CH-6

The boat was already half-built. 

Rollo calculated that at max speed, rushing, Floki would finish it in a month, giving him plenty of time to play around.

"What do you want?"

He suddenly spoke up while walking, noticing a black bird perched on a tree.

Like a pet Itachi would have, or the Uchiha himself in disguise.

This animal had one missing eye.

"You, fateless one… You really can even talk to animals?"

The black bird replied, surprised,

Its tone was full of questions.

Neither he and Rollo were currently opening their mouths to talk.

They were not making any noises either.

There were debates as to how animals communicated, but Rollo didn't know and didn't care about those. His Essence allowed him and animals to talk without making sounds.

They could hear each other's voices this way.

Perhaps it would be more appropriate to refer to it as an inner voice that was controlled.

What was said was under control, and other thoughts remained hidden within the inner self.

"..."

Rollo stared at the bird for a long time without saying anything, his attention focused on the missing eye.

'What is Odin doing here?'

He suddenly thought.

This didn't bother him much, but it was a big surprise nonetheless.

Rollo wasn't scared; he knew that gods in this world were nothing more than big posers who could read fate and perform amusing tricks.

Rather than calling them gods, it would be more appropriate to refer to them as non-threatening pagan tricksters walking the earth.

They weren't very powerful in this world and used mortal means.

Rollo smirked internally when he heard the word fateless and replied, still keeping his fate hidden,

"Yes… I can… But why do I feel like déjà vu here? Say bird, have you heard of the tale of the fox and the crow?"

"No. What tale is that?"

The bird of black omen was unaware of the story.

There were probably not many stories he hadn't heard already.

Rollo smirked and replied, 

"Too bad for you."

He was simply asking to ensure that Odin couldn't see so far into the future or into the foreseeable horizon of other cultures and different civilizations.

Apparently, he evidently couldn't.

Otherwise, he would be cognizant of this tale, which was taught to children at a young age.

Using his new doglicking skills, he asked, 

"Handsome bird, do you enjoy stories? I have a lot of those, but I can't tell them all very well... I believe you can. How about we strike up a transaction?"

It didn't matter if the praise was delivered well or not; he was a master at it, and the passive skills boosted the effects even more than Svein's.

He had no true idea why Odin was here, but he made a guess.

He really could make one…

But Rollo had one question for him anyway… 

Depending on the answer, he would increase or decrease his vigilance towards the pagan god.

"A transaction? I am just a bird; what transaction can you make with me?" 

Odin inquired, his voice indicating interest.

"Are you actually just a bird? Why do I think you're more than that? In Norse mythology, our all-father has only one eye... You also called me fateless one. Even an idiot could figure out a few things."

Rollo chuckled and spoke.

He knew Odin, or Harbard, or whatever, liked to brag and tell stories, whether they were true or not.

He wanted to use that to carry out a reciprocally profitable deal.

It didn't matter if it wasn't even Odin, but only Loki. What mattered was his ability to predict the future.

"..."

The bird remained silent for a moment before cawing, as if laughing, and flying down to transform into a human, one Rollo had never seen before, with only one eye and holding a stick.

An old man with white hair, fine-looking, but one eyed.

After applauding, giving props, he approached from a safe distance and said, 

"Rollo Sigurdsson… What manner of man are you? You're one of the few mortals who has ever figured me out in such a graceful fashion without being too fascinated or frenzied to call me out."

"I really am exactly who you think I am…"

"How can I help you, child? You do appear to have a question for me. Is it about your future?"

"Even I don't seem to be capable of looking at it."

"I admit it made me a bit curious about you. This is why I'm here. You are the first man whose fate I have been unable to peer into."

"You're not ordinary... Are you the offspring of a deity from another land?"

Rollo had no concrete clue why, but seeing and hearing him made him believe Harbard was not Odin, but rather another god, a trickster, possibly Loki.

The guy here sounded more noble, albeit bored.

Perhaps the soaring eagle in Jarl Borg's "Blood Eagle Death Scene" was also Odin.

He gave the sense, the aura to be intrigued by death and historical sights, unlike Zeus, who was simply a lover boy.

He didn't have that Zeus energy to him.

Odin sounded wise, measured, and weighed.

He even sounded empathetic and kind.

He felt like a king.

A real one.

Rollo wasn't particularly concerned with his character.

Rollo asked his question, 

"The question is not about me, All Father, but about my brother. Regarding his future offspring and the woman who will bear them."

"Will my brother have as many sons as he wants? Will his current wife give them to him?"

Odin responded unambiguously, without any reservations, but still sounding curious about Rollo, whom he kept an inquisitively affectionate eye on,

"Your brother Ragnar Lothbrok will have fated sons, even if the woman Lagertha shall be unable to bear him any more children…"

"I feel like you're trying to interfere with his fate and women. Is this what it's about?"

"Envy?"

Odin laughed with interest, then said more seriously,

"You don't need to be preoccupied about him or his fate unfolding as intended. You should worry about yourself rather than him."

"I can't see what lies in wait for you, child. This makes me wonder about your true identity and the gods of those foreign lands..."

"What is the name of your biological father?"

Rollo replied,

"My father was called Sigurd, All Father."

Odin shook his head and said,

"I'm asking you about his real name."

Rollo replied,

"His name was Sigurd, Almighty Odin. My father spent the vast majority of his life as a farmer and died with that title welded to his name. I would know if he was a god among men."

Odin thought and asked,

"Was it that Sigurd who is said to have slayed a dragon? Are you related to that little princess he left among you?"

Rollo replied,

"Which princess? No, All Father, my father was just an ordinary man who only slayed vegetables, he had nothing to do with that dragon slayer."

Odin nodded, 

"Just a coincidence? Hmm. Interesting. Rollo, I experienced great fun conversing with you. I hope you good luck in your life."

He was ready to leave.

Rollo smirked and asked, 

"All Father, I have no yearning for random luck; how about granting me your complete blessing? I am not a prayerful person, just a poor sinner, but still, I bow down to you with a contrite, humble heart and all of my admiration."

Odin laughed like Santa at Christmas and said,

"There is no need for exorbitant praise or groveling."

"I also don't look down on sinners, just the cowardly."

"Whatever the circumstances, I should certainly want to depend on someone like you for the defense against Ragnarok."

"You already have been enlivened with our gifts of good fortune and happiness, child; my son Thor and me, along with the greatest part of the Aesir and Vanir united, mostly Freya, have recently begun to relish your exploits."

"Especially on the front lines."

"You are indeed a good spectacle for us there,"

"The next time you sail at sea, you will most likely hear my son strumming with his hammer for you in the clouds, stirring up thunder, brine and waves,"

As he ended up disappearing into black mist, he added,

"Your fate is a gilded cocoon, but Valhalla shall unreservedly look forward to you."

"Before that time, make sure to apply a bit more scrutiny when you journey the world, because I guess that you may have tangled connections with foreign entities."

He didn't say any more and left Rollo here.

Rollo couldn't feel his presence in the area anymore.

He suddenly wondered, 

'Was he not interested in the stories I had for him?'

Recalling who this was, Rollo then understood, 

'... Oh, right. That does seem to be something Loki would be more into.'

XX

In another remote location,

Odin muttered as he watched Rollo leave, adopting a more serious facial expression, though he wasn't worried,

"He shouldn't be my bastard, should he?"

"I would have recognized it…"

"His ability to masquerade and get along with animals, as well as his strength, boldness and cheek, make him sound like a combination of myself, Balder and Thor."

"What else can he do?"

"Or rather... Are there things he is not able to do?"

Odin never had that many affairs with women, much less mortal ones, so he thought Rollo couldn't be his son.

In the past few days, his new-found interest in Ragnar Lothbrok had waned in comparison to Rollo.

"What an interesting mortal."

"... Mortal?"

"How long has it been for me to come across one like this… He must be a half god too…"

"They all had ambitions to be great kings and queens, unlike this one."

After a while, he smiled and transformed into a bird again, departing, this time toward the sky.

Unlike few of his younger generations and children, he had no desire to remain in the mortal world for an extended period.

He was the type to descend here to witness, meditate at eye-opening sights, rather than to meddle, as Loki did the most.

In recent years, he had produced such a young son, one that was a born a noble, house-proud prince of Kiev and all Russia.

That one sounded like he didn't have any unusual abilities, but he was too young to give a definitive assessment.