At the Pinewood Arena, the audience was already crowded, and the excited people were eagerly looking forward to the start of the race preliminaries. Players from various city-states are entering the arena one after another, in exchange for bursts of cheers from the spectators on the sidelines.

However, the start of the game was delayed because the referee was still arguing with some people at the entrance. The crowd began to clamor with dissatisfaction, and the Corinthian officials responsible for maintaining order in the arena hurried to the entrance and asked the referee, "What happened?" Why don't you start the game right away?! ”

"You see, this guy said he was a runner in this race and he got the number. But he wasn't a Greek! ”

The Corinthian officer looked in the direction of the referee's finger: the athlete had long brown shawl hair, deep sunken eye sockets, a high nose bridge, thick lips, a slender figure, strong muscles, and although his naked body was covered in olive oil, the fairness of his skin could still be seen...... The physiognomy is clearly not that of an orthodox Greek.

The official was stunned: "How could the priests of the temple approve him to participate?!" ”

"I think it must have been the officials of his city-state who helped him to register his name, and the priests didn't know that he was a foreigner." The referee replied.

The official said angrily: "Which city-state is it?" Don't you know the rules for registration for the Isthmus Games?! ”

"Dionia! We are from Dionia! Adriankos squeezed over and loudly argued: "Although Lizalu is from Lucania, he is a citizen of Dionia, and according to the rules of the Isthmian Games, as long as you are a citizen of a Greek city-state, you can participate, and we meet the requirements!" ”

Dionia?! The official felt that the name was a bit impressive, but he couldn't remember where it was, and it wasn't a big or powerful state, so he said with a straight face: "Only Greeks can participate in the games, which is a well-known thing, because no Greek city-state will give citizenship to a foreigner!" Don't stop here and delay the game! Get out of here, or I'll send someone to drive you out!" ”

Adrianks was speechless. Born poor, he grew up as a mercenary, never participated in a Greek Games, and did not know the rules. This time the Dionian Senate decided to send a team to participate, hoping that it would be best to have the Senate veterans as the team leader, in order to show the importance of the Isthmian Games, Adriankos actively signed up because he likes sports, and in addition to this aspect, he, a senator who can only fight and can't read a single word, can show his talents in the Senate There are too few places, so after serving as the head of the Dionian delegation, he went to Crotone many times to ask experienced athletes for advice, He also specially led the team to Corinth with the Crotone delegation. But now it seems that the Crotone people are clearly hiding their secrets, and their purpose is probably to see the Dioonians make a fool of themselves.

While Adrianx was remorseful, Lizaru shouted, "The Archon of our Alliance, Lord Davers, has said, 'All citizens of the Alliance should have the same rights, regardless of race!'" So in Dionia, Greeks, Lucanians, Thracians can play rugby together! ”

The Corinthian official was stunned by his strange Greek pronunciation, then laughed angrily, raised his head, and shouted to the auditorium above the arena, "Audience, is this alien right?!" ”

The audience, who had been waiting impatiently, rushed to the lowest floor of the auditorium and shouted: "What a ridiculous fallacy! Whoever can say these words can only be the leader of your barbarians! ”

"Get out of the arena, barbarian! Go back to the city-state that gives you citizenship and allows you to compete! I guess it must be a dirty and horrible place! ”

"Get out, barbarian! Do not defile the sacred place of our Greeks! ”

……

Mockery and curses struck Lizaru and Adriankos like swords.

Adriankos' face turned pale.

Lizaru was furious, he was a man who loved competition and never gave up. Ever since he became a citizen of Dionya and heard about the four major games, he has been eager to compete with all the Greek runners, because he thinks that no one can run faster than him in running! When the news that Dionia was going to send athletes to participate in the Isthmus Games reached his ears, it was already a little late, he had only reported his name in a hurry, and he had finally arrived here, and he was not allowed to participate!

He looked at the lively arena unwillingly, suddenly yelled, and ran out.

"Hey, what are you going to do?!" The referee exclaimed.

"Catch him! Catch him!! The Corinthian officer shouted in a hurry.

Lizaru stretched his legs vigorously, waved his arms vigorously, roared like a wolf, and stepped barefoot on the soft earth, as light as the free mountain wind whistling in the field, he galloped with all his might, leaving the Corinthian officers and men who wanted to catch him far behind.

And the anxious shouts of Corinthian officials also alerted the athletes who were still waiting at the starting line, and they began to chase the unruly alien.

Far from being afraid, Lizaru was even more excited.

The audience in the audience was amazed to see that in the face of the encirclement and interception of the players, the alien man was as agile as a raccoon cat, and his pace was as fast as a cheetah, flashing them one by one......

The race turned into a chase and a catch, and instead of complaining, most spectators felt the thrill. Some of them actually stood up and cheered for the "lone heroes" on the field.

One of the best runners in Dionian rugby, Lizaru used skill and masterful dodging while maintaining his forward pace, one lap ...... Two laps... Three laps......

The cheers from the sidelines grew louder until Corinthian officials called in more people and blocked the space in the arena before hugging him.

Without saying a word, the panting Collins officer came up and punched Lizaru.

Lizaru struggled to break free, but there were so many people pressing on him that he could only glare angrily at the Corinthian officials.

"Stop! Stop! ......" Adrianx hurried over and grabbed the Corinthian official's raised fist again: "Quickly let go of our civet citizens, or I will protest to the Corinthian Council!" ”

"Protest?!" The Corinthian officer looked at him and sneered: "Arrest him for me too!" It is a great sin to destroy the sacred Isthmus Games! Lock it up first, let that weird city-state alliance of yours make reparations, and then come and claim it! ”

A group of people escorted Lizaru and Adriankos to the outside of the field.

At this time, Lizaru struggled and shouted loudly: "I, Lizaru, a citizen of Dionia, am the champion of the Isthmus Games!! ”

…………………………

Order was restored in the arena and the game resumed, but the spectators on the sidelines were still talking about the farce they had just played.

"That guy just now was indeed running very fast, but it's a pity that he was a barbarian, otherwise he would have really won the championship!"

"What race is he? He actually said that he was a citizen of a Greek city-state, which city-state actually gave citizenship to a barbarian?! ”

"He seems to be talking about Dionia, is Dionya a Greek city-state? How I haven't heard of it. ”

……

The spectators of the Isthmus Games came from far and wide, of course, Greeks from the Western Mediterranean, and there were quite a few of them, so they naturally became the answerers of these questions.

"Dionya is a federation of city-states that was formed only last year, in the north-central part of Greater Greece, with the central city of Turiyi. The alien just now should be a Lucanian, and the Dioonians occupy a lot of Lucanian land, and they also give citizenship to the Lucanians living in the territory. ”

"So this Ionian alliance doesn't just give citizenship to one barbarian, but a lot?!"

"Yes, not only the Lucanians, but also the Thracians, the Egyptians...... As long as you are willing to become a Dionian citizen, after their assessment, you can meet the conditions, you can become an official Ionian citizen in a few years, and you can also get a 'share'! ”

"Oh, wise Athena, am I dizzy, I heard it wrong?! Barbarians can not only become citizens, but also get a 'share of land'! It's simply ...... It's simply ...... Was Dionya really a Greek alliance of city-states?! ”

"O Peloponnesians, you Awones, are indifferent to what is happening in the Western Mediterranean. As soon as you reach the bay of Taranto by boat, the word that rings most in your ears is Dionia, where not only are thousands of freedmen flocking to Dionia to become citizens of that alliance, but the councils of the great Greek city-states are watching Dionia's movements......"

"I can understand that freedmen want to be citizens and get a 'share'. But why are even the top of the great Greek city-states -"

"Because Dioonia is already the most powerful city-state alliance in Southern Italy!"

"What?! You're kidding, right?! I remember that the great states of Greater Greece were not Crotone and Tarantum ?! ”

"Hehe, not long ago, Crotone lost to Dionya twice in the battle, and it is long gone that the glory it used to be. And Tarantum ...... When I came to Corinth, I heard that it had been compelled to invite Dionysa to help them drive out the barbarians who had invaded the territory, and that Dionysia had promised to send reinforcements...... You don't know how big Dionia's territory is! It now governs large territories of Turiyi, Amendolara, Crimesa, and Lucania, with Laos and Castelon as vassals, and it is allied with Tarantum. In addition, Crotone, Trina, Siritin, and Corenia also formed an alliance with Dionia...... Tell me if it's the most powerful power in Greater Greece! ”