Rise of Rurik

The carbon steel horseshoes stirred up broken ice, and the First Cavalry of the Ross Army took the lead in charging.

A tall blond man, he didn't even have time to put on his helmet, and the beauty of his golden ponytail was fully displayed in the soft afternoon sunlight.

The huge sunglasses worn on the face make the whole person extremely weird.

Of course, others who have never seen sunglasses may think they are a black mask.

Leading the charge was none other than King Rurik himself.

"Lock your bow! Shoot!"

He took the lead in speaking, and the attacking brothers quickly entered a fighting state.

Hold the bow in your left hand, draw an arrow from the quiver with your right hand, aim at the approximate location of the target and quickly shoot the bow. Rurik did not take clear aim, but shot accurately during the bumps while riding. It was really difficult for a two-blade mounted archer like him.

The cavalry formed a relatively wide formation, with the front team shooting flatly and the back team throwing arrows, with their arrows set on the right side, just to achieve the critical three rounds of rapid fire.

Accompanied by a strong whooshing sound, a hail of arrows struck the panicked crowd with the momentum of the cavalry.

It was a large group of people with few armors. They were all men. People were exhausted from long-term action. Due to the scarcity of food, most people had no hope for the future. It was just the expectation for their hometown that drove their tired bodies. move.

They were none other than part of the defeated Smolensk Army.

They were also the people who refused to participate in the last apparently meaningless fight during the melee. They ignored their other companions and ran away at the instigation of the leader.

However.

"It's actually Rus! Let's run."

"Damn it! Bad luck. Where did they come from?"

…

Exclamations and wails came one after another. Whether they were powerful people or ordinary peasant soldiers, the arrows of the Ross cavalry treated these guys equally.

Even when the cavalry almost charged in face to face, Rurik still didn't know their identities, and of course there was no need to know.

In any case, the people in front of them were a group of men, and a large group of men were walking together on the ice with things that looked like spears and swords. Their hair was all brown, and they didn't have any Nordic-style markings on their bodies.

Rurik and the guys are sure of at least one thing - they are not our friends anyway.

There is no need to worry about whose arrow missed and whose sword completed the kill.

After three rapid rounds of shooting, a group of people must have fallen. The wounded were wailing, and those who were not seriously injured did not bother to pull out the arrows, but staggered away holding the wounded.

They see escaping into the forest as their only way out, but...

Behind the First Cavalry was a larger cavalry group. With the absolute advantage in strength, the battle quickly evolved into a hunt.

Putting the bow back into its leather bag, Rurik pulled out the steel sword inserted on the left side of the saddle, and charged into the crowd with his warriors.

War horses knocked people down and steel swords stabbed them mercilessly.

The soldiers implemented the cavalry combat regulations set by Rurik. Based on the specially made weapons, the sword holders did not slash but only stab.

Perhaps it would be more appropriate to equip the cavalry with curved sabers. However, cavalry warriors can transform into sword and shield bearers. When necessary, they can sit in a long boat and operate a large oar and swim in the sea.

The Rose Steel Sword is more suitable for thrusting. It has a hard and elastic blade, and it will create a terrifying blood hole when it hits the enemy.

Soon, all the people who remained on the frozen river bank and outside the forest were killed by the cavalry. The battle at this location ended in a very short time. Rurik took a brief glance and believed that his own people had almost no losses.

Fisk drained the blood from his sword and rode his horse to approach the king who was staying on the battlefield: "King. There are still many enemies fleeing into the forest. Shall we pursue them?"

"No need. Just stay here. Give others a chance to kill the enemy." As he said that, Rurik looked at the snow-covered pine forest.

"Okay. So..." Fisk sighed slightly: "We still don't know the identities of this group of people. Don't let us kill the wrong people in the end."

"It doesn't matter. It doesn't matter if you kill me by mistake, we are the strongest in this world. Besides,

, this group of people must have something to do with Smolensk. "

"I hope so. I hope... the other brothers don't have to kill them all."

Rurik looked at him again: "Fisk, let your people check the spot, find the injured who are not dead, and ask questions as much as possible."

"Okay, I'll do it right now."

For those who fled into the forest immediately, the snow under the forest hindered their movements, which would naturally also hinder the pursuit of the cavalry.

However, they were hungry and walked on the ice, and some people froze to death in the past night.

Forced to sleep outdoors in the snow, digging holes and sleeping, many people could not sleep. After waking up, they got up shivering, ate some dry food, and continued on their journey. They were so weak that they didn't have much energy to escape.

The horses advanced across the snow, and the Ross cavalry stood in a high position and shot at will with their bows.

The cavalry who entered the forest quickly completed the outflanking and forced the fugitives to flee out of the forest. In the process, more people were shot and killed one after another.

Since it was an encounter, Rurik did not issue an order to "keep alive" before the battle, so the four standing cavalry units implicitly agreed to kill him.

So the new cavalry warriors, young ones, finally no longer have to brag to their friends. Who is the real warrior? Let’s talk about combat performance.

They fired arrows at the enemy, regardless of whether they hit or not, which meant that they officially participated in combat for the first time.

Even so, the battle was simply a one-sided killing, and some young people finally gained experience in killing the enemy.

What does it feel like to kill someone?

There is no guilt and the feelings are extremely mixed. Excitement, ecstasy, madness, except the fear and awe of death.

On the other hand, the Pechenegs, at the request of the Steppe Princess and Countess Beyashil of Demyansk, decisively took out the ropes to tie up the horses, lassoed some panicked enemies, controlled them and kept dragging them. We arrived at an open area outside the forest.

The Ross cavalrymen who were still in the forest dismounted one after another, and the young warriors who had not eaten anything drew their swords and stabbed at the injured enemy.

Some soldiers suddenly became extremely cautious, which looked like cowardice to their colleagues.

"Idiot! You are a soldier but you don't dare to kill?!" After being stimulated by his brother's words, the steel sword stabbed the wounded enemy in the throat. Now, the young cavalry soldier can announce to everyone: I have completed my first kill.

The two newly promoted flag captains kept shouting in the forest: "You cut off the enemy's ears! This is a certificate, bring it to the king to claim credit! You move quickly, don't let Brody and the others get ahead of you."

Rurik did not establish a "head system", but every standing army soldier who killed an enemy received a bonus. How to prove "I killed the enemy" is one way to cut off the enemy's head and bring it back, but fighting with a gada weighing ten kilograms is really cumbersome.

The head is just a certificate to prove that you have killed the enemy, and it will work just as well if you replace it with ears. The premise is that you have to hand over a pair of ears.

As a result, an ear-cutting competition started in the forest. They had to act quickly. After all, a pair of ears was worth fifty silver coins, or the equivalent of five hundred pounds of wheat. As for why the bonus is this amount, it is actually because the selling price of slaves in Sweden was this price, and it was also the salary of a mercenary working for the master for half a year.

Since the bonus needs a measurement standard, Rurik decided it as a matter of course. As for whether the bonus amount will be increased in the future, it will be discussed later.

At least judging from the current performance of the brothers, everyone is very satisfied with the amount of bonuses.

Rurik was outside the forest, and soon his subordinates quickly walked out of the forest to report the situation to him.

"Your Majesty, they did not take prisoners, but...were busy cutting off the ears."

"Take credit? Okay!" Rurik waved his hand and told the subordinates who reported the news to leave first.

The brothers of the 1st Cavalry have not cut off the enemy's ears until now, because the brothers want to see the attitude of flag captain Fisk, and Fisk doesn't even bother. Everyone sent all the dying people to death and confiscated the weapons left behind.

They have their own glory! After all, they were the heroic troops who fought against the Frankish heavy cavalry and were still blackmailing them under the city walls of Cologne.

One stroke. They had seen it before. The spoils of war in the past were enough to make their families rich, but they looked down upon the reward of a mere half pound of silver coins.

Soon, a small group of prisoners were escorted towards Rurik amid the howls of the steppe cavalry.

Taking off his sunglasses, Rurik saw a group of cavalry wearing iron masks.

A rider with an obviously short stature slowly took off the iron mask with a beard carved on it, revealing a woman's face.

With a smile on her face, Beyathil pressed her feet into the horse's belly, and the horse took her closer to her man Rurik.

"I've captured some prisoners for you. Hey, your cavalry is busy killing people, and I'll give you these gifts. You go and ask them, and after you've finished asking, it's up to you."

Rurik had no doubts that Beyasier behaved like this, and it was obvious that she had restored the inherent charm of the female warrior of the prairie.

Ross needs such a female noble who is good at fighting, and the existence of Beyathil's family can also act as a hedge against the relatives of White Tree Manor.

Rurik subjectively did not want Queen Svetlana's family to dominate in the future.

"Okay! This is your gift from my men. Have your people escort the prisoners over, and I will interrogate them myself."

So under the coercion of the saber, more than 20 prisoners of war approached Rurik with complicated emotions. The masked steppe warrior who was dismounted kicked the calves hard, forcing all of them to kneel down.

Rurik stared at these guys from an absolute bird's eye view.

Some people were shivering, some closed their eyes as if they were resigned to death, and some even glanced at themselves in embarrassment, as if begging for mercy.

These people were unkempt and looked like defeated roosters.

"Who...are you?!" Rurik asked directly in Slavic, and naturally his words were filled with the Slavic accent of Mrs. Yilmen.

The people kneeling on the ground clearly had emotional fluctuations, as if they understood.

"Smolensk? Krivich people from Smolensk? Tell me your identity, if so! I... can exempt you from the death penalty."

As soon as he finished speaking, those kneeling on the ground raised their heads.

A brave man trembled and hurried back: "Yes. We...we are Smolensk people."

"It's really you!"

Although he had already estimated the answer, he finally saw a living enemy today. Rurik subconsciously drew his sword, and the soldiers around him simply took aim with their bows.

Such intimidation caused all those who were kneeling to sit down in shock, and some even dug themselves down to beg for their lives.

Rurik quickly took back his sword and signaled his brothers to stay calm. However, the right hands of the soldiers who drew the bows only relaxed, and the arrows were still nocked. As soon as the king gave the order, thousands of arrows were fired again.

"You...do you know who we are?!"

"Ross. Is it Ross?!" The kneeling man lowered his head and muttered.

"It seems that you are here well prepared. Tell me!" Rurik asked sharply: "Where is your boss Vadim? Where is he? What did you do in Polotsk? Why are you here now? Where are your companions?"

There was a series of questions that these prisoners of war could not answer one by one.

The prisoners of war did not dare to negotiate terms. They hoped that the Russians would be noble and spare their lives, so they simply explained what happened in the past few days.

Especially focusing on the disastrous defeat two days ago...

Now, everything is right! Especially the red-hot sky in the west, it turned out to be proof of the war.

It was just that Rurik never expected that the Vitebsk Fortress defenders' requests for help from two directions were not only true. He once thought that the army he led was the only strong army, but he did not expect that the Russian army coming from the direction of the Gulf of Riga would get there first.

"Reinforcements from the Gulf of Riga? I don't have any troops stationed there? Are the local Danes fighting with the Ross flag high? Impossible, those Danes are not as good at using bows and arrows as my army."

Rurik pinched his beard and couldn't understand for a moment, but Fisk, who was watching the fun, suddenly interrupted and said: "Your Majesty, maybe he is our pirate brother?"

"Spuyut? Maybe it's him! Oh, I'd forget if you didn't tell me

. "

The island of Saaremaa is indeed the way of pirates. It is a place of exile for expelled criminals from various tribes. All the dragons and phoenixes from all walks of life work together here to participate in the grand event. After being recruited, they will eventually become a strong army, but there is basically no extravagant expectation in terms of discipline.

It can be said that this group of guys can become an organized rogue group under the leadership of Spuyut. It is this kind of personnel that the Ross Army also needs when necessary, such as the current scene.

Rurik heard the prisoners' reports becoming more and more interesting. As more prisoners stood up to explain their experiences, it was impossible for them to lie collectively. Together, each other's statements seemed to describe a chaotic battle that took place two full days ago. .

In short, the unnamed Russian reinforcements from the lower reaches of the West Dvina River appeared, causing Vadim's army, which was once close to victory, to collapse.

Most of those reinforcements are still in Polotsk.

So the question is, where is the damn Vadim? Could it be that he died in the chaos just now? !

"Where is your leader? Where is Vadim? You! Tell me the whereabouts of your boss. Not only will you not have to die, but you will also be rewarded by me for your meritorious service."

Hearing this, the soldiers were cheered up.

"Do you know who it is?"

Each head couldn't help but shake its head.

"Idiot!" Fisk scolded: "This is the King of Ross. When you see the King of Ross, please kneel down and bow down!"

Originally, this group of people were kneeling, but now they are all kneeling again.

Ordinary farmers in Smolensk are not ignorant of the north. They are full of fear of Ross. As farmers, they are naturally war-weary. Anyway, the Ross attacks only remote villages in the west, and their families have been living in peace in the east. Agricultural life is the most unpredictable place. They don't want to go to war. However, they are either in debt to the manor owner and cannot help themselves, or they are forced to go to the battlefield by armed men.

Whether a prisoner of war is of peasant origin can be accurately determined by looking at whether there are obvious calluses on his hands.

"Tell me where Vadim is. I will kill him with my own hands! Whoever can lead our army to find this man and grant him freedom! I will reward you with silver coins! I will reward you with land! If you have anyone who knows, please stand up!"

As soon as he finished speaking, more than twenty people jumped up.

They are shouting "I know" like crazy, but in fact they really know.

It turned out that just yesterday, Vadim led the fleeing soldiers to catch up with the people who had fled long ago. Based on the instinct of hugging each other for warmth in the ice and snow, both parties spent the night together. The two sides naturally scolded each other. Among the first movers were the nephews of village leaders. They were the ones who led the troops to escape in order to preserve their strength when the battle was difficult.

Vadim calls them cowards, and they call Vadim a fool.

They almost went to war with each other due to internal strife, but both sides were extremely weak and pessimistic. The only thing they had in common was that they both wanted to go home, even Vadim, who was obviously defeated.

A prisoner of war claimed: "When we set off this morning, I saw Vadim. That man is no longer our leader! He is not qualified. He was not frozen to death. Maybe God did not intend for him to die. We set off first. , Vadim and his followers are still behind..."

Rurik's eyes widened suddenly. There was no need for him to continue interrogating him.

He casually said to the prisoners of war: "If our army captures or kills Vadim, more than twenty of you will live. I will guarantee it with my honor!"

He then gave instructions to Beyah Hill. Since the prisoners of war were captured by her and the brothers on the grassland, the reward for redeeming the prisoners of war was indispensable. Moreover, because of the temporary promise, the lives of the prisoners of war should be protected by the grassland cavalry, and even Pay special attention to their ears to prevent them from disappearing.

Rurik knew that there were still a large number of cavalry in the forest "looking for ears."

He didn't care too much. Since the Smolensk army had been dispersed, he simply summoned the most elite First Cavalry on the spot.

"Brothers! Let's go! Capture Vadim, the glory belongs to me!"

With a shout, Rurik rushed out again. Fisk quickly summoned his men, and the First Cavalry, which had been wandering on the ice, rushed away according to the approximate location provided by the prisoners.

What follows is a fateful moment.

Vadim appears!

Four thousand troops set off to the extreme, and made blood-stained sacrifices for the war!

Now, there are only more than a hundred capable soldiers following him. As for the others, they either fled without a trace or died. In such a bad environment, disappearance and death can be equated.

Vadim basically lost his authority and walked on the ice with his friends with limited food.

His body was very weak, and he lamented that he didn't freeze to death last night. Does this prove that the Vulcan gave him a chance to make a comeback? However, he might have been separated from his relatives, and even if he was lucky enough to return to Smolensk, he would still face the unknown.

Suddenly, a group of black shadows appeared!

There are also distinct blue-white tones in the black shadows.

who are they? ! He's from Russia again? Or Ross Cavalry? !

When the soldiers fled in a hurry, Vadim smiled in relief when facing the charging cavalry.

Then he suddenly cheered up and roared: "No chaos! Pick up your spears and face our final battle! VaSlenska! Vaitagoyo!"

Vadim! At this moment, he wondered why he didn't freeze to death last night.

It turns out that my end is here...