Mirza Aaqib Beg
In the twentieth episode of ‘Vinland Saga’ season 2 titled ‘Pain,’ Canute’s forces easily kill a significant number of Ketil’s men to instill fear in them. Snake realizes that they are going to lose everyone and asks his comrades to flee to the fort instead. Meanwhile, Thorgill uses the perfect opportunity to sneak up on the King and almost manages to take his life. Elsewhere, Arnheid dies peaefully despite Thorfinn and Einar’s best efforts to save her.
Snake Asks His Men to Run Away
As the war between Canute and Ketil’s men finally begins, it does not take long to see the stark difference in the combat skills of the two forces. Canute’s army simply obliterates Ketil’s men on the frontline and it becomes quite evident that the battle won’t last for long. As chaos ensues, Snake realizes that it’s his responsibility to instill some order. He takes the fight to Canute’s men and kills a few of them. He tells his comrades to flee as he knows that they are no match for the enemies. When Ketil’s men are given a chance to flee, they do not think for a moment and start running back to the fort.
When Ketil notices this, he is naturally infuriated as he never gave any such orders. He grabs one of the men and tells him that he won’t forgive his debt if he leaves the battlefield. The farmer then tells Ketil the harsh truth that he is finished and he should never have messed with the King regardless of how unjust he was. The farmer also points out that they always obeyed him since it would be a mistake to fight someone more powerful, something Ketil now will come to experience firsthand.
All of a sudden one of the jomsvikings rush Ketil and catches him off-guard. Wulf observes the incident from a distance but is not entirely sure what happened. He decides to go and check after Canute reminds him that his men were told to capture Ketil not to kill him. As Wulf leaves, Canute is left with only two men by his side. Thorgill is waiting patiently on the shore and sees this opportunity. He almost manages to land a fatal blow on Canute but the King turns around and defends himself at the last moment.
Thorgill kills the two guards and manages to corner Canute. Wulf returns just in the nick of time and the two engage in a brief battle. Eventually, Thorgill comes out on top but by this time Canute’s soldiers are almost there so he decides to flee. Elsewhere, Arnheid takes her last breath surrounded by Einar and Thorfinn who tries to save her life till the last moment.
What Does Thorfinn Plan To Do Following Arnheid’s Death?
Shortly after Arnheid dies, Snake arrives at the scene with Ketil on his back. When Einar notices him, he loses his cool. He shouts at his unconscious master that he killed Arnheid and now he must pay for it. Einar wants to take Ketil’s life but Thorfinn knows that his vengeful attitude is only going to bring him more sorrow. At one point in his life, Thorfinn was also preoccupied with the idea of revenge, which poised his life to the point that he became a monster himself.
Thorfinn does not want the same for his friend. Therefore, Thorfinn brings back Einar to his senses after fighting him briefly and then discussing the whole incident calmly. Once they have buried Arnheid’s body, Thorfinn is faced with a difficult choice. Leif has already prepared the boats for them to escape but Thorfinn feels that it’s his responsibility to do something about the war on Ketil’s farm. Although Leif tries to talk him out of his decision, Thorfinn is adamant.
Thorfinn plans to meet Canute in order to negotiate so that no more blood is shed on the farm. Leif could see that he has matured dramatically in the time they were apart. Instead of leaving, he plans to wait. Thorfinn on the other hand knows that Canute has come with around a hundred men to the farm, so he feels that even if things were to get ugly, he can still come back and escape with Leif.
Read More: Vinland Saga Season 2 Episode 19 Recap and Ending, Explained
