Excerpts from the book:
...The priest blessed Wulf, reading him instructions about faith in Logos. That the knight, first of all, serves not the Order, but the holy temple.
The young man was accepted into the knighthood of the Order of the Golden Cross by the Meister himself, his father Friedrich von Hogerfest. The ceremony was no less magnificent than the celebration of the young man's fifteenth birthday.
It took place in the main hall of Hammaburg Castle. Wulf, dressed in armor and a cloak with the emblem of the Order, walked out into the middle of the hall, where his father was waiting for him. The Meister was also in full dress: in armor and a cloak. Behind him stood Kurt, holding a ceremonial sword.
Wulf approached the Meister and, according to tradition, knelt on the red velvet pillow.
"Wulf von Hogerfest, do you swear to serve the Order of the Golden Cross faithfully?" Friedrich began to ask questions about the knightly oath.
"Yes, Meister," the young man answered briefly.
"Do you swear to honor the code of the Order?" Hogerfest continued.
"Yes, Meister..."
"Do you swear to carry faith in the almighty Logos?"
"Yes, Meister..."
Friedrich asked his son a number of more questions, and, having received affirmative answers, took the sword from Kurt's hands. Placing the end of the blade to Wulf's shoulder, Hogerfest said:
"I hereby name you a knight of the Order of the Golden Cross. Rise from your knees, Wulf von Hogerfest, you are now a knight!"
Wulf rose from his knees. From that moment on, he was considered a full member of the Order...
At the end of the ceremony, the feast began. The servants were especially happy: first, the birthday of the only heir of the Meister was celebrated, and then his acceptance into the ranks of the knights. It's not often they get the opportunity to drink and have fun like this!
Wulf himself sincerely believed that the Order of the Golden Cross brought the true faith to the pagans. However, no one in Hammaburg knew that for several years now he had been secretly visiting the Temple of Ruevit, the many-faced god of war of the Veneti.
Wulf convinced himself that he was doing this solely for educational purposes, in order to learn more about the Veneti. After all, he, as a knight of the Order of the Golden Cross, will have to fight them and convert them to his faith.
However, visiting the Temple became for the young knight not just a habit, or a craving for another culture, but a spiritual need. Wulf tried to drown out the call of his ancestors. He knew very well that his mother came from the Veneti. But his father... For the current young man there was no doubt — this is the Meister of the Order of the Golden Cross, the all-powerful Friedrich von Hogerfest.
Wulf loved and respected his father. It never occurred to him to question his paternity. Although he had heard vague rumors about his mother's past, he never took them seriously.
...Meanwhile, his father was planning another campaign against the pagans for the beginning of summer. His current goal was the city of Szczecin, located up the Alster River, in the lands of the Pomeranians.
Recently, this Slavic city has gained enormous strength under the hand of its ruler, Knyaz Cheslav. Szczecin has significantly increased its military power and increased in population, because in recent years refugees from the devastated Slavic lands have been actively arriving there. At times, Meister Hogerfest mentally feared that Szczecin could become a very serious obstacle to the further advance of his army into the lands of the pagans...