Chapter 472: Choice

Since the defeat of the Thracian Field Army, the entire Thracian province has become a paradise for the Huns, who wantonly destroyed the cities built by the Romans over hundreds of years. Countless gold, silver, food and even noble ladies.

The cities of Macedonia were also filled with a large number of refugees, who brought not only chaos but also all kinds of fear. The terrifying image of the Huns was magnified again and again in the process of word of mouth. In the end, the citizens who could not control their panic had to continue to move south with the refugees, and the legend that the Huns were human upper body and horse lower body became more and more serious.

But when they reached the Via Thessaloniki, the refugees were all intercepted by the army led by Luca, for no reason at all, simply because Luca simply did not believe that the Huns they had been talking about were really so terrifying.

"Every household passing through here must select a strong man to join the army!" The soldiers who were checking passers-by shouted again and again to the refugees who were blocked and begging desperately.

Luga had already set up a defense line here, to prevent either the Huns or the refugees who were right in front of him.

The cavalry patrolled this wide area constantly, with the purpose of tracking down refugees who wanted to take a long way to bypass this line of defense, because there was only one real road, which was the only road controlled by Luga. The price of passing the road was also very high. Unless there were no males, a man had to be handed over.

One side wants to escape, and the other side wants the other side to pay a price. Such a disagreement emerged. The refugees said that they were Roman citizens recognized by Rome under the law of nations, and their sacred rights should not be violated! But such arguments did not seem to work for Luca. The louder the people's voices, Luca ordered the soldiers to rush into the refugees and capture the men in an extremely violent way. As long as one man was captured from each household, they could let them go.

"Sir Luca, enough is enough. You cannot oppress civilians like this anymore. They are Roman citizens!" Hearing the complaints of the refugees, the actions of the soldiers under Luca were even more shocking. The soldiers ignored his dissuasion and beat the resisting male refugees in an extremely violent manner. The refugees with blood on their faces shocked Areobinders. He finally couldn't help it and took the initiative to find Luca.

"How many men, no, how many soldiers have been pulled out now?" Luga asked Areobinders directly.

"There are about 3,000 people!" Areobinders replied, and then Areobinders came forward and grabbed Luca and whispered to him: "Sir, I know we need soldiers now, but listen to the cries of women and children. They need fathers and sons."

"That's enough, Areobinders." Luca interrupted him, and then turned back to look at him, his face full of impatience. "How can I recruit soldiers without this, how can I lead an army that can match Attila? Now Attila is unstoppable, but I was transferred here, isn't it to lead you to resist this barbarian?"

"But now the citizens need protection, not oppression more severe than that of the barbarians!" Areopinions retorted.

"I won't let them go, not even one person! Not even one person!" Luca said firmly, "In Iberia, the Vandals and Alans have driven a large number of Roman citizens to fight against us. They have killed and wounded a large number of my soldiers, and their heroic performance is no less than that of the barbarians behind them. I need an army."

"Now everyone from officers and nobles to soldiers and civilians is afraid of the Huns, especially Attila," Areobinders said. "Aren't you afraid that they will be defeated because they can't control their fear?"

"Then kill them!" Luca's tone was so cold that Areobinders gasped. Luca turned back and looked at Areobinders and said, "They will be killed sooner or later anyway. If we collapse, they can't escape. You know, Sir Areobinders, if we fall, no one can escape. But you see, we don't even have half the number of the original Thracian field army!"

"Attila has completely looted the two provinces of Dacia and Thrace. The refugees have lost everything. For God's sake, they have nothing left except their lives. Let them go!" Areobinders understood Luca's mood at this time. After all, he was also in the situation, because Attila occupied Philippopolis, and the Hun army besieged Perintus in the south. He knew that the defenders of Perintus could not resist the Hun army at all, but the large number of defenders in Constantinople, which was closest to them, did not move at all. They watched their land being destroyed and their people being killed. This can already show Basileus's thoughts from the side.

However, Luca seemed to have a different idea from his adoptive father Theodosius. He actively prepared for war and tried to integrate the existing army to resist Attila's invasion. However, no one knew what the outcome would be. The defeat of the Thracian field army made everyone have a negative attitude towards the war. No one was optimistic about any army's ability to achieve a shocking victory. More people were praying that the gold from the plundered areas could satisfy Attila's amazing appetite.

The most crucial thing is that every time Luke wanted Constantinople to dispatch troops, even if he patted his chest and guaranteed that he could defeat Attila, it was of no avail.

"It is precisely because they have nothing left that they should stand up and take back everything they have lost, instead of retreating again and again!" Luca's excitement was not reduced at all by Areobinders's soothing tone. "Although the mountains here are relatively high, the flat road allows the Hun cavalry to gallop freely. We must have enough soldiers to stop them. Basileus only thinks about how to keep his city, his palace, and his so-called dignity. We are different. We have nothing now! We need more soldiers, more food, and more weapons!"

Looking at Luga's hysteria, Areobinders didn't know what to do for a moment. How should he persuade Luga, who was a little crazy under the pressure? In his eyes, everything Luga was doing now was so crazy.

"It's time to rest, Mr. Luca." Seeing that he had no way to convince Luca, Areobinders began to give up. He had no choice but to look at Luca's indifferent look, knowing that he could not change! Without waiting for Luca's reply, he was ready to turn around and leave.

"Sir!" Luca called him from behind. Areobinders turned around and looked at Luca in confusion. "I'll trouble you with the weapons and equipment." Luca's tone was much softer at this time. "After all, Attila and his soldiers are extremely powerful enemies. We must be careful to deal with them. Escape will not solve the problem. The only way is to defeat Attila. Otherwise, we will be slaughtered like lambs!"

After listening to Luga's words, Areobinders' Adam's apple moved up and down, then he nodded firmly and turned away.

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(End of this chapter)