Chapter 143: Hunter and Prey 4
Maester Pycelle was very thoughtful. Late at night, Glyn received the unconscious Heward.
Joffrey of the Scouting Corps first secured Heward, then woke him up, and cut a gash on his wrist, letting the blood drip into a wooden barrel placed beforehand.
Drip, drip. Joffrey had Heward's eyes covered, then made another gesture.
...
The next day, the sky brightened, revealing a pale blue.
Glyn put down the testimony written by Heward, and his long fingers tapped on the table a few times.
The day Jon Arryn died, a masked man suddenly approached Heward. First, he gave him a large sum of Gold Dragons, and then said that if he completed a certain matter, the masked man promised he would receive a knighthood.
The masked man's task for Heward was very simple: when Lord Eddard came looking for him, tell him that Jon Arryn had been secretly investigating King Robert's bastards in King's Landing, and would occasionally be heard saying... "remarkably resilient."
Why didn't Heward ever suspect the masked man?
Heward had accidentally seen the illicit affair between Lord Petyr Baelish and Lady Lysa, but he chose not to report what he saw to Jon Arryn. Instead, he used this matter to threaten Petyr Baelish.
Heward guessed that the masked man was Petyr Baelish's subordinate. The Gold Dragons he received were hush money. This task was a test and a way to gain favor with Lord Petyr Baelish.
Everyone knew that Lord Petyr Baelish was always generous... Heward felt he had gambled and won. Not only did he gain wealth, but his dream of becoming a sworn knight was also about to be realized.
Greed blinded Heward's eyes. He even began to investigate the secrets between the King's bastards and "remarkably resilient"... Once he received a knighthood, he also wanted to acquire land. Heward wanted to become a true noble.
...
Glyn's pupils contracted. The cunning Petyr Baelish had already grasped the truth about the royal lineage. He was preparing to use this matter to create chaos and make it his ladder of ascent.
Petyr Baelish subtly guided Lord Eddard to uncover Jon Arryn's investigation into the royal lineage. Once Lord Eddard discovered the truth about the royal lineage, he would conclude that the culprit who murdered Jon Arryn was Queen Cersei Lannister.
As for the proof of the murder... it would no longer be important at that time. No one would investigate, because the matter of contaminating the royal lineage was far more serious.
The direwolf attacks, the golden lion retaliates.
...
Glyn closed his eyes. He knew that Lord Eddard's righteous heart would certainly give Petyr Baelish an opportunity to defend himself. Given Petyr Baelish's cunning, it would be difficult to make him comply with Heward alone.
Solely relying on the evidence of Petyr Baelish and Lysa's illicit affair, it would be difficult to pin the crime of poisoning Jon Arryn on them... Glyn opened his eyes and shook his head with a slight smile.
He seemed to have forgotten that this was Westeros, and everyone was a player in the game of thrones. What need was there for real evidence?! Lord Glyn knew perfectly well that Petyr Baelish was not being wronged.
Sunlight streamed through the window into the quiet room.
Glyn stood up. He was preparing to find the Master of Whisperers, Varys, and persuade him to deal the finishing blow to Petyr Baelish.
If Varys refused to cooperate... then he would temporarily let Petyr Baelish off, and kill Varys... After that, Glyn and Petyr Baelish would join hands to create chaos.
Glyn picked up his long sword and put it at his waist. As a lord, he needed to think calmly. It would be best to try to cooperate with Varys; this person was still useful alive.
...
Accompanied by guards, Glyn had just walked out of Hook Alley when he pulled on the reins, slowing his horse's pace. He noticed the banners of the Crowned Stag and the Golden Rose ahead.
Renly Baratheon, Loras Tyrell, and Margaery Tyrell rode over, escorted by their guards.
Renly was handsome, Loras was beautiful, Margaery was charming... The scene was beautiful, and also very high-profile.
"It's a shame Varys isn't here..." Glyn raised his hand, signaling his guards to move to the side of the road, clearing the path, and waiting for the approaching entourage to pass.
Lord Renly, with chin raised, swept past Glyn's group, completely ignoring the dozen brightly colored Clegane Bluecloaks.
Margaery's beautiful eyes glanced lightly, directly at Glyn... A polite, faint smile was on his face. Her small hand gripping the reins tightened, then she casually shifted her gaze away.
Loras Tyrell tilted his head, sizing Glyn up and down.
Loras Tyrell wore a pale blue silk robe, belted with a chain of Golden Roses. The gentle morning light seemed to drape him in a golden halo, drawing attention.
Glyn's eyes subtly moved to meet Loras's gaze.
Glyn raised an eyebrow: "Defeated foe."
Anger flared in Loras's eyes: "Just you wait!"
...
...
...
As Glyn passed Maegor's Tower Gardens, he saw Joffrey Baratheon and Sansa Stark walking together.
Joffrey, shedding his usual arrogant demeanor, wore a gentle, polite smile on his face.
Sansa's chestnut hair was brushed to a sheen, and she wore a blue velvet gown. She seemed completely captivated by Joffrey.
Queen Cersei was preparing for Joffrey to successfully inherit the Iron Throne... Glyn retracted his gaze and quickened his steps towards Maegor's Holdfast.
Glyn also had the task of monitoring the Starks, reporting to Queen Cersei every two or three days.
Glyn's reports seemed to conceal nothing, but in reality, all crucial information was cleverly hidden by his words. However, this method couldn't last long. The Red Keep teemed with Lannister eyes and ears; any prolonged duration would easily expose the problem.
...
Maegor's Holdfast Great Hall.
The Queen's maidservant bowed respectfully and said, "Lord Glyn, Her Grace the Queen has ordered that no one be disturbed today."
Glyn glanced at the Red Cloaks guarding in the distance. He lightly tossed a Gold Dragon, which conveniently slid into the maidservant's eagerly cupped hand.
The maidservant's face instantly flushed. She hesitated for a moment, then leaned closer and whispered, "Her Grace the Queen only just fell asleep this morning."
...
...
...
Outside the Throne Room, Lord Eddard watched Ser Jaime, whose face was pale, with tightly furrowed brows.
He said coldly, "Ser Jaime, with you protecting the King and the Iron Throne, should I be very relieved?"
Ser Jaime smiled nonchalantly and said, "Lord Eddard, although King Robert is not in the Red Keep, we Kingsguard still have to stand guard. I should be resting now, but I specifically came to find you."
More than ten years ago, when Lord Eddard led his troops into the Throne Room, he saw the Mad King lying in a pool of blood, and Jaime, clad in gold-plated armor, seated high on the Iron Throne... He wore the Kingsguard's white cloak, a golden longsword laid across his thigh, and the King's blood continuously dripped from the sword tip. That image remains vivid to this day.
Hearing Ser Jaime's explanation, Lord Eddard's brow relaxed slightly: "What is it you've come to see me for?"
Jaime shrugged and said, "We're old acquaintances, and now neighbors, so naturally, we should get to know each other better."
Lord Eddard disliked this teasing manner of interaction. He said coldly, "Robert asked me to serve as Hand of the King, not to be your friendly neighbor."
Jaime's smile froze. He paused, then said, "King Robert, to celebrate the Hand of the King's appointment, is preparing to hold a grand Tourney. Perhaps the two of us could even compete in horsemanship. A golden lion fighting a direwolf will surely draw enthusiastic cheers from the spectators."
Lord Eddard stared at the person before him. If the culprit who poisoned Jon Arryn was indeed a Lannister, would the one who acted be Jaime Lannister himself?... More than ten years ago, he had personally destroyed the honor of the Kingsguard, and would not hesitate to use other dirty methods to achieve his goals.
"Perhaps I will disappoint you. I will not participate in the Tourney, because I do not wish for my enemies to learn my true strength before a decisive battle."
He added, "Moreover, I don't like being watched."
Jaime's tone held a hint of ridicule: "I didn't expect the direwolf's tongue to be so nimble... This reason sounds very sincere."
Lord Eddard said coldly, "That is the truth. I will make time to watch your performance."
As he spoke, his grey eyes swept over Jaime's chainmail, and he continued, "Your chainmail is very beautiful, without a single scratch. I hope you can keep it that way."
Jaime clenched his fists and said, "Lord Stark, thank you for your concern. Rest assured, they can't touch me."
Lord Eddard's gaze shifted to the Throne Room and he said, "I know you're very good at choosing opponents."
Jaime no longer cared about the task Cersei had given him. Lord Eddard had pricked his most sensitive spot.
Jaime sneered. He also looked at the Throne Room and said, "Lord Stark, when you walked into this hall, you must have felt very uncomfortable, didn't you? I was standing right here that day. Your father and brother were very brave; they shouldn't have died like that."
Lord Eddard did not explode in anger as Jaime had imagined. His gaze became complicated: "Jaime, you chose to remain aloof, yet you show not the slightest shame."
Jaime said in a low voice, "There were hundreds of people present that day, and all of them stood by and did nothing. They were merely the finest knights in the Seven Kingdoms, but did anyone lift a finger? Not a single person did. The Throne Room was as silent as a tomb... except, of course, for the screams and the Mad King's laughter."
He scoffed, then looked at Lord Eddard and said, "When the Mad King was dying, I recalled his maniacal laughter as he burned your father alive. It gave me a feeling of... avenging the cruelly slain."
Lord Eddard snorted coldly and said, "A Kingsguard stabbing the King from behind, and it was to avenge others?"
Jaime said angrily, "King Aerys ordered his pyromancers to ignite the wildfire buried beneath the city, to turn all of King's Landing into his funeral pyre, and he even ordered me to bring him my father Tywin's head..."
As he spoke, he suddenly remembered that night during the Kingswood hunt... his conversation with Glyn.
He paused, then asked, "Lord Stark, if it had been you at the time, what would you have chosen?"
Lord Eddard looked at Jaime, whose face showed anger. His gaze sharpened, and he replied coldly, "Perhaps my choice would not have been better than yours, but I would have reclaimed my honor at the very last moment."
(end of chapter)