78.
78.
It was a little sudden, but I wasn't flustered.
When you thought about it, Ivar and Ubba were my brothers, but my brothers were all, to a one, warriors fiercely driven by ambition and ability. Each of them was no less capable than the renowned Hásteinn, or Black King Halfdan, or Bagsecg standing here.
So, if anything, what was strange was that these brothers of mine—each so strong-willed and singularly gifted—were united under the banner of someone like me.
Just looking across the sea at the Frankish empire, the borders shifted year by year from blood feuds among kin.
Yes, we were the strange ones.
So, surprising as it was, it was not beyond understanding. My brothers were not my toys, and the countless lords were also beings who considered their own gain.
Each of us had the freedom to pursue what we wanted.
My only complaint was, why drag me, who was standing by quietly, into it.
'Well? Helgi! Do you like my gift a little?'
Ivar's expression as he stood there, triumphantly spreading his arms wide, seemed to say exactly that to me.
What was I supposed to do with that mad brother of mine.
I had forgotten for a moment because all the aggro had been drawn to Sigurd, but the very snake of snakes who had devoured even Sigurd was Ivar.
Why had I thought that man would stay quiet? It was my mistake.
Hoo—
I blew out a sigh that crept to my lips, trying not to let it show, and as if he had been waiting, the man dozing off beside Björn rose vigorously.
"Konungr Helgi! I am Jarl Hestein of Nantes! Congratulations once again on the wedding!"
Hestein of Nantes.
He was a Jarl followed by countless warriors by sheer personal strength and loyalty, not by great wealth or vast inherited lands.
At this gathering, there were many richer than Hásteinn, many with more land, but none of them could treat that seasoned warrior casually.
If anything, there were those who admired him.
When that very Hásteinn revealed his imposing stature and shouted vigorously, all eyes focused on him once more, and he strode over to take his place beside Ivar, who was still standing in the middle of the hall. At my reply of "Thank you, Jarl Hestein," he flashed a grin.
A chillingly ferocious smile, made striking by his bristly beard.
It seemed Hásteinn, too, remembered our first meeting.
"I personally agree with what Jarl Ivar here has said...! What I felt while in Frankish lands was this: scattered, we are weak; united, we are strong! Some among you will remember Karl, the chieftain of those Franks."
When the name of Charlemagne the Great left Hásteinn's lips, the response of the people split cleanly in half. The older men who had heard his name or experienced him firsthand flinched in unison, while the younger Jarls who hadn't let out defiant, challenging breaths roughly.
What was striking was the reaction of Konungr Halfdan and Bagsecg. Black King Halfdan, who had always been positioned at a safe distance far from the Franks, merely frowned a little, but Bagsecg, facing a Frankish king right across the Danevirke, had a reddish energy swirling in his eyes.
Would they have stayed quiet with a wall between them? There had already been several rounds of wall repair work alone. They were probably fighting even now, at any given chance.
Above the murmuring heads of the Jarls, Hásteinn's booming voice resounded powerfully.
"But the Frankish Karl is already dead and gone! Right now, their land is in chaos because Karl's sons and grandsons can't seem to kill each other! So this is an opportunity for us! Instead of fighting over this barren..."
At this point, Hásteinn stammered for a moment.
"...this land that was barren, and becomes ever more barren the farther you get from Árós—instead of fighting over it, I think we should aim for a greater opportunity! And to do that, we need a strong Konungr! A Konungr as powerful as the Frankish Karl!"
Because he kept pointing one arm at me the whole time he spoke, no one in the hall could fail to know that the powerful Konungr Hásteinn spoke of was Helgi Ragnarsson.
"Think it over well, brave Jarls! This life fades fleetingly anyway! Dying with honor is the way to boldly step into Valhalla or the domain of Goddess Hel, and if there is someone who can lead us to the greatest glory, is there any reason we cannot bow our heads!?"
"...Besides, if that person's name is Helgi Ragnarsson, following the strongest is no shameful thing either."
The one who added a quiet hand to Hásteinn's passionate words was Jarl Torgenvald of Orkney.
Torgenvald gave me a slight nod. I bowed my head in return to accept his greeting, but I still could not tell what benefit he might have to prop me up like this.
Was my brother Halfdan involved in this matter too? It didn't seem likely...
So this was it—only now did I realize that while I had been focused solely on the east, the west itself was in a state like a ticking time bomb.
My lords who had come the long way from the east, Knyaz Rurik and Jarl Haskuldr, were sitting together with my subordinates Oleg and Djur, whom I had met again after nearly a month, whispering something eagerly, but that side also gave off a scent of accumulated fatigue, so I quickly turned my head.
And as if on cue, Black King Halfdan, who had been silently keeping his place, finally opened his mouth.
"No one can deny that Konungr Helgi Ragnarsson is the strongest among us."
The feeling of something that had been simmering, starting with Ivar and passing through Hásteinn and Torgenvald, settling down calmly again under the weight of Halfdan's voice.
Ubba furrowed his brow slightly, but I was actually glad that Halfdan had stepped forward.
"However, we have traditions to uphold. There is likely no one here who does not acknowledge the strength and authority of Konungr Helgi. But no matter how much the Konungr of Árós is loved by the gods, our society has laws kept for a very long time."
In the low voice of Halfdan, who slowly rose from his seat and spoke quietly, there was a different kind of power than that of Ivar and Hásteinn.
A voice bearing more of the weight of years.
At that voice, the lawmen sitting in the corner, recording the proceedings of this assembly, nodded their heads, and several elderly lords also showed signs of agreement.
Confirming the change within the hall, Halfdan continued speaking.
"The Karl, the warrior and freeman, goes to the battlefield and tills the fields. The Jarl leads the Karls and governs the domain. And the Konungr, the king, as the chief of those Jarls, leads the Thing of many villages."
Halfdan slowly stepped forward and stood before Ivar and Hásteinn. The Konungr of the West glanced over the two warriors who looked at him with hot eyes, then turned slowly to meet the eyes of all the Jarls one by one.
"This is our tradition and law, my dear Jarls. There is no law for a Konungr to rule over another Konungr."
Halfdan's brilliant blue gaze, having made a show of turning a full circle, finally came to rest on me, and I bowed my head to him as he slightly inclined his.
Well done, Black King! Make everyone here kneel with that three-inch tongue of yours!
Whether heartened by my silent encouragement, Halfdan was about to continue speaking, but the one who stopped him was Bagsecg, who had been sitting silently until now.
[Kkiiik—]
Those who couldn't fight couldn't become Jarls or Konungrs in the first place, so when Bagsecg, whose frame was especially sturdy, rose, the sound of the wooden chair dragging on the wooden floor could be heard. Halfdan, who had missed his timing to speak, looked at Bagsecg.
"Tradition and law are important, but they do not exist to block our steps, Konungr Halfdan."
It would have been understandable for Halfdan to be offended by that immediate retort, as befitted these fearless manly men, but Halfdan's poker face was beyond imagination, and Bagsecg's skin was thicker than expected.
"A Konungr cannot rule over a Konungr? If that is the problem, then wouldn't it solve the matter to simply create a new title above Konungr? In truth, I have been meaning to say this for some time, but since he already commands the eastern Konungr Rurik, can we still call Helgi Ragnarsson a Konungr equal to ourselves?"
What in the world was that talk.
I at least knew the relationship between Konungr Halfdan and Konungr Bagsecg was not exactly good, but even so, it didn't seem he was dropping this bombshell merely to dent a rival's pride.
Wondering if this too had been discussed in advance, I quickly scanned Ivar and Hásteinn, Ubba and Torgenvald, and seeing their expressions were also dumbfounded, this clearly appeared to be an unscripted outburst from Bagsecg...
As the situation was becoming increasingly intense, I rubbed my forehead and heard Halfdan's voice by my ear. His somewhat bewildered voice spoke for my own state of mind.
"What do you mean by that? Konungr Bagsecg. A title above Konungr... created?"
"It is simple, Konungr Halfdan. When united beneath Helgi Ragnarsson's banner, no man will wish to step down from his own seat, so it would suffice to simply elevate Konungr Helgi's rank by one. This does not contravene tradition or law, does it? Am I wrong?"
The lawmen in the corner, at the attention suddenly focused on them, started as if their eyeballs would pop out and hastily shook their heads. Bagsecg, smiling with satisfaction, puffed out his chest with confidence.
"Since countless Jarls and Konungrs are gathered here now—Fylke—let us decide it here and now. As the one who speaks for the will of the gods, the gatherer and unifier of the people, the leader, I think Helgi Ragnarsson must be called Fylkir! Konungr of Konungrs, ruler of all Norsemen. Fylkir!"
"...Fylkir?"
"The gatherer..."
"The unifier..."
"Fylkir Helgi Ragnarsson."
At Bagsecg's words, which had detonated a bomb and now fired a missile, no one, myself included, could think straight.
In the midst of it, Bagsecg, the only one moving and speaking, grew increasingly excited by his own words, waving his hands passionately and spitting as he went on in a loud voice.
"I, Konungr Bagsecg of the Jutes, agree with what Jarl Ivar, Hásteinn, and Torgenvald have said! How long must we only deal with those poor bumpkins of the east? How long must we Jutes only hold off the Frankish attacks provoking us from beyond the Danevirke? Do you all even know that it is with our blood that everyone here raids and trades beyond the sea, fattening their wives and children!?"
[Chaeng!]
Bagsecg clanged his two golden arm rings together loudly, drawing the hall's attention once more, and then faced Halfdan squarely.
"Halfdan. When our Ribe and Hedeby asked for help, your Kaupang did not come. But Ragnar of Uppsala took our hand without hesitation. So now, I will take his son's hand."
The gazes of the two kings staring each other down held hostility and admiration, regret and hatred, respect and wariness, all accumulated over long years.
"...Kaupang and the Norsemen to her west will not go along with this... Fylkir business."
The upright, weighty voice had now turned threatening.
Before Bagsecg, who had dismissed that fierce glare and tone with a single snort, could even open his mouth, Ivar, who had been watching the scene, spoke up as if stabbing a dagger into the Black King's very lungs.
"You don't know that, Konungr Halfdan."
"...Jarl Ivar, how dare you interrupt a conversation between Konungr—"
"Olaf of Dublin sends his regards."
Putting aside the displeasure of having his words cut off, Halfdan's lips pressed firmly shut before the name Olaf that came from Ivar's mouth.
"And, about those Jarls of the west. Their thoughts seem to be different. Isn't that right?"
Once Ivar finished speaking, Halfdan's gaze turned to the Jarls sitting behind him.
Under that heavy gaze, shockingly, the Jarls of the west coast beyond Kaupang began to rise from their seats one after another.
"I support Konungr Bagsecg's words."
"I as well."
"The Thing of Trondheim is also of the same opinion."
"We too..."
With each one who opened their mouth, I felt as though I didn't need to see Halfdan's expression as he turned his back on me.
And I decided to intervene at this point.
"Enough."
"..Agre—"
Leaving behind a Jarl who even hiccuped from his abruptly cut-off words, I calmly surveyed the feast hall that had instantly subsided at my command. The fiercely boiling momentum needed to be pressed down a little.
"The atmosphere has grown too heated, so let us rest for a while. The two Konungrs, you will come with me to the inner chamber."
Bloodshed at the wedding was not to be tolerated.
With that sole thought, I headed toward the inner chamber, rubbing my throbbing temples.