Though the giant Viking was smiling, there was no warmth in his blue eyes.
King Rudolf I sat still on his warhorse. Behind him, the hundred heavily armored Burgundian knights were frozen in fear.
They knew exactly what modern artillery could do... a single volley from those forty ships would level the lower city in less than ten minutes!
"You are out of your fucking mind," Rudolf whispered.
Hakon just chuckled, tossing the iron cannonball back up into the air and catching it again. "I get told that a lot, King Rudolf. But the Iron King's orders are clear. We either leave here as incredibly wealthy trading partners... or we leave here after burning your castle to the ground. The choice is absolutely yours."
Prince Conrad, sitting on his horse right next to his father, shivered. He looked at the crates of flawless steel tools, warm coats, and modern medicine stacked on the pier, and then looked at the iron cannons.
