009

It's been a few days since I reported the escape of my slaves and now they were no longer my problem ... I didn't feel guilty, in my previous life I did worse things and on a larger scale.

I was sitting in the forge making some final adjustments to my weapons when suddenly three people entered it. It was Floki, Ragnar and Leif. I was not expecting their visit and had no idea what they might want.

- You are Floki. I remember you watched when I fought and killed my father, and who are these two?

- This is Ragnar and Leif, they live in the neighboring village. Their parents are farmers.

- and who are your parents?

- My father builds ships, mother is dead.

He said it proudly in his voice ... and he had good reason to be. Shipbuilder, it was a respected profession.

It was my first contact with Ragnar after coming to this world and I was a bit disappointed, in the series Ragnar when we meet him he is thirty years old, before me there was a ten year old kid. Of course my disappointment was the result of my expectations, it was quite normal that the young version would not be like the one in twenty years. I keep forgetting that I have the body of a twelve-year-old myself, though the mind of an old man.

- What brings you here? As you can see I'm a bit busy.

- You gave me the bracelet after the duel, in return I wanted to give you this. Floki pulled a neatly carved bone comb behind his back.

- Thank you, but you didn't have to give me anything in return.

- I didn't want to owe you anything.

Now I remembered this stupid rule. If you were giving a gift to someone, he had to give a gift of a similar value. It was the favorite and most elegant method the Jarls and Kings used to force men to serve. When the king chose a good warrior, he gave him a very valuable gift, a warrior, not having a fortune like the king, was not able to repay with a similarly valuable gift, so he swore to serve him. It was rude to refuse to accept a gift ... if this happens to me, I'd rather refuse than be forced to serve some idiot. It will probably make me enemies, but in life you cannot let yourself be pushed around.

- Thank you for the comb, Floki. I suspect you carved it yourself. Beautiful ravens, you have a lot of talent ...

Comb another obsession of norsmen, they used to bathe once a week, bleached their hair with soap with a lot of lye ... but combed their hair and beards every day, well-groomed long hair in light shades was a symbol of beauty. Dreadlocks were unthinkable, but in the show ... well, it was a fantasy series, not a historical one. That's why I've already seen a few people in the village from Jamaica.

- ... and you two wanted something or are you accompanying only a friend? I asked Ragnar and Leif.

Ragnar wanted to say something, but hesitated, perhaps he was shy or changed his mind. Leif was more direct.

- Ulf, why did you kill your father? I've never seen a son who killed his father.

Direct question, but I had no problem with that. I made a spectacle of my father's death, so I'm not going to pretend to be a saint now.

- It is more common than you think, but not everyone has the courage to do it with a sword, they use poisons more often... I killed him for his fortune, for revenge, and for fame, each of these reasons contributed little to it. He was not a father in my eyes, he was just an obstacle in my way, and obstacles must be eliminated.

We talked for a few more minutes, I told them to visit me again and we said goodbye.Then I went back to work. I finished the correcting on my weapons, considering the poor quality of the iron, I was satisfied with the final result.

I made a few blows with the sword it was now better balanced and the handle was better fitted and attached to the blade. Throwing axes have also worked well, although if I had thrown with all my strength, it would have no difference, or the blade or the head of the ax would stick anyway. The helmet, chain mail, and horseman's pick were all finished and ready for use.

Now it's time to think about my future, I didn't want to be a blacksmith. It was a good job and you could make good money with it, but it wasn't for me. I also knew about carpentry, fabric dyeing and brick production ... but none of these professions evoked my enthusiasm ... but sometimes in order to survive you have to do what you don't want to do, and when the time comes, only then pursue your ambitions.

For sure I have to rebuild my house at the beginning, fireplace in the middle of the room, no chimney, no windows. No wonder lung diseases were so common among the norsmen. The wood often rotted despite the security measures and had to be replaced ... so I think at the beginning I will focus on improving the foundations, walls and the smoke extraction system... Maybe it will even initiate a new style of construction in Scandinavia.

A few days later, Gunnar came to me and informed me that the bodies of my slaves had been found in the forest, they had been partially eaten by the animals. I took note of this, said goodbye to him and resumed my activities.

My stepmother made a stupid decision and had to pay for it, and so did her son. I wouldn't want someone to knock on my door in twenty years looking for revenge. I wouldn't expect forgiveness from them either, especially since I was going to sell them, and before that I killed their husband and father.