Vikings: Lords of the Ice Sea

Chapter 125 Lurking
Back in his office in Stirling, Viper recounted the events of the operation and had his secretary write a report to send to Tyneburg.

Just as his subordinate finished writing the report and was about to seal it, Viper suddenly stopped him, saying, "I sent a few agents to the northern mountains to gather information some time ago. Call them over to report back. Attach this report to the back."

"Yes."

Subsequently, five agents entered the office one after another, without providing any valuable information. Baron Viper suspected that these people were just looking for a place to kill time and trying to fool him with some half-truths.

"Your bonus for this month is canceled. Go back and reflect on your actions!"

Four agents left the office, leaving only one Anglo agent nicknamed "The Latecomer" behind.

The man's name was Connor, the second son of a gentry family. During the war last year, he served as a mounted messenger. On one occasion, his horse stopped midway, causing delays, and his colleagues jokingly called him "the latecomer." Unsurprisingly, this nickname would stay with him for the rest of his life.

After the war, Connor, due to his Pictish ancestry and rudimentary Pictish language skills, was fortunate enough to become an agent in the Stirling County Sheriff's Department.

"Detective, what's the problem?"

Looking at the gloomy-faced Viper Baron, Connor recounted his reconnaissance experience once again. He had disguised himself as a wool trader and visited three villages in the northern mountains. One day, he overheard someone mentioning the rebels, but his appearance aroused the locals' suspicion, and the conversation was abruptly stopped.
As dusk approached, Baron Viper, planning to dine at the sheriff's house, impatiently waved his hand and said, "What exactly do you want to say?"

"Sir, the more isolated a place is, the more likely it is to be xenophobic. As outsiders, we cannot gain the trust of the local villagers in a short time, and it is difficult to obtain useful information. Therefore, I suggest changing our strategy and sending undercover agents to infiltrate the rebel army to provide detailed and effective intelligence."

After listening for a few minutes, Baron Viper's furrowed brows gradually relaxed, and he glanced at the young Anglo agent with interest.
“That seems to make some sense. I’ll have my secretary write this idea at the end of the bandit suppression report. Maybe the Duke will be interested.”

After putting on his coat, Baron Viper gestured for his secretary and agents to stay in the office to work overtime, then whistled as he walked away towards the sheriff's residence.
One week later.

When Baron Viper received the Duke's reply, he could hardly believe it when the secretary finished reading the letter aloud. "The Duke is asking Connor to take up a post at Tyneburg. You didn't misread it?"

Viper reached out and snatched the letter, but unfortunately he couldn't read it. He irritably tossed it back to the secretary, who then called over "the latecomer," Connor.

"You're in luck, lad. The Duke has summoned you to Tyneburg. Hurry back and prepare, don't keep the Duke waiting."

Upon hearing the good news, Connor felt dizzy, as if he were drunk, and staggered back to his room.

Lying in bed, he stared at the wooden planks of the ceiling and muttered to himself, "Finally, I can leave this godforsaken place, Stirling."

On April 10, Connor arrived at Tyne Town dock aboard a Viking longship carrying pig iron.

When the ship docked, he didn't rush to Tyneburg. Instead, he found a public bathhouse nearby, got a haircut, took a bath, and had lunch, spending a total of a quarter penny (for ease of transaction, silver pennies were commonly cut into halves and quarters).

After finishing his grooming, looking at his reflection in the bronze mirror, Connor couldn't help but complain:
"The Duke was originally just a Nordic farmer, so why does he have such severe mysophobia? He even requires the residents of Tyne to take a bath at least once a week. Sigh, just like the legendary Romans, he likes to fuss."

On second thought, every nobleman has his hobbies: murder, robbery, hunting, womanizing, drinking, and gluttony. Compared to all of these, the Duke of Tyneburg's eccentric behavior was not particularly harmful.
While inwardly grumbling, Connor walked towards Tyneburg, perched atop the southwest hill, and showed the letter to the guard. He was led to a small room next to the main building, where seven visitors sat. "Wait here; the Duke may summon you at any moment," the guard said curtly, before returning to his post at the east gate.

Connor glanced around at the people in the room: knights in chainmail, Anglo-Saxon gentry, Flemish wool merchants, and a rough-skinned, drunken Viking, presumably the captain of some merchant ship.

After waiting for a while, the knight was called into the hall, followed by the gentry, the wool merchant, and the captain. When it was Connor's turn, he was fast asleep, slumped over in his chair.

Awakened by a maid, Connor nervously entered the main hall and bowed to the lord seated there. "Your Excellency, I am Connor, an agent from Stirlingshire."

"It's you?"

Vig straightened his posture, dismissed the guards and servants in the hall, and inquired of the agent about his thoughts on sending an undercover agent. After the agent finished speaking, Vig added:
"When making contact, try to use single-line communication as much as possible. Even if someone betrays us, the harm caused will be relatively controllable."

Recalling the movies and TV shows he had watched in his past life, he rattled off a long list of precautions, only to find the other person confused. He then changed the subject, asking, "Can you read?"

Connor: "I started learning Northman last year and have mastered two hundred Northman words. Thanks to your and the Northman speakers' simplification, Northman grammar is easy to understand and quick to learn."

Vig nodded in satisfaction and issued a new task: "For the next few months, you will attend literacy classes at school. After you finish, return to Stirling County as a detective, recruit some reliable undercover agents, and send them to infiltrate the rebels. Come see me again before you leave, and I will teach you some additional precautions."

After Connor left, the Crow Whisperer entered the hall and showed Vig the results of his work over the past six months—many scrolls filled with legal texts.

After the establishment of the four counties in the North, each county had a judge who handled disputes according to local customs.

Out of a sense of rigor, Vigg decided to compile a written law, modeled in form on the Roman legal system and in content on the traditions of the Vikings, Anglo-Saxons, and Picts. Due to the immense workload, the compilation was intermittent, and it was expected to be completed in 852.

After reviewing the text for about ten minutes, he had someone bring in Helgeve and Micham to carefully examine each clause.

After an unknown amount of time, Vig's eyes became sore and he simply put down his book and started talking about other topics with the Crow Whisperer.

Today, the improved runic script and many innovative measures have spread to Northern Europe, attracting the attention of religious holy sites such as Uppsala and Lake Tisso. Gradually, some people have referred to the shamanic group led by the ravens as the Tynburg Order.

The Opium Speakers readily accepted this, and two months ago they openly announced that they had long since distanced themselves from the conservative groups in Uppsala.

His statement attracted the attention of some reformers, and a steady stream of followers flocked to him, but it also caused a lot of trouble.

Vig: "Have shamans been frequently going to the temple to cause trouble lately?"

After receiving a positive reply, he decided to send soldiers to guard the temples in the five counties, especially the headquarters in Tyneburg, to prevent some of the defeated debaters from getting angry and resorting to physical means to solve the problem.

(End of this chapter)