After crossing the Volga River, Akkad's army found the dirt road that had been used by the crowds heading to Kashin during this period.
This made him very excited, because if they followed this road, they would reach their goal.
At the same time, there were also attacks and ambushes on the roadside. From time to time, a burst of arrows or spears were thrown out from the woods or hillsides. The attackers would kill a few unlucky people and then run away.
Nomadic archers on horseback suddenly appeared at the edge of the team and fired arrows.
Of course, some were unlucky and were intercepted. After all, the Bulgar army also had many Finnish tribesmen who were good at fighting in dense forests and nomadic horse archers who came and went quickly.
It's just that those who were caught were basically low-level soldiers wearing cloth clothes and leather armor, and Rostislav's elite were still not seen.
This made Akade more and more convinced that the main force of the Prince of Moscow was ahead. These harassments and battles did not even appear before, but now they appear in large numbers. Isn't this precisely because they are getting closer to the young man's lifeblood?
Akadel, who commanded the Bulgar army, ordered all his troops to prepare for battle. The main force of the Russians might arrive at any time.
But when he gave this order, he didn't expect that Rostislav's main force had already arrived and was now planning a surprise attack.
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"What a big army."
Behind the bushes, looking at the Volga army lined with spears and halberds from a distance, the prince couldn't help but sigh, but he quickly put away his emotions, realizing that it was not the time to sigh.
Quietly returning to his subordinates, passing through a rider who was leading his horse into hiding, Rostislav came to his generals.
"When we reach the designated position, we will attack with all our troops. Remember, the purpose of this battle is to kill the enemy, not to defeat it. When the horn sounds, we must retreat."
The prince warned again with a serious face, and the atmosphere became tense for a moment. Feeling this atmosphere, everyone present naturally nodded in agreement, even Edward and Meshko, who came as guest soldiers, did the same.
This time Rostislav gathered all the fast mobile forces in his hands. First of all, he had two hundred horsemen to accompany him, Mieszko's two hundred Polish knights, and Edward's two hundred Hungarian heavy horse archers. Each of these six hundred people was armored.
, they are elite.
"The Bulgars will enter the predetermined ambush area in about half an hour. Let's seize this opportunity to rest and disband."
Following Rostislav's words, everyone returned to their respective posts. They still needed to adjust communication with their subordinates and rectify the team. And the prince also had to have a good chat with the newcomers who were accompanying him to appease their emotions. After all, he
The team directly expanded by one generation.
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Yes, Rostislav's personal entourage has expanded to two hundred.
Since the nobles of Northeastern Rus' learned that the prince was recruiting people to join his personal entourage, some dignitaries and city lords sent their sons to him to join his personal entourage.
On the one hand, this was done to show loyalty to Rurik, and on the other hand, it was to find a way out for the three and four sons in the family.
Especially for the owner of the city, buying a set of armor that can allow his children to go out on adventures is not a small sum of money. Now he can solve this problem by taking refuge with the prince.
Rostislav was also happy to absorb these young men. They were all good soldiers. Each of them had been trained in swordsmanship and riding since childhood, and they also had more awareness of discipline.
However, the prince did not focus on attracting soldiers from the nobles. In fact, he accepted all available young people among citizens, farmers, and even tribal forest people if they were willing to join him.
For many sons of merchants and rich peasants, joining the personal entourage of a prince is also a life-changing opportunity. If you become a "companion cavalry", you may become the master of a city or a village in ten or twenty years. The better your luck.
, you can even become the mayor of any town.
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Not only the generals, but also the soldiers present felt the feeling of approaching war. Everyone was very serious and focused on making their own preparations for the battle.
There are also some other sergeants here. In addition to these elites, there are also troops under the prince who are good at fighting in the forest. They will exist as supporting troops.
The new recruits are the most nervous group of people. They faced such a battle in the first battle. Fortunately, the veterans constantly calmed their emotions and eased their nervousness.
But in fact, the veterans are not much better, they are just a little better than these miserable recruits.
This battle was very dangerous. After all, six hundred troops were involved in a surprise attack on tens of thousands of enemies. Although I wanted to give up as soon as the situation was good, it would be false to say that I was not nervous. However, the presence of one person greatly eased the tension in everyone's hearts.
That is Hilarion, the former Metropolitan.
The former metropolitan wore a set of scale armor, with a mace tied around his waist. His helmet was a pointed helmet, but it was covered with the cross of God, and his armor was covered with prayers and crosses.
He was surrounded by several bodyguards. These soldiers chose to continue to follow the Metropolitan even after he resigned to protect Hilarion's safety.
What Rostislav saw when he was walking in the formation was the sound of the metropolitan's prayers. He saw many warriors kneeling devoutly in front of him, many of whom obeyed the teachings of the Catholic Church, but at this moment the sect's
No one cares about the differences anymore.
"...O God, give me strength, the Lord is my strength, He teaches my hands to fight, He teaches my fingers to fight..."
As Hilarion recited a prayer, everyone present also followed suit. The solemn scene for a moment made everyone stand in awe, and more and more people joined in.
Rostislav looked at this scene, and a subtle feeling that he didn't know came over his heart. The feeling was very subtle, but he couldn't explain it.
At this moment, Rostislav's shoulder was suddenly held by a hand wearing a chainmail glove. The prince looked back and saw the young face of little Meshko. That face was now full of perseverance. This young man
It's like a person has made a difficult decision.
"I am taking the liberty, Lord Rostislav, although it is a bit abrupt...but I hope you can give me the glory of the first line, let me stand in front of everyone, and show the glory of God with blood and sword."
"……good."
There was a tremor in Mieszko's voice when he said this, which made Rostislav a little hairy and made him subconsciously agree to the young man's needs.
"Thank you very much."
After receiving an affirmative answer, the young man bowed and then retreated to arrange his armor and weapons, while Rostislav looked at his back and frowned.