The carbon-steel horseshoe kicked up shattered ice, and the first cavalry unit of the Ross Army took the lead in charging.

A tall, blond man who didn't even have time to put on his helmet, his golden ponytail showing off in the soft afternoon sun.

And the huge sunglasses worn on the face made the whole person extremely weird.

Of course, for others who have never seen sunglasses, they may feel that this is a black mask.

It was none other than Rurik, the king of Ross, who took the lead in the charge.

"Bow! Shoot!"

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

Holding the bow in the left hand, the right hand immediately draws an arrow from the quiver, aiming at the approximate position of the target and quickly shooting with the bow. Rurik didn't aim clearly, and he shot accurately when riding bumps, which is really difficult for a two-knife cavalry archer like him.

The cavalry lined up in a relatively wide formation, and the front team shot flat and the rear team threw them. The arrows were all placed on the right, just to achieve the crucial three rounds of rapid fire.

Accompanied by a strong swishing sound, a rain of arrows brought the momentum of the cavalry and smashed towards the panicked crowd.

It was a large group of barely armored personnel. They were all men. They were exhausted after long-term action. Due to the lack of food, most of them had no hope for the future, but their tired bodies were driven by the expectation of their hometown. move.

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

It was also the people who refused to participate in the apparently meaningless final fight during the scuffle. They ignored the other companions and ran away under the encouragement of the leader.

However.

"It's from Ross! Let's run."

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

There were exclamations and howls one after another, whether it was powerful people or ordinary peasant soldiers, the arrows of the Ross cavalry treated these guys equally.

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

In any case, it was a group of men in front of them, and a large group of men walked together on the ice with things that looked like spears and swords. Their hair was brown and yellow, and they didn't have any Nordic style marks on their bodies.

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

There is no need to worry about whose arrow hits the air and whose sword completes the kill.

After three rapid rounds of shooting, a group of personnel must have fallen. The wounded were wailing, and those who were not seriously injured didn't bother to draw their arrows, and staggered away clutching the wounded.

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

Behind the First Cavalry Squad was a larger group of cavalry. Under the absolute superiority of troops, the battle quickly turned into a siege and autumn hunt.

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

The horse knocked people down, and the steel sword stabbed mercilessly.

The soldiers implemented the cavalry combat regulations set by Rurik. Based on the special design of weapons, the sword bearer did not chop but stab.

Perhaps it would be more appropriate to equip cavalry with bent sabers. However, cavalry warriors may transform into sword and shield fighters, and when necessary, they can sit in a long boat with large oars and cruise in the sea.

Ross steel sword is more suitable for stabbing, it is recommended to be hard and flexible, and it will be a terrifying blood hole when it stabs the enemy.

Soon, all the people who remained on the frozen riverside and outside the forest were killed by the cavalry, and the battle at this position ended in a very short time. Rurik glanced briefly, believing that his men had almost nothing to lose.

Fisk drained the blood off his sword, and rode his horse towards the king who was staying on the battlefield: "My lord, there are still many enemies fleeing into the forest, shall we pursue them?"

"No. Just stay here. Give others a chance to kill the enemy." Saying this, Rurik looked at the snow-covered pine forest.

"Okay. So..." Fisk sighed a little: "We still don't know the identity of this group of people. Don't end up killing the wrong people."

"It doesn't matter. It doesn't matter if you make a 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 kill them all."

Rurik glanced at him again: "Fisk, ask your people to check on the spot, find the wounded who are still alive, and ask them as much as possible."

"Okay, I'll do it."

Those who fled into the forest at the first time, the snow under the forest hindered their actions, and naturally it also hindered the pursuit of the cavalry.

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

Forced to sleep in the open and dig holes in the snow, many people couldn't sleep. After waking up, people shivered and got up, ate some dry food and continued on their journey. They were so weak that they didn't have much strength to escape.

The war horses marched across the snow, and the Ross cavalry shot at will with bows in high positions.

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

Since it was an encounter, Rurik did not give the order to "keep alive" before the battle, and the four standing cavalry units tacitly wanted to kill them.

So those young cavalry fighters finally no longer need to brag to their friends when they are young. Who is the real warrior? Let's talk about combat performance.

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

Even fighting like this is a one-sided killing, and some young people finally have experience in killing the enemy.

What does it feel like to kill someone?

No guilt, but extremely mixed feelings. Excitement, ecstasy, madness, only the fear and awe of death are missing.

On the contrary, the Pechenegs, at the request of the steppe princess and the Countess of Demyansk, Beyahir, decisively took out the ropes for the horses, caught some panicked enemies, controlled them and kept dragging them To the open land outside the forest.

The Ross cavalry who were still in the forest dismounted one after another, and those young warriors who hadn't eaten meat drew out their swords one after another, and stabbed at the wounded enemy.

Some soldiers suddenly became extremely cautious, which seemed cowardly to their colleagues.

"Idiot! You are a warrior but dare not kill?!" Provoked by his brother's words, the steel sword pierced the injured enemy's throat. Now, the young cavalry warrior can announce to everyone: I have completed the first kill.

The two newly promoted banner captains kept yelling in the forest: "You cut off the enemy's ears! This is a certificate, and I will bring it to the king to claim credit! You should act quickly, and don't be preempted by Brody and the others."

Rurik did not establish a "head system", but every soldier of the standing army received a bonus for killing an enemy. How to prove "I killed the enemy" is to cut off the enemy's head and bring it back, but it is really cumbersome to fight with a Gada that weighs ten catties.

The head is just a certificate to prove the killing of the enemy, and the ears are the same, the premise is to hand over the left and right pair of ears.

Thus, an ear-cutting contest was held in the forest, and they had to move fast, after all, a pair of ears was worth fifty silver coins, or equivalent to five hundred pounds of wheat. As for the reason for the bonus of this value, it is because the price of slaves in Sweden was at this price, and it was also the wages of mercenaries working for the master for half a year.

Since the bonus needs a standard of measurement, Rurik took it for granted. 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 bonus amount.

Rurik was just outside the forest, and soon some of his subordinates came out of the forest to report to him.

"My lord, they didn't take prisoners, but... were busy cutting off their ears."

"Credit? All right!" Rurik waved his hand, telling the subordinates who reported the message to step back first.

The brothers of the 1st Cavalry have not cut off the ears of the enemy's head, because the brothers want to see the attitude of the flag captain Fisk, and Fisk doesn't bother. Everyone bestows death on all the dying people, and confiscating the leftover weapons is considered disregarded.

They have their own glory! After all, is it the heroic unit that fought against the Frankish heavy cavalry, and is still blackmailing the city of Cologne?

a sum. They have eaten and seen it, and the spoils of battles in the past are enough to make their families rich, so they don't look down on the reward of a mere half-pound silver coin.

Soon, a small group of captives were escorted and approached Rurik among the screaming chant of the steppe cavalry.

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

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

With a smile, Beyahir put her feet on the horse's belly, and the war horse led her towards her man Rurik.

"I caught some prisoners for you. Hey, your cavalry is busy killing people, and I will give you these gifts. You go and ask questions, and it's up to you when you're done."

Rurik didn't doubt that Bejacir behaved like this. Obviously, she has restored the inherent demeanor of a female steppe warrior.

Rose needs such a combative female nobleman, and the existence of the Beja Hill family can also hedge against the relatives of the White Tree Manor.

Subjectively, Rurik also does not want Queen Svetlana's natal family to dominate in the future.

"Okay! This king's gift from you. Ask your men to bring the captives here, and I will interrogate them myself."

So under the coercion of the saber, more than twenty prisoners of war approached Rurik with complicated emotions, kicked the calves of the masked steppe warrior who was dismounted, and forced the group of people to kneel down.

Rurik stared at the group of guys from an absolute bird's-eye view.

Some people trembled, some closed their eyes as if they were accepting their fate, and some even glanced at themselves in embarrassment, as if begging for mercy.

These people are unkempt like roosters who have lost a fight.

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

The kneeling people obviously had emotional fluctuations, as if they understood.

"Smolensk? Krivichs from Smolensk? Tell me your identities, if you are! I... can exempt you from the death penalty."

As soon as the words fell, the kneeling people raised their heads one after another.

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

"It really is you!"

Although he had already guessed the answer, today he finally saw a living enemy, Rurik subconsciously drew his sword, and the soldiers around him simply pointed their bows at it.

Such deterrence drove all the kneeling people to sit down, and some people dug them down and begged for their lives.

Rurik hastily withdrew his sword, signaling his brothers to remain calm. However, the right hands of the soldiers who drew the bows only relaxed, and the arrows were still hanging. As long as the king gave an order, all arrows would be fired again.

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

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

"It seems that you are also prepared. Tell me!" Rurik asked sharply: "Where is your boss Vadim? Where is it? What did you do when you went to Polotsk? Why are you here now? Where are your companions?"

A series of questions these prisoners of war could not answer one by one.

The prisoners of war did not dare to talk extravagantly about the conditions. They hoped that the Russians would spare their lives, and simply explained what happened in the past few days.

Especially focusing on the fiasco two days ago...

Now, everything is right! Especially the burning red sky in the west, it turned out that it was the proof of the Great War.

It's just that Rurik never expected that the Vitebsk fortress defenders' request for help from two directions was not only true, but he once thought that the army he led was the only strong army, but he didn't expect that the Ross army coming from the direction of the Gulf of Riga would take the lead.

"Reinforcements from the Gulf of Riga? I don't have any troops there? Could it be that the local Danes are 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 it for a while, but Fisk, who was watching the fun, suddenly interjected and said, "My lord, maybe it's our pirate brother?"

"Sput? Maybe it's him! Oh, I'll forget if you don't tell me

up. "

Saaremaa Island is indeed the way of pirates. It is a place of exile for expelled criminals from various tribes. All crouching dragons and phoenixes join in the grand feat here.

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

Rurik heard the prisoners' reports more and more interesting. Since more prisoners stood up to explain what happened to them, it was impossible for them to lie collectively. The summarization of each other's statements seemed to describe a chaotic battle that took place two full days ago. .

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

Most of those reinforcements were still in Polotsk.

So the question is, where the **** is Vadim? Did he die in the chaos just now? !

"Where is your leader? Where is Vadim? You guys! 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?"

One head after another couldn't help shaking his head.

"Idiot!" Fisk yelled, "This is the King of Ross, so hurry up and bow down to King Ross!"

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

Ordinary farmers in Smolensk were not ignorant of the north. They were full of fear of Ross. As farmers, they were naturally war-weary. Anyway, the Ross people attacked remote villages in the west, and their family lived in the east. Agricultural life is the most resistant to variables. They are unwilling to fight, but they are either indebted to the manor owner or forced to go to the battlefield by armed men.

Whether a prisoner of war is of peasant origin can be accurately judged by paying attention to whether there are obvious calluses on his hands.

"Tell me, where is Vadim. This king wants to kill him with his own hands! Who can lead our army to find this man, and give him freedom! Silver coins! Land! Anyone who knows, stand up for me!"

As soon as the words fell, I saw that more than 20 people jumped up.

They are yelling "I know" like crazy, when 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 a long time ago. Based on the instinct of huddling together to keep warm in the ice and snow, the two parties got together and survived the night. The two sides naturally scolded each other. Among the first movers were a group of nephews of the village chiefs. They were the ones who led their troops to flee to preserve their strength when the battle was difficult.

Vadim called them cowards, and they called Vadim a fool.

They were almost facing each other due to internal strife, but both sides were extremely weak and pessimistic. The only thing 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 met Vadim. That man is no longer our leader! He is not qualified. He didn't freeze to death, maybe God didn't 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 the interrogation.

He casually said a word to the prisoners: "If our army captures or kills Vadim, more than twenty of you will live. This king guarantees his honor!"

He gave Beya Hill another order, since she and the prairie brothers captured the prisoners of war, the bonus for buying the prisoners of war is indispensable, and because of the temporary promise, the life safety of the prisoners of war should be protected by the prairie cavalry, even Take special care to protect their ears to avoid disappearing.

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

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, glory to me!"

With a cry, Rurik rushed out again. Fisk swiftly summoned his subordinates, and the First Cavalry Squad, which had been wandering back on the ice, charged away according to the approximate location provided by the captives.

Then came the moment of fate.

Vadim is here!

Set off to the extreme four thousand troops, doing blood-stained sacrifices for the battle!

Now, there are only more than a hundred capable fighters around 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 ~www.mtlnovel.com~ with limited food and guys walking on the ice.

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

Suddenly, a group of black shadows appeared!

There is also a distinct blue-white tinge in the black shadows.

who are they? ! He was from Ross again? Or Ross cavalry? !

When the soldiers fled in a hurry, Vadim smiled relievedly in front of the cavalry rushing towards them.

Bale suddenly cheered up and roared: "No chaos! Take your spears and meet 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...