"Then you can choose to surrender."
Rhodes smiled lightly.
"If Athens chooses to surrender, the Byzantine Kingdom will not only guarantee that no one's life will be harmed, but will also guarantee that Athens can continue to live and operate in its current mode. What we need is an army from Greece to fight against the Persians with us. We are not interested in Athens or the Athenians. We are only interested in your army and the support forces that maintain the army."
"Let me report this matter to the meeting hall."
"of course can."
Rhodes knocked the trident in his hand.
"But we don't have much patience. We will give you one day to decide whether to fight or surrender. But I want you to know one thing. If you want to fight, you are no match for us. Besides, with me here, I can make the waves flood the Piraeus Port immediately and let the seawater flow directly into Athens through the long wall. Don't blame us for being cruel when the time comes."
"But……"
"Go down."
"Yes……"
The messenger left the place in frustration.
Rhodes' strong attitude left the envoy speechless. Under such circumstances, the envoy had no choice but to leave and take Rhodes' attitude with him.
After the messenger left.
Rhodes let out a long breath.
"it is finally over……"
"Lord Rhodes, you were really majestic just now!"
Amyntas' praise made Rhodes scratch his head a little embarrassed.
“Is that really the case?”
"Of course, the messenger ran away out of fear! That's great! In this way, the Athenians will surely realize that they have no choice now." Amyntas looked at the port of Piraeus in the distance excitedly, as if he was not an Athenian at all. "I really hope that the Athenians can choose to open the city gates before His Majesty Hilde arrives here."
"Um……"
Amyntas was an Athenian.
Although Rhodes was not a citizen of Athens, he was a resident of Attica, where the city of Athens is located, and was an Attican.
As a result, these two guys now care very much about occupying Athens.
The current situation has been determined. The information from the messengers was gathered in the hands of Nicias and his men, so that Nicias and his men all knew the intentions of the Byzantine Kingdom. Whether it was from Rhodes or from the Byzantine Kingdom Army in Sunke, the news was that Athens had to open the city and surrender, otherwise they would take a strong attack.
If it was just an ordinary army, a strong attack would not be a big deal. However, the other side had Rhodes. As the oracle of the sea god, Rhodes could be said to be very dangerous. As long as Rhodes wanted, the sea could completely change from protecting Athens to destroying Athens. Nicias had seen such power before, so he was sweating all over.
What's happening here……
The opponent's main general.
He was actually the former oracle of Athens! ?
Nicias became angry at the thought.
Cleon, that idiot!
Now, isn't this pushing Athens into the fire pit?
The fact that Rhodes was in the enemy's army was almost the key factor in destroying Athens.
"That does not work……"
Nicias knew that he could not joke with the whole of Athens.
Surrender seems to be the only option.
However, Nicias felt that he could not give up.
At least now the god Hera is protecting Athens. If Lady Hera returns to Athens, those guys from the Byzantine Kingdom will definitely be punished by God. Therefore, Nicias decided that he must fight for this matter. If it really doesn't work, then he can consider surrendering. It is actually not too late... So, Nicias took a deep breath, and then turned and headed for the Acropolis on the Ares Hill.
He wanted to give it a try.
Can we contact Hera's existence?
The fifth tune, the sixth section, the helpless gods
Athens now looks like a storm is about to come.
The fearful eyes of the Athenians could be seen clearly on the streets of Athens. No matter where he went, the confusion, helplessness and fear on the faces of the Athenians made Nicias deeply feel the complexity of the current situation. Therefore, Nicias knew very well that the problem Athens was facing was no longer a simple problem. Even the beggars on the streets of Athens knew that Athens was now surrounded by an almost unbeatable navy and there was almost no way to break the situation...
Although Nicias was not yet consul.
But he was the only oracle in the city of Athens.
So, he must take up this responsibility.
When he came to the God of War Mountain alone.
The huge statue in front of him was the statue of Athena, the patron saint of Athens. But Nicias knew that Athena had long ceased to protect Athens. Although the statue stood here, all Nicias could do was to beg Hera to come down and save Athens, which was now in trouble.
"Lady Hera..."
Nicias knelt in the forum.
Then he lowered his head and took a deep breath.
You must succeed...
"Lord Hera! If you can hear the pious Nicias' request to you, please give me a response! Athens is now in the most critical situation. The Byzantine Kingdom has brought the entire Eastern fleet and surrounded the port of Athens! The enemy's army has landed around Athens, seriously threatening the safety of Athens... If this continues, if this continues! Athens will not be able to be saved! This city will fall into the hands of the Byzantine Kingdom!"
"Although I am an oracle, I cannot protect the city of Athens. On the sea, Rhodes' strength is almost beyond my reach. I cannot use the citizens of the entire city of Athens as a bet! So, Lord Hera, if you can hear my voice, I hope you can help your devout Nicias and help the city of Athens that believes in you!"
The prayer of Nicias.
There is no way it could reach Hera.
All this is useless.
However, Nicias really had no other choice now.
But it's not his fault.
Neither Pericles nor Cleon had ever encountered a situation like this. Especially Pericles, who chose not to fight when facing the Spartan attack. Moreover, Pericles was helpless at that time, so he chose a laissez-faire attitude, which was the most criticized point of Pericles. Now, Nicias also had to face such a situation, and he could only take the same attitude as Pericles, that is, there was no other way except to pray.
The city of Athens was shrouded in the shadow of war.
Merchant ships heading to Athens could not continue to do business because the route was blocked. The only option now was to sell the goods to other places. The nearest trade route city to Athens was Corinth. These merchant ships went all the way south, and then along the land, they soon arrived at the Saronic Gulf where Corinth was located. Suddenly, there were many more merchant ships, and the Corinthians were a little puzzled, but from the mouths of these merchants, the Corinthians soon learned the problems Athens was facing.
Athens was besieged by the Byzantine Empire.
This kind of thing was also extremely shocking to the Corinthians.
As part of the Peloponnesian League, the Corinthians quickly brought the news to the oracle in Corinth.
"really interesting."
When the young man heard the news, he smiled and nodded.
"The Athenians are going to suffer."
"Lord Aristocles, we..."
"No need to rush."
Aristocles looked at the people in front of him with a smile.
"Although we have already reached a truce with Athens, Athens is still our enemy in trade. So, I don't think it's a bad thing that Athens is being beaten like this by the Byzantine Empire." Aristocles waved his hand, looking indifferent. "I hope that the Athenians and the Byzantines will have a good fight. It would be best if both sides suffer losses. Athens can be weakened, and the Byzantine Empire can also be weakened."
"But if Athens is occupied, the Byzantine Empire will find a landing point in Greece. In this case, I'm afraid the Byzantine Empire can directly send more troops to attack us Corinth!"
"Why?"
Aristocles asked in return.
"Why are you attacking us?"
"This……"
"We are not Athenians, and we have no conflicts with the Byzantines. Therefore, no matter what the Byzantines do, it has nothing to do with us."
"But the Byzantine Empire intends to rule all of Greece!"
"Ok, I know."
Aristocles saw how excited everyone was and said with a smile:
"Well, this matter should first be reported to the Spartans. The opinions of the Spartans can determine or influence the situation we will encounter in the future. And now, don't worry, it's not the Byzantine warships or the Byzantine army that appeared in front of our port! Now, please put your minds at ease, return to your homes, and think carefully about this situation. Is it as tense as it is today? I'm here, nothing will happen."
"Yes, Master Aristocles!"
At the urging of Aristocles.
These people finally left.
And Aristocles also breathed a sigh of relief.
Aristocles was serious about what he said just now. For him, the honor of the city-state was actually not important. Therefore, Aristocles could completely ignore the fate of the city-state. For him, if the Byzantine army really attacked, then Aristocles could choose to open the city and surrender.
Although he was from Corinth.
But he had no sense of honor for the city-state.
Aristocles didn't care what happened to Corinth as long as it didn't hinder his fortune.
But what he was most interested in was the information just shown in the intelligence. The Byzantine Empire was now attacking Athens, so what was the purpose of the Byzantine Empire? Why couldn't even the gods help themselves and needed to come down to earth to choose new oracles and then let them fight against the Byzantine Empire? This kind of thing seemed a bit strange no matter how you thought about it.
But Hermes was unwilling to say.
Chapter 5, Section 7: Allied Forces Unable to Reinforce
Although the Greeks worshipped gods.
However, the Greeks' worship of gods was somewhat different.
Unlike Eastern religious worship, which is completely pious and obedient, Greek beliefs often have some utilitarianism and humanism. Therefore, when gods really appear and ask people to do things that they cannot understand and are very risky, Greeks are often the first to doubt the gods' intentions and even doubt the gods themselves. This is also true for Aristocles, the oracle of Hermes.
The city-state of Corinth was one of the best commercial city-states in the entire ancient Greek region. It controlled the trade routes and waterways in the eastern and western parts of the Mediterranean, connecting the western Mediterranean region with the eastern Mediterranean region. Therefore, from the perspective of commercial trade, the economic level of Corinth was very high. In addition, it was also a holy place dedicated to the god of love. The courtesans in the temple of love were the most famous prostitutes in the whole of Greece. Therefore, merchants and celebrities from all over Greece would often come to Corinth.
Because Corinth was very rich.
This also means that Collins will naturally fear some disasters.
And now, the Oracle of Hermes is one of them.
Aristocles, as the oracle of Hermes and the archon of Corinth, could not change his position as a Corinthian. Now that Athens had suffered a disaster, it was impossible for Corinth to resist such a large fleet. So, no matter what, all Corinth could do was to watch the fire from the other side of the river and then make a fortune while Athens was in trouble.
Collins thought so.
It is very cautious and necessary.
Aristocles therefore decided not to get involved in this muddy water.
See what the situation is like in Athens.
However, Aristocles could not do nothing. If Athens fell, Corinth would most likely become the next target. At that time, although it cannot be said that the lips and teeth are cold, for Corinth, this is definitely not a situation that it wants to see. Therefore, Aristocles still issued an order to put Corinth into a state of war readiness. Citizens began to take up arms and prepare for training. At the same time, the naval fleet in the western Mediterranean also set off, intending to bypass the Peloponnese Peninsula and meet up with the fleet in the eastern Mediterranean.
At the same time, this news.
The news soon reached Sparta.
A few more days passed.
Archidamus, the king of Sparta, learned that Athens was under siege.
"Sure enough, the prophecy of God has come true."
"The Byzantine Kingdom has begun to take action."
When Lysander heard the news, he lowered his head and sighed, "If Athens is captured, the Byzantine Kingdom will find an opportunity and create an entrance into Greece. The enemy's army will continue to pass through Athens and enter Greece. At that time, perhaps only Corinth can help us."
"Corinth can't even take care of itself, how can it possibly help us?" Archidamus said coldly, "The Corinthians are now very clear about what they mean, that is, they don't intend to get involved in this matter, so they handed this mess to us. Can't you see this?"
"Feel sorry……"
Lysander lowered his head in resignation.
Archidamus was not angry with Lysander.
However, the news conveyed by the Corinthians gave Archidamos a headache.
Now, Sparta's situation is not very good. The war with the Athenians just ended, and Sparta's preparations are not complete. The only good news is that Sparta still has three oracles. However, among these three oracles, only Lysander is willing to obey their orders and serve Sparta. The other two are training with their gods, and there is no other movement.
