Bloodlines of the Ancient Pantheons

Chapter 625: DCXXV. The Heretic Words

Gridd did the same, bringing both steeds next to her at the fence and tying them to the rail, making sure they couldn't move from there.

After they tied all three horses, a sudden bark blew the two adventurers.

A small dog with a ringing voice continued to bark at them after they had woken him from his sleep and he had run in their direction from inside the cow and pig fence.

"Hey! Who are you? I've never seen you here, have you just arrived?" the blonde-haired girl exclaimed, as if the dog could answer her.

Not fearing in the slightest the unintimidating barks of that little dog so small as to pass under the wooden fence, Gridd lowered herself towards him and stroked him on the neck, making him calm down.

The door of the farm suddenly opened and the yellowish light of a torch illuminated the faces of Gridd and Egill, standing next to the horses and grappling with the dog.

"Well, even if it's not very big... it looks like he's a good watchdog, brother" Gridd smiled, standing up and spreading his arms toward Eirik, who had the torch in his hand and a confused expression painted on his face.

"Gridd?! Hahaha! Is it you! Little sister, come here and hug me!" he exclaimed, whose voice had changed completely when he became a real grown man.

In addition to his dark hair tied behind his back, a thick beard filled his face, making him more similar to his dad Stein.

Gridd and his brother hugged each other in a fraternal embrace and Egill stood on the sidelines looking at them, smiling.

Before Eirik could ask Egill who he was, someone else walked out the door and uttered Gridd's name aloud, walking towards her and hugging her as Eirik had done.

Asa's long white hair, gathered in one of her unmistakable braids shone in the living light of the torch, and the old Shieldmaiden squeezed her daughter into her arms, resting her nose on her hair and getting lost in the smell she so much missed when she was away.

"My daughter, you're back! And you're prettier than before!" Asa exclaimed, grabbing Gridd's shoulders and pushing her a few inches away so that she can see her better.

When she pushed her away, her eyes fell on Egill, who without saying a word, was still watching that moving scene from afar.

Asa left Gridd and walked forward, unable to believe her eyes.

"It can't be... is it really you?" she asked, advancing cautiously due to age-related joint problems.

"Yeah, I think so here we meet again, my friend" Egill smiled, handing with his usual elegance a hand towards the Shieldmaiden, who immediately shook it, as a sign of affection.

The two old friends, caught up in the atmosphere of love that reigned at the moment among them, hugged each other and whispered innocent words in their ears as if to verify that neither had forgotten about the other.

Despite their age difference, Brann's story and past collaborations between their two Clans had united them into an indissoluble friendship bond, stronger than time.

"What are you still doing out here? It's so cold! Quick, come in! I just made a great soup with the mushrooms from the woods!" Asa said, making the two unexpected guests feel immediately at home.

Gridd and Egill, particularly tired of the long journey, immediately followed the hosts inside the farm, taking off the bulky furs that had kept them warm before entering and making sure their horses had access to the water to quench their thirst.

"Come on Egill, my old friend! Sit wherever you like, I will arrive immediately!" Asa said smiling, approaching the fireplace, on which boiled something in the pot.

"We haven't seen each other in a century, Gridd! Where's Dag? Didn't you meet him? I noticed you brought two horses with you... did he go to Jernhest?" Eirik asked naively, who strangely was eager to meet his younger brother.

"Ehm... that's one of the main reasons why I came here. Before you can get upset, Mother... Dag's alive. Sit down and I'll tell you what's happened in the last month" Gridd replied with a very serious air, filling the glass in front of her and beginning to sip some mead.

Asa and Eirik, after the Shieldmaiden's harsh words, rushed to complete the preparations for that makeshift dinner and within minutes sat at the same table as the two guests.

"So? Where's my Dag? I thought you'd come together... did something happen to him? Rumors had told me he had become Master of his Clan, didn't he?" Asa asked, addressing both Gridd and Egill with a worried air, looking for answers.

Egill nodded affirmatively with his head, making it clear to the old Shieldmaiden that, despite that being good news, it was not Dag's newest.

"Dag, I, Egill and other Clan Masters who came together under the name of Iron Alliance, of which my brother is the Warchief, left some time ago for Krypstorm, the land of perennial ice..." 

Gridd began to talk before dinner and her story ended long after the soup and all the food consumed on that table.

Late at night, while nothing could be seen outside the farm's tarnished windows other than darkness, Gridd continued to explain to Asa and Eirik all the deeds he and her brave brother had accomplished in those unknown lands, winning the trust of the Ice Giants Clan and seizing Fort Hvit, who had been forcibly taken away from them by King Einar himself.

"Have you met the King? What kind of person is he?!" Eirik asked, who as soon as he heard that name seemed to forget about everything else.

"He's a son of a bitch, that's what he is!" Gridd replied abruptly, almost as if those words had automatically come out of her mouth. 

"What? Why are you saying this, he's our King! When we were little, I remember you and Dag worshipping him like he was a God! I'm sure King Einar is a great man and a powerful warrior! The Golden Army is said to be the most powerful army ever to trample on Skjold's surface lands!" Eirik continued, praising the King of Okstorm and Krypstorm, not knowing that he had taken the Fort from Dag and his men, taking credit for the exploratory successes and even convincing the Hunters of Ullr to leave their home to settle in Okstorm.

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