The summer passed in sailing to and fro along the coasts of England and Ireland.
Leif diligently avoided collisions with other Vikings. There were, as a rule, many following him, and he never could be secure from an attack. It was therefore best to exhibit suitable caution. For the rest, he slept peacefully in his bearskin bag at night. Should it happen that he was involved in a fight without his own fault, he had nothing to do with that. In many places where he came, he found that Haersten and Holmsten had been just before him with their six ships. Leif took no real trouble to overtake them. He remembered his promise to Ingolf, and had resolved to put his trust in chance. Chance had before shown him considerable kindness. But when, towards the close of summer, he directed his course homewards, chance had not yet come to his help. It was therefore with a certain disappointment in his mind that he turned homeward from his summer expedition. It was indeed no small disappointment to him that fate had not allowed him to meet Atle's sons.
Olmod the Old, who, as has been related, was voyaging with a fleet of five ships, made inquiries about his kinsman, Leif, wherever he went. In many places Leif had been just before him, but had sailed again no one knew whither.
Olmod the Old was continually on his scent, and sailed, so to speak, in his wake the whole summer, though without any success in overtaking him. He vowed offerings and gifts to Odin if he would help him to find his kinsman. But Odin seemed to have turned his eyes from him.
Olmod kept himself likewise informed concerning the voyage of Atle's sons. From their movements he could not ascertain whether they intended evil against Leif or not. It did not really look as if they were following him. Perhaps they did not know what direction he was taking, but Olmod considered it best to be on the watch.
Late in the summer, Olmod lost every trace of Leif. But as a compensation he so nearly succeeded in overtaking Atle's sons that he at last caught a glimpse of their ships making out to sea on their way home. It seemed to Olmod that they were sailing rather early. Were they thinking of concealing themselves among the rocks and islands off the coast and giving Leif a warm reception when he turned home? Olmod the Old was from his own experience not unacquainted with stratagems. He kept a sharp eye on Atle's sons.
For some time he kept his ships hidden in a creek near the ordinary route in order to catch Leif, if possible. At last he could wait no longer. Leif, he thought, must have turned homeward by some other way, and as good sailing weather just then set in, he directed his course towards Norway. He had come to the conclusion that the safest thing was to try to find Atle's sons, or at any rate to get news of them. If he found that they had sailed the direct way home, there was scarcely anything to fear from them that autumn.
On a dark and stormy autumn day, with clouds driving across the sky and a tossing sea, Leif came sailing past Hisargavl. He was sailing along, thinking of his disappointment, when he suddenly found himself surrounded by ships bearing down upon him with their battle-ensigns hoisted. For the sake of his promise, Leif counted the ships; they were six in number. He looked closer at them, and recognized them as those of Atle's sons. Then Leif felt a great contentment fill his mind. Here at last came his friends, the sons of Atle. And luckily all chance of flight was excluded. It would have been vexatious if he had had to break his word, but now it was all right. For Ingolf could not expect of him that he should surrender unconditionally in order to avoid battle with Atle's sons. He gathered his ships together and commanded them to lower sail; quickly he had boards for defence fixed on the quarter-deck, and cleared the ships for action. He went about and became gradually agitated with excitement and happy expectation. At last—at last the opportunity had come for seriously exchanging blows with Holmsten. One of them should in any case be a guest of Odin that evening. How he was to manage with his three ships against the six of Atle's sons did not worry Leif much.
While he issued his orders, he had only eyes for Holmsten's dragon-ship. There Holmsten came, also in a state of excitement. Now the long boat-hooks could reach the gunwale on Holmsten's ship. "Pull hard, men!" Leif had a great longing to salute Holmsten. The first spear whistled through the air. From both sides it was greeted with cheerful battle cries and gay laughter.
At length the two dragon-ships lay side by side, rocking violently upon the grey sea. Blows and shouts were exchanged above the high quarter-deck boards. Leif pushed his men roughly to one side. He had set eyes on Holmsten. A spear whistled past his ear, and he heard Holmsten laugh and shout: "There is a spear in place of the one you sank here last autumn."