"No...although I don't agree with it, I can understand it a little better now. There are many things that I have no choice but to do. For example, if I don't burn Lorraine, the people of Zealand will be killed by Sigurd."
"However, there are also people who resist this fate."
Lily's conversation suddenly changed.
"The previous pirate king, Hestein's father Aleister, felt that his people could not continue to rely on robbery for a living, so he began to look for other ways out."
"Other ways out?"
"He heard that across the sea to the west, there was a continent called 'Wenlan'. It was a vast and fertile land, rich in gold, and rarely set foot in. So he took his people on a journey to find Wenlan.
Lan's journey. During the few years of Aleister's reign, pirate activities have significantly decreased - they are doing their best to explore that dreamland."
"Vinlan...I haven't seen this name in any documents."
"Of course, even among the northern tribes, this is equivalent to a dream-like story. And Aleister failed to discover Vinland in the end."
"Dissatisfied with his policy, Lodbrok seized his position. Under the leadership of Lodbrok, this group of pirates successively captured Scotland and Ireland, using the entire North Sea as their base, and began their
Large-scale piracy activities. You see, even your Seven Hills Empire was plundered by them."
Just when Ella was lost in thought because of Lily's story, Lily suddenly rushed over and put her drunken face in front of Ella:
"I don't know yet how many troops Lodbrok used for this battle, but do you know that even if he didn't summon any of his lords, the Kingdom of Sweden, which he personally governs, would be able to mobilize as many troops as
More than three times that in Heistein!”
"Moreover, there are two lords who will definitely join his side - his two sons, Ivar the Boneless and Halfdan the White! They each occupy Ireland and Scotland! If the two of them
Rush to the battlefield, Hestein will lose the war without any suspense!"
The smell of alcohol spitting out of Lily's mouth made Ella uncomfortable. She pinched her nose and frowned and said, "What on earth do you want to say to me?"
"Don't you understand? Hestein will die! My Hestein!"
Lily grabbed Ella's body and shook her constantly.
"I want to save him! But I don't have the skills like my father! I can't do anything on the battlefield by myself! I don't know how you can rely on the few men left in Zealand in Hestein.
Defeated Sigurd. But those people in Zealand were saying just now that you are the Valkyrie, the incarnation of Valkyrie. Valkyrie, please save my Hestein, okay?"
Ella turned her head to the side.
"Now that Hestein has returned, this war has nothing to do with me."
This is entirely a problem on Hestein's own territory. In the worst case scenario, she can escape by boat with Amy.
And - Ella can't forgive Hestein.
"Why? Do you want Lodbrok to win? That brutal Lodbrok?"
"Hestein is no better!"
Ella shouted.
"You said that pirates plundered because of the environment and to survive. I don't agree with that! But what Hestein did was far beyond survival! He pulled a girl into his tent every night just to survive.
Are you sacrificing those girls to Poseidon for survival? Even if Hestein sells them as slaves, I will not hate him like this!"
Lily was startled awake by Ella's sudden anger.
"Ella...do you have any misunderstanding about my Hestein..."
"What misunderstanding can there be! I saw it with my own eyes! Those girls were tied up with ropes and sent to the boat. He let those girls who knew nothing about sailing drift on the sea, and even their hands that could be used to paddle were tied up!
Is this also for survival?"
"The scene you mentioned...I can probably guess it. If you recall, after that, the child named Gan suddenly disappeared, right?"
"……What do you mean?"
"Although Gan was young, he was a great navigator. For the inexplicable reason of hunting white bears, he traveled to all coasts of the North Sea in a boat. And he had no other evil intentions except fighting... He was asked to lead
It’s most appropriate to go out to the sea with a group of girls.”
"What on earth do you mean!"
"Did you know that in the Alemannic Federation, there is a place called Île de France. It is a very wealthy place, and the lord of Île de France... although he is actually the consul of the entire Alemannic Federation,
But everyone still used to call him the Count of Île-de-France."
"Don't change the subject!"
But Lily ignored Ella and continued to preach:
"The Count of Île-de-France is a very evil man... His wife is his mother, and his daughter is also his sister. However, he dotes on his daughter - or rather, sister - very much. And
After his wife died, his love became even more crazy."
"He made a small bed for her sister to sleep on using gold, and made utensils for her sister to eat out of jasper. The meat he gave his sister to eat was the most tender part of a cow. It is said that it cost six cows.
Only in order to make up a plate of dishes for his sister's meal. He kept looking for young and beautiful maids, just to take better care of his sister. The number of maids to take care of her sister has exceeded three hundred.
And the clothes the maids wear and the food they eat are far better than those of the average manor owner...
"Hestein can't control what all his men do. But the girls who were kidnapped by the pirates can finally become maids here, which can be regarded as giving them the best ending, right?"
"What nonsense are you talking about!"
Ella pushed Lily away, stood up suddenly, and walked away.
"Valkyrie...please...save..." Lily Mistertin wanted to catch up, but the drunkenness came back at this moment, causing her to fall to the ground.
The stars at night converged into a long river. Various things after meeting this "King of Beasts" emerged in Ella's mind:
When they were in the carriage, he let her go for some unknown reason.
After being captured, because Dan planned to give her to Hestein, other pirates did not even dare to steal his clothes.
When Gan was surrounded by sea snakes due to his mischief, Hestein rescued him. The next day, her identity as a shieldmaiden was revealed by Hestein.
Then, on the night when she was brought into Hestein's tent, Hestein drunkenly said to her:
"If you continue to stay here, you won't even know when you will die!"
…
…
"Your Majesty... Your Majesty!"
Amy followed from a distance.
"Your Majesty, I have persuaded Gan to set off tomorrow to seek information in the direction of Ireland and Scotland."
Ella stopped for a moment and looked at Amy in disbelief:
"Why are you doing this? Do you also think I will help Hestein?"
"Your Majesty... Even though you say so, you have actually anticipated this war and made preparations for it, haven't you?"
"Nonsense! How could I do this? I have no reason to help Hestein, and I have absolutely no reason to help Sealand!"
Amy laughed as if she saw through everything: "Your Majesty, you have said it a long time ago - 'It is not an aphrodisiac potion, but a secret weapon used in war.'"
…
…
Okay, Ella thought.
——Hestein, if you intend to inherit the legacy of "King of Heroes" Aleister, then I will help you and help your people see the dreamy 'Vinland'.
——The first step is to remove the "Pirate King" Ragnar Lodbrok from the throne.