"Someone's already sitting here," Lynd said to the two strangers in front of him, swallowing the chewed food with difficulty.
The taller of the strangers frowned upon hearing Lynd's words, about to say something, but was stopped by the shorter youth. The youth then smiled and said to Lynd, "We'll only sit here for a while. Once your companion returns, we'll leave, alright?"
This youth was probably only about ten years old, a bit chubby. Although his face still held the childishness typical of his age, his words and actions seemed mature, and this maturity wasn't his true nature; rather, it was more like he was deliberately imitating someone.
Furthermore, his voice was very pleasant, clear and resonant, like the singing of an oriole, seemingly imbued with some kind of spiritual power that gave his voice an extreme affinity and persuasiveness.
Lynd, filled with curiosity, glanced at the young noble. He said nothing more, guessing that these two were certainly a young noble and his knight escort who had sneaked out of their residence for a night stroll, and there was no need to conflict over a seat.
However, the tall middle-aged man did not relax his guard. He sat to the young noble's right, separating the noble from the tavern aisle, shielding him against the wall. Should any sudden incident occur, he could fully protect the young noble immediately.
At the same time, he did not relax his control over Lynd, his eyes under the hood constantly sweeping over Lynd.
Lynd naturally felt such obvious surveillance, and he was curious about the origin of this knight escort. Just by sitting next to him and looking at him, the man already exerted an extremely strong sense of pressure, a pressure he had only felt from Joel Flower before.
Although he felt the pressure, Lynd showed no unusual reaction, nor did he mind the other party's actions. He ate the food in front of him at his own pace, his focus so intense that it was as if the two people at his table, and even the other people in the tavern, didn't exist.
Lynd's behavior also piqued the young noble's interest. It was the first time he had seen someone maintain such a calm and relaxed state under the gaze of his sword master.
As he curiously observed Lynd, the young noble noticed the two hand-and-a-half swords at Lynd's waist, and a playful smile appeared on his face. He then self-importantly guessed, "Do you also like the stories of Bear Hunter? So much so that you wear dual swords to imitate him, just like my little brother."
Lynd looked down at his dual swords and retorted, "Don't you like Bear Hunter?"
"Not really. I feel his stories are too exaggerated, very unrealistic, more like lies deliberately fabricated by bards for the sake of their songs. I prefer real stories, like the story of Dorne resisting the Conqueror Aegon Targaryen," the young noble shook his head, expressing his attitude without reservation.
At that moment, the Bear Hunter song resounded in the tavern again. It seemed someone else had requested the bard to play this song, and everyone in the tavern began to sing along.
The original version of the Bear Hunter song was not the one currently sung by bards, but an adaptation of a Reach folk tune, created by a few bards passing through Whitegrove. In fact, they only modified the lyrics, changing other lyrics using the same tune into the story of Bear Hunter.
Because of this, the original version of the Bear Hunter Song was not widely spread, and those who heard it only paid attention to the story of Bear Hunter in the song.
However, the current version of the Bear Hunter Song was created by Lynd. He adapted the theme song from a game about a Dragonborn story in his previous life, changing the lyrics to the current Bear Hunter Song. As a result, this epic song was very popular with the common people, and bards were willing to sing it, further accelerating the spread of Lynd's fame.
Although the young noble did not like the story of Bear Hunter, he very much enjoyed the Bear Hunter Song. So, when the singing began, he couldn't help but hum along, his slightly swaying head showing his great pleasure at that moment.
It wasn't until the Bear Hunter Song was nearing its end that he snapped out of the song. At that moment, he saw Lynd looking at him playfully, and an awkward expression involuntarily appeared on his face. He then couldn't help but explain, "I just like this song, that's all."
"No need to explain," Lynd said calmly.
The young noble pouted childishly, displeased with Lynd's attitude. This behavior was likely his true emotion, while his previous pretense of being an adult was a disguise.
The young noble quickly reined in his childish side and said, "Although I don't like the story of Bear Hunter, I greatly admire Bear Hunter's talent. To be able to compose such a beautiful song! I heard he was just a hunter before; I wonder where he learned all this knowledge?"
Lynd couldn't help but be stunned by these words, because only he and Roman Webber knew that he had composed the Bear Hunter Song, and Roman Webber was the one who spread it. Yet, this young noble knew that he had composed the song, which made Lynd curious about the family behind this young noble.
At this moment, he frowned, and his eyes suddenly became sharp. This change in his state of mind was not due to any unexpected action from the young noble in front of him, but because he suddenly realized that Joel had been gone for too long; something must have happened.
However, Lynd's change in expression caused a misunderstanding for the knight escort. The knight escort's body shifted slightly, facing Lynd directly, his eyes under the hood fixed on him, and his hand moved to the hilt of the longsword at his waist, ready to draw and attack at any unusual move Lynd made.
If the pressure this knight escort had put on Lynd earlier was like river ripples, then the invisible pressure now weighing on him was like ocean waves during a storm, threatening disaster if he wasn't careful.
Lynd didn't understand why the knight escort suddenly became so aggressive, but he wasn't one to sit idly by. As the other's hand moved to the sword hilt, his own hand also rested on his sword hilt, and he met the knight's gaze, ready for confrontation.
Although the young noble beside them was not the target of either party, he could still feel the dangerous aura emanating from them. He didn't understand why, after just having a pleasant conversation, things had suddenly become so tense. But out of trust in his teacher, he chose to move slightly backward, putting distance between himself and Lynd, and also hiding behind the knight.
Just as the atmosphere in this small area of the tavern became uneasy, the tavern door was pushed open heavily from the outside. Immediately after, a tall figure, rubbing the back of his head, stumbled in, cursing continuously as he walked. This person was none other than Joel Flower, who had just been attacked and robbed of his valuables.
On the other side, Lynd also saw Joel enter from outside the tavern, and his tense expression relaxed slightly. However, his hand did not leave his sword hilt, maintaining the standoff with the knight.
Then, Joel walked to their table, not even glancing at the young noble and the knight escort. Instead, he angrily yelled at Lynd, "Didn't you notice I was gone for a while?"
"I just did, but I thought after you peed, you might also need to defecate, so I didn't pay attention," Lynd was not intimidated by Joel's anger. He looked the disheveled man up and down and said, "Were you robbed?"
"Isn't it obvious?" Joel spread his hands, retorting irritably.
Lynd was quite speechless and said, "Aren't you a great swordmaster of The Reach?"
Joel's face also showed an embarrassed expression, then he stubbornly said, "Can't a great Swordmaster be robbed after getting drunk?"
Lynd didn't argue with him and asked, "What now?"
"What do you mean, what now?" Joel retorted.
"All your valuables must have been stolen, right?" Lynd pointed to the empty wine glass and plate on the table and said, "What are we going to pay with?"
Joel was stunned. He pointed at Lynd and said, "What about you? You can pay, right? You got a lot of rewards from this battle; isn't that enough to pay?"
Lynd said expressionlessly, "All my money was sent to my father. I don't have a single copper coin on me now."
Joel looked at Lynd in shock and said, "You came south with me without bringing any money?"
Lynd also looked at Joel and said, "Don't we have you? I thought with you by my side, we wouldn't lack expenses. Besides, in Goldengrove, didn't you say you would cover all expenses on the road?"
"I..." Joel remembered saying that and was at a loss for words.
At this moment, Lynd suddenly sniffed, as if he smelled something unusual. Then, with a slightly strange expression, he looked at Joel and said, "Did you just pee yourself?"
At this moment, Joel was extremely mortified, instantly feeling the urge to draw his sword and cut down Lynd, and then all other knowing parties. Unfortunately, his sword, along with his other valuables, had been taken. In the end, he could only point at Lynd, unable to say anything, his slightly trembling hand already showing his current mood.
"Haha! This is too funny, too funny!" Just as the atmosphere became extremely awkward, a laugh broke the tension in the area. The young noble laughed heartily, without any regard for his image, and addressed Joel as if they were old friends, saying, "I never thought our Reach Sword Master, Lord Joel Flower, had such a humorous side. No one would believe this even if it were told."
With the young noble's laughter and words, Joel finally noticed that two more people were at his table. He used the dim light from the tavern wall to make out their faces, and an expression of surprise involuntarily appeared on his face. At the same time, he exclaimed, "Young Master Garlan, Lord Vortimer, why are you here?"
Hearing Joel's words, Lynd immediately realized that the young noble and the knight escort in front of him were Garlan Tyrell and Vortimer Crane, the targets of his and Joel's journey.
Joel and Garlan Tyrell were quite familiar. After Joel received praise from Barristan, Lord Tyrell had invited Joel to be Willas Tyrell's sword trainer for a short period. Although it was only for a month, Garlan Tyrell often followed his elder brother during that time, so he was not unfamiliar with Joel.
As for Vortimer Crane, there was even less to say. As the two greatest sword masters of House Crane, they had sparred many times. Although their allegiances differed, their relationship was not bad.
Joel's identity also caused Vortimer Crane to drop his guard against Lynd. He then tilted his head slightly, looking at the disheveled Joel. Being very familiar with him, he spoke casually: "Shouldn't you be celebrating your victory in Red Lake? Why did you come to New Barrel? Is it to sell war trophies? It doesn't seem like such a task would require a Great Knight like you."
"No, I came to New Barrel to find you," Joel explained.
"Find me?" Fortimo looked puzzled. Suddenly, as if he had thought of something, he looked at Lynd and said, "You're not here to show off a squire you found after seeing how excellent my squire was during our last spar, are you?" Saying this, he added very straightforwardly, "I have to say, your squire is very good. Although I don't know his swordsmanship, at least in courage and demeanor, he is already a true knight."
Upon hearing this, Joel looked at Lynd with some surprise, because he knew Fortimo's character very well and how difficult it was to gain Fortimo's approval. Yet, he had only been gone for a short while, and Lynd had already received Fortimo's praise. He couldn't help but wonder what had happened during that time.
However, he quickly snapped out of his wild thoughts and said, "You're mistaken, he's not my squire. He's the squire I'm preparing to recommend to you."
"A squire you're recommending to me?" Fortimo was stunned, looking puzzled.
"Let me introduce you," Joel pointed at Lynd and said, "Lynd, Bear Hunter Lynd."
"Ah?" When Joel introduced Lynd's identity, Garlan Tyrell immediately let out a gasp of surprise. Then, thinking of what he had just said, an awkward expression involuntarily appeared on his face.
Fortimo also looked at Lynd with surprise. After all, he had heard many rumors about Bear Hunter recently. Like Garlan, he also thought the rumors were exaggerated and unbelievable, but now his thoughts had changed, because the aura Lynd had displayed earlier could already contend with his own. If the other's swordsmanship could match this aura, then Lynd might indeed be capable of the various exaggerated feats mentioned in the rumors.
As Fortimo was observing Lynd, Garlan Tyrell had already composed himself and then asked with a hint of curiosity, "Lord Lynd, is it true that you are rumored to possess the most magnificent dual-wielding swordsmanship in The Reach?"
"No!" Lynd shook his head. Just as Garlan Tyrell showed disappointment, he changed the subject and said with great confidence, "It's the most magnificent dual-wielding swordsmanship in all of Westeros!"