Chapter 108: Duels and Surprises
In this war of rebellion, how many minor and supporting characters from the world of Ice and Fire were gathered in this allied base camp?
Countless.
Due to time constraints and the barriers of social hierarchy, Egger simply didn't have the time or the standing to visit and get to know them all individually. At the very least, he had yet to lay eyes on two famous warriors: Oberyn "The Red Viper" Martell and Brienne "The Beauty" of Tarth.
The former was inaccessible due to his high status; the latter had likely been overlooked because her tent was too inconspicuous.
Since he had stumbled upon them now, he naturally couldn't pass up the chance to have a look. Even if he didn't make their acquaintance, he at least wanted to be able to recognize them if they crossed paths again. Leading an irrepressibly excited Casey, Egger squeezed toward the sparring circle.
Hundreds, perhaps thousands, were crowded here, packing the perimeter so tightly it was nearly impossible to get close. He had to exert a great deal of effort just to reach a spot where he could see the action.
"Beautiful!"
"The Beauty, take him down!"
Amidst the cheers and roars of the surrounding soldiers, Egger spotted the two combatants facing off. The taller one was encased from head to toe in blue armor—so much so that even their eyes were hidden—and was facing a man with black hair and dark eyes holding a long spear. Egger guessed this was Oberyn Martell. Compared to his opponent, the Red Viper appeared almost unprotected; aside from greaves, bracers, a gorget, a leather tunic, a war skirt, and a helm without a visor, he wore only supple leather and smooth silk undergarments. A layer of gleaming copper scales covered his mail, which all together covered barely a quarter of his body.
Egger wasn't familiar with the Tarth sigil, but based on the shouts of the soldiers, he confirmed that the one facing the Red Viper was indeed Brienne The Beauty. Taking a few more glances at this Blue Knight, he couldn't help but marvel: Gods, this woman is tall!
Standing before the booted and fully armored Brienne, Oberyn seemed only to reach her chest. But now, despite being at a disadvantage in both height and equipment, the Red Viper was tilting his head with a smirk, taunting his opponent.
"Keep going, girl. I admit you're the toughest woman I've ever faced. You aren't out of breath already, are you?"
...
Goaded by the crowd's roars, Brienne let out a yell and charged Oberyn once more, her longsword carving a startling arc of light as it swung unceremoniously toward him.
Egger had served as a ranger for a year, so he wasn't a total amateur in swordsmanship. From that single strike, he could tell Brienne's reputation was no empty boast. His roommate at Castle Black, Gared, who had held a sword for forty years, might have been able to trade a few blows with her. As for himself? Under such a powerful and rapid assault, he wouldn't last more than a few moves if he fought with a standard parry-and-riposte style.
Amidst the jeers of the onlookers, Oberyn Martell executed a graceful spin to one side, slipping past the blade's edge. With calm composure, he twirled his spear in a flourish—without even looking back, he used the butt of the spear to accidentally jab Brienne in her armored lower back. The force sent the swordswoman stumbling, nearly crashing into the surrounding crowd.
Brienne is completely outclassed by Oberyn, Egger realized. If she shed the armor, she might have a slight chance of winning on speed—but without protection, if the Red Viper applied even a drop of something to his spear tip in a life-and-death duel, the outcome wouldn't change.
"I—yield!" Before Egger could think further, the tall Blue Knight angrily threw down her sword in full view of everyone. She yanked off her helmet and, after speaking, pushed through the crowd without looking back. A wall of men were shoved aside, unable to stand in her way.
That was it? Yielding after just one move didn't seem like The Beauty's style... Egger blinked, but soon realized the reason. Brienne must have been fighting Oberyn for quite some time before he arrived. She had likely been toyed with in every conceivable way; seeing no hope of victory while her opponent refused to end the match cleanly, she must have felt insulted, leading to the angry surrender.
The spectators hissed and booed, but the Prince of Dorne's martial skill was truly astonishing; yielding to him was no disgrace. Watching The Beauty depart, Oberyn let out a light chuckle and shouted, "Dornish spearplay is supreme in the world! Does anyone else disagree?"
The chatter in the crowd died down instantly. Many soldiers goaded each other to step forward, but after much shoving and posturing, not a single person stood out. Egger snorted inwardly with disdain. In this camp, those capable of dueling Oberyn were either by the side of their respective Lords or wearing white cloaks guarding the King. For someone of Oberyn's high status to jump out and fight low-level knights was quite a step down.
Having achieved his goal of seeing the Red Viper and Brienne, Egger prepared to leave to see if there were any other unvisited nobles. But as he turned, his sleeve was suddenly grabbed. "Wait! Isn't the 'Other-Slayer' right here? Let him step up and trade a few blows with the Prince! Let's see the prowess of the Night's Watch!"
...
"Other-Slayer! Other-Slayer!" Having found a target for their antics, the crowd's clamor and cheers suddenly intensified, mixed with shouts of "Night's Watch!" and "Chief Logistics Officer!" Before he could even react, Egger was seized by several nearby soldiers and shoved directly into the center of the ring.
It was no exaggeration to say that Egger was now a celebrity.
The Fantastic Adventures of a Man of the Night's Watch had been on sale for several weeks. Although its sales couldn't compete with the special publications released at the same time, people couldn't read smut all day. In this allied camp, there were many illiterate peasant levies, but with the nobility and elite forces of six kingdoms gathered, the literacy rate was actually much higher than anywhere else in Westeros—likely reaching ten percent or more.
Furthermore, even those who couldn't read could learn the contents of the novel through the mouths of those who could.
As one of the first novels to appear on the market, featuring a protagonist who wasn't a knight and content that felt fresh and new, Adventures had easily become a hit. Through word of mouth, Egger's own story had spread.
As the protagonist, Egger had originally hoped the novel would inform the world that he was a visitor from beyond Westeros who had been forced into the Watch due to a linguistic misunderstanding. He also wanted to rehabilitate the image of his brothers in black facing wildlings and Others on the front lines. However, reality often diverges from the ideal. Readers and listeners somehow ignored the true point of the novel and instead fixated on the passage where he bested an Other in hand-to-hand combat in the Haunted Forest. Thus, the publication had a diametrically opposite effect:
Not only did the image of the Night's Watch remain unchanged, but they gained a reputation for being braggarts. Egger himself became a legendary member of the Watch—though that legendary status was firmly in quotation marks.
It was a book where 99% of the content was fiction, yet everyone took the only 1% that was true as proof that the rest was false. Egger didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
In the real world, this would be considered a classic failure of public relations and a mismanagement of public opinion. Fortunately, he hadn't used the protagonist's name in the book, and the cover stated it was a work of fiction. While it had some negative effects, compared to the fame, sales, and profit it brought him, it wasn't a total loss.
...
Egger had been comforting himself with these thoughts, but as he was pushed into the ring to face one of the finest warriors in the Seven Kingdoms, his fame suddenly became a heavy burden.
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