Mediterranean Hegemon of Ancient Greece

Now almost forty and a mother of three, Cheiristoya's skin is not as firm and elastic as it was in her youth. Still, her skin remained white and smooth, and she maintained her figure well.

Davos could even smell the faint scent of roses emanating from her body, which was enchanting. He knew Cheiristoya had taken lessons from the Egyptians recently, mixing a little milk and sprinkling rose petals into the hot water before each bath, and now produced a noticeable effect.

“Uh…first, I'll talk about the undergarment on the chest…” Davos gulped and stretched out his hands, forming a bowl shape and gently cupping Cheiristoya's plump and soft chest and said, “…first, we would make a cloth cover in the shape of my hand from fabric depending on the size of each woman's chest…which would extend under the armpits and behind the shoulders, then tie it around the back with a thin clasp…” Davos said as he ran his fingers gently over Cheiristoya's skin.

Although the tingling itch made Cheiristoya smile, she tried to concentrate on listening.

Davos also controlled the slowly rising desire in his heart as he gulped again and put his hand between Cheiristoya's legs.

Cheiristoya couldn't help but shiver slightly, but then she heard Davos say quietly, “…and the undergarment of the lower body…” Davos' fingers circle from the front to the hip, drawing the shape of a panty in that mysterious forbidden area…

Cheiristoya's eyes glittered with wisdom, forgetting for the moment the searing heat of lust within her as she said excitedly, “This is truly a divine gift from Aphrodite to us women! I can't wait to make them all and show them off to my friends at my banquet, and I'm sure they'll soon be all the rage in the kingdom!…”

Davos praised Cheiristoya's keen business sense that she honed for years, and these noble ladies can easily become the kingdom's benchmark of fashion.

He added, “You can try modifying the shape, colour and fabric of these undergarments to meet the needs of different people…”

“I will have someone make a sample.” Cheiristoya's eyes wandered, and her cheeks flushed as she said delicately, “But Your Majesty, I will be the first to wear it and show it to you once the prototype is ready…”

Davos stared at her slender body, imagining the beautiful image of her in her undergarment and his heart filled with desire.

Just as he was about to lower himself onto his wife, Cheiristoya unexpectedly stretched out her slender white arms and pulled him towards the bed. She then murmured in his ear, “Your Majesty, I will serve you well tonight for giving me such a wonderful idea….”

. . . . . . . . . . . . .

After receiving the appointment and Davos' instructions and warning, Alexius rushed to the Ministry of Military and reappointed Umaseus as his adjutant.

And due to the situation's urgency, he didn't even return home to say goodbye, nor did his colleagues come to see him off. Only his son-in-law, Sthephilos, rushed to the port of Thurii to see him off on hearing the news, but Alexius was already on board the ship bound for the great port of Taranto.

An hour or so later, the fast sailing ship docked at the military port of Taranto. This military port served as the base for the main body of Theonia's First Fleet and was usually a bustling and perfectly prosperous little town. However, the start of the war in Sicily caused the fleet to set out, leaving the place a little deserted.

But Alexius didn’t have any intention of caring about them, so after taking two war horses at the military port with the authorisation of the Ministry of the Military, he and Umaseus galloped east towards Brindisi, their destination being the base of the Fourth Cavalry Legion.

Since the Fourth Cavalry Legion soldiers were from the Peuceti and the Messapi, they had to build the base in the city of Brindisi, which was between these two regions, as it was convenient for the soldiers to come here to train in peacetime. At the same time, the presence of the Cavalry Legion was beneficial for the defence of the military city of Brindisi.

Alexius finally reached Brindisi that afternoon.

Brindisi is the only city in the Kingdom of Theonia designated as a military port, which means that the whole city serves around the military port. Its population consists mainly of sailors of the Fourth Fleet and their families and, to a lesser extent, the soldiers of the Fourth Cavalry Legion and their families. Brindisi also has a Praetor, but he's not a statesman. Instead, he is a mid-ranking praetor appointed by the Senate who must first consult with the Navarch of the Fourth Fleet and the Legatus of the Fourth Cavalry on important or difficult matters regarding Brindisi.

The port is an excellent deep-water port with a vast area that can accommodate thousands of ships simultaneously. Although Davos classified it as a military port for his strategic considerations, the port of Brindisi only received small support from the kingdom since the strategic centre of the kingdom now lies to the north and south. The Fourth Fleet is, therefore, the weakest of the four fleets of Theonia, with a total of one hundred ships, of which only sixty are triremes, and its main task was the daily patrolling of the Adriatic Sea and the fight against pirates. But even with Brindisi's small military port, it has everything it needs.

Alexius then headed straight to the base of the Fourth Cavalry Legion.

At the legatus' residence, Alexius met Phregulus, the legatus of the Fourth Legion, and Miltiades, the navarch of the Fourth Fleet, who had arrived long after receiving the report. Before Alexius arrived, the Ministry of Military had sent messengers to hastily inform the legatus and navarch in the east of the kingdom about Alexius' appointment, so both were respectful when they saw Alexius.

“Commander Alexius!” Both Miltiades and Phregulus stood up and saluted.

After Alexius saluted back, he said without hesitation, “Legatus Phregulus, we have an urgent military situation. Have you assembled your Cavalry Legion?!”

Phregulus, formerly known as Phregu, was a Messapian. During the great battle against the Messapi-Peuceti alliance led by Davos ten years ago, Phregulus was a Messapian cavalryman who caused considerable trouble for the Theonian army. But after Theonia conquered the Messapi region, he was the first to lead his tribe in answering the call to form the Fourth Cavalry Legion. And because of his prestige, the Peucetians and Messapians enthusiastically signed up and soon filled the cavalry legion to such an extent that there was even a surplus of soldiers, attracting the attention of the Ministry of Military and Davos. As a result, Phregu – a foreigner who had just joined the Theonian army and had just donned the Theonian army's uniform – was appointed senior centurion of the Fourth Cavalry Legion. A few years later, he took command of the Fourth Cavalry with an unprecedented speed of promotion in the Theonian army.

On the one hand, having a Messapian in command was better since the Fourth Cavalry was composed entirely of Messapians and Peucetians. On the other hand, he was the ideal figure to demonstrate to the Messapians and Peucetians the equality of all races in the Kingdom of Theonia.

Davos even personally announced Phregu's appointment and welcomed him to the palace with great expectations.

And Phregu did not betray Davos' trust. Soon after returning to Brindisi, he changed his name to Phregulus, a name similar to the Greeks, to show his loyalty to the kingdom.

“They have already assembled and waiting for your order!” Phregulus replied confidently. As soon as he received reports of the Samnite invasion, he immediately began to gather his cavalry, as the previous plans of the Ministry of Military had the Tenth Legion and the Fourth Cavalry Legion stationed in Peuceti to help defend the Dauni region.

“Excellent!” Alexius praised and then ordered, “Legatus Phregulus, gather your cavalry immediately and prepare to move north. Also, send your men to the Rudiae base to deliver my orders to Legatus Tagetinos.”

With that, Alexius handed Phregu the letter of order he had written before his departure, instructing Tagetinos to gather the Ninth Legion and move north while gathering the reserves to station the base and secure the Messapi region.

But before Phregulus could leave, Miltiades immediately asked, “Commander, what would be the mission of our Fourth Fleet?”

Two years ago, Alexius formed a close relationship with Miltiades, as he had to work closely with the Fourth Fleet when he led his army to attack Dauni. So he laughed and said, “There's no need for you to worry so much; the war has only just begun.”

“How can I not worry?! The First and Second Fleets are already fighting the Carthaginians in the south, while the Third Fleet is assisting the First Legion in the north. So our Fourth Fleet can't just do nothing!” said Miltiades anxiously.

“Your Fourth Fleet won't remain a spectator,” Alexius said with a smile and handed him the Ministry of Military's order.

Miltiades read it and looked surprised, “The Ministry of Military wants our Fourth Fleet to patrol the entire coast from Messapi to Frentani, intercept any suspicious ships and sink them if necessary!… Originally, I thought we would only be responsible for transporting supplies and troops and protecting the coast in the Dauni area… so I never thought that the Ministry of Military would give the Fourth Fleet control over such a long stretch of coastline!”

“Isn't that what you want? Our Theonia does not only have the Samnites as an enemy, so if I take the Ninth and Tenth Legions with me and leave the Messapi and Peuceti regions empty, I will have to rely on your Fourth Fleet for maritime security!” Alexius said seriously.