Maria Semenova’s "Wolfhound," a summary Automatic translate

This book is a gritty Slavic fantasy, written in 1995. The protagonist lacks the qualities of a flawless knight: he is broken by hard labor, sullen, and shying away from glory, his actions driven by a deep-rooted sense of duty. The novel won the prestigious Belyaev Prize. It inspired the successful feature film "Wolfhound of the Gray Dogs" and the television series "Young Wolfhound."

This novel opens the "Wolfhound" series of the same name, being the first book in the cycle. It is followed by the novels "Wolfhound. The Right to Duel," "Wolfhound. The Source Stone," "Wolfhound. The Sign of the Path," "Wolfhound. The Gemstone Mountains," and "Wolfhound. The World on the Road."

Returning to my native land

After eleven long years in the merciless slavery of the Gemstone Mountains, the last surviving male of the Gray Dog clan returns home. He is obsessed with a single goal: to punish the kuns Vinitharius, nicknamed the Man-Eater. In the past, the Segvan kuns treacherously destroyed a village of Venn. Wolfhound infiltrates the enemy’s heavily guarded castle through a secret underwater conduit. In a dank dungeon, he kills the cruel executioner and frees the blind sage Tilorn from his cage.

Reaching the Ogre’s upper chambers, the avenger slays his sworn enemy with a well-aimed spear throw. The wooden castle bursts into flames and begins to crumble. The wolfhound prepares to meet his death in flames and begins to sing the tribe’s funeral dirge. The young slave Niilith falls at his feet, tearfully begging for help. The tame bat also refuses to leave its master’s side. Pity for the weak compels the venn to break its song. He cuts through the burning logs, carrying Niilith and Tilorn into the fresh air.

The Road to Bolshoy Pogost

The three fugitives hide in the deep forests. According to ancient custom, a Venn must undergo a purification ritual after a murder, but the harsh conditions prevent this. That night, the camp is attacked by the spirits of the Cannibal and the executioner, who have taken physical form. Venn calmly drives an aspen stake into Vinitharius’s corpse and burns away the evil spirits with the sacred signs of the God of Fire.

The travelers reach the settlement of Bolshoy Pogost. Volkodav is hired as a guard for the merchant caravan of Segvan Fitela, en route to the capital city of Galirad. To prove his military worth, Venn knocks out two of the caravan’s best fighters, Avdika and Aptakhar, with his bare hands.

En route, a merchant caravan is raided by a gang led by the notorious robber Zhadoba. The bandits attempt to carry off Niilith on horseback. Volkodav gives chase, recaptures the girl, and maims the kidnapper, stealing his magnificent ornate blade. The bandits flee.

Court in Galirad

Upon arriving in bustling Galirad, Volkodav heads to the workshop of Segvan Varoh, wanting a new scabbard forged. The experienced craftsman immediately recognizes Zhadoba’s weapon and raises a clamor, declaring the Venn the leader of the bandits. The city guard escorts Volkodav to the krom for trial before the young ruler, Princess Elen. The girl listens to the witnesses and orders the accused to roll up his sleeves. Seeing the terrible scars left by slave shackles, she drops the charges, as Zhadoba had never been enslaved. Elen Gluzdovna returns Volkodav’s weapon and pays a fine for his dishonor.

Volkodav spends his silver at the market, buying Niilith blue glass beads and exposing a fraudulent merchant in the process. Later, he intercedes for the young Arrantian, Eurych, who was tortured by the priests of the Twin Gods for attempting to save ancient books. Venn defeats the priestly fighter in a public duel and takes Eurych with him. Volkodav performs another act at the port: he gives a priceless ornate blade to an Arrantian merchant in exchange for the freedom of the old man Nad, the husband of the elderly Welhin woman, Kirenne.

Service to the Empress

Seeing Venn’s strength, Princess Yelen makes him her personal bodyguard. Volkodav selflessly protects the Empress, teaching her and the young men fighting techniques. He develops a mutual feud with Luchezar, an arrogant boyar and relative of the princess. The left-wing boyar regularly uses an intoxicating gray powder and is renowned for his ruthless nature.

The Galiradian Prince returns from the Hidden Land of Velimor and announces his daughter’s betrothal to Vinithar, Guardian of the Northern Gate. The girl fears the unfamiliar groom but submits to her father’s will. Volkodav learns the name of her chosen one and realizes he is taking his mistress directly into the arms of the son of the Ogre he killed.

Ambushes and battles

Luchezar commands the bride’s military escort. Ignoring the advice of seasoned elders, the boyar directs the convoy along the abandoned Old Road, which skirts the Kaieran Marshes. During a stop among the Kharyuk tribe, the travelers witness the trial of the healer Mangul. The local chieftain accuses her of witchcraft. Knesinka demands a fair trial. The dispute is resolved with a duel on a stretched canvas: Volkodav playfully pushes the chieftain’s giant son over the edge of the canvas, saving Mangul and her adopted son from the fire.

That night, the camp is attacked by men in terrifying masks, claiming to be the ghosts of ancient warriors. Volkodav saves the princess from flaming arrows. The detachment takes cover behind the stone walls of an ancient sanctuary. A bloody hand-to-hand battle in the darkness claims the lives of many warriors. Volkodav is aided by the brave velkhina Ertan, who is seriously wounded. The defenders manage to hold out.

Suspension bridge

The next day, the exhausted detachment reaches the suffocating gorge of the Prepona River. Volkodav anticipates an ambush and forces the princess to don a chainmail suit weighing several kilograms. The premonition comes true: the bandits pelt the suspension bridge with arrows. The bodyguard ferries Elena Gluzdovna to the other side of the chasm, while he remains on the Galirad bank and cuts the hair ropes. The bridge collapses into a misty abyss. Cut off from his own people, the Venn engages dozens of raiders alone.

At the most desperate moment, the armored cavalry of Kunsa Vinitar thunders out from behind the rocks. The Velimorians grind the bandits into dust. The bandit leader, Zhadoba, perishes under the horses’ hooves. Luchezar’s treachery is revealed: he had conspired with the villains in advance, plotting to destroy the princess. Volkodav falls to the bloody rocks, grievously wounded.

God’s Judgment

Vinitar recognizes Volkodav as his father’s killer. Segvan laws call for immediate vengeance, but the young chieftain finds the strength to suppress his anger. Appreciating the Venn’s courage in rescuing his bride, the kuns spares his life.

The embassy returns to Galirad. Volkodav publicly calls Luchezar to account for his treason and challenges him to God’s Judgment in the marketplace. Despite a broken arm, the Venn enters the fray. Luchezar attacks with the ferocity of a doomed madman. Volkodav executes a complex throw, intercepts his opponent’s blade, and Luchezar’s magnificent sword inflicts a mortal wound on its own master.

Misty Gate

The threat has passed, but Galirad no longer offers safety. Luchezar’s minions are thirsty for blood. Volkodav, Tilorn, Eurykh, Niilith, the old man Varoh, and the boy Zuiko leave the city in the dead of night. The scholar Eurykh directs his companions to Misty Rock, where the Gate to another, just world, where evildoers are forbidden, lies hidden.

A pursuit, led by the mercenary Plishka, follows the fugitives. Volkodav sends his friends to the top of the cliff, while he himself blocks the narrow mountain path. The final, hopeless battle begins. Venn throws several enemies into the seething ocean, but is gravely wounded by long-range crossbows. Pierced by arrows, he falls to the cold stone.

The Misty Gates allow Tilorn, Niilith, Eurych, Varoh, and Zuiko to pass unhindered. Seeing the fallen Volkodav, Tilorn, Eurych, and Niilith emerge from the mist back onto the path. They blind the attacking Solvenn with a flash of unseen light and drag the wounded Volkodav with them into the saving unknown.