midday
We passed through the great door as he said that , and he closed it after him . Ragnar was yet standing near the high seat , and turned as he heard the sound , and smiled when he saw me . Berthun went quickly away through a side entrance , and the hail was empty save for us two . The midday meal was over an hour since , and the long tables had been cleared away , so that the place seemed desolate to me , as I had only seen it before when I sat with the other men at the cross tables for meals . It was not so good a hall as was Jarl Sigurd 's in Denmark , for it was not rich with carving and colour as was his , and the arms on the wall were few , and the hangings might have been brighter and better in a king 's place . `` Our king does not seem to keep much state , '' Ragnar said , looking round as I was looking , and we both laughed . Then the door on the high place opened , and the king came in , soberly dressed , and with a smile on his face which seemed to me to have been made on purpose for this greeting , for he mostly looked sour enough .