Rome Must Perish

As he was hesitating, Maximus spoke again, "I have already looked into this: there are only two permanent legions in this Northern Italy province of Rome, used to guard against the northern Barbarians. Previously, the governor here led these two legions south in an attempt to assist their Governor in exterminating us, only to be surrounded and annihilated by us on the Sarabian Way..."

This means that there are no regular Roman troops left in the Northern Italy province, and in such a short time, they couldn’t possibly rebuild those two legions. What remains on this plain are merely the City Guards of each town. We are well aware of the combat effectiveness of these City Guards, and as long as we march swiftly enough, the governor here will have no time to gather these City Guards together..."

As Maximus spoke, he smiled, "The current situation is extremely favorable to us. In such circumstances, Torquato, don’t you have the confidence to lead those Gaul brothers home by yourself?"

Torquato felt that the smile on Maximus’s face was silent sarcasm, and a surge of hot blood rose straight to his head. He shouted, "Maximus, even if I, Torquato, do not accompany you, I can still bring all the brothers back to Gaul!"

"In that case, we shall part ways here." Maximus immediately continued, speaking quickly: "After all, we have been comrades in battle. I will gift you ten Carriages, filled with bread and smoked meat, along with tents needed for camping..."

As he spoke, the Supply Camp brought over the Carriages directly.

At this point, Torquato fully understood that Maximus was well-prepared. Despite being angry, the inherent pride of the Gauls prevented him from behaving pettily. He spat a thick glob of saliva on the ground with a "pah" and turned his horse’s head back the way he came.

Not long after, he led his disorganized group of over 2,000 Soldiers past Maximus, holding his head high and without giving him another glance.

"Leader, it seems he resents you greatly," Quintus whispered.