Three messengers are galloping north with ten horses. Carl Eriksson and his two buddies shuttled through the gaps in the forest.

They talked very little along the way, they used the small lake by the forest as a reference, and went straight to the lake at the source of the Lovati River.

At the moment when there is no snowfall, they can easily reach the lake along the route they have figured out, but the weather is getting colder every day. Once the heavy snow is covered, can the reinforcements to rescue Vitebsk arrive smoothly?

There are so many lakes in this area, and the three of Karl frequently changed their horses, so they followed the east side of the lake group all the way north, and correctly found the upper reaches of the Lovati River.

It has been running wildly for three consecutive days, with only a short rest in the middle, and both the man and the horse are enduring great pressure.

Even though they have genuine Turkic grassland horses, they are not Mongolian cavalry at all. They have been running wildly until now, facing the quietly flowing Lovati River and staring at the clear water, they seem to have seen their home.

For the time being, light a bonfire by the river, and then cut down some small branches to build a shack. The exhausted three unloaded the pottery urn and boiled wheat on the spot, and also fed the hard-working horses.

"I don't know what's going on at the fort." The quiet man curled up, facing the bonfire and couldn't help worrying.

"The gods will bless them. We... still have to bring the news to Great Luki as soon as possible. Let's rest here for a good night, eat well and make the final sprint tomorrow." Carl cheered for the other two, and he also said that listen to yourself.

It's a pity that he didn't participate in the defense of the city. He estimated that the defense of Vitebsk was already in full swing. Those brothers were blood sacrifices to Odin, and he actually... But this night was not peaceful.

The north wind kept blowing, and the three people's shed next to the woods was overturned. In the cold night, the three of them were so cold that they didn't care about maintaining the temporary camp, but tried their best to protect their horses.

They had no choice but to walk a little deeper into the forest in the dark, tie the horse by the big tree, and the three of them curled up together and wrapped themselves in blankets until daytime.

"Damn it. Sneeze!" After a loud sneeze, the day really came. Carl patted his two companions: "It's time to get up, let's continue walking."

"Oh, I was thinking of getting a good night's sleep, but tonight is worse than sleeping in the open."

"That's right." The other brother resentfully said, "Look at the **** weather, I'm afraid it's going to snow soon. The north wind keeps blowing, and we can't even light a fire in the open. Do we have to continue eating dry food?"

"Stop complaining. We'll have a good meal when we get to Big Lucky, and besides...we have no right to complain." After that, Karl quickly got up and put his hands back the blanket, bouncing vigorously to warm himself up, and said: "Everyone Don't dawdle, untie the reins and let's go now?" After all, he had reached the main channel of the Lovati River, and Karl-Ericson simply ignored the camp that was damaged by the wind. No more take away.

They marched lightly, because there was only one day's journey away from the destination of Great Lucki, and even most of the load could be discarded. The three of them no longer cherished horsepower, and ten horses started the final sprint.

At the same time, the city of Great Lukee is peaceful... It is a cold morning, and the north wind is still sweeping across the Reach.

Compared with the city half a year ago, the number of settlers in this city is already much less, especially the hard-working First Banner Team has completed the task of assisting in combat, the Banner Captain

"Bald" Fisk has withdrawn further north to Novgorod to report to King Rurik. It stands to reason that Duchess Carlota should also ride her horse back to her new city of Ostara on the south bank of Lake Ilmen for the winter.

She didn't do that. In fact, because the Principality of Ostara is not what it used to be, she has completely annexed Polotsk. In a sense, it is more appropriate to call it the Principality of OstarPolotsk.

As a de jure vassal state of the Kingdom of Ross, the Principality was granted the right to expand freely in the south, but the strength of the Principality was limited.

Novostara, Veliky Luki, Vitebsk, and Novopolotsk, the four cities of the principality are small outposts in the sense of post stations rising along the river. Although the settlements are adjacent to the traffic line, the distance between each other The distance is so large that the principality's forces have been greatly diluted.

The point is that the Vitebsk fortress must be strengthened, and the newly conquered Polotsk also needs to be guarded by the fortress erected there.

Poor Aostara Principality has less than a thousand men and women who can afford weapons. The Principality seems to be very powerful, but it is leaking everywhere.

Carlota is not satisfied with the status quo of the principality, relying on her husband Rurik as a strong backing, she is willing to gamble with the country's fortune.

In the final analysis, I was expanding the territory for Rurik and representing it to build a more complete inland river transportation line in the south of the kingdom.

At the same time, he also faced the military pressure of the Smolensk community and shared the worries of the kingdom. In the Duchess' Grand Lucky Palace, Carlotta changed into a white bear fur coat and sat cross-legged.

Her long blond hair was deliberately stretched into a ponytail, not to show femininity, but to emulate King Rurik.

Beside her sat two children, a boy and a girl. Karryurixson, and Polotsk girl Sorkina Kalodot.

For the time being, Solkina appears as Carlotta's adopted daughter,

"Calodotte" is exactly the so-called

"Daughter of Carlotta", she can no longer continue to use her biological father's name as her father's name to call herself. Is it really necessary to struggle with vocabulary in this area?

Carlotta felt that it was very necessary. It was precisely because of her name that the relatively quiet-looking Solkina was qualified to put on a gorgeous costume, wear a jeweled gold necklace, and sit here as the top female nobleman in the kingdom.

"Are the horses in pens? How about the cattle and sheep?" Carlota faced the half-kneeling subordinates who were reporting their duties.

"Yes. It was done overnight as you ordered."

"Very good. The weather is changing, and I'm afraid it will snow within three days. Today we must hurry up and collect some forage."

"Obey. The subordinates will organize the brothers to do what you have told them."

"Loyalty is rewarding. But I will personally lead you to do this well, and I want to see for myself that this city can face the cold winter." Carlota rubbed her fists and said a few words to her son and daughter.

Only because she was not old enough, Solkina existed as Karl's sister, and this embarrassing situation will soon end, and the two will get married in four years at the latest.

Even then, Carlotta was willing to surrender the title of duke to her son, thereby fulfilling her promise to the Australians, living and dead, and their traditional allies, the Gran.

On this day, she inspected the hay raking operation, supervised the wharf tow the boats to the shore and fixed them, inspected the stables, cattle sheds and sheepfolds, inspected the city walls, and inspected the city granaries.

At this moment, there are only more than 300 settlers in Daluki City, including some residents. They are farmers from Slavic farms in the north, and some of them are farmers who have listened to the Duchess' call and dragged their families to become Daluki. , some simply come here for winter hunting.

People perform their duties quietly waiting for this year's comprehensive snowfall. As for Carlotta, he will not leave Great Luki for the time being. If there is no accident, she will return to the northern city of Ostara with some personnel when the river freezes and is about to light up.

The mutation happened this afternoon! A small team of cavalry galloped along the river from south to north. Obviously seeing the city wall, they deliberately showed two flagsthe Ross flag with blue stripes on a white background, and the Ostara flag with an abstract bull's head coat of arms.

What's more, the three of them installed purely decorative horns on their respective iron helmets. The identities of the visitors are clear, but they are the Australian cavalry.

Companions galloping from the south? ! The young people who were still raking grass on the banks of the Lovati River outside the city couldn't help but stare at the returnees. The patrolling soldiers hurriedly dispatched to stop the galloping horse team led by the leader, and recognized the leading man at a glance.

"It's you?! Carl Eriksson? Didn't you get arranged by me in Vitebsk?!"

"Dangerous. Very dangerous." Karl shouted hoarsely: "It's war! The Smolensk people are attacking Vitebsk! I want to see the Duke!"

"Ah?! What did you say? War?"

"Brother! You! Regenford. I want to see the Duke immediately."

"Okay! I'll lead you there." After that, Regenford, who was on duty, ignored his buddy for the time being, and quickly climbed on a horse and rushed directly into the city of Great Lucki.

At this moment, Carlota has just finished her inspection. She is quite satisfied with the status quo of the city, but she feels that the fly in the ointment is that the situation of the city is much less due to her resolute expansion.

"Should I still ask for more people from Rurik? Or I will migrate some people from Polotsk to settle here. Big Luki is a very good place after all." She thought very well and looked forward to today An evening comfort meal.

As a duchess, it is unrealistic to have a lot of fish and meat. The daily meal is oatmeal stewed with milk. After adding some honey and dried fruits, it looks more advanced than civilian meals.

It is fair to say that the current food is much better than her childhood memory, and even the current Ostara is not a human being, and basically only a famous name is left.

She plans to go to bed early tonight, and has no intention of disturbing the two children's games. She knew that her little Karl planned to train Solkina to be a female warrior, so that she could be regarded as a good playmate at this stage and worthy of the status of the future duchess.

The game in the north is full of barbarism, so Solkina had to pick up a wooden sword to make gestures with her fianc, and was forced to practice archery.

Today's Carlotta is more like a male nobleman. Facing the dancing oil lamp and listening to the children in another room full of violent catharsis, he couldn't help stroking his beardless chin and smiling bitterly.

"I'm still a woman after all." The world was in a haze, and the absence of the setting sun made the already shortened daylight even shorter.

The soldiers on duty in the palace hurriedly reported the news, and their words could not conceal the panic in their hearts: "My lord, the envoy from Vitebsk has a big event! Report the big event!"

"What's the matter? I didn't ask Vitebsk to report now. Who is the messenger?"

"It's Carl Eriksson."

"Him? Why is he here? Waiting outside?"

"yes."

"Let him in!" After all, Karl Eriksson is an extremely rare old Ostaran, even though he was a young child who just remembered when the remnants fled.

The remnants of the family and the descendants of the traditional vassal Grans, because of the small number of these people, Carlotta can not only remember them all, but also naturally appoint them as the principality elite.

Of course, these people bathed in warrior culture despise being cowards. As a purely militarized feudal state, the Principality of Aostara urgently needs such talents. When they grow up, they are indeed not cowardly.

Finally arrived in Greater Luke before dark, Carl Eriksson and his two buddies, who hadn't eaten all day, didn't care about satisfying their hunger.

They unloaded their self-defense weapons and entered the palace lightly, and the Duchess lay down limply.

"You..." Carlotta was taken aback seeing their staggering appearance: "Vitebsk? Did something happen?! Karl, face me."

"Yes! My lord. Our fortress...is..."

"Speak slowly." Carl calmed down a little, but mentioned another matter: "My lord, do you still remember the Pine Needle Manor back then?"

"Pine Needle Manor?! It? Isn't it the current Mstisk."

"Yes. Vadim, who escaped, appeared. Although I don't know why, this person is now the leader of Smolensk."

"I've heard a little bit about this matter. What does it have to do with my fortress? No!" Carlota slapped her thigh and became aroused, then raised her head and stared angrily: "Could you tell me, that Vaj Raise an army against our Vitebsk?"

"Your Excellency is wise! And the war has broken out. I know I have nothing to prove, and I still have a letter from Jellinger."

"There is such a thing? Hurry up and bring the letter." The letter was engraved on the wooden board in traditional runes, and the content was extremely simple but deafening.

Carlotta, who threw down the board, couldn't help but twitched herself: "I was careless. God! I'm just a mortal, how could I have thought that that villain would raise his troops in winter? Is that Vadim a lunatic?" The fierce words and sighs really attracted the two children who came to play.

Carlota simply pulled her son Karl to face another big Karl together.

"Go ahead. Tell me the truth as you know it, I can take it," she urged.

"Yes." So, Carl Eriksson explained everything he had experienced in the first battle of the Vitebsk fortress, especially the information he got from the prisoners of war.

It is true that Vadim, the leader of Smolensk, launched the Winter War. The captives will never slander their leader. This Vadim is clearly from the north.

"Prince of the Lost", the purpose of the war is to take the villagers who were slaughtered and attacked by the Ross people to launch a counterattack.

The real Russian cavalry, Ostara cavalry, Kiev horsemen, and steppe visitors, because everyone has attacked Smolensk, often carry the Russian flag, and are generally marked by the other party as

"Ross Bandit" fits the bill. Carlotta would not sympathize with the Smolensk people's experience, and did not repent for his connivance of the looting behavior of his subordinates, but admitted that the other party was qualified for revenge.

After all, if you think about it differently, you will also find a way to get revenge. However, the opinion that the Smolensk mercenaries are not some great nobleman's own opinion is really a general trend-the Smolensk community is not an ally but blocks the communication line and must be attacked.

As for what the Ilmen Lake Slavs in the north have long been afraid of, the so-called Krivich residents of Smolensk decided to establish a country on their own, and they have openly tried to annex the north. Carlotta never cared about it, she guessed Rurik didn't particularly take this matter to heart either.

In the past ten years, Ross has been going his own way. After planning to attack a certain ethnic group, he found a grandiose reason and then sent troops.

It has been the third year that the Kingdom of Ross has maintained a high-pressure attitude towards Smolensk. One of the main purposes of the southward expansion of the Principality of Ostara is to create a war buffer zone and then a forward base for the invasion of Smolensk.

The enemy's counterattack was naturally within Carlotta's expectation. It's just that she didn't expect two things. One was that the opponent bravely attacked in winter, and the other was that Vadim, who must be killed, led the attack himself.

In fact, Carlotta didn't really believe the information the messenger got. What does it mean that the enemy has 5,000 troops and 500 cavalry?

What nonsense! But after thinking about it, it is not possible to compare the inferior tribal army with the standards and speculations of the Ross coalition army.

What is an infantryman? Give a tribal warrior dressed in buckskin or boar skin a short spear, and this is considered a soldier.

An army of 5,000 is probably 5,000 armed peasants. UU Reading www.uukanshu.com It is possible that some prisoners of war are exaggerating, but the most important information is nothing else. It was Vadim himself who showed up openly and launched a war against the Kingdom of Ross with strong means when he first appeared.

She deeply felt that everything was right by Rurikthe Vitebsk stronghold you built privately is too far ahead, if there is a big war, the battlefield must be there.

Even the term Vitebsk was obtained by Rurik. At first, she was very happy that Rurik admitted his additional claim of southern expansion, so what now?

Karl Eriksson asked. Carlota responded decisively: "Reinforcement is necessary! However, our army has been dispersed, and the Great Luki garrison is not enough to complete the support on its own. Now I have to go to Novgorod to ask the king to send troops, and the Russian cavalry will solve the problem. Problem. Now that the weather has been ignored, Carlota even imagined Danurik and old Otto, who was old but still alive, and their expressions when they learned that Vadim, who had fled, had raised a large army to attack.

Thinking about how once they learned that Vadim boasted that he would conquer the entire Ilmen lake area and Novgorod...

"Father... I'm afraid you will regret that you were merciful and didn't kick that kid to death." She thought to herself.