Historical Deviations - What If Marius Never Became Consul

Destroying the filthy slave master's base and casually killing the slave master, even liberating a group of slaves, were all insignificant events to Night.

Although some of the slaves, having witnessed his valor, spontaneously wanted to rally under his banner, nominating him as their leader to lead them out of Rome and into other countries...

But—

Night: You're kidding. I just saved someone from the Julius family, and now I won't seize this opportunity to quickly stabilize in Rome.

Going to other countries?

Wait a couple of years for Caesar's or Pompey's army to come?

Night had no intention of living a life on the run, especially with a large group of slaves, which would easily attract official attention.

Most of these slaves were Italians, French, and Greeks.

France would become Caesar's first stepping stone in his rise.

The entanglements and grievances between Greece and Rome need not be elaborated.

For those unfamiliar with these two countries, there's even a chance of mixing them up.

In short, the countries these slaves originally came from were hardly stable.

Under the wheel of history, unless someone well-versed in history stands up to defy the trend and change everything, Rome's rise was inevitable.

The rise of any empire is built on a throne of steel, soaked in blood.

Although considering his powerful physique that was comparable to the heroes of the Greek mythological era and made him an unstoppable force on the battlefield, Night had the potential to change history, however, he had no interest in undertaking such thankless tasks.

Why support weaker countries when he could establish himself directly in Rome, where the future looked bright?

Some might argue that Spartacus, a fellow slave gladiator, was relentlessly pursued by the Roman military until his death after escaping.

Even as an escaped slave, he remained unrecognized by the authorities, facing endless pursuit.

But what was Spartacus's situation compared to his?

As a Thracian from the northeastern Balkans, Spartacus was captured during Rome's invasion of northern Greece and sold into slavery as a gladiator.

When he first incited his fellow slaves to seize arms and escape, the Roman Senate didn't take him seriously.

After escaping to Mount Vesuvius and growing from seventy men to tens of thousands, defeating Roman forces multiple times, he became a significant threat to Rome.

Only when he seriously endangered Rome did the Romans fully mobilize to annihilate him.

But Night was different...

His situation was incomparable to Spartacus's.

He had the strength and potential to integrate into Roman society, leveraging the powerful connections he had begun to establish.

Unlike Spartacus, Night's path didn't necessitate a full-scale rebellion but rather a strategic assimilation, utilizing his unique capabilities and newfound alliances to thrive within the Roman system.

With a clear understanding of the dynamics at play, he knew that his future in Rome held promise, and he was ready to seize every opportunity to cement his place in this formidable empire.

When he was sold to the slave master, he was so weak that he didn't even receive the slave mark.

In Rome, he was essentially an unregistered person.

Officially, a slave like him was illegal.

The so-called slave contract was nothing but a worthless piece of paper.

Not to mention that once Harriman

(Haruman..whatever you wanna say) Julius returned, it would be the slave master and those who had trafficked him here who would face retribution.

At this moment, after Night dismissed all the other slaves, he only took Harriman Julius with him out of the underground.

As Harriman Julius saw a ray of sunlight, the blinding light made him, who hadn't seen the outside world or breathed fresh air for a long time, open his mouth wide with greed, tears welling up in his eyes.

"Finally, I'm out!!! I finally got out! Great Night, your kindness, the Julius family will never forget. Damn slave master, and all those who trafficked me here, they will all pay in blood!!"

Watching the old man kneeling on the ground, looking up at the sky in excitement, Night didn't interrupt him but let him release his emotions.

He knew that compared to his own short period of enslavement, during which he gained the power to free himself, Harriman might have spent many years in the dark dungeon.

In that sunless world, loneliness is scarier than death.

Though Night couldn't fully empathize, he could somewhat imagine and feel a slight sense of empathy.

After a long while—

When Harriman finally calmed down after crying, Night said, "Let's go, Harriman.

You'll soon be able to repay my kindness.

I need you to use your family's influence to help me secure a legitimate identity in Rome.

You should be able to tell that I am not from this country. Also—tell me how you got trafficked here."

Night almost said this place was a godforsaken land.

Later, with money taken from the slave master, he and Harriman bought horses, food, and water and set off for Rome's capital.

Along the way, the old man told Night how he had ended up being trafficked here.

Through Harriman's story, he gradually understood the specific era Rome was in.

Firstly—

Starting with the desert Night had initially arrived in, that desert in later times was known as the Sahara Desert.

In the mid-2nd century BC, the Romans had built residential houses, shops, public baths, an amphitheater, an open-air theater, temples, and many other structures near the Sahara Desert in Tipasa.

As time passed, a huge commercial city formed.

This was where Night first arrived.

At that time, this place wasn't as prosperous as it would be in the future; the Romans had just started constructing various facilities.

This matched Night's memory.

During this period in the East, it was the time of Emperor Wu of Han, when Zhang Qian opened the Silk Road.

This also corresponded to the era of Julius Caesar.

However, Rome's subsequent history became somewhat confusing, diverging slightly from what Night knew.

The specific deviation was like a butterfly effect, where a butterfly's wings flapping in South America could cause a tornado in North America two weeks later.

Firstly, from Harriman Julius, he learned that Caesar was still a child, barely a teenager.

This meant that Rome's future triumvirate—Julius Caesar, Pompey, and Crassus—was just starting their ascent to power.

Typically, the beginning of one era marks the end of another.

The great men of the previous era were gradually stepping down from the stage of history.

If Night's memory served him correctly, the actual rulers of Rome at this time were two highly influential figures in Roman history: Marius and Sulla.

Among them, Marius was particularly important, being a significant figure of the era.

However, due to reasons Night wasn't aware of, Marius had failed in his bid for consulship, and Rome's history had thus taken a completely different path.

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