Chapter 18: England, 1013

A brief recap of the invasion opens the installment. During the late summer of 1013, Sweyn steers the Danish fleet inland along the River Humber, and five settlements around Gainsborough give up without a fight. His main force then pushes south by land, looting its way through Mercia as it aims for Wessex and the heart of English rule. The country's chain of fortresses fails to slow the raiders, yet their momentum finally breaks at the wealthy river port of London.

Offshore, Askeladd studies the bridge with his men and remarks that it looks more like a rampart than a crossing. Bjorn grumbles that he signed on only because an easy victory was promised, and Askeladd admits he never expected the towering Thorkell to join the town's defenders. He lays out why the port is worth so much: control of the Thames turns it into a supply artery running straight into Wessex, which makes the fight a proving ground for anyone chasing a reputation.

Askeladd then orders Thorfinn down from the rigging to bring him Thorkell's head. The boy refuses to move until he is promised the reward he always demands, a duel to the death, reminding Askeladd that his single aim is to cut him down as a warrior and offer his heart to his slain father. Askeladd flings the shortsword back into the mast and agrees to the bargain: do the work, kill the giant, and the duel is his.

A Jomsviking envoy under Floki soon rows up to the bridge, urging Thorkell to switch sides once more for twice his current pay and warning him not to end up on the losing side of history. Thorkell cheerfully refuses, saying the English are hopelessly weak but that fighting his old comrades is simply more entertaining, and he answers with a hurled boulder he calls the keel-buster. When Floki reports the failure, Sweyn merely orders the assault renewed. As Askeladd's ship swings close, Thorfinn leaps onto the span, slips past two heavy log swings, and lands unharmed while a delighted Thorkell praises his footwork.

Sweyn's fleet seizes the towns near Gainsborough and ravages Mercia before stalling at London. Askeladd commits his band to the siege on the Danish side, gambling on Sweyn's eventual victory, and assigns Thorfinn the task of killing Thorkell while renewing his standing promise of a duel in return. Floki's attempt to bribe Thorkell back into the Danish ranks collapses, and the king orders the siege to continue. Thorfinn then boards the bridge and survives his opening clash with the giant, who welcomes the challenge.

The chapter runs in the third collected volume and corresponds to Episode 9 of the anime adaptation. Its title fixes the setting in England during the year 1013, the moment when the Danish invasion narrows to the struggle over London. Thorkell's parting taunt, asking whether it ever grows dull to always stand with the winners, gives the installment its defining line.