That was how Karl Sverkersson had won the king's crown. And rumor had it that the man he sent to aid Magnus Henriksen in the murder of Erik Jedvardsson was Emund Ulvbane, and that Emund was also the one who wielded the sword that severed Erik Jedvardsson's head from his body.

   If this rumor spoke true, then Magnus Folkesson was embroiled in a dispute with a king-killer, so it was important for him to think carefully about how this dispute should be handled. It was easy to see that it involved more than some outlying farms in between the lands of Arnäs and the land that the king's half brother Boleslav had recently granted to Emund.

   But if he remained calm and did not get carried away or allow himself to become agitated by those who surely wanted to in flame matters, then the game would be possible to win without much difficulty. For the judge himself, Karle Eskilsson, who was the grandson of the judge Karle of Edsvära, had also married into the Folkung clan. And now he came to join the council in the Folkung tent.

   Also present were Joar Jedvardsson, Birger Brosa, Magnus and his two sons, and the two leaders of the Folkung and Erik clan retainers.

   There were two things to discuss, and Judge Karle, who was the most distinguished man in the tent, presided over the discussion. He spoke gruffly and straight to the point so that no time would be wasted. If King Karl now attempted to proclaim himself king of Western Götaland as well, which might be his intention, and all the Folkungs and men of the Erik clan then rejected him, the matter would be clear. In that situation no judge and no bishop could approve the requested position of king. But if, as rumor also had it, King Karl chose instead to seek the ting's approval of his son Sverker as jarl over Western Götaland, how would they then react?

   Birger Brosa said that in his opinion this might be a very good solution. King Karl would avoid ridicule and it would make him less desirous of going to war. Western Götaland would remain free of his royal power, and if he chose to call a mere babe a jarl, it might assuage his pride but had no real meaning. Only many years from now would such a jarl be able to act as the king's sword, but for now it was only a title. In this way war could be avoided between parties of equal strength, which was the worst sort of war.

   Joar Jedvardsson and Magnus Folkesson agreed at once. War between those of equal strength was something that ought to be avoided. Whoever won such a war would pay for his victory dearly, ending up surrounded by many widows and fatherless children, as well as devastated and burned fields.

   Judge Karle found that everyone was unanimous regarding this matter, and no one contradicted him.

   Then they turned to the next issue, the property dispute between Magnus and young Boleslav's man Emund Ulvbane. There was something fishy about this dispute. The matter was too minor to incite dissension, and it seemed even odder to bring it before a landsting, so the intention may have been to start a quarrel which like a wildfire could flare up into war. Behind Emund Ulvbane stood King Karl's half brother Boleslav. But Boleslav was a child, not yet even an adolescent, and incapable of forging warlike intrigues on his own. Behind Boleslav stood King Karl, so he must be the one who wanted a quarrel.

   Judge Karle said that he was well aware that this dispute had to be resolved with a light hand if peace were to be preserved. But since both sides in the dispute could bring forward dozens of oath-swearers, endless numbers if needed, the dispute could not be resolved in the manner prescribed by law. So what other approach could they take? What was Magnus's own opinion in this matter?

   Magnus now spoke, briefly and in a manly fashion, and explained that he had thought this was exactly what would happen, that with oath-swearers the dispute would remain in the same place when the ting ended as when it began. So he intended to propose a reconciliation by offering 30 marks in silver for the farms in dispute. That might be 10 marks more than the farms were actually worth, but the price was not too high if by this means the dispute could be settled. If peace could be bought for the land for only 10 marks, then the price was cheap.

   Judge Karle nodded thoughtfully and approvingly and then explained how they should proceed: First they would take an oath in which all declared that the dispute had reached an impasse and could not be resolved. Then Magnus would carry in his 30 marks in silver to the ting and offer a compromise just as he had proposed. After that it would be a simple matter for the judge and his lay assessors to declare a reconciliation, and no one would be able to offer any objections.

   Eskil and Arn went off by themselves to look at horses and weapons and say hello to members of their own clan that Eskil knew though Arn did not. They also greeted people from the Erik clan that neither of them knew, while Eskil explained to Arn how a ting functioned. Arn needed to know, for instance, that swords were not allowed inside the white chalk ring, which was the boundary of the ting site itself. And when he had to swear an oath he needed to know the words and say them loudly and clearly without unmanly hesitation or stammering, since such things would make him seem unreliable. The words were as follows:

As true by the grace of the gods do I speak truly.

   When Arn objected that such an oath was heathen, Eskil merely laughed and explained that even if the words in the oath were from their ancestors' time, they referred to none other than the Lord God. To convince Arn of this he pointed out that the very first words in the law of the Goths made this matter clear as water, since they were:

   Christ is foremost in our law. After that our Christian teachings and all Christians: king, peasants, and all domiciled men, bishops and all book-learned men.

   Arn was satisfied with this and jested that Eskil was probably included in this law as a peasant, while he necessarily had to slink along as a book-learned man. In any case it was clear that they did indeed have the law on their side.

   When it was time, Bishop Bengt came from Skara and blessed the peace of the ting. Judge Karle announced in a loud voice that the ting was in session, and anyone who broke the peace of the ting was an outlaw. Then a murmur rose up from the thousand men who in suspense watched King Karl slowly make his way up to the highest mound of the ting site, where the judge stood. Soon they would see how the question of peace or war would be decided.

   When the king had reached high enough ground that everyone could see him, they could also see that he was carrying in his arms a babe in swaddling clothes. Many who now understood what that meant could breathe a sigh of relief. The peace was preserved, since Karl Sverkersson did not intend to demand the crown of Western Götaland with sword in hand.