Returning to Greece, Agesilaus is shocked to find the Athenians have formed an alliance with Thebes, Corinth, and Argos against the Spartans, with the alliance backed by the remnants of the Achaemenid Empire. At the Battle of Nemea, the Spartans defeat the Athenians. They then turn their attention to the Thebans, and are victorious at the Battle of Coronea. However, as Agesilaus celebrates, he is approached by a soldier who informs him that although they have won, the army has been decimated. Agesilaus vows to continue the policy of Spartan aggression, stating that if he must, he will enlist women, children, and the elderly, but Cleombrotus reminds him that the Spartan treasury is empty. As Agesilaus rages, Cleombrotus points out that Sparta's time as the most dominant power in the Eastern Mediterranean may have reached its natural conclusion.
