139 CXXXIX. The Gif

"We can go! I'm sure the village farmers will be happy with our gift... and then... I'm starving! I can't wait to eat something!" said Dag, sitting next to his companions as the wagon was already moving.

Karl kept looking at him with admiration: Dag acted as if nothing had happened, doing some good had this effect on him. His gaze seemed serene and tired, full of satisfaction.

When they were younger and trained together in the Arena, Dag's personality was already like that. Although he had always been a young warrior with clear goals in his head, he always managed to be generous and magnanimous to others.

It wasn't a very 'Viking' attitude but somehow it made him special, unlike anyone else.

Perhaps it was his good character that had allowed him to win over his sister Freydis, who hardly gave confidence to strangers, especially those who tried to flirt with her.

"What did you do in the hut?" asked Reidar, curiously.

"You'll see it when we're at the top of the hill" Dag said, with a satisfied smile drawn to his face.

The horses began to tow the wagon, with some difficulty in starting.

When they arrived at the beginning of the ascent, the three adventurers got off the wagon, to lighten the load that those poor beasts had to bear.

Once they were at the top of the hill, the Sun was beginning to set on the horizon, just behind the bandit camp, on the west coast of Kvete.

"Look" Dag said, pointing to the camp.

Red flames engulfed the two huts and the fence, burning everything, including the corpses of enemy warriors.

The dark smoke rose overpoweringly to the sky, giving that sunset a macabre appearance, but at the same time making it breathtakingly beautiful.

"Now we are sure that no one else will be able to settle in that place. The burned corpses will return to the earth as it should be" Dag said, with the reddish sunset reflecting into his heavenly eyes.

Reidar and Karl stopped to watch the show, pleased with their victory over the bandits.

After about ten minutes, the horses had caught their breath and Dag and his companions got back on the wagon, ready for the descent, which would surely have been faster to follow.

They crossed the other side of the promontory and the village of the peasants sprang behind some trees.

Two children were playing right next door when they noticed the wagon getting closer.

One of them got up and ran to one of the huts to warn the peasants of the arrival of Dag and his companions.

The other stood still in his position, admiring the wagon.

Dag smiled at him.

They stopped in front of the huts and got off the wagon.

The horses were worn out and one of them, knelt on his paws, exhausted by the effort.

Agnes and her mother were the first to leave their homes.

As soon as he saw her, Karl ran towards her and the two lovers hugged each other.

"I was afraid for you, Karl. I had a bad dream and I thought it would come true" she said.

"Don't be afraid. Now you're safe, the bandits can't hurt you anymore" Karl said, smiling.

When the two elderly men also went out to greet Dag and the others, they immediately noticed the wagon.

"There's a surprise for you! Come closer!" said Dag, nodding to the peasants, urging them to go to the back of the wagon.

When everyone was in position, Dag opened the wooden doors and an avalanche of food and objects of all kinds fell to the ground.

He continued to look at the faces of the peasants, content to see their happy and astonished expressions.

"What... how...?" asked Agnes' mother, in disbelief, as she approached the load of the wagon that had ended up on the ground.

"These things will never repay the lives that those bastards took... what they did to you is just disgusting. But I'm sure they'll be useful in the future" Dag continued, looking into the eyes of one of the old men.

The gentleman had shiny eyes and reciprocated Dag's gaze with admiration.

He also approached the wagon and grabbed something from the ground, as if he wanted to verify that everything was real and it wasn't just a magnificent dream.

"Thank you! Thank you! Infinitely thank you!" said Agnes' mother, with tears of joy streaming down her eyes.

Within seconds, all the village children surrounded Dag and hugged him from each side, clinging firmly to his clothes.

"Hahaha!"

Dag began to laugh. There was nothing more satisfying than what had just happened: giving something to others meant enriching his spirit.

He had surely inherited this way of doing from Asa, who since welcomed him to her farmhouse, made him feel comfortable immediately, treating him with kindness and care.

"Using the sword does not mean being heartless. If you fight for others, the good you do to them sooner or later comes back to you. Sword and heart, Dag... always remember that".

The words of his mother echoed in Dag's mind.

"Sword and heart..." whispered, as he stroked the children's little heads that were cheering him on as a hero.

"What happened? What happened to the bandits? Did you kill them all?" asked Agnes to Karl.

Dag approached him and touched his shoulder, preventing him from responding.

"We'll tell you everything, but first... we must eat! I'm hungry as a lion! We'll take the supplies from the wagon and start placing them in your warehouses" Dag continued.

All the peasants obeyed smiling.

Working together, within minutes all the food and medicine in the wagon was moved to the village warehouse.

The women walked away from the hut and began preparations for the most abundant banquet in decades.

"Your information about Kjetil was right. He was the leader of the bandits" Karl told Agnes, as he stroked her hair, happy to see her again.