Over the next period of time, Vig followed Ivar to learn combat skills. As a shield guard, he could enjoy bread and fish to his heart's content, and his originally thin body grew stronger day by day.
Sometimes, when Ragnar was bored, he taught him a few moves.
"Don't rely too much on the shield, and remember not to let it obscure your vision."
"When facing different soldiers, the most practical way is to let them attack. After blocking with the shield, the attacker will have a short period of instability, which is the best way to use this gap to kill with a fatal blow. If you are facing experienced warriors, they will make feints to deceive you, and you should focus on their moves during this time."
"If you and your opponent are holding swords at the same time, you can use the 'sword stir', use the body of the sword to stick to your opponent's weapon, move and push away his blade, and then you can strike at a vital point."
...
After many years of fighting, Ragnar has summarized the five most commonly used fencing techniques, which are simple and effective. In addition to swinging the sword, there is also an upper cut, counter-attack, thrust, and sword removal.
Compared to a one-handed axe, an iron sword is much more flexible, and it can accommodate both cutting and thrusting strikes. The only drawback is that it is expensive. A regular one-handed sword costs half a pound of silver, which is about the same as four cows. Chainmail is more expensive, usually costing between 3 and 5 pounds of silver, and is only available to nobles or senior warriors.
Due to his inexperience, Vig is not allowed to be equipped with high-level defensive gear such as chainmail. He only wears a suit of scale armor taken from the body of a dead shieldbearer, weighing about 26 pounds, and a Germanic iron helmet of the common style, which has good protection.
The training continued until the cold winter, and he fully adapted to his new identity as a shieldbearer. For some reason, he seems very well suited to using a one-handed sword. With time, he can even multi-task against high-level villains such as Ivar.
...
"Well, you've made great progress. With that set of iron armor, normal warriors won't be able to do anything to you."
Taking advantage of the disadvantage to knock Vig to the ground, Ivar sighed to himself that he had fulfilled his mission in training him up to this point.
Suddenly, there was a commotion on the east side of the street. He looked closer and saw that it was twenty young women, armed with round shields and one-handed axes, who had surrounded Lagertha and were marching the entire way. At the end of the team was a ten-year-old boy in white.
"Finally, you are here."
When his mother and younger brother arrived, Ivar excitedly walked forward to greet them. With these shieldmaidens helping to maintain order, he slept more soundly at night.
In the back, Vig struggled to his feet and looked at a tall, beautiful woman with long, blond hair in the crowd. He guessed her name immediately.
Lagertha, as the most famous warrior in the Scandinavian region, often recruits a group of followers. As for the boy in white at the end, this must be Halfdan, the "White Shirt", passed down through the generations.
With the arrival of this group of reinforcements, the lord's longhouse gradually became more lively. Soon Gunnar also led a group of Viking warriors to swear allegiance. The number of Ragnar's warriors reached 60, and food consumption increased significantly.
Seeing that the stock in the warehouse was decreasing every day, Ragnar was forced to take a full inventory of his belongings. The result was shocking - even if he used gold and silver to buy food, the food supplies would not last until autumn.
"We must go to sea to plunder after spring, otherwise we will not be able to make a living."
...
By order of Ragnar, carpenters began to build Viking warships, and idlers were sent to the workshop for odd jobs.
Today, the shape of the Viking longships has become more solid, divided into two categories: merchant ships and warships.
The hull of a merchant ship is wider and deeper, with a fixed cargo hold and deck, 15-20 meters long and can carry ten tons of cargo. Warship
focuses on speed and maneuverability, has no fixed cargo hold, is 20-30 meters long and usually carries fifty warriors.
Over the next month, Vig witnessed how the craftsmen of this era built longships. First, choose a strong and undamaged tree trunk for the keel to ensure the strength of the structure and prevent it from falling apart under the influence of wind and waves.
The hull material is corrosion-resistant oak, and the sides of the ship are riveted with an overlap and then secured with iron nails. The gaps between the boards are filled with resin-soaked moss. Vig was skeptical about the waterproofness of this material, but he had to do it anyway.
After processing the hull, it is necessary to add ribs and beams. Materials are hazel or ash with good flexibility. The canvas is made of wool and coated with a layer of waterproof beeswax.
By the end of February, the carpenter had completed three warships. Taking into account the two previous ones, a total of 200 men could go to sea. The target of the plunder was still Britain.
The reason for choosing Britain over the richer West Franconia was simple.
Since the end of Roman rule in Britain, the island has long been in a state of division. The land is scattered with countless large and small countries, and the level of civilization has fallen sharply. Currently, only three countries have any stability, from north to south, Northumbria, Mercia and Wessex. The rest of the region is unable to prevent small and medium-sized pirate attacks.
"Well, this time the target is still Essex, in the hope of stealing more iron farming tools."
Just as Ragnar was preparing to make the deliveries, he suddenly saw an envoy from Oslo. The other party had stated their purpose and said that King Eric had invited Ragnar to visit.
"Are you looking for me to discuss the robbery?"
The envoy nodded, "Yes, he is eagerly awaiting your arrival."
"Very well, I will leave tomorrow." Ragnar and Eric had met once before three years ago and had a good impression of each other, so they should not have done any harm.
...
The next morning, Ragnar and his party sailed north along the coastline and five days later arrived in Oslo, the largest settlement in Norway with a permanent population of two thousand.
"What a lively place."
It was the first time Vig had seen so many ships since he had traveled through time and space. Looking around, a cold wind tore the morning mist off the cliffs on either side of the fjord. Hundreds of longboats crowded the sea, their towering masts piercing the sky like floating forest.
He stepped onto the creaking pier to disembark and found the place teeming with people. The air was thick with the murky smell of beer, pickled herring, and burning whale oil, mixed with the clanking sound of forges, revealing a rare atmosphere of prosperity.
On his way to the lord's longhouse, Vig did a rough count and found that there were at least a hundred warriors there, all armed with iron armor. He guessed that King Eric must have invited other nobles as well, or his family alone would not have been able to gather so much armor.
"Is this a pirate conference?"
Soon Vig's guess was confirmed. In the open space in front of the lord's longhouse, nine chairs were arranged in a circle, symbolizing the equal status of the nine nobles.
"Nine nobles, assuming that each territory can muster more than 200 men, that is, a large fleet of 2,000 men, enough to destroy a small or medium-sized country, it will be a rare and grand spectacle."
Vig stood curiously behind Ragnar's seat, silently listening to the pirate conference.