Me, Hydra

"How dare, how dare..."

Looking at the compliant old village chief in front of him, Leonidas shook his head, then turned away without saying a word.

Ancient marching was a very cruel thing, and although many armies would not plunder their own people, it didn't mean that all countries were like that.

When Genghis Khan first marched west to Europe, there was not a blade of grass anywhere he went. Years later, saffron, the bones of the corpses make fat....

And historically, when Caesar attacked the Bedouche, he caught the Bedouche off guard because he did not burn the villages that he had already captured. This shows that the armies of the time considered the burning of hostile villages as a common practice.

Even among the Spartan army, this was very common. Although Hydra had explicitly forbidden soldiers from plundering the belongings and food of its own inhabitants, if it was an enemy country, i.e. Athens... there were not so many rules.

According to what Hydra had ordered, Sparta's soldiers were allowed to plunder the wealth of the enemy country's residents, but were forbidden from harming ordinary residents. Simply put, they could loot, but they could not kill or harm. This was something that was very difficult to understand in this era. But Hydra knew. If even the inhabitants of other Greek countries were truly spared, it would only make their belief in Zeus even more mindless.

Sun Wu once said, "In all methods of using the army, the whole country is the first, and the country is the second; the whole army is the first, and the army is the second; the whole brigade is the first, and the brigade is the second; the whole pawn is the first, and the pawn is the second; the whole army is the first, and the brigade is the second. That is why it is not good to win a hundred battles; it is also good to subdue the enemy's army without fighting.

The meaning is to incapacitate the enemy's army to achieve a complete victory, and subjugating the enemy's army without fighting is the core idea of Sun Wu's Art of War, which was also Hydra's means to the common Greek inhabitants.

Hydra, on the other hand, was less benevolent towards the Greek army....

Although the war seemed huge, the city-state alliance on the Athenian side alone had sent out 300,000 allied troops, so perhaps it would be a bitter battle.

But Leonidas was confident in his army, Sparta's army wasn't raised in a honey pot like the Greek nobility....

"Victory predicated on crushing the enemy's beliefs...?"

Thinking about what Hydra had told him, Leonidas looked behind him at the army.

"That was just so easy!"

As he spoke, Leonidas's face rose with an intensity of confidence, rather than arrogance.

Volume 1: Text-99.The Avenger from Greece

At night, the generals except for those on duty at the guard post had all started to rest and eat.

The food was simple, basically every soldier would have his family fry up a bag of fried rice before he left for battle, fried rice was made in a simple way, and the good family would also add some dried honey fruit to the frying process, plus already with storage carry. Fried rice is almost the most Spartan of foods.

In addition to these, of course, there is vinegar cloth and salt cloth.

A vinegar cloth is a piece of cloth that has been soaked in rice vinegar, and when a piece of vinegar cloth is placed in the pot during cooking, the flavor of the vinegar cloth seeps out. Salt cloth is also the same thing. Although a little unhygienic, but this kind of thing in the battlefield utility is great, and occupy a very small space.

The army's food was relatively ordinary, with the exception of ordinary rice being some pickled vegetables. Although everyone knew that too much pickles were bad for health and tasted bad, there was little choice because they were easy to carry. Besides, the Spartan army allowed its soldiers to hunt on their own as far as they were allowed to do so, so game would often appear on the army table.

In the marching tent, Leonidas and Quintus and the others sat in a circle.

"This should be our last peaceful night... It's quite a sentiment to imagine the sweat left behind on the training ground..."

Hearing Leonidas' words, Quintus nodded as well.

"Yeah, but don't tell me, it's obviously an expedition, but it's easier than usual~ It's just that the penis is a bit sore from being bumped by the horse."

Hippolyta on the other side of the news also left her mouth open.

"It's a lot more comfortable than sailing on the sea, and many people get dizzy the first time they're on a ship, especially when there's a lack of water. That kind of taste, zzz."

Atalanta did not comment on the words of the crowd. After all, Atalanta who had grown up in the middle of the jungle was simply accustomed to such bumps. Not to mention on the back of a horse, even on the back of a tiger Atalanta was able to handle it four squared.

Compared to the food of the soldiers, the food of the crowd that was the master general was undoubtedly much better.

The class difference also allows them to enjoy this better food in peace without feeling guilty at all. Since I have worked harder than they have, I deserve a better life. This is the Spartan interpretation of class in the Ten Commandments....

It's a little harsh, but it's certainly true.

There aren't that many saints in this day and age, and if you're hungry don't tell a cute bunny, you'll eat it for humans.

"This war has come a little late..."

"...Yeah...it's a little late."

As he said that, Leonidas let out a long breath. There was some helplessness revealed in his eyes. War was cruel, but it was indeed every Spartan warrior's lifelong pursuit.

And this war came too late, the Spartan Praetorians of the previous generation had all aged, even half of them had been buried. And it was a little too bad that this unprecedentedly powerful war was without their active figures.

"Speaking of which... we only have 50,000 men, but we're facing an allied army of 300,000 throughout Greece ah~ You guys should at least give them some face apprehension ah~"

Everyone present laughed at Leonidas's words that clearly had a ridiculing tone to them.

"It's been over a hundred years since Greece has experienced war, and you're telling me that that group of nobles soaking in a honey pot and relying on the shade of their fathers to become generals can defeat us? No kidding..."

At the news, Leonidas also laughed, but quickly stopped smiling.

"Although you're right, they're not the only enemies we're facing this time."

"Well? And who else?"

Quintus, confused, looked aside at Leonidas, who had no intention of hiding it, but spoke seriously, "There are quite a few missions being sent out from Greece this time, and besides Hercules, there is the crew from the original Iason..."

At Leonidas' words, Quintus frowned.

When Iason had gone to get the Golden Fleece, he had come to Sparta to dig up Hydra, and Hydra had not spared Iason, and when Iason had left, Hydra had secretly angered the sea monsters of the Mediterranean Sea, causing Iason's ocean liner to sink.

Although Iasong ultimately did not receive the Golden Fleece due to Hydra's intervention, Quintus and the others gained an intuitive understanding of the strength of Iasong's crew during the conflict.

Hercules, in particular, was the most troubling.

Able to restrain his lust and anger and look at everything around him sensibly. If there hadn't been Hercules when they were drifting on the sea in the first place, it was likely that Iasong and the others would have been swallowed by the sea monster....

As he was thinking, Leonidas, who was on the other side of the room, suddenly clapped his hands.

"Right! I almost forgot one thing!"

"Well? What is it?"

Sensing the confusion around him, Leonidas spoke curtly.

"Our greatest enemy on this trip is not the crew of Iasong, but the remnants of the last era..."

"Perseus..."

Volume 1: Text-100. the start of war.

After a long day's march, the Spartan army finally made it to one of Sparta's border cities, Mycenae.

Mycenae was one of the most culturally important city-states in ancient Greece, but after its capture by Hydra it was transformed into an impregnable defensive fortress.

The walls of Mycenae were usually of the "brick stone" type: they consisted of huge blocks of stone up to eight meters wide, with cement inlays between them. When boulders were not available, they were erected one by one, mosaic by mosaic. The design of the walls used different entrances: huge gates, ramps, or secret doors and underground vaulted passages in case of siege. Considering the possibility of war, the city was also equipped with water tanks and wells.

The great gate of Mycenae, the "Lion's Gate" facing Greece, was impregnable under Hydra's instructions. The gates were built on the side of a mountain, which was a natural wall.