The Son Of Ragnar

Chapter 370 Tit-Tat

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Tyr arrived back in Rogaland, and he was welcomed with deafening cheers. 

They could not believe that such treasures could exist in such quantities, Salgard was the one that personally welcomed them. 

Vegard and Thorgard were both left uninjured, that was the first thing that Salgard checked without setting off alarms. 

He gave the go-ahead and the goods were hauled off the boat, this would do well in bolstering the economy of Rogaland.

Askild possessed the map to this new land so he was sure to get far more allies after this first successful expedition, and this would only strengthen his hold on Kattegat. 

Bjorn's window to kill him was gradually closing, he had to act before this became widespread.

"You have done well, Tyr Ragnarsson…" Salgard commended him, he expected a full report but for now, he was certain they would be tired. 

This was why he allowed them to rest, he did not ask them to partake in the clearing of goods. 

"Thank you, Salgard but I could not have done it without everyone here," Tyr gave his crew credit.

They had a renewed respect for Tyr after watching him fight, his skills earned it. 

The warriors began to blush, they could not believe that Tyr was praising them. 

"I want to see big brother…" Vegard said, he looked bored and everyone knew he was attached to the second-born. 

Salgard watched him strut past him, he did not say a word because the last thing he needed was a tantrum. 

Salgard's eyes settled on Thorgard who had a look of resolve in his eyes. 

This made Salgard wonder what happened on this expedition because Thorgard took life rather leisurely and just needed to gain the power to avenge his fallen brothers but this look was different. 

It felt like he could see past vengeance or had found his calling and Salgard had a feel for such things.

Tyr left the boat and Salgard noticed that the men onboard looked at Tyr with envious eyes. 

"Salgard, I need to see King Rugalf…" Tyr got to the point and Salgard knew it was to brief his brother so he tagged along. 

Tyr and Salgard reached King Rugalf in little to no time.

Rugalf looked to be rather excited but that was to be expected considering the exploits they had with no casualties.

"King Rugalf, I have returned…" Tyr said; he noticed Estrid was seated beside her father and she looked happy to see him. 

Tyr remembered their night together briefly and smiled inwardly, Estrid left her chair, which was unusual for her and ran towards Tyr.

She quite literally could not keep her hands to herself and hugged Tyr tightly. 

Rugalf was surprised that his daughter was this taken, this was the first time she showed Tyr affection in such a public manner.

"I am glad the gods returned your safety to me," Estrid heaved a sigh of relief, she was glad that they did the human sacrifice because her husband had returned home with no injuries or problems. 

"I conquered death once, there is no way I would not conquer it again to see you…" Tyr said sternly.

Rugalf felt giddy watching them, the son of Ragnar was not only blessed with his swordsmanship it seems. 

Salgard was indifferent, wearing his default smiling face. 

Estrid soon realized her father was watching and quickly got off Tyr, she let him go as she cleared her thrust and walked back to her chair. 

The silence was loud but it was not an awkward one, Rugalf was glad that Tyr was able to win over his daughter completely because now, he knew that Estrid truly wanted Tyr. 

"Tell me, how did the expedition go?" Rugalf asked.

On a normal day, Salgard was not supposed to be in the room but Rugalf treated his brothers like they were a part of him and granted them this level of trust. 

"The expedition went better than we could expect but I have information on lands even further…" Tyr said and this piqued Rugalf's interest. 

"Other lands? Askild said nothing about other lands… Tell me about this," Rugalf responded, confused.

Tyr proceeded to go into full detail and told Rugalf about everything that he experienced in that land. 

Rugalf's excited face soon changed into that of concern because now, they had potentially made an enemy that they had no gauge on their strength. 

Rugalf was cautious and avoided battles he could but encroaching on another land and raiding might force his hand. However, his thought process was interrupted by Tyr. 

"I believe this is a good thing, King Rugalf…" Tyr said and Rugalf permitted him to speak, he wanted to hear what this plan was. I think you should take a look at

"The existence of a Kingdom on such a rich land can allow us to expand your influence," Tyr said, but he knew he had not sold the idea yet. 

"Northumbria is a place we raided and we cannot wait for them to make the move either, King Asmund once did this and we all know how that ended… I believe we need to assemble an army to explore this Northumbria land because I believe even greater riches lie ahead…" Tyr said, and this was a solid point. 

Tyr used an experience to drive his point and this was what convinced Rugalf to consider it. 

Salgard, however, knew Tyr wanted to go for a reason entirely different. 

"What is your ambition, Tyr?" Salgard asked out of the blue and Tyr looked right into Salgard's eyes. 

"I want to be known as the man who conquered the world, the most famous warrior to ever exist. Norway is not enough for my ambition, I want England as well," Tyr said bluntly, he was not hiding his motives. 

Rugalf sighed because this was typical of his younger brother but he also knew the importance of these little scuffles. 

"What do you mean conquer, do you intend to conquer Norway? Does that mean you intend to go against King Rugalf?" Salgard asked and there was an awkward pause in the conversation, it looked like Tyr hesitated to answer. 

"Go against King Rugalf? I have no such intentions but King Rugalf will not live forever either and I will swear my loyalty to him as long as he is alive," Tyr was honest despite his words being controversial, to say the least. 

"And what happens after that?" Salgard asked and all he got from Tyr was a smirk. 

"That is enough you two!" Rugalf shut it down, he understood that Tyr would not be shackled by this Kingdom from the very beginning. 

Tyr always struck him as a man of great principles, even when he was a kid. 

There was no way a child with such a mindset would not have the ambition to go with it. 

This was exactly why Rugalf contemplated giving him the title should he die and not his younger brother, who was the rightful successor. 

He knew that Tyr would help Rogaland achieve prosperity and fame never thought possible because he had survived this long and lived a life that none of them had experienced at that age. 

But he did not know how his brother would take it, Grjötgard was showing extreme tendencies and Rugalf was cautious in giving him this responsibility.

He would throw Rogaland into chaos because he believed in a much more forceful approach. 

Rugalf, however, was yet to decide because while he considered Tyr, he knew his brother would be the King that the people were more likely to accept because he could not risk his family splitting over this.

-

Kattegat welcomed Bjorn and his men, the cheers reminded them of earlier times as everyone began praising Askild. He was the one that made this whole thing possible in the first place and they understood how important this was for Kattegat. 

Bjorn went to the throne room to meet Askild but the only person that was there was Liv. 

She was seated there because her husband was not there at the moment. 

"Queen Liv… I have returned…" Bjorn greeted, Liv stopped taking care of her appearance and looked tired. It was funny that a woman who could get anything she wanted was in such a state.

"Welcome back Bjorn Ironside…" Liv greeted him but she sounded disconnected from reality. 

She was not here despite being "here".

"Forgive my boldness but I do not see King Askild," Bjorn said, he wanted to get right to it and Liv was clearly not in the right frame of mind for any conversation.

"King Askild is not in Kattegat right now, I am afraid," Liv responded.

"I understand. Are you alright, Queen Liv?" Bjorn had to ask, he knew that speaking to her directly was frowned upon because of how protective Askild was. 

Askild once cut out a person's tongue for speaking about his wife so everyone avoided anything personal with her so one could understand her brief surprise when Bjorn asked. 

"M-My apologies, I am just worried about my husband…" Liv apologized but she had no reason to. 

But Bjorn was not an average warrior and had status, he was a son of a Queen as well.

"King Askild will be fine! He is our King for a reason. Hahahah!" Bjorn reassured her but he could tell that these words were false. 

"You are right, hahaha!" Liv laughed but it was fake.

Bjorn could tell from her body language that something was off. 

"Queen Liv, you are a strong woman. You cannot let others see you break. I know how you feel, you do not need to pretend with me…" Bjorn said. Liv remained silent because she was speechless that Bjorn was even talking to her on a more personal level, this had to be the first time. And this conversation ignited the hope that she thought was lost.

"Thank you, Bjorn Ironside…" Liv said as Bjorn walked out of the throne room. This little conversation, was it the start of something new? That was to be seen.