Chapter 694: The Bow is Broken

"What on earth do the Goths want? To make you do this, to do something so different from what you normally do?"

When John Antiochus received the letter, he looked around, and when he was sure that no one was around, he finally couldn't help but ask Luca. "From what I know, they just want to avenge King Theoderic who died in the battle on the plain of Chalons."

"Of course, John, of course." Luca nodded continuously and continued to answer: "Think about when Alaric followed Theodosius to fight against Eugenius, it was just to find a place for his tribe to live in Gaul, just like when they had lived in the Black Sea for generations. But later, my friend, they were full and drank enough, and they realized that their existence should have enough status, so they wanted status, and they wanted status that the Romans could recognize. So they sacked the city of Rome on the grounds that the Roman Senate rejected them."

"This is the story of Alaric. It is said that he was cursed by God and died on his way back."

"But the Goths only lost one Alaric." Luca smiled and shook his head. "The Visgoths have existed until now, and the war between them and us has never stopped. At least for me, there is still a gift from an unknown Visgoth in my belly."

After saying this, Luca lifted up his clothes to let John Antiochus see the ugly scar on his stomach.

"At least this thing can remind me when I change clothes or take a bath that I have no friends with the Visigoths."

"But if we succeed, I mean if Aetius succeeds in killing Torismon, then this will cause hostility from the Visigoths in the west, and they will no longer trust us."

"Then we can appoint a Gothic king who trusts us." Luca seemed unimpressed. "Aetius knows what to do. He is like a skilled killer. He can not only kill the target, but also handle the aftermath properly."

Luca sighed and said to John Antiochus, "I don't mind who is the good guy and who is the bad guy. I just know that Rome needs us to make the right choice right now. Someone will have to make the necessary sacrifices for the overall situation."

John was speechless. He must have been shaken by Luca's words.

John walked out of the tent without saying a word, leaving Luca alone looking up at the ceiling made of rough white cloth. He took a deep breath and then slowly exhaled. After all, there was no precedent for such bad things, so one always needs to reflect on it and remind himself to get used to it slowly.

Torismon finally made up his mind to go back, but it was already autumn, and it was hard to imagine how slow the huge army was in advancing, wasting more than half a year just to reach Genoa.

The journey back was even more difficult. In order to return to their territory before winter, the journey was too long. They had to admit that they could not be distracted by anything other than forced march.

They walked back along the coastal area. The road was eerily quiet. Even the farmers who came out to work avoided them when they saw them passing by, as if they were not here to support Rome but more like invaders.

Torismon endured such critical gazes along the way and continued to move forward. Fortunately, it was not as cold here as in the north. Even so, he was secretly thinking in his heart that it was time to confront the Suebi who were hiding in southern Iberia.

The soldiers under Torismon marched along the rugged dirt road. The army of 10,000 stretched for several kilometers, and every soldier was in a hurry to get on with their journey.

A month later, they arrived in the province of Narbonne Gaul.

"This is where we fought the Roman Seventh Gemina Legion." An old officer pointed to the woods in front of them and recalled to Torismon, "The Roman legion was led by Litorius at the time. I'm afraid this old guy can no longer fight on the battlefield. Although he often suffered defeats later, it is undeniable that he is still a warrior, a real warrior."

"It seems that he must have done something that shocked you."

"Oh, yes, yes, this guy is chasing." The old officer smiled, "At that time, we surrounded Narpan City tightly. I'm sure they had run out of ammunition and food. God, it's hard to imagine that we surrounded them for half a year."

"Aetius was harassed by the Burgundians and was caught in a two-front war, each side was evenly matched. He tried hard, but he had so few soldiers, or rather, the Romans, only had so few soldiers."

"And what happened next?"

"Afterwards, Aetius beat back the Burgundians and then rushed towards us without stopping. Litorius, with a group of cavalry carrying food, broke through our army and entered the city wall near Nar. Afterwards, his legion came and fought with us for two days and two nights."

"My father told me that they lost their position because of this."

"Oh, yes. More than half of them were killed or wounded and it was difficult for them to continue. Your father met a stubborn boy in the melee. He probably recognized your father's identity from his equipment, so he rushed out of the chaos regardless of his own safety."

"Oh? Really?" Torismon was very curious, "Why didn't my father tell me about this?"

"Ha, anything can happen on the battlefield." The old officer looked around. They were already in the woods. There were many white bones hidden in the grass around them. Listening to the old officer's story, it seemed as if he was more personally there.

"This guy wanted to die, so three of us fought him until he was exhausted. Then your father rushed over and slashed his stomach with a sword."

"He's dead?"

"I don't know. Before we could confirm whether he was dead or not, the soldiers behind him rushed forward and we had to retreat." The old officer couldn't help but sneer at this point. "With such a serious injury, unless he is a person chosen by God, it is impossible for him to survive."

“Whoosh!”

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A sharp sound was heard, and Torismon felt a strong wind blowing. His instinct made him lean back suddenly, and he saw a black shadow flash before his eyes, followed by a hoarse scream from the old officer.

Torismon turned around suddenly and saw an arrow stuck in the old general's chest. The arrow was originally aimed at him!

"Damn it, there are enemies!" Torismon never expected to be attacked on Roman soil. He shouted loudly and called to the soldiers beside him.

The soldiers were very tired after a long journey. They came to their senses after hearing Torismon's sudden response and hurriedly raised their shields, but it was too late.

In an instant, countless arrows were seen flying out from the woods. Torismon's soldiers fell one after another. Even Torismon's own horse fell to the ground and threw Torismon to the ground.

“Boom…”

All that was heard was the sound of thousands of footsteps coming together to make a huge roar, and a large number of soldiers rushed out from the woods on both sides and surrounded the army where Torismon was.

"Damn it, where did they come from?" Torismon shouted loudly. In the chaos, he saw the Laban flag used by the Romans. His heart skipped a beat, as if he understood something.

"Aetius!!!"

He is now howling to the sky in the crowd, and no one knows how much resentment is mixed in his voice.

(End of this chapter)