Chapter 176: Hidden Title (At the End)
Chapter 176: Hidden Title (At the End)
Theodorus and Achillas were speechless.
They had not fully grasped the situation yet.
No one could stop Marcus, who was approaching with heavily armed soldiers from the harbor.
The armies of Cleopatra and Theodorus, who had been confronting each other, lowered their weapons in a state of helplessness.
“Marcus Mesopotamius…”
Someone muttered, and the soldiers’ morale plummeted.
Even those who did not know Marcus’s face knew his name well.
The Roman army, clad in plate armor, completely overwhelmed the Egyptian army with their momentum, even though they were few in number.
Theodorus’s face turned pale as he faced an unexpected situation.
He could not understand why the person he believed was staying in Antioch had come with only a small force.
But he did not despair or give up.
He thought that it might be advantageous for them, if not disadvantageous.
‘Arsinoe is Marcus’s woman. Then, no matter how objectively Marcus tries to resolve the situation, his heart will lean toward Arsinoe.’
He regained his composure and saw some soldiers trying to resist the Roman army reflexively.
“Everyone! Stop!”
The soldiers who were about to aim their weapons hesitated at Theodorus’s shout.
Cleopatra’s army also did not make any response to the approaching Roman army.
Theodorus whispered to Achillas in a low voice.
“Send a soldier to bring Arsinoe. It would be better for her to talk than us.”
“Understood.”
Achillas nodded, and a soldier hurriedly mounted a horse and disappeared.
Theodorus decided to stall for time until Arsinoe arrived and cautiously approached Marcus.
“Great governor of Rome, I sincerely welcome your visit to Alexandria. If you had given me a notice beforehand, I would have prepared a grand welcome ceremony for you. Please forgive me for greeting you in this manner.”
“I don’t care about the welcome ceremony or anything like that.”
There was no emotion in Marcus’s voice.
Theodorus bowed his head repeatedly, trying to please Marcus somehow.
This scene was seen by everyone, not only by the soldiers on both sides, but also by the citizens who gathered in groups to check the situation after the battle stopped.
It was humiliating, but Theodorus had no choice.
In fact, Cleopatra’s army was not much different.
Cleopatra, who had pushed aside her soldiers and stepped forward herself, did not bow her waist in front of Marcus, but showed him respect politely.
“It’s been a long time.”
“Yes. I apologize for not being able to attend your funeral and coronation ceremonies. There were too many problems to deal with. I congratulate you sincerely on becoming the pharaoh of Egypt, even though it’s late.”
“Thank you. I feel more relieved to hear your congratulations, governor.”
Cleopatra smiled gracefully and winked at him.
Her friendly appearance made the soldiers and citizens murmur louder.
Theodorus sensed that something was going wrong and stepped forward and shouted.
“Governor, I have something to say about this matter. There is a traitor in Alexandria who has sown the seeds of division and plunged the city into chaos.”
“I know that. That’s why I came here myself to deal with it.”
“We are servants who serve Arsinoe. She will be here soon and explain everything to you in detail. Cleopatra is a woman full of lies. You should not listen to her words.”
Marcus did not answer and turned his gaze.
He saw Arsinoe coming from afar.
Theodorus rushed to her and whispered.
“Pharaoh, judging by the situation, Cleopatra seems to have said something to Governor Marcus. You have to turn this around, Pharaoh.”
“Leave it to me.”
Arsinoe stepped forward into Marcus’s arms as if she was being pushed by him, and sobbed pitifully.
“Why did you come so late?”
Tears welled up in her eyes.
It was an act that damaged the dignity of the pharaoh, but Theodorus thought it was better this way.
There was no man who could maintain his rationality in front of his lover’s tears.
No matter what lies Cleopatra had told him, Arsinoe’s tears would be enough to refute them.
But the words that came out of Arsinoe’s mouth were completely opposite to Theodorus’s expectations.
“Do you know how much shame and humiliation I suffered? Until just now, I was being held by those wicked men and threatened that they would disgrace me if I did not follow their words.”
“······?”
Theodorus could not understand Arsinoe’s words for a moment and stood still.
Achillas also looked back reflexively, as if trying to find out who had threatened Arsinoe.
Of course, behind them, there were only soldiers who were standing with their eyes wide open in bewilderment.
And in the eyes of the soldiers who had sworn allegiance to Achillas until a moment ago, there was a deep distrust and horror.
Wasn’t it an unimaginable treason to kidnap the pharaoh and threaten her to follow their will?
Theodorus, who realized too late that Arsinoe’s words were pointing at them, shouted sharply.
“What are you talking about! Wasn’t it you who agreed to drive out Cleopatra? You followed us willingly, and now why are you lying all of a sudden!”
“They threatened me endlessly that if I didn’t say things like that, they would disgrace my body and not guarantee my life. I only called Theodorus to the palace to see if there was any way to mediate between the nobles and Cleopatra, but they kidnapped me and forced me…”
Arsinoe stopped there and buried her face in Marcus’s chest, sobbing.
The citizens who watched this naturally cursed.
In fact, there were many awkward points in Arsinoe’s actions so far.
Unlike Cleopatra, who claimed her legitimacy loudly, she had rarely appeared in front of the public.
Even in situations where she had to give a speech, she mostly passed them over with lukewarm words that did not show much enthusiasm.
In such a situation, this revelation was explosive, and Arsinoe’s words gained more credibility.
To be honest, her words were a bit strange if one looked at them calmly, but such minor problems had no effect in front of the pharaoh’s tears.
Arsinoe was the purest bloodline of the Ptolemaic dynasty, and more than anything, she was popular among the citizens for her beautiful appearance.
It was natural that the citizens’ eyes turned upside down when they heard that she had been kidnapped and threatened by such a pharaoh.
Marcus, who had grasped the whole situation, glanced at Octavius behind Cleopatra.
‘That’s certainly an effective method… but it’s too radical.’
But the die had already been cast, so he had to press on before the other side could respond.
Marcus gently embraced Arsinoe’s shoulder and looked around the citizens.
“Dear citizens of Alexandria. I have made a promise with the former pharaoh that I will not spare any effort for the safety of Egypt. And I know that my right is mentioned in his will.
I never intended to put any pressure on the pharaohs! I believed that my role was to help them grow safely and lead Egypt well. I am the patron of the pharaohs and I will not ignore this unfortunate situation that has happened now.”
“So this is slander! We fell into a trap! Cleopatra and Arsinoe are plotting to make Egypt their own! Citizens, don’t be fooled! Those wicked two queens are conspiring with each other to hand over this country to Rome! They are not pharaohs, but traitors who are obsessed with men!”
Marcus easily refuted this claim.
“That’s absurd slander. You have completely lost your credibility with that claim. Cleopatra and Arsinoe are indeed close to me.
But they are working harder than any Ptolemy for the prosperity of Egypt. Do you know why the burden of food that Alexandria provides to Rome has decreased? It’s because they have been asking and negotiating with me since they were still princesses.”
The citizens’ eyes widened at this unknown fact.
It was well known that the pharaohs were close to the governor of Rome, but no one had heard that they had worked so hard for Egypt since they were princesses.
It was natural that no one knew.
This was a lie that Marcus made up on the spot.
But it was effective because it was a consistent lie.
Marcus added a final blow.
“The reason I came here was not only to resolve the chaos in Alexandria, but also to tell you a very important fact. This is also one of the achievements that you should pay homage to your pharaohs. Yes! I am glad that I was able to return Cyprus to Egypt’s hands.”
Cyprus was originally Egypt’s territory, but Clodius had almost forcibly annexed it to Rome.
Because of this, Auletes was driven out of his throne by angry citizens.
Marcus had already completed all the procedures to return Cyprus to Egypt.
In fact, even if he returned Cyprus to Egypt, it did not mean that Cyprus would get out of Rome’s shadow.
Egypt, which would own Cyprus, was already Marcus’s territory.
The reason why Rome coveted Cyprus was because of the countless goods and gold and silver treasures that were stored there.
They had already been recovered to Rome’s treasury, and there was not a single coin left.
From Rome’s point of view, it was no loss to return the land as a gesture of goodwill after stripping off all the contents.
But for Egypt, it was regaining the territory that had been forcibly taken away.
They could not be unhappy.
Their loyalty to Cleopatra and Arsinoe, who had led this, also increased.
It was clear that the two were not handing over Egypt to Rome, but coaxing Marcus to get various benefits.
The citizens cheered at Marcus’s announcement and praised the pharaohs and his name loudly.
The trend had already tilted.
The ones who stopped Theodorus and Achillas from retreating were none other than the soldiers who had followed them until now.
“You stupid fools! How can you be deceived by such a lie and betray your master!”
“Everything is over. Just admit it and pay for your sins.”
“I don’t know about anything else, but kidnapping and threatening the Pharaoh is an unforgivable crime. I have fought for Lady Arsinoe with my life until now.”
“You think you’ll be safe if you surrender here, you fools!”
Some of the nobles and soldiers who reacted to Theodore’s words tried to resist, but it ended in vain.
The Roman infantrymen in plate armor easily subdued the rebellious soldiers by swinging their weapons.
It was not even a proper battle.
The nobles only proved with their own bodies that the Roman army’s combat power was incomparable to that of Egypt.
Theodore, Achillas, and the Macedonian nobles were eventually captured without anyone escaping.
There was no need to hold a formal trial.
Marcus lined up the nobles in front of the harbor square and executed them on the spot.
The citizens cheered at the sight of the Roman governor judging his own countrymen.
No one protested this absurd scene at first glance.
Marcus’s solemn voice echoed through the square.
“I, Marcus Licinius Crassus, will pass judgment on behalf of the Pharaoh, who is the incarnation of Horus and the descendant of the great Amun-Ra. The traitor Theodore and the Macedonian nobles have committed an unforgivable crime. First, they undermined and insulted the Pharaoh’s authority to maintain their own power. Second, they tried to justify their rebellion by doing so, and even kidnapped Pharaoh Arsinoe by force, threatened her life, and attempted to defile her sacred body.”
“That’s a lie!”
No one listened to Theodore’s desperate scream.
Rather, the more the nobles defended themselves, the colder the eyes that flew at them were.
Marcus continued to denounce the Macedonian nobles with various charges.
While the long list of crimes was being read out, the citizens kept shouting for death.
Marcus granted the citizens’ wishes.
“The crime of trying to rape the Pharaoh, who is no one else. This alone is enough to deserve the death penalty. Therefore, I declare in the name of the great Pharaoh. The rebels will be executed and their property will be confiscated by the state. The soldiers who participated in the rebellion will not be held accountable as they were only deceived by a wicked scheme.”
The soldiers who had participated in the rebellion cheered and applauded.
They were grateful for the merciful decision of the Pharaoh and Marcus, who had resolved this chaos.
The citizens were happy that the tedious civil war had finally ended and danced.
The atmosphere of the city that had been chaotic quickly calmed down.
Most of the public buildings that had been destroyed were quickly restored.
Cleopatra actively helped the citizens who had suffered from the prolonged street battles.
And officially, a formal treaty was signed in front of many citizens at a meeting square, returning Cyprus to Egypt.
Now there was no one who opposed Cleopatra and Arsinoe.
The citizens also decided to trust and follow whatever the two Pharaohs did.
Arsinoe stuck close to Marcus’s side while Cleopatra was handling things before and after, and didn’t seem to want to let go.
“Marcus, how about staying in Egypt for a while? I’ve prepared a ship for you. Let’s cruise along the Nile and enjoy Egypt’s beautiful scenery. You’ve worked so hard until now, so you can rest a little.”
“I wish I could do that, but unfortunately I don’t have time for that.”
Marcus smiled bitterly and scratched his head.
The reason he quickly stabilized Egypt was strictly speaking only a preparation for what he had to do next.
He didn’t know how he would be tripped up in the situation of a great upheaval that he would face in front of him if his back wasn’t stable.
Marcus’s gaze naturally turned to where his next destination, Rome, was located.
“Call Sextus. We have to leave for Rome right away.”