"Your Majesty, you must not lose your composure."
"oh, I understand now."
After this persuasion.
Hannibal also knew that his reaction just now was a bit excessive.
He lowered his head slightly, and his mind was still circling about Alyssa Mago. When Alyssa was sold to the slave trader, she was just a child, not a powerful character. It is estimated that she has almost forgotten about the past. However, the most troublesome thing now is that Hilde came here and took the initiative to introduce his wife's name, which means that she is well aware of the current situation and may even use this matter as a bargaining chip.
There is nothing worse than a former contender for the throne suddenly becoming an important figure in another country.
However, Hannibal calmed himself down.
The maid beside him filled Hannibal's glass with grape juice, and Hannibal picked up the cup, raised his head and drank it all.
"I see."
"Then your majesty, what do you plan to do next?"
"As you just said, they came here to ask for something from us. In that case, let's see what they are planning. If their request is not too high, we can agree to it and send them away quickly..."
"If that's the case, then I'll be relieved."
Hamilcar smiled faintly.
"When the dinner is over, I will personally meet Her Majesty Hilde and then ask her what she thinks."
"Do you have any idea?"
"Hilde came to us, the most likely reason is about Sicily."
At this time, the Carthaginian general, Marcus Hanno, who had been standing aside without saying anything, stood up. He frowned slightly, and it was obvious that what was happening now made Marcus a little uneasy: "Now, the army of the Greek Empire is confronting the coalition forces of Sicily. Basilius of the Greek Empire claims to be the ruler of all Greeks, so he wants to conquer all the city-states established by the Greeks. That's why there is a war with the city-states in Greater Greece headed by Syracuse."
"Then why are you looking for us?"
"I guess it's to make us behave ourselves."
Marcus said this very bluntly.
"Be honest?"
"Our interests in Sicily are well known throughout the Mediterranean, and we have fought with the Greeks many times for this. If the Greek Empire unifies the Sicily region and occupies southern Italy, it will integrate the local Greek forces. Therefore, it is almost certain that the two places will become the eternal territory of the Greeks, so it is estimated that they will tell us about this matter."
"Do you think it's possible to ask Carthage for reinforcements?"
"It's possible, but the possibility is too small."
Marcus shook his head helplessly.
"According to what I know, the Greek Empire has an unprecedentedly high military strength. So far, the number of standing legions has exceeded 100,000, and there are over a thousand warships."
The third tune, the third section: the pleasant life in North Africa
After listening to what Marcus said.
The people around couldn't help but gasp.
Obviously, what Marcus said about the military power of the Greek Empire was extremely terrifying.
At least it was difficult for the Carthaginians to understand what it meant to have an army of more than 100,000 people.
Hannibal also knew what this meant. A force of 100,000 was no joke. So Hannibal began to hesitate and fell into deep thought.
"Also, compared to the Greek Empire, their concepts are much broader than ours."
"What do you mean?"
"The Greek Empire claims to be the country of all Greeks, but we in Carthage, even now, will not say that we are the country of all Phoenicians. At least in this concept, the gap between us and the Greek Empire is still quite large... So the facts may make people feel a little helpless, but we may really not have the ability to compete head-on with the Greek Empire, that's it."
"Okay, I see."
Hannibal understood it, too.
These are two completely different concepts.
The Carthaginians could not be representative of all Phoenicians.
However, the Greek Empire, with the Byzantines at its core, can represent all Greeks.
Being able to integrate the Greek city-states that were broken into pieces like bread crumbs shows that the Byzantines led by Hilde were indeed very powerful. You have to know that there was a war between the Kingdom of Carthage and Syracuse. The Syracuse-Corinthian coalition alone made Carthage miserable, not to mention that the Greek Empire has now annexed Corinth. Now, in the vast Greece, only Syracuse is left. Therefore, for Carthage, it is most important not to have any military conflict with the Greek Empire.
But the details still depend on the subsequent contact process.
What kind of request will Hilde make?
Thinking of this, Hannibal could only suppress his inner uneasiness.
Soon, it was evening.
Sophia and Rhodes had already fallen asleep. In Carthage, the comfortable sunshine, accompanied by the soft music around them and the faint fragrance from the incense burner, relieved their fatigue of the past few days and they soon fell into a dream. Hilde was walking in the palace garden with a wine glass in her hand.
She didn't walk far, only a few dozen meters away from Sophia and Rhodes. Of course, there was no one in Carthage who could harm Hilde, so she didn't have to worry too much. Hilde looked around and admired the flowers in the garden. She couldn't help but wonder if the Hanging Gardens of Babylon still existed if she had the chance to reach Babylon. If it did, what kind of scenery would it be?
"His Majesty."
At this time, a court official appeared in front of Hilde.
"His Majesty the King invites you to the banquet."
"Okay, let's go now."
Hilde handed the wine glass to the maid next to her.
Then he walked back and gently woke up Sophia and Rod.
"Get up and get ready for the banquet."
"Um..."
Rhode woke up first. She rubbed her eyes sleepily, then sat up and looked around. After seeing Hilde, Rhode yawned and asked, "Is it evening already?"
"Yes, it's evening."
"Um, okay."
During this period, Rhodes was responsible for using divine power to make the warship move forward quickly.
Although Rhodes has plenty of power, he probably can't withstand such a torture.
"Sophia?"
"I woke up..."
Sophia also sat up and looked up at the sky.
After noticing that the sky had darkened, Sophia also knew the time.
"Sleep so good."
"Hey, you can still sleep tonight."
Although this is a foreign country, it is not right to sleep so soundly. However, this is also a manifestation of their trust in Hilde. As long as Hilde is there, it is the safest place, at least in their hearts, that is what they think. After waking up the two, the maid came over and brought an ivory comb, linen cloth for washing faces and hot water, and provided them to Rhode and Sophia for a simple wash. As for Hilde, she combed her hair and that was it.
Although this is Africa, it is not quite the same as the Africa that Hilde had in mind.
It is along the Mediterranean Sea and has a typical Mediterranean climate.
Therefore, there is abundant water and grass here, and there is no sign of drought.
At the same time, because the current climate is different from the future, the desert in the south is relatively far away, so even in Africa, there is no troublesome sand or dust, and the overall climate conditions are still quite good.
Hilde even felt that living here was quite comfortable.
No wonder a lot of Greeks didn’t want to come back after they went to Egypt.
Following the court officials, Hilde walked all the way and entered the hall of the royal palace. In the reception hall here, many nobles from Carthage had come. They had already known the news of Hilde's arrival, so they came here hoping to see Hilde's face up close.
"His Majesty Hilde is here!"
At this moment, someone suddenly said this.
Everyone's attention was focused here.
When Hilde stepped into the hall, everyone's breath was held in place.
They stared in amazement as Hilde walked into the hall. The divinity in her instantly overwhelmed everyone in the room. Hilde smiled elegantly, and her gestures were graceful and generous. Even though hundreds of people were looking at her, Hilde still did not feel timid at all, but walked freely and casually into the hall.
At this time, Hannibal walked over quickly.
His face was filled with a sunny smile.
He introduced the guests around him: "Everyone! This is the distinguished guest who came all the way from Greece! His Majesty Basilius of the Greek Empire, Hilde!"
"Let's drink to His Majesty Hilde!"
Hannibal raised his glass.
Other Carthaginian nobles also raised their glasses to show their respect.
Hilde also took the wine glass from the maid beside her with a smile, raised it gently and gracefully, gestured to the people around her, and then drank it all in one gulp.
Ah, everyone is looking at me.
Hilde is used to this situation.
Hilde's beauty is indescribable. When she appears, no matter how beautiful the beauties in Carthage are, they are instantly eclipsed. When male nobles see Hilde, they will only marvel at her extraordinary, godlike beauty, just like appreciating a work of art, and dare not have any thoughts of desecrating or blaspheming. And women will not feel jealous because of Hilde's existence.
Tune 3, Section 4: The Carthaginian Banquet
Hilde was bathed in such gazes.
She smiled and said to Hannibal in front of her:
"Thank you for your invitation."
"You flatter me."
“What a lively party.”
"It's a pity that time is running out. With your status, the entire city of Carthage must celebrate your arrival to be worthy of your dignity... and beauty. I don't know if it's a bit abrupt for me to say this."
"No, thank you for the compliment."
Hilde looked around with a smile.
"There's no need for a party. I'm a relatively frugal person."
"Hahaha, I don't believe it."
Hannibal's eyes fell on Hilde's clothes.
It was a purple robe of extremely fine workmanship. Through the soft texture, it could be judged that it was made of silk. Now, in the Mediterranean, the price of silk is much more expensive than the same weight of gold, not to mention that purple dye is ridiculously expensive. These two things combined, being able to afford such clothes almost means that Hilde has reached the pinnacle of wealth in the Greek world. Even Hannibal, the king of Carthage, was reluctant to spend such a sum of money to buy himself such clothes.
And Hilde gently lifted up her purple robe.
He smiled and said, "This, I didn't buy it myself."
"Oh? Who gave it to you?"
"This is a state gift from the Persian emperor."
"Hahaha, that's true."
If it was sent by the Persian emperor, that would make sense.
The Persian emperor was so rich.
However, Hannibal didn't quite believe why the Persian emperor gave Hilde such a valuable gift. But Hannibal thought it would be better not to ask any more questions, so he quickly changed the subject and continued, "We in Carthage are also rich in resources. Although we are not as rich as the Greek Empire, I believe you will have a very pleasant time in Carthage during these few days."
"Of course."
Hilde looked at the necklace on Hannibal's chest.
It was a necklace made of large pearls, which could be said to be extremely precious.
"When I was in Byzantium, Carthaginian merchants arrived and brought very good goods. For example, pearl powder was very popular among Byzantine noble women, and there were other rare treasures. The richness of Africa is really unimaginable. The Carthaginians really found a very good Feng Shui treasure land."
"you flatter me."
Hilde wasn't exaggerating.
Compared to Greece.
Africa is indeed rich in resources.
