Rome Must Perish

"They are somewhat late in coming!" Maximus murmured softly, then stood up, took the lead out of the tent, and opened his arms enthusiastically as he approached the incoming Attutmus, saying, "Attutmus, welcome to your arrival!"

Attutmus, facing the young Maximus, was not as arrogant as Cross or Enomai, but instead had a look of apology: "Maximus, I’m sorry! I was busy setting up camp just now and came late!"

"Your army is marching behind, so it’s naturally later for you to set up camp than us; we all understand, so the meeting is just starting..." Maximus warmly grabbed Attutmus’s arm and walked shoulder to shoulder into the military tent, saying, "Judging from today’s marching situation, we should pass through the Samnium Mountain Area smoothly. I have some new ideas, and we need both of our teams to discuss and see if we can implement our previously planned strategies more effectively."

"That’s great, Maximus, you have better ideas. I must listen carefully!" Attutmus’s face beamed, expressing genuine delight. The previous military plan had been almost entirely devised by Maximus and Quintus; having been a sailor for decades, Attutmus knew little of strategic planning. He was astounded by such a comprehensive development plan for Apulia and proactively coordinated his army’s actions with Maximus’s forces after leaving Campania and heading south together.

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Three main ethnic groups primarily inhabit the Apulia region: the Doni people, the Puqieti, and the Apulians.

Their ancestors came from Illyria across the Adriatic Sea, so they all spoke the same language. Over generations, they developed this once-barbaric area into a prosperous and affluent region.

Later, the Romans conquered the area by force, officially naming it Apulia, but the local populace never fully submitted to Rome. During the Second Punic War, they supported Hannibal, and in the Roman Alliance War that occurred over a decade ago, most of this region aligned with the Samnites to resist Rome. After their defeat, they faced some repression from the Roman Senate, which led to a decline in this region.

Now, the so-called "Free Italy" slave rebel army had arrived, making the Apulian people nervous. However, reports kept coming in that puzzled them: this rebel army, which had been rampaging in Campania, had not committed any atrocities while crossing the Samnium Mountain Area. Upon entering the Apulia region, they passed towns like Acay on Minucia Avenue without stopping, only spreading the word that they were the Free Italy army, formed by the poor to help them live better lives, and to aid Italians in freeing themselves from Roman oppression and regaining independence...