Things always get worse at the wrong time.
I wondered if they were part of the group Birna mentioned—Erke's group? But if they were really the ones who burned the village down, they wouldn't hesitate to kill us all.
"Shit."
The word slipped out of my mouth without thinking. One of them, a woman with red hair like rusted iron, heard me.
"What did you just say?"
"Nothing," I replied.
I could tell they were suspicious of me, especially the red-haired woman. For some reason, she looked like she really wanted my head.
Suddenly, the red-haired woman stormed over and grabbed my collar. Before I could react, she slammed me to the ground, pressing an axe to my neck.
I could see the shadow of my death reflecting from the axe's edge. But luckily, a man stopped her. He had the same red hair as her, but his face was marked with tattoos.
"Stop it, Ingrid. We're not here to spill blood."
For some reason, that crazy woman listened to him. So did the others. They were gripping their weapons like they were ready to kill me when she slammed me down.
The woman, Ingrid, snorted and let go of me, while the man helped me to my feet.
The way he controlled her made it clear that he was the leader of the group.
"I apologize for my sister."
It turned out that these two people were siblings. And their nature was opposite, like oil and water.
"So, what happened here?" he asked, dusting off my dirty shoulders.
I glanced at Birna. She was the one who knew what had really happened, but she looked too shaken to speak.
"I don't know what happened either. It was like this when I got here. The only one left unharmed was this girl."
The man turned his attention to Birna.
"From what she told me," I continued, "a group led by Erke attacked the village. I don't know the full details."
The man squinted at me. At the same time, Ingrid whispered something to him. I couldn't hear what she said, but their eyes were fixed on Birna.
"So, what are you doing here?" the man asked.
"Just helping out."
"Helping?" The man raised an eyebrow.
He didn't seem to believe me. It seemed the word "help" was absurd to him.
"If you don't believe me, you can ask her," I said.
His eyes turned to Birna. It's not like I wanted to use her, but in a situation where everyone was suspicious of a stranger like me, the only way out was for someone else to vouch for me.
The red-haired man then crouched down. A friendly smile spread across his face. Honestly, I was a little surprised a guy who looked like him could smile like that.
"Birna, right? We met at the summer festival at the Longhouse last year. You remember me."
Turns out the guy knew Birna. From the way he spoke, it didn't seem like they were enemies. This should make things easier for me.
"Yeah, I remember. You're Ingmar the Bloodtooth. Son of Jarl Asbjorn."
Ingmar grinned wide.
"That's right. So, is what this guy said true?"
"This guy really did come to help. He saved my father and a few others," Birna replied.
"Did he make you drink something?" Ingmar asked.
Naturally, I squinted my eyes. Was he trying to accuse me of hypnotizing or tricking Birna with a drink?
"No. I haven't had anything to drink since this morning."
Ingmar just pursed his lips, his eyes drifting to the patients lying behind me.
I wasn't sure if this man believed me or not. It was hard to read him.
One of them whispered something to Ingmar, and he nodded in response.
"Birna, come with us. We'll take care of your father and the others at our settlement," Ingmar said gently, holding out his hand.
Instead of following him, Birna hid behind me. Her reaction made Ingmar frown.
"Huh, brother. This is taking too long. Let me handle it."
"Hey, Ing—"
The red-haired woman wanted to forcefully take Birna from me. But before she could touch her, an axe swung and cut her hand.
"Arrggh!"
"Ingrid!"
Not only was Ingmar shocked, but so was I. It turned out Birna had been holding an axe all along, waiting for the right moment to strike.
Birna had pointed an axe at me when we first met. I should've known this would happen.
"Birna, what are you doing?" I yelled in panic.
"Don't trust them, Maikal! They're just like Erke! They only want to destroy our clan!"
"What?"
I didn't know there were conflicts between Viking clans. I thought they just liked raiding other nations. Who knew they'd fight among themselves?
"Argh… damn my hand!"
The situation escalated. The people behind Ingmar started drawing their weapons. Their eyes made it clear they weren't going to let this injury slide.
I had just escaped death, and now I was going to die again because of a misunderstanding?
"Pick up your axe, Maikal. This time I'm going to fight. I won't hide anymore!" Birna declared.
Not you too, Birna. You're just making things worse. Are all Vikings this crazy?
I didn't want any bloodshed, especially over something so trivial.
"Put down your weapons!"
Suddenly, Ingmar shouted. Everyone was startled.
"We didn't come here to fight, remember? If you still want to fight, you must face me first!"
Everyone bowed their heads. None of them dared to defy his words.
Ingmar then looked at me.
"What's your name?"
"Michael," I replied.
"Maikal, please convince her. We came here with no intention to harm. Our Jarl owes her father a debt. I swear on Odin's name, if anyone from our clan lays a finger on you, I will personally take them down."
Once again, another Viking mispronounced my name.
"But, brother—"
"Shut up!"
Ingrid looked like she wanted to change her brother's mind, but Ingmar silenced her. The red-haired woman still didn't trust me.
"I've given my word, Ingrid."
Seeing how serious her brother was, Ingrid just gritted her teeth. It seemed like Ingmar really had a strong influence over his group.
He shifted his attention to me, his eyes telling me to convince Birna.
I knelt and placed my hands on Birna's shoulders. The girl seemed just as stubborn as Ingrid.
"Don't trust them, Maikal. They want to destroy our clan and force my father to become one of their warriors. They're no different from Erke."
"Listen, Birna. This isn't the right time to talk about protecting clans or anything like that. Look at them." I made Birna look at her people. "They need care. They need shelter. They need to live first if you want your clan to survive."
I wasn't sure if my words could convince Birna. But I knew she loved her father deeply. There was no way she would ignore him.
After a long pause, Birna finally nodded.
"Alright. This is for my father and my people."
I smiled broadly, and I sighed in relief as if a burden lifted off my chest.
"A wise choice, Birna," Ingmar praised, though his eyes were still on me.
Ingmar then ordered his men to start loading the patients onto the carts. Apparently, Ingmar and his group had come with supplies. Most of it was honey and liquor.
Since there wasn't enough space, they stashed the rest of their supplies in the bushes. I helped them load the patients. After all, they were my responsibility. While I was doing this, Birna clung to me the entire time.
This made me feel both relieved and uncomfortable.
Ingmar had given me his word that his men wouldn't hurt me. But the way they looked at me. It seemed that they didn't seem to hesitate to kill me. They only cared about Birna.
Her presence near me guaranteed they wouldn't harm me. But at the same time, Ingrid and Ingmar, the two who hold the most sway in the group, kept their eyes on me.
Especially Ingrid.