Fesaros listened to Ambrosius speak while gazing at the distant tents densely scattered across the opposite riverbank. In a deep voice, he said, "Elder Ambrosius, rest assured. In this battle, we Nix Warriors will go all out to strike the Otarlat people and help you reclaim the Salt Mine!"
"Thank you, Elder Fesaros!" said Ambrosius, full of gratitude.
Ultimately, Ambrosius led the First Legion to a patch of wasteland near the Kolana River bank, warmly saying, "Elder Fesaros, Elder Pigeris, this is the campsite chosen for you by Elder Alistacas. The terrain is flat, there are fewer mosquitoes, and it is close to the battlefield. I hope you will be satisfied."
Fesaros carefully surveyed the surroundings before nodding in agreement, "It’s a good place. We will camp here."
Ambrosius continued, "Elder Alistacas has also prepared food for you. Once you have set up camp, it will be delivered to you."
Ambrosius, with a solemn expression, added, "Elder Alistacas is the eldest son of our Great Chief and the future Great Chief of Alde!
The Great Chief’s illness is severe, and perhaps by next year, Alistacas will ascend the position. He greatly values the alliance with your Nix Tribe and hopes to develop better friendly relations with you, allowing the alliance to last forever!"
"This is also what our Leader sincerely hopes for!" Pigeris interjected with a smile.
After Ambrosius left, Pigeris mysteriously whispered to Fesaros, "Do you know why I didn’t immediately follow you just now?"
"After you left with your team, that Alistacas publicly scolded Budocaribas, essentially questioning why his and the northern Alde Tribe army’s arrival was so delayed, causing them to consume two more days of grain here..." The tribal leaders of the Alde also chimed in alongside him.
Budocaribas and the Alde leaders accompanying him were not convinced, and they got into an argument...
Karsipengpas and Cleobrotas busied themselves mediating, making for a rather lively scene, which is regrettably one you missed."
Pigeris’s words bore a hint of schadenfreude.
Fesaros was a little surprised and defended, "I remember Budocaribas coming to our tribe to notify us of the sortie; we didn’t delay. We gathered the troops and set off the next day.
Besides, our tribe and Budocaribas’s tribe are indeed farther from the battlefield, making our later arrival quite normal and undeserving of blame."
Pigeris chuckled, "Fesaros, you must understand that when a family has deep internal conflicts, even a small issue can trigger a major argument."
Fesaros quickly caught on and asked urgently, "Are you saying there are considerable disputes between the tribes led by Budocaribas and those led by Alistacas?"
"It’s not just that." Pigeris replied seriously in a low voice, "Based on previous intelligence and observations over these past few days, the whole Alde tribe is actually divided into four parts.
Budocaribas’s tribes are part of the northern group that originally lived along the Kupa River and its surrounding region. The fertile land made these tribes quite wealthy, with a significant population and considerable strength, granting them notable influence within the larger Alde tribe. Yet they suffered great losses and lost their land in the war against the Segestica people, forcing them to relocate to the western mountains, where life turned extremely difficult...
Then there are the eastern Alde tribes. Their population is not large, and their strength is relatively weak. They are neighbors to the Brochi Tribe of the Pannonians. A few years ago, the Brochi people launched an attack against them and even defeated them in battle, also forcing them to move to the western mountains...
Many times, these two parts of the Alde people sought help from the Great Chief Aco, who reportedly wanted to aid them. However, the southern tribes, who occupy the fertile lands between the Murenica and Kolana Rivers, are not keen on helping and instead complain about the northern kin encroaching on their territory and often stealing their food... Therefore, disputes are frequent during the council meetings of the chiefs and elders..."
"So that’s the case..." Fesaros remarked in sudden understanding.
"And that’s not all," Pigeris continued, "don’t forget about the western tribes of Karsipengpas, whose situation is even more complex! It’s said that a hundred years ago, these tribes had their own ports and towns along the Adriatic Coast. Through piracy, they accumulated considerable wealth, but in doing so, they angered the Romans.
Rome sent troops, defeated the Illyria Kingdom, and seized the land along the Adriatic Sea, forcing these tribes to retreat to the mountains. We climbed those mountains, realizing how unfavorable the conditions are. It’s said they didn’t wish to move to the plains on this side of the mountains, but they met with unanimous opposition from the other Alde tribes.
Especially the southern tribes, who resent these western tribes for enriching only themselves and seldom sharing the wealth gained from piracy, while also attracting powerful enemies. Thus, they refused to cede land to them.
As a result, these tribes could only reside in the mountains, where over time, their population dwindled, their strength weakened, and they were even deprived of a voice in the council of Alde elders.
It wasn’t until Karsipengpas led the people of these mountainous tribes back to piracy that the tribes began to overcome their difficulties. In recent years, they’ve repeatedly aided other tribes, especially those from the west, earning a high reputation among many tribes, but in the council of Alde elders, they’ve been marginalized, causing great dissatisfaction among the western mountainous tribes..."
"With so many conflicts within the Alde tribe, can their army unite against the enemy in tomorrow’s battle?" Fesaros frowned deeply, feeling concerned.
Pigeris couldn’t offer any help on this matter, so after saying a few words to Fesaros, he limped toward the campsite of the Karsipengpas tribes.
Fesaros had no choice but to rally his spirits, gather the six Great Captains and the engineering team, and arrange the encampment tasks.
The engineering team selected the campsite and sketched out a plan. The team officer led the soldiers to pull out grass, level the ground, and even dig trenches, as this was already the frontline of the battlefield, necessitating such actions according to Nix Military Law.
The extensive efforts by the First Legion to construct their camp attracted the curious gazes of the Aldean Warriors, even catching the attention of Alistacas and other Aldean leaders.
Alistacas and his group noticed the First Legion soldiers busily constructing such a complex camp, further recognizing the uniqueness of the Nix Army.
When the soldiers began retrieving tents from the Carriages and preparing to set them up, the transport team drove the now-empty Carriages northward. They intended to reach the upper reaches of the Murenica River, unload grain from the docked fleet, and then transport it back to camp.
By dusk, the Aldean Alliance Army held a military meeting, which Fesaros attended. He initially thought many would attend the military meeting, as most of the Aldean tribal leaders had gathered here.
But in reality, there were only seven attendees: the Alliance Army’s commander Alistacas, the Great Chief’s trusted assistant Cleobrotas, the southern tribal leaders’ representative Ambrosius, the western tribal leaders’ representative Karsipengpas, the northern tribal leaders’ representative Budocaribas, the eastern tribe’s representative Xisaites, and the Nix Army leader Fesaros.
Through Alistacas’s brief introduction, Fesaros learned that this time the Aldean tribes deployed over 9,100 warriors, with about 5,200 from the southern tribes, approximately 1,800 from the northern tribes, around 1,400 from the western tribes, and only about 700 from the northern tribes, with the strength of the southern tribes surpassing the combined strength of the other three parts.
Though called a military meeting, it actually involved no elaborate tactical planning or discussions, just a simple arrangement: after the sun rises tomorrow and the warriors finish their breakfast, the entire army will cross the Kolana River and form ranks. The Nix Army led by Fesaros will be on the right wing, the Aldean southern tribal armies in the center, and the remaining Aldean tribal armies on the left wing. Upon hearing the horn, the armies on the left, center, and right will collectively advance to attack the enemy.
Originally, the Nix Army was the largest and strongest, and from a practical standpoint, it should be the central force connecting the two wings. However, as the Nix Army is ultimately a guest army and Alistacas, from the Aldean southern tribes, is the Commander of the Alliance Army, such an arrangement makes sense.
Fesaros had no objections to this.
After the military arrangements concluded, Alistacas unexpectedly proposed a suggestion. He felt that the left-wing soldiers were few in number and poorly equipped, worrying they couldn’t withstand the enemy’s assault. And since the Nix Army boasted the largest numbers and best equipment... thus he inquired if Fesaros could allocate some forces to bolster the left wing?
Fesaros felt troubled because before departure, Leader Maximus specifically emphasized not to disperse the forces and to keep all soldiers under his command.
Personally, he also didn’t wish for his soldiers’ lives to be controlled by others.
Fesaros hesitated for a moment, just as he was about to refuse, Karsipengpas interjected on his behalf, claiming: though the number of warriors under his command might be fewer, they had been hunting in the mountains for years and were bolder, with a select few even having followed him in maritime plundering, making their weaponry not inferior, and they were richer in combat experience. Thus, even if the enemy had numbers, they couldn’t easily break them, negating the need for Fesaros’s reinforcements.