"Maintain your formation, hold steady! Control your warhorses, don't let them lead you astray!"
In 1052, at a small training ground—or rather, just a simple open field—on the outskirts of Novgorod (Note 1, hereinafter referred to as Nuo City), dozens of youths were undergoing training.
The youths wore helmets and armor, with bows and swords hanging from their saddles. Although most of them still had a hint of childishness on their faces, their skillful horsemanship already resembled that of adults. Their heroic bearing made one anticipate the performance of these future warriors on the battlefield.
The one giving orders rode ahead of everyone, and under his command, the youths tried their best to control their warhorses and maintain the stability of their formation.
Unfortunately, even so, the formation was still uneven, because warhorses are inherently competitive, and it is too difficult to curb their nature. Even experienced riders might not do it well, let alone these young people.
But even so, the youths' performance was much better than most riders in this land, yet the Prince giving orders—Rostislav Vladimirovich—was still very dissatisfied with it.
Rostislav sighed, unable to suppress it. He understood that this was the limit the young people could reach, but as his grandfather was about to arrive in Novgorod, he couldn't help but grow anxious, and his reprimands to his retainers increased. He always wanted to see better performance.
In the long run, the Kiev Grand Duke would die two years later, and at that time, without a strong force to protect himself, it was hard to say what would happen.
Yes, Rostislav knew what would happen in the future, and this also explained his identity: a transmigrator from a later era.
Rostislav's previous life was that of a Seris history enthusiast who studied ancient Rus'. He spent a great deal of effort on this hobby, even willing to travel thousands of miles to a foreign country to access firsthand manuscripts.
But while examining an ancient manuscript of the Chronicle of Past Years, he lost consciousness after an electric shock and woke up in 11th-century Kievan Rus', becoming a Rurik noble.
Initially, he found it difficult to accept transmigration, and even more so, to endure this era. After all, it was a bloody, barbaric, and technologically underdeveloped time, which naturally would be unbearable for a modern person to suddenly enter.
However, as time passed, he could only reluctantly accept everything here and strive to survive in this cruel world.
He has been in this world for five years now. In these five years, he hasn't done much. Due to his age, despite his utmost efforts, he was only allowed to form a retinue, which led to the current group of young horsemen in training.
In this barbaric era, only military might was the foundation for standing firm. As a future landless Prince, if his retainers lacked skilled battle formations, how could he establish himself in future wars?
If he were to die on the battlefield in his first battle, it would truly be too frustrating. Did he come to this world just to die anonymously on the battlefield? And what about what he should have possessed? Would it also move away from him, just like in the historical trajectory?
Novgorod, this magnificent city, should have been his possession, and the throne of Kiev even more so. But in history, with his father's death, everything turned into nothing, as if it had never existed.
As someone who knew history, he wanted to prevent his father's death in this life, but ultimately he couldn't avoid it. His father still died at the hands of the Chud (Note 2) tribes. After all, conflicts and wars were commonplace in Rus', so how could he convince his father not to deal with matters that were inherently part of a Rus' Princes' life?
The indigenous people of Estonia are now united around Alar, confronting Rus' defiantly, the reason being the tribes' dissatisfaction with the increasingly high tribute.
The Chud are a branch of the Finnic peoples. They paid tribute to Rus' in exchange for Rus' protection and goods, but now the increase in tribute has made them very dissatisfied, leading to conflicts and struggles.
The day his father was attacked, he happened to be in talks with the Chud tribes. It was not a pleasant conversation, and then his father was attacked on his way home.
The attackers were numerous and well-prepared, and in the end, the personal guards only managed to retrieve his father's body.
This undoubtedly made the situation the worst possible. The situation around Novgorod suddenly became tense, as if it could explode at any moment.
The situation in Yuryev on the other side of Lake Chud (Note 3) was even on the brink of war. As Rus's bridgehead in Estonia, Chud scouts had already appeared nearby, and there were even reports that Chud chiefs were gathering armies, preparing for war.
However, these matters were not important to Rostislav now. After the news of his father's death, his mother, overcome with grief, also passed away not long after his father. Rostislav was now completely an orphan, and the death of his elders made his situation even more difficult.
In present-day Rus', a deceased father's property would not be passed to his son. The Kiev Grand Duke—who was his grandfather—who held this power, would reclaim it and then redistribute it among his sons.
In other words, as the heir to the heir of the Kiev and Novgorod thrones, Rostislav would lose his inheritance and become a landless Prince.
"Lord Rostislav."
Just then, a rider in a linen robe rode from the direction of the city. The Nuo City Prince looked and recognized him; it was one of his father's messengers.
"The Grand Duke has arrived. Please go to welcome him."
"Grandfather has finally arrived?"
Rostislav's face twitched unnaturally. This day had finally come, and this somewhat annoying wait could finally end.
"Then let's go back and face that damned fate."
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The cavalry galloped on the road to Novgorod, with armed youths in bright clothes and on spirited horses forming a column. The youths maintained their formation and silence as they rode, the effect of years of training evident at this moment, their orderly formation displaying the power and strength of a ruler.
On both sides of the road were vast farmlands, which were the collective fields of the village, but now they were bare. Nothing could be planted in the northern winter.
Further out in the fields, shepherds could be seen driving their flocks towards the village, and the farmers' thatched cottages stood not far from the fields, protected by wooden walls behind them.
This village was located on the road to Novgorod, and thus it was also a stopping point for merchants traveling to Novgorod. Many merchants would rest here for a while before making a push to their destination.
The current tension in the situation was also evident in this village. Gray-bearded sentries stood on the simple wooden watchtowers. As soon as suspicious individuals were spotted, the old man would ring a bronze bell, warning everyone to take refuge behind the walls.
The Prince's retinue, advancing on the dirt road, was very conspicuous, causing merchants and farmers alike to look up in surprise at the group, watching the young warriors ride away in a mighty procession, and then most would lower their heads again to attend to their own affairs.
The locals all knew about the Nuo City Prince's youth cavalry, and the farmers in the village had seen them many times. Every day, the cavalry would travel back and forth on this road, so they saw them daily.
A few outside merchants inquired about which Prince's retinue this was, as it was so well-ordered.
Some well-informed merchants sighed, expressing surprise that such a capable cavalry unit could be seen in the North. Some who had experienced war could tell that these youths were by no means mounted infantry, but true cavalry warriors, which was quite rare in the North, where infantry was preferred.
Some farm girls looked at the armored youths with adoration and longing, even though they had seen them many times.
After all, Rostislav's retainers were like the warriors in heroic songs, the most desired partner template for every young maiden in love.
Occasionally, a girl would show off to her companions that her sweetheart was in the Prince's guard, which aroused envy, followed by playful scuffles among the girlfriends until they were called back by adults.
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After passing through an open field, Rostislav halted the retinue. From there, it was only a 20-minute journey to Novgorod. Rostislav hoped his retainers would rest temporarily and tidy themselves up to enter the city in better form.
The youths naturally obeyed Rostislav's command. They skillfully dismounted, either sitting by the roadside to rest and tidy their clothes or tending to their horses.
Their actions were orderly, reflecting the influence of their early training. Over the years, they had developed a strong military bearing.
The scenery along the road to Novgorod was mostly open fields and forests, which was also the most common sight in the vast Rus'. A large amount of land was still in a wild and uncivilized state, and the torch-bearing pioneers had yet to arrive.
The Prince sat on a stone block by the roadside, gazing at the wild scenery, his mind pondering how to deal with his grandfather, though there was very little he could think of.
Rostislav couldn't help but look around with a sense of melancholy. He was truly quite bewildered about the future, but what good was bewilderment? In the end, he still had to compose himself and move forward.
The fields on both sides of the road were very desolate, with shrubs and scattered trees nearby, a very common sight in the Rus' lands. However, Rostislav felt a hint of disharmony looking at all this, but he couldn't quite put his finger on what it was.
What could it be? Rostislav thought, troubled, his eyes scanning the surroundings, hoping to discover the problem.
It's the sound! Rostislav suddenly realized that there was no sound of insects or birds nearby!
At this moment, the war stories told by his deceased father naturally surfaced in his mind. In these stories, the disappearance of insect and bird sounds meant only one thing.
"Raise your shields! It's an ambush!"
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Note 1: The second largest city in Rus'. The largest city is Kiev.
Note 2: Refers to the large lake located at the border of present-day Russia and the three Baltic Sea countries.
Note 3: In the Rus' concept, it refers to the Finnic peoples of Estonia, Karelia, and Northwest Russia. In this context, it refers to the Finnic peoples around Novgorod and in Estonia.