"My father, they were really able to be ...... Is it cured? Stolo asked with a worried look on his face, his tone skeptical, but more hopeful.

Asistes continued to comfort him, saying, "Since you have been learning Greek culture and knowledge since you were a child, you may know that Hippocrates, the most famous plague doctor in all Greece, is now in Turiyi, and although he is old, he did not come to Latin with the army this time, but many of the doctors who accompanied the army were his students, and they would do their best to treat your father and other Roman soldiers who were sick with the plague. And you Romans often say that the plague is the seed sown by death, and Hades, the protector of Dionia, is the lord of the underworld, and His Majesty Davers is his descendant, and since the Roman army has surrendered to us, Your Majesty will surely let them be blessed by Hades! ……”

Stolo's mind calmed down for a moment, and he suddenly remembered something, and asked again: "My lord, my wife's mother and sister are still in custody, may I ask...... What will happen to them? ”

Asistes thought for a moment and said, "Now that Servius has surrendered, his wife will follow him to settle in other parts of the kingdom, and of course Servius will have to survive this plague first. As for your wife's mother, if Ambustus also surrenders and descends the mountain, they will also go to other regions to settle down, but if your father-in-law refuses to surrender, according to the current resolution of the kingdom, your mother-in-law should be classified as a slave of the kingdom, but she has you and Servius as the sons of Dionian citizens, then it depends on the ...... Will she live with your family or the Servius family? ”

"I'll go up the mountain tomorrow to convince my father-in-law." Stolo said decisively.

………………………………………

On the second day, Ambustus watched Stolo's staggering back down the mountain, two lines of hot tears running down his old cheeks.

A hand was placed on his shoulder: "What, you regret it?" ”

Ambustus wiped away his tears, turned to look at Portitus, shook his head and said, "I don't regret it, I'm just a little unwilling......"

Portitus listened, was silent for a while, trembled and pointed to the bottom of the mountain with his cane, and said in a low voice: Alas...... Think of Albaronga, who was destroyed by us, and Vita ...... It seems to me that any race and power has to go through a process of going from weak to strong, from strong to weak, and today we are Rome, and one day it will be the turn of Ionia......"

"Master Portitus, it seems that you are also a little unwilling!" Ambustus sighed, looked back at the solemn temple of Jupiter, and his face was covered with a layer of doubt: "I just didn't expect it...... In the end, it was not the Ionians who dealt us a heavy blow, but the plague! It took the lives of our dictators and extinguished the fighting spirit of the soldiers, is this the punishment that Jupiter gave to Rome?! ”

"So there is no need for this temple to exist anymore, who made Jupiter abandon Rome!" With a look of indignation, Marugineensis walked over and reminded: "Both, everything is ready, let's ...... It's time to enter the temple! ”

Portitus and Ambustus glanced at each other, and there was determination in their eyes: "Since you are ready, let's both go in." ”

"A few adults." Scipio the Great, who was following Marugineensis, then said: "Some of my soldiers do not want to go quietly like this, they prefer to go down the hill and die under the spears of the enemy. ”

Portitus frowned, "Hasn't this matter been discussed before, and since we have failed, let's stop provoking the Ionians in vain, lest they take their anger out on our family." ”

"Sir Scipio, your soldiers are still very young, if there are those who are willing to surrender, let them go down the mountain." Ambustos suggested.

Scipio the Great's face was solemn: "They are true Roman warriors, and no one will choose to surrender!" ”

Half an hour later, the Roman senators gathered in the main hall of the Jupiti Temple, where hundreds of Roman soldiers either stayed in the apse or sat in the courtyard.

Portitus looked around at the more than 100 Roman senators crowded in the main hall: they had been trapped in the mountains for months, and at last they had run out of food and running out of water, so they were not only yellow and dusty, but also their clothes were in tatters, and where was the grace of the past in the senate to scold and point out the country. But at this moment they were all sitting upright, their faces solemn, which made the already solemn temple of Jupiter even more tragic, only Apulius, who had just been released from the apse, was hunched over on the ground, his lips constantly moving.

Finally, Portitus looked at Marugineensis next to him and said in a deep voice, "The last words are up to you." ”

Marugineensis smiled freely: "I have been fighting with you for decades, and you are humble to me for the first time. Forget it, I'm used to it, so it's up to you. But when we got to another place...... I'm not going to let you anymore. ”

Portitus nodded silently, then looked at everyone, and said with a solemn expression: "Ladies and gentlemen, when the Celts attacked the city of Rome 20 years ago, the ancestors of the Senate such as Brelius, Vibias, Quarters, and Emilius blocked the road into the city and heroically sacrificed their lives! Today, Rome has fallen again, we must not fall into the prestige of the Roman senators and Roman nobles, in order to defend this city-state established by our ancestors through countless hardships, we will dedicate our lives, even if Rome no longer exists in the future, but our heroic deeds will be remembered and sung by future generations, and at the same time, we will continue to remind future generations that in the middle of Italy, in the Latin region, on the banks of the Tiber River, there was once a great city-state, and its name was Rome! ……”

Listening to Portitus's words, the patriarchs unconsciously raised their heads and sat up straighter, with a little more sparkle in their originally desperate eyes.

After Portitus finished speaking, his encouraging gaze slowly met with his colleagues again, and then swept over one by one, first Marukineensis, then Ambustus, then the high priest Ullysses, and then the old senator Luxitius......

Portitus sat down slowly, gently lowered his crutches, flicked the dust off his clothes, closed his eyes, and said in a deep voice: "Light the fire!" ”

There was a moment of silence in the hall.

Scipio the Great shouted: "Ignition! ”

The soldiers outside the main hall threw their torches at the temple where olive oil had been poured everywhere, as if they had just woken up from a dream, and in an instant, a raging fire broke out......

Apleius, who had been lying on the ground, seemed to be awakened by the fire, he jumped up, picked up a small stone in the corner, and threw it at the tall idol in the middle of the main hall, and with a "snap", it hit the top of Jupiter's head.

"Hah! Ha! Ha! ......" Apleius laughed and stomped his feet and scolded: "Damn Jupiter! Damn Camillus! Damn Rome! Hahaha! …… Damn Rome! ……”

Apuleius' maniacal laughter and the screams of the patriarchs and soldiers were the last echoes of the Capitoline Summit.

………………………………………

The self-immolation of the Roman senators and soldiers meant the complete demise of the Roman resistance, except for the Roman nobles and their families who surrendered, and a very small number of civilians like Stolo who felt grief, the vast majority of civilians only deplored the burning of the main Latin temples such as Jupiter and Juno, and even scolded that "these self-immolating Roman senators will destroy the temple on Capitoline Hill until their death, just to prevent the common people from worshipping."

Of course, their frustration was quickly dissipated by the arrival of the Hades celebration, and although the celebration in Rome was hastily held, and the large theatrical performances about the establishment of Dioonia in the square were performed by improvised soldiers from the Dionian army stationed in Rome, and the lack of professional training, not only the poor costumes, but the performances were full of mistakes, but the first time the Roman people saw such a large-scale performance, they found it very interesting.

Then, in front of Hades's simple altar, under the leadership of the priest, the believers made a devout sacrifice to the Greek Hades, and then the priest solemnly announced: "From now on, Hades will protect the city of Rome!" ”

The cheers of the believers did not impress the onlookers, but then they saw a huge stone tablet engraved with the names of the soldiers of the Roman Reserve Brigade who died in the battle of Dionia, carried to the altar by the Dionian soldiers in full uniform and with extremely solemn expressions, and the priest blessed it and announced: "When the temple is completed, the stone tablet will be carried into Valhalla to receive offerings from the Roman people, and their souls will continue to guard Rome!" ”

This move really shocked the people of Rome and brought many bereaved people to tears.

In the afternoon, still in front of the altar of Hades, the Roman administrator Arcistes, in the name of Hades, read out the decree signed by King Davos, granting freedom to many Roman slaves who had distinguished themselves during this period.

The freed slaves cheered and constantly thanked Hades and King Davers, and at the same time, many slaves who rushed to hear the news were full of anticipation for the new kingdom.

Immediately after that, on the second day, the rugby match began.

Curious Romans, as well as some Uighurs and Phodinaeans with their families, poured into the arena and were soon drawn to the game. Although the teams were mostly composed of mostly newly relocated Dionian citizens and a few Roma, the level of competition was not high, but it was new and intense enough for the Roman populace who watched the game for the first time (and in some cases the second).