Chapter 273: The Duel Concluded
Winterfell, Stark Lands
POV of Domeric Bolton
When Domeric came closer, Jamie suddenly stabbed at him.
Domeric side-stepped around the sword, put his arms around Jamie's shoulder, picked him up in the air, and slammed him down in a single moment.
Jamie coughed, and more blood fell down the visor.
Domeric got up from over Jamie and took the hand that still held the sword. He pulled at it, but Jamie stubbornly held onto the sword.
Slowly but surely, Domeric removed all the fingers from the sword and took it from Jamie.
As soon as he did, Jamie used the last of his strength to hit him with his shield.
The shield struck his armor.
Its magical properties absorbed the force behind the attack, but he still pretended to stumble and fall.
The Queen shouted something in the background, and Jamie slowly got up from the ground, coughing blood a few more times in the process.
They both got up at the same time.
Jamie readied his shield and charged at him. Domeric readied his own, and they clashed.
It was during times like these that the losing party often found a boost in their immense willpower, allowing them to topple their stronger opponent.
No such thing happened here.
Jamie was once again thrown to the floor. His wooden shield looked battered and broken, and even his chest plate looked dented.
There was a silence in the courtyard as Jamie coughed a few more times before he once again got up from the ground on shaky legs.
The queen did not shout anything at this time. But Jamie charged at him once again.
He did not even know why.
Shield met against shield, and Jaime was sent flying once again.
It was almost painful to watch. He wanted to break one of Jamie's hands or legs and end this match already. But Jamie's immense resolve made him want to see how long the man would last. And in the meantime, he could prolong Jamie's suffering.
Jamie stood on shaky legs once again, stumbled, and almost fell to the ground, but held himself up.
He lifted the shield with difficulty and got ready for another shield bash.
Domeric got ready for a shield bash of his own, but at the last moment, Jamie side-stepped and… stabbed at him with the sword he had disarmed him with.
The stab was so sudden and quick that he only had enough time to move by a few inches.
The sword struck the side of his helmet and was deflected.
His magical helmet absorbed most of the force, but some still went through, jerking his head to the side and making him off balance.
He fell to the ground, and a few meters behind him, Jamie fell to the ground once again as well.
Domeric blinked a few times in shock, wondering when Jamie had picked up his sword.
Was Jamie leading him this whole time so that he would throw the man toward the place where he had left his sword so that he could pick it up and defeat him with a surprise attack?
And it would have worked as well if he were not covered from head to toe with his magical armor.
He got up from the ground, looked at where Jamie was struggling to get up, and felt a mix of frustration and respect.
Frustration at himself for falling to the man's ploy and respect for the man.
But this couldn't go on any longer.
He would not suffer any more surprise attacks.
He went up to Jamie and put a foot on his back, making him fall to the ground once again as his arms failed to lift the additional weight.
He kicked the sword in Jamie's hand, disarming the knight once again.
Then he put his sword to Jamie's neck and looked toward the King.
"This round has ended," Domeric said, and the King nodded.
There was a pin drop silence in the courtyard as the King got up from his chair and said, "The winner of this round and the duel is Lord Domeric Bolton."
The people cheered at once, and he felt Jamie stop struggling and go limp beneath his foot.
He removed the foot from his back and distanced himself from the man as Maester Lewin and two Red Cloaks came to check up on Jamie Lannister.
He turned toward Lord Stark, who was holding onto the two Valyrian swords, when the Queen came out of her shock and shouted.
"He cheated!"
"He cheated!"
"I said he cheated!"
The crowd continued to cheer for a while, but then the Queen's screams intensified, and the crowd stopped cheering.
He removed his helmet and gave the woman a disinterested look. "And pray tell how it was exactly that I cheated."
"Lay it off, woman. He won fair and square." The King said.
Cersei shook her head, "He couldn't have. He's not a swordsman. If he were, then we would have heard of him before. He must have cheated to win."
King Robert didn't give her another moment to talk and turned to his friend Lord Eddard Stark.
"Ned. Give the boy his swords. And then see to it that the Kingslayer doesn't die."
Lord Stark bowed and walked forward with the two swords sheathed in their sheaths and handed them to Lord Bolton in front of everyone.
"According to the bet of the duel, the swords go to Lord Bolton." Lord Stark stated as he handed him both the Valyrian swords, and the crowd burst into cheers once again.
He took Excalibur and wrapped it around his waist before he turned and looked at Lion's Claw and the Queen, who was shouting obscenities and threatening his life.
"This is not over." The Queen said before she turned to the King, "Do you think that my father will let an insult like this go without any repercussions. I hope you're ready to pay every single dime you owe him, along with the interest."
'Did the Queen just pull a Draco Malfoy act on the King and say, 'Wait until my father hears about this'?' Domeric thought.
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Next Chapters' Name:
Ch.274: Time to Return to the Dreadfort
Ch.275: Bandit Attack
Ch.276: 24 vs. 200