The Rise Of An Empire In Ancient Europe-Chapter 28 - Taking Charge for the First Time

"To reunite the brothers in our camp, we first need to understand the current situation of the camp. So, I ask everyone present to introduce the personnel and supplies under your command," Juleios said as he looked around.

There was a brief silence in the tent before Antonios spoke first, followed by Kapsos, then Alexis... The logistics camp was the most complex, and Mersis spoke the longest, prompting Juleios to remind him to keep it brief.

Juleios listened and took notes. After hearing everyone's reports, he had a general understanding of the Menon camp's situation. After organizing his thoughts, he said, "According to your reports, we have ten heavy infantry squads, with a total of 1,094 men. The medical camp has three doctors, six female slaves, and two camels. Among the doctors, only Herpus is skilled in trauma treatment; the other two cannot yet independently treat wounded soldiers. The logistics camp currently has 50 guards and 273 slaves, including 198 female slaves and 75 male slaves. We have 29 packhorses, 18 pack oxen, 56 sheep, 37 chickens and ducks, and 580 bags of wheat flour. The remaining funds for supplies include one Taranto silver coin, 30 minas, and five drachmas. This is all we have."

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Juleios put down the papyrus scroll in his hand and asked the crowd, "Does anyone see any omissions?"

The officers were a bit surprised. Among mercenaries, including the officers, most were uneducated and incapable of independently calculating and summarizing figures.

Mersis clapped enthusiastically, exclaiming, "Juleios, you're amazing! Such quick math skills! Much better than mine!"

Beside him, Antonios, remembering that Juleios was illiterate, sneaked a glance at the papyrus scroll. He found it covered with strange symbols and characters, and couldn't help but feel a chill run through his heart.

The officers exchanged glances, their recognition of Juleios' abilities increasing slightly.

"Since there are no objections, shortly, Philesius and I will attend the mercenary leaders' military meeting. All squad leaders, please notify your men to inspect their weapons and equipment and prepare for battle. In the afternoon, leave the 10th Heavy Infantry Squad to guard the camp, and have the other squads form ranks and enter the general assembly venue in order. You must maintain order and prevent any unrest. Have a plan."

Herpus often consulted Juleios on medical issues, such as why blades for wound debridement should be heated over a fire and why a cloth soaked in cool water should be placed on the foreheads of patients with fever. Juleios' answers were always both peculiar and thought-provoking, leading Herpus to treat Juleios as a mentor and speak to him with utmost respect. "Rest assured, I'll do my best to prepare. If there's any difficulty, I will definitely come to you for help!"

"You are like our Asclepius, the god of medicine in Greek mythology and son of Apollo. Of course, we'll do everything we can to assist! If you have medical questions, I can discuss them with you; if you lack labor, the squad leaders can help; if you're short on supplies, you can ask Mersis."

Everyone expressed their willingness to assist the medical camp.

Mersis proactively reported to Juleios, "Leader, this morning I had the slaves slaughter some sheep and make a lot of smoked sausages. When I return, I'll slaughter the remaining sheep, chickens, ducks, and surplus cattle to make more sausages for the march. What do you think?"

"Mersis, you're our chief steward! We all trust you with food supplies, don't we?" Juleios said half-jokingly.

"Indeed! Mersis manages the logistics camp very well!" Antonios agreed.

"Just a bit pricey!" Epitenis joked loudly.

"Even if I gave it to you for free, you'd still be anxious about using it! You only care about boys!" Mersis retorted instantly.

"Hahaha..." The crowd roared with laughter, and the atmosphere in the tent lightened considerably.

"Philesius, do you have anything to add?" Juleios finally asked his deputy.

Facing a leader much younger than himself, Philesius still felt a bit uneasy. He coughed lightly twice and then said, "I have two concerns I hope the leader will prioritize. First, since we are about to go to war with Persia, should we change our marching route?"

"Philesius is right; we can't stay as the rear guard anymore!"

"Rest assured, I will bring this up at the mercenary leaders' meeting and argue for it. As for the marching route, I believe it will be decided quickly at the meeting, as it's the most urgent matter!" Juleios' confident words left the officers half-convinced.

After the meeting, as soon as they left the tent, the First Light Infantry Squad Leader, Epitenis, couldn't help but exclaim, "I can't believe this young man is leading for the first time!"

"Don't let his age fool you. He's meticulous, organized, and even quite authoritative. Not one of us experienced veterans stood up to oppose or refute him!" another Light Infantry Squad Leader, Tsipitas, said admiringly.

"I think this young man is good! At least the meeting had a great atmosphere, unlike Menon, who's like a viper—every meeting ends with us all getting scolded!" laughed Lysimachus, a Heavy Infantry Squad Leader.

"If he can perform as well on the battlefield, he'll truly be qualified as a leader!" another Heavy Infantry Squad Leader, Amyntas, reminded everyone.

"Don't worry. This new leader may be young, but he's clever. With Philesius assisting him, there won't be any major issues," Heavy Infantry Squad Leader Alexis reassured.

"As long as we're the ones fighting, what's there to fear? Juleios just needs to use his 'divine favor' to reduce our casualties so we can return home safely!" Tsipitas said loudly, and everyone echoed his sentiment.

Walking behind them, Kapsos said to Antonios with relief, "It seems Juleios has already gained initial recognition from the others."

Antonios, still immersed in the scenes from the meeting, murmured, "He still needs to prove himself in battle, but I have confidence in him! He'll become an outstanding mercenary leader!"

Standing at the entrance of the tent, Juleios calmly watched everyone leave. At this moment, he wasn't pondering the effects of his debut as a leader but rather considering the issues of military management.

The military system of Greek mercenaries was similar to that of Greek city-states: the lowest rank was squad leader, commanding ten men; next were platoon leaders, commanding 100 to 120 men; sometimes there were sub-platoon leaders, commanding about 50 men; above them were company commanders, commanding around 1,000 men; and finally, generals, whose soldier count depended on their city-state's ability to field troops. Technically, Juleios' rank should be that of a company commander. However, since a mercenary unit with over a thousand soldiers could undertake independent combat missions, it was barely acceptable to consider him a general.

In his previous life, Juleios graduated from a political and legal university but had studied management. He knew that the most effective number of people for a leader to directly manage was seven. Yet now, with fourteen squad leaders attending a single military meeting, transmitting an order during a major battle would inevitably cause delays and sluggish action. If he could reorganize these squads... Juleios knew he could only think about this for now. After all, he had just become a leader. Reforming the military system rashly might provoke resentment among the officers. Suppressing this thought, he turned to Mersis, who remained in the tent, and said, "Now that they've all left, what do you have to say?"