"The Persians... Thermopylae..."
"What?!"
"Could it be, those guys?!"
At this moment, the Athenian naval commissioner pointed to the map and spoke.
His pupils trembled slightly, and it was obvious that he was greatly shocked by the news.
"This is Thermopylae, the key fortress guarding the entrance to northern Greece."
"If the Persians are really there... it's not good, it's not good!"
"The armistice agreement only includes Athens and Persia! These cunning guys really are planning to play tricks on us behind our backs!"
The Athenian naval commissioner widened his eyes and pressed the finger on "Thermopylae" harder and harder.
But one of the captains who heard this immediately expressed his opinion.
"That's impossible! Athenian naval commissioner!"
"Our intelligence network in Athens spans the Mediterranean. If there were such a major military maneuver, it would be impossible for us not to notice it."
"Unless, they bypassed... oh."
The captain's mind was deducing on the map, and soon he realized that this possibility not only existed, but was also fatal to the entire Greece.
Simply put, as long as the Persian army crossed the Thermopylae, it could point directly at most of the Greek city-states like a sharp knife.
It was extremely dangerous for both Sparta and Athens, or in other words, for the whole of Greece.
"No, wait, if what you said today is true..."
The Athenian naval commissioner's expression became extremely solemn, his fingers moved back and forth on the map, and his breathing became more and more rapid.
After all, most Greeks today know that Holy Egypt is going to participate in the World Conference.
So, in the eyes of the Athenian naval commissioners, the intelligence about Holy Egypt did not seem to be a complete lie.
"We assume."
"If the Holy Egyptians' intelligence is accurate, this isn't simply a matter of shipbuilding technology."
"Could it be that the Holy Pharaoh is preparing something?"
"But where did he get the boat? Where else could he get a better one here except from us?"
"Huh? Could it be that he bought it from the Spartans?"
"Then it makes sense that they're heading to Thermopylae!"
However, the captains here didn't understand what he said at all, and they seemed a little anxious.
After all, this also involves the money they invested in building the ship.
"Oh, Athenian naval commissar, what do you want to say?
The Athenian naval commissioner seemed not to care about their current emotions at all. In fact, at this moment, his face became slightly serious.
This made the few people who originally wanted to talk about the ship stop speaking without authorization and instead listened attentively to the words of the Athenian Naval Commissioner.
"Think about it, why would Holy Egypt be interested in Thermopylae?"
"That place has extremely high strategic value, but it has little economic significance. Besides, they are here to attend the World Conference. There is no need for them to make a special trip to Thermopylae."
"Besides, you said today that Holy Egypt has a hundred ships and is heading for Thermopylae."
"Judging from this information, the hundred ships of Holy Egypt cannot pose a significant threat to Sparta. But why would they go there?"
"Hundreds of ships, and in a country like Egypt where there's no shipbuilding technology?"
Just then, a clever ship owner took over the conversation.
"Unless they have some kind of intelligence!"
"Unless, it was the Spartans who sold them the ships. Although the Spartan ships are not as good as the Athenian ones, they are still not bad."
"So, it was the Holy Pharaoh who purchased the Spartan ships, and now that Sparta was being approached by Persia, it turned to Holy Egypt for help!"
"Ah! That's right! That makes sense!"
When the Athenian naval commissioner heard this, he nodded slightly. Obviously, he also agreed with the captain's words.
"That's right. If the Persians and the Holy Egyptians show up at Thermopylae, it could very well mean that a war we haven't anticipated is about to break out."
"But what's strange is that the Spartans are willing to ask for help from Holy Egypt instead of Athens?"
"Has our relationship really deteriorated to this point? Are the Spartans actually going to seek help from foreign tribes? That's really unlike them."
"Or was it just the Saint Pharaoh's wishful thinking, a spontaneous act to express his gratitude to Sparta for giving them the ships?"
After these words were spoken, there was a brief silence in the air. Everyone frowned and lowered their heads slightly.
It's too complicated, especially since there's no evidence to support their ideas yet.
The ship that had just answered the call shook its head. "That's hard to say. We need evidence to confirm it."
"You know, in order to fight against Persia, many city-states like Sparta and the alliance jointly paid a military fund, which was managed by Pericles, the chief general of Athens."
"This money was originally the military expenditure paid by the allied city-states to fight against Persia, but Athens withdrew part of it and used it for its own construction, and suppressed any allied states that wanted to withdraw."
"Therefore, many allies have expressed strong opinions on this matter."
When the Athenian naval commissioner heard this, he just took a deep breath.
"Don't talk nonsense. After all, in the matter of resisting Persia, we in Athens are the ones who have paid the most."
"It's reasonable to withdraw some of it. On this point, I support Chief General Pericles."
"By the way, you absolutely cannot let anyone know what you said today."
"Conflicts are already rife among the Greek city-states, so it's best to keep such opinions and remarks to oneself."
The Athenian naval commissioner now seized the map and then his coat.
He took two steps at a time and reached the door, ready to leave.
"Well, there is no time to waste. I must see the chief general Pericles immediately."
"This matter is of great importance and may affect the fate of the entire Greece."
Several captains stood up and wanted to say something else, but the Athenian naval commissioner had already walked out of the room quickly.
A few seconds later, he leaned half of his body out of the door.
"Well, I usually help you a lot."
"If it doesn't work out, we can just sell the boat at a discount. We can still do business in the future."
"But if the Persians come in, everything will be over."
"Make it clear to me."
After he finished speaking, several captains just stood there in a daze. It was not until the Athenian naval commissioner moved half of his body away from the door that the captains slowly nodded.
"Why......"
"Were they beaten to the punch by the Spartans?"
"But how did they get involved with the Holy Pharaoh?!"
At this time, several people just left the residence of the Athenian Naval Commissioner in disappointment, and walked back to where they came from with their heads hung.
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