Vikings: Lords of the Ice Sea

Chapter 364 Emperor
Upon hearing the king's inquiry, the prime minister presented a debt repayment plan.

"Your Majesty, the war bonds previously issued offered repayment of principal and interest, plus a piece of land as a bonus. I suggest that the price be clearly stated, so that bondholders who forgo monetary returns can own more land, especially prime properties such as vineyards and olive groves."

After listening to the other party, Vig thought to himself that if the new plan was successfully implemented, the amount of silver the royal family would need to pay would be greatly reduced, and was expected to be no more than 80,000 pounds.

The financial problems hadn't gotten to their limit yet, and Vig breathed a sigh of relief. He stretched and returned to the palace, where the interior furnishings were exactly the same as before, as if everything had returned to how it was before he set off.

After washing up, Vig had lunch with his family. The second prince talked incessantly about his experiences during the war, especially the Battle of Rick Field, where six thousand cavalrymen charged in like a tidal wave, a scene he would never forget.

"Six thousand cavalry, how much will that cost?" Hosa, driven by his merchant instincts, did some mental calculations and concluded that war was the most expensive of all activities.

On the other side of the long table, Britta remained silent. She was old and unaccustomed to life in the Canary Islands, and had recently returned to Rendinium to retire.

As a traditional Viking woman, her impression of war was still based on shield wall collisions from many years ago, and she was unfamiliar with modern terms such as "hollow square," "horizontal-to-vertical conversion," and "bayonet charge."

After listening for a few minutes, Britta carefully examined her son and brother, but found no signs of injury. She then lowered her head again and silently drank the warm fish and oat porridge in her bowl.

After lunch, Vig took a nap in the recliner in his office. Over the years, he has found that he sleeps best in his office, where it is far more comfortable than in his bedroom or other places.

Not long after, Vig's consciousness gradually blurred, and as his thoughts drifted away, he heard a guard knocking on the door outside.

The one who received the audience was Ricard, who brazenly interrupted the king's sleep to inquire about the subsequent investiture ceremony.

Vig rubbed his eyes wearily and replied impatiently, "You killed the King of Provence at the Battle of the Running of the Bulls, so you are entitled to a count's estate."

This reward met Rickard's expectations, and he thanked him profusely before making an additional request.

“I am willing to hand over my current Scunthorpe in exchange for an additional county in West Frankish, preferably with the two counties adjacent to each other.”

Scunthorpe, located south of the Humber River and north of Cambridgeshire, is a flat area, considered upper-middle class in Great Britain. If placed in West Frankish territory, it would be roughly lower-middle class, or even lower.

Years later, Rickard had grown tired of the gloomy Britain and only wanted to move to the comfortable West Frankish countryside to retire.

When asked about his vassal's request, Vig looked at the map on the wall, pondered for a moment, and then slowly nodded.

After seeing the count off, Vig instructed his guards not to let anyone come to the door, and then slept until three o'clock in the afternoon.

Meanwhile, Goodwin's eldest son (the Earl of Suffolk) was anxiously waiting in the waiting room. During the war, the Earl had only sent militia into battle, while he himself remained in Britain "recuperating."

After being granted an audience, the count knew he was not entitled to a new fiefdom, so he requested to hand over Suffolk in exchange for the Frankish territories.

Out of consideration for the former prime minister, Vigé did not make things difficult for the man. "The Franks have just been conquered and the order is unstable. Are you sure you want to abandon your old fiefdom and move to a more dangerous region?"

“They’re just a bunch of farmers, I’m not afraid of them.”

“Very well, as you wish.” Vig had no patience for further persuasion and agreed to the Earl of Suffolk’s request. Before nightfall, Brecken (Earl of Liverpool), Pascal (Earl of Teas), and the Earl of Lancaster arrived at the office one after another. Their demands were similar to the previous two; they also intended to change locations.

From the royal family's perspective, although the quality of British lands was not as good as that of West Francia, they were easier to control.

With these five earls, the total royal domain of Britain reaches 50%, giving the island's nobles an overwhelming advantage. Even if they were to lose mainland Europe one day, they could simply retreat back to the island of Britain and still develop into a maritime superpower.

A few days later, Duke Emont of Dufelin approached Vig and requested to hand over Derwent (Ivar's original fief) in exchange for the Count's domain in southern Frankish territory, with the sole condition that it be rich in wine.

In its quest to conquer Ireland, Ivar nearly exhausted the manpower and resources of Derwent. Even today, the region's population has not exceeded ten thousand, less than one-seventh of that of neighboring County Tyne.

Viger took out a map and relevant statistical reports, compared them for a long time, and then awarded a piece of land northeast of Bordeaux to Ymont. The latter was satisfied, thanked him repeatedly, and left the office.

After that, no one else requested to relocate their territories. Although the climate and soil quality of West Frankish lands were among the best in Europe, the remaining nobles preferred to stay in their homeland and had no intention of starting over in a new territory.

After spending more than a week coordinating the demands of all parties, Vig arrived at a roughly reasonable plan for the distribution of fiefdoms.

April 1, the town square in Londinium.

The square is a rectangle measuring 180 x 250 meters. To the north is a towering stone temple, to the west is the town hall and the meeting place of the sages, to the south are the public bathhouse and library, and to the east are rows of stone buildings, mainly the headquarters of major chambers of commerce.

At dawn, a large number of city defense troops entered the square to clear out the vendors' stalls and loiterers. Then, expeditionary troops entered from the north entrance one after another, forming neat square formations.

At eight o'clock in the morning, two thousand royal guards arrived, followed by a large number of civil officials, nobles, clergy, and members of the Council of Wise Men. Everyone followed instructions and stood in their designated areas. After waiting for a while, the royal carriages entered the square.

The carriage stopped in front of the temple steps. Vig, as usual, wore a black robe and walked up the steps alone. Tens of thousands of eyes were focused on him, but Vig did not feel the joy and excitement he had expected. As a farmer from the edge of the world, it had taken him thirty years to get here from Gothenburg in Northern Europe. In peacetime, he was busy with government affairs and making money; in wartime, he personally went to the front lines. He had never taken any shortcuts and had worked countless times harder than Basil in the Eastern Roman Empire.

Since he had earned this foundation honestly, Vig felt neither uneasy nor secretly pleased. Instead, he had a calm and relieved attitude and slowly climbed to a higher position.

The procedures for the coronation ceremony had been the subject of intense discussions between the cabinet and the Opium Speakers.

Some have suggested that, following the conventions of the Roman Empire, the Crow Whisperers and Wind Chasers favored the current continental European procedure—the monarch remained kneeling while a priest placed a crown on his head.

Of course, no matter how much everyone argues, the final choice depends on Vig himself.

Upon reaching the top of the steps, he did not kneel, but instead took the crown directly from the tray held by the ravens.

The crown's materials came from crowns collected from various places: Northumbria, Wessex, Sussex, and the Frankish kings.
As instructed, the craftsmen took a portion of gold from various crowns and melted it down to cast this crown. It was then inlaid with many gemstones of different shapes, resulting in a rather heavy overall weight and a substantial feel.

If you want to wear a crown, you must bear its weight.

The next moment, he turned around, facing the vast crowd below, and slowly placed the crown on his head. Instantly, cheers surged forth like a tidal wave.
(End of this chapter)