"You traitor, how dare you show your face!" Cross immediately rushed over, grabbed him by the chest, and raised his fist as big as a bowl. His scarred face had eyes like a wolf's, emitting a murderous gleam. He said viciously, "You got so many of our brothers killed, now—"
"Enough, Cross, now is not the time for infighting. We need Maximus' help!" As expected, Spartacus quickly stepped forward to intervene.
"Pah!" Cross spat a thick wad of phlegm on Maximus' face before begrudgingly being pulled away by Spartacus.
Maximus wiped the spit off his face, feeling relieved for the moment: if it wasn't for Spartacus stepping in, he was truly afraid Cross might beat him to death, because in the original owner's memory, this guy, although the second gladiator of the school, in the matches he participated in, his opponents were either dead or severely injured, and even during regular training, he often injured his companions. This guy was a dangerous person who viewed human lives as nothing.
Even though Cross had let go, his sharp gaze remained fixed on Maximus, as if a sharp knife was piercing his heart, making him regret standing out.
"Maximus, do you really know the roads around here?!" Spartacus asked very seriously.
Maximus composed himself and confidently said, "I grew up in Capua, here I can find my way even with my eyes closed! With me leading, we'll be out of here soon, but—"
Maximus paused for a moment, a bit theatrically, and said, "We're currently in the south of the city. There are two avenues leading south from Capua: one is the Appian Way heading southeast toward the Samnium Mountain Area; the other is the Ania Avenue heading south across the whole Campagna Plain. Which one shall we take?"
To the south of Rome, Capua is a rare large city crossed by two Roman roads. It's an important transportation hub, so not only is agriculture developed, but trade is also quite prosperous.
"We should head for the mountains, it's easier for us to hide." Antonix suggested from the side.
"It's almost dark. Going to the mountains at this time isn't safe, and the Samnites are not to be trifled with. We should head south." Although the uprising was sudden and a bit hasty, Spartacus already had a plan in mind, but he didn't intend to reveal it at this moment, so he found another reason.
Everyone agreed it made sense, as the Samnium Mountain Area isn't far to the east of Capua. The Samnite mountain people were poor and fierce, a major source of Octolatus (the term for Roman citizens who voluntarily became gladiators). Although their gladiator school didn't have any, as opponents, they had encountered them often in the arena, and their strength was not to be underestimated. So no one objected further.
Maximus, however, drawing on the original owner's memory, bravely suggested, "If we take Ania Avenue southbound, there's a Flora Temple about seven or eight li from Capua along the avenue. By nightfall, we can rest in the temple." (Flora, an Italian goddess of vegetation and its flourishing).
"We'll see when the time comes." Spartacus said noncommittally.
Maximus turned to walk towards the end of the group. The gladiators were already looking at him a bit differently, showing that Collins' angry scolding had an effect.
Cross followed closely behind Maximus, dark-faced, with a short sword in hand, clearly aiming to monitor him and prevent him from deliberately leading them astray.
Maximus felt a bit apprehensive, but upon seeing Spartacus beside him, he steadied his mind again.
The team set off again, and although they were delayed for a bit, the alley they went through was still empty. The nearby residents had already realized the unusual situation at the gladiator school, but no one dared to organize a team to stop these murderous monsters; instead, they closed their doors and hid away one after another.
Under Maximus' lead, the gladiators quickly exited the maze-like neighborhood and stepped onto Ania Avenue, and many breathed a sigh of relief as the wide and solid road speeded up the group's progress.
While running, Maximus glanced around. Although he had the original owner's memory, experiencing the famous Roman Road firsthand, he couldn't help but be amazed: a smooth and solid paved surface, deep drainage ditches on both sides, trees along the way with an abundance of branches and leaves, soft dirt paths for walking, and even simple benches for resting occasionally seen on the sidewalk... It possessed every element of modern city roads, and it was built a hundred years ago, maintained with care, still functioning well today, giving a hint of Rome's power.
How could such a strong nation be defeated by just a group of gladiators!... A strong wave of unease suddenly struck Maximus.
The sun had set in the west, the afterglow gradually fading, and nightfall was imminent. Typically, at this time, there would still be some pedestrians along the avenue, but these terrifying gladiators scared people far away, though the carriages on the road couldn't avoid being blocked by the gladiators. A donkey cart carrying flour was stopped, causing the gladiators to cheer, "Finally, we can eat fragrant bread!"
Gladiators need to consume a lot of food to train and compete, but the school needed to make money, so they couldn't eat well. Apart from occasionally eating some meat from animals killed in gladiator matches, their main food was cheap, bland-tasting barley, high in calories but in abundant supply, which gave gladiators the derogatory nickname of "barley men," yet it was still better than the irregular meals of the poor.
Delighted gladiators let the owner of the donkey cart go.
After a while, a large carriage came in the front, and the owner of the carriage, realizing something was wrong, hurriedly turned the horse around.
Enomai and a few brothers sprinted over to stop it, and soon he excitedly shouted, "Spartacus, come quickly, there are lots of weapons on the carriage!"
Spartacus was invigorated and, along with Cross, rushed towards the intercepted carriage.
The carriage was packed with short swords, longswords, long spears, square shields, round shields, helmets, shin guards, and even some fishing nets, but there were no breastplates, as these were all gladiator equipment.
Touching the cold shield, Spartacus excitedly told the gladiators, "Brothers, our actions have been blessed by Ares, he has sent us weapons!"
The gladiators erupted in cheers, and someone even shouted, "With weapons, we fear nothing, let's turn back and take down Batiatus!"
Someone immediately retorted, "Fool, Batiatus has already fled into the city, we can't catch him."
...
Spartacus ignored their quarrels, turned back and said, "Hamilcar, you carefully count how many weapons there are?"
Before Hamilcar could respond, Maximus jumped in saying, "Let me count them."
This was another chance to prove himself. Seeing that Spartacus didn't object, Maximus leaped onto the carriage and began counting earnestly.
Meanwhile, Spartacus walked over to the driver, who quickly begged for mercy, and he asked solemnly, "Tell me, where were these gladiator weapons sent from, and where are they headed?"
"Sent... to the city arena..." the driver stammered in panic, "because the day after tomorrow is Capua's founding day... the administrator wants to host a large gladiator match to celebrate... afraid there aren't enough weapons and equipment... so... so I was ordered to transport some from Napolet..."
Spartacus and Cross exchanged glances. Actually, the gladiator school they were in had also received an invitation from the city lord's office, reportedly with quite a generous reward. Without this uprising, quite a few brothers might have fallen in the arena to satisfy the bloodthirsty desires of Capua's audience.