"come in."
"Yes."
Amyntas pushed the door open and came in front of Hilde.
"Your Majesty, I just received news that a Thracian army with unknown movements was spotted in the direction of Apollonia."
"Unknown whereabouts?" Hilde was stunned for a moment. "Do you know the specific situation?"
"Our scouts have discovered a Thracian army of about 15,000 people. They are now concentrated in the eastern region. We are reclaiming land inland from Apollonia, so these Thracian troops are very close to our destination and may soon pose a threat to us. Moreover, I believe that these Thracians are likely to think that Apollonia's reserve forces are empty and launch an attack on Apollonia."
"Is it……"
Hilde nodded.
"I see."
"Yes, I will first..."
"Wait a moment, don't be in a hurry."
Hilde called out to Amyntas.
"Your Majesty, please give me your instructions."
"The current situation is this: the main force of the Thracians has been pinned down by the Scythians. Therefore, the enemy's purpose of attacking Apollonia is likely to be a simple surprise attack. If we can destroy this force, it means that we have annihilated a large number of their living forces. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Therefore, we should seize this opportunity. Now pass on my order to temporarily stop the reclamation of Apollonia, reduce the troops, and let the Thracian army in."
"Yes!"
Amyntas replied quickly.
"Also, when will the troops from Samos arrive?"
"About ten days later."
"Row."
After Amyntas left, Hilde immediately took out the parchment map.
"I have been looking for an opportunity, but I didn't expect that the opportunity would come now." Hilde looked at the surrounding terrain carefully on the map, and then pointed to a specific location. "The Second Legion will resist the enemy's attacking forces in Apollonia. Then, I will lead the First Legion and the Third Legion from Byzantium City, heading north into the Thracian territory and heading directly to Adlicia. After that, the Scythians will also keep an eye on the Thracians. Once the enemy's main force advances, they will immediately pursue them. Finally, we will attack the enemy's main force from the front and back, and we will be able to annihilate the enemy's forces in one fell swoop."
"Um……"
Sophia nodded, not quite understanding.
"Oh, sorry, I forgot you didn't quite understand."
"It's okay, Sissi."
Sophia smiled and replied:
"Your policy is definitely correct."
"That's not the case."
Hilde already had a plan in mind.
Now, Hilde had more than 30,000 troops under his command, which were well-trained and had good combat effectiveness, far exceeding the combat effectiveness of other Greek colonies. He did not think it would be a problem to confront the Thracians head-on. At the same time, with the reinforcements of the Scythians, the Thracians could be attacked from both sides. If he and Tomyris dealt with the Thracian king together, they would eventually be able to eliminate the threat posed by the Thracian king.
It is estimated that the Thracians noticed the Byzantine Kingdom's tricks in Apollonia, so they sent troops to Apollonia to make some money. However, Apollonia is no longer the small city-state of more than 7,000 people. Now the city population of Apollonia has reached 30,000 people, and the surrounding villages are very prosperous and populous. At the same time, a full army is also stationed in Apollonia, ready to fight at any time.
Such Apollonia.
If the Thracians did not mobilize their entire army, they would definitely not be able to defeat us.
So, take advantage of the other side’s greed and lack of intelligence.
Hilde can let the Apollonia Legion contain the opponent's offensive and directly attack the opponent's core, Adlicia.
The deformed social system of the Thracian Kingdom could not withstand a blow. Once Hilde's army successfully entered the Thracian territory, those suffering people would immediately defect to the Byzantine Kingdom. At present, most of the tens of thousands of Thracians in Hilde were overwhelmed and fled from the Thracian Kingdom, so Hilde was fully confident.
That night.
Hilde called a meeting.
The participants of the meeting were naturally the generals of the Byzantine Empire.
"I called you all here today because I wanted to tell you about our plans for the Thracian Kingdom."
"Yes! Your Majesty!"
"First, according to our intelligence, the Thracian troops have arrived at the border of the Apollonia region. If nothing unexpected happens, this army of more than 10,000 people will attack our Apollonia. However, Apollonia is now well-fortified, with sufficient manpower and abundant supplies, so our army will definitely be able to withstand the Thracian attack. Then, it is up to us to launch the attack."
So, Hilde showed the map in front of these officers.
"First, our First Legion will depart from Byzantium, then arrive at Perintos, receive supplies from there, and join up with the Third Legion. After that, we will head north and directly attack the Thracian capital, Adritia. In this way, the enemy's main force will be forced to move south and fight a decisive battle with us in Adritia. However, the area around Adritia is a plain, which is very conducive to our phalanx's combat. At the same time, the Scythians in the north will certainly come to our aid. At that time, we will have a decisive battle with the enemy's army on the Thracian plains, and finally, we will win the final victory."
"His Majesty."
At this time, Amyntas stood up and asked:
"But will we be short of manpower?"
"You mean, the two armies can't resist each other?"
"Yes... The enemy's main force is conservatively estimated to be around 35,000 people. The First Legion is fine, but the Third Legion's training has not lasted for too long, and its combat effectiveness may not be comparable to that of the First Legion. In this state, fighting the Thracians may be quite risky."
Chapter 6, Section 5: The Army Advances into Thrace
Faced with such questions, Hilde nodded.
"I understand your concerns, but now is the best opportunity we can foresee. We are very familiar with the Thracian tactics and methods, and we have made a lot of preparations for this battle. Even if we are outnumbered, we can still seize the advantage. You know, the King of Thrace is unpopular, and the world has suffered from him for a long time. When our army enters Thrace, his kingdom is bound to collapse and his army will turn against us."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Hearing Hilde say this.
Amyntas was also less worried.
However, this matter obviously has not been resolved in this way.
Hilde was never an optimistic person. Although she was very courageous, she was also very pessimistic. In this matter, Hilde had to consider all possible unexpected situations. So, Hilde thought for a while and pointed to Byzantium City: "Sitarses, you stay in Byzantium City."
"His Majesty……"
Sitalses was obviously at a loss.
"Why don't you let me go to the battlefield!"
"You staying here will be of great use. There are 3,000 militiamen in Byzantium. What you need to do is to use these 3,000 troops to defend this place firmly in case of any unexpected situation. The reason why I asked you to do this is because I trust your tenacity and that you will be able to hold on when faced with a crisis." Hilde looked at Sitalses earnestly, and his words were also filled with encouragement for him, "Remember, Byzantium is our foundation. If this city is lost, the Byzantine Kingdom will be gone, and everything we have worked hard for will disappear."
"Yes!"
Sitalses listened to this.
He hit his chest hard twice.
"I, your subordinate, will definitely protect Byzantium until my death!"
"Then...I need to deliver a letter to the Emperor of Persia."
"Are you planning to ask for reinforcements from the Persians?" Amyntas asked with a little surprise.
"No... We can't ask for reinforcements from the Persians, and once they come, they will probably stay. I can't take such a risky thing, but that doesn't mean I don't have other things to ask the Persian emperor for." Hilde slapped the map at this point, "Since there are no other opinions, let's follow this plan. Everyone listen to me, this time, it is the largest-scale war since the establishment of our Byzantine Kingdom. If we win a great victory, we will not only gain a safe environment, but also a vast territory. After we annex the Thracians, our Byzantine Kingdom will become the overlord here!"
"Yes!"
This time the action.
It is indeed of great significance to the Byzantine Empire.
The Thracian king, this man, was like a dark cloud hanging over the entire Byzantine city when Hilde arrived there. Now, it was finally time to settle everything. Hilde was very confident that she would use her indestructible army to completely disintegrate the Thracian king and his army, and finally, bring hundreds of thousands of Thracians under her rule. By that time, the Byzantine Kingdom would become a powerful country with a population of more than 700,000 and a vast territory.
But all this will have to wait.
Only after defeating the Thracian King.
After Hilde's order was issued, all troops immediately began to prepare for battle.
After receiving the order, the Apollonia Legion immediately began to shrink its defense line, temporarily abandoning their reclamation plan, concentrating their superior forces and returning to the city of Apollonia. Facing the next plan, the Apollonia Legion had to hold on to Apollonia to prevent the enemy's army from taking advantage of the situation and at the same time, delay the enemy's forces in Apollonia and disperse the Thracians' already very tight military resources.
And when it is necessary to attack.
The Apollonia Legion will also be ready to attack at any time.
As for Hilde.
When the Samian Legion from Samos arrived at Perintus, this army, together with the Byzantine Legion, set out from Perintus and entered the territory of the Thracian Kingdom. Hilde personally led this army, totaling 26,000 people, and arrived in the territory of the Thracian Kingdom. The border area of the Thracian Kingdom is mostly mountainous and forested. Hilde did not want to fight the enemy here. His ideal battle location was the plain area along the Hebros River and the riverside area along the Danube River.
In these places.
It is the most suitable combat area for Hilde's Greek phalanx and elite cavalry.
Fortunately, Hilde's progress was exceptionally smooth during the first ten days of the march.
Her army was like entering an empty land. After entering the forest area, the troops advanced slowly and had to guard against sneak attacks on both sides of the road. However, until they crossed the mountains and entered the great plains along the Hebros River, Hilde did not encounter any enemies. However, in the mountainous area, Hilde passed by many abandoned Thracian villages. These Thracians were poor people living on the edge of the Thracian Kingdom, belonging to the lowest class of untouchables or farmers.
These Thracians all died due to disease or famine.
Or they fled south to the Byzantine Empire.
Only after entering the plain area did the main part of the Byzantine Kingdom appear before Hilde's eyes.
Hilde rode his warhorse and slowly walked out of the forest. At this moment, Hilde was stunned by everything in front of him. Looking around, there was an endless plain area. The Hebros River was flowing tightly in the distance, and on the plains on both sides of the river, there were farmlands and village heads everywhere. The curling smoke slowly rose, showing a peaceful and calm appearance.
This is the real Thracian Kingdom.
All the farmers of the Thracian Kingdom live here.
"Here we are."
Hilde said with some surprise.
Sophia and Dioni, who were following behind her, were also watching all this in surprise.
"I remember... this scene."
At this time, Dioni stared at the endless farmland with wide eyes.
"I remember... this used to be my home."
"Dione? Aren't you from Mountain Thracian?" Sophia was a little puzzled.
"I... I don't remember clearly, but I know this is where I used to live..."
Dione's words aroused Hilde's deep interest.
"That's it."
"What's wrong, Sissi?" Sophia asked curiously.
“I felt at the time that Dione would definitely not be from that tribe.”
Chapter 6: The Army Advances into Thrace
At that time, Hilde killed the chief directly, so Hilde didn't know the true identity of Dione. Hilde also asked other people, but the answers she got were also varied. Some people said that Dione was an Adelisian from deep in Thrace, while others said that Dione was not a Thracian, but might be a child of a northern tribe who drifted to this place. But no matter what, it can prove one thing.
Dione is not from that tribe.
"Dione."
"what happened?"
"Didn't you say that this was once your home? Then do you remember which tribe you came from?"
"I don't remember..." Dioni shook her head and said distressedly, "I forgot everything."
"It's okay. Remember, child, your home will always be Byzantium, both now and in the future." Hilde picked up the spear hanging beside the horse, then turned her horse's head and looked at the officers and soldiers of the Byzantine Kingdom behind her. At this time, she raised the spear high in her hand, and said with a confident smile:
"Byzantine warriors!"
"Since the founding of the Byzantine Kingdom, our kingdom has been shrouded in the shadow of the Thracians and the Thracian King! We have actively expanded, strengthened the city defenses, and trained the army. Everything is for today, for this moment! After defeating the Thracians and eliminating the Thracian King, the north of our Byzantine Kingdom will be forever peaceful, and our families and our citizens will be able to sleep and live well!"
"And now, the center of the Thracians is right in front of us. The Thracian king is cruel and ruthless, and has long lost the support of the Thracian people. As long as we pierce the enemy's heart like a sharp blade, even the most terrifying Thracian army will immediately collapse! You are warriors full of glory! You are the pioneers who protect civilization! Tell me loudly! What are you——"
"Byzantines!"
"What are we!"
"Byzantines!"
The soldiers raised their weapons high, full of fighting spirit.
Seeing this, Hilde pointed his weapon directly at the plains of Thrace.
