Chapter 78 Hidden Agenda?

King Askild's men descended from the hill and slaughtered every person here but one, and that was the Viking that begged for his life.

It was only fair that not all warriors would be willing to give up their lives for their king, the fact that they were assigned such a task showed that they did not hold any importance in the overall war.

"I-I can help you! Please spare me." King Askild was disgusted by this disloyal warrior but he knew it would be foolish to kill him based on that fact alone, not until they have gotten information out of him.

"How can you help us?" Asger questioned the man pinned to the ground, he was hit in multiple places and Asger knew from the extent of the damage that the man received that there was no saving him but the man was unaware of the severity of it.

"I will tell you only if you promise to let me go," The man pleaded and Asger gave him his word.

And the man began to spill all the information he had on him.

Ragnar went to his son, and Bjorn looked at him, trying not to break his frame as he tried his best to compose himself but this was his first kill.

He did not like the feeling that came with it, his hands were trembling but it was subtle that only those close to him could see it, and the only person close enough was Ragnar.

"What? My plan worked, that is all that matters." Bjorn said, trying his hardest not to break down but looking at his father, smiling gently at him.

"It is scary taking a life, isn't it?" Ragnar asked, and Bjorn's eyes widened as he noticed his father was sympathetic to his situation and was not about to scold him.

"It is okay Bjorn, let it out," Ragnar said, embracing his son as Bjorn quietly sobbed in his arms.

Ragnar expected this to be a pivotal part of Bjorn's life as he had a feel for what it was like to take a life and his reaction was exactly as Ragnar hoped.

He was glad that Bjorn knew just how valuable life was but this would ultimately affect the psyche of his son during the remainder of this war.

Asger noticed this but refocused on the man that had betrayed Vestfold but there was no way to know if the information they were given was true or false.

Asger permitted him to go but he did not even travel up to 100 meters before collapsing.

"Is what he said true?" Skarde asked Asger but there was no way for Asger to know.

"If it is true then we are in more trouble than we thought," They turned to King Askild but he did not look worried.

"Trouble? Watch your tongue Asger or you will lose it." Askild threatened Asger for the first time, and Asger instantly swallowed the next words that were about to escape his lips.

"We move forward," Askild said as they continued forward. At this pace, they would reach the capital of Vestfold soon, and by soon, they would be there by dawn but Askild knew there would be more battles ahead.

"Son of Ragnar," Askild called out as he broke away from his father's embrace, Askild's expression was unchanged from seeing his tearful face.

"You did good, that was a brilliant plan." Askild praised the young warrior.

"I expected nothing more from the son of Ragnar but the battle ahead is harder so brace yourself. Crying for your enemy is a sight I do not want to ever see." Askild threatened the young boy and it took everything in Ragnar's power not to step in because Askild was crossing a line he should not have even thought about crossing.

"If you can not bear to see your enemies die, I will cut out your eyes so you will not need to see the faces of those you kill. This is a war, the people you kill are fathers and sons of people too." Askild said and the commanders were familiar with this tone.

They knew that Askild should not be spoken to right now and that is exactly why the place was quiet until Bjorn opened his mouth.

Everyone's eyes opened in horror because they did not know what careless words the boy would utter, not even being the son of Ragnar could save him from the wrath of Askild.

"Understood!" Bjorn said with a salute and Askild cracked a feint smile at this response as he continued onward with his horse.

Ragnar noticed something despite how scared Bjorn was, he was good at hiding it.

"Where did you learn that from?" Ragnar asked as months ago, he did not display this trait prior so this was sudden.

"Tyr taught me," Bjorn said with a sigh of relief but Birger soon came into their proximity.

"That was most impressive, child." Birger praised Bjorn and Bjorn was hesitant to respond because he could see his father giving him the death stare.

Ulf, luckily, popped up to ease the tension that came with Birger's presence.

So far, they could navigate with little to no difficulty due to Birger's knowledge of the area.

"I once heard that Vestfold's King was not the true king in one of the cities outside Kattegat, it was in a play," Skarde said. This was directed at Birger.

"You are taking the words of a play seriously, don't be silly Skarde," Ragnar said with a disappointed sigh but Ulf noticed that Birger's silence was not the usual one he was used to, this information seemed to rattle him somewhat, and no one noticed it.

Ulf felt his body language shift for just a moment, but of course, this could all be in his mind, as there was no visual confirmation due to the helmet Birger had on.

"It is just a stupid play. Asmund is the King of Vestfold," Birger responded.

"I thought as much," Skarde said with a goofy laugh accompanying it.