Mediterranean Hegemon of Ancient Greece Chapter 965: Military Council

"Here," Tolmides pointed his wooden stick at a town icon west of the City of Minoa, "is Selinunte, which we have already occupied. It is currently garrisoned by 4,000 reserve soldiers from our Sicily Territory, with over 10,000 sailors assisting in its defense—"

"The Sicilian Fleet intends to withdraw all the sailors from Selinunte back to the Catana naval base," Secilian interrupted, his expression serious. "I have received orders from the Ministry of Military Affairs. The crews who lost their Warships are to sail for the naval bases at Castron or Tarentum to prepare to take over the newly built vessels..."

Seeing the surprise on Tolmides's face, Secilian added, "I just reported this to His Majesty this morning."

Davos nodded. "Secilian did mention it. I was busy heading to the port to welcome Alexis and didn't have time to tell you. I agreed to let Secilian withdraw the sailors. A small city like Palagonia only had 3,000 defenders, yet it held off the Carthaginian army for over twenty days and cost them heavy casualties to take. Selinunte has a garrison of 4,000 men and can be reinforced by sea at any time. With the main Carthaginian army currently engaged in a standoff with us, they simply lack the capacity to assemble a massive force and storm Selinunte... Even without the sailors' assistance, Selinunte should be perfectly safe under these circumstances."

"Understood, Your Majesty." Tolmides shot a glance at Secilian before continuing. "According to reports from our dispatch boats, the Carthaginians have constructed a camp outside Selinunte and laid siege to the city. Around 10,000 Carthaginians and Phoenician Soldiers are stationed there...

"Now, let's look at the eastern side of Sicily, at Carthage's new ally, Syracuse. They previously sent 15,000 men to attack Taunis, but we estimate that Syracuse can field an expeditionary force of over 20,000 men. Therefore, His Majesty has arranged for Commander Prosous to lead the Seventh Legion, the Eighth Legion, and the allied forces in Sicily in a direct assault on Syracuse—"

"Your Majesty," Alexis interjected. "The fleet transporting us made a brief stop at the port of Catana. I had the chance to meet with Governor Cyprolus and Commander Prosous. They informed me that the reserve troops from the Locri region have fully replenished the Seventh Legion. At the same time, the allied forces from Leontini and Taunis, along with the citizens of friendly city-states like Agrigento, Gela, and Minoa, are all mobilized. By their estimates, they can muster roughly 25,000 soldiers to attack Syracuse. I believe Commander Prosous was already marching on Syracuse by the time we arrived here."

"I didn't expect you to serve as an unpaid messenger, Alexis," Davos quipped.

Laughter erupted across the tent.

Davos glanced at him, then gave Tolmides a nod. Tolmides handed his wooden pointer to Secilian.

Secilian waved it away. Pointing at the map, he said, "I have no use for that. It only shows an island, not the ocean. Our Warships can't anchor on land."

Another wave of laughter filled the tent.

Secilian puffed out his chest, swept his gaze across the commanders, and spoke in a clear, ringing voice. "You've all heard Tolmides's report. We lack numerical superiority on land across several fronts. The east might look slightly better, but Prosous is leading an army to take the heavily fortified city of Syracuse—a task that will prove even more difficult.

"However, our naval situation is a different story. Since the storm a few months ago, Carthage's Warships were almost completely wiped out. They quietly called in naval reinforcements from their mother city, Tyre, but the Sicilian Fleet crushed them as well. The few surviving Phoenician Warships haven't dared to show their faces in Sicilian waters since. They're likely terrified.

"Recently, Carthage formed a fleet with about 190 newly built Warships to escort their supply lines to Sardinia. His Majesty dispatched the Third Fleet to deal with them. Even though this New Carthaginian Fleet outnumbers the Third Fleet by dozens of Warships, I firmly believe the Third Fleet will defeat them and claim victory!

"As for the waters around Sicily, aside from the 70 Warships in our Sicilian Fleet, Syracuse has 50 Warships. But they are cowering in their harbor, too afraid to face us in battle. Now that Prosous is marching on Syracuse, I expect their Warships will soon lose their safe haven entirely. We don't even need to factor them in anymore.

"Our Sicilian Fleet has maintained absolute dominance over these waters. That is why we can freely dispatch fleets to transport troops and supplies, raid Carthaginian supply lines with our Warships, and ferry fleet infantry to harass the rear of the Carthaginian army. In fact, this is one of the reasons the Carthaginian forces retreated from the east. Even as Carthage's newly built Warships steadily enter service, our own new Warships will soon join the fight. The newly formed Sicilian Fleet will not only secure absolute control over the waters of Sicily, but it will also increase the pressure on the Carthaginian navy to achieve the goal His Majesty set for us: threatening the coastal waters of the Carthaginian homeland!"

Secilian finished speaking, and no one raised an objection. After all, when it came to naval warfare, no one in the tent commanded more authority than Secilian.

"I trust everyone now has an understanding of the current situation," Davos said slowly, sweeping his gaze across the assembled commanders. "How do you suggest we proceed in our battle against the Carthaginian army?"

At Davos's words, the tent temporarily fell silent as many sank deep into thought.

Meanwhile, the few Samnite commanders were still reeling in shock. When the four great Samnite tribes had united to declare war on Daionia, the 40,000 warriors they had painstakingly scraped together gave their chieftains courage. Yet now the Kingdom of Daunia had massed over 100,000 soldiers to fight Carthage—not even counting their naval forces—and they still appeared to have strength in reserve. The immense national power of Daionia was plain to see!

Only now did they truly realize: the Samnites' earlier ambitions had been a mistake from start to finish, born entirely from their shallow understanding of the Kingdom of Daunia!

Alexis understood that Tolmides's detailed briefing on the strategic situation before the military council began was primarily for the benefit of those like himself, who had just arrived in Sicily and were unfamiliar with the state of affairs. He coughed lightly and spoke up. "Your Majesty, here at Minoa, with the addition of the Tenth Legion as well as the Potentia and Samnite Reinforcements, our forces are now on par with Carthage. Could we perhaps—"

He tapped the lowlands west of the City of Minoa. "—engage the Carthaginian army in a pitched battle right here, and defeat their main force first?"

Davos shook his head without a second thought.

"Your Majesty, is it because the Carthaginian troops from Kephaloidion to the north will rush back to reinforce them?" Melisander asked urgently.

Melisander's question echoed exactly what Amyntas and Matonis wanted to know. Taking in their expressions, Davos spoke in a deep voice. "It is because of the cavalry! In terms of heavy infantry, I believe our legions surpass the Carthaginians. But when it comes to cavalry, they not only outnumber us, but their combat effectiveness is also slightly superior. You should know that if we fight the Carthaginians on flat terrain, a Carthaginian cavalry force of such massive size will inevitably become the decisive power determining the battle's outcome. Therefore, we cannot take the immense risk of engaging them in a pitched battle!"

Even as he explained this, Davos's mind drifted back to his past life, recalling the brilliant historical victories forged by Alexander and Hannibal in battle after battle. In almost all of them, cavalry had been the ultimate decider of victory and defeat.

The others fell deep into thought, with some casting their gazes toward the cavalry Legion Commanders, Lydas and Curtius.

They both remained silent, offering no rebuttal.

Alexis leaned over the map. As his eyes tracked from Minoa north to Kephaloidion, an idea suddenly struck him. He thought it over carefully before saying, "Your Majesty, since we are at a disadvantage regarding cavalry, could we force a pitched battle against the Carthaginians near Kephaloidion? That would prevent them from exploiting their cavalry advantage, while we have the Lucanians and the Samnites, who excel at mountain warfare. Our other legion soldiers are not without mountain warfare training in their regular drills either. In this regard, we should hold the advantage."

Alexis's words made the other commanders' eyes light up.

Amyntas looked at Alexis, a twinge of frustration gnawing at his heart. Why hadn't he thought of that? Was he truly inferior to Alexis?

In truth, deploying heavy infantry for combat in the mountains defied conventional military common sense. Ordinary people would not dare attempt it. Alexis only dared to propose the idea because he possessed the relevant experience from conquering the Samnite mountains.

However, Davos said, "Last night, Plintors made a very similar proposal to me."

Alexis instinctively turned his head to look at Plintors, who was sitting near the back.

Over a decade ago, he had collaborated very well with Plintors. With Plintors's assistance, he had led his army to capture Copsa and Aenona in rapid succession, ultimately forcing the Samnites to sign an agreement. Alexis greatly appreciated Plintors, considering him to possess a flexible mind and a knack for astonishingly bold ideas, and valued him highly. When the Ministry of Military Affairs Staff Office was established, Alexis had even taken the initiative to recommend him to King Davos. But he had not expected that since the outbreak of this war last year, Plintors's name would shine so brightly across the Daionian military command. Every time Alexis read about his exploits in the military dispatches, he felt happy for him.