Commander Bjorn sat behind his desk inside the command building of Calais.

Julian, Bjorn’s clerk, ran in holding a folded paper. "Commander Bjorn!" Julian reported. "A transport boat just arrived from City Titan. The captain handed me this urgent letter from King Ragnar."

Bjorn took the seemingly blank paper, applied a few drops of a chemical solution, and revealed the secret text.

Bjorn read silently. Ragnar wrote that his scouts had discovered Iceland, an island rich with active volcanoes, geothermal steam, and sulfur.

However, it was already occupied by an unknown faction with a fleet of longships. Ragnar was organizing a military expedition to secure it.

The final paragraph made Bjorn’s heart race.

"I cannot leave City Titan," Ragnar wrote. "Therefore, I need King Erik to command the fleet. Order Erik to return to City Titan immediately."

Bjorn dropped the paper, furious. The siege of Calais was boring, and Bjorn relied on Erik.

He provided all the morale in the command room. Without him, Bjorn would sit in depressing silence.

Bjorn stood up and stomped down the street toward the barracks. He found Erik packing his belongings into a chest.

"You’re packing." Bjorn said.

Erik turned and laughed loudly. "Yes, Bjorn. I heard the news! It’s the greatest adventure!"

Bjorn crossed his arms, "If you leave, I’ll be bored to death~"

Erik smiled and punched Bjorn’s shoulder. "You don’t need me juggling cups to be happy."

"I need you to juggle the cups!" Bjorn replied seriously. "But more importantly, you’re leaving me with your warriors. I cannot be their king!"

Erik rubbed his beard. He knew Bjorn was right. "Pay them. Tell them that if they follow your rules, they get extra pork. If they break a fence, they get no pork. They understand food."

Bjorn sighed, knowing he had no choice.

"Fine," Bjorn agreed. "If Ragnar is stealing my best friend, he owes me compensation."

Bjorn went to a table, grabbed paper and charcoal, and began writing a demanding letter.

"I’m sending this with you, Erik,"

"Hand this to Ragnar as soon as you arrive. I’m telling him he must send a gift transfer on the next supply ship to apologize for ruining my happiness."

Erik laughed, "What are you asking for?"

"A brand new spyglass~" Bjorn stated.

Bjorn finished writing, folded the paper, and handed it to Erik.

Erik hoisted his chest onto his shoulder and headed toward the docks.

Bjorn followed him and watched as Erik boarded. The sailors raised the sail, and the boat pulled away from the pier.

Suddenly, a loud crash echoed from the center of the city. Bjorn turned and walked toward the noise.

He found a group of the warriors standing in the street. They had just knocked over a cart filled with empty barrels while chasing a stray dog.

The warriors froze when they saw the Commander walking toward them.

"Listen to me!" Bjorn shouted. "Every man who helps rebuild that cart in the next ten minutes gets an extra ration of salted pork for dinner! Every man who stands there like an idiot gets nothing!"

Bjorn crossed his arms, it was going to be a long month.

******

York, Iron Kingdom

April 11th, 870 AD

Osbert, the former Saxon king of Northumbria, and the loyal vassal of the Iron Kingdom was currently reviewing the financial ledgers of the largest school in the empire.

A few months ago, Chief Minister Leofric had made a massive economic decision regarding York.

As the most populous city in England, it produced the highest tax revenue in the kingdom... fifteen thousand silver coins a month.

Because of this, Leofric decided to pour tens of thousands into building the school.

The newly finished school contained fifty large rooms, each equipped with forty desks, allowing them to teach two thousand students at once.

Osberht was meeting with the Head Teacher, Thomas.

"The numbers are perfect, Lord Osberht." Thomas reported. "We are following the Ragnar education system. Every child in York between the ages of six and twelve attends school for four hours a day. We spend two hours teaching them to read, and two hours on mathematics and basic geometry."

Osberht nodded happily, looking at the printed books stacked on the table.

Concluding his meeting, Osberht stood up with a deep sense of satisfaction.

He had surrendered his old crown to Ragnar, but in return, he was managing a highly advanced, prosperous city.

Osberht left the school and stepped onto the busy street. Hundreds of citizens were heading to the local markets.

The streets were safe, and the economy was booming. He walked down the road to the city garrison, heading for the dungeon located just behind it.

"Open the door." Osberht ordered.

One guard pulled a key from his belt and unlocked it, the door swinging open.

Osberht stepped into the dark cell. Sitting on a simple bed was a crippled man named Lord Eadric.

Eadric was a former Saxon noble who had refused to accept the Iron Kingdom’s industry.

Six months ago, he had tried to lead a rebellion, sneaking into a newly built iron foundry to burn the support beams and destroy the blast furnace.

However, the guards arrested him immediately.

Eadric looked up at Osberht’s clean tunic and spat on the floor.

"Are you here to mock me again, Osberht?" Eadric asked bitterly. "Are you here to tell me how much you love licking the boots of the Viking King?"

"Leofric invested tens of thousands into York. Today, two thousand children sat at desks and learned how to read. They are warm, they are fed, and they are safe." Osberht explained.

Eadric gripped the edge of his bed. "It is a trick... The Vikings are just teaching the children to be slaves."

"In the old days, our people starved every winter. You tried to burn down the iron foundry. All it did was cost you your leg and your freedom." Osberht stated.

"The tax revenue of York has increased by 20% percent." Osberht continued.

"Then why do you keep coming to this dungeon to talk to me?" Eadric snapped. "...why waste your time looking at a crippled man in a cage?"

Osberht crossed his arms. "You represent everything that was wrong with our history. Every time I see you sitting there, missing a leg because you fought against progress, it reinforces my loyalty to the Iron Kingdom."

Osberht took a step closer. "King Ragnar’s laws state that any prisoner who demonstrates rehabilitation can be pardoned. If you drop your stubborn hatred, you can sit at a desk and count the incoming shipments of coal."

Eadric’s eyes widened slightly. "You would trust me?"

"If you try to burn a factory again, the guards will simply shoot you." Osberht clarified.

Eadric stared at his missing leg.

"I... I know how to add and subtract." Eadric muttered quietly.

"Excellent!" Osberht declared. "You will start your new job at the logistics office next Monday morning. Do not be late!"

Osberht turned and walked out. The guards closed the door behind him, but they didn’t lock it.

Eadric grabbed a wooden stick from the floor. He used it as a crude crutch.

He stood up on his single right leg. Eadric hopped twenty feet down the dark hallway. He stopped in front of the adjacent stone cell. The iron door of this cell was also unlocked.

Eadric leaned heavily on his wooden stick. He looked into the dark room.

"You can get out now," Eadric said.

The heavy iron door was pushed wide open from the inside.

Two men stepped out of the dark cell and into the hallway.

The first man was massive. He was wearing thick leather armor and carrying an iron sword on his belt. He looked completely bored.

The second man was slightly shorter, wearing a clean wool cloak. This man was missing his right leg just below the knee.

He was leaning on a mechanical wooden crutch reinforced with precise brass fittings and strong steel bands.

"Sigh... Finally this bastard came here. I have been sitting in that freezing room for three hours."

"Ivar," Eadric said, pointing at the brass crutch. "Do you really think you can go out with me? I mean... look at us. Even at night, someone could easily see you walking down the street."

Ulf, the Viking warrior, crossed his arms over his chest. "I will put him in a hay cart. Our warriors are waiting two hundred yards away near the eastern gate. Do not worry."

Eadric rubbed his dirty face. He had secretly spoken to Ivar three days ago through the wall.

Ivar had promised to get him out of the dungeon, but Eadric thought it was just a prisoner’s lie.

"I do not understand..." Eadric demanded. "Osberht just gave me a job counting coal. I am a free man. Why do we need to hide in a hay cart?"

Ivar laughed a booming laugh.

"Eadric, my friend!" Ivar smiled brightly. "Did you really think King Ragnar gives boring jobs to rebels? That entire speech Osberht gave you was engineered by Queen Gyda."

Eadric’s eyes widened. "Osberht was acting?"