The concept of kingdoms was nonexistent in these parts, just unoccupied land that had been occupied. Hence the ever-raging battle over more pieces of land, this battle has been passed down from generation to generation. It has never ceased and eventually the purpose of the fight became lost, they just knew that they had to continue the battle started by their predecessors.
Tyr had found a loophole he thought he could exploit but he also knew it would not be easy.
He apologized to Kolbeinn the next day after his act but the Chieftain did not take it personally because he understood the effects of alcohol better than anyone.
They spoke about and laughed at the position that Tyr had put him in, Kolbeinn knew the younger warrior was right, and listening to him sparked a fire in him.
He remembered the old world, a world where he was a forgotten warrior with no remarkable feats to be remembered,
Tyr was hungry, he was ambitious but Kolbeinn knew how ambition corrupts people and was cautious of Tyr but he did not need to worry about Tyr now because they had a common goal.
Nora was envious and grateful for Tyr's understanding nature, she thought he was just a child that had impressive combat skills but he had shown the ability to display empathy.
It was feeling more like a family and she could not wait for Tyr to meet him, and had dropped a letter in their usual meeting place to tell her lover to meet in a few days.
She was giddy, it was in a sense her introducing him to her father for Tyr was the Chieftain,
Kolbeinn and Tyr went out for a walk that morning and Kolbeinn was firm about no one following them as they were reluctant to leave the Chieftain alone with Tyr but they did not fear for his safety because he was strong.
They walked a good distance away, and Tyr was visibly on guard, he did not know why Kolbeinn brought him out here but the fact that he instructed him to take his weapon triggered his red flag signal.
"Are you nervous?" Kolbeinn noticed Tyr's unease, anyone could tell with a look that he was getting tense the further out they got.
"Hahaha! You caught me, it almost feels like you brought me out here to dispose of me," Tyr joked but he did not even have time for a response to his joke as he had ducked down instinctively, and above his head was the horizontally swung sword of Kolbeinn.
Tyr went into fight mode but Kolbeinn chuckled the moment Tyr dodged his weapon.
"The stories are true, you do have eyes at the back of your head…" Kolbeinn said, retracting his sword. Tyr was confused because it did not look like Kolbeinn wanted to fight yet he had just attacked him, an attack that had the necessary ingredients to kill him.
"What is the meaning of this?" Tyr's voice was cold and Kolbeinn knew at that moment that he had made him drop his mask, he had heard stories about Tyr and this included his tale as a 'Berserker'. Tyr's eyes always looked lifeless when he switched into this state, a state triggered by his killing intent but he had no killing intent towards Kolbeinn.
"I want you to come at me like you want to kill me, I want to see the measure of your true strength for even stories can be fabricated. A coward could look like the bravest hero if he wins a war for history is written by the victors, not the vanquished…" Kolbeinn said, gesturing for Tyr to unsheathe his sledgehammer.
"Do you wish to die here?" Tyr asked but there was a sense of certainty in his words, he knew if he unsheathed his weapon, Kolbeinn would die or so he believed.
Was this arrogance or did his strength truly match with his words?
Either way, Kolbeinn was loving the confidence as he watched Tyr equip the sledgehammer, and from the way he wielded it, he could tell his strength was on par or greater than Skol but he was surprised that this boy was not even a fully-grown adult yet.
This was impressive but strength is irrelevant if the combat skill is lacking, that is one thing that he had learned over time.
Kolbeinn moved, Tyr expected some trickery or unique skill but he just linearly charged at him, leaving himself full of openings.
This confused Tyr but he did not care much to overthink, he simply assumed that Kolbeinn was underestimating him, something he was not about to take lightly.
He swung his hammer but in the blink of an eye, Kolbeinn's entire body language changed like he could predict where Tyr wanted to attack.
He not only dodged Tyr's attack but Tyr did not even register Kolbeinn's sword resting gently on his neck.
"W-What?" Tyr thought to himself, he was surprised that he could have died in a single exchange despite all his training.
"I was so focused on his opening that I did not see his attack coming!" Tyr thought to himself but he soon retracted this thought.
"No… That is not it…." Tyr thought, a cold bead of sweat rolling down his forehead. He never knew Kolbeinn was this strong, now he understood why Skol submitted to him.
"The art of combat is not how hard or fast you swing your sword…" Kolbeinn warned as he withdrew his sword from Tyr's neck.
"He left himself open on purpose, this drew my eyes to focus on those spots but knowing I would attack one of the openings already gave him an advantage because it meant I would not act outside the options he has given me. I could not react to his attack because of how he timed it, he timed it at the same moment as my attack, no matter how nimble I am, I cannot react to such an attack mid-attack due to the momentum and force in which I swung my weapon. It was a perfectly executed counter-attack!" Tyr thought.
"I do not doubt your strength, Tyr Ragnarsson, but there are monsters out there that exist. Monsters that strength alone is not enough to kill them…" Kolbeinn said and this only brought a smirk from the dark-skinned Viking.
"Monster? I have killed such a monster before…." Tyr said and Kolbeinn raised a brow in confusion because he did not know what the child was talking about.
"I am the one that killed Erik The Berserker…" Tyr revealed.
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