In the past, even at such important military meetings, the atmosphere in the venue was still lively, so that everyone could express their opinions without restrictions. But today, the atmosphere in the meeting was quite solemn, and even the coughing was suppressed as much as possible, and only Breru's voice echoed clearly in the hall.

The 50-year-old regiment commander was standing in the middle of the hall, his head bowed in a depressed spirit, and his face was blank as he recounted the battle two days ago:

Breyrou led 4,000 men to the rescue of Palagonia, and although he initially routed the enemy, he was soon surrounded by the Iberian army that had arrived from Agilion, and he urgently formed a circle and stubbornly defended it.

When the battle lasted more than forty minutes and was no longer able to hold on, Leotizides arrived with 10,000 soldiers, but soon fell into the Carthaginian encirclement.

After a while of further fighting, the Carthaginian attack on them suddenly weakened. Later, I learned that it was because the ally Leotine received the order of Leotizides and also sent 4,000 reinforcements, taking advantage of the fact that the Carthaginian troops in charge of defense were attracted to the north and fighting with the Dionian reinforcements, they quickly attacked the Carthaginian siege force from the east, and the Carthaginians, who got the news, hurriedly divided their troops to intercept them, thus giving the Dionian army a chance to breathe and keep fighting until the evening.

Seeing that the army leaving the city had not returned for a long time, Sipros decisively ordered the general defending the city to lead the second wave of reinforcements formed by most of the remaining troops of the city of Catane and the new army camp to the battlefield in accordance with the plan reserved by Leotizides for the unexpected, and to surprise the Iberian army, causing a certain amount of confusion.

Leotizides took the opportunity to give the order to break out, and the night's power of the Carthaginian cavalry was greatly reduced, allowing the Dionian army to finally retreat to the city of Catanay......

After listening to Brem's story, Davers still had a serious face, turned his head and asked Leotizides beside him: "Is what he said true?" ”

As the commander of the theater of operations, he was higher in rank than the commander of the corps, so Leotizides, a senior general of Ionia with less seniority, sat at the top with the governor of Sicily, Siplos, and the commander of the Sicilian fleet, Secrean, and faced the more or less strange eyes of the other generals, his expression remained the same, and he replied indifferently: "It's true." ”

Davers then asked, "How many casualties?" ”

Leotizides thought for a moment and said: "As of yesterday, a total of about 6,000 soldiers have not been able to return to ......"

Everyone's hearts were in awe.

Davers sighed lightly: "6,000 people! Perhaps more than half of them were wounded, but because of your defeat, they became captives of the Carthaginians! ”

Speaking of this, his eyes as he looked at Breyru sharpened: "Tell me, why did you disobey the order and lead the army to attack without authorization?" ”

Breru squirmed his lips, but ultimately did not answer.

Davers stared at him for a long time without blinking, then began to tap the back of his chair with his right hand, and said coldly: "As the Legionnaire Commander, you may think that you must rescue the legionnaires who are alone in the city of Palagonia...... Maybe the first few sorties went well, so this time you're confident that you can succeed...... Therefore, you ignored the orders of your superiors, ignored the abnormal changes on the battlefield, and rashly led the army to attack, not only putting the Seventh Legion in a dangerous situation, but also forcing Prosous to lead the army out to rescue you, because as the new commander, if he does not move, let you and the soldiers of the Seventh Legion die on the battlefield, even if there is a reason, it will definitely become a stain on his military career, not only will his colleagues be dissatisfied, but also endure the abuse of the citizens, I am afraid that he will not be able to gain a foothold in the army in the future! ”

When Leotizides heard this, he was moved: King Davos not only fully understood his situation, but also explained to the generals present why he had to venture out of the city to rescue him, because he could not say it directly.

Thankfully, Prosous coped well and the army was able to retreat back into the city, but 6,000 men were missing and the new barracks were burned...... That's still quite a loss! Davers struck the back of his chair harder and harder, and he was originally full of ambition to lead the army to Sicily, but he did not expect to receive this bad news as soon as he landed, as if he had been poured a jar of cold water on his head, and he was angry every time he thought about it.

"Tolmid, what punishment should be given according to military law for disobeying military orders and causing heavy losses?" Davers asked suddenly in a loud voice.

Tolmide's heart tightened, he looked at Breru, who was bowing his head, and said hesitantly: "According to ...... According to the Ionian Military Law, disobedience to military orders resulted in defeat in battle...... Minor dismissal, serious ...... Death penalty ......"

Amintas, Matonis and other generals all sweated for Breru, although he was a Bruti, because he had been leading troops in the army for more than ten years, and with his upright and hospitable characteristics, he got along well with these mercenary senators, both in the army and in the Senate.

"Then remove Breroux from the post of commander of the 7th Army Corps first, and the more detailed punishment will be decided by the Ministry of War on the basis of the losses caused by this war after the war is over."

Despite Davers's cold tone, Tolmid breathed a sigh of relief.

Davers chose the lightest punishment, although he also asked the Ministry of Military Affairs to make detailed judgments and punishments after the war, but how could the Ministry of Military Affairs dare to make a harsher ruling on a senator and representative of the Brutians, so Davers raised his club high and lightly hit Breru.

But for Amintas, Matonis, and other legion commanders, being stripped of their military duties was undoubtedly the greatest punishment, so they all felt a little sorry for Breru, but no one dared to defend Davers when he was angry.

"Breyru, do you accept this punishment?" Davers asked coldly.

"I ...... Accept. Breyru raised his head, gritted his teeth, and said, "But I beg your Majesty to allow me to continue the war against the Carthaginians as a soldier!" ”

When Davers heard his answer, his expression softened slightly: "Just serve as a soldier, the Seventh Legion needs a new Legion Commander, you can temporarily serve as the second lieutenant of the Seventh Legion to assist the new Legion Commander to better command the Seventh Legion, are you willing?" ”

Although Breru was a little disappointed to be demoted from Legion Commander to Second Adjutant with no real power, it was already a great luxury for him to be able to continue to fight with the soldiers of the Seventh Legion, so he immediately replied, "I do!" ”

"Until the new Legion Commander arrives, you are temporarily acting as the Seventh Legion Commander, so you can now return to your seat and continue with today's meeting."

"Yes, Your Majesty." On the way back to his seat, Breru was comforted by everyone, and he nodded his head in greetings, but he did not regret it in his heart, in addition to the two reasons mentioned by King Davers, the reason why he disobeyed the order to fight without authorization was also because there was an important reason: I think that at the beginning, the battle of the Ramato River failed, in order to cover the retreat of the soldiers, the commander of the fourth army, Dracos, led the 1st Brigade to intercept the pursuers, and finally was surrounded by the enemy, either killed in battle or captured, and Dracos finally died in humiliation under the city, Breyrou was lucky enough to be rescued. But for more than 10 years, he had dreamed countless times of the desperate scene of being surrounded by the enemy at that time, and countless times he thought, 'If there had been reinforcements at that time, Master Dracos and the soldiers of the First Brigade would not have ......' This became a knot in his heart, so when the First Brigade of the Seventh Legion under his command was trapped in the city of Palagonia and faced a desperate situation, no matter how dangerous it was, he would never let himself stand idly by.

Davers didn't care what Brayru would think at this moment, he looked around everyone with blazing eyes, his expression was serious, and his voice was cold: "Everyone, in the next war we have with Carthage, the winner will become the overlord of the Western Mediterranean, and will gain vast land and more wealth, while the loser will not only greatly decline in strength, but even face destruction, so both Carthage and our Dionyas will have to go all out, this will be a protracted and costly war, whether it is us, Or Carthage will be more than 100,000 people in the war!

100,000 people! This is not just a huge number, it means a dramatic increase in the scale of the war! It means a sharp increase in the consumption of war! It means that it is more difficult to control the army! It means that it is more difficult to command the army in battle! …… Therefore, in order to ensure the final victory of the Kingdom and to prevent the prolongation of the war and the increase in the burden on the Kingdom and its people, I ask all of you to "

Davers's sharp gaze swept over the faces of generals with distinctive personalities, such as Amyntas and Matonis, and suddenly raised his voice: "It can be discussed when a military meeting is held, but once a decision is formed, even if there are any opinions, it must be implemented meticulously!" Only in this way can the command of the entire army be guaranteed to run smoothly, and if anyone disobeys the order, or does not carry out the order to the best of his ability, I can guarantee that he will be punished more severely than Brerou! ”

Davers's last murderous words made everyone's hearts tense when they heard it, even if he was as unruly as Amintas, he subconsciously didn't dare to make eye contact with Davers at this time.

Suddenly, there was silence in the hall.

Davers touched his chin, and said in a softened tone: "Tolmid, you send a letter to the Ministry of Military Affairs, and immediately recruit Zantiparis to come to Katanai and take up the post of commander of the Seventh Legion. At the same time, the Ministry of War also asked the military department to inform the Lockley barracks to organize reserve soldiers to come to Katanai by boat as soon as possible to replenish the number of the Seventh Legion. ”

"Yes, Your Majesty."