No one thought that this battle must be a fierce battle. The soldiers of the red-eyed Swedish coalition withdrew. Only after the armies of each tribe calmed down did they realize what had happened.
Dukes from all tribes gathered at the command post of King Olegin. Since everyone suffered a lot of casualties, their eyes were about to pop out with anger.
Yermalen leader Wenderson changed his usual calmness. He was so angry that he pushed Olegin, who was wearing armor, and yelled: "You are an idiot! Half of my people have died fighting for you!" What do you really want? You will only be happy when my people are dead?"
Karl stepped forward at this moment. He was not protecting his king father, but mainly because this angry Wenderson had insulted the entire Melalen people.
Karl pulled out his sword and suddenly pressed the blade against Wenderson's neck: "Old man, be careful about who you humiliate!"
"Are you threatening me?!" While Karl wasn't paying attention, Wenderson picked up his battle ax and knocked Karl's sword aside, and asked Olegin, who was looking at what he was seeing: "Is this your attitude? You really want to let him We’re going to die!”
Karl's recklessness immediately aroused the suspicion of all the Dukes. Even the Duke of Uppsala, who had always had a close relationship with Mälaren, could not stand it anymore.
Everyone needs a good explanation of Origen.
After Olegin calmed down, he straightened his crown. If the attack failed, it would be considered a defeat!
He was heartbroken and even performed a howl: "You said you suffered heavy casualties, and we Mellaren people suffered the biggest losses! Many of my most elite black warriors died, and I still need them to fight in Kalmar. Who would have thought that in this damn place? The fortress collapsed."
"Then what do you want to do? Keep fighting?" Wenderson asked.
"We must continue to fight. We must capture this place, and we must capture Kalmar again. We have made so many sacrifices, and the blood of the dead warriors cannot be shed in vain."
"But if we defeat them, won't we have to pay a higher price? How sure are you?"
Wenderson asked questions one after another, and the implication was clear - he intended to retreat and stop losses.
No one said in person that they would withdraw from the battle with their brothers. After all, if they really withdraw, they will bear the reputation of being a coward, and they will not be able to live well in the future. Everyone could no longer bear any more losses and urgently needed Olegin to come up with a clever plan.
A clever idea? Any idea?
Those who wear golden crowns in the public eye are not wise men. Olegin held back a plan for a long time: "The weather is clear now, and there will be many days of good weather in the future. Let the brothers have a good rest and light more bonfires to scare the enemy. Tomorrow we will Continue to attack! You all have seen that there is a gap in their wall, we rush up on the corpses, we will win tomorrow!"
"To put it lightly." Wenderson curled his lips contemptuously: "They have a lot of spears, and the gap is not big enough. Those who attack hastily will be stabbed to death one after another."
"You are afraid of death! Then let us Mellaren people continue to attack. Are you satisfied with this?!" Olegin's angry words did not satisfy everyone, and the atmosphere of division was already filling the command post.
Rurik was following his father. He saw the whole scene of internal strife and noticed the increasingly strange atmosphere.
Originally, Otto didn't want to get involved in the quarrels and complaints of these guys. The Russians' insistence until now was to fulfill their alliance obligations. Since they were destined not to directly get a lot of loot in the battle, there was no need to talk anymore.
But Rurik thought more deeply. If the assembled Swedish army loses its confidence without laying down the fortress, will the Malaren people continue to fulfill the previous contract? If they can't grab enough property, how can they repay the money willingly?
"No! They can't win, and the loss will be mine!"
For the sake of money and wheat, Rurik forcefully intervened in this quarrel.
Olegin, who was in the midst of the storm, found a life-saving straw. He grabbed Rurik's arm, who wanted to say a few words, and pulled him to his side.
"Stop arguing! Legend has it that this child was blessed by Odin. Since he has something to say, why don't we listen to him? As you know, the arrows of the Russians really suppressed the enemy from throwing stones in large numbers."
At this point in the battle, the Russians really had not suffered any casualties. They had indeed not obtained any trophies, so no one was jealous or complaining.
The princes looked at each other and decided to hear what Rurik had to say.
The noisy command post fell silent instantly. A beautiful boy flicked his golden ponytail and began to ask wise questions.
"Have you never thought about the possibility of the enemy surrendering?"
This question made the already quiet room even quieter.
It didn't take long for everyone to come to their senses, and the beating eyes showed that all parties had indeed not thought about this matter.
"I made a preliminary investigation and found that we lost 300 people in the day's battle, and the corpses of the soldiers were piled up into a wall! Do you think the enemy suffered no losses? Didn't the 5,000 arrows fired by us Russians cause any damage? One person? Do you really think that the enemy will fight to the last man? You are all saying that you have suffered heavy casualties. In my opinion, the enemy's situation is even worse."
"Then...what do you want?" Origen asked.
"Persuade them to surrender! Give them a chance to be profiled." Rurik's round blue eyes stared at Origen's cracked face and deliberately flattered him: "Great King, will your expedition bring death or gain more?" Many allies. Since you have recognized the Voskas people as servants, and even accepted the Danish mercenaries as your own. Why don’t you try to persuade the people of Borgholm Fortress to surrender?”
"this……"
"In my opinion, they knew they would die after the city was broken, so they fought desperately. You promised them that as long as they handed over their belongings, they would be spared death. As long as they showed that they were fighting for us and attacked Kalma as servants, they would be given the status of allies. Why do you need to completely destroy this fortress when you can make them all recognize you as their king."
Rurik didn't say any more. He was afraid that he would call Olegin a fool in public on a whim.
When Olegin heard this, he seemed enlightened. He patted his old face hard: "Yes! I want to persuade them to surrender! I can make their leader a duke, and then make them and the remaining Voskas people Together, go to Kalma and fight with the locals. Yes! Just do it!"
Although many people at the scene were skeptical of this plan, Olegin really felt that he had found a good way. He used his royal power to silence the doubters and gained confidence in tomorrow's battle.
The number of casualties of the Swedish army was indeed as high as 300, and some of them had serious limb injuries. Although they were pulled back to the camp, they died soon by the campfire.
More than a hundred of the dead were Olegin's black warriors. After a period of high-intensity fighting, the strength of the Maylaren Army had been reduced to a thousand men! Among them, the most elite so-called black-clothed warriors only had about 200 people left.
Many of the peasants who were recruited were put on the iron armor of the dead, which made them look very powerful at first glance, but in fact they were strong on the outside but weak on the inside.
The most elite warriors often charged the most fiercely. They endured high-intensity battles and suffered huge losses. The overall strength of the Swedish army dropped sharply, and it was reasonable for the Dukes to have the idea of escape. After all, so many sacrifices were made to attack the Borgholm Fortress. Wouldn't the next attack on Kalmar cause even greater casualties?
Night has finally fallen, and the summer solstice is less than twenty days away. The daylight hours in the Oland Island area have become extremely long. That is, with the light obtained by atmospheric scattering at dawn and dusk, the daylight hours have exceeded nineteen days. Hour!
The coalition forces began to attack the city at dawn, and the long attack lasted until the sunset emerged from the clouds.
The tired warriors gnawed the dried fish, gathered around the campfire and fell asleep. To hell with the casualties and mud!
The coalition forces have indeed entered their weakest moment. At this time, it should have been an opportunity for the Borgholm defenders to launch a defensive counterattack, but as Rurik said, the Saxon mentality has collapsed after experiencing the bloody battle. edge. A group of strong men died in the battle, and the women cried bitterly for their dead fathers and brothers.
In the leader's home, Stein sat in front of an oil lamp, holding an ancestral bronze dagger in silence.
He felt that everything was over and the tribe would be destroyed tomorrow or the day after tomorrow. In short, the men would be killed and the women would become slaves...
He had the idea of committing suicide, and suddenly the flames flickered, and his survival instinct drove him not to do so.
"We have no grievances against the guys in the north, so they want to put me to death? Can they accept my surrender, and can they spare the lives of my people? If I give them all my property, can they survive in exchange?"
On Stein's side, the more than 150 surviving Gotland mercenaries were determined not to work in vain for the Saxons.
At night, the whole world quiets down, and the sound of waves comes from the distance, deepening the silence of the night.
"Brothers, we can no longer work for these fools. Those guys in the north are also asleep. Now we sneak out through the gap and grab the enemy's ship. Now the southwest wind has begun to blow again. Let's quietly return to our home island! "
An old mercenary with status became the leader of the survivors. They grabbed their own money and escaped at night. Although they were very tired, they burst out with strong vitality under the control of their desire to survive.
In order to move quickly and concealedly, the fleeing Gotland mercenaries threw away their heavy chainmails. They were either clothed or leather armored, carrying their own round shields on their backs, holding swords and axes in both hands, and swarmed around. Leave the gap.
Their actions were naturally noticed by some people in the fortress, but everyone's mentality had collapsed and there was nothing to be concerned about. They did not even inform their leader or any elder of the abnormal situation.
In the dark world, there is a half-covered moon and twinkling stars in the sky. The world is not really dark. In the dim light, they can see a large number of ships near the shore.
The sharp-eyed mercenaries understood their situation. The so-called north coast completed the enemy's camp, and the number of bonfires there was as huge as the stars in the sky. Escape from there is like a sheep entering the mouth of a wolf, so where to escape?
Their escape was not a casual escape. The cattle and sheep raised by the Saxons were all driven into the fortress. The entire Öland Island was relatively barren. It was difficult for them to find enough food in the wilderness to support their stay. They had to find a ship quickly.
It is very necessary to seize the attacker's ship, and it is also necessary to run to the beach.
This is not a coincidence, but a necessity!
The fleeing Gotland mercenaries actually targeted the Russians camping on the western coast!
In fact, they couldn't see the specific strength of the Russians in the dark night. Considering that the number of bonfires there was relatively sparse, the strength must be small. More importantly, a guy with excellent eyesight saw some blurry black figures offshore, which must be cargo ships!
There are more than 150 brothers. It is unrealistic to expect a few long boats to take everyone to escape. If a cargo ship is captured, it is really possible for everyone to cram into one ship and escape!
Sensing a great opportunity, they ignored all the risks and began to drag their tired figures into action.
However, Russians are not fools! In particular, the Ross Army, commanded by Rurik, is completely different from other forces in the coalition.
That night, Otto just couldn't stand the humidity on the shore, so he returned to the Aurora to sleep comfortably.
Rurik considered that the Russian army would continue to fight in tomorrow's battle, so he ordered his men to bring a batch of iron cluster arrows, and gave all the soldiers an order to sleep on the spot without leaving their armor.
The Ross army's camp was in a ring, with Rurik's tent in the middle and the elite soldiers placed on the periphery. Especially the mercenaries, they just want to fight hard and fierce battles. Even if they are camping, they must form a barrier facing the enemy's fortress, and the four torsion slingshots have also been moved here as a symbol of military power.
The veterans among the mercenaries have been working for Gould for many years. Everyone is familiar with the "night patrol around the island", and now it is normal to be ordered to take turns to patrol the camp.
With their patrols, the tired warriors could lie down on their shields and sleep a little more peacefully, but they always had their crossbows beside them, and their right hands held the handles of their swords and axes.
Looking at the direction of the stars, the mercenaries on duty always felt that it was almost dawn. When the sun rises, everyone will face another battle.
Suddenly, the atmosphere became strange, and strange noises came from not far away!
The rotation mercenary immediately knelt down in the dewy grass and saw many sneaky shadows.
"Are the messengers from the Mellarens coming now? Are they crazy?"
"They're not crazy. I don't think they're from Maclaren."
"Who is that? It can't be an enemy?"
"It's the enemy!"
Several mercenaries on duty did not dare to say anything. They used the thatch cover to crawl back to the camp and first woke up their boss Yevro.
"What's going on? It's not dawn yet." Yevluo was so upset that he got out of bed.
"Boss! I think there is an enemy sneak attack."
When he heard about the sneak attack, Yevro's whole body was like a cat with exploded fur: "Did you see it clearly?"
Several people hesitated for a moment, and then jointly expressed their position: "In my opinion, it is a sneak attack by the enemy. Although..."
"Then do it! I'll notify Rurik right away and wake up their brothers."
As a veteran warrior, Yevlo's battlefield intuition suddenly gave the Russians an advantage. This is on the battlefield! Any hesitation or laziness may lead to death, even if it turns out to be a misunderstanding, it is not an exaggeration for the entire camp to enter a state of war preparation.
Rurik was awakened, and Carlotta who was lying next to him was also picked up. When life and death were at stake, Yevro did not care about any etiquette.
"Damn it! Why don't they attack the Mellaren people? Do they think we Russian people are easy to bully because we have few troops?!" Rurik, who was getting angry when he heard that the enemy had made a dawn sneak attack, immediately ordered: "Arrow! Shoot with all your strength!" Archery! Give me the crossbow and I will shoot one myself! Defeat the enemy before alerting my father."
The fleeing Gotland mercenaries were getting closer and closer to the Ross camp. As the sky slowly turned blue, they always felt that the situation was a bit delicate. They gradually saw the camp in front of them, and were relieved that the camp was not big. Although the brothers who were prepared were exhausted, the sudden attack killed them and then seized the ship. I think the success rate was extremely high.
Suddenly, a loud voice asked in the wind: "Who are you! Are you from Melalen? Or who are you?"
This question simply denied the fugitive's extravagant hopes. "Oops! They found out we were attacking?!"
The leader suddenly felt that a decisive decision must be taken. He suddenly put the buckler on his arm, raised his battle ax high and shouted: "Brothers, we have been discovered! Charge! Crush them!"
At least in the field, these Gotlanders have good self-confidence.
Suddenly, there was a roar in the air, followed by a violent crash.
The leader was shocked to find that three charging brothers were knocked down by unknown objects in strange postures, and their shields were shattered!
This was not over yet, there was a sudden sound of searching in the sky, and when they discovered that what fell from the sky were arrows, it was already too late.
The longbowmen from Ironburg began to fire arrows. They were the second round of attack force after the torque slingshot.
The third round of attackers' iron-clustered crossbows also came, and the steel-armed crossbows forcibly fired light crossbows. More than ten Gotlanders, who had lost the protection of their shields, were hit by arrows.
"Change to heavier arrows! Chase them!" Rurik, who held a light wooden crossbow high in the air, shouted loudly, and more than thirty people responded in an instant.
The next battle was already a free shooting. Soldiers holding steel-armed crossbows launched a charge. They shot while running. The powerful heavy crossbow arrows turned the wooden shields of the Gotland attackers into decorations. The arrow clusters directly pierced the heart, and even Emerging from the back, the person hit by the arrow loses the ability to fight on the spot and will inevitably die after constant blood loss...
This was not over yet. The torque slingshot finally completed the intense loading. The second round of shooting directly killed four people and almost injured friendly troops.
The Russians used arrows and slingshots to attack without waiting, leaving the attackers to be ambushed.
Rurik felt that he had hit another enemy, and he could not be sure of the result in the dim light, but it was undeniable that the attackers were the enemies defending the city. Although their motives were unknown, the so-called raid had been completely defeated.
Soon, warriors with swords and shields swarmed forward and killed dozens of attackers who were frightened by the rain of arrows.
"Stop it all! Leave a few alive and ask them about their details!" It was not until Rurik personally intervened that the fate of more than twenty attackers who gave up resistance were avoided by the "lack of entertainment" Russian army. But their teeth were generally broken and their faces were covered in blood...
