Rome Must Fall - Chapter 66: Maximus and the New Recruits

“That must have been hard work for you!” Tirkus said flatteringly.

Agnes glanced at him and teased, “You’ve been transferred to the Fifth Century, leading new recruits as a decanus. How does it feel?”

“It’s going alright,” Tirkus replied modestly with a smile.

“Seems like you’re doing quite well,” Agnes laughed and extended her hand, “Enough chatting. Hand me your earthen pots.”

Tirkus quickly handed over his two earthen pots, which Agnes took and passed to someone inside the wagon.

After a moment, Agnes carefully retrieved the earthen pots handed out from the wagon.

“Be careful, they’re a bit hot,” Agnes warned.

“What’s on the menu tonight?” Tirkus asked curiously as he took the heavy pots.

“Bacon, bean porridge, and mutton soup,” Agnes replied.

Upon hearing this, Tirkus hurriedly lowered his head to peer into the pot, and immediately his expression brightened: “It really is mutton soup, and there’s even a good amount of meat in it! (Normally the kitchen just provided a thin oil broth, which was just some olive oil poured into hot water to give the soldiers a bit of added fat and hydration). This porridge is also pretty thick, with a lot of meat bits! Why is tonight’s dinner so good?!”

“Don’t rush, there’s also this,” Agnes handed him a warm, large piece of bread, which was the soldiers’ staple food.

With his hands full, Tirkus bit the bread to hold it.

Then, Agnes also handed him a small, egg-sized white blob, “And this.”

Tirkus’ eyes widened as he quickly tucked the bread under his arm and asked, “Where did this cheese come from?”

Seeing his surprise, Agnes felt pleased, “Of course, we made it ourselves in the kitchen with goat’s milk. We tried making it several times before, and after some successful attempts, we started making it in large batches a few days ago. If it weren’t for Commander Maximus saying, ‘Tonight’s dinner should be special to celebrate the joining of many new recruits,’ I wouldn’t have brought out the cheese for you.”

“So we’re benefiting from these new recruits?” Tirkus asked.

“Exactly.”

Not wasting any time, Tirkus grasped the pots tightly, tucked the bread under his arm, balanced the cheese in his hand, and carefully headed back. The new recruits behind him had overheard the conversation. For them, who had once eaten pig food every day, soft and delicious bread was already a rare treat. Now, being able to enjoy cheese, drink mutton soup, and chew on bacon filled them with excitement.

After receiving their food, the recruits of various squads sat together, devouring their dinner ravenously.

Suddenly, a commotion arose near the camp’s main gate. The recruits couldn’t help but stand up and curiously look in that direction.

“No need to look. Commander Maximus has finished his business and is back to have dinner with everyone,” Tirkus said.

“Doesn’t Commander Maximus eat by himself?” Tiribazus was astonished. In his memory, the commanders of Pontus always dined alone, enjoying the best food. How could they possibly eat the same food as ordinary soldiers?

Tirkus glanced at him sideways, proudly saying, “Commander Maximus once said that in our army of the poor, there are no high and mighty nobles. We are all brothers who have suffered the same hardships, with no distinctions of rank. We share our difficulties and our fortunes. Only by consistently holding onto this belief can we unite as one and defeat the Romans!”

Tiribazus was lost in thought.

The commotion in the southern part of the camp continued, growing even louder. Maximus’ constant movement within the camp also puzzled Tirkus. Normally, this young commander would choose one from the three centuries to dine and chat with. Why was today so different?

“Tirkus!” a familiar voice called. Tirkus instinctively stood and saluted, “Sir!”

“It’s mealtime, not training. What’s gotten into you?” Maximus strode up to him, laughingly chiding as he slapped the fist Tirkus held to his chest down.

Tirkus grinned, a bit excited, and asked, “Sir, are you eating with us tonight?”

“Today, with so many new brothers joining our logistics camp, I wanted to check on everyone first,” Maximus said, his eyes scanning the new recruits around him, asking warmly, “How do you feel after joining the logistics camp?”

Since Tirkus had repeatedly mentioned Maximus in a respectful manner in front of the new recruits today, influenced by him, when Maximus actually appeared before the new recruits, they felt somewhat restrained and, for a moment, no one responded.

“The logistics camp is great. We can eat our fill, and the food is delicious!” someone finally blurted out, their voice like thunder.

Maximus saw that the one who spoke was a burly, dark-skinned man with an honest-looking face, and his smile broadened: “Eat well, eat your fill, that’s the right idea. We’re risking our lives rising up against the Romans, isn’t it so that we can eat our fill and live like human beings? Isn’t that right, everyone?”

“Right!”

“Absolutely, Sir!”

The soldiers responded eagerly.

“And next, there’s something even better to eat!” Maximus, pleased with the new recruits’ reactions, called out, “Acco!”^[1]

A young man following him immediately handed over a bulging water bag.

“I originally planned to host a small celebration to welcome you to the logistics camp,” Maximus said, raising the leather water bag in his hand. “But the situation is a bit special now. Our main forces have left the camp to attack the Romans, leaving only our team to guard the base. Therefore, we must be cautious to prevent any enemy surprise attacks. However, to show how much we value you, the new recruits, I convinced the others to give each squad a bag of wine. This is the finest Falernian wine from Italy! Tirkus, you will be responsible for making sure every brother gets a sip, but don’t let anyone drink too much.”

Tirkus reached out to take the bag, and the eager eyes of the new recruits immediately focused on him. He looked around and said, “Tiribazus, you drink first.”

The reason Tirkus chose Tiribazus was that although this fellow was talkative, he was experienced and quite level-headed—not the type to act recklessly. Tirkus felt he could set a good example for the others.

Tirkus’ judgment was correct. In front of Maximus, Tiribazus restrained his desire to drink more and took a moderate sip before handing the bag back to Tirkus. Tirkus then passed the bag to another recruit he had selected.

None of the nine recruits shouted or scrambled. There was still plenty of wine left in the bag after it had gone around, and Tirkus only took a small sip himself.

Maximus observed with satisfaction: this Tirkus is quite impressive. In just one day of leading the troops, he was able to bring the new recruits to this level. His ability to lead troops is worth paying attention to.

“Did you enjoy the wine?” Maximus asked with a smile.

“It was delicious!” they all replied in unison.

“This time you could only have a taste. Next time, when our team goes out to fight and defeat the enemy, we’ll drink freely to celebrate our victory. How about that?”

“Great!!”

Then, Maximus had Tirkus introduce the new recruits. With each introduction,

exchanged a few warm words, creating a very friendly atmosphere.

As he was about to leave to visit the next squad, Tiribazus finally gathered the courage to speak up. “Maxi…Commander Maximus, I heard that we can learn to read and do arithmetic in the logistics camp. Can I participate?”

Maximus was pleasantly surprised. He hadn’t expected a new recruit to bring this up voluntarily. Smiling, he replied, “Of course you can! Just have your captain apply to the scribe, Vorenus, and we’ll arrange it for you.”

At this point, he looked around at everyone and said in a more emphatic tone, “I hope everyone will actively and proactively apply to learn like Tiribazus! Of course, if you’re just curious and want to watch the fun, don’t sign up, because training requires hard work and so does learning. Why are the Romans able to dominate the Mediterranean? They not only have a strong military force but also possess profound knowledge and advanced technology. If we want to defeat them and have the ability to build our own homeland afterward, we not only need military training but also need to train this——”

Translator’s Notes:

• Akgo —> Acco ↩︎

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