Sixteen!
THE KING OF REBELLION
Seventeen!
Eighteen!
Nineteen!
Twenty!
Crap, I lost!
Wow, but he's so small!
He's still holding on!
Way to go, shorty!
I lost a ton of money because of you, Drott!
What the hell are you doing?
Break this shrimp's skull already!
Something's not right.
I feel hardly any resistance when I hit him.
Damn it.
I see. That messenger certainly is used to taking a beating.
He's twisting his neck and hips just before Drott's fists hit him,
thereby dispersing the impact away from the core of his body.
His movements are subtle, too,
so no one's noticed that he's avoiding direct hits.
But Drott is a strong man.
At this rate, he can't last long.
Twenty-three!
Twenty-four!
Thorfinn...
But violence should be a last resort.
I want to learn to find that first method.
Is this the "first method" you were talking about?
Not hitting him back. Simply enduring.
Is that how you're going to live from now on?
What's going on? Is there a fight?
Hey, you.
Thorfinn?
Hey, stop!
What's this about?
He's got nothing to do with the farm!
Crap.
All right! That was a solid hit!
Thirty-two!
That made a crazy sound.
Is he dead?
Thorfinn!
What are you two doing?
I thought you left the farm already.
How did this happen?
If he can endure 100 of his punches, he'll be allowed to speak directly to the king.
That's the promise they made.
That's ridiculous.
He's doing this for the farm?
Enough of this. No more.
The farm will surrender. The decision's been made.
You idiot. You're unbelievably softhearted.
If talking could've resolved this, we'd have done that already.
Are you sure about that?
Did you really put in the effort
to resolve this through conversation?
Once they drew their swords,
you merely answered with your own blades without thinking.
That's 32 hits. We're handing out winnings.
Is he getting back up?
Hey, wait a second.
Why are you just standing there, middle-part?
Your fists hurt less than being bitten by a bug!
Sixty-eight more. Get it over with.
I'm a busy man.
People are waiting for me!
Don't! This battle is already—
Einar, if he keeps this up, he'll die.
Ninety-eight...
Ninety-nine...
One hundred.
Thorfinn, son of Thors.
I'm sorry I doubted you.
You...
You are a true warrior.
Chief Thegn...
This man once guarded His Majesty as we do.
Please permit Thorfinn an audience with the king.
You're small, but you're well-trained, Thorfinn.
Why didn't you strike back?
Beating Drott would have proven that you are a former guard.
What kind of question is that?
I can't hit someone when I'm trying to negotiate for peace.
I just met all of you today.
We don't know anything about each other.
We have no reason to hate each other.
So why do we have to hit each other? It's stupid.
It's just Canute and Ketil who are feuding with each other.
The two leaders could settle this over a game of hnefatafl.
There's no need to gather all these men and shed all this blood.
We just met today.
You are not my enemies.
I don't have any enemies.
You're a bold man to reject war while surrounded by this many professional soldiers.
But...
Ketil and His Majesty should play hnefatafl, huh?
What's so funny?
Sorry. You should try suggesting that to His Majesty yourself.
He doesn't go to war because he wants to.
Once you see him and hear what he has to say, you'll realize what's in his heart.
Clear the way.
I'm permitting this messenger an audience with His Majesty.
Come on, Einar.
We're going to see the man who starts wars.
Don't you have things you want to say to him, too?
Y-Yeah.
You bet I do. A whole mountain of them.
Are all of them casualties of this battle?
Don't look, Einar.
Pater...
Don't look.
If you find Pater among the dead, you won't be able to remain calm.
Very well. I'll see him.
I'll respect the feelings of yourself and the men.
Thank you.
Messenger, approach.
So you're still alive.
It's been a while, Thorfinn.
You must hate me for making you a slave...
No... for what happened to Askeladd.
I'm still alive after drawing a blade against Danish royalty.
I appreciate the consideration you showed me.
I'm sorry about the scar on your face.
He's the man who scarred His Majesty's face?
Thorfinn Karlsefni...
The man said to have been an even match for Thorkell in combat.
I had no idea he was so small and young.
You drew a blade against the king?
It's impossible to tell who you are with that face,
but you seem to be the Thorfinn I know.
You've come to say some commendable things.
Four years, huh?
It's already been four years since then.
That's enough time for a person to change.
Canute, I'd like you to leave the farm.
I can't do that.
Ketil's clan started this dispute.
Ketil's son Olmar killed ten of my men because I wouldn't make him one of my thegns.
I've heard about that.
But you've made your point.
More than 100 of the farm's men have died.
This region may not be able to recover now that so many of its workers are dead.
I advised them to surrender.
It's Ketil's fault for miscalculating the difference in the strength of our forces.
This battle cannot end until Ketil's clan has been dealt with.
In other words, it won't end until you've captured this farm.
Make all the excuses you want. You can't hide it.
You call yourself a king, but you're actually just a thief.
How are you any different from the average Viking chief?
If you want a farm that badly, then start one yourself.
Till the land, watch over it, and raise your own crops.
Then you'll understand firsthand
what a terrible thing it is to take that from someone else.
Canute.
You once told me at Gainsborough...
that you'd build a paradise in this place.
A utopia for those who suffer.
Do you still believe that?
A chief, huh?
Indeed. I am the chief of Viking chiefs.
I am the sovereign king...
The most powerful Viking on the North Sea.
The ruler of the largest territory in Northern Europe.
The commander who leads a thousand ships and ten thousand men.
My power exceeds human understanding and makes the impossible possible.
Behold.
With my power, I shall stop those waves.
In the name of King Canute, waves, I command you to stop.
Did you bear witness to my strength?
I am powerless to stop even the approaching waves.
Do you know who drives those waves?
God does.
Building a paradise on Earth means defying His logic.
It's an act of rebellion against God.
Humankind cannot find happiness under God's rule.
Rebellion...
Look at us, Thorfinn.
Look at us Vikings.
We're responsible for this chaos and destruction.
We're fearsome raiders.
Do you think we deserve to live in paradise?
But that is what humans are.
Committing sins as we wander lost is precisely what humans do.
Unless I save these people abandoned by God, I'll never be able to build a paradise.
Save the Vikings?
Yes.
I am the only one capable of conquering them, ruling them, unifying their strength,
and directing them towards paradise.
I need strength.
I will unify the strength of all humankind to fight God.
Canute is an incredible man.
It never even occurred to me to save the Vikings.
I'm gonna knock this guy on his ass.
You're free to pursue whatever huge goals you want.
But who's gonna save all the people you kill today for your goals?
Will you let the Vikings live because they can help you,
while killing and stealing from people who aren't useful to you?
Building a paradise, my ass!
King Ethelred burned down my village, and King Sweyn killed my family.
I don't care what their ideals were.
I've had enough.
I refuse to suffer any more because of you.
Hate me if you must.
I won't seek your forgiveness.
What did you say?
Don't, Einar.
Canute, I'll ask you again.
You really have no intention of leaving this farm?
No. I need Ketil's wealth for my undertaking.
What will you do, Thorfinn?
Will you kill me here?
For you cannot stop me unless you kill me.
TWO PATHS
"Two Paths."