Rome must fall.

Chapter 299 Knicks's Methods
At this time, someone asked loudly: "I would like to ask, if we do not agree to join the Nix, you will send us... to the Aldi people as slaves, right?"

The speaker was a young man with a disabled right leg. He stiffened his neck, held his head high, and looked ready to call for justice, but his voice was trembling slightly.

"Last year, we, the Nix, handed over the captives to the Aldi people because we had just arrived here and had no more food to feed them. We had no choice but to do so. Of course, we won't do that now."

A new recruit from Segestica who was once a prisoner of Nix and had experienced what the other party said was defending Nix's actions. It was hard not to understand why Nix did that. However, Nicokus spoke with an extremely serious attitude. This was not only because he wanted to continue to make meritorious deeds, but also because he really wanted to help these tribesmen and prevent them from making wrong choices.

"Let's first take a look at how we treated prisoners in the past. I heard from the elders that after we defeated the Skodish people more than 10 years ago, we killed all the young and strong Skodish men, and the others became slaves, working for us day and night. A few years ago, after we defeated the Aldi people, we killed all the captured Aldi warriors... This is how we treat prisoners, but Nix will not do that!
If you are unwilling to join the Nix Tribe, then you will become foreign vassal citizens of the Nix Tribe under the control of the Nix soldiers. The tribe will feed you and let you sleep well. As long as you do not resist or violate the law, your life will be protected. However, you must obey the arrangements of the tribe and work well.

You may say, "Isn't this just slavery?" Think about the slaves in your family, the lives of foreign vassals are much better than theirs! Because the Nix tribe has made laws specifically for foreign vassals to protect their rights!
Moreover, you will not always be foreign auxiliary citizens. Once you have thought it through and are willing to join the Knyx tribe, you can apply to the person who governs you. The Knyx tribe will give some places to foreign auxiliary citizens every once in a while. Those who work the hardest and perform the best can successfully become reserve members of the Knyx.

However, I advise you to join the Nix tribe from the beginning, rather than being forced to become a foreign vassal and then joining after you regret it. By then, your property and food will have been confiscated by the tribe. Although the tribe will compensate you after you become a reserve member, you are still at a disadvantage, right?

Moreover, those who join the tribe early can become official members several months, even half a year or a year earlier than others, and can get more income from the land. Compared with them, aren’t you at a greater disadvantage! ..."

As Nicocus was speaking, he suddenly raised his voice: "I have said so much to you because I hope you can understand the goodwill of the Knicks Tribe towards you. Joining the Knicks Tribe is your best choice! From now on, we will give you three days to go back and think about it carefully!
If you have thought it through and are willing to join the Nix tribe, please come to the main house here to find us. Someone will register you, and then take you to the temple to take an oath after a while, and then you will be allocated land.

After three days, those who have not joined the Nix Tribe will automatically become foreign auxiliaries. Then the army will come and take those who have become foreign auxiliaries to other places... Did you understand? ! Attention! Now you only have three days to join the Nix Tribe!"

As soon as Nicocus finished speaking, some women in the square shouted: "I want to join the Nix tribe!... I want to join too!... Our whole family must join!..."

"Quiet! Everyone, please be quiet!" Nicocus was surprised to see so much enthusiasm in the square, but he had to remind them loudly: "The tribe's special person in charge of registering the tribesmen has not arrived yet, so don't rush to sign up!"

"When can we sign up?!" some women asked anxiously.

"Tomorrow! Just wait until tomorrow, and you can come to the main house to sign up to join the Nix tribe!"

Nicocus wiped the sweat from his forehead with his hand. He did not breathe a sigh of relief for stopping the women's impulse. Instead, he took a deep breath and suppressed the noise that was about to arise in the square with a louder voice: "Next, we have another important thing to announce!"

When the people of Segestica were attracted by Nicocus' words and their eyes were focused on him again, they saw a group of Nyx soldiers behind him escorting two people out of the main house.

When the two men were taken to the haystack, the people were shocked: because these two were the only two remaining chiefs in the tribe. At this moment, they had rags stuffed in their mouths, their hands were tied behind their backs, they were half-bent over, and stood in front of everyone with a look of horror on their faces.

At this time, Nicocus said loudly and righteously: "We learned that although these two men are your clan leaders, they did not do a good job for the people, but often oppressed the people, so we arrested them and handed them over to everyone for trial. If they have indeed committed a serious crime, we will punish them according to the mistakes they have made! Now, the people who have been bullied by them can speak out their crimes loudly!"

The people were shocked by the Nix's move. They looked at each other in disbelief: Did I hear it right? The Nix is ​​going to punish the patriarch for us?! The square fell silent again.

Nicocus shouted again: "No one came out to say it?! Did we make a mistake?! These two are good clan leaders?! They often help their subordinates?! When the harvest is poor, they can greatly reduce the grain handed over by the tribesmen, and they can handle disputes fairly and justly. When the tribesmen are injured, they can help invite priests--"

"Let me tell you!" With a hoarse voice, an old man with a cane walked towards Nicokus.

"Old man, if you have any grievances, just tell us! We will take care of it for you!" Staggs said loudly in stiff Illyrian. He had followed Maximus in Apulia and participated in many public trials of farm managers and guards, so he had some experience.

Staggs' timely promise gave the old man greater courage. He raised his cane and pointed it at one of the chiefs: "I want to expose him, my chief Egalos!
More than 20 years ago... I can't remember the exact year, but it was when the old chief was still alive, but he was in poor health at the time, and the successor to the position of chief was supposed to be Aescus, the elder brother of Egalos. But on the night after the harvest celebration of that year, it was Aescus who led several members of our tribe to guard the sacred stone, and my eldest brother was one of them.

But the next morning, someone found urine stains on the holy stone! The holy stone was desecrated, which was a big deal. The chief was furious and personally investigated the matter. Of course, Aescus and my eldest brother and several other tribesmen who were guarding the holy stone that night were the first to be questioned. My brother... and several other people pointed out that Aescus had urinated in a daze that night, and the place where he stood seemed to be near the holy stone...

So, the chief and other clan leaders unanimously decided that it was Aescys who had committed the stupid act. Although the old clan leader begged hard, the priest Skodischi who came from Savatoi—oh, the main village now—convicted Aescys of blasphemy. The next day, Aescys was stoned to death by the clan members, and the old clan leader died soon due to excessive grief..."

The old man sighed heavily, and sadness about the past appeared on his aged face.

The people behind him also began to whisper. The "sacred stone desecration incident" was a major event in their tribe's history. Almost everyone knew that the old man was talking about it at this time. Could it be related to the chieftain Egalos? But how could it be possible? ! The chief, the chiefs of each tribe, and the priests made a unanimous decision. There was no doubt that Aescus was wrong!
"...Then Aescus became our patriarch!" The old man spoke again, emphasizing his tone: "And my brother started to become a little abnormal since then. He was often distracted when doing things or talking, as if he had lost his soul. He also often had trouble sleeping. In less than two months, he became very haggard.

One night he came to me and confessed to me, he said... he said... he said that it was not Aescys who desecrated the sacred stone that night, but him - my patriarch Egalos! "

The people were in an uproar. The imprisoned Egalos opened his eyes wide and shook his head desperately, but was slapped hard in the face by the Nyx soldier behind him, and was so scared that he dared not move.

"...My brother said, 'Egalos once promised them that as long as they identified Aescys, he would give them many benefits after he became the patriarch...'. My brother and his men agreed to Egalos out of greed, causing Aescys to die innocently!
But after my brother saw the tragic death of Aescys, he dreamed of Aescys every night. He felt very uneasy and thought that the gods were punishing him... So I advised him to confess his crime to the leader, and he hesitated for a long time and finally agreed.

But the next day, Egalos sent my brother to deliver the goods to a Skodishchi noble named Mangini in the city of Savatoi, and then my brother——"

The old man stared at Egalos with eyes full of hatred and said through gritted teeth, "He was beaten to death by Mangini's men. The crime was stealing! In the following three years, I noticed that the other three people who were with my brother that night were killed one after another by the Scodischi for various reasons. Although the Scodischi regarded us as slaves and often tortured and killed our people at that time, I found that their deaths were all related to Mangini.

Egalos had a close relationship with Mangini. He would regularly deliver food, livestock and other goods to Mangini until we rose up against the Scodischi. So I think it was Egalos who asked Mangini to kill my brother and the others in order to cover up his crime of 'desecrating the Holy Stone and blaming it on Aescys'!"

(End of this chapter)