Rise of Rurik

On a new day, the Avlora in the early morning pulled its spear and continued to sail westward on the waves.

The shipping route ahead is getting more and more dangerous. The big ship that is in danger alone will encounter the strength of the Danes at any time. The soldiers of the whole ship have to maintain a state of preparation.

It is impossible to keep a low profile now, and Rurik no longer expects a giant to fantasize about others and turn a blind eye.

Check out the status quo!

Standing on the bow of the ship, Rurik looked north, and even though a faint sea fog obscured the world, he could still see the dim outlines of the land.

He nibbled at the dried fish, his keen eyes staring at anything unusual on the shoreline.

In the eyes of Biyonni, who approached, his little brother has a plan for the future.

"Rurik, if we continue to the west, will we be able to reach the sea at the end of the world?"

"No," Rurik muttered lightly.

"why?"

"Because there will be a lot of obstacles ahead."

"Are the Danes obstructing it?"

"They? Can't stop us. Brother, we'll see islands or land again after a while. Listen, soon we'll have a choice."

Rurik didn't say any more, but a target soon appeared ahead.

At this moment, the sailor riding on the top of the main mast had already seen the dimness of the western sea level. He could not judge whether it was land or not. In short, it looked like land. Only one target is particularly conspicuous, that is a sailing ship, and it looks like a sturdy cargo ship.

Looking at the approaching target, Rurik clenched his fists with a smile.

He hurriedly yelled at the eager brothers: "The prey is here! A cargo ship! Let's take that ship and snatch the goods!"

The thirst for plunder was exhilarating, everyone took their place, the twisting slingshot was full of power, and the arrows were loaded from the crossbow's slot.

With the help of the wind, the Avrora rushed towards the solitary cargo ship, and the battle was one-sided.

The big ship's side is against the enemy,

A salvo of torsion slingshots and crossbows made the enemy who tried to counterattack lose any courage to fight.

With its huge stature, after circling the enemy ship for a week, the Avrora went straight to the side of the hull along the wind. Yevlo jumped with his brothers, jumped into the enemy's cargo ship, and captured all those shivering guys alive.

The two ships were close together and swayed at sea with their sails furled.

Rurik slid down a rope to the opposite boat, and immediately asked, "What kind of cargo are they transporting?"

"It's wool!" Yevro spoke, the blade still resting on the neck of a prisoner.

"It's actually wool? The whole ship's sacks are full of wool?"

"Looks like it is."

At this moment, Biyonny and the Flokey brothers also boarded the captured merchant ship. Biyonny approached Rurik: "These are Danish merchants? What's your decision? Seize the goods and kill them?"

"Certainly. We have plenty of room in our cabins. Look at these woolen sacks. They are our spoils, and our brothers shall divide them equally. As for these Danes, kill them now."

Rurik knew that what he was doing was piracy, and the so-called pity was superfluous.

Is mercy necessary? If he fell into the hands of the Danes, the result would be death.

"Yavlo!"

"exist."

Rurik roared sharply: "Kill these Danes!"

Just as Yevrod was about to be executed, the captured men cried out in unison: "We're not Danes! We're from Bergen."

"Wait a minute!" Biyonny was startled suddenly, strode forward and grabbed Yevlo's sword-wielding wrist, then turned to look at Rurik; "Are they really Danes?"

"if not?"

The captives, still claiming to be from Bergen and having been to Oslo, desperately shouted that they had nothing to do with the Danes.

"Listen, my brother. We haven't gotten to the point where we meet the Bergens."

"Are they from Bergen?" Rurik asked in surprise. "Aren't they your enemy?"

"But the war never broke out, and I don't want to be the instigator of the wrong war."

Seeing the firmer look in Yoni's eyes, Rurik rescinded the beheading order.

After a simple interrogation, the prisoner made a complete confession in order to survive. Not only did they explain where they set off from, they stopped at those ports, and how they paid the toll to pass through the sea pass controlled by the Danish leader, as well as their final destination, Hazelby. However, there was no basis for it. After asking a few more questions from Biyonni, it was confirmed that the merchant ship was indeed from Bergen.

The captain of the captured ship, who survived the attack of the Avlora, had no time for his two sons who were shot and needed to do everything he could to keep the others alive.

Pointing to the northwest, he said with a trembling mouth, "It's the Dane's pass, and any merchant ship that passes through will have to pay fifty silver coins."

"Half a pound of silver coins tolls? That Hafgen is really greedy for money." Rurik sighed, he didn't care how the gray-bearded man thought of himself, and continued to ask: "What is the route between you and Hazelby?"

"Just go south and enter the huge bay there, and you will soon reach Hezeby. It is a big coastal city, you can see it from a distance, and you will never get lost. Young heroes, we Just a merchant, please forgive our lives."

An old guy begged to himself, and then ordered to raise the butcher's knife at this moment? Rurik shook his head, his heart softened.

"Old man, what's the price of your wool?"

When asked like this, all the prisoners were stunned.

"A pack of wool is a hundred pounds, and we're going to sell a pack at Hazelby for fifty silver coins."

Rurik nodded. "I bought you two bales of wool. Also, I'm sorry for the innocent people who died in this conflict. I saw four of you died, and I'll give you two more pounds as compensation. Listen, You have no bargaining power. I can forgive you all because you are not Danes. You even gave me the exact location of Hazelby, and where the Danes pass. I'll give you another pound of silver for buying news money."

People climbed the rope ladders back to the Avlora one after another, and even as Rurik climbed it himself, the merchant ship's boss with four pounds of silver in his hand still couldn't understand what kind of pirates he had encountered, and he dared to ask: "You Who are you? You have huge ships. Your sails are unique, from the warm sea to the south? You speak Norse..."

Rurik paused, he wanted to say something, and finally shut up.

The Avlora resumed sailing, and Rurik on board consciously made the right choice. Of course, many people don't think they should be kind to those guys. After all, this is an encounter on the vast sea, and it doesn't matter to do anything cruel, because the only witness is the sun in the sky. The sun is the incarnation of Odin, and based on belief, everyone wants to believe that Odin is happy to see mortals on earth in slaughter battles.

Compared to beheading those merchants and seizing their goods, the information provided by those people is invaluable. Both Biyonny and Rurik were very surprised to meet a businessman from Bergen in this sea area. Based on each other's confessions, Rurik fully understood the source of wool - Oslo.

Merchants in Bergen transported crude iron ingots to Oslo to buy local wool, and then to Hazelby to buy a variety of goods from Europe, such as slaves, and finally bring it back to Bergen. Although you have to pay a sum of money to pass through the pass of the Danish ally, what are those tolls compared to the profits from trade?

Land finally appeared in the west, and the imprint on Rurik's brain and the confessions of the previous merchants allowed him to confirm his current geographic location.

The sailors chanted, and the soldiers all took part in pulling the ropes.

The ship began to sail in a wide waterway to the northwest, and the strong south of the afternoon gave the ship great power.

The Avlora was unstoppable, and at one point her speed reached ten knots! The ship in this physique "drag-raced" at sea, and the powerful force made her an unstoppable monster.

The plan to attack the Danish fishing boats began to be implemented, and there were many targets in the narrower waterway ahead. Rurik completely put away his pity, and he was going to wreak havoc near the Danish pass.

Rurik knew that he had entered the Oresund, which was also the core area of ​​the Robard tribe, the rumored leader of the Danish alliance. But Rurik knew better by another name, Copenhagen.

Copenhagen didn't exist in the ninth century, or it was only a prototype of a miniature fishing village.

Rurik's eyes did see a small fishing village on the coastline. The scene there was indeed different from the lush woods. The white beach was very unique. He only had one boat and forty brothers. The damage he could do was Take the initiative to attack the fishing boat.

The Avlora is desperately attacking fishing boats, all from the same fishing village. The name of the village is Malholm (Malmö), which is named after the chalky soil rich in calcium carbonate. Only in the era of massive production of cement and glass, these chalk soils have great use value, and now the local people are just a group of fishermen.

The Avlora is like a monster, and the purpose of its existence is to cause destruction. Her attack ended when all the fishing boats escaped at night. After giving the fishing village a fatal terror, Rurik ordered the anchor to drop. The brothers ate the freshly caught herring, recharging their energy and waiting for the passing of the Danish pass tomorrow.

A horrific ship is wrecking everywhere!

The terrifying news was spreading, and it reached the ears of the gate guards immediately.

Hafgen, the leader of the Danish alliance, the main part of his Robard tribe is located at the northernmost tip of the Jutland peninsula. The so-called Oslo people are across the sea. The area under his direct rule is also scattered in many strait passes, the Big Bell Strait, the Little Bell Strait, the Oresund Strait, and the three Baltic straits leading to the Atlantic Ocean are all controlled by the Robard tribe, and Hafgen is actually inherited and consolidated. This hegemony of toll collection. In other words, the lord of Denmark is entitled to this power. The ships of any Danish tribes that joined were only paid a nominal toll to pass immediately. As for ships of other tribes, Hafgen demanded a lot of silver coins as usual.

Three generals guarded the three strait passes. A man named Halik became more and more important after marrying Hafgen's sister. This man placed his family in the pass to build a military castle, and sent troops to patrol every day to collect tolls. Later, he turned in the full amount to show his loyalty to his brother-in-law Hafgen. Because Hafgen was almost forty years old, his wife and concubine did not give him a son. Who is the future heir to the Robard clan, Halick feels that his son has a good chance.

The information of the crazy attacker reached Halick's ears overnight. This man who loves beef and is as strong as an ox and makes his beloved wife love and hate him is furious! In his extreme fury after learning the news, he actually strangled the two Saxon slaves who were serving the bed, and his anger was vented. Of course, this kind of thing made his wife the most happy.

A big ship came to provoke? Killing the fisherman in Malhom Village?

Halick was not sleepy, a string of torches lit up on the top of the wooden fortress, and all the soldiers were awakened, even the men of the Robard tribe who settled by the fortress were summoned overnight.

The angle of view turns to the Avrora, which is anchored in the strait.

Sleeping Rurik was invited by the Night's Watch to see a spectacle.

Rurik narrowed his eyes and saw the very obvious firelight in the distance.

"Sir, what is that?" His sharp mercenary guessed cautiously: "I suspect it is the enemy's alarm."

Rurik nodded. "It looks like we've gone too far. Are you afraid? I'm going to fight their guards."

The mercenary smiled: "I have followed you for many years and have participated in all battles. I am not afraid of battles, but..." The mercenary laughed suddenly.

"why are you laughing."

"My lord, I want to get a woman, and I also want to have a family."

This remark was really thought-provoking, and Rurik pondered that his elite mercenaries had indeed experienced all the foreign wars of the Rus people over the years. They were not from the Rus family, but they had paid too much for the interests of Rus.

"Women? Okay."

"Oh, that's a big thank you sir."

"But not now. You are young and strong, and women will only affect the speed at which you draw your sword. Keep following me, and when you are almost thirty, I will find at least two young and beautiful women for each of you. There Before that, follow my orders and fight hard."

Thirty years old? The mercenary's heart is bitter and can't tell. For example, the leader of the mercenary Yevluo is already twenty-eight years old. The current situation seems to be that this old man is not naturally close to women. . On the other hand, the mercenary brothers who have been to Fort Elrond will have a short-term relationship with those women who are longing for men. Unfortunately, it is not home, and those women are only greedy for the strong muscles of the mercenary.

It was getting colder, and at dawn Rurik called everyone on the deck.

Standing on the forecastle, he held his sword and shouted: "Brothers, I learned that Denmark has made preparations. They lit a bonfire overnight, and must have organized a fleet to try to stop us from breaking through. For the Danes! We must fight with a high profile! This has nothing to do with revenge for the dead King Olekin, this is a battle for the courage of our Rus and Balmers, and I just want to show the Danes how powerful we are."

Everyone roared with joy, the flapping shields stomped their feet, and even the sailors felt like warriors.

Rurik's sword went to the east again: "The sun is about to rise, and the sea wind will be violent. Odin is watching us, and I ask you to be ruthless, not afraid of any danger, and to defend yourself. Remember! I ask you not to Any injuries, do whatever you can to kill the enemy."

With any number of enemies ahead, the people of the Avlora are fearless. Past battles have proved, and new battles will continue to prove that the Avlora is the nemesis of any longship!

People even imagined that the Red Dragon, the legendary Danish leader, would also participate in the containment.

People are eager to try, because sinking the red dragon is to brag about the glory of several lifetimes.

With the belief of victory, the Avlora suddenly soared to eleven knots under the strong southerly wind. Of course, the waves did not become a little violent, and the sea breeze was whistling. For it, it was a hymn to a hero.

At the same time, Ha Li Ke, who was stationed at the pass of the strait, organized more than 300 people, divided into ten long battleships, and organized a fleet to wait in the coastal waters of the strait.

As the day dawned, they squinted their eyes to avoid the golden light of the rising sun, and saw a huge sail on the sea, which formed a golden light spot and was about to rush in.

"It's that murderous monster. Brothers, take the big ship and dedicate it to our lord! Fight for Hafgen!"

Halik, who is as strong as an ox, beat a calfskin drum himself, and the sound of the drum drove the entire fleet to launch an interception that they thought they would win...