Sunlight dappled through the branches, casting patches of light on Galon.
He tightly gripped the blood-stained greatsword, his chest heaving violently, his heavy gasps whistling like an old bellows.
At his feet, a massive brown bear lay in a pool of thick blood.
Galon exerted all his strength and abruptly pulled the deeply embedded greatsword from the bear's neck. The resulting spray of bear blood splashed onto his face.
But Galon paid no mind to wiping it away. He turned his head to look at Joffrey, who was still shaken.
"Prince Joffrey, are you alright?"
Joffrey merely stood there, his eyes vacant, staring at Galon, who was bathed in blood like a demon.
What churned inside him was not the relief of surviving a near-death experience, but a bone-deep terror of the man before him.
At that moment, knights rushing over witnessed the scene and gasped in astonishment. "Galon... he killed this giant bear alone?"
"...The Bear Slayer!" someone shouted first.
"The Bear Slayer!"
Immediately, more shouts rose in succession.
The voices of the knights were trembling with excitement, repeatedly calling out the title among the dappled shadows.
Accompanying the shouts, people who were hunting nearby also rushed over, and soon Robert, carrying a spear, arrived at the scene.
"Seven Hells!"
When the clamor subsided, Robert stared at Galon in shock, unable to believe it.
"You hunted this alone?"
Galon was severely exhausted and could only respond with a nod. He staggered to the side, and the nearest knight quickly helped him to a spot under a tree.
Robert's face was full of disbelief.
He quickly stepped forward to examine the giant bear at Galon's feet, not even noticing Joffrey, who was still trembling from fear.
Robert touched the bear's body, feeling the thick, warm fur, and burst into loud laughter, praising him.
"Hahaha, The Bear Slayer, truly deserving of the name!" Then, he turned and asked, "Galon, how is your body? Are you injured?"
Galon shook his head, his voice hoarse.
"Your Majesty, I am fine. A moment's rest is all I need. It is Prince Joffrey who is severely frightened..."
Only then did Robert notice his terrified son, calling out softly, "Joffrey?"
Joffrey, trembling, finally looked at Robert with tear-filled eyes. "I... I...."
Seeing his son's terrified state, utterly devoid of the demeanor of a prince or a warrior, Robert felt a sense of disappointment.
But seeing his teary eyes, Robert's heart softened. He stepped forward and comforted him for a while.
Once Joffrey's emotions were somewhat stable, Robert instructed others to send the Prince back to the camp first.
"Someone, find a way to transport this giant bear back to the camp as well!"
"I want everyone to see Galon's trophy!"
At Robert's command, the Baratheon household knights began to rack their brains on how to move the giant bear.
Because the bear was too large and too heavy, and the Baratheon knights feared that forcibly dragging it would damage its pelt.
So, they sent for horses and used thirty or forty ropes to weave a giant net, wrapping it around the bear's body. Then, they used the horses to transport it back to the camp piece by piece.
Just then, Ned, having received word from Jon, rushed over with his men.
Gazing at the mountainous giant bear, Ned was also greatly shocked. "Robert, did you kill this giant bear?"
In his urgency, he addressed the King by his name. "You aren't injured, are you?"
Robert pointed at Galon and shook his head. "I wasn't lucky enough to encounter the bear. This bear was hunted by Galon!"
"Galon?" Ned was even more astonished. He instinctively turned his gaze to Galon, who was covered in bloodstains.
"It was out of necessity!"
Galon's stamina had recovered somewhat. He shrugged off the support of the man beside him and offered a wry smile.
"At the time, Prince Joffrey was in grave danger. If I hadn't attacked, the Prince's life would have been at risk!
I was fortunate to use the terrain to my advantage and successfully slay it."
Galon briefly recounted the events, and only then did Robert and Ned realize how perilous the situation had been.
"It's a shame that all of Prince Joffrey's guards perished!"
Robert followed Galon's gaze toward the nearby knights who had been reduced to pulp and shook his head.
"When I return, I must reward their families handsomely!"
At this moment, a knight led an extra horse over. After exchanging a few words with Robert, Ned took Galon and rode back to the camp first.
Along the way, more and more people heard the story of Galon single-handedly hunting a giant bear.
By the time they returned to the camp, almost everyone was craning their necks in anticipation.
"The Bear Slayer!"
When Galon, covered in blood and grime, appeared in the camp, even the servants and cooks were shouting the title.
Ned watched it all with a smile. When the shouts subsided, he ordered men to help Galon dismount.
He had Galon led to the long table laden with food and fine wine and instructed someone to bring a warm, damp towel.
"Galon, you've done a great deed!"
Galon wiped a few hasty strokes and laughed heartily. "It was pure luck!"
As he reflected, he couldn't help but feel a lingering fear.
If the giant bear hadn't coincidentally crashed into that tree, he wouldn't have been able to adapt to the situation, and he would have either been exhausted to death by the bear or the bear would have given up on him to attack Joffrey.
If Joffrey had been killed by the bear, how would he have faced Robert and the Queen?
Thinking of this, Ned patted Galon's shoulder, grateful. "Thanks to you, otherwise I truly wouldn't have been able to face Robert!"
Galon laughed. "Lord Stark, we are family. There is no need for formality!"
Ned laughed twice. "Yes, we are family!"
"Oh, right, there is one thing I wanted to ask of you!"
When the laughter ended, Ned remembered Maester Luwin's suggestion from the night before and went straight to the point.
"Galon, you know I will soon travel south to King's Landing. Some of my children will go with me, but Jon cannot."
Ned's expression grew slightly serious. "He is a bastard. There is no place for him in King's Landing."
"So, I would like him to become your squire!
What do you think?"
Galon looked surprised. Seeing his reaction, Ned thought he was unwilling, so he added, "I suggested this because I saw you getting along quite well with Jon lately, so I..."
But before he could finish, Galon interrupted with a smile. "Lord Stark, to be honest, I've had this in mind for a while!"
"A few days ago, when I was talking with Jon, I invited him to be a guest at Deepwood Motte.
But Jon was mindful of your feelings and hesitated to accept. I was planning to find an opportunity to talk to you about it, but I didn't expect..."
Ned was taken aback, then smiled. "So, you agree?"
Galon nodded solemnly. "Of course!"
Ned was immediately overjoyed.
"That's wonderful. I will talk to Jon shortly..." Just as he was about to say more, a rider on a fast horse arrived at the hunting camp from Winterfell.
"Lord Stark, Lady Catelyn says you must return immediately!"
"Brandon... Brandon fell from the high walls and is clinging to life!"
"What!" Ned was instantly shocked and furious. He trembled all over, his face filled with disbelief.
In a flash, he snatched a horse and galloped toward Winterfell.
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