Rise of Rurik

The ten travelers from the Balmerk tribe arrived in Roseburg during the warm summer season, and it was already October.

Do we have to return to our hometown on ice and snow in winter?

Mordegen, the leader of the traveler, encouraged his brothers and friends to cross the mountain with a boat and took huge risks to try to conduct fur trade with the Kewen people, which made him a fortune in his hometown. If it's just the fur trade, this operation has really paid off.

Visiting the homeland of the Ross people is really an adventure on the road of travel.

At the beginning, Mordegen was pleasantly surprised by the hospitality of the Ross people, and even more shocked by the construction of the homeland by the Ross people, and the ambition of the Ross leader.

After completing the trade of exchanging salt for leather, at Rurik's request, they were treated as guests of the leader and were able to live in Roseburg, and the daily living expenses were actually paid by Rurik himself.

They maintain absolute awe at the beginning, knowing that they are an unknown field, and for their own benefit, they must remain cautious.

They did, however, live with the Rus.

"You are not fundamentally different from us."

Modergen is powerful because the Ross people have many large cargo ships, and fishing boats frequently enter and leave the fjords. On sunny days, there will be a group of fishermen who sieve nets on the sandy beach. Shipwrights are building boats in their small workshops, and loggers are always carrying small trees on the winding roads of settlements by themselves...

There are also similar scenes in the Balmok tribe. Everyone's lifestyle is very similar, and there is no communication barrier in the language they speak, so the strangeness at the beginning is quickly disappearing.

"Maybe, we have a common ancestor, and our ancestors also crossed the mountain from here and entered the fjord to the west?"

Until the Ross people began to show some incredible black technologies, especially the casting of molten iron in blast furnaces, mass-produced steel swords, the production of various soaps, and even the manufacture of glassware.

"Ah, we have the same soul, but not really the same. Your way of life is really more beautiful."

Modgen imagined that if he brought a lot of silver coins with him, he should buy some rare things in Roseburg. It should be more compact and easy to transport, and its value is much higher than that of leather. However, I am really poor, and the original purpose of coming over the mountain is to chase wealth.

During his stay in Roseburg, he inquired about the past of many local people,

Even some ancient legends, and even recent heroic stories.

For example, the wise Rurik who was blessed by Odin, the Arik who made the Gotlands fearful, and Otto, the leader of Eastern Novgorod, were conquered.

These three are real heroes, and since he had the most contact with Rurik, Modgen was completely convinced that the child had received the favor of God.

But what about the woman?

Velia, the high priest of the tribe, is said to have lived to be eighty years old! Some Rus people chewed their tongues, saying that Velia had died a long time ago, and someone else had been hiding in the priest's longhouse for a long time. In other words, the aging skin is still Vilia, and the soul inside is already a Valkyrie.

Ordinary people have no right to enter the priest's longhouse. Who knows what it's like inside?

Many people are willing to believe that the gods came to the world, because everyone hopes to be favored by the gods and their lives will be better.

...

Perhaps in September Mordegen should return home with his already restless brothers and the traded hides.

The leader of the Ross people and the huge fleet have not returned yet, and even the familiar Rurik has gone to Mellaren, the core area of ​​their Siya tribal alliance.

"Maybe I need to choose a time to try my luck at the legendary Mälaren tribe. Oh, if I meet other Norsemen there, will they recognize us as Balmerks?" A big dream in Modgen Brewing in his heart, he firmly believed that no one else in the entire tribe could run farther than his expedition team.

If your team can conduct in-depth investigations, then how many treasures you bring back to your hometown will become secondary. Wouldn’t it be a lot of money to sell the information of the expedition to the leader?

Modgen made up his mind that if it snows in October, the team would rather stay in Roseburg and wait until the snow melts next spring to return again. This is what he thinks, but the brothers don't want to stay in the domain of the Ross people.

They were not Rus, after all, or even members of the Swie sub-tribal union.

Are you going to spend Hanukkah in a foreign land? If you can't go back sooner, do people in your hometown feel that the ten brothers have died on the other side of the mountain?

If the people in my hometown really think so, wouldn't their property be divided up by relatives and friends? It really doesn't make sense.

The other brothers made up their minds, saying that after the return of the leader of the Ross people, it is best to meet with him, and then brave the frost to return home forcibly.

Their waiting was not in vain, no, the big leader of Ross returned triumphantly.

When the fleet of Otto's fleet entered the fjord, the raised sails were like a cloud of fog pressing on the sea, a spectacular sight never seen before!

Among the many people standing on the beach watching the victory, Modgen and his party were also present. After witnessing the magnificent fleet, they believed that this was the norm for the Ross people, and couldn't help admiring it even more.

Of course, for ordinary Ross people, what they saw was the largest fleet with the largest tonnage in the history of the tribe.

Finally, they met Otto, a weather-beaten and strong old man. It happened that such an old man had an extremely beautiful and intelligent son.

They were received by Otto and promised an in-depth conversation.

No, the historic, semi-official exchange between the Ross tribe and the Balmerk tribe was finally held at Otto's home!

This was a private meeting, and Otto didn't want to make it too grand, and the only person he invited was Mordgen.

It was already early winter, and the daylight hours were shortening rapidly every day. Since the astronomical autumnal equinox has passed, the length of day is now much shorter than night.

Life for many Russ, with the return of the Sorgon fleet and the absolute cooling of the climate, had entered its usual winter state. They are not "Ice and Snow Warriors", and dare not fish for treasures that can only be obtained in winter, such as a large amount of precious leather. They just want to stay in a warm home like rabbits, relying on the stored food to survive until the ice melts.

The cold cannot break Otto's will, and he feels that there is still a lot of work to be done.

Go to the Oulu River in the east to collect the squirrel leather from the Cowen people, and go to the Ailon Castle in the north to collect the ironware provided by the Iron Squirrel Tribe. Next, after Hanukkah is over, a hunting team will be organized to collect the leather from the unknown.

Since the Balmerks are like people who suddenly emerged from the sea of ​​ice and are separated by a long space, the two sides must have no reason to be hostile. Then, the deal between the two sides must be established and expanded.

In this regard, before the meeting, Otto had already made a self-proclaimed brilliant decision.

The charcoal blocks in the fireplace were burning slowly, the thick wooden door was closed, the warm living room of the leader's house was leaning on the wooden chandelier hanging from the ceiling, and the light from the matrix of bronze oil lamps illuminated the whole room.

Rurik and Otto are here, father and son wanting to talk to Mordgen.

After some courtesy, Otto basically learned the general situation of the Balmerk tribe.

"A huge tribe with a population of maybe 20,000? And everyone speaks the same language as us, are they equivalent to the second Mellaren? We must establish a good relationship with them!" Otto was surprised, Fortunately, the surprise was limited to his heart, and his face was still calm with a little bit of joy.

After listening to Modgen's eloquent introduction, Otto laughed happily for a while: "What a powerful tribe! I don't know you guys."

"Great is the leader, now you know us. You are the masters of the Kewen people, so we have reason to trade with you."

"Deal? Okay! What my son and I want is a deal!" Otto straightened his back and asked knowingly: "Tell me, what goods can you provide? I want to hear your list."

"This..." Has the topic suddenly become a purely commercial negotiation? Modgen was a little excited, but after thinking about it, he worried that this was a temptation from the Ross people.

Yes, the people of Ross have already used "magic magic" to manufacture ironware at an incredible speed. What things can really attract the people of Ross in their own Balmok tribe?

He made some calculations: "There are salt, salted fish, turpentine, and..."

There is nothing special about the items listed.

"Isn't there something we don't have?" Otto deliberately put on a disdainful look, hoping to force out what Mordegen might have hidden in his heart.

"Ah! Chief, don't you like this? But Rurik, he says our salt is very good."

Originally, it was certain that the old man would meet with Ross as the leader and reach some mutually beneficial agreements with these travelers. I discussed it with my father in advance, and both of them wanted to make a friend far away.

Rurik coughed twice: "Your salt is indeed very good, but who in this world can't cook salt? It's not a big problem to endure poor quality salt. Mordgen, I hope you can understand that we treat you as The guests have supported you until now, and they didn’t listen to what you said. Tell me, what other treasures do you have? We intend to trade.”

"Ah, we still have some iron ore, and we are also smelting iron, although the quality is not as good as yours."

"Is there anything else?" Otto continued.

"And...and..."

Being stared at by two noble people, one big and one small, Mordegen really felt uncomfortable.

He thought hard in his panic, and suddenly had an idea!

"Where are the slaves? I see that you are recruiting many foreigners, maybe you need slaves very much."

"Do you have slaves?" Otto became slightly interested.

"Yes! Of course there is! It's... in the farther west, that big island." Modgen tried hard to recall the news about Britain from the adventurers who returned to his hometown, and the news reached his ears. Of course it's icing on the cake. Now, in order to demonstrate the strength of the Balmerks, Modgen deliberately said: "There are many Britons in that British island. They are rich but weak. If you need slaves, I can tell our leader about it when I go back. We The Balmerks dared to sail the western seas, how about we capture a group of Britons and sell them all to you?"

Listen, Otto thought it was possible without even thinking about it.

Although Rurik sounded a little awkward, this was the norm in Northern Europe, Western Europe, and even the whole of Europe. Any kingdom, tribe, tribe. They are all trying to use violent means to plunder the population of other ethnic groups, expand their own productivity, and maintain and expand their power.

As far as Rurik knows, the British kingdoms in this time and space are still in chaos, and there are still many tribes in Scotland and Wales that are separated from European civilization. As the masters of Narvik Port, why not do it?

In fact, Otto still likes the good salt they make very much, and because the five Briton slaves raised at home are indeed more serious about their work, this makes Otto respect all the "Britten slaves" All have a little favor.

Otto closed his eyes and meditated for a while, then opened his eyes and said suddenly: "Modegen, I thought about it now, you should understand my attitude. I am willing to have an intimate contact with you. If our business cooperation can continue, I even hope to ally with you."

"Ah?! An alliance?!" Mordegen never thought of this aspect from the beginning to the end, and he was flattered: "Chief, I am just an ordinary traveler, and my brother and I are ordinary people in our hometown. We have no authority to represent Barr Merck's chief,"

"Of course I know! You are just ordinary people? But have you ever thought that if you sit in front of me, you are getting Odin's guidance? My Rurik is sitting here. In this way, you Is it really ordinary?"

While Mordegen was excited by some compliments from Chief Ross, he also estimated the intention behind Otto's beautiful words.

Mordogen asked respectfully, "What can I do for you, chief? Just deliver the good salt and Briton slaves you like in the years to come?"

"Of course not! I want your leader to know that there are Ross people on the other side of the mountains. We are willing to be friends with you, provided that you can bring us useful goods"

"Oh, I will tell my leader the exact words. If you don't mind the big leader, I will tell my people exactly what I saw in Roseburg. If the big leader welcomes all Balmerk traveling merchants, I think we all have a lot to gain."

Modgen's words were what Otto and Rurik wanted to hear the most.

"I welcome you to do business! But you should also understand that when we do business here, we have to pay certain taxes."

Modgen nodded deeply: "I will also tell my people about this."

"Very well, so when are you leaving?"

"If I can, I hope to leave in the next few days."

Modgen and his party should have returned long ago, and Otto had no intention of keeping these Balmerks after learning the news from his son. If the return journey must be through ice and snow, a true warrior must be able to overcome this. If the Balmerk traveler cannot overcome even this trouble, the two sides will stop doing business in the future.

They were going to leave in the next few days, and they were working as messengers. Otto originally intended to send them a ride to help them return to their hometown early.

Thinking about it now, due to the tax on leather and iron, my voyage to Sorgon is not completely over, and there is still a final finishing project to be done.

"Then make an appointment! Three days later, I will organize a fleet and continue to collect the final tribute. I will take all ten of you and your boat. When we arrive in Fort Elrond in the north, You begin your final journey."

Favor, what a favor.

"Oh! Thank you so much for your hospitality. I will call the brothers and let them prepare..."