Volume 11

Volume 11 is the eleventh volume in the series.

This volume makes up the first half of Volume 6 in the English-language release of the manga.

Chapters

 * Chapter 72: The Curse of the Head
 * Chapter 73: When You're Free
 * Chapter 74: Escaped Slave
 * Chapter 75: King and Sword
 * Chapter 76: Olmar's Finest Hour
 * Chapter 77: Disgrace
 * Chapter 78: Treason

Cover Characters

 * Canute

Plot Overview
After three years, Thorfinn and Einar finally finish clearing the forest. They discuss what they will do once they are free. Thorfinn asks him if he thinks it's impossible for war and slavery to disappear from the world; Einar says it sounds like a dream. Ketil tells them that he'll do them a favour and grant them their freedom a little early, once they're done planting, though they’ll have to wait until he returns from visiting the sick King Harald in Jelling. Ketil asks them to tell Sverkel he's leaving. The only person they find at Sverkel’s is Snake, who also hasn’t seen him all day. He realizes something is wrong and they rush to the fields, where they find Sverkel collapsed. Later, Arnheid comes to Sverkel’s and tells him Ketil’s wife asked her to look after him. Fox arrives and tells Snake of an escaped slave who killed Carrock and his sons; Snake tells the guests to immediately apprehend him if they find him. After King Sweyn's death in 1014, his territories were split between his oldest and youngest sons: Denmark went to Harald, and England to Canute. Harald assisted Canute in conquering England, but became very sick shortly after Canute was crowned in 1018. Canute joins their sister Estrid at the sick Harald's bedside in Jelling. Harald tells that he is leaving him Denmark, as he has no heirs. Canute hallucinates King Sweyn's severed head, who mocks him for offering false platitudes to the very man he himself has poisoned. Some time later, Gunnar tells Canute he's finished his investigative report on rich families in the area and points out Ketil's farm. Canute reveals he means to confiscate lands from his own subjects — he needs more funds to keep up the size of his army, and thinks it wiser to sacrifice a few wealthy families instead of sowing discontent by imposing higher taxes on everyone.

Ketil arrives in Jelling with gifts to wish for King Harald's recovery, but sees the opportunity to build a good relationship with Canute when Thorgil reveals Harald has passed away. In town, Olmar argues with a man whom he bumped into and unsheathes his sword. Before he can escalate things further, Ketil arrives and reprimands Olmar, paying the man he bumped into for his damaged goods. That man's own father tells his son to give Ketil his money back and introduces himself as Leif Ericson. Leif's adopted son introduces himself as Thorfinn, though he specifies everyone calls him "Bug-Eyes." Ketil reacts to the name "Thorfinn" and explains that he has a worker of that name. Leif follows up with questions about this Thorfinn's appearance and background; Ketil's answers match the Thorfinn he's looking for. Leif tries to convince Mols that they should make a detour to Ketil's farm. The next day, Ketil and his sons go see King Canute for an audience. It goes well, but Olmar suddenly stands and requests to be enlisted in King Canute's army. Canute instructs him to demonstrate his skills on a dead pig. Olmar embarrassingly fails to cut through the pig after multiple attempts. Later, Brodd, a soldier from the late King Harald's army, comes to relay Wulf's message to Olmar: that he cannot grant his request to join Canute's army. Brodd and his friends insult Olmar while relaying the message. Olmar begins to cry, angrily draws out his sword and attacks Brodd. Olmar charges at Brodd, who's not worried about dodging and prepares to finish off Olmar. A hooded man flicks a coin into Brodd's eye; Olmar's sword slashes through Brodd's neck as Brodd turns to hold his injured face. Thorgil violently dispatches Brodd's friends. Ketil is horrified that Olmar and Thorgil killed the King's messengers despite duels being forbidden by law. Thorgil maintains that they did nothing wrong and notes that that law is normally never enforced. Soldiers arrive and wonder why Olmar is still alive; they move to arrest Ketil and his family. Thorgil quickly kills two of the soldiers and injures another, demanding to know why they let Olmar win, who masterminded the plan and what their purpose was. After Thorgil stabs him in the eye, the soldier admits Olmar was set up to kill the messenger as an excuse to have Ketil arrested for aiding in committing high treason. Thorgil deduces the goal was to take Ketil's farm. Wulf tells Canute that they confiscated Ketil's ships, but that he and his family managed to escape. On Leif's ship, Leif tells Ketil and his family that it's safe to come out. Thorgil thanks Leif for hiding them and bringing them home; Leif reminds him he's done so for the promise he'll be given Thorfinn.

Plot Summary
After three years, Thorfinn and Einar finally finish clearing the forest. They discuss what they will do once they are free. Einar is more concerned about Arnheid's fate, since it seems unlikely Ketil would ever let her go free. Thorfinn says he might go back home to Iceland to visit, but tells Einar that there is something he wants to do. When Einar asks what that is, Thorfinn asks him if he thinks it's impossible for war and slavery to disappear from the world. Einar replies that it's most likely impossible and sounds like a dream. Ketil tells them that he'll do them a favour and grant them their freedom a little early, once they're done planting. They'll however have to wait for him to return from his trip to Jelling to pay a visit to the sick King Harald to officially become free men. Ketil asks them to tell his father Sverkel that he is going. Before leaving, he asks them to think about continuing to work on the farm as free men, which Einar considers as it might give him the chance to think of a way to free Arnheid. When they arrive at Sverkel's house, Snake is surprised Sverkel is not with them, while Thorfinn and Einar are surprised he's not home. Snake realizes something is amiss and quickly gets on his horse, asking the two to follow him. They find a collapsed Sverkel on the field and rush towards him. Later, at Sverkel's, Arnheid arrives and tells Sverkel that she will be staying to look after him at Ketil's wife's orders. Sverkel instructs her to cook a meal big enough to share with Thorfinn, Einar and Snake. Fox arrives and tells Snake of an escaped slave who killed Carrock and his sons. Snake instructs the guests to be on guard and keep up their regular patrols, but to call for reinforcements instead of immediately apprehending the slave if they find him, as cornered humans are unpredictable.

After King Sweyn's death in 1014, his territories were split between his oldest and youngest sons: Denmark went to Harald, and England to Canute. Harald assisted Canute in conquering England, but became very sick shortly after Canute was crowned in 1018. Canute joins their sister Estrid at the sick Harald's bedside in Jelling. Harald tells him that he is leaving him Denmark, as he has no heirs. Canute hallucinates King Sweyn's severed head — the apparition mocks him for offering false platitudes to the very man he himself has poisoned, and tells him his ambition to become the ruler of the North Sea is the curse of the crown. Some time later, Gunnar tells Canute he's finished his investigative report on rich families in the area; he points out Ketil, a rich farm owner in the southern regions. Canute inquires about their defences and reveals he means to confiscate lands from his own subjects — he needs more funds to keep up the size of his army, and thinks it wiser to sacrifice a few wealthy families instead of sowing discontent by imposing higher taxes on everyone. Ketil arrives in Jelling with gifts to wish for King Harald's recovery, but Thorgil greets him and reveals the king has already died. Ketil is shocked, but sees Canute's presence in Jelling as a good opportunity to build a good relationship with the person who'll likely be the new King of Denmark. Olmar argues with a man whom he bumped into and eventually unsheathes his sword. Before he can escalate things further, Ketil arrives and reprimands Olmar, paying the man he bumped into for his damaged goods. That man's own father, who'd been observing, tells him to give Ketil his money back. He apologizes for his son's behaviour and introduces himself as Leif Ericson. Leif's adopted son introduces himself as Thorfinn, though he specifies everyone calls him "Bug-Eyes." Ketil reacts to the name "Thorfinn" and explains that he has a worker of that name. Leif follows up with questions about this Thorfinn's appearance and background; Ketil's answers match the Thorfinn he's looking for. Leif tries to convince an unimpressed Mols that they should make a five-day detour to Ketil's farm.

The next day, Ketil and his sons go see King Canute for an audience. Canute compliments the quality of Ketil's gifts and comments that he intends to keep a good relationship with Ketil as his father and brother did before him. Olmar suddenly stands and requests to be enlisted in King Canute's army. Canute instructs him to demonstrate his skills on a dead pig that will be served to his troops for dinner. Olmar embarrassingly fails, hacking several times and never even making it halfway into the pig's carcass. Canute tells Wulf it's time to put their earlier plan into motion, starting with their first target, Ketil. Brodd, a soldier from the late King Harald's army, comes to relay Wulf's message to Olmar: that after failing to cut through a dead pig, he cannot grant his request to join Canute's army. Brodd and his friends insult Olmar while relaying the message. Olmar begins to cry, angrily draws out his sword and attacks Brodd. Brodd insists on handling him alone and easily parries him. Thorgil arrives and tells Olmar that after being insulted, his only options are to kill the man who insulted him or die trying. Olmar charges at Brodd, who's not worried about dodging and prepares to finish off Olmar. A hooded man flicks a coin into Brodd's eye; Olmar's sword slashes through Brodd's neck as Brodd turns to hold his injured face. Brodd's friends draw out their swords to avenge his death. Thorgil congratulates Olmar, then violently dispatches Brodd's friends. Ketil is horrified that Olmar and Thorgil killed the King's messengers despite duels being forbidden by law. Thorgil notices Brodd's eye injury. He maintains that they did nothing wrong, as the soldiers knowingly challenged the honour of someone carrying a sword. He notes that that law is normally never enforced. Soldiers arrive and wonder why Olmar is still alive; they move to arrest Ketil and his family. Thorgil quickly kills two of the soldiers and injures another, demanding to know why they let Olmar win, who masterminded the plan and what their purpose was. After Thorgil stabs him in the eye, the soldier admits Olmar was set up to kill the messenger as an excuse to have Ketil arrested for aiding in committing high treason. The soldier doesn't know why, but to Ketil's horror, Thorgil deduces the goal was to take Ketil's farm. Wulf tells Canute that they confiscated Ketil's ships, but that he and his family managed to escape. Canute sees Sweyn's head again, who notes he's grown to resemble him. Canute replies everything he does is to build a paradise on earth. On Leif's ship, now far enough at sea and with no pursuers, Leif tells Ketil and his family that it's safe to come out of the barrels they'd hidden in. Thorgil thanks Leif for hiding them and bringing them home; Leif reminds him he's done so for the promise he'll be given Thorfinn.