The interrogation on the Ile de la Cité was over, and Ragnar went to the shore to rest. Here the iron chain was secured with huge stones. Many warriors gathered here,
to discuss how to break it.
Soon someone brought a pile of firewood, poured five barrels of kerosene on it and set it on fire.
Under the influence of constant high temperature, the surface of the iron chain began to turn red. A tall and strong Viking held a huge axe and chopped at it again and again. When he was exhausted, the next strong man took up the task.
When the moon was at its zenith, the Vikings finally broke part of the iron ring. Under the influence of gravity, the hundred-meter iron chain quickly sank to the bottom of the river, as if it had never existed.
Having dealt with the problem of the iron chain, the fleet moved upstream and arrived in Paris at dusk on April 25.
The city is currently located on the Ile de la Cité, in the middle of the Seine. The island is connected to the north and south banks by two bridges.
The north bank contains temporary markets and simple houses. Near the bridgehead on the south bank, a stone monastery surrounded by a wooden wall was built.
Before setting out, Vig collected several Latin documents telling about Paris.
According to legend, two stone bridges were built during the Roman period. Later, the Franks occupied this place. Due to backward technology and lack of proper maintenance, the bridge decks of the two stone bridges collapsed one after the other, leaving only the supports in the river. Frankish craftsmen built wooden bridge decks on the original piers, eventually forming the two current bridges.
In addition, according to the records of missionaries, the permanent population of Paris is 8,000. If all adult males were mobilized, 1,500 men could be mustered to defend the city.
Climbing to the top of the mast, he surveyed the defensive situation on the Ile de la Cité.
Thanks to the leak of information from an insider, the Franks had enough time to prepare fortifications. A new wooden wall had been built outside the Roman stone wall, and behind its loopholes stood a multitude of soldiers, more than 2,000 in number.
"It's difficult, all because of these damned insiders!"
Vig returned to Shenban, wondering how to break into the city. Suddenly he heard thousands of people in front of him shouting "Wahala!" in unison. He looked up to see Ragnar's flagship racing straight towards the outer wall of the Ile de la Cité, intent on taking the city in one fell swoop.
What was going on? Why had they launched an attack without even greeting each other?
Vig was shocked and angry. He watched as the ten leading longboats approached the wall. The next moment, more than 30 flaming fireballs shot out of the wall.
Trebuchets? An insider had even told the Franks about it!
Without complaining, Vig waved two small red flags, signaling the fleet to stop and row downstream.
A second volley of oil canisters soon followed, all aimed at Ragnar's flagship. One hit the pole perfectly, and the entire sail instantly caught fire.
To top it all off, a multitude of fireboats loaded with firewood appeared upstream, rushing downstream toward the Viking fleet.
To avoid a mass of ships trying to retreat, Vig desperately waved his flags, signaling all ships to move toward the southern shore.
"Quickly straighten up, lest the enemy cavalry take advantage of the chaos and attack!"
On the shallows of the southern shore, Vig ordered his magically-enchanted spearmen to line up two rows of guns around the perimeter. Hundreds of meters away, on the slope of a hill, a group of cavalry stood silently, wondering whether to attack.
From the Frankish cavalry's point of view, the Vikings' formation was loose and their ability to withstand cavalry charges was weak.
However, at this point, visibility was reduced by the sunset, and the ground on the riverbank was soft, preventing the warhorses from running at full speed. After a long wait, they finally retreated to the bridgehead.
During the night, fireboats still plied the surface of the Seine, seemingly drifting endlessly. The nobles gathered to discuss further strategy.
Vig looked around, but did not see Ragnar. His voice trembled slightly: "Where did he go?"
Bjorn was in a depressed mood and seemed indifferent. "The flagship was hit by a massive catapult attack, and in panic it listed towards the northern shore. Before the ship was completely burned, I saw several people escape."
Vig asked: "What then?"
"We saw the flagship run aground, and five Frankish ships headed towards the northern shore. A large group of enemies pursued the few survivors deep into the swamp."
After Bjorn finished speaking, the nobles were in despair and silent for half a minute. Ivar proposed a decisive battle with the Franks.
"Whether my father is alive or not, we must defend the honor of the Vikings. Rather than flee from the enemy, it is better to give them a good fight."
"Right," Vig agreed with him. "Even if we manage to return to Britain, the English will most likely rebel when they see our weakness. We must use this undisputed victory to pacify them, otherwise there will be no peace."
Gunnar: "If we leave the battlefield, how will the Viking warriors look at us? If we want to keep our wealth, we must fight to the death."
Under the leadership of these three, the fighting spirit of many nobles was revived. They returned to count the number of people - only 8,300 - and they still had the strength to fight.
The next morning, after breakfast, the Vikings were full. Before leaving, they put a piece of dry food in their hands. Fighting on the battlefield takes the most physical energy. If it takes several hours, dry food will be just right for an emergency.
According to the orders drawn up the night before, they lined up on the southern shore. Learning from the Battle of Lutterworth, each noble family took a greater or lesser number of spearmen with them, positioned in the first two ranks and on the flanks to repel the cavalry charge.
On the other hand, the same number of Franks left the Ile de la Cité and moved to the southern shore across the bridge.
From a military point of view, the best position for the Franks was to hold out, wear down the enemy, and wait a little before attacking.
However, "Bald" Charles faced many difficulties. In addition to the Vikings, his nephews were in Aquitaine to the south, and a rebellion was raging in Brittany to the west.
In his opinion, the most pressing issue now was time. He should deal with this group of Vikings as soon as possible, and then lead the main force south to deal with his nephew, so as not to incite more nobles to revolt.
"Fighting foreign enemies, suppressing rebellions, collecting taxes and establishing relations with the church - alas, it is not easy to be a king."
Touching his bald head, Charles frowned and sighed heavily.
Half an hour later, almost a thousand horsemen left the bridgehead.
To conserve the strength of the horses, they did not ride, but walked by the bridle to an open area two kilometers from the Vikings, and then sat on the ground, waiting for the useless militia to line up in battle formation. From past experience, this took at least an hour or two.
While both sides were waiting, time passed, and one reckless Frankish knight rushed to attack the Vikings.
Under his leadership, several duels took place, in which both sides sometimes won, sometimes lost, until the Frankish militias formed up in battle order.