However, even so, there were not a few envious people among them, mostly the Highgarden nobles and knights who were accompanying the team on this journey; in their view, someone of Linde's low status was unworthy of such a legendary experience.
Yet, due to Fotimo, they dared not overtly belittle Linde in Garlan's presence, only daring to slightly question the veracity of Linde's story, but when Garlan asked them for their reasons for doubting, they were at a loss for words; all these things made them feel as if Linde was a hedgehog, impossible to approach.
Ultimately, they could only attack Linde by using Glory's albino appearance, because in Westeros, albino beasts were never considered auspicious; they were discriminated against much like human deformities, and in many folk legends, albino beasts were even described as evil creatures that devoured human souls; people who died by the mouth of an albino beast would not be received by the Stranger and would forever wander between life and death, eventually transforming into evil Others.
Although Garlan did not believe such absurd legends, and he held no prejudice against either animal deformities or human deformities, he nonetheless had to consider the opinions of others around him.
However, he did not want to do anything to Linde because of these people's jealousy, so when they rested that evening, he had a servant give Linde a collar fashioned from a bridle, as a way of showing his stance.
Linde had already planned to make a collar to restrain Glory, because Glory, besides being especially affectionate towards him, maintained a wild beast's nature towards everyone else; even Raoul was inadvertently bitten by it, losing a small piece of flesh, so Linde had to put the plan of training the Shadow Lynx on the agenda, and until Glory was trained to a satisfactory degree, he would restrain it with a collar and leash to prevent further injuries to people.
Glory, on the other hand, was unaware that its days of hardship were fast approaching; it instead thought the collar Linde put on it was a gift, a toy, and played with it gleefully.
The rest of the journey proceeded very smoothly; it did not rain again, and after departing from the inn, it took another three days to finally exit Kingswood and arrive at the end of the Rose Road, which was also the terminus of the Coppergate Road and King's Road, where the three roads converged.
It is interesting that this place, being the junction of three major roads and also at the exit of Kingswood, with the Blackwater Bridge connecting the South and the Crownlands behind it, should logically be a crucial military stronghold; not to mention building a fortress here, at least a military camp should have been erected and some troops stationed to guard the vital point.
However, in reality, there was only an abandoned military camp here, and this camp was only temporarily built during the campaign to suppress the Kingswood Brotherhood; after the Kingswood Brotherhood was dealt with, it was completely abandoned, and now that Robert Baratheon sits on the Iron Throne, he has not built a military fortress here either, but instead continues to let the former temporary camp lie in ruins.
As for the reason, it is very likely that he believes the Coppergate Road leads to Storm's End, and Storm's End is his Baratheon territory, so there is no need for him to waste manpower and resources garrisoning here.
However, as the House Rose contingent arrived at this intersection, a troop emerged from the abandoned temporary military camp; this troop was not large, only about a hundred men, dressed in black armor with golden cloaks draped over their backs, which looked both striking and impractical; the only practical items were the iron hammers hanging at their waists and the iron-tipped long spears held in their hands.
"They must be the Gold Cloaks of King's Landing," Raoul whispered, sidling up to Linde at this moment.
Linde listened to Raoul's tip, his gaze sweeping over the Gold Cloaks and finally settling on the person leading them.
This man was tall and handsome, with a thick mane of golden hair, a pair of emerald green eyes full of confidence, and slightly upturned, blade-like lips that made him appear extremely proud; in addition to his appearance, his attire was also very striking, a very ornate suit of armor worn over his body, a white cloak draped from his shoulders, and a beautifully decorated longsword wrapped by the cloak, subtly swaying beneath it with the movement of his body.
"Jaime Lannister the Kingslayer." Such a distinguished appearance, coupled with the obvious lion emblem on his armor, made it easy for Linde to identify the man's identity.
Not only Linde recognized the man's identity, but everyone else in the contingent also recognized him; however, upon recognizing the Kingslayer, they all involuntarily showed expressions of disdain and disgust; even Garlan, who had undergone special training, could not hide his disdain.
In the past, who was the most disgraced knight in all Seven Kingdoms was uncertain, as everyone had their own standards of judgment, making uniformity impossible; but after the War of the Usurper, this most disgraced knight was deservedly attributed to Jaime Lannister the Kingslayer, because he betrayed his oath and killed Aerys, the Mad King, whom he was sworn to protect.
As the person in question, Jaime Lannister seemed to have grown accustomed to such contemptuous and disdainful gazes; a year ago, he might have been angered by them, but now he was utterly unperturbed, for he knew very well that no matter how he explained himself, no one would believe him, nor would anyone quietly listen to him; the only thing he could do was to always hold his head high, so as not to let the crown on his head fall.
However, as Jaime's gaze swept over the soldiers of House Rose before him, he noticed that amidst countless looks of scorn and disdain, one person's gaze was unusually calm, showing no negative emotions directed at him whatsoever; this made him pause on that person for a moment, then quickly shift his gaze to Garlan Tyrell, who had already walked to the front of the contingent accompanied by Fotimo.
"I've heard of you, Garlan the Gallant," Jaime said, riding his horse up to Garlan, looking him up and down on horseback with a somewhat impertinent and very flippant tone, "I don't know if you're truly gallant, but from your physique, you don't seem to fit the part."
Jaime Lannister's casual taunting tone towards Garlan displeased the knights and nobles of House Rose, and Fotimo subtly rested his hand on his sword hilt.
Yet, Jaime seemed oblivious to House Rose's displeasure, his scornful smile becoming even more pronounced, and he paid no mind to the threat Fotimo displayed.