Vikings: Nordic women

Chapter 2 Father's Death
"It's a great pity that we encountered the enemy on the coastline. Feld's heart was unfortunately pierced by their rain of arrows. I personally saw him off." The young man said solemnly, slowly took off the axe from his waist and handed it to Ouni.

The weight of the axe was like the entity of the grief in her heart. It was not only the coldness of steel, but also the deep concentration of fatherly love. Now it has become a cold relic.

"This axe is the only trace of your father's remains. It is a fine axe. I gave up a trophy and pleaded with my comrades to bring it back," the young man whispered.

Ouni took the axe with trembling hands. There was an anti-slip pattern carved on it by her own hands. It was indeed Feld's axe.

Tears rolled down her eyes, the salty taste mixed with the sea water. She gripped the axe handle tightly, as if it was her father's hand, giving her strength for the last time.

Suddenly, the axe slipped from her hand, her legs lost strength, her eyes went dark, and she almost collapsed to the ground.

How could this be?
No, this must be fake! Impossible!

The young man moved quickly. He immediately grasped Ouni's shoulders to steady her body, then picked up the axe on the ground and gently placed the axe handle in her palm. He gently guided her to sit aside and squatted in front of her.

He looked at her distraught appearance, with a trace of deep pity and pity in his eyes: "Are you okay?"

Ouni stroked the axe, feeling the rust from the sea water. Her voice trembled a little: "Did my father... leave any last words?"

The young man shook his head, with a hint of helplessness in his tone: "No, everything happened too fast. We were all in the battle, and by the time we finished the battle and killed the wounded prisoner, the raven had already landed on him."

He tried to comfort her, his tone full of determination and hope: "You don't have to be too sad, he passed away peacefully, the Valkyrie obeyed the call of fate and took his soul away. He went ahead and went to Valhalla, fighting alongside the gods and drinking sweet ale."

Ouni let out a long breath, as if at this moment, her heart was comforted in some way. She realized that despite the loss of her father, she still felt an inexplicable peace. She smiled at the young man, and although there were still tears in her eyes, it was gratitude to him: "Thank you."

Tears flowed into her nose, bringing a little discomfort, but she did not wipe them away. In her heart, she hoped that the existence of Valhalla was real, and hoped that her father could find his happiness and peace there.

Indeed, almost everyone who grew up in the faith of the gods had the dream of dying heroically in battle, because only in this way could they be accepted into Valhalla, the eternal battlefield with endless wine and dancing with the gods.

Ouni's heart was full of doubts. She didn't understand why the gods asked believers to sacrifice their lives in exchange for the seemingly empty glory. Was this a divine will that she couldn't understand, or had this society itself fallen into madness?

The young man nodded seriously, and there was a hint of deep promise in his words: "Your father told me before he died that if he unfortunately passed away, he hoped that I could take care of you for him."

Ouni shook her head gently, with a hint of strength in her eyes: "No need, I'm not that fragile. Can you tell me where he is buried? Maybe... maybe I can see him in my dreams."

In fact, what she was thinking about was whether there was a chance to bring Field's remains back to his hometown so that his soul could rest in peace. The thought of returning to one's roots and the desire for her parents to be reunited were deeply engraved in her heart.

She looked at the sailboat in the distance, and a crazy idea came to her mind. She wanted to go to that place and see with her own eyes what kind of terrible place took her father's life. Although this idea was crazy, it was an irresistible impulse deep in her heart.

In Ouni's heart, she silently made a vow that no matter how difficult the road ahead was, she would bring her father back to the embrace of her hometown. Even if it was a road full of unknowns and dangers, she would not back down.

She looked at the young man with a determined gaze and asked, "Do you remember where he is buried?"

The young man pondered for a moment, then answered: "The exact location... I remember he was buried under the beach along with the others."

Ouni's eyes fell on the kind young man in front of her, and she felt an urge to ask him to help bring back Feld's remains. However, she soon realized how unrealistic this request was. Eastern Europe was far away, and she knew that the lord was unlikely to choose the same location for Viking again next year.

The young man seemed to see her hesitation. He said softly, "I'm a little thirsty. Where is your home? Can I go over and have a drink of water? I can tell you something about your father on the journey. We talked a lot during the boring and long voyage."

Seeing the other party's expectant eyes, Ouni hesitated a little, but she felt that it would be unkind to refuse directly. So, she nodded and said, "Follow me!"

Before leaving, she noticed that she was not the only one who had lost her loved ones, and there were many people around her crying. The sailboat swayed in the sea breeze, as if mourning for the lost lives. The cries of the people around her intertwined to form a sad symphony that made people feel pity. Ounnie's heart was filled with mixed emotions. She knew that if possible, she hoped that the young man Harold could provide her with shelter for a period of time. She seemed to foresee the difficulties she might face in the future when she was alone.

However, she also knew that she could not offer anything in exchange, and she did not think that anything could move the Viking warrior's heart and make him willing to provide her with shelter. Unless... But she had a firm refusal in her heart.

She turned her back to Harold, put her hands behind her back, and gently stroked the axe handle with her fingers, trying to hide her nervousness and anticipation. Then, she slowly turned to him, took a step back, and asked, "I don't even know your name yet!"

"Harold!" he answered simply.

Ouni took a deep breath and mustered up her courage to say, "Harold, can I ask you a favor?"

Harold looked at her with a questioning look in his eyes: "I'm listening!"

Ouni's heartbeat quickened. She stared into Harold's eyes and made her request: "Can you help me bring back my father's remains next time you go on a Viking expedition?"

Although she had expected that this request might be rejected, she still wanted to give it a try to test Harold's bottom line. If this request didn't work, she was ready to make a second request.

However, Harold's answer was very firm: "Impossible!" He rejected her request outright. No one could return alive after leaving the battle group and acting alone. Navigating at sea was an extremely dangerous thing in itself. The sea was full of unknown dangers. The god of conspiracy, Loki, and his child, the giant snake "Jörmungandr", could stir up trouble at any time. Every voyage was at risk of the ship being destroyed and people dying.

After hearing this answer, even though Ounnie had been mentally prepared, she still felt a sense of loss.

Harold's eyes flashed with a trace of struggle. He knew how difficult it was, but facing Ouni's expectant eyes, his heart softened. However, he still couldn't agree to her request.

"Robert wouldn't Viking in the same place twice. Those villages were burned down." Harold explained, with a hint of helplessness in his voice.

Ouni did not give up. She made another request: "Can you teach me how to fight?" She thought to herself, the other party would not refuse her for the second time in a row, right?
Harold did not answer immediately. He guessed the other party's wish, but he also knew that it was not easy to let a woman participate in the battle, and the lord would not agree to such a request. The voyage was full of unknown risks, not only natural disasters, but also man-made disasters.

Ouni saw his hesitation, and she hurriedly explained: "I just hope to be able to protect myself. I was harassed a lot when my father was away."

"Harass you? Why?" Harold didn't understand. After all, there were so many women in the territory. At the very least, there were widows in the tavern who had lost their source of income.

Ouni shook her head and didn't explain, but it was true. Harassment was inevitable every day. Many times she felt that her existence was like a big piece of fat meat, attracting the wolves with evil intentions to stare at her. She felt that she had to stick a toothpick in the fat meat, and if anyone tried to violate her, they would definitely be stabbed with a mouth full of blood.

She pleaded earnestly, "I'll provide you with food!"

Harold's eyes flashed with a gleam, as if he was touched by her sincerity. He recalled that Field had talked to him about food, and his heart was moved. He nodded and said, "Okay, I agree. I heard from your father that you know a lot about food..."

Ouni breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that her request had been successful. She was secretly glad that Field's communication with Harold before his death could help her at this time.

As O'Neal and Harold walked and talked, she looked back and saw the guy whose balls she had kicked. He stared at her angrily, but soon disappeared into the crowd. Her heart sank, realizing that this enemy might cause her trouble.

She tilted her head to look at Harold beside her, and guessed why he didn't come forward to trouble her. With such a friendly "iron tower", she felt full of security.

"Someone is following us. Let's go this way, faster!" Ou Ni changed to another route directly. She didn't want to bring trouble home.

Harold stopped and looked back. Sure enough, there was a sneaky guy hiding. He frowned, obviously dissatisfied with this behavior. But he didn't say anything, just quickened his pace and caught up with Ouni.

(End of this chapter)