Mirza Aaqib Beg
In the fourteenth episode of ‘Vinland Saga’ season 2 titled ‘Freedom,’ Arnheid’s husband who is revealed to be the same slave that murdered Kjallakr and his family, finally manages to find his wife at Ketil’s farm. Although he wants to go back to his village with her, Snake manages to defeat him and take him into custody. Meanwhile, Arnheid reveals the shocking truth behind her enslavement and the downfall of her village.
Arnheid Reunites With Her Husband
The slave who has killed Kjallakr and his family and burnt down his house seemingly manages to defeat the three men who went looking for him and reach Sverkel’s house. That’s when Snake and others see him for the first time. When Arnheid notices him, she could barely believe her eyes and runs toward him. It turns out that the man is actually her husband and his name is Gardar. Naturally, Gardar is also happy to see Arnheid again and asks her to go with him so that the three of them (including their son Hjatli) can live together.
Snake is furious at the man and approaches him ready to fight. He manages to slit the throat of Gardar’s horse following which he falls to the ground. By this time, two of the three men who had gone to search for the slave who killed Kjallakr return and inform their boss that Gardar murdered Lizard. Snake pushes Arnheid to one of these men while he himself prepares to fight the fugitive. Despite his injuries, Garder shows incredible swordsmanship and almost hits Snake at a few points. But eventually, Snake manages to hurt him and put him into custody so that he can be questioned later.
When the fight had begun, Einar had openly wanted to support Gardar as he wanted Arnheid to earn her freedom too, but Thorfinn had successfully restrained him. After he is taken away, Arnheid cries unconscionably. Later that night, Einar is still emotional and wants to do something. But Arnheid then tells him how the men of her village near Scotland had gotten into a fight for resources. Gardar also decided to with these men leaving women, old men, and children behind. That’s when the village was attacked and everyone was forcefully enslaved.
Arnheid had failed to convince Gardar to stop and this led to her son dying in an attack that happened afterward. Now she reveals that she is pregnant again with Ketil’s son and this time she does not want to lose another child. She explains that she wants to wait until the storm passes, which is understandable considering the fact that the last time Gardar decided something for his family, the couple ended up losing their son.
What is Sverkel’s Advice to Arnheid? Does She Go to Meet Gardar?
Later that night, Arnheid tries to surreptitiously sneak away from the house to meet Gardar. But Sverkel is awake and asks her if she has decided to not wait for the storm to pass away now. Arnheid confesses that she knows that it is wrong to meet her husband but she can’t help herself. Sverkel appears to understand her dilemma. He tells her how two decades ago Ketil fell in love with a girl from the village. Unfortunately for him, a powerful man from a nearby village named Ebbe was also infatuated with the same girl. This put Sverkel in a serious dilemma and he eventually had to make a tough decision.
In order to avoid conflict with a more powerful man, he decided to let him marry his son’s love interest. This hurt him a lot but at the time Sverkel was the best decision. He kept his head down and decided to let the storm pass from his life. However, on the day of the marriage, Ebbe and his village were attacked by a man who was envious of his wealth and power. By the time Sverkel reached ground zero, everything has been burnt down and the lifeless body of Ketil’s lover was lying on the ground.
Recalling the incident was a painful experience for Sverkel who naturally felt guilty to this day. Addressing Arnheid’s statement to Einar in which she talked about waiting and allowing the storm to pass, Sverkel interjects that sometimes even when one manages to wait out the storm, it leaves painful scars behind. Arnheid who was already going to meet her husband understands what Sverkel means and after telling him that she will be back soon, she runs away.
Read More: Vinland Saga Season 2 Episode 12 Recap and Ending, Explained
