The trader shifted on his feet while glancing around the hall before continuing with a nervous smile on his face. A nervous habit Bjorn had noticed among many who brought sensitive news.
"Was it confirmed who killed him?" Bjorn pressed, his voice carrying the weight of authority that had grown stronger since his return from his first west before winter.
The trader's eyes darted briefly to Rollo, then back to Bjorn. "The news are not entirely true, but from what I've heard from my fellow traders, it was most likely the forces of King Gandalf." He paused, measuring his words carefully. "You know how these things spread, one mouth to another, each adding their own flavor to the tale."
Bjorn leaned forward slightly, encouraging the man to continue. Information was crucial in these lands, and every detail mattered, even if they were just rumors.
The trader added, his voice dropping lower, "Some are saying it was one of the sons of Gandalf that led the attack, but it is very hard to confirm those news. The witnesses... well, let's say few lived to tell consistent tales. Some claim it was Prince Hake, the oldest, with his berserkers, others swear it was young Helsing leading a night raid. The only certainty is that someone with royal blood wanted that man dead."
Bjorn just nodded. The political implications were significant, if Gandalf was making big moves against Halfdan right after winter ended, it suggested either growing strength or growing desperation.
"Are there any news from the coastal regions?" Bjorn asked, shifting the conversation to matters about the west. And since he can't sail west this year, it's better to keep watch on those who can, and will.
The trader's demeanor brightened slightly at the change of topic. "Well, some kings and jarls are preparing their ships and men to send some small force west, now that they know that the west is real, and after they heard of the wealth that you brought from there, they are trying to get their own share of it." He gestured toward Bjorn.
"King Eirik of Hardaland has prepared new longships. King of Rogaland, Sulke has been gathering his men from his kingdom. There was even some rumors that they were both making an alliance to sail west. Everyone wants their piece of the western riches."
Bjorn chuckled, a sound that carried both amusement and calculation. "Well, fortune always favors the bold, isn't it? Any other news?"
The trader shook his head, then hesitated. "Actually, there is one more thing. The merchant routes through the southern passes have become... costly. Outlaws, mostly displaced by the fighting between the kings. They're desperate men with nothing left to lose."
"Noted," Bjorn replied curtly. "Anything else of import?"
This time the trader shook his head with finality.
"Alright, thank you." Bjorn's dismissal was polite but firm.
The trader bowed slightly and made his way toward the hall's entrance, his footsteps echoing off the wooden floors. As the heavy door closed behind him, the atmosphere in the room shifted subtly. What had been a formal information exchange became an intimate strategy session.
Rollo moved closer, his voice taking on the familiar tone of their private discussions. "I didn't know the old Gandalf still has fire in him."
Bjorn turned from where he'd been studying a simple map he created mounted on the wall, his expression thoughtful. "It's strange though. Gandalf hasn't made aggressive moves like this in years. Either someone pushed him too far, or..." He trailed off, considering possibilities.
"Or?" Rollo prompted.
"Or he's dying and wants to secure his legacy for his sons." Bjorn's finger traced the conflict zones on the map. "Anyway, it will be a while before we get dragged into this, if nothing happens out of the ordinary."
Rollo crossed his arms, his warrior's instincts clearly favoring a more direct approach. "So we do nothing?"
Bjorn looked at him while tilting his head, a slight smile playing at his lips. "They are killing each other, so why interrupt them? Instead we should focus inward and strengthen our position."
He moved to another section of the map, pointing to the new borderlands between the warring territories in south of vingulmark. "Since the fighting between the two kings are hurting the farmers there, their grain seeds and farms are burned, so they basically have nothing left to do in the planting season. These are skilled people, farmers who know the land, craftsmen who've lost their workshops, even warriors whose lords can no longer feed them."
Rollo's expression shifted as he began to understand Bjorn's strategy.
"Let's send them a message," Bjorn continued, his voice gaining momentum with the idea, "that Kategatt welcomes anyone who is hurt by this war. We offer them protection and lands to farm and places in the next raids to the west. Think about it, we gain skilled settlers, reduce our enemies' resources, and build loyalty through generosity rather than conquest."
"Also speaking of the planting season," Bjorn said, moving toward a wooden chest near the hearth, "I have some new ideas to implement that will improve the food on harvest season." He opened the chest and withdrew several small pouches, each carefully labeled in runic script.
Rollo approached, curious despite himself. "What kind of ideas?"
"Some ways to preserve soil fertility that these lands have never seen." Bjorn held up one of the pouches. "But first we will start with our farms to prove that it actually works. No point in asking others to risk their livelihoods on untested methods."
"You mean your personal farms?"
"Exactly. If they work, we'll have proof to show the settlers when they arrive. If they fail..." Bjorn shrugged. "I guess will never know."
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Later Bjorn met with the farmers that tend his lands, and he divided each farmland into three equal sections
Field A (this year: Barley/Oats/Rye)
→ heavily manured with dung. This is the "demonstration field" that will impress farmers in the first harvest. and will be implemented in every farm in Kategatt after the first Harvest.
Field B (this year: Beans/Peas)
→ legumes grow, improve soil, and also give food for people.
Field C (this year: Fallow/Pasture)
→ left "resting," but he lets cows and sheep graze here. Their droppings fertilize it naturally.
🔄 Next year, he rotates them: A → beans, B → fallow, C → barley.
This life he grew as a farmer so him thinking of this is feasible, the vikings only used something called 2 fields rotation, and not three.
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While Bjorn methodically strengthened Kategatt's defenses; constructing new watchtowers along the fjord approaches, expanding his shipyards to accommodate larger vessels, and implementing combat training regimens for his growing retinue from the warriors leaving the south east and west of Vingulmark, and creating new weapons to post on the wall protecting Kategatt, incluing towers every 20-30 meters, and experimenting to find the right method of paper.
King Halfdan of Vestfold appeared to withdraw from regional politics entirely. The death of his foster father had been compounded by an even more personal tragedy: his wife Ragnhild succumbed to a fever that swept through Vestfold's royal hall.
Contemporary sources suggest that Halfdan's grief was genuine. The rumors later said that he "spoke little and ate less," while another rumors notes that his usual council meetings dwindled to brief audiences held only when absolutely necessary.
Foreign traders reported that the king who had once personally overseen major trade negotiations now delegated such matters entirely to his jarls and stewards.
To external observers, particularly rival kings seeking signs of weakness, Halfdan appeared broken by personal loss and withdrawn from the complex web of alliances and conflicts that defined Norwegian politics.
King Gandalf of Alfheim interpreted Halfdan's silence as an opportunity rather than genuine mourning. Gandalf had long coveted greater influence over the wealthy coastal territories of Vestfold on top of Vingulmark.
His assessment of the political situation was logical from a purely strategic standpoint: Halfdan controlled Vestfold, one of the most prosperous kingdoms in the region, but appeared temporarily incapacitated by grief.
Recognizing that any direct assault on Vestfold would be costly and potentially unsuccessful, Gandalf sought to build a coalition. His envoys arrived in Kategatt bearing proposals for a joint campaign against Halfdan's supposedly weakened realm.
The terms were generous, Gandalf offered to provide the bulk of the forces while allowing Bjorn to claim significant territorial concessions from any conquest. From Gandalf's perspective, this represented sound strategy: he would eliminate a rival while gaining a powerful ally, and the risks would be shared.
Bjorn's consistent refusal of these overtures puzzled Gandalf's court. The young ruler of Kategatt had demonstrated considerable military skill even if it was in his only western expedition and had clearly proven his ambitions extended beyond mere raiding.
Yet he repeatedly declined what appeared to be advantageous terms, citing the need to focus on "internal development" and "sustainable growth." Gandalf's advisors, trained in traditional concepts of royal power based on territorial expansion and military dominance, struggled to understand this restraint.
What Gandalf failed to recognize was Bjorn's sophisticated understanding of political legitimacy. Military conquest, while certainly a path to power, carried significant risks when the conqueror lacked cultural or kinship ties to the conquered territory.
Outsiders who seized land through force often faced persistent rebellions, required constant military presence to maintain control, and found their newly gained territories economically unproductive due to ongoing instability.
Bjorn understood that Gandalf, despite his military capabilities, would be seen as a foreign invader in Vestfold, making any conquest potentially pyrrhic.
Frustrated by Bjorn's refusal to join his cause, Gandalf decided to proceed unilaterally, but on a smaller scale initially. Rather than launching a full invasion of Vestfold, he authorized increasingly aggressive raiding expeditions led by his three sons: Hake, the eldest and most experienced in warfare; Hysing, known for his tactical innovations; and Helsing, whose fierce reputation had earned him comparison to legendary berserkers.
These raids served multiple purposes, they tested Halfdan's actual military readiness, provided wealth and captives for Alfheim, and demonstrated Gandalf's power to potential allies who might reconsider their neutrality.
The early raids met with limited resistance. Halfdan's border forces, when encountered, fought briefly before retreating, seemingly confirming Gandalf's assessment of Vestfold's weakened state.
Villages near the western Vingulmark-Vestfold border reported attacks where the defenders appeared disorganized and unwilling to risk significant casualties. Captives taken during these raids told their captors that King Halfdan rarely left his hall and that his jarls seemed to be acting without clear royal guidance.
However, Halfdan's apparent passivity masked careful preparation. Rather than mounting dramatic counter-attacks that might alert Gandalf to his true capabilities, Halfdan had spent his weeks of seeming withdrawal systematically strengthening his intelligence network and defensive preparations.
He established a series of concealed observation posts along traditional invasion routes, staffed by hunters and woodsmen whose knowledge of local terrain made them ideal scouts.
These men were instructed to avoid engagement entirely, instead focusing on detailed observation and rapid communication.
The intelligence gathered through this network revealed patterns in Gandalf's raiding strategy. The expeditions typically followed river valleys and established paths, seeking targets that offered maximum plunder with minimal risk.
The raiders consistently returned via the same routes they had used for their advance, a logical choice that minimized the risk of becoming lost in unfamiliar territory but created predictable vulnerabilities.
By early summer, Halfdan had identified the optimal location for a decisive engagement: a narrow valley known locally as Grønli, where the main route between Vingulmark and Vestfold's interior settlements passed between steep, wooded ridges before crossing the Lågen River.
The geography offered natural advantages for a defensive force, limited space for cavalry maneuvers, multiple positions for concealed archers, and easily blocked escape routes.
Halfdan's preparations were meticulous. Working primarily at night and using local farmers familiar with the terrain, his men constructed concealed barricades of felled trees, stones, and brush at strategic points throughout the valley.
These obstacles were designed to appear natural until activated, when hidden ropes and levers could quickly transform them into impassable barriers.
Additional preparations included pre-positioned weapon caches, concealed pit traps along likely retreat routes, and carefully coordinated signal systems using reflected sunlight and smoke that would be invisible to forces moving through the valley floor.
When Hake led the third major raid into Vestfold with approximately a hundred warriors, a force large enough to overwhelm typical village defenses but small enough to move quickly, Halfdan allowed the expedition to proceed largely unopposed.
His scouts tracked the raiders' movements precisely, noting their chosen targets, the pace of their advance, and most importantly, their intended route of return. The raids themselves were successful from Gandalf's perspective: several prosperous farmsteads were plundered, livestock was seized, and dozens of captives were taken.
The return journey began at dawn, with Gandalf's forces moving more slowly due to their accumulated plunder and the need to manage captives. As they entered Grønli Valley, Halfdan's trap was sprung with devastating efficiency.
The rear guard found their retreat blocked by barriers that seemed to appear from the very forest floor, while the vanguard discovered that the river crossing ahead was similarly obstructed.
Simultaneously, Halfdan's warriors emerged from concealed positions on both ridges, their shields locked in traditional formation and their spears creating an impenetrable wall of iron points.
The battle that followed demonstrated the effectiveness of careful preparation over raw courage. Gandalf's raiders, confined to the narrow valley floor and encumbered by their plunder, could not form proper battle lines or utilize their numbers effectively.
Hake, recognizing the tactical situation, attempted to break through the forward barricade through sheer aggression, but was struck down by multiple spear thrusts. Hake and Hysing fell attempting to organize a fighting retreat.
Of the hundred men who had entered Vestfold confidently that morning, fewer than fifty managed to escape across the river including Helsing, many of them wounded and all of them having abandoned their plunder and most of their weapons.
The victory came at significant cost to Halfdan's forces as well, the close combat in the confined space had been brutal, and his casualties included several experienced chieftains and dozens of veteran warriors.
The strategic implications of the Grønli Valley victory extended far beyond the immediate military success. Word of Halfdan's tactical brilliance spread rapidly throughout the region, dispelling any notion that he had been weakened by personal grief.
More importantly, the close death of Gandalf's sons almost created a succession crisis in Alfheim that could have occupied their remaining forces for months or potentially years. Now only one is alive.
However, these developments were soon overshadowed by events closer to home. Queen Asa of Agder, Halfdan's mother and one of the most influential political figures in southern Norway, died unexpectedly during the autumn following the battle.
Her death was not entirely surprising, she is old and had been in declining health for several years, but its timing created immediate political opportunities.
As Asa's sole surviving heir, Halfdan's claim to Agder was legally unquestionable, but transforming that claim into effective control required careful diplomacy and, when necessary, decisive action.
Agder's jarls had grown accustomed to considerable autonomy during Asa's final years, and several harbored ambitions of their own.
The kingdom's strategic position, controlling vital sea routes between Denmark and the northern Norwegian territories, made it an attractive target for external intervention.
Halfdan's approach to consolidating his new inheritance reflected the same strategic patience he had demonstrated against Gandalf.
Rather than simply appearing in Agder's main settlement with an army and demanding submission, he spent weeks meeting privately with individual jarls, craftsmen's guilds, and merchant associations.
He confirmed existing privileges where possible, negotiated new arrangements where necessary, and carefully balanced competing interests to build a stable coalition of support.
The process was not without conflict, two jarls who had expected to divide Agder's territories between themselves were forced into exile when they refused to acknowledge Halfdan's authority, but the transition was accomplished with minimal bloodshed and without providing opportunities for foreign intervention.
With his position in both Vestfold and Agder secure, Halfdan commanded resources and strategic positions that made him arguably the most powerful individual ruler in the region.
His domains controlled extensive coastal territories, major trade routes, and some of the most productive agricultural land in Norway. This consolidation of power inevitably attracted attention from other ambitious rulers, including Bjorn.
Halfdan's decision to send an envoy to Kategatt proposing an alliance was calculated to achieve multiple objectives simultaneously.
On the surface, the offer appeared generous, Halfdan proposed to subordinate his superior military resources to Bjorn's leadership in a campaign to unify Norway under their joint rule.
Such an arrangement would have given Bjorn access to significantly larger armies and naval forces while providing Halfdan with a proven military innovator as an ally.
However, the proposal also served as a test of Bjorn's intentions and capabilities. If Bjorn accepted, Halfdan would gain valuable intelligence about Kategatt's military preparations and strategic planning and techniques of the superior ships.
If Bjorn refused, as many observers expected, Halfdan would have established a diplomatic record that could be used to justify future actions as defensive rather than aggressive.
Bjorn's polite but firm refusal surprised few who understood his consistent policy of avoiding entangling alliances. His envoys conveyed respect for Halfdan's achievements and condolences for his recent losses, while explaining that Kategatt's current focus remained on "internal development and sustainable growth."
The response was diplomatically appropriate and left open possibilities for future cooperation under different circumstances.
The envoy's death during his return journey to Vestfold created a crisis that neither ruler had anticipated. The killing occurred on a remote forest path approximately halfway between the petty kingdoms, in territory that was technically neutral but regularly traversed by traders, raiders, and diplomatic missions from multiple petty kingdoms.
The circumstances surrounding the envoy's death became the subject of extensive speculation and investigation, with different sources offering contradictory explanations that reflected their own political biases and strategic interests.
The envoy was found by travelers several days after his death, his body bearing wounds consistent with multiple attackers using both axes and spears.
Suspicion immediately fell on Gandalf, whose remaining forces had both motive and opportunity for the attack. The death of his 2 sons at Grønli Valley had left him seeking revenge against Halfdan, and preventing a potential alliance between Vestfold and Kategatt would serve his strategic interests.
Several witnesses reported seeing armed men bearing Alfheim's colors in the general area during the relevant timeframe, though none could provide definitive identification.
However, alternative theories soon emerged. Some observers suggested that Halfdan himself had ordered the killing, calculating that the envoy's death would provide a pretext for aggressive action against Bjorn while simultaneously testing whether Kategatt would respond with military force or diplomatic protests.
This interpretation painted Halfdan as a manipulative strategist willing to sacrifice his own men for political advantage.
A third possibility, discussed primarily in private conversations among experienced jarls and merchants, was that the killing had been carried out by men working for interests not yet openly involved in regional politics, perhaps Denmark rulers seeking to prevent Norwegian unification, or Swedish lords hoping to exploit continued fragmentation.
The truth of the matter remained elusive, but its practical consequences were clear: the fragile diplomatic relationships between the major regional powers had been further destabilized, and the potential for larger-scale conflict had increased significantly.
Halfdan's public response, demanding investigation and justice while stopping short of direct accusations, maintained his diplomatic flexibility while establishing grounds for future action if circumstances warranted it.
The incident effectively ended any immediate possibility of cooperation between Vestfold and Kategatt, while simultaneously providing all parties with justifications for whatever actions they might choose to take in response to future developments.
In the complex chess game of early medieval Scandinavian politics, the dead envoy had become a powerful piece whose influence would continue after his death.
And Thus, Halfdan launched a sea blockade against Kategatt, confisticating any goods from merchants and sending them home.
The decision to implement this blockade during the end of summer and stopping it at the beginning of winter of 794 initially appeared tactically sound. Winter campaigns were traditionally avoided in Scandinavian warfare due to logistical challenges, harsh weather conditions, and the cultural expectation that major conflicts would resume with spring campaigning seasons.
The blockade inadvertently demonstrated to other regional powers that Halfdan's consolidated strength posed a potential threat to their own independence.
Kings and jarls who might otherwise have remained neutral began to view Halfdan's actions as precedent-setting, if he could economically strangle Kategatt today, he might target their own domains tomorrow.
This concern led to discreet communications between various leaders and Bjorn's representatives, laying groundwork for future alliances that Halfdan might have or might not have anticipated.
The most significant aspect of Halfdan's strategic error, however, lay not in military miscalculation but in his disregard for supernatural counsel that had previously guided his most important decisions.
Ragnhild had experienced a powerful vision during her final illness that she had shared with Halfdan despite her weakened condition. In this vision, she had seen a great ash tree, traditionally associated with Yggdrasil, the World Tree of Norse cosmology, but in this context representing Halfdan's dynastic line and his destiny to unite Norway under his rule.
The tree in her vision was magnificent and strong, its branches extending over all the lands from the southern coasts to the northern fjords.
But as the vision went on, the tree caught fire. Not a bough or leaf was spared. The flames raged until the whole ash was consumed, and when they died there was nothing left, not even a root in the ground.
And while all of this was happening, new of the ships that had sailed west returned.
One band of 4 ships steered cautiously, hugging the northern islands through Shetland, Orkney, and the Hebrides. A storm swallowed one vessel and another limped home badly damaged, but 2 reached Ireland and plundered a small monastery. They returned alive, though with little to boast of compared to Bjorn's two major raids.
Another fleet of 5 , more daring, sought to cut straight across the open sea as Bjorn had done. They paid dearly for their boldness. 2 ships vanished in the waves, and 2 turned back battered. Only two reached the English coast, ill-supplied and weary, where they were quickly driven off by local men.
A jarl with 4 ships found himself in Northumbria. Two vessels struck the rocks and were wrecked, their crews were taken captive. The survivors managed a raid against a village, but the local fyrd gathered and pressed them hard. And they returned with meager spoils.
Not all were so unlucky. Four smaller ships, carried off course by winds, drifted to the Irish coast. There they found a settlement unguarded and sacked it clean. Fortune favored them, and they returned richer than many larger hosts.
But for some, the sea showed no mercy. A band of three ships under a lesser chief never came home. Storms broke them, and no man lived to tell of it. Their families were left without fathers, sons, or wealth.
In all, near 20 ships were sent west without Bjorn that year. Of them, a third were lost to storms and rocks, and those who returned bore mostly modest gain. Only one or two raids brought back riches to rival Bjorn's first raid.
His own expeditions shone brighter still, and men began to wonder whether his fortune came from more than seamanship alone or if he was truly as the skalds said, blessed and loved by all the gods.
Though not much news from Sweden and Denmark about sailing west.
And the time of the great assembly at Uppsala was drawing near, the gathering held every ninth winter in the first days of January. Men whispered that it would be unlike any before.
The world of the Norse was on the edge of turning, though none yet knew how far it would fall.
Nor how far was Bjorn willing to take things to get rid of his enemies.
For the world of the Norse was about to turn upside down.