Night fell, and the expected storm arrived.
Rolling waves crashed against the walls of the small wooden hut. Fierce winds rattled several grimy windows with constant clatter.
"A child?"
"Not a wildling. Found him from the south."
"Poor child... he was the only one alive in the village. Doesn't even remember what happened!"
"A child who survived great tragedy!"
Harry felt like he'd experienced a very long dream where he encountered all kinds of people.
Petunia had already found several mouldy blankets from another room. Dudley slept on the bug-eaten sofa while she and Vernon went to sleep on a lumpy, uneven bed in the adjacent room.
Because of mysterious letter after mysterious letter, the family of four had come to this island under Vernon's leadership. Vernon believed hiding here would prevent anyone from delivering more letters.
Harry could only find the least uncomfortable spot on the floor. He curled up under a thin, worn blanket, falling asleep in misery.
"Night gathers, and now my watch begins. It shall not end until my death.
I shall take no wife, hold no lands, father no children.
I shall wear no crowns and win no glory.
I shall live and die at my post.
I am the sword in the darkness. I am the watcher on the walls.
I am the fire that burns against the cold, the light that brings the dawn, the horn that wakes the sleepers, the shield that guards the realms of men.
I pledge my life and honour to the Night's Watch, for this night and all the nights to come."
Deep in the night, rain poured and wind raged as the storm grew more unrestrained.
Harry couldn't sleep. He tossed and turned, unable to distinguish reality from dreams. He seemed ready to wake at any moment, yet always remained shrouded in the "dream".
"The duty of the Night's Watch is to monitor humanity's greatest enemy... The Wall has fallen; oaths are broken. We must form a larger army, unite all forces that can be united, use all power that can be used."
"Lord Potter, the brave warriors of the Seven Kingdoms are all here, as are the priests of foreign gods."
"My lord, women can also—"
"Of course. You've earned merit; you're qualified."
Harry drew his longsword from its sheath, solemnly placing the blade flat upon the woman's right shoulder.
"In the name of the Warrior, I charge you to be brave."
The sword moved to the left side.
"In the name of the Father, I charge you to be just."
"In the name of the Mother, I charge you to defend the innocent."
"In the name of the Maiden, I charge you to protect women and children."
"Rise, Brienne of Tarth, knight of the Seven Kingdoms."
"Darkness lay over the world, and a hero, Azor Ahai, was chosen to fight against it.
To fight the darkness, Azor Ahai needed to forge a hero's sword.
He laboured for thirty days and thirty nights, but when he plunged the sword into water to temper it, it shattered.
He began again, this time working for fifty days and fifty nights, creating a sword even finer than the first.
Azor Ahai captured a lion and tried to drive the blade through the beast's red heart to temper it, but once more the steel shattered.
The third time, knowing what he must do, he worked for a hundred days and nights with a heavy heart.
When the sword was finished, he called for his wife, Nissa Nissa, and asked her to bare her breast. He drove the smoking sword through her still-beating heart, and her blood, soul, strength, and courage all went into the steel.
Thus was Lightbringer born."
"When the red star bleeds and the darkness gathers, Azor Ahai shall be born again amidst smoke and salt to wake dragons out of stone..."
In the darkness, a streak of light flashed like a meteor, appearing in Harry's right hand. The faint glow flickered in and out before finally disappearing, forming an inconspicuous mark on his right wrist. Rather, a scar.
Dudley, sleeping on the sofa, produced thunderous snores that rivalled the actual thunder. Naturally, he paid no attention to this brief light.
Two armies faced each other, dragons dancing wildly above.
This was a war between the living and the dead. A struggle between life and death. A divine war between the Great Other and R'hllor.
This was the song of ice and fire.
Harry Potter stepped forward from the ranks, reaching the front lines.
"Ten years of bitter warfare, finally leading to this day."
"Brave warriors bid farewell to loved ones, carrying fury to spill enemy blood... and we shall be remembered forever!"
"Our fame shall inspire future heroes!"
With that, blood-soaked Harry drew his burning sword, turned and roared: "Night King, face me!"
The moment his left hand was wrapped in dark, ominous ice, Harry opened his eyes.
"Where is this?"
"My hands have gotten smaller?"
"Where's the Night King? I won! ...But the Great Other... ugh..."
Sharp pain in both hands made him grunt.
His left hand was ice.
His right hand bore a mark that glowed again from stimulation, with an intense burning sensation. Harry immediately thought of the heroic red sword he'd once drawn, Lightbringer.
The ice on his left hand had been receding, becoming another mark. But when the light appeared, it showed signs of spreading again.
The conflict grew stronger.
"Fire and ice, light and dark, life and death, day and night, summer and winter... everything in the world is the result of the eternal struggle between these two gods..."
"R'hllor, the Lord of Light, Heart of Holy Fire, God of Shadow and Flame, is also the god of heat and life. The Great Other, god of darkness, cold and death, the God of Night and Terror, Soul of Black Ice... Their endless struggle determines humanity's fate."
Harry recalled the words of the red priests after he drew the sword and became king.
He'd never fully believed these people, but had to admit some of what they said might be true. Those two forces were indeed incompatible.
Choose one side, and you couldn't choose the other.
"My hands... this place... I remember now. Could it be that I've returned to childhood? On that island, I fell asleep on that island and then went to another world, and now I'm back... such things really exist in the world?"
Amid increasing pain, Harry calmly opened the system panel that had gradually become part of himself after crossing to the other world.
Some familiar text appeared, resembling a gaming interface, followed by mysterious characters that looked somewhat like a foreign script. Harry didn't understand their meaning.
Fortunately, this mysterious system provided multiple language options. He'd switched to English when he first accessed it years ago, otherwise he wouldn't have been able to read it.
Harry's education was fairly comprehensive. Having learnt various subjects, he was roughly equivalent to an elementary school graduate and could no longer be considered illiterate.
[King Development System]
[True Name: Harry Potter]
[Titles: Ruler of Westeros and Protector of the Realm, King of War, Legendary Warrior, Sword King, Knight King, Lightbringer, Darkness Slayer, White Walker Destroyer, King of Strength... (A Song of Ice and Fire Plane)/The Boy Who Lived (Harry Potter Plane)]
[Strength: 20]
[Stamina: 4]
[Magic: 2]
[Divine Power: 2]
[Charisma: 5]
[Intelligence: 1]
[Golden Attribute Points: 1]
[Equipment: Lightbringer (Soul Bound), Soul of Darkness (In Conflict)]
[Skills: One-Handed Sword Mastery, Two-Handed Sword Mastery, Polearm Mastery, Throwing Mastery, Crossbow Mastery... Block, Critical Hit, Charge, Whirlwind Dance, Execution, Armor Break... Cleave, Blood Rage, Lord of Light's Illumination]
The panel contained numerous clickable options and additional explanations. Each title had corresponding effects, but most were now inactive and greyed out. Only [The Boy Who Lived] remained lit.
In the previous world, other titles had been active while this one remained greyed out. Now he could finally see its information: [The Boy Who Lived] – Gain various bonuses when in conflict with this world's destined enemy.
Who was this destined enemy?
How powerful were they?
In that world the system labeled as A Song of Ice and Fire, there'd been no such special enemy... Was their name also a secret?
Setting that aside, the attributes below the titles were divided into six categories.
Each had detailed explanations, with Strength being the simplest.
Harry had heard other children discuss similar game attributes before crossing over, usually divided into "Strength, Agility, Constitution, and Intelligence".
But Strength here was different, also switchable to "Vigour", encompassing various effects like strength, speed, and constitution enhancement in a single attribute.
Moreover, it only required easily obtainable Bronze attribute points for improvement, being the only attribute directly upgradeable with Bronze points.
Other attributes required ten Bronze points to exchange for one Silver point, which could increase Stamina and Magic.
Ten Silver attribute points could be exchanged for one Golden attribute point, which could increase Divine Power, Charisma, and Intelligence.
Strength offered exceptional value and represented the most direct form of power. Harry had invested almost everything into Strength. With greater strength came natural speed increases. If not for the system warning of danger after reaching 20 points and suggesting raising Stamina or Magic above 5 points, he wouldn't have invested in Stamina at all.
For ordinary people's strength, infants and children generally didn't count. Healthy women typically had 1 point, reasonably healthy adult men had 2 points, and with adequate nutrition, they gained another point. Elite knights typically had 5-6 points of Strength.
Harry had never seen any pure-blooded human besides himself reach above 10 Strength, including Ser Gregor Clegane, who at most had 10 points.
When he reached 20 points of Strength, no enemy on the battlefield could last a single exchange.
The 20-point Strength limit wasn't simply double the lifting capacity of 10 points, but granted an absolute advantage in physical contests. His body contained inexhaustible strength to draw upon. In direct confrontation, he could overpower even monsters, capable of subduing giants and dragons with his bare hands.
It reminded Harry of Hercules, wrestling monsters while remaining human, yet capable of the most outrageous feats, even supporting the world.
Of course, his physical body couldn't compare to such mythological figures. Battling certain monsters was Harry's limit.
Moreover, now that he'd returned to childhood, he could clearly feel this body had undergone miraculous rejuvenation with dramatic changes. Though his current strength far exceeded his initial state after crossing worlds and was much stronger than the 10-point level, it was far from his peak, feeling quite weak.
He'd likely need time to rest and adapt before recovering his original strength.
Besides Strength, Stamina might represent something more fundamental.
Most people had a fixed 1 point of innate Stamina, very difficult to improve later, including Harry initially.
After adding points to reach 4 Stamina, Harry felt his body become more comfortable and flexible, with a deep pleasure different from physical enhancement, gaining a new power that flowed with his breathing.
Most people lacked the Magic attribute entirely. Harry was born with 1 point, which increased to 2 points after reaching adulthood in that world. The Magic increase might have stemmed from bodily changes or environmental factors, essentially still natural 2 points, second only to rare beings like the Night King and dragons.
Harry had learnt some minor tricks, but none were particularly useful, far less practical than Strength. He was only proficient in a simple illumination spell.
However, possessing a high 2-point Magic attribute allowed natural immunity to some magical curses, which was sufficient.
The remaining three "divine" attributes all required Golden attribute points for improvement. His Charisma had started at 2 points, representing not only charm toward people but also spiritual influence, providing bonuses to magic, divine arts, and rituals...
The explanations were extremely complex. Using his elementary education to interpret them, Harry could only partially understand. Later, obsessed with Strength, he'd paid less attention to these aspects.
After becoming Ruler of Westeros and Protector of the Realm, completing various great deeds and achievements, his weight in fate had changed, raising his Charisma to 5 points.
He felt there was indeed a difference. Soldiers being more easily inspired when he gave orders was just the most superficial feeling. More importantly, he'd become less susceptible to being swayed, charmed, or replaced. Even gods found it difficult to ignore his existence.
The same ritual performed by a monarch versus an ordinary person yielded vastly different results...
This was just a vague feeling Harry had gained after becoming king.
All mortals had zero Divine Power, including septons and red priests whose borrowed power didn't seem to count.
Harry only gained 1 point of Divine Power after drawing Lightbringer and receiving [R'hllor's Calling].
Then came the present, where killing the Night King earned [The Great Other's Attention] and his second point.
The two conflicted, with the system suggesting adding Divine Power to consolidate his own kingly power for resolution.
As for Intelligence, it seemed useless.
Harry believed his 1 point of Intelligence should suffice. He'd always been clever and never paid attention to it.
This was also because he couldn't afford to increase it, as Golden attribute points required 100 Bronze points to exchange.
His current single Golden attribute point should be the reward for slaying the Night King, completing that world's most important event of that era.
Without hesitation, Harry directly invested in Divine Power.
Add point!
[Divine Power: 2] → [Divine Power: 3]
The conflicting forces surging through both hands immediately decreased to an acceptable level. Harry felt some change occur at his brow, where the scar had been present since childhood. In his youth, it would hurt after nightmares, but after going to the other world, it never reacted again, so Harry had stopped thinking about it.
When the three forces settled, a new black scar appeared on his left hand. Was that [Soul of Darkness]?
The Great Other's power of darkness, cold, and death, opposing yet unified with R'hllor's burning, restless, cruel power.
He seemed to have undergone some transformative change. Under the miraculous blessing of Divine Power, had his strength limit also increased?
While marvelling at Divine Power's wonder, Harry stood up.
The bodily issues were temporarily resolved.
He'd pondered the matter of crossing worlds for so many years and no longer dwelt on it.
So, it's time to clarify the questions that existed before crossing over.
What exactly was Uncle Vernon hiding from? Was he being hunted by some great lord?
Or had he deserted from London?
And those letters addressed to him – where did they come from?