Arya Stark, who had escaped from the Red Keep, was starving. In the narrow alleys of King's Landing, she planned to trade the pigeon hidden in her clothes with a street vendor for some food, but the vendor cursed at her and told her to get lost.
At that moment, she heard the terrible news—her father, Ned, had been brought to the Great Sept of Baelor under the charge of treason. All the strength drained from her body. She released the pigeon and followed the flow of people toward the sept.
She climbed up onto Baelor's statue and, amid the crowd below, saw her father being led out.
Eddard Stark, Warden of the North, was escorted out of the hall by two Kingsguard. He too saw his youngest daughter. As he passed by the Night's Watch recruiter Yoren—called Uncle Foldy by the smallfolk—he shouted twice toward him, "Baelor! Baelor!"
Before long, Yoren noticed Little Arya beneath the statue of Baelor.
Ned's eldest daughter, Sansa Stark, was standing beside Queen Regent Cersei and King Joffrey, watching her disheveled father, desperately holding back her tears.
Littlefinger stood nearby, his face filled with barely concealed satisfaction.
In the end, for the sake of protecting his family, Ned admitted to the crime of treason.
"I confess that Lord Joffrey Baratheon is the sole legitimate heir to the Iron Throne."
The newly crowned Joffrey wore a smile on his face, clearly pleased.
He announced the judgment. "My mother believes that Ned should be exiled to the Night's Watch, and my betrothed, Sansa Stark, has also pleaded for mercy many times."
The young king's eyes were full of arrogance as he continued, "However, that is nothing but womanly softness. Traitors must be severely punished. Executioner, cut off his head!"
Everyone was completely stunned by this young new king who refused to follow expectations.
Arya jumped down from the statue, drew her sword, and tried to rush forward to save her father. She was immediately seized and held tightly in the arms of Yoren, the Night's Watch recruiter who appeared from the crowd, forcing her to look away so she would not see Ned's execution.
Ned lay on the execution platform, glanced at the accusing crowd, then shifted his gaze to the statue. His little daughter Arya was already gone.
He slowly lowered his head. At this moment, he was only a father who deeply loved his children. Honor no longer mattered.
He chose his family.
Yet in the end, he lost both his life and his honor.
Damn it!
Morning at the harbor fortress of the fishing village.
Rodart, acting under orders, led one hundred soldiers of the Explosive Troop, escorting Stee, the Pirate King of Bite Bay, as they set out toward the islands of the Three Sisters Bay in search of treasure.
The sea vessel they used was already available. The pirates who had been slaughtered had conveniently left them with a large ship suitable for sailing.
All that was needed was to hire experienced local fishermen as sailors.
Lynn stood on the balcony of his manor, watching his troops march out of the city.
He trusted the loyalty of the Explosive Troop. These men would not embezzle the gold dragons that rightfully belonged to him.
That was why he did not intend to involve any other guards in the treasure-hunting mission.
Watching their departing backs, he hoped that Pirate King Stee had not lied to him. Otherwise, what awaited Stee would not be a sea burial, but the gut-rotting poison personally concocted overnight by Archmaester Hill.
After breakfast, Lynn had originally planned to visit the infirmary to check on the wounded soldiers. In this battle, he had lost nearly forty-five Explosive Troopers and added around sixty wounded, which gave him a massive headache.
Without money, there was very little he could do.
Even the rations for Rodart's voyage and the money to hire fishermen as crew were all bought on credit.
And the creditor was certainly not the system. The Explosive Troop system was not that generous, nor did it offer such value-added services.
After learning of the lord's difficulties, Archmaester Hill took the initiative to help. There was a fish merchant in the city who was a fellow villager of the old man. The archmaester hoped that his old acquaintance could buy a seized, dilapidated pirate ship at a discounted price.
Lynn looked at the pirate ship with its mast missing four supports, its hull's paint long peeled away so that its original color could no longer be seen, and agreed.
However, a small fish merchant could only scrape together a limited amount of money.
The twenty silver stags barely passed through Lynn's hands before they were gone again.
Lynn had the troops set up tents made from seized, tattered canvas on an open field behind the manor, temporarily housing all the Explosive Troopers there.
He also hired inexpensive local women to help care for the wounded Explosive Troopers.
Lynn believed that women who were skilled at mending fishing nets would surely understand how to stitch wounds.
Once the women arrived, the infirmary was filled with waves of ghostly wails and howls. Lynn had forgotten that these women were used to rough work—what they were best at stitching were large, coarse things.
Lynn lingered briefly at the entrance of the infirmary. Hearing the wounded Explosive Troopers screaming with plenty of breath left in them, the heavy stone in his heart finally dropped. He did not go inside to disturb them.
When he returned to the manor, the guard captain Hood appeared before him and said he hoped Lynn could immediately prepare a lavish lunch banquet.
Lynn, who had not even finished digesting his breakfast, asked, "Are you out of your mind?"
The household of a bankrupt lord did not have much surplus grain. Hosting a banquet for outsiders was pure waste.
Hood explained, "My lord, it only needs to look lavish. We have plenty of sea fish here. As long as every dish is made with fish, it won't cost much."
Lynn asked, "But for no reason at all, why should this lord host those White Harbor people?"
A fawning smile appeared on Hood's normally fierce face.
"The White Harbor knights have agreed to take only one-third of the spoils, to offset this year's taxes and military levy. They will report to 'Lord Eel' that Fishing Village Harbor has just endured a hard-fought battle and needs time to recuperate."
"Only one-third? Since when did these people become so kind?" Lynn asked.
"My lord, we are still giving up half of the spoils. It's just that these White Harbor knights plan to take the remaining portion for fifty silver stags."
Lynn did a quick calculation and cursed the knights for their greed. But thinking it over carefully, he realized he had not actually lost anything. He handed over the half of the spoils he had expected to give up anyway, avoided a troublesome issue, and even gained an extra sum of silver stags for nothing.
Lynn gave Hood's shoulder a firm pat, a satisfied smile appearing on his face.
People moved back and forth between the tables, clinking cups and exchanging toasts.
A big black dog with a pair of shiny, pitch-black eyes caught the scent of fish and chicken. Hiding beneath the long tables, it lowered its body and weaved through the forest of legs, gnawing on discarded bones on the ground and happily enjoying the feast.
Lynn sat at the seat of honor, watching his guard captain Hood enthusiastically converse with the White Harbor knights. Every guest now had a rosy flush of drunkenness on their face.
Seizing a moment when they paused between toasts, he asked, "I wonder where White Harbor's sailing ships can travel. I'd like to visit other parts of Westeros."
The leader of the White Harbor knights smiled smugly. He kicked away the big black dog at his feet, lifted his head to look at Lynn, and said, "My lord, you're thinking of taking the seized goods to trade, aren't you? White Harbor's ships can reach any corner of the continent of Westeros. The finest captains and sailors in the Seven Kingdoms can all be found in White Harbor."
Lynn ignored his sense of superiority. Having obtained a satisfactory answer, he raised his cup and toasted him.
Watching the White Harbor men lower their heads again and eat heartily, Lynn smiled in contentment.
Of course, Lynn had no intention of hiring White Harbor ships. He was preparing to quietly build up his Explosive Troops on a remote island far from the mainland.
And for that, establishing a fleet was a necessity.
Since White Harbor had excellent first mates and sailors familiar with the entire coastline of Westeros, the most appropriate method was, of course, not to hire them—but to find a way to poach them instead.
...
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"Game of Thrones: Dragon Prince"
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"Game of Thrones The Glory of a Knight"
(End Chapter)