Vikings: Lords of the Ice Sea

Chapter 134 Escape from Danger
Sensing the murderous intent in Hafdan's words, Ulf was forced to agree, reluctantly participating in the raid.

Britain and West Frankish were no longer suitable for plundering, so Hafdan set his sights on Pomerania, located on the southern coast of the Baltic Sea.

Scattered Slavic tribes in the area have low productivity, but Hafdan doesn't care. Looting is secondary; what matters more is satisfying the berserkers' bloodlust.

"I have made arrangements with the lord of Schleswig (southern Denmark) to meet him in his territory first, gather five hundred warriors, and then set off immediately."

Ulf replied expressionlessly, "Understood."

His fears were proven true. After looting Pomerania (later the northern coast of Poland) for several days, the group only managed to obtain a small box of amber and some tattered animal pelts.

During the raid, Ulf also discovered that Hafdan was deliberately targeting him, intentionally assigning him dangerous tasks such as acting as bait and launching night raids to seize the city gates.
Thanks to his years of vigilance and luck, Ulf managed to survive until the operation ended.

Upon returning to Schleswig, the local lord Horst hosted a feast for the returning warriors. During the meal, some berserkers complained about the meager spoils, to which a drunken Hafdan waved his hand dismissively, "This is just a short rest; we'll set off again in two days."

His words stirred the berserkers' excitement, and their screams filled Ulf's ears. Though his heart was cold, he pretended to be equally excited and joined in the screams.

After drinking for more than half an hour, Ulf pretended to be drunk and staggered away from the lord's longhouse. He tripped and fell on the way, which caused Hafdan and the others to burst into laughter.
“Look at this Earl ‘Eel’, he’s really terrible.”

"Eel" was Ulf's nickname. In 844 AD, he was in dire financial straits and had no choice but to pay a large amount of dried eel as tribute to Ragnar, which led to him being ridiculed as the "Count of Eel." Through Leonard's deliberate spread, this became the nickname that followed Ulf for the rest of his life.

Years later, in the Battle of Latworth, Leonard had his nose cut off by Frank Knight Morris, greatly damaging his appearance. Ulf took the opportunity to give his old nemesis the nickname "Handsome Man" as revenge.

After leaving the lord's longhouse, Ulf sneaked into a nearby house where the seven surviving shield guards were eating and drinking.

"Sir, is there something you need?"

"Pack your things, gather the immigrants from Kunser, and head to the port to escape by ship."

At this moment, Ulf's eyes regained their clarity. If he stayed any longer, he would be framed by Hafdan sooner or later. He had to seize this only opportunity to escape back to Britain.

Suddenly, a shield guard hesitated before asking, "But what about the spoils of war?"

At a time like this, those who still covet that junk are fools who value money over their lives!

Suppressing his anger, Ulf gently advised, "If you return to Kent, I will compensate you with three times the amount of supplies; everyone will receive a share."

Then, Ulf donned a cloak and, under the cover of night, arrived at the dock area.

"This longship is in good condition. Quick, move over a few barrels of beer from nearby, and these dried fish as well."

After unloading the supplies, Ulf ordered his men to cut the sails of the other ships and throw their oars into the water to prevent Hafdan and Horst from pursuing him.

After finishing everything, he counted the number of people. The seven surviving shield guards were all present, along with thirteen young men and women from Kunsel.

Two people are missing? Gazing at the brightly lit, boisterous lord's longhouse, Ulf felt a surge of irritation. "Forget it, I can't wait any longer. I need to escape these lunatics first."

Two years ago, he heard Vig tell a story about the "Feast at Hongmen" and resonated with a certain saying: "When doing great things, one need not worry about trivial matters (great deeds do not concern themselves with minor details, and great etiquette does not preclude small concessions)."

Upon hearing the lord's command, the shield guards rowed and steered the longship away from the dock area.

Listening to the babbling water, Ulf felt depressed, thinking that he was just as unfortunate as "Bang Liu" in the story. Both of them were quite old, yet they still had to risk their lives with these hotheads and never had a moment's peace.

“I will return to Lundinium and proclaim the evil deeds of Hafdan; he has gone completely mad.”

Ulf was certain that Ragnar would handle the matter impartially, at the very least by sending an envoy to rebuke Hafdan.

If the king insists on protecting his son and ignores his actions in harming powerful vassals, the discontent among the nobles will continue to build until it finally erupts.

Compared to Ulf's perilous experience, Vig's recent life has been peaceful and leisurely. Apart from reviewing official documents, he spends his time with Helijif, who is about to give birth.

One day, Micham approached the lord and asked whether a large number of immigrants had recently arrived and whether they should continue to be settled in County Tyne.

“Yes, there are large tracts of land available for cultivation on the south bank of the Tyne River. Send officials to allocate farmland to them. The efficiency of windmill drainage is far superior to manual labor. If this continues, at least six or seven thousand immigrants can be absorbed every year.”

Unfolding the map, Vig observed the surrounding land, considering where to settle the subsequent waves of immigrants. Not long after, a servant came to report...
"Sir, a Kirk ship flying the seagull flag has arrived at the dock, followed by five longships."

Seagull Flag, Björn?
Vig went out to greet him and saw Bjorn instructing his men to purchase ropes and spare canvas, as if he were making preparations for a long voyage.

"Where are you going?"

Björn: "I spent some time in the islands west of Iceland a few years ago after a storm. Now I have this 'Explorer,' which is far more seaworthy than a Viking longship and is suitable for ocean exploration."

Greenland?
Vig recalls his memories of Greenland, where the climate is harsh, trees are scarce, and agriculture is impossible. The indigenous people could only survive by hunting seals and fishing.

It was the early Middle Ages, and Europe was sparsely populated with vast tracts of land waiting to be cultivated. The vast majority of Viking immigrants preferred Britain and Normandy and would not endure the storms and poor food to go to Iceland, let alone Greenland, where trees were scarce and the climate was harsh.

"Iceland has only developed a small area; are you sure you want to explore an island with a much harsher environment?"

"Of course, this is the mission bestowed upon me by the gods."

Seeing Bjorn's enthusiastic expression, Vig couldn't find any words to dissuade him and could only let him go.

Even if Bjorn had been lucky enough to discover the Americas, he still couldn't develop them on a large scale. North America lacked large east-west mountain ranges, which allowed cold waves to move south unimpeded in winter. In summer, extreme weather events such as hurricanes and tornadoes were frequent, and a slight mishap could lead to the destruction of an entire settlement.

"Historically, European peasants who lost their land had no means of livelihood and were forced to endure long periods of hardship to migrate to the New World. Now that Europe has vast tracts of uncultivated wasteland, who would be so bored as to go to other regions to farm? Oh well, let him be."

(End of this chapter)