Mirza Aaqib Beg
In the fourth episode of ‘Vinland Saga’ season 2 titled ‘Awakening,’ Snake ensures that his men do not kill Thorfinn and Einar. Since he is already quite injured, Thorfinn is taken to a doctor but is luckily declared fit enough to continue working the following day. Later when Einar asks about Thorfinn’s past, he learns a shocking truth that may end up having disastrous consequences for both of them.
Thorfinn and Einar Are Defended by Snake
Just when Fox is about to seriously injure Thorfinn, Snake intervenes and beats him up for his reckless actions. He then comes close to Thorfinn and inspects him for a few seconds before trying to slash him with his sword. Thorfinn’s survival instincts kick just in at the right time and he manages to defend himself using incredible acrobatics. Everyone standing there is left dumbfounded unable to grasp why he had been so quiet until this point when he was capable of pulling off so much more.
Although Thorfinn barely manages to escape death, he is already quite injured and has lost half of his left ear. Therefore, Einar immediately takes him to a doctor, so that they can take cognizance of his health and give him the treatment that he needs. Thankfully, Thorfinn does not seem to have any serious injuries and the doctor assures him that he will be able to recover in no time. Although he is allowed to take a day’s rest, Thorfinn goes back to work in the forest without any complaints the same day.
When Thorfinn and Einar resume work, the latter can’t help but recall his friend’s acrobatics defense against Snake. He concludes that this is only possible because Thorfinn is actually a warrior. Einar does not overthink and directly asks Thorfinn if he had ever been to war. Interestingly, Thorfinn not only accepts it but when pressed to reveal more, he even confesses to killing so many people that he has lost count at this point.
Why Does Einar Wish to Kill Thorfinn? Does He Eventually Hurt Him? Why Kind of Nightmares Haunt Thorfinn?
After returning to the barn that night, Thorfinn fasts asleep. However, Einar can barely catch any sleep as he recalls his village being attacked by invaders when he was just a young boy. He along with his mother and sister barely survived by hiding in the bushes, but his father was not so lucky. Now that Einar knows that Thorfinn has also killed far more people than he can count and was also part of the invading Dutch army that infiltrated English farms, he can barely keep his emotions in check.
While Thorfinn sleeps unaware of his friend’s inner turmoil, Einar seriously contemplates killing him. He then slowly walks towards Thorfinn with a furious look on his face and sits next to him before proceeding to slowly strangle him. Meanwhile, Thorfinn is seeing a nightmare in which he kills people he barely knows without taking the time to think of his actions. Although the battle itself is traumatizing, he ultimately begins to aggressively shout and wail in his sleep after he slaughters a person who seems to be an ordinary civilian.
While he struggles with his nightmare, Einar interestingly sits with his back to Thorfinn trying to avoid seeing him in such a vulnerable state. Ultimately, he wakes his friend up so that his suffering could end. It seems that Einar has decided to not kill his friend and appears to show some sympathy for him. Thorfinn understands Einar’s inner turmoil as well and tells him honestly that he does not think that he is any different from the people who brutally murdered his family.
Einar recalls how Thorfinn had said earlier that day that he cannot think of any good that comes from being alive. He also added that he has never felt glad to be alive. Einar, who was going to say something stops momentarily and contemplates the meaning of Thorfinn’s words, and proceeds to admit that he cannot fathom the hardships that he has gone through over the years. But Einar does point out that despite the hellish situations they may sometimes be in, they are at least lucky enough to talk to each other, eat, and sleep peacefully. He then goes back to his place to sleep while Thorfinn apologizes for waking him up.
Read More: Vinland Saga Season 2 Episode 3 Recap and Ending, Explained
