The high-level meeting between Holy Rome and Eastern Rome ended in a hastily atmosphere in which both sides had their own agendas, and no consensus was reached at the meeting, except for an untimely word of resistance to continue to hold on to Pella.

Soon after the meeting, Justinian, Belisarius, and Narsis returned to their main tent. The bright candlelight reflected the uncertain faces of the three men, and the tent was full of luxurious furnishings and glittering expensive loot, but no one wanted to appreciate it at the moment.

From time to time, the painful cries of wounded soldiers could be heard outside, mixed with the mournful chirping of nightingales, which was even more eerie. In such an atmosphere, after a short silence, the young emperor couldn't help but ask, "Are we really going to stay here and let those barbarians attack Byzantium?"

Belisarius and Narcisse looked at each other and shook their heads. The Eastern Roman Marshal replied: "What I have just said is only to confuse the Holy Romans, and in fact we have already lost this war, and it is pointless to hold on any longer, except to add unnecessary injuries." Rather than that, we should find a way to end this war in a way that is as good as possible for us. ”

Justinian nodded, and then asked, "In that case, how can we achieve a way that is beneficial to us?"

"We still have about 300,000 troops in Olympia, of which the Pella line alone accounts for almost 300,000 troops. Most of these warriors are at war with the enemy, and the only way to do this is to stabilize Holy Rome first, so that they think that we are holding out in Pera together. At the same time, he secretly sent people to negotiate peace talks with the Olympia Alliance, and waited for the peace talks between the two sides to be completed. Immediately bring the troops back home. In this way, we can minimize losses and resolve the current crisis. ”

Belisarius on the side nodded repeatedly. In fact, he had already anticipated the situation today, a plan that he had worked with Narsis. If you want to get out of this war with all your body. Betraying allies is the only way.

Justinian, however, hesitated, and after a long groan, he said: "But then the Eastern Rome will have to be infamous as a traitor to its allies, and not only will Holy Rome henceforth be our enemy, but the rest of the world will no longer trust us." In this way, diplomacy will be very passive. ”

Belisarius hurriedly persuaded: "Although it will be difficult in the future, there is no way to do it. If we don't make a decision, I am afraid that the hundreds of thousands of troops we are still fighting hard will be wiped out here, and the essence of the empire will be swept away. I'm afraid that there will be a danger of losing the country. In this way, it is better to choose the lesser of two evils. ”

Justinian thought about it again, then sighed and said, "Since Aiqing said so, it can only be like this." It's just that I don't know who should be the messenger of peace. ”

Belisarius and Narcisse glanced at each other, and the Eastern Roman marshal said cheerfully: "Leave this matter to me, and I will not disappoint Your Majesty." ”

"With Aiqing coming out in person, I am relieved. Justinian breathed a sigh of relief and nodded with a smile.

And yet at this moment. Several generals hurriedly walked in from outside, and the first one said anxiously: "Your Majesty, we have just received news that the main force of the Janissaries of Holy Rome has left Pella. Retreat sharply to the northwest!"

"What?!" Justinian was in a hurry when he heard this, they had just planned to secretly negotiate peace with the enemy behind the back of their allies, and then quickly withdraw their troops. Pit Holy Rome a handful. Unexpectedly, this ally is even darker than himself. I didn't even bother to talk about peace talks, and suddenly I left first!

This result was something Justinian never expected. I was really caught off guard for a moment, and I could only look at Belisarius as if asking for help.

The Marshal of Eastern Rome frowned and thought for a moment, then said in a deep voice: "Since the Holy Rome has already retreated first, it is too late for us to leave, and we will only be pursued by the enemy first, and become a substitute for the Holy Roman Palace......!

Due to the urgency of the form, Belisarius soon set out. He said goodbye to Justinian and left the barracks in the Grand Palace of Pera with a few knights of the guard, and walked towards the Olympian League positions outside the city.

The original majestic and strong walls of the city of Pera were long gone, and the entire city was reduced to a huge battlefield, full of street forts, trenches and other defensive facilities. Along the way, I encountered a large number of panicked Eastern Roman warriors, some of them standing on the sidelines and not knowing what to do, and some of them running around aimlessly like blind flies, looking extremely chaotic. Several centurions shouted orders at street crossings and rooftops, but to no avail.

In the sky, the central floating fleet of the Olympian League launched a fierce attack under the cover of night. Huge steel monsters floated among the dark clouds with brilliant light, rows of gray-black spikes sticking out of the hull, constantly releasing pillars of light that exuded a strong aura of destruction. Everywhere he went, the sound of fires and explosions was deafening, buildings were reduced to ashes, and soldiers were shattered. On the other side, the Eastern Roman fleet and the Holy Roman fleet, which had not yet learned that the emperor had fled, also rallied and resisted, and the roar of the great ships, the shrill sirens, the explosions, the screams of the dying, all kinds of sounds mixed together, it was a hellish human tragedy.

The heavy-hearted Eastern Roman Marshal did not linger long, he soon braved countless magic bullets whistling from afar, and continued with several knights behind him. After all, when Frederick led the Praetorian Guards to flee first, the shape on the battlefield was beyond the power of manpower. By tomorrow morning at the latest, the Holy Roman Army would have completely collapsed, and he would have to make peace with the Olympian League before then.

After a while, a group of several people came to the southern outskirts of the city. At this time, the positions of the enemy and us were already staggered, and a group of Olympian warriors on the opposite side had just taken this position, and were undergoing a short rest and reorganization. The Eastern Roman warriors behind them retreated to the rear, some of them digging trenches under the call of the centurion to prepare for the next wave of attacks, and some of them were completely desperate and sat on the sidelines waiting for death

(To be continued......)