Just as Randyll Tarly led the combined forces of The Reach to King's Landing, and all the troops that could be mustered in King's Landing were in place, ready to march towards the Westerlands, Linde's forces had also arrived at the outskirts of Kalin Bay, near the Neck, the border territory of the North, and stopped.
After more than ten days of high-intensity travel, although there were breaks in between, everyone still inevitably felt tired. If they continued, even if they reached Kalin Bay, they probably wouldn't have much energy left for a fight.
In addition, disease was also an issue. Not long after entering the swamp, more than a dozen people fell ill. Fortunately, Lord Linde, adhering to the principle of being prepared, had Moroa prepare a lot of medicine before departing from Tengshi Town, including medicine specifically for various swamp diseases. After the dozen or so people took it, they quickly recovered, though their spirits were somewhat low.
Because of this, Linde could only stop, intending to find a dry place for the team to rest well for two days, adjust their condition, and then set off again.
However, finding a dry place in a location like the Neck was as difficult as finding a snowy field in Dorne.
"Lord Linde, we should be close to Greywater Watch now; we can go there to rest." Just as Linde was about to make do on the spot, Daisy walked up to Linde and said.
"Daisy, do you know the location of Greywater Watch?" Linde asked.
Daisy shook her head and said, "No one knows the exact location of Greywater Watch in the Neck except for the people of House Reed. It is said that Greywater Watch is built on a movable island that can wander through the swamps of the Neck, so it doesn't have a fixed location."
"Since we can't even find the place, how are we supposed to get to Greywater Watch? Should we fly up and look for it?" Lieutenant Raul wrung his damp cloak, squeezing out some water to lighten its weight, and said somewhat dejectedly.
It must be said that Linde had underestimated the trouble caused by the geographical environment of the Neck. A team accustomed to the warm climate of the South coming to a place like the Neck, which was cold, damp, and where breathing felt like water was being poured into one's nose, would have their morale affected more or less, no matter how high it was.
"We don't need to find it," Daisy ignored Raul's complaint, jumped off her horse, found a handful of brown-leafed weeds in the nearby grass, and said, "Find some of these brown-leafed weeds, light them, and raise thick smoke. The people of House Reed will send someone over when they see it."
Upon hearing Daisy's words, Linde immediately had people collect these brown-leafed weeds, pile them up, and light them. Soon, a column of black smoke rose, shooting straight into the sky, dispersing only after reaching a height of several hundred meters.
After waiting for a while, Glory, standing beside Linde, suddenly seemed to sense something and looked towards a patch of grass in the swamp not far away. Linde also followed Glory's gaze.
A large lizard-lion crawled out from the grass, its head slightly raised, looking at Linde and the others.
Because Linde's warhorses had already adapted to Glory's presence, the appearance of this lizard-lion did not cause the warhorses to panic. Daisy and the others drew their weapons, ready to deal with the presumptuous lizard-lion at any moment.
However, Linde raised his hand to stop them, then jumped off Black Wind, walked through the muddy ground, and approached the lizard-lion, saying, "Is that Lord Howland Reed?"
Everyone was stunned and looked at the lizard-lion in surprise. They couldn't possibly connect the lizard-lion in front of them with Howland Reed, the head of House Reed.
Linde, however, was different. In Linde's and Glory's sight, a grey mist emanated from the lizard-lion, vaguely forming a human shape, lying on the lizard-lion, controlling its movements.
In his memory, Howland Reed was an extremely mysterious existence. He was very likely a Shapeshifter, or perhaps a Green Prophet, and he also seemed to have connections with the Forest Children still living in the Neck, providing shelter for these Forest Children, and at the same time obtaining ancient knowledge from them, making him one of the people who knew the most secrets of this world.
Therefore, when Linde saw clear magical traces on this lizard-lion and its appearance was so coincidental, he immediately thought of Howland Reed.
As Linde's question fell, a hint of surprise flashed in the lizard-lion's cold eyes, and then it nodded slightly.
"I am Linde Terra, ordered by the King to resolve the fall of Kalin Bay. Now I want to find a place to rest and understand the situation in Kalin Bay. May I ask, can you provide us with a place to rest?"
The lizard-lion listened to Linde's words, then sized Linde up and down, looked at Glory beside Linde, was silent for a moment, nodded, and then turned its body, raising its head towards Linde, signaling Linde and the others to follow.
Seeing this, Linde returned to his horse, then led the team to follow behind the lizard-lion, leaving the main road and entering the adjacent swamp area.
"Watch your step, don't get separated. Two horses abreast, follow the horse in front."
Linde could feel that the path the lizard-lion led them on was a hard path that was easy to tread, but this hard path was not particularly wide, barely wide enough for three horses abreast, with swamps on both sides. So he constantly reminded the queue behind him.
Although a few people accidentally strayed off the path, fortunately, the swampy mud beside it was not too soft, and they quickly adjusted their horses and returned to the path.
After following the lizard-lion for about ten minutes, the team arrived at a small island surrounded by small rivers on three sides and covered with reeds on one side.
On the island, centered around a pointed tower house, dozens of houses were built, with a small square in the middle. There were many people in the square, including children and women.
Upon seeing so many cavalry appear outside the village, these people panicked, got up one after another, pulled their children back into their houses, while some men also walked to the square. They all held bows and arrows, but when they saw the leading lizard-lion, they moved their hands away from their quivers, evidently recognizing this lizard-lion.
At this moment, Linde saw the grey mist on the lizard-lion dissipate, and the lizard-lion reverted to its wild beast state.
Whether it was at Howland Reed's instruction or scared by Glory's murderous intent, it quickly swayed its body and darted into the reeds. Then, a trace was seen on the water surface, disappearing into the distance.
"Don't enter the village, set up camp outside. The ground here is relatively dry. Find some dry firewood, light a few bonfires, and dry your clothes. Also, control your horses and don't let them walk into the swamp." Linde instructed Jon and the others, then looked at the somewhat tired Nameria and said, "Let's go meet the master of this place!"
Nameria nodded, dismounted with Linde, left the camping arrangements to her lieutenant, and walked towards the village.
At this time, the villagers also seemed to realize that Linde and his people were not enemies. They no longer showed hostility, but they did not disperse either, instead curiously looking at Linde in his magnificent armor, the unusually tall Nameria, and Glory, the giant beast following beside the two.
Although they often saw large lizard-lions, it was their first time seeing a Shadow Lynx as large as Glory. However, none of them dared to approach Glory, because their survival instincts, developed over years in the swamp, told them that Glory was very dangerous, and the moment Glory's eyes swept over them, their hair stood on end.
"All of you, get out of here! Don't gawp at the guests like country bumpkins." A slightly hoarse voice came from the tower house. Then, a bearded man wearing a green tunic, a hooded cloak, carrying a longbow, and wearing a knight's sword walked out. Behind this man followed two children, a boy and a girl.
Seeing this man and the two children beside him, Linde knew that this person was Howland Reed and his children, Meera Reed and Jojen Reed.
When Howland appeared, Glory became noticeably tense, its body slightly taut, and it crouched low, adopting an attacking posture.
Linde was surprised by Glory's actions, as it was the first time Linde had seen Glory show tension towards a person.
Linde could see traces of magic flowing on Howland, but he couldn't see the details of the magic. So he shared vision with Glory and saw Howland's form through Glory's eyes.
Howland, who had just been in normal human form, turned into a giant lizard-lion, and on top of the lizard-lion's head, there was a human head, but this head was not Howland's, but a strange head woven from mud and vines.
Linde exited Glory's visual effect, reached out and stroked Glory's Neck, calming his emotions. Seeing Howland walking over, he stepped forward and bowed to him, saying, "Hello, Lord Howland."
Nameria also stepped forward to greet him.
"Hello, Chosen One of the Seven Gods, Earl Fudeli." Howland did not address Linde by his knightly title, but by the title promoted by the Seven Gods Church. "These are my daughter Meera and my son Jojen."
Linde took off his helmet, held it in his arms, then squatted down and looked at these two children who were very likely to influence the world's future.
Clearly, the current Jojen Reed had not yet gained Green Sight from the Three-Eyed Raven; he was still just an ordinary child.
Linde's gaze made both children nervous. Meera, as the older sister, though also timid at heart, instinctively reached out and shielded Jojen behind her.
At this moment, Linde suddenly had an idea and very abruptly said to Howland Reed, "Lord Howland, a place like the swamp is not suitable for children to live in. The warm Reach is more suitable. After this rebellion is quelled, I would like to adopt both of them as my foster son and foster daughter and take them to The Reach. What do you think?"
As soon as Linde said this, not only Howland and the two children were stunned, but even Nameria, who was beside them, was also stunned. She had not expected Linde to suddenly want to adopt foster children.
However, she was not against it and thought it would be good to bring these two children to Tengshi Town so they could keep Brienne company. Especially Meera, the girl, could be a female companion for Brienne, so that Brienne wouldn't always be hanging out with a bunch of men in the military camp and becoming increasingly crude in her behavior.
"Lord Linde, you're not joking, are you?" Howland asked doubtfully.
Linde said seriously, "Of course not, I am very serious."
The reason he wanted to adopt Meera and Jojen and take them to The Reach was to see if the Three-Eyed Raven could still find Jojen as a substitute to take Bran to the Eternal Winter Land.
"I apologize, Lord Linde." Although Howland was somewhat tempted by Linde's proposal, he clearly had reservations. He looked at his children, shook his head, and said, "The people of House Reed are suited to stay in the swamp. This place gives us strength and spirit. Once we leave here, we are like fish out of water and cannot survive."
Seeing Howland refuse, Linde sighed slightly. He felt that Howland's refusal of his proposal was probably not due to issues with the living environment, but rather because he knew something, or rather, he knew his children's destiny, and he chose to follow that destiny, unwilling to change it, even if this so-called destiny would ultimately lead his children to die in that far northern land.
Linde did not insist. He reached out and touched the heads of the two children, took out two of his spare Dragon Rune necklaces, handed them to the two children, and said, "These are necklaces I made myself. Consider them a Meeting Gift. Don't wear them normally. Keep them in a box. When you feel bothered or your thoughts are confused, put them on. They will make you feel better, but remember not to wear them for a long time."
Over the past year, Linde had conducted various experiments with this Dragon Rune necklace, which could calm the side effects of the Dragon Feast Ritual. He found that as long as it wasn't worn for a long time, ordinary people could also wear this Dragon Rune necklace, and wearing it could make their minds clearer.
So he also specially made one for Nameria, Moroa, and Burt, who often had to use their brains, and these two he gave to the children were his spares.
The two children were quickly attracted by the Dragon Rune necklaces in front of them, wanting to reach out and take them, but then they thought of something and turned to look at Howland.
Howland himself possessed abilities similar to a Shapeshifter. Although he did not know the mysteries contained within the Dragon Rune necklace, he could feel the power within it, especially after learning that these were actually necklaces made by Linde himself, which made him even more surprised and curious about Linde's abilities.
"Take them! But remember what Lord Linde just said, don't wear the necklaces lightly." Howland nodded to his children, then emphasized his reminder.
Both children happily took the necklaces in their hands, and the moment they held them, they felt the necklaces' unusualness, their faces showing excitement and curiosity.
Afterward, Howland invited Linde and Nameria into his tower house. By this time, a stove had been lit inside the tower house, and the warm air dispelled the chill of the swamp. Linde and Nameria also sat by the stove, drying their damp clothes, and picked up the bread brought by a servant, dipping it in some salt from a wooden dish nearby, which counted as fulfilling guest rights after eating it.
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