A week passed and Septimus entered the city of Rome.
When analyzing the situation of Rome in this period of time, Septimus realized that it was total chaos, mainly due to Marius and Sulla.
The relationship between the current consuls Marius and Cinna with Sulla can only be described as a deep mutual hatred.
Since the implementation of Marius' reforms oriented toward the people, Rome has been plagued by constant wars.
First, nearly a million barbarians from different tribes of the region of Germania marched south with 300 thousand experienced warriors included. The war between Rome and the Germanic tribes was brutal and bloody; as a result, Rome was only able to defeat two of the main tribes before the Germanic warriors withdrew.
(Note: In the Germanic tribes of that time, children, women, and the elderly also went to war)
Then, different ideas about Roman citizenship triggered an internal struggle in Rome that unleashed another bloody conflict.
Later, the conflict between Marius and Sulla broke out. Sulla escaped to Capua defending his cause and gathered soldiers, leading his troops to march on Rome, managing to expel Marius.
Outside Rome, a transcendental event occurred in the East.
The Greeks, tired of Roman oppression, rebelled, and the king of Pontus massacred the local Romans.
Upon hearing the news, Sulla personally led an expedition to the East with the purpose of suppressing the rebellion.
Taking advantage of the moment, Marius, together with Cinna and Carbo, took the opportunity to return and conquer Rome. They carried out a massacre of five days and five nights in the city of Rome, leaving the streets bloodstained and causing chaos in the city.
Marius' massacre included a large number of plebeians, senators, elites, and even consuls and tribunes, simply because they did not oppose Sulla.
Even Marius' relatives, the two uncles of Julius Caesar, received the order to be killed by Marius for not adopting a hard stance against Sulla.
The massacre of those years terrified the upper class of Rome and generated irreconcilable hatred with the supporters of Sulla.
Septimus, as a person from the future, has knowledge that Sulla will return after suppressing the rebellion in the East and, as a consequence, will fight a series of battles against the allies of Marius, Cinna, and Carbo, until he finally conquers Rome.
Sulla, as revenge, will replicate the actions of Marius, with even greater brutality, which will generate a bloodbath in Rome.
Historical estimates indicate that more than 130 senators and 2,600 elites died at the hands of Sulla and Marius; nearly half of the 300 senators were killed along with their families.
After that would come the war of the Spartan uprising and the great war between Caesar and Pompey, followed by the subsequent war between Mark Antony and Octavian.
Those were only the main wars fought in Italy, without taking into account the minor conflicts in other Roman provinces and foreign lands far from Rome.
Because Rome was involved in so many wars, a famous Roman historian even wrote three thick volumes of a book titled "Commentaries on the Civil War."
Septimus felt somewhat excited to be able to witness these historical events that marked the end of the republic and gave birth to an empire.
Septimus' objective upon entering Rome was to buy a hill near the city and build an enormous castle that could house 20 thousand clones. To fulfill that purpose, he would require a large amount of money.
The only way to obtain money that Septimus had, aside from looting, was the invention of new products from the 21st century and selling them to the upper class.
Septimus wrinkled his nose upon entering the city of Rome; the first impression was one of poverty and disorder.
Since the Punic Wars with Carthage, the Roman nobles and elites have become increasingly wealthy, and the Roman citizens have only grown poorer with each passing year.
Slavery has generated cheap labor for the Roman upper class, and Roman citizens only have the options of joining the army or selling themselves as slaves; the third option is to seek employment, but with so many slaves it is difficult for the Roman citizen to get a job.
The economic situation of Roman citizens is precarious, which is why the prestige of Marius and his military reforms in favor of the citizens had such a significant impact, and his prestige endured years after his death.
As the carriages passed through the street, several beggars approached.
"My noble lord, do you have bread?" said a beggar with his hands extended.
"I will do any work for food!" shouted another beggar at the carriages.
Dozens of people with tattered clothing approached the carriages asking for money or food.
The guards on their horses dispersed the crowd and sped up the convoy toward the residence of the Scipio family.
Finally, Septimus, together with the carriages, arrived at the residence of the Scipio family.
"Hahaha, welcome to Rome, young Septimus," said Senator Nasica with a smile.
Septimus planned to stay at the residence of the Scipio family and then buy his own residence. The construction of the castle on a hill would take too much time, and Septimus could only proceed calmly.
"Thank you for receiving me in your home," Septimus replied with a calm smile.
Senator Nasica accompanied Septimus and a Fausta irritated by the journey to a small welcoming banquet.
"The situation in Rome is a bit tense; the illness of Consul Marius has worsened, which has limited all kinds of celebration. I hope you understand," said Senator Nasica.
In the Rome of this period, the life expectancy of common people was up to 40, and many died earlier. The average for the upper class was between 55 and 65 years; that Marius managed to live to 70 was a miracle.
Everyone knew that the death of Marius was approaching, and the upper class did not want to be misunderstood by celebrating a banquet in this tense situation. It would be unfortunate to attract the anger of Cinna by appearing to celebrate the poor health of Consul Marius.
Septimus did not give importance to the small celebration, keeping clones to control Fausta in case she lost control; the next day he was going to organize his clones to buy a residence and a shop to sell white sugar with the same model as Capua. If possible, he did not wish to meet with Cinna.
After two days, Septimus went to the residence of Fausta's father to begin the marriage ceremony.
Fausta's father was named Publius Cornelius Scipio Faustus and was a senator of the Scipio family, but his influence was minimal, lacking character, being a man with little ability and easy to deceive.
The ceremony lasted half a day, and Septimus avoided an extravagant celebration, heading to his new residence.
Septimus' new residence in Rome was located on a small hill with other residences of Roman elites as neighbors; in the past, it belonged to a family that was purged by the soldiers of Marius.
Septimus only planned to stay in Rome for a short time; the tense atmosphere of the city due to the imminent death of Marius was suffocating.
Another week passed, and Septimus opened a white sugar shop in Rome. The business model attracted the attention of the upper class, generating good income; unfortunately, due to the political situation, not many banquets were being held, or the income from the consumption of white sugar would be astronomical.
The upper class of Rome remained discreet; the massacres of previous years were recent memories, and no one wanted to stand out. The supporters of Cinna themselves also shared the same idea of self-preservation.
Septimus was not interested in any of that; his objective on this trip was to complete the ceremony and establish a shop to earn money and be able to buy the lands of a hill in Rome. The construction of the castle was going to be an enormous expense.
On the other hand, in an enormous residence within one of the seven main hills of Rome,
Inside one of the rooms, there were jars of wine and food thrown on the floor, with slaves kneeling without making a movement.
"Call all the doctors of Rome," said Cinna with a cold expression.
Cinna was restless due to the serious condition of Consul Marius. Since Marius fell ill, he has been lying in bed unable to get up for days.
"Consul, that young man named Septimus has been in Rome for days. Do you wish to see him?" asked one of the slaves upon entering the room.
"It is not necessary at this moment; there will be more opportunities later," Cinna replied impatiently.
For Cinna, meeting with Septimus was not an important matter; the talent of that young Septimus could be won over little by little. On the other hand, the death of Marius would damage the morale of the soldiers.
Cinna was irritable due to Marius' situation and had no plans regarding Septimus for the moment.