Spartacus was furious. He had assumed that the target was another ethnic group, but it turned out to be the Thracians.
Spartacus approached Nero, only to find him negotiating prices with several merchants.
"Two denarii for an adult male slave? Are you robbing us? Once these slaves reach Rome, the profits will easily be several times greater," Nero said with dissatisfaction.
"You know they are being sent to Rome, which is very far from here, and there are storms at sea that could cause shipwrecks. They will need food and water during the journey, and who knows how much that will cost? They could even die from some disease along the way. Two denarii is already the highest price we can offer, but we are only doing this for the sake of General Septimus," said a businessman.
"Could it not be higher?" Nero asked.
Although the clones could easily maintain an egalitarian system of wealth without the need to pursue money, in order to fit in and blend into this era, they had to maintain an individual identity.
Centurion Nero was a clone from the region of Campania, with a wife and two children.
Septimus did not consider himself a God, but his replication ability was perfect for infiltrating hundreds of thousands of people into society, and Septimus would not waste it.
"You want a higher price? Slaves are much cheaper in Asia than in Rome. With four drachmas, one can buy a slave," said the businessman, pulling Nero out of his thoughts.
"Very well, two denarii it shall be," Nero finally accepted after a brief analysis.
This village had fewer than a thousand inhabitants, and the money obtained from the sale of slaves was, unfortunately, scarce; fortunately, there were cattle and sheep to increase the income.
"Sir, there is something I want to tell you," Spartacus said as he approached Nero from behind.
"What is it?" Nero asked indifferently while counting the denarii provided by the merchants.
"Can we avoid selling them as slaves?" Spartacus asked seriously.
Nero's gaze subconsciously shifted toward the group of slaves.
Elderly people, children, and women old enough to bear children.
A few years ago, Septimus and all the clones would have felt a moral burden upon witnessing such a scene.
Even less than three years ago, Septimus devoted time and effort to pursuing and killing a slave caravan that had abandoned a newborn child on a little-traveled road in Egypt.
Septimus and Nero had forgotten when they lost their humanity.
The replication ability could help Septimus in this era and turn him into a great figure and even a God, but the mental and psychological burden over time would affect his personality, making him more ruthless.
Septimus knew the consequences of his ability, but the inevitable would always arrive.
For the current Septimus, selling children, newborns, the elderly, and women did not represent a moral problem.
"Opposing Rome has consequences, and everyone must pay the price for their actions," Nero replied, abandoning his reflections on morality and humanitarianism.
Human rights would only be created 2,000 years later, and Septimus did not plan to hasten events.
"However, if you can get 2,000 denarii, I can sell them to you," Nero added.
"I want all of them," Spartacus said quickly, without making Nero wait.
Nero nodded, and Spartacus went to gather the money from his fellow Thracians.
"You do not mind having one more competitor, do you?" Nero asked the merchants.
"Haha, no problem," said a merchant.
The merchants were not concerned about a small failed transaction.
The Roman army had recently achieved a great victory and had to deal with more than 100,000 prisoners of war, who consumed a large amount of supplies and money.
Thousands of slaves were used in the mines and quarries, but the sudden large supply of slaves continued to flood Rome's slave market.
Shortly afterward, Spartacus and a group of Thracians arrived with bags full of money.
"There are more than 1,200 denarii here, and we will give up the income generated by this operation," Spartacus said.
"This goes against the rules. I need cash. I need to distribute it among my soldiers," Nero said while shaking his head.
"In addition, the salary for this month for all the Thracian soldiers from our village," Spartacus replied while gritting his teeth.
Nero reflected for a moment and nodded. His village had mobilized more than 200 warriors, which greatly exceeded 2,000 denarii.
"Very well, but I advise you not to do this. We will eliminate all the Thracian tribes that support Pontus. You cannot save them all," Nero replied while ordering the clone soldiers to collect the bags of money.
Hearing Nero's words caused Spartacus to be stunned.
"How many people are there in those tribes?" Spartacus asked with a trembling voice.
"There must be tens of thousands of people," Nero said after thinking for a few seconds.
Spartacus was absolutely horrified by the idea that tens of thousands of Thracians would be sold as slaves by the Romans.
"We cannot harm the innocent! They are only women and children who did not participate in the war!" Spartacus roared angrily.
"Their families could join the army of Pontus! No one can harm Rome without paying the consequences," Nero replied indifferently.
"Even so, there is no need to sell all of them as prisoners! Do not lie to me; I know that some rebelled against Rome, but Rome eventually forgave them," Spartacus said with a grim expression.
Spartacus was not foolish. In those times, many rebelled against Rome, but not everyone who rebelled was sold as a slave; some even became friends of the Romans.
Nero frowned because the agitated Spartacus was raising his voice, almost shouting at him.
From a distance, a merchant laughed loudly while saying, "Nero, it seems that you have no authority in the eyes of this barbarian, who dares to openly contradict you."
Barbarians?
How dare they call themselves barbarians?
Although Spartacus had heard many people secretly refer to the Thracians in that way, this was the first time he had become so angry.