The speaker was Munsendes. His words extinguished Wallis’s anger and brought him back to his senses: He’s right. This time, I was tricked by these enemies. Losing doesn’t matter; I’ll win next time. But the village absolutely cannot be lost!
Thinking of this, he shouted sternly once again, "Retreat quickly! Retreat! Get back to our village!—"
"Woo!... Woo!...!" The deep, heavy sounds of a copper horn suddenly echoed across the battlefield. Those First Legion Soldiers who had been huddled behind the shield wall received orders to advance. The previous frustration transformed into thunderous roars of rage as they wielded square shields and short swords, charging at the enemy who had begun fleeing.
The Segestica people were completely routed. However, since the Second Legion attempted to surround nearly 4,000 Segestica people with only 2,000 men, the formation of the encirclement inevitably became somewhat thin. Wallis led his guards in breaking through the rear, and as some Segestica Warriors saw their courageous leader, they naturally followed him. In their desperate assault, they broke through a gap in the Second Legion’s intercepting line...
Casius rode a donkey, crossing the Kolana River westward and traversing an open space between two swamps. As he turned southwest, he saw a massive unit approaching him head-on. Before he could open his mouth to report the victory, Maximus, who was riding a horse at the front of the column, smiled and said, "Seeing your happy face, we must have won!"
"Leader, it’s a great victory! The enemy has been defeated!" Casius shouted excitedly.
"Leader, it seems we don’t need to worry about the Segestica people discovering us anymore. We can hasten our march!" Flanitnus caught up and said.
Flanitnus turned his horse around and urged the troops to speed up.
This was a diverse group. At the forefront were more than 5,000 soldiers, followed by over 2,000 members of the Supply Camp, among whom were several hundred women primarily responsible for medical care. Further back were hastily assembled carriages, about a dozen in total, even accompanied by four or five oxen...
Maximus led the army ahead and reached the battlefield in less than an hour.
In the flat area between the hills and the banks of the Kupa River, bodies lay in disarray. Broken long spears and shattered shields were scattered everywhere. The sounds of groaning and wailing filled the air...
On the eastern side of the battlefield, several hundred fully armed rebel soldiers were guarding a large group of captives, who knelt on the ground with their hands raised high. On the western side of the battlefield, by the river, the 200-plus Supply Camp personnel originally stationed there had gathered to care for the wounded.
Without hesitation, Maximus rushed toward the injured soldiers. As he approached, one person stepped forward to greet him and saluted—it was Torrelugo.
Maximus immediately noticed that Torrelugo’s right arm was wrapped layer upon layer in linen, still stained with blood. Concerned, he asked, "Are you injured? Is it serious?!"
"Just a slash from the enemy’s sword, no damage to the veins or tendons. It’s nothing serious." Torrelugo feigned ease, giving his right hand a casual shake.
"Good, as long as it’s nothing serious." Maximus said before his face turned stern. "So you went to the front lines yourself to kill enemies?"
"Uh... well..." Facing Maximus’s stern gaze, Torrelugo grew nervous. This was something unthinkable a year ago, but it showed how Maximus’s rising prestige in the army had even instilled respect and awe in veteran rebel leaders like Torrelugo.
"Once this war is over, go report to Military Judge Sedonius and accept your punishment," Maximus said lightly.
"Understood," Torrelugo responded obediently with a lowered head.
"What’s the tally of soldier casualties?"
"Nine dead in total, 87 injured, with only three seriously wounded."
"The casualties certainly exceed a thousand, but we don’t have exact figures yet." Torrelugo pointed to the nearby battlefield and spoke gravely. "Some of the enemy corpses were trampled beyond recognition. Those who went to count personnel on the battlefield kept throwing up... Oh, and we captured over 800 of them!"
This was undoubtedly a great victory!... Maximus laughed heartily without the faintest trace of pity for the enemy’s misery.
In fact, the excessively lopsided casualty numbers were not due to the rebel army’s immense offensive power. Aside from the initial heavy losses suffered when the Skodisqi male slaves braved an assault on the front lines, the ensuing confrontation between both sides didn’t result in major casualties. The turning point came when Second Legion Soldiers encircled the Segestica people and launched a two-pronged attack, leading to a full-scale rout. This caused the death toll to soar, with at least half resulting from panic-induced infighting and trampling among comrades.
"Is Fesaros leading an army to pursue retreating troops?" Maximus asked next.
"Yes, his soldiers aren’t wearing armor, so they’re able to catch up with the enemy. Over 100 Second Legion Soldiers followed behind as well. By now, Fesaros has probably reached the Segestica people’s village and may have initiated the attack already!" Torrelugo said enviously.
Maximus glanced at him and praised, "You personally led the troops and crushed the Segestica Army—that was a great achievement!"
Torrelugo grinned widely.
Then, Maximus continued, "Torrelugo, I’m giving you one more task now."
"Leader, say the word," Torrelugo responded immediately.
Maximus said seriously, "Keep watch over these captives and the wounded on the battlefield. Once the Supply Camp arrives, bind them all and escort them back to the temporary camp. Make sure no mishaps occur."