Chapter 75

"I need money above all else at the moment. Now is not the time to worry about such trifling concerns. Rather than imposing high taxes throughought the entire kingdom and sowing the seeds of discontent, it would be much wiser to sacrifice a few wealthy individuals."

- Canute

King and Sword (王と剣) is the 75th chapter of the Vinland Saga series.

Overview
In Jelling, in October 1018, Canute spars with Wulf. Gunnar arrives and privately 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. Having left for the town without Ketil, 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.

Summary
In October 1018, at King Harald's residence in Jelling, Estrid is notified that Canute and Wulf are sparring outside. Some men watch and comment that Canute's swift movements despite wearing full armour are impressive. Estrid asks her servant if they are sparring with real swords and the servant guesses that they are; this worries Estrid, as it means injuries could be serious if they hit each other. Gunnar arrives and greets Estrid, commenting on how beautiful the day is. Estrid asks how he could call such a terrifying scene beautiful, and Gunnar tells her that it may not be a sight suitable for a lady. He tells her not to worry, as Wulf is highly skilled and taking care not to inflict real harm to Canute. Estrid comments that Canute used to despise even touching swords. Gunnar tells her that his royal blood unexpectedly awakened when he was in England, and that kings must be strong and display their power to their subjects. Estrid replies that even if that's the case, her brother looks like he's in pain. Tired, Canute huffs next to a wall. Wulf comments that he has a bad habit of retreating when he's fatigued and that should he do so in a fight, it would only prolong the fight and tire him more. He reminds him that the kind of sword he wields and the way he wields it will be closely scrutinized by both enemies and his subjects alike. Canute notes that this includes Estrid, and tells Wulf he must have noticed she's watching them fight, as his attacks suddenly became much sharper. Wulf tells him he won't fall for Canute's comments again. Canute tells him to forget it and that in any case, Estrid is not looking their way since she's talking with the man next to him. Wulf turns to look and is hit by Canute's shield as he's distracted. With Canute's sword now at his throat, Wulf tells him the match is his. Canute throws down his sword (to Wulf's dismay) and removes his armour. Gunnar approaches and tells him an investigative report he wished for has been completed; he tells him he'll give him more information in private. In a private room, Gunnar hands Canute papers and tells him there around many rich people in the area. He tells him that even if they were to confiscate all their annual earnings, they'd only make about 3000 pounds, and that the only way to raise more would be to raise taxes. He specifically points out Ketil, son of Sverkel, a wealthy farmer who owns a lot of farmland in the south. Canute notes that the report doesn't include the amount of soldiers hired by each family listed. Gunnar replies that they'd need to visit their estate to investigate further and find those numbers; Canute tells him he needs the numbers and to get on it. Gunnar comments that Canute raising taxes so soon after being crowned may cause the Danes to rebel. Canute tells him that politics is about anticipating and thwarting those dangers, and that besides, there is another solution to their problem.

After being crowned King of England, Canute placed his Danish troops on his newly conquered territories, but the additional taxes imposed to pay for the upkeep of the garrison increased English complaints. He would also be forced to reduce the size of his army if he could not find a way to raise funds. Canute explains to Gunnar that his solution is to increase his personal land holdings. When Gunnar points out that gaining revenue from that would take some time, Canute says he'll be doing it another way. Gunnar is shocked when he correctly deduces Canute means to confiscate land from his own subjects. Canute tells him that sacrificing a few wealthy families would be wiser than sowing discontent by raising taxes through the kingdom. He asks Gunnar if he has any better ideas; Gunnar suggests reducing the size of their army. Canute replies that they cannot do that, as he needs an army to govern — he cannot trust the English, as he is their foreign conqueror. He notes that a king is made by his sword, and that a king without an army would not be able to accomplish anything. At the harbour outside of Jelling, Thorgil tells Ketil that King Harold died over a week ago and that his funeral has already been carried out. Ketil comments that this must mean the king died before he left his farm, and that he'd been in worse health than he thought — he'd brought three knarrs full of gifts to wish for his recovery. Ketil realizes that if Thorgil is welcoming him to Jelling, it means that Canute is there. Thorgil confirms and tells him that Canute is currently residing in the palace and serving as the acting king. Ketil notes that he should build a good relationship with Canute, likely the new King of Denmark, now that his backer King Harald has passed. He asks Thorgil to put in a good word for him. Thorgil, amused at his resourcefulness, agrees and comments that it should be no trouble with all the gifts Ketil brought. Ketil calls out for Olmar, but one of his men tells him he left for the town a little while ago. Ketil is angry the man just let him go, but Thorgil points out Olmar is no child at 20. Ketil disagrees and tells him his idiotic son will forever be a child, and that he can't imagine what might happen with him out in town alone. He assumes Olmar has already gotten himself into a quarrel after bumping into someone. Indeed, in town, Olmar yells at a man that he should be the one apologizing, as he's the one who bumped into him. The angry man replies that Olmar is the one who ruined his textiles, and Olmar counters that he's not going to be forced into buying his goods with that excuse. The man screams back that it's not what he was trying to do, but that it's obvious he should be reimbursed for his damaged goods. Olmar calls him a con artist and deduces he bumped into him on purpose exactly for that outcome. The man tells him he can't imagine what kind of bad parenting resulted in a lunatic like him, and that he has his father's honest merchant reputation to uphold. Olmar asks him if he's trying to start something and tells him to go ahead if he has the guts. The man gets ready to punch Olmar, but Olmar pulls his sword out of its scabbard. He accuses the man of being too scared to fight; the man replies that it's unfair. Olmar says that a man willing to fight should be ready to risk his life, and that the man's lack of a weapon shows that he lacks the conviction of a proper Nordic man. Ketil arrives and asks Olmar who bought him his "conviction," then starts to yell at him for always starting petty squabbles wherever he goes. Ketil apologizes to the man on Olmar's behalf and hands him a purse to reimburse him for the damaged goods. The man pockets it, but his own father arrives and yells at him to give Ketil his change back. He asks his father if he was watching, and he confirms he'd been watching since the beginning, waiting to see how he'd resolve the quarrel. After his observation, he concludes that he's still too irresponsible to handle bigger business deals. The man apologizes for his son's behaviour, and introduces himself as Leif Ericson.

Characters in Order of Appearance

 * Canute
 * Estrid
 * Wulf
 * Gunnar
 * Ketil
 * Thorgil
 * Olmar
 * Bug-Eyes
 * Leif Ericson