"If the Mapu coalition dares to retreat, we will destroy Brindisi! I don't believe these natives can ignore it! Diomyras shouted fiercely.

Davers gave him a slightly surprised look, it was a good idea!

He noticed that Theomyras was using the word "destroy", and it was obvious that the seemingly bad-tempered Archon of Tarantum wisely realized that even if Tarantum recaptured Brindisi, with the current strength of the Tarantum city-state, it would not be able to hold on, but would increase more casualties, and Brindisi, which had been fought over many times, should not be strong, and if the Maepu coalition army did not stop it, it was believed that it could be easily destroyed. But will the Mesapis, who have worked so hard to retake Brindisi, be able to accept it? Diamilas's idea undoubtedly hit the heart of the Mesapi.

For Davers, Tarantum's strength has been severely damaged, and if the Mesapi and Puchetti continue to wreak havoc and expand, this Greek region in eastern southern Italy will be in great trouble. With Dionya becoming stronger, Davers, who already saw southern Italy as Dionia's backyard, certainly did not want to see this bad situation happen, so he led 14,000 soldiers to Tarantum not for tourism, but for the same purpose as the idea of the Tarantum Senate - to defeat the US-Prussian army! What's more, the two sides are equal in numbers, and Davers firmly believes that with the ability of the Dionian legion, the final victory will belong to Dionia! So he finally said, "I agree with Lord Diomilas's offer that Dioonia is willing to reinforce Manduria. ”

Now it was Deomiras' turn to look at Davers in surprise.

"That's great! Now that everyone has reached an agreement, when we are in the middle of the sun, we will send troops together! Eumacus took the opportunity to say again.

"Time is tight." Trifias grumbled.

"Wait!" Theomyras stood up, looked at the crowd, and said in a loud voice: "There is a saying in the port of Tarantum that 'no matter how many sailors there are in a ship, you must obey the command of the helmsman in order to reach your destination.'" In the same way, an army of our magnitude must have a commander who will obey his command, so that there will be no confusion in battle. ”

"Theomyras is right, the Mep coalition is very combative, and we must unite and follow orders to fight in order to win. Therefore, it is necessary to elect a commander-in-chief of the coalition forces to command all our armies! Eumarcus immediately answered: "Of course, all plans and orders are not decided by this commander-in-chief alone, and they still need to be discussed and agreed by all of you before they can be executed, except in times of emergency." ”

Eumacus looked at Davers, who was evidently speaking for him, "All of you here are commanders of the armies of your respective city-states, and I suggest that you choose the most suitable person you think is the most suitable, including yourself, the one with the most votes, as commander-in-chief. ”

"Who is the commander of Tarantum's expeditionary army?" Davers asked.

"It's Diomiras, the Archon of Tarantum." Umacus took the opportunity to praise his colleagues: "He is even more militarily capable than Acheta, and he has led the army to fight against the Mesapi many times before, which is why he was elected consul by the citizens of Tarantum this year, he has captured Manduria and Brindisi with Acheta, and he is very familiar with the area where we are about to fight, and I believe he can lead the coalition to victory!" After saying the flattering words to Diomiras, he certainly understood that there was another meaning to Davers's question, and hastened to explain: "I will not participate in the vote, but as the arbitration of this election." ”

The two archons of Tarantum sang and answered in harmony, which sounded fair, but in fact it showed that the commander-in-chief was inevitable. Vote?! Davers sneered in his heart: Heraclia and Metapontum are all subordinate city-states of your Tarantum, and it is impossible for you to win except for your own vote!

Davos had already made up his mind that even if Tarantum was given command of the whole army, no one in his army would want to command it except himself, and reasonable orders could be considered, and unreasonable ones should be ignored. It's just that in this way, the army, which was originally a combination of multiple city-states, is even more scattered, and it is very difficult to win in such a large-scale battle. So he decided to fight anyway: "I don't think it's appropriate to use this method to decide the commander-in-chief. War is a very cruel thing, a battle down, thousands of dead and wounded. A good general can minimize the casualties of his soldiers and achieve the greatest victory at a small cost. Therefore, the selection of the commander-in-chief depends on the ability of the chosen person and the past record.

It is also important to consider that we are a combined army of many city-states. Although everyone said that they had to obey the command, when it came time to fight, they would more or less think more about their city-state army, which was inevitable. So the more soldiers who can completely obey the commander-in-chief's command, the more they will be able to dominate the smooth progress of the battle! Davers glanced at everyone and said in an accentuated tone: "Based on the above considerations, I think I am the most suitable commander-in-chief!" ”

As soon as Davers finished speaking, Deomillas jumped up and shouted, "How much combat experience do you have with a kid who hasn't grown a beard?!" Well! I actually want to be the Supreme Commander! That's impossible! The soldiers of the Dionian army are as young and stupid as you, how can they compare with the Tarantum citizen soldiers who have been fighting against the vicious Mesapi for many years! ”

In the face of Diomiras's insults, Davers calmly spat out a sentence: "As a commander, you must have a cool head in order to deal with the complex battlefield situation, and on this basis, you are not qualified!" ”

Diomyras was enraged again and wanted to scold.

Only then did Eumacus get up to stop him. Internally, he also felt that Davers was the most suitable candidate for the supreme commander, but the elders of the Tarantum Senate demanded that he fight for the position as best he can, out of political considerations. Because the war with Mesapi has already damaged Tarantum's vitality, if he loses command in the next battle, what will Heraclia and Metapontum think? What will the other great Greek city-states think? Will you think that Tarantum's strength is no longer good and can only rely on Dionia?! The haughty Tarantum people can't afford to lose face.

"Lord Davers has made another suggestion, since we are a coalition army, the armies of the city-states should be equal, in order to save time, I think it is better to let the adults vote on whether to adopt Lord Davers's suggestion, or my previous proposal? Vote now! With a smile on his face, he spoke decisively and cunningly, and he held Davers back with his words.

At this point, the conference room fell silent for a short time.

"I agree with Eumacus's proposal!" Diomyras preemptively said.

Davers opened his mouth, but finally didn't speak.

Eumacus secretly rejoiced: Davers did not object, and Diomiras became the supreme commander was finally done.

"I agree with Lord Davers's proposal!" A voice abruptly interrupted the silence in the room, shattering Eumacus' illusions.

The two Tarantum commanders, as well as Davers, looked at the man who spoke almost simultaneously.

Trifias?! How could it be Trifias?!! Eumacus looked incredulous.

"Trifias, you say it again! Who do you support?!! Deomillas was willing to believe he had misheard, and asked Trifias to redo his choice, but spoke in a rather unceremonious tone.

Trifias was also quite nervous, he avoided Diomiras's menacing gaze, turned to look at Davers, who was also surprised, and barely managed to squeeze out a smile.

Davers's heart moved: Tarantum is beginning to decline, is Heraclia going to start hugging Dionia's thigh for his own safety?

In fact, Davers only guessed one of the reasons correctly, and more importantly, the Herculian Archon Trifias had already sensed that the union of the two fierce races of Mesapi and Puchetti would make it more difficult for the weakened Tarantum to defend the territory, and the people in Heraclia had complained about the casualties of the Heraclian citizen soldiers who went out with the Tarantum army, and this situation will only be more in the future, if you want to change this situation, you can only find a way to jump out of the dilapidated old ship of Tarantum, And Dionia, which is closer to Heraclia, is undoubtedly a better place of refuge.

Of course, Davers didn't think much of it for a while, but Heraclia's initiative to join him was overjoyed. No matter how long a friendship or covenant is, it is not as reliable as profit and strength! Davos sighed with emotion, a smile on his face, and nodded to Trifias.

"The Archon of Ionia, Davers, has never failed in the battles he has commanded, and he is a famous general of Megatron Nanyi! I strongly support him as commander-in-chief! Trifias's tone was more determined.

"I recommend myself as commander-in-chief!" Davers followed up and said, he had already lost hope for this kind of rule voting, but he didn't expect Trifias to give him a big surprise.

Now the situation is 1:2.

Eumacus did not expect this to happen, and even worse than being commander-in-chief was Heraclia's attitude towards the Tarantum Alliance, his mind was in turmoil, and he could hardly hide his inner emotions, and his eyes were equally full of resentment when he looked at Trifias.

Diomiras, on the other hand, was more concerned about the election, and he turned his attention to Tud Pres: with his vote, the vote between himself and the young man was 2:2, and Eumacus, as the arbiter, would find a way to help me get the command of the army.

He thought so, but saw Tud Pres slowly lower his head under the gaze of everyone.