saw Daionia supporting Thebes in integrating Boeotia, Mantineia in establishing the Arcadian League, Elis in integrating the northwestern Peloponnese, and Argos in integrating the Northeastern Peloponnese. Consequently, they too petitioned Daionia for permission to "integrate the Isthmus of Corinth."

Davos reluctantly agreed, but he demanded that Thebes must negotiate with Megara.

The entire Isthmus contained only two city-states: Corinth in the south and Megara in the central-north. Although Megara's strength was inferior to Corinth's, it was still a city-state with a long history and considerable renown on the Greek Mainland. Naturally, it was unwilling to be integrated by Corinth.

Since both city-states had surrendered to Daionia in a timely manner during the Corinthian War, Daionia refused to take sides, and the matter was shelved.

Yet Corinth did not give up. The business-savvy Corinthians truly possessed more flexible minds than the Argives. When Megara staunchly opposed being integrated, the Corinthians quickly shifted their plans. They proposed forming an "Isthmus league with the Megarans on the basis of mutual equality."