Ed slowly sat down, his mood becoming very heavy.
While other senior officials were preoccupied with the "Prime Minister's Grand Competition," he himself seemed completely detached from it all.
He was busy investigating the cause of Jon Arryn's death, and he felt himself slowly getting closer to the truth.
The Mountain's threat indicates he's not far from the truth, and the Lannisters are afraid.
He had already checked the list Littlefinger had given him, and four people on it were close to Jon Arryn: a stable boy; a cook; a handmaid; and a squire. The other three were ruled out as suspicious, except for the stable boy. He had been promoted to knight after Jon's death and became a guard in the capital. Captain Jori Caesar went to him for information, but this man named Matthew was extremely arrogant and refused to answer any of Jori Caesar's questions, because Jori was not a knight.
Even though Jori was more than ten years older and a hundred times better at swordsmanship, the former stable boy from the Vale, the prime minister, completely ignored him. He proudly declared that Jori Caesar should not utter a single word to him unless the prime minister himself came.
Besides the stable boy who was suddenly promoted to knight by the Lannisters, Eddard also frequented several brothels.
Before his death, Jon and Stannis frequented several brothels. Eddard visited all the brothels they went to and discovered that King Robert's mistresses were in all of them, one of whom had just given birth to a baby girl.
Robert's list of illegitimate children has been expanded once again.
Besides the brothel, Eddard also visited Master Tob Mort's blacksmith shop on Iron Street, because Jon Arryn had once been there and had a suit of armor and a helmet made. Stannis Baratheon was also with Jon Arryn at the blacksmith shop; this fellow had retreated to Dragonstone after Jon Arryn's death and hadn't told anyone when he would return, despite being a high-ranking official in the King's retinue.
Unfortunately, Master Tob Motte's blacksmith shop closed several months ago, and no one knows where he went or where his apprentices went.
This is another highly suspicious matter.
How could Master Tob Motte have disappeared without a trace?
Unless someone is hiding something, or wants them to disappear or leave, such as by murder to silence them.
Ed considered asking Intelligence Minister Varys for help in investigating Master Tob Mort's whereabouts, but he could only think about it. Ed had no idea whether the eunuch was a man or a ghost, or which side he belonged to, so he decided it was best to be cautious to avoid alerting him.
Finally, Ed found a book from Grand Master Paisell, titled *The Genealogies and Histories of the Major Noble Families of the Seven Kingdoms (with descriptions of many lords, ladies, and their children)*, written by Grand Master Merion. Paisell was right; it was indeed quite dry and tedious.
Jon Arryn had specifically requested this book from the Grand Master, and Ned believed there must be a reason. Among these yellowed, fragile pages, surely some important clue was hidden—but what could it be? Ned had read the book several times, yet remained clueless. This book was over a century old. When the current Grand Master, Merylene, collected this genealogy of the major noble families of the Seven Kingdoms, almost none of the people currently alive had even been born.
Now that the Mountain has come and said he would kill him and all his servants, what did I do right to make the Lannister lose his temper?
Ed decided to read through the book 'Genealogy and History of the Major Noble Families of the Seven Kingdoms' again.
*
No matter how unwilling Prime Minister Ed was, it was time for the national martial arts tournament to be held in his name to begin with great fanfare.
First to appear were the Seven Imperial Guards, their snow-white robes so dazzling. The seven rode side by side past the stands, while thousands of onlookers cheered for them.
Apart from Jaime Lannister, the other six Kingsguard were all clad in milk-white scale armor, their cloaks as white as fresh snow. Ser Jaime also wore a white cloak, but he was gleaming gold from head to toe, and also wore a lion helmet and carried a golden sword.
If you remove the white cloak, Jaime is covered in gold from head to toe, showcasing the Lannister family's immense wealth.
Following the Kingsguard were the courtiers who would participate in the Grand Tournament: Lord Renly, the Minister of Justice wearing a golden-horned helmet; the red monk Thoros; and dozens of garrison knights and lords, including the incredibly proud Knight Matthew, who showed no respect to Jory Caesar.
This guy was just the Prime Minister's little stable boy before Jon died.
After the royal courtiers passed the stands, came the lords, knights, and nobles from the seven kingdoms.
The Mountain's entrance from the Westerlands took everyone's breath away. He rode his horse with a thunderous roar past the stands of the King and the Prime Minister, the ground practically trembling. His horse was a giant among horses, but everyone worried that in the next heartbeat, the Mountain might crush its back.
Sansa watched from the stands as the Mountain led his many noble knights from the Westerlands across the arena like gods of war, and she felt breathless. The Mountain's eyes were terrifying, like knives piercing the air, and each of the knights beside him looked particularly fierce.
The noble knights of the Vale are led by Bronze Yorn. Bronze Yorn's youngest son, Weimar Royce, was the arrogant sergeant who met his end in the Ghostwood beyond the Wall.
The armor of the Bronze Yorn Royce family is cast entirely in bronze, unlike the steel armor of other noble families, hence the name Bronze Yorn. Legend has it that their family has been making armor from bronze for thousands of years, and the bronze is engraved with magical runes, said to protect the wearer from swords and blades.
The Riverlands' noble knights were led by Edmure Tully, whose vassal Lord Jason Melister was by his side. Lord Jason was the lord of Will, the Night's Watchman who was beheaded by Edmure, and was sent to the Wall by Lord Jason for poaching a stag in Mason Forest.
Earl Jason wore a blue-purple cloak trimmed with silver and an eagle-winged helmet. Years ago, he single-handedly killed three marquesses under Rhaegar on the Trident River, earning him a distinguished record. To this day, his martial prowess is rarely matched in the Riverlands.
In addition, there were more than a dozen knights from the Frey family, five knights from the Brecken family, and several knights from the Hean family.
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The nobles and knights from the Riverlands were the most numerous among the Seven Kingdoms. Edmure led dozens of his vassals through the stands in a grand procession, amidst deafening cheers from the crowd.
Following them were the tournament teams from the Reach, Storm's End, Dorne, and the North, who passed by the stands to pay their respects to the King, Queen, Hand of the King, and Prince Joffrey.
The spectacle of the knights at the tournament was breathtaking: gleaming armor, tall warhorses adorned with gold and silver, the loud cheers of the crowd, and bright banners fluttering in the wind... and the knights themselves, especially the valiant ones.
Men are like tigers, horses like dragons! Heroes emerge one after another, each more radiant than the last!
"This is even better than the song says," Sansa said to Jenny Poole beside her.
"Yes!" Jenny Poole stared intently at the vassal from Stormlands—Earl Beryl Dondelion of Black Harbor.
Beric Dondarrion has red and blonde hair, and his black shield is painted with lightning bolts. Jeanne tells Sansa she's willing to marry him immediately. If Beric is already engaged or married, Jeanne is willing to be his mistress.
Jenny's infatuation with Beric Dondarrion made Sansa laugh uncontrollably until many people looked their way. However, Sansa was also captivated by the handsome Loras Tyrell of House Tyrell in Highgarden. When Loras Tyrell rode past her, she found it difficult to take her eyes off him.
After all the knights and nobles participating in the tournament had ridden past the stands, King Robert stood up and announced the official start of the tournament!
The first day was a spear duel. Since it was a national tournament in the name of the Prime Minister, the honor of the first spear duel was given to the warriors of the North.
Lord Eddard's captain of the guard, Jori Caesar, was the first to appear, facing off against Ser Horace Redwin, a vassal of the Reach from Greenwood.