After his defeat and deposition at Kattegat, Ivar and his bodyguard Vigrid flee east towards the Silk Road. As they enter the slave empire Rus', they are captured by warriors of Kievan prince Oleg the Prophet. After torturing and dismembering Vigrid, Oleg finds out Ivar's full story and takes an interest in the exiled king, whose divine status is fascinating, tested by jointly flying drawn by a hot air balloon. The pair form an uneasy friendship after Oleg reveals how he murdered his unfaithful wife. Oleg discloses to Ivar that his plans to 're'claim the Rus' people's ancestral lands in Scandinavia and invites Ivar to join him. In Kattegat, new king Bjorn outlaws White Hair and Ivar's remaining retainers. Lagertha announces her plan to retire, rebuild her old farm and spend her twilight years there in obscurity. Messengers arrive and inform Bjorn that king Harald calls his marker for saving Bjorn and helping him take Kattegat from Ivar, king Olaf -another ally- having occupied king Harald's kingdom and holding him captive. Bjorn ponders which loyalty to honor by helping either king.
—KGF Vissers