Chapter 477: Burned

With the south gate fell, the two legions which had been stationed and in standby position quickly moved as they rapidly charged into the opening. In a matter of minutes, the situation in the south gate could only be described as one word: chaos.

Thrax, who came together with his best gladiators, immediately fell into rage as he saw the broken and collapsed walls scattered around the area.

"Julian!! Where are you!!" A thundering and ear-piercing shout sounded through the air as Thrax shouted with all his might. His shout was so loud that all the Romans and rebels alike stopped their fighting and turned their heads at him.

As the legendary Spartacus joined into the fray and started killing the Romans left and right, the precarious situation that the rebels found themselves in gradually came under control. The Roman legionnaires who saw how ferocious and brutal Thrax was subconsciously took a step back, as they feared getting torn apart by the beast-like figure.

"JULIAN!!" shouted Thrax once again, this time even louder. One could see the people around Thrax stumbling and losing their balance for a moment due to how loud the scream was.

He deeply understood and knew that the most dangerous factor in this battle was not the thousand legionnaires before him. Instead, it was just one man, whose name he shouted over and over. One of the elite class acolytes of Magic Academy and his best friends, Julian.

But although Thrax had mercilessly killed dozens of Romans using his spear, Julian was still nowhere to be seen. He didn't even catch the glimpse of the latter's figure amidst the battlefield, which either meant he wasn't here or he was still patient.

Thrax was about to shout again but quickly stopped himself when he noticed one of the gladiators was rushing to him.

"Spartacus! The wall on the East was also crumbling! The enemy has come charging in! What's your order?"

"Urrggg!!" Thrax growled in exasperation as he finally realized what Julian's plan actually was.

It was clear that Julian didn't want to clash head on with him, as he opted to walk around the walls and destroy them one by one as the other area was engulfed by the chaos subsequent to the walls collapsing. Thrax was extremely angry by the fact that the Roman refused to face him directly like a true warrior.

Therefore, he immediately decided to bring his gladiators to the east and confronted that bastard friend of his. Alas, it seemed fate was playing a joke with him as Thrax could see another of his men coming at him with a flustered look on his face.

"Spartacus! The Sicilians are trying to burn down our grains!"

"Those damn pirates!!" Thrax's annoyance, which had grown so big because of Julian's actions, grew even more and was about to explode. He was torn between the options of putting a stop to Julian's plan and saving the things that fed his tens of thousand men. After contemplating about the matter for a while, Thrax eventually decided to chase after the Sicilians.

In minutes, Thrax and his gladiators had put a stop on the pirates' atrocious acts of plundering. But by then, the Romans already made their way into the city through the broken walls. It was at this moment that Thrax realized that the battle was at its climax.

Crixus, Thrax's best gladiator and right-hand man, looked ready to charge ahead, head on blazing into the battlefield. However, he was quickly stopped by Thrax as he was hesitating. His thoughts travelled to the ten thousand rebels, those who were weak and could not protect themself.

If Thrax insisted they fight against the Romans, and in the end they somehow won the battle, he knew that win would be a pyrrhic one. Looking at the scorching flames and chaos happening around them, Thrax eventually made a decision.

"Grab the grains! We are retreating to the north!!" said Thrax as his gladiators began relaying the other rebels of his order.

Naturally, Thrax and the remaining gladiators who didn't go also made their way to the north as they needed to make sure the path was clear for their men to pass through.

As they headed north, Thrax could see the rows of Roman legionnaires before him, blocking the path to his objective. Though the other side greatly outnumbered his side, Thrax seemed to think nothing of them as he rapidly approached them like a wild animal.

[Immortal Gate - Stage 4]

[Battle power 78 (63)]

Layers of flame-like energy appeared on Thrax's body as the battle art technique enhanced his battle power. A few distance away from crashing onto the Roman legionnaires, Thrax brought the hand holding his spear back before thrusting it towards the enemies before him.

The air seemed to come into a standstill for a moment before a thunderous gale materialized and slammed onto the Roman legionnaires. The one unlucky legionnaire who received Thrax's attack head on as well as those behind him were thoroughly ripped apart, while those around him were blown away by the belligerent gale.

Thrax's figure collided with the Roman legionnaires straightforwardly, while the other gladiators also began opening their own battlefield. Most of them were fighting together, forming a group of two or three. However, there were also exceptions who charged ahead and fought the Romans alone.

In the meantime, Thrax was seen brandishing his spear around and killing the Roman legionnaires; slashing, stabbing, and striking everyone who was unlucky enough to be chosen by him.

However, the Romans also didn't stay idly and watch their brethrens brutally slaughtered like pigs. As it was clear they wouldn't be able to stop Thrax with direct confrontation, they opted to sacrifice some of them and lure him into their formation before eventually cutting his path of escape. 

And unexpectedly, their strategy came into fruition as Thrax found himself surrounded by nothing but Romans in every direction. Knowing that the moment had come, the Roman legionnaires rapidly closed into Thrax with the intent of burying him in this place.

However, Thrax wouldn't receive his title as the Spartacus if this much was enough to bring him down.

[Mighty Swing]

Lustrous glimmer of lights enveloped Thrax's spear as the battle art took effect. Thrax swung his spear at the Roman legionnaires and the latter's formation was immediately destroyed into pieces. Another dozen of fully-grown fully-armored men were flung away like a bunch of bottles being blown by a storm.

Then, when Thrax was about to send another attack of the previous magnitude, the spear in his hand shattered apart. It seemed the previous attack was too much for it to bear.

Even though he lost his weapon, Thrax didn't look flustered. He dashed at the closest legionnaires, snatched their javelins, and began using [Spear Throw] - instantly creating several human skewers with them.

As Thrax wreaked havoc among the Romans and attracted most of their attention, his gladiators also didn't remain still as they caused chaos and carnage in their respective areas.

In the end, the Roman legionnaires stationed on the north were broken through by Thrax's group and the rebels successfully escaped the city.

---

On the other side of the city, Julian was seen commanding the legionnaires under him. He was finally able to take the city from the rebels' control thanks to his ingenious tactic, but he didn't manage to capture the legendary leader of the rebels, the one known as the Spartacus.

Marcus Crassus was elated when he heard the first part of the report, but not so much when the latter part was relayed to him. This accomplishment of retaking Sinuessa City should bring an endless amount of pride, but the news of Spartacus managing to escape brought sour taste to the esteemed magister.

Even though he failed accomplishing the task Marcus Crassus gave to him, Julian's achievement of successfully retaking the city in the span of a few hours and very minimal casualties was still something that should be praised upon. This accomplishment also somehow washed away the Romans' shame of losing one of their cities to bunches of slaves.

In the commander's tent, Marcus Crassus was seen sitting with a piece of parchment in his hand.

"You have done a great job, Julian. However, it's unfortunate that you didn't manage to finish the rebels completely." said Marcus while writing on the parchment.

Julian was extremely calm when he heard his superior's words. One could clearly see the serene gaze existing in his eyes.

"With all my respects, magister. If you are willing to give me a few more days, I actually have something prepared already."

Julian's words managed to make the magister shift his attention away from the parchment and looked at him. Looking at the calm yet confident look on Julian's face, his smile crept onto Marcus Crassus' face.

"Now, that's the Julian I know."

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Written and Directed by Avans, Published by W.e.b.n.o.v.e.l,