Ugh, I feel awful!
Waves of dizziness and a queasy sensation, accompanied by rising stomach acid, assaulted Lin Li as his consciousness gradually returned.
"Robb, Robb! How are you feeling? Can you stand?"
A concerned greeting rang in his ears. It was definitely not Chinese, yet Lin Li instantly understood what it meant.
What language was that? Robb?
Still groggy, Lin Li heard the words and shook his head from side to side, as if trying to shake off the dizziness and nausea.
Whether or not it was because of those two shakes, the dizzy spell quickly subsided, and Lin Li slowly opened his eyes.
A handsome, stern-looking young man with dark brown hair was staring intently at him with a pair of gray eyes.
When Lin Li opened his eyes, the young man tightened his grip on Lin Li's right shoulder and pulled him up from the cold ground, which was covered in gravel.
"Brother, what happened just now? Why did you suddenly faint?"
Seeing Lin Li get to his feet, a delicate-looking boy of around ten, with chestnut hair, asked softly from his left.
Still unsure of what was happening, Lin Li had no idea how to answer the boy.
"Heh heh heh, Robb, did you sneak out last night to visit Rose? Then spend the whole night in battle?"
Just then, a lean young man with fair skin and a lewd grin that said "every man knows" came over.
He handed Lin Li a leather waterskin that he had taken from a horse and teased him.
"Shh, quiet! Look, Lord Eddard is about to begin."
The black-haired young man frowned when he heard the leering youth bring up such an adult topic in front of the boy. He cut him off.
Only then did Lin Li have a chance to look around.
They were in a small valley of green foliage and scattered stones. More than a dozen soldiers in shining armor stood on the heights, swords at their waists and banners in hand, surrounding the valley.
About five meters ahead and to the right of Lin Li and the others stood a stone platform with a relatively flat surface.
Several tall, burly men stood on it. Three wore black cloaks made of animal fur, clearly marking them as men of importance.
The man on the far left was quite distinctive. He had tied the gray-white hair at his temples beneath his chin, making it look like he had a gray-white beard.
On the far right stood a middle-aged man with sharp eyes and a respectful bearing. He held out a long-handled greatsword in both hands, its scabbard made of animal fur.
At the center stood a solemn middle-aged man with a long face, neatly trimmed graying beard, brown hair, and gray eyes.
Even without saying a word, he exuded the imposing air of a man accustomed to command.
Standing before the three men were two soldiers wearing round helmets and uniform armor.
They were holding down a black-clad prisoner whose face was drawn with exhaustion, forcing his head into a notch in a wooden block speckled with dark brown stains.
The imposing man at the center gave a slight nod to the sword-bearer on his right. The other man stepped forward respectfully and presented the long-handled greatsword in both hands.
Sssh... clang!
The gleaming greatsword slid from its scabbard. The crisp, metallic scrape rang out among the onlookers, long and clear.
The sword-bearer quietly retreated a few steps with the fur scabbard. The imposing man stood before the prisoner, holding the sword in both hands, and spoke in a calm, steady voice:
"By the authority of the king of the Andals and the First Men, the Seven Kingdoms..."
BOOM!!!
At the sight before him and the sound of the imposing man's sentence, a strange sense of familiarity that had been nagging at Lin Li suddenly struck him like a bolt of lightning.
This was... the iconic opening scene with the "wolf family" from Game of Thrones!
I pulled an all-nighter at work, and now I've been transported to another world? Could it be any more absurd?
Whatever turmoil was raging in Lin Li's mind, the imposing man was already delivering the final words of his sentence.
"I, Eddard of House Stark, Lord of Winterfell and Warden of the North, hereby sentence you to death!"
Whoosh... thud, thud, thud!
As soon as Eddard Stark finished speaking, he swung the sword in both hands and cleanly severed the prisoner's head. His practiced movements were chilling.
The head rolled like a ball. Bright red blood sprayed from the headless corpse, adding a fresh stain to the dark brown wooden block.
The gruesome beheading did not affect Lin Li in the least, as if he had seen it all before.
Seeing that Lin Li seemed fine, the black-haired young man—Jon Snow—released his hold and headed toward the horses behind them.
As he turned, he quietly encouraged the little boy on Lin Li's left, Brandon Stark, who had gritted his teeth and watched the execution. "You did well!"
"Tch! If I hadn't been fetching Robb a waterskin, I should have been the one to present Ice to Lord Eddard."
Theon Greyjoy pursed his lips and muttered in dissatisfaction, then turned and followed Jon.
"Brother, let's go together!"
Brandon swallowed and tugged at Lin Li's black cloak with his right hand, speaking softly.
Brother? Right, I'm... Robb Stark!
The Young Wolf Lord of the "wolf family," the future King of the North, and the greatest tragedy of the Red Wedding!
Just as Lin Li thought this, a flood of memories and information suddenly surged into his mind.
Brandon watched Lin Li standing there with a vacant stare and worriedly wondered whether he should call out to his unusually quiet older brother again.
"Bran, do you understand why I had to kill him?"
At that moment, Eddard, pulling a leather glove onto his right hand, walked over to the two brothers without stopping. He glanced at Lin Li, who stood motionless with the waterskin in hand, then turned to Brandon and asked.
"Because he was a deserter from the Night's Watch."
Hearing his father's question, Brandon put aside his thoughts, looked at Eddard, and answered with pursed lips.
"Then why did I carry out the execution myself?"
"Because House Stark holds fast to its honor and follows ancient traditions."
"Exactly. 'The man who passes the sentence must swing the sword.' Bran, go on ahead. I need to speak with Robb."
Pleased with Brandon's answer, Eddard nodded.
Watching Brandon walk away, he continued speaking to the dazed Lin Li in a didactic tone. "Robb, I've already warned you that overtraining won't make you stronger. It will only lead to a host of problems.
Even the strongest lone wolf cannot defeat a stag!
The honor of House Stark has never rested on any one person. Our family must stand together, and the Northmen must stand together, so we can all make it through winter!"
"Don't train for the next couple of days. Get some rest. The next time something like this happens in our lands, you'll lead the men who capture and judge the criminal yourself."
"Yes, Father!"
Lin Li—no, Robb Stark—had just finished merging the memories in his mind. He answered Eddard respectfully.
Looking at his eldest son, who was now nearly as tall as he was, Eddard patted Robb on the shoulder and headed toward the horses.
He did not see the fiery resolve in his eldest son's eyes as he walked away.
I'm Lin Li, an ordinary office worker from Blue Star China!
I'm also Robb Stark, raised in Winterfell and heir to the Duke of the North!
I'll protect my family and friends. My future will not end in tragedy again!
Gulp!
Robb pulled the stopper from the leather waterskin and gulped down the water. It seemed he wanted to quench the flames raging inside him with the cold spring water.
The Stark party's return journey was unusually quiet. Eddard Stark rode at the head of the group without saying a word. There was a reason he had been called the "Silent Wolf" in his youth.
Ser Rodrik Cassel, the gray-haired master-at-arms of Winterfell, and Jory Cassel, Captain of the Guards and keeper of Ice, followed close behind.
Jon and Brandon were clearly closer. They rode side by side, chatting quietly about something.
Meanwhile, Theon kept muttering beside Robb, complaining that Robb had sneaked out of the castle the night before without inviting him. The three of them could have had some fun together, gone wild.
Robb didn't take in a word he said. Knowing he had only a few months to prepare, he was already laying out countless plans for what to do.
Of course, he had already thrown out countless plans, too!
After the two souls merged, riding, archery, swordsmanship, and the like were no longer a problem.
Those were the results of Robb's decade and more of constant training. They had long since become muscle memory, as if Lin Li had practiced them himself.
But the North had been at peace for nine years. All they usually dealt with were bandits, scattered Wildlings, murderers, and the like.
There was no way for Robb to find an excuse to build his own private forces.
Only his father, Eddard, had the authority to summon the guards of Winterfell and the North's bannermen.
Of course, once Eddard was imprisoned in a dungeon in King's Landing a few months later, Robb would have the authority to summon them as acting lord.
But simply accepting fate and waiting for history to repeat itself was the last thing Robb wanted to do.
When they were halfway through their journey, they reached an old stone bridge.
Thinking Robb was unusually quiet and dull that day, Theon took the initiative and rode ahead as a scout. He discovered the carcass of a sturdy stag.
Led by Eddard, they found the body of a female direwolf beneath the bridge, along with five fluffy, extraordinarily adorable direwolf pups.
A discussion followed, and in the end Eddard took Jon's advice and decided to adopt them.
Brandon, thrilled, was the first to pick up the direwolf pup he had chosen and head toward the bridge above.
Watching his son's delighted expression, Eddard shook his head with a hint of indulgence, then turned and headed up as well.
Robb stepped forward and naturally picked up the largest of the four remaining pups. It had smoky gray fur and yellow eyes.
You were supposed to be called Grey Wind, but now you belong to me, Blood Wind!
Looking at the exceptionally gentle direwolf pup, Robb changed its name slightly to remind himself of the tragedy of the Red Wedding.
[Low-tier supernatural life detected. Would you like to form a Blood Pact?]
As Robb settled on the name Blood Wind, a line of Chinese characters formed from blood appeared before him.
P.S. I've watched the Game of Thrones series many times, but haven't read much of the novel.
I've always felt that the Young Wolf Lord was brave, skilled in battle, upright, and kind, and that his death was a terrible shame. I hope the merging of two souls will give him a chance at a new life.
The story mainly follows the characters and events of the original series, with some settings from the original novels.
Please don't nitpick every detail. Of course, if you spot any factual errors, feel free to point them out.
Before you continue