Rise of Rurik

However, he said that Ragnar, who rushed into Bremen City with his clan, this hard-core ruthless man armed with an iron sword, led his troops to pursue and kill the crowd fleeing in a panic.

They slashed and killed indiscriminately, leaving no one to spare.

The people in the city who were frightened had already collapsed in popularity, and even forgot to resist, and were then killed in a scream.

But Ragnar didn't care about the enjoyment of killing. He ordered his subordinates to take revenge cleanly. To kill one person with one sword, he sent these people who were in the way to help everyone's looting.

Ragnar's group groped their way through the alleys. At first, they ransacked the houses, but in addition to some daily necessities and a batch of grain, they got very few silver coins and copper coins.

"Scavenge all the wheat, don't grab the grain first, find a pocket and put all the silver coins you find..."

He gave orders like this, trying his best to control the clansmen who had fallen into madness to keep robbing rationally.

Finally, a subordinate told him: "There are a large number of people crowded in the south of the city, they seem to want to escape. And their temple (referring to the church), it is said that there is a lot of gold there."

At this moment, Ragnar was overjoyed.

"Then attack the temple!"

More than two hundred Viking fanatics, led by Ragnar who was covered in blood, ran wildly along the road leading to the church.

They entered the city square first, and saw a crowd of random civilians.

On the other hand, looking at the citizens of the city, a group of guys with round shields caught the eye. Apart from holding their heads and screaming, the only way to escape is to escape.

"It's there." Ragnar pointed his sword straight, "Enter the monastery, kill them, and take the gold and silver!"

Ragnar's follow-up personnel also entered the city square, and the three hundred last elite Viking warriors of the Stonewall Tribe, led by the leader who fell into madness, rushed to St. Peter's Church in Bremen with all their strength.

In terms of architectural scale, this church is the largest wooden building in the city and has a history of half a century.

When Lanhu was in distress, he stayed here for a while, and had a certain understanding of the history of the church, not to mention that he was baptized here. Even so, Blue Fox, who was completely on the intruder's position, was only a little touched by the church being captured.

As for Ragnar, no one restrained his actions at all.

Even the Rus, who are allies, wished that this group of madmen would kill and destroy as much as possible, so as to attract the firepower of the Bremen military and civilians and give the Rus enough time to grab food.

However, Bremen has completely become an undefended city, and the city is full of sheep.

Especially this church, which is like a sheepfold.

On the other hand, the high priest who represented Esquil as bishop in this church still believed in his faith even when he was in danger.

He stood on the pulpit, holding the leather-covered scriptures over his chest with his hands.

There were as many as 2,000 believers in the audience. Some of them sat on the benches anxiously, while more people found a random space to kneel down, listening to the sermon and praying for a miracle.

The priests were singing the content of the Old Testament in Latin, the so-called Messiah happened, the prisoners of Babylon were rescued, and the aliens were punished by God.

There is no need to think about logic at this moment.

The city has been breached, and they prayed with anticipation, hoping that the entire church would become an enchantment blessed by the Lord, and the power of divine faith could form an invisible wall to keep the Normans out, and then quietly wait for the blazing angel to descend. The flames burned the Normans to ashes...

However, a double-edged Nordic forest axe angrily smashed the bronze lock of the church door into pulp.

The door suddenly opened.

It was not the angel they had expected to break in, but a group of ferocious Normans with blond hair dyed red and shouting Odin.

Ragnar didn't think this was a sacred and indestructible place, and he was surprised by the crowded people in front of him. He was inspired. If the entire auditorium were filled with soldiers, his current manpower would not be easy to deal with.

Ragnar's group was attracted by the legend of making a fortune. They have long tried to attack Bremen. In the past, there were only thankless attacks. Now, making a fortune is today. As long as the large group of "obstacles" in front of you are solved, the treasure will be collected in the sackcloth.

The timid crowd screamed in horror, some ran away screaming, some fainted directly, and some knelt in place and insisted on praying...

Some Viking warriors involuntarily panicked in the face of the chaotic crowd: "Boss, what should we do? Are we going to kill these people?"

"Are you trying to persuade me to be kind?"

"No! There are too many of them, and we may be outnumbered if we fight..."

Ragnar shook his head violently, and suddenly shouted again: "Shield Wall! Kill these enemies! Show no mercy!"

Knowing that it was a large group of unarmed people, Ragnar, who had no sense of guilt, identified them all as Frankish warriors. For very practical reasons, he could have taken the opportunity to capture many captives and sell them as slaves to make money. Ragnar couldn't do this at the moment. He directly killed as much as possible. First, he vented the emotions that the tribe had suppressed for a long time, and secondly, he did it for the newcomers. Allies of Ross to see what a madman is.

The shield wall was like a meat grinder, and Ragnar's group entered the church and set up to attack. The shield wall continued to advance, followed by people who fell in a pool of blood.

The priests were all panicked, and they rushed out from the side door of the church with the people. However, the two side doors are not large, which caused congestion in a short period of time.

The fear was even worse, and they began to trample on each other again, and many people were trampled to death.

In this enclosed space, the sacred and noble St. Peter's Church becomes the territory.

Even Ragnar could not have imagined that he would lead his troops to kill so smoothly. The corpses behind them were already full of blood, and the blood pooled into a river and flowed out of the main entrance of the church.

In terms of the scale of the killings, the tragedy of Bremen in 836 was more horrific than the tragedy of Lindisfarne Abbey in 792.

More than a thousand people were killed, and nearly a thousand still escaped through two side doors.

Ragnar and his men were also exhausted, but the brothers felt that their achievements were destined to move Odin, and the dead were so-called sacrifices to the Asgardian gods. Although they were exhausted and panting, and even the iron sword was curled, their pursuit and killing continued.

As many as ten priests in black robes were not killed directly, but were escorted outdoors and reserved for priests.

Ragnar is not a mindless butcher. He knows what a Frankish "priest" is. Killing such people in public is the best sacrifice.

At this time, the belated Rus army arrived at the church.

Arik saw the dead lying outside and a dark red river flowing out of the church.

This was the first time Lanhu saw this scene. Thinking that he had lived here before, he never imagined that it would become a battlefield.

Ragnar tried to keep his head clear, suppressing his beating heart. Seeing Arik, who finally arrived, he pointed with great pride at the church, which had no major problems on the surface: "I killed a thousand people, which is a huge feat. My people have grabbed some gold and silver! Damn, gold and silver Stacked mountains don't exist."

"Ah!? You only have 300 people, and you killed 1000 people in such a short time?!" How could Arik not be surprised? This figure is too exaggerated.

"I just did it. You! I must admit my bravery."

"Don't talk about this yet. Keep chasing them! Let's go, Ragnar brothers, and continue to take revenge on Frank." After that, Arik patted Ragnar on the shoulder and led his troops to the south of the city where the shouting turned into a roar. go……

Ragnar gritted his teeth, and also greeted his brother: "Take the gold and silver you grabbed and continue to fight with me! Kill the Franks, and then we will slowly search."

The Viking fanatics, covered in blood and sweat, went into the final battle after a short rest. At this moment, they will encircle and suppress the last enemy in the southern part of the city by the Rus army.

Arik had arrived first with the team, and when he saw the crowded people, he was in a tangle on the spot.

According to their own inherent principles, the women of the enemy should not be killed, they should be bundled and shipped to their hometown and sold. Eventually, these women will be incorporated by the Rus people and become the mothers of a new generation of Rus soldiers. Given the Nordic tradition of tribal thinking, the tribes should do the same.

When he had a hint of pity, Yevro suddenly asked: "Arik, do you want to do it right away? According to the prince's order, we must be ruthless."

With just one glance, Arik's kindness was fleeting.

"All shooters!" he said. "Arrange and shoot!"

Arik is indeed different from Ragnar. Having experienced too many actual battles, he has become more and more fond of the strategy of defending the enemy with arrows before encountering the enemy. The actual combat has proved that this is an excellent method to reduce his own losses.

But the battle has changed, and even the shooter feels that his attack is not any honorable.

Those who were running around were unarmed people, and their actions were all trying to get out of the city. They are clearly crowded at the gate and are desperately rushing out, so that the double wooden doors that open inward cannot be opened at all! Of course, even if it is opened, there is still a hanging door that needs to be pulled up with a winch. This door will not be able to rush out unless the refugees are pulled.

The city walls were also full of people, and a large number of people wandered in despair.

The arrows flew ruthlessly, and the crossbow and longbow ruthlessly shot at this large group of unarmored targets.

In fact, a group of people had already descended the city wall along the ropes and escaped, and some people who had fallen, dragged their injured limbs and forcibly left.

There are still more than 4,000 people crowded in the south of Bremen city, and the arrow attack by the Rus will undoubtedly make the already bad situation worse.

"Those who shoot the walls, hurry!" Yevlo ordered.

In terms of combat experience, Yevro is actually more than Arik. When he was younger, he fought for the former gold master Gould, and what he experienced was always fighting to the death on the scale of fifty people. Small-scale battles focus on frightening the enemy in terms of momentum, which is even more important in large-scale battles.

People who were wandering around the city wall and were afraid of jumping off and falling to their death became living targets. Some people were shot by arrows, and then they became shot by arrows one after another, and many people fell for them.

The panic intensified further, and at this moment Ragnar finally arrived with his army.

Without any words, Arik and Ragnar looked at each other and began to cooperate in the killing with a tacit understanding.

This was not a battle between armies at all, merchants, craftsmen, farmers, and even a large number of women were all mercilessly slashed by Ragnar's Viking warriors. The same goes for the Rus army. Even if Arik felt a little sympathetic for a while, his subordinates had a completely different attitude. They didn't feel that they were a group of non-combatants, just a group of cowards who didn't have time to pick up arms and fight.

On the one hand, the shield wall constitutes a terrifying meat grinder thrusting and slashing, and on the other hand, dense arrows fall from the sky.

A large number of those who tried to escape realized that there was no point in going through the South Gate, so they could only take the risk.

Don't think about jumping to death or being injured anymore, a large number of people took the risk of being shot and walked up to the city wall, then closed their eyes and jumped.

Some people directly broke their necks and broken their skulls, and such people died immediately. Some people broke their arms and staggered away with their arms covered. Some have broken their legs, and they have to escape from Bremen, which has turned into hell on earth, even by crawling.

Arik saw a strange sight. He has been fighting for Ross for eight years now, and he has not seen such a crazy fugitive in eight years.

"Cowards! You dare to jump over the city wall and have no courage to fight with us!"

This shocking scene further aroused his anger, and he further roared: "Brothers! Show no mercy! Help them jump off the wall and die!"

It is true that the people who jumped over the wall at first suffered a lot of injuries, but a large number of soft "sandbags" appeared under the wall. These were a group of people who fell to their death and were shot and fell. The existence of a large number of corpses gave the successors enough money. buffer.

Like a lemming jumping into the sea, the people of Bremen jumped in panic, and even the mother hugged the child in her arms and jumped off in anger.

At least there is a possibility of survival if you jump down. Check it out! The living people who jumped off earlier had already run away on the field where only one field of stubble was left after the wheat was harvested.

As a result, the slaughter of the coalition forces ended soon, and even because of excessive exhaustion, Ragnar's team saw the enemy jumping off the wall frantically and fleeing, so there was no need to wave the prisoners of war with sore arms. On the other hand, considering the need to save arrows, the Finns in Yevlo with longbows also suspended their attacks.

At the last moment, the coalition forces watched viciously as the last hundred or so people jumped off the wall to escape.

It was only at this time that the coalition soldiers stepped on the corpse and boarded the wooden city wall, watching the Bremen people who were gradually running away.

"There is no need to pursue." Arik, who was standing on the city wall, couldn't help but sigh.

Hearing this sigh, Ragnar immediately echoed: "Killing a coward is not an honor. But I have captured ten of their priests, which is reflected in the sun in the sky, just to worship Odin."

"Whatever you want! I don't like those priests. Did you get a lot of gold and silver?"

"I got some in the church." Ragnar forced a smile to cover up his exhaustion.

"Well, apart from getting a lot of wheat, we Russ didn't find any other treasures. We have an appointment first, you grabbed the gold, I have nothing to say. Next, we will loot separately with the city square as the boundary, remember It is your last kindness to give the dying person a sword."

"Just do it."

In the evening, Ragnar held a public sacrifice, and the ten priests who were captured had their throats slit in public.

What's even crazier is that the blue fox who took off his helmet was at the scene, and what killed him was that he deliberately lit the cross on his chest. Although he's grown a beard, it hasn't grown outrageously in months. The acting bishop who was to be executed suddenly recognized the identity of the blue fox.

"Joseph! You are a betrayal! You are the one who led the Normans to Bremen, and the Lord will impose divine punishment! You will be burned to death!" This was the last honesty of the acting bishop.

The blue fox was unmoved. He participated in the action as an Odin warrior, and as a result, he was still wearing a cross pendant. He was full of contradictions.

The blue fox can understand it himself: "Don't forget! Rus people are also Normans! Your king killed many Rus people, this is our revenge! I have no grudge against you, but you must die. Eski You have been controlled by us, and obviously the Lord will not help you any more."

When the sacrifice was over, the exhausted warriors of Ragnar's army were roaring wildly. They further searched for the spoils, and this time they searched very carefully, looking for iron, copper and silver coins.

The same Rus were also looking for these things, and the two sides made a temporary treaty for this too. The treaty was proposed by Arik, and Ragnar felt that it was fair. The so-called central square of the city was bounded, the north was looted by Ross, and the south was owned by Ragnar. The reason why Ragnar felt fair was because he thought he had picked up a big bargain. He had obtained a batch of gold and silver utensils from the church, but he did not know that Ross was a huge gainer.

How much rye stock was there in the seized granary? Maybe a million pounds, and it's a hassle just to move it.

So what does a hundred pounds of wheat mean? According to the agreement with the prince Rurik, the army could get half of the spoils, and then divided equally according to the number of soldiers and sailors, and each person could get exactly one thousand pounds of wheat on average. If this is the case, a family's annual rations are probably grabbed. Even if it is to be exchanged for money, the prince has already said that it is purchased at the price of ten pounds of wheat and one silver coin, and it is settled immediately.

Looking back at this large granary that was firmly controlled by the Ross Army, Arik, who was holding a torch in the evening, carefully inspected them and sighed: "Maybe I didn't bring enough ships!"

That night, the coalition spent the night in a city full of corpses.

Ragnar's team found a group of women, who immediately became playthings for the victors, but they were killed. They used the food they seized to make a delicious meal. Although they did not know how much the Russ had seized, Ragnar boasted that he had made a fortune this time. He had never been so crazy and happy in his life. Revenge is refreshing. The central square of the city is an obvious open space. Ragnar brought non-combatant clansmen outside the city into the city. While sharing the victory, he also gathered his people and waited until tomorrow to carry the spoils out of the city.

The Russ side is similar, but since the night, the work of transporting food has begun. The small cart with the torsion slingshot unloads the slingshot and hauls the sack full of rye in full force. A large number of bonfires were lit for lighting at the pier firmly controlled by the fleet, and the tired soldiers rested a lot. Professional sailors disembarked and began to transport wheat. This work will be carried out all night until tomorrow morning, when the awakened main force begins to participate in the operation.

Arik and Ragnar both reached a consensus that it is not advisable to stay here for a long time. Ragnar has already explained that there are chasing troops behind him, so the window period for the coalition forces to fight and loot is very short. Even if everyone is very tired, the looting must be completed within two days, so they will retreat to a safe area and have a good rest. Figure out the way out.