Ella was speechless. Given the importance of these knights, it was inevitable to exchange them for them. She was just deliberately devaluing their value to obtain greater benefits. But Bjorn pointed out how important these knights were to her, and she couldn't argue with that.
"Originally, if those knights could be calmer, I could just send a few followers to investigate..."
Ella complained softly. Those knights acted impulsively and took away the advantage she had finally gained.
But no matter what, trading knights for marching food and grass is still a bit too much. The important thing is not the value of the food and grass, but that Bjorn's army has combat effectiveness after obtaining the food and grass. He was talking about retreating, but who knew whether he would continue to attack Winchester.
Ella decided to try harder.
"Let me give you food and grass and let you go back. Do you want me to break my covenant with England?"
"Betrayal? If the King of Knights were present, he might have made a courageous choice. But the King of Knights is not here. For any remaining Englishman, exchanging the armistice agreement for important knights is a fair deal. Unwilling to do so. It's just you. Do you want to abandon your allies and let all these knights die under the city wall?"
"Don't try to deceive me with such words. Putting you back will cause endless trouble to England!" Ella said, "You are the son of Ragnar. After Scotland and England, your goal is of course the Pirate Kingdom. Instead of that, Let the Swedes bleed until then, why not take care of you now! If you want to attack the city, then attack as you wish. Hostages can only be exchanged for hostages. A knight is exchanged for ten Aztlan warriors, and a retinue is exchanged. Two Aztlan warriors, this is the most I can give in to!"
"King of Sweden. You misunderstood me."
Bjorn said without changing his expression:
"When my father launched an army to attack Sealand, I still think it was wrong. Both Sigurd and Hestein were vassals protected by my father. There was a conflict between the two sides, even if it was because they were sons. If there is a bias, it should be to intervene during the conflict, rather than sending troops to conquer the other party in the name of the King of Heroes after one party fails. This is against the ancient and sacred law. There were so many lords in the Pirate Kingdom. The only people who responded to my father were my other two brothers, and that’s why. He died because of his own sin, and I have no intention of revenge."
These words made everyone present open their mouths in shock. If it were anyone else, Ella might not believe this statement, but Bjorn assassinated Ragnar when the balance of the war was tilted towards Ragnar, so his credibility suddenly increased a lot, she wondered. Looking at the young man in front of him who didn't know whether he could be regarded as an old friend, he asked: "So where are you now?"
"I have no thoughts of revenge, but this does not mean that I admit that the throne should belong to Hestein."
"Are you here to seize the throne of the King of Heroes?"
"Yes, as Ragnar's son, I have the right to compete for the position of King of Heroes. This is a battle for the throne, and it has nothing to do with Sweden or you. Unless you make up your mind to help one of the parties."
"Sweden used to be Ragnar's direct territory, and you want to take it back too?"
"I had this idea before I came back. After all, you are from the Qiqiu Empire, and you were once our slave."
Having said this, Bjorn raised his head high.
"But Ella, you have developed Sweden very well. The first thing I inquired about when I came back was the information about Sweden. The city walls, the roads, the canals, and the developed trade. In a few years, Goth will Lan will become the pearl of the Baltic Sea like Paris and Cordoba. The Pirate Kingdom has always spoken with its strength. You are qualified to be the lord of Sweden. If I become the Hero Queen, you will still be the King of Sweden. And I will give Your higher status allows you to assist in the development of other parts of the Hero Kingdom—I promise.”
When he said this, Bjorn's tone was completely like that of a hero king.
"Originally, I could have captured the maid next to you." He continued. "But I put her back. This is my sincerity. Because I feel that there is no need for you and I to conflict here."
"Amy, you-?"
Ella gave Amy a questioning look. Seeing Amy nodded, she felt a little heartbroken for a moment.
"Okay, Bjorn, you've convinced me." She replied, "I don't think you can become the King of Heroes, but considering all factors and repaying your kindness for releasing Amy, I agree to your request. .You return the captured knights and retinues to us, and I will give you fifteen days’ rations. Then you and I will sign an armistice agreement.”
——No matter what, it won’t be a loss, Ella thought.
The food and fodder were from England, and the armistice was an agreement between her "Ella" and Bjorn. If you think about it carefully, the Knight King's troops are attacking Scotland. By the time Bjorn returns, his Scotland will probably be gone, and it will not be his turn to threaten the Pirate Kingdom. Rather, using England's food and fodder to make Bjorn give up the siege, and there will be no objections from England, this is a good thing that is hard to find even with a lantern.
Now that the deal is concluded, the tense nerves of both parties have relaxed.
"But having said that, Bjorn, your eloquence has improved a lot. This is not how I remember you." Ella said, "Did you learn it from Aztlan? What the hell is that? What kind of place?"
"Aztlan? The people there use stone weapons and tools. There are no wheels or iron. There is a lot of gold, a lot of gold. It is much more than any empire on this continent has. Several times.”
"Stop lying." Amy couldn't help laughing from behind, "We have seen Aztlan's envoys. They used a kind of small beans as money. How could there be gold?"
Bjorn shook his head: "You're talking about cocoa beans, right? They do use them as currency there. But it's not because of the lack of gold. On the contrary, it's because they have too much gold! Things are rare and valuable. , too much gold, resulting in Aztlan’s gold and bird feather ornaments being equally valuable and unable to become currency!”
"Wait...wait a minute!" Ella's ears perked up, "Where is that Aztlan? How to get there?"
"After my father died, I had nowhere to go, so I took the risk and embarked on a voyage to find Vinland. Starting from Scotland to Iceland, and then from Iceland to Greenland, it was the same route that Hestein's father had taken before. I killed a few white bears in Greenland to replenish food, and then continued westward, but I encountered a storm and the route deviated. It took several days before I drifted to a small island, where I met a boat similar to mine. The Aztlan people who went out to explore the sea. I followed them to continue westward, and soon I saw the mainland, but it was a desolate land with only some small tribes migrating around. We went south along the coastline of the mainland and passed It took a long time to reach the Aztlan Empire.”
As Bjorn spoke, Ella restored the route in her mind. The first half of Bjorn's route was the same as Hestein's exploration of the sea. Hestein used half of the pirate kingdom to establish transfer stations in Iceland and Greenland, and then continued westward. The continent he found should be similar to Bjorn's. The same one that Jorn arrived at. The powerful country in the south mentioned in Hestein's news is most likely referring to Aztlan.
Bjorn patted his butt and stood up, indicating that the negotiation ended here.
"Originally, I wanted to rely on the power of the Aztlan people to take back Scotland. But they are really useless. Except for Izcoatl, all the Aztlan people fall into your hands. Then It’s up to you. I don’t have any leverage to exchange for them.”
Before he finished speaking, the ground suddenly shook slightly.
"Earthquake? No, it doesn't look like an earthquake..."
Bjorn looked in the direction of the vibration with a stern expression.
"That direction...is my army?"
(End of chapter)
