Linde was not surprised that Varys knew about him saving that girl. After all, King's Landing was crawling with Varys's little birds. Forget about Linde—Varys probably even knew what kind of underwear Duke Tywin wore tonight.
So Linde showed no look of shock. He simply nodded and said calmly, "So it was her. She truly was pitiful. Fortunately, she survived."
Varys was somewhat surprised by Linde's calm reaction. He paused, then sighed and said, "Surviving is indeed fortunate. However, you should not have let her leave with that Faceless One master. If she becomes a Faceless One, she will certainly cause no small amount of trouble in the future. Letting her remain a farmer's girl would have been better—for her and for everyone else."
Linde looked straight at Varys and said in a deep voice, "A farmer's girl? Lord Varys, are you sure that would be a good idea? Could she really live peacefully as a farmer's girl for the rest of her life? If Lord Tywin were to learn that she is still alive, what kind of ending do you think she would have?"
Hearing Linde's words, shock immediately surfaced on Varys's face. He had never imagined that Linde would know the identity of that little girl. Duke Tywin regarded that girl as a disgrace and had used every possible method to seal the matter completely. All information about that night had been blocked, and even the Lannister household guards who had participated were transferred overnight to the mines in the Westerlands, never to see the light of day again.
Varys himself had only learned of the girl's existence by accident from the Little Imp, Tyrion, and he had confirmed that aside from those directly involved, among those not of House Lannister, only he and the septon who officiated the Little Imp's wedding knew of the girl.
However, that septon had already been dealt with by Duke Tywin.
Thus, Varys had believed that he alone held this secret. When he heard Linde's words and realized that Linde also knew the girl's identity, his heart was filled with astonishment.
"You are even more extraordinary than I expected," Varys said. He did not question Linde on how he knew the matter. Instead, he looked Linde over again with a scrutinizing gaze and muttered softly.
Linde frowned slightly and asked, "What you say is the same as what Lord Jaime said. Both of you say that I am special, yet I cannot quite understand it. Lord Varys, could you explain it for me?"
Varys swallowed the food in his hand in one bite, then stood up and said, "There is no need to worry. You will soon understand what is going on."
Just as Varys finished speaking, the music at the banquet suddenly stopped. Immediately after, it changed into The Song of the Bear Hunter. Everyone present who knew the origin of this song froze for a moment, then almost simultaneously turned their gaze toward Linde, who was seated in a corner.
Their eyes then shifted toward the corridor on one side of the hall that led to Maegor's Holdfast.
A moment later, King Robert entered the hall, leading a group of Kingsguard. One of his hands was wrapped in bandages, his face bruised and swollen. He walked straight to his throne and sat down.
Seeing this, the nobles were about to step forward to pay their respects, but he raised a hand to stop them.
He forced his swollen eyes open and scanned the crowd in the hall, as if searching for someone.
Whether it was because the swelling affected his vision, or because the candlelight in the hall was insufficient, he scanned several times but still failed to find his target. He then shouted loudly toward Duke Tyrell, "Lord Tyrell! Where is that brat who beat me up in the tourney yesterday? That lad called the Bear Hunter, Linde! Didn't he come to the banquet? I remember sending him an invitation."
Duke Tyrell quickly replied, "Your Majesty, he is here. It is merely his first time attending such a banquet, so he is not very accustomed to it."
At this moment, Linde, having heard the call, stepped out from the shadowed corner of the hall and walked into the candlelight.
"So you were hiding here," Robert said as he finally spotted Linde. He then glanced toward the corner Linde had come from and noticed the wooden tray on the floor piled with food. A smile spread across his face. "Seems you truly aren't used to banquets like this. Neither am I. Compared to standing here putting on airs and talking nonsense people can't understand, I much prefer being in the camp—eating meat by the fistful and drinking wine in great gulps."
At this moment, Jon Arryn, the Hand of the King, stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, attending banquets allows you to better understand the thoughts of your bannermen and formulate appropriate policies. It is necessary—"
"I know, I know. I know it's necessary. Isn't that why I came?" Robert clearly was not hearing Jon Arryn's nagging for the first time. He cut him off impatiently, then looked at Linde and beckoned him over. "Come here, Bear Hunter Linde."
Linde seemed to have vaguely guessed what was coming. A trace of joy flashed across his face, but he quickly suppressed it and stepped forward into the open space in the hall, stopping before Robert.
Robert rubbed the swollen spots on his face and glared at Linde. "In all my years, I've never been beaten like that. Even now my head is still spinning. That's why they say I made this decision because my mind isn't clear, that it doesn't follow the rules. But I am the king. A king fears nothing. I don't need to follow any damned rules."
Robert muttered on for a while, then stood up from the throne and raised a hand to stop Duke Arryn, who was about to speak. Turning to Linde, he said, "Kneel, Linde of White Village!"
Sensing what was about to happen, Linde stepped forward and knelt on one knee before Robert.
The nobles present also realized what was coming. Frowns appeared on many faces. Even Duke Tyrell looked shocked, while only a small number of people smiled, seemingly happy for Linde.
King Robert reached toward his waist, only to grasp at empty air. Only then did he remember that he was not wearing a sword. He shouted to those around him, "Where's my sword? Damn it, bring me a sword!"
At his shout, Jaime Lannister, who stood beside Queen Cersei, stepped forward, removed his own sword, and offered it to him.
However, Robert frowned and said with clear disdain, "No. Kingslayer, your sword is not worthy of being used on him." After saying that, he turned to Barristan and said, "Barristan, give me your sword."
Robert's blunt refusal crushed Jaime's dignity beneath his heel. Even though Jaime had grown accustomed over the past year to the strange looks of others, he still felt anger surge within him at this humiliation.
Yet he did not show it on his face. He calmly re-sheathed his sword, returned to the queen's side, and casually rested a hand on the chair. But the fingers gripping the chair had gone white from the force, betraying the turmoil in his heart.
Duke Tywin, standing among the crowd, showed no emotion at all. He was like a block of steel—cold and rigid—revealing none of his inner thoughts.
Though Lord Barristan felt some indignation on Jaime's behalf, he had no intention of disobeying the king. He removed his sword, held it with both hands, and walked to Robert's side.
Robert drew Barristan's sword and stepped before Linde. He placed the blade on Linde's right shoulder and said, "Linde of White Village, in the name of the Warrior, I charge you to be brave."
He then moved the blade from the right shoulder to the left.
"In the name of the Father, I charge you to be just."
The blade returned to the right shoulder.
"In the name of the Mother, I charge you to protect the weak and the innocent."
The blade moved once more to the left shoulder.
"In the name of the Maiden, I charge you to protect all women."
As the oaths of the Seven were spoken from King Robert's mouth, even those nobles who had harbored dissatisfaction earlier now reined in their emotions. Their expressions turned solemn and respectful.
When the final oath was spoken, King Robert lifted the sword from Linde's shoulder and said, "Bear Hunter Linde, you are now a knight of the Seven Kingdoms. I hope you like this reward of mine."
"Yes, I like it very much, Your Majesty," Linde said as he rose to his feet, a smile he could not suppress spreading across his face.
For Linde, becoming a knight was an incomparably important step. It meant that he had obtained the qualification to contend for power within the Seven Kingdoms. Otherwise, he would forever remain nothing more than a hired muscle.
Moreover, at only fifteen years old, he had participated in just one tourney and was already knighted—personally by the king. Such a thing had never happened in the history of Westeros. This undoubtedly confirmed the "special" nature that Jaime and Varys had mentioned before. Clearly, there must have been intense debate over this matter in the Red Keep's council chamber.
Linde had to admit that, based on Robert's personality, he had guessed that if he performed outstandingly in the tourney, there was a good chance Robert would knight him. Still, he had not been very confident in that guess. In fact, when Robert left the tourney grounds the day before without immediately knighting him, Linde had begun to think his assumption was wrong and had even started considering earning knighthood through accumulated military merit.
Now, however, with Robert knighting him at the banquet, Linde felt as though he had regained something he had lost. The joy in his heart was naturally all the stronger.
At this moment, the surrounding nobles also came forward to congratulate Linde. Whether sincere or merely out of etiquette, they all had to display the proper decorum.
"I never imagined you'd become a knight so quickly. It's only been a few months since you became my squire," Fotimo said as he walked up to Linde. He patted Linde on the shoulder and spoke earnestly. "Becoming a knight is only the first step. You still have many things to learn. I hope you never forget your original intentions."
Linde did not change his attitude toward Fotimo despite the shift in his status. He still replied with the demeanor of a knight's squire, "I will heed your teachings, Lord Fotimo."
Fotimo nodded in satisfaction. He seemed to have more to say, but feeling that this was not the right occasion, he held back, intending to speak after they returned to camp.
Garlan also came forward to congratulate Linde and was about to lead him to meet Duke Tyrell.
At this moment, Robert called out to stop Linde as he was about to leave and asked, "Bear Hunter Linde, would you be willing to become a Kingsguard?"
Although Robert's voice was not loud, everyone in the hall could hear it clearly. The entire hall fell silent in an instant, all eyes focusing on Linde.
Linde was also surprised by Robert's question. He had never considered becoming a Kingsguard, but he had to admit that for the vast majority of knights, becoming a Kingsguard was the greatest honor of their lives.
The Kingsguard was not merely a group of royal bodyguards. It represented the very center of power in the Seven Kingdoms. After becoming a Kingsguard, one not only had the chance to influence the politics of the realm, but in certain situations could even act in the king's stead. More importantly, a Kingsguard knight could one day become the Hand of the King, or even the Regent. For a knight, joining the Kingsguard was truly a leap straight to the heavens.
If Linde were a knight of great noble birth, his joining the Kingsguard would not have caused much of a stir. But the problem was that Linde was merely a common hunter by origin, his status so low that it was beneath even that of a peasant. For someone of such background to become a knight was already a violation of Westeros's power structure. To let such a person become a Kingsguard would be tantamount to trampling the nobles' carefully constructed rules of power beneath one's feet.
Jon Arryn understood very clearly the negative impact this would have. He wanted to speak up to dissuade Robert, but Robert stopped him and repeated his question to Linde once more.
"I'm sorry, Your Majesty. Please forgive me for being unable to accept your kindness," Linde replied, feeling the invisible pressure bearing down on him from all sides. He answered quickly, before anyone else could speak. "The identity of a Kingsguard is far too heavy for me. And the Red Keep is not a place that suits me. I prefer the freedom outside."
"The freedom outside?" A look of clear disappointment appeared on Robert's swollen face. He sighed softly and said, "And how could I not feel the same?"
With that, as though he had lost all interest in the banquet, he turned around and left the hall directly.
The surrounding nobles all let out quiet sighs of relief. The looks they gave Linde became noticeably more amicable, especially Duke Jon Arryn. Clearly, they believed that Linde had declined the Kingsguard position because he understood his place and had not arrogantly tried to break the established order.
In reality, however, Linde had never considered becoming a Kingsguard at all. In his eyes, what countless knights regarded as supreme glory was nothing more than shackles and a cage.
Linde's knighting was merely a small interlude and did not greatly affect the banquet. Before long, the festivities returned to normal.
However, compared to earlier—when everyone had ignored him—some minor nobles and knights were now willing to approach him and engage in conversation. It was clear that they were gradually accepting his change in status.
Duke Tyrell's attitude toward Linde also shifted somewhat, though not by much. After all, Linde's status had only changed from a knight's squire to a knight. The gap between their standings was still enormous.
Yet, perhaps due to a misunderstanding on Duke Tyrell's part, he seemed to interpret Linde's refusal of King Robert's invitation as loyalty to House Tyrell. As a result, in his conversation with Linde, he promised to make good use of him and even hinted that Linde need not worry about any negative consequences from selling cavalry slots without authorization.
...
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(End Chapter)