Heir of Aurelian

Chapter 70 Expanding the Frumentarii

Marcellus sat in his office. Standing across from him were various men handpicked from his legions. These were men with talents in scouting and espionage. These men were his Frumentarii. With the threats of conspiracies around every corner, Marcellus realized he needed to establish a dedicated force involved with intelligence and espionage.

Until now, that role had been left up to the Frumentarii, who were a group of Roman soldiers attached to various military units which conducted espionage while in uniform. However, with recent events, and the stability of his Empire at Risk, Marcellus desired to expand the Frumentarii and their influence into society, by having them infiltrate conspiracy networks and bring them down from the inside. If Marcellus did not know who his internal enemies were, he could not face them.

Thus, he had gathered his best units who had experience in these fields, and brought them to his study intending to gain their opinions on how best to reform the Frumentarii to fit the Empires’ current needs. With a serious expression on his face, Marcellus outlined his vision for the future of the Frumentarii in a passionate speech.

“Gentlemen, I have gathered you here today because you are the best damn Frumentarii I have at my disposal. I won’t lie to you. The situation is grim. Our Empire is facing multiple potential invasions into our homeland, all while the Patricians, who are unsatisfied with my rule, gather in secret and conspire to unseat me from my throne.

The reality of the situation is that the Frumentarii are not equipped appropriately with the resources and training necessary to handle these internal conflicts that are bound to appear under my reign. It is because of that I wish to expand your units into a dedicated spy network.

My vision is for the Frumentarii is to be separate from the military. You shall coordinate with military operatives to gather intelligence on the enemy, but shall also now conduct clandestine operations among the civilian population of both our own Empire and the civilizations that threaten us.

This transition from military operatives who specialize in espionage to dedicated spies will be a difficult one, and because of that, I have gathered you all here to hear your input. So tell me, what would be the most efficient way to reform the Frumentarii?”_.

The men who were gathered in this room had various expressions on their face. Some were nervous to speak, and others were critical of the idea of expansion. However, what Marcellus said was true. The Frumentarii lacked the ability to infiltrate conspiracies and dismantle them from within. It was because of this that they chatted amongst themselves for a bit before coming up with a list of ideas to implement.

After conversing for a few minutes, one man in particular, whose name was Drusus Otacilius Falconius, took charge and voiced the opinions of the group.

“If we are screening for new Frumentarii, then ideally, it should contain people who are at the very least educated in reading, writing, and basic mathematics. So we will have a very limited talent pool to choose from.

If we are to become a separate force from the Army, then we should have separate training that is specialized in the tasks of infiltration, assassination, sabotage, and espionage. Aside from this, the identities of the Frumentarii must be concealed, as it would be difficult to infiltrate foreign realms and internal conspiracies with our identities as agents of espionage being well known.”

Marcellus took note of these suggestions and wrote them down. He took nothing these experts said for granted. Falconius continued on his speech about how they should be organized.

“I think the Frumentarii should operate in cells based in different regions. That way, if the identities of one group are compromised, the others will not come under suspicion. They should have a contact within the Palace who they can relay information to in secret, and potentially develop methods to communicate securely.”

The group of Frumentarii and the Emperor worked long and hard on the development of a network of spies dedicated to espionage. After hours of discussion, they finally came up with a basic premise for this new and improved Frumentarii. Marcellus planned to immediately use these suggestions to establish his spy network. The problem was that he needed someone he could trust to lead it from the shadows.

If the Frumentarii were to be reorganized into something resembling a modern intelligence agency, then it needed someone at the top. Someone fiercely loyal to him, who was intelligent and could make difficult decisions. Someone who would be the least likely person suspected of being in charge of the shadowy organization. There were not many people that Marcellus could trust, and if he really thought about it, there was only one person who could meet the qualifications.

Thus, after dismissing his Agents, Marcellus approached the person in question who was currently in the process of cooking the evening meal for the members of the Palace. This person was none other than Sigefrida. For some time now, Marcellus had planned to free her from her bondage, and officially take her as his concubine. However, there was a more important role for her to fulfill now.

In his mind, nobody was less likely to be suspected of being in charge of his spy network than her. For starters, she was not Roman by birth instead; she was a Suebi woman who had lived most of her life as a slave. In the eyes of many, she was nothing more than a hot piece of ass that Marcellus was sleeping with. Her abilities were greatly underestimated by all who knew her.

The reality was different from the perspective people had. Sigefrida was educated from a young age, at the behest of Marcellus. She was not only literate, but highly intelligent, and had a head for the big picture. After all, he had been sharing his ideas with her since he was a young officer in the Roman Army, and she was at times able to make valuable contributions to his rise to power.

More importantly, Sigefrida understood geo-politics, spoke multiple languages, and had experienced the horrors of war as a companion. On top of all of this, she was a woman, and because of that, nobody in or out of the Empire would suspect her of having a prominent position in Marcellus’ dictatorship.

Frankly, Marcellus had already thrown Roman law out the window after succeeding the throne. Since that was the case, he had no qualms about giving the position of his spymaster to a woman. The moment Marcellus entered the room, Sigefrida could tell by the look on his face that he wanted to discuss something important.

She quickly halted her actions and approached the man, where he reached around her neck and unlocked her collar. This action surprised the woman, as it was the symbol of her enslavement. With a warm smile on his face, Marcellus informed the woman that she was now a free woman.

“I should have done this a long time ago, but now that I am emperor, I hereby grant you your freedom, Sigefrida. You are free to do whatever you desire in this life, and should you care for it, I will grant you Roman citizenship.”

Sigefrida welled up in tears, not because she was happy about being freed, but because she had misunderstood her master’s intent. She quickly began pounding away at his chest in rage while screaming at him.

“You bastard! After everything we have done together, you are now throwing me away? How could you do this to me? Is it because of Placidia? Did she put you up to this?”

It shocked Marcellus to see the woman behave in such an irrational manner. He quickly grabbed hold of her and hugged her tightly, primarily so that she could no longer strike him, and whispered in her dainty ears.

“Shhhh… Shhhh… Shhh.. Foolish woman, I have no intentions of throwing you away. Instead, I wish to take you as my concubine so that our future children won’t suffer the cruel fate of slavery. I also intend to give you a job more fitting for a woman of your intelligence, that is, if you are willing?”

Sigefrida gazed up into Marcellus’ olive green eyes and sniffled. When she heard she wasn’t being abandoned, she was no longer filled with rage, but joy. After calming herself down, Sigefrida asked about the position he had talked about.

“What’s the job?”

Marcellus smiled as he kissed the woman on the forehead. Only after he had done that did he inform her of the task he had in mind.

“I am reorganizing my Frumentarii into a shadowy organization that spies on the public and our enemies alike. They will no longer wear military uniforms, and overtly engage in espionage, but hide in the shadows and infiltrate our enemies. I need someone I can trust, someone who is educated, and someone who has a mind for these matters. Truthfully, the list of candidates is small, and so naturally I have turned to my beloved slave… erm concubine.”

Sigefrida was shocked to hear this. It was a lofty position and Roman women were not permitted to hold public office. That was the caveat. This was not a public office, but a private one, hidden from the public at large. Still, she did not expect the men of the frumentarii to accept her so easily. After all, she was a woman.

“But… I’m a woman…”

Marcellus merely scoffed as he lifted a nearby chalice and filled it with wine. After taking a sip, he responded to the woman’s concerns with a confident smile on his face.

“You think I give a shit? Sigefrida in my brief time as emperor, I have practically shat on every Roman law there is. Right now, I’m nothing more than a tyrant doing as I please. The old laws mean nothing. Clearly they haven’t been working. If I want a woman as my spymaster, I will damn well have one.

Besides, you won’t be alone. I plan to recruit women into the organization. There’s not many educated women in this Empire, but we can teach them. I highly doubt my enemies will expect women to be agents of my Frumentarii. So what do you say?”

Sigefrida did not easily answer this question and instead put it off for a later date.

“I need some time to think about this. I will let you know when I decide.”

Marcellus nodded his head in agreement before petting the woman’s platinum blonde hair.

“Take all the time you need.”

After saying this, he departed, leaving the Suebi beauty alone with many thoughts to dwell upon.