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With Caisra serving as a warning, the two envoys could no longer dare to be half-hearted about it and began to discuss the matter quickly.

During this period, the envoys could only travel frequently between Rome, Volch and Tarchna at the urging of Davos. As a result, both sides quickly drafted a preliminary alliance agreement, which mainly included the following:

First: The Kingdom of Theonia would form a military alliance with Tarchna and Volch.

Second: Tarchna and Volch must respond to Theonia’s demands by providing troops to confront Theonia’s enemy, while Theonia must protect the safety of Tarchna and Volch’s territory.

Third: Volch and Tarchna recognise Theonia’s occupation of Caisra.

Fourth: Theonia must assist Tarchna and Volch in recapturing Sutrium and Cosa. Theonia would then return these territories to its allied city-state to which they belonged. However, the Romans in the city would belong to Theonia, and the allied soldiers were not allowed to plunder them.

. . . . . . . . . . . . .

Despite not having signed the alliance agreement yet, Davos urged the two Etruscan city-states to send envoys to the Roman camp, which led to this easy victory.

. . . . . . . . . . . . .

On this day, the sun was shining brightly, and the sky was clear and cloudless.

Having endured war, death, chaos, and sorrow, the people of Rome eventually found a rare sense of joy showing on their faces. They adorned themselves and escorted their wives and daughters to assemble on either side of the road, extending from the arena to the Roman Forum, in anticipation of the commencement of the Triumphant Return.

Among these people is Maecilius, who, three days ago, immediately fled the Roman military camp with many of the soldiers from Veii after learning of Veii’s fall.

While the Roman army was busy intercepting the Etruscans’ departure and the Roman colonies’ soldiers on the north bank of the Tiber River, the other soldiers took that opportunity and managed to escape unscathed. However, many of them, like Maecilius, ran towards Rome to surrender to the Theonians.

After having their identities confirmed by the officials of Theonia, the Theonians would transport the Roman nobles to the south with their families, where the Census Department of Thurii would disperse them to the various cities and towns in the kingdom. On the other hand, they would ask the surrendered plebeians whether they would choose to live in Rome or Veii, and then they would be resettled according to their choice. In fact, the Theonian officials would take the initiative in guiding the plebeians to choose Rome because more than half of the entire city became vacant after removing the Roman nobles.

Maecilius, who had originally grown up in the city of Rome, was certainly willing to rejoin Rome. Not only because there were better residences but also because the allocated land he would receive would be more fertile. (The Roman Senate transferred all the flat lands along the river that originally belonged to Veii to Rome in order to restrict Veii’s growth, leaving only the hills and mountains for the Roman citizens who migrated to Veii.)

Furthermore, aside from assisting him in locating his wife and children, the Theonian official also informed him that His Majesty, King Davos, had approved a special decree on their behalf. This decree allowed the Romans who had applied for Theonian citizenship to wait until after the autumn harvest to reclaim and cultivate new land once they had harvested the crops from their existing plots.

Davos’ considerate measures had reassured all the Roman plebeians who defected to Theonia.

While Maecilius was busy relocating, news spread throughout Rome that the Theonians were preparing to hold a Triumphant Return in the city tomorrow!

The news sent waves through the Roman populace; after all, the Triumphant Return was one of the most sacred ceremonies of the Roman citizens. It was a ceremony for the Romans to flaunt their battle successes and glory after defeating their enemies. Thus, Maecilius and the other plebeians desperately wanted to know if the Theonians knew how to perform the Triumphant Return. And what attitude will the Theonians adopt towards the Romans in the Triumphant Return? (Because the Roman’s Triumphant Return would always parade their captured enemies)…

Hence, many Romans gathered by the side of the street with their faces filled with doubts and complex expressions as they waited for the ceremony to begin.

“Woooo!…” A long salpinx sound sounded, followed by a chorus of drum beating, with a passionate and joyful melody coming from the south of Rome.

The people couldn’t help but move their heads at this unfamiliar and beautiful melody, with some calling the music pleasant and asking the people around them for its title. Unfortunately, no one knew about it.

After a while, the people on the city’s south side began to stir as they shouted loudly, “Here they come! They are coming!!…”

Then the crowd began rushing forward but were stopped by the Theonian soldiers standing guard.

Maecilius picked up his five-year-old child and tiptoed, facing south, only to see a gold and black military flag in the middle of the road held high, heading towards them.

Upon drawing nearer, Maecilius discerned that the flag had a silver bident engraved on it, with a resplendent golden crown atop the bident, embellished with precious gemstones, and covered in black byssus. Atop the military flag stood a magnificent statue of a Greek deity.

‘Is this the flag of the Kingdom of Theonia?!’ Maecilius looked on curiously. This was because he hadn’t seen the Theonian flag when he returned with the Roman army from Hernici since they had to assault Ostia quickly.

This time, he looked at it carefully because he knew he would now be fighting under the command of this flag.

The Romans on both sides of the road looked curiously at the soldier holding the flag high. Although he wasn’t tall and sturdy, he had a good physique, robust muscles, several scars on his face, and a somewhat vicious appearance.

The Romans naturally wouldn’t know that the soldier who would raise the military flag during Theonia’s Triumphant Return was the bravest and most outstanding soldier in the war. For a Theonian citizen, this is the highest honour and the focus of the Theonians’ attention; after all, only one person would raise the military flag while several generals rode in a chariot.

As a result, not a single Roman cheered or threw flowers at the soldier bearing the flag, which left Terentus feeling regretful. Nevertheless, his heart swelled with pride, for he held the achievement of being the first soldier in the Mountain Reconnaissance Brigade to hoist the military flag during the Triumphant Return since Theonia’s inception. His initial feat involved a daring venture of diving into Rome’s sewers under the shroud of night. Additionally, he was the first to scale the walls during the night assault on Caisra. There, he defeated five Caisran soldiers who had detected their presence and sought to impede their mission, thereby buying precious time for the entire operation. It was, therefore, no surprise that he received unanimous approval to be the flag bearer for the Triumphant Return.

Directly behind him marched ten soldiers, each proudly holding a military banner. However, their number and the road’s narrowness had forced them to form into two rows. These banners represented the First Legion, Second Legion, Third Legion, Fourth Legion, Fifth Legion, Sixth Legion, First Cavalry Legion, Second Cavalry Legion, and, joining them for the first time, the flag of the Mountain Reconnaissance Brigade. This special unit, comprising merely a thousand soldiers, played an exceedingly vital role in the war, albeit at the cost of notable casualties. Thus, Davos had to rectify years of overlooked military honours by acknowledging their commendable contributions.

The individual bearing the flag of the Mountain Reconnaissance Brigade is Centurion Cregolas. While his performance in this battle may not have been particularly notable, his exemplary contributions span several decades of warfare.

And the other flag bearer is…

The Romans standing by the roadside couldn’t help but express their astonishment upon seeing the flag and the soldier holding it, “It’s Valerius! It’s Valerius!”

Meanwhile, like Maecilius, more Romans gazed at the red flag with complex expressions.

The soldier holding this banner, Valerius, was still wearing the equipment of the Roman heavy infantryman and became the representative of the newly formed Roman Reserve Brigade for his bravery in the assault on Veii three days ago. Of course, his performance was far from the other flag bearers, but Davos needed the political significance he represents.

However, it is evident that this plebeian has not yet acclimated to such an environment. He appeared somewhat timid and did not even nod back at those who recognised him, unlike the other flag bearers who held their heads high and exuded pride.

Following behind the flag bearers were the four Theonian priests in white chiton, carrying a wooden statue of a god with a solemn expression.

Many Romans began whispering, asking who this Greek god was with each other.

Those who knew told them it was Hades, the guardian deity of the Kingdom of Theonia.

Upon hearing this, the voices by the roadside actually got quieter because they realised that after joining the Kingdom of Theonia, they would inevitably come into contact with this powerful Greek god.

After the Theonian priests passed by, another statue of a deity appeared in front of the people.

“It’s goddess Diana!” Someone exclaimed excitedly.

The Theonians had placed the statue of Diana, which was widely worshipped by the Roman plebeians, behind their patron god, indicating that they attached great importance to the gods revered by the Romans, relieving the hearts of Maecilius and the others. They even saw that among the priests carrying the statue was the high priest of the Temple of Diana.

The high priest had a solemn expression on his face, but his heart was filled with joy because he had a private talk with the priest in charge of the Temple of Hades, Kaldeas: After integrating Rome into the Kingdom of Theonia, the Temple of Hades would focus on supporting the Temple of Diana as one of the main temples of worship for the Romans who had become Theonian citizens. Moreover, the Temple of Diana would also become a place of worship for Theonian citizens from other races.

Kaldeas’ promise thrilled the High Priest of the Temple of Diana. Despite the Temple of Diana in Rome enjoying significant popularity among the Latin plebeians, it had not garnered the same esteem from the Senate and wasn’t allowed in Mons Capitolinus, thereby missing out on the city-state’s collective offerings during vital celebrations. Fortunately, Theonia didn’t like Jupiter and Juno, who were similar to the Greek deities and instead favoured supporting Diana. Today’s participation in the grand triumphant parade marked a beginning, infusing the High Priest with optimism for the future.

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