Chapter 50: Plot

At the ongoing feast, warriors puzzle over the failed attempt on Canute's life. Several dismiss the idea of English involvement, reasoning that enemies seeking to turn the war would have struck at Sweyn, who is also in Jorvik, rather than a second-born prince; the true culprit, they conclude, must be someone who profits from Canute's death. In a separate building, Askeladd tells Canute, Thorkell, Asgeir, and Gunnar that keeping the affair a bare rumor is exactly the aim, since a true but unproven whisper leaves the king relaxed while blocking the confrontation that hard evidence would trigger.

Thorkell asks whether Askeladd staged the attack himself, and Askeladd confirms it went off flawlessly. He explains the effect on the next day's council: with the army already aware of the feud between Harald and Canute, Sweyn cannot now hand his son harmful orders or strip Thorkell away, because doing so would lend weight to talk of a father murdering his child, something a ruler who needs his people's goodwill cannot risk.

Gunnar praises the scheme and then excuses himself. Once he is gone, Askeladd warns Canute that Gunnar cannot be trusted; shaken by Ragnar's death, he is the likeliest to sell their secrets to the king and to hedge his loyalties until he sees who prevails. Since nothing was said that Askeladd minded the king hearing, he has set Thorfinn on Gunnar's trail. Thorfinn watches Gunnar meet a cloaked man in the woods and dispatch him with orders, then follows that man to a guarded gate where the guards wave him inside. Recognizing it as the king's residence, Thorfinn concludes Gunnar is a traitor. Askeladd, unbothered, plans to keep feeding the king trusted misinformation through the spy, and leans back savoring how Sweyn will react come morning, while a disgusted Thorfinn dismisses all the scheming as beneath true warriors.

Soldiers deduce the assassin was not English but someone who gains from Canute's death. Askeladd reveals he orchestrated the attempt and explains how leaving it an unproven rumor prevents Sweyn from issuing harmful orders at the council. He names Gunnar as a probable spy and sends Thorfinn to follow him. Thorfinn tracks Gunnar's messenger to the king's guarded gate, confirming the betrayal, while Askeladd resolves to exploit Gunnar as a channel of false intelligence.

Rendered Bouryaku in Japanese, this fiftieth chapter opens Volume 8 and was adapted in Episode 21. It deepens the political chess between Askeladd and Sweyn and confirms Gunnar's divided loyalties. Thorfinn's disgust at the endless feints marks a running thread of his alienation from the manipulations that surround the prince.