In 293 AC, on the continent of Westeros, in King's Landing, the capital of the Baratheon Dynasty.
Two figures, one tall and one small, turned into the Street of Steel. Along the winding path, Visenya's Hill seemed long, lined with blacksmiths working by their forges, Free Knights haggling over armor, and gray-haired ironmongers selling various old iron knives from their carts.
Along the way, it was noisy and bustling, all for profit and fame.
"King's Landing is like a spider's web; only a spider can navigate it!" the hooded man leading the way thought triumphantly.
Across the Narrow Sea, he and his allies held the last scion of House Targaryen, and in Westeros, who would have thought he also held the stag's bastard.
As long as that secret, that great secret deep within The Red Keep, was exposed, he would surely gain immeasurable benefits.
The tall Boy following the hooded man stared at him with a mix of novelty and helplessness.
The Boy's face was very youthful, but his eyes seemed more precocious and steady.
The hooded man was not surprised; if a Boy was a bastard whose father had left and mother had died young, he would indeed become angry and precocious. The hooded man never considered that the Child had an adult's soul.
Gendry even occasionally saw some Lannister Knights, clad in red robes and half-lion helmets. House Lannister seemed to be everywhere in King's Landing.
They walked higher and higher, and the buildings grew taller. The more famous the blacksmith, the grander the house he lived in.
Finally, they reached the top of the hill, where a tall house stood.
Tobho Mott's smithy was larger than any other on the Street of Steel, built of wood and plaster, tall enough to overlook the entire street.
Two large doors, made of ebony and weirwood, were carved with a hunting scene.
On either side of the doors stood a stone Knight, clad in red armor, posed like a Griffin and a Unicorn guarding the entrance.
"Quickly, pour wine for the lord!" A sharp-eyed, slender handmaiden, noticing the leading man's luxurious clothes, quickly entered to inform the owner of the shop, the finest blacksmith in King's Landing.
The leading man was stout, with broad shoulders. He wore a substantial purple velvet cloak trimmed with silver, clearly high-quality, but his hood obscured his face, revealing only a brown beard with hints of red.
Tobho Mott wore a black velvet coat, its sleeves embroidered with Iron Hammer patterns in silver thread, and a heavy silver chain around his neck with a sapphire the size of a pigeon's egg.
"My lord, if you desire a new suit of armor, you have come to the right place. I assure you, my craftsmanship in King's Landing is unparalleled; you may compare it. Others forge armor, but mine are works of art.
I have served many dignitaries, Lord Renly, and so on," Tobho said proudly.
He wasn't entirely boasting; he had apprenticed in Qohor.
"Master Tobho, I do not seek armor or a helmet!" The guest under the hood spoke in a muffled voice, loud and greedy, seemingly a Tyroshi.
"I wish to send this Child to you as an apprentice." The hooded man laid down some gold, not the common Gold Dragons, but gold from Across the Narrow Sea.
But gold, after all, is gold.
Tobho noticed the Child the hooded man brought; he was very tall for his age, with charcoal hair and beautiful blue eyes.
Tobho tried to suppress his inner panic. He had seen Renly, Robert, and Stannis.
This Child bore a striking resemblance to Renly, but Renly could not possibly have a bastard this old.
Stannis was even less likely, so there was only one answer.
"My lord, I do not wish to invite trouble!" Tobho hesitated, but the hooded man laid down a second pile of gold.
"Don't speak of this, Tobho." Tobho thought for a moment and decided to take in the Child.
"This Child is now my apprentice. Who he was before he came here, I do not know."
"Very good! I hope you keep this secret!" The hooded man, satisfied, prepared to turn and leave.
"Thank you, my lord!" Gendry said to the hooded man.
"I hope you enjoy this life; at least it's better than being a runner in a tavern!" The hooded man turned and left, without looking back.
"I know it's you, The Spider!" Gendry thought to himself. The Spider's disguise ability was indeed first-rate.
He was an alien soul from Blue Star, who had now become the blacksmith's apprentice in 'A Song of Ice and Fire'.
At least Gendry's appearance and physique were outstanding; the whoring and fat king, after all, was once the mad storm reborn.
House Baratheon produced such strong men with clean-cut faces and clear, charming eyes.
Gendry accepted his fate, born in a tavern, calmly working as a runner there; this was also his safest path.
House Lannister's influence in King's Landing was immense, and he did not want to be assassinated like his siblings.
Moreover, the King, the King was a man who did not care for his family and Children, forgetting all vows of love after sleeping with someone.
Even more so for his bastards.
Until he was discovered by the observant The Spider and sent to the smithy.
"Boy, what's your name!" Tobho asked.
"Gendry, I don't have a surname!"
"Nobody cares about that. King's Landing is full of nameless people barely making a living. You following me is your good fortune! Come on, Boy, I'll show you where we work!" Tobho led Gendry forward.
Tobho led Gendry out the back door, through a narrow courtyard, and into a spacious stone-built barn, where the actual work of the smithy took place.
As Master Tobho opened the door, a blast of heat surged out, making Gendry feel as if he were stepping into the mouth of a fire dragon.
In every corner, a forge blazed, and the air was thick with the stench of smoke and sulfur.
The blacksmith foreman looked up for a moment, wiped the sweat from his brow, and then continued to wield his Iron Hammer and tongs, while the shirtless apprentices worked hard to pump the bellows.
Gendry looked at everything before him, finding it novel and interesting, but it was also physically demanding work.
In any case, this skilled trade was far better than being a runner in a restaurant.
"Being a blacksmith is physically demanding, but it's also a skilled trade.
As long as you master this craft, Knights and lords will beg you to forge them armor and helmets, and you'll be in high demand," Tobho boasted.
But then he reconsidered; this Child's identity was too special, and it would not be easy for him to simply settle down and forge iron.
Tobho still called for the foreman, taking him aside.
"This Child is my new apprentice. From now on, you will guide him. Don't assign him overly heavy tasks right away."
Thus began Gendry's life as an apprentice.