Human Skin Mask

As Sandor entered, he smelled a rich aroma of food. Robert, the little House Frey, told him that today was Jon's seventeenth Name Day.

Upon entering the dining room, Sandor saw several servants and maids bustling about. The table was covered with a green tablecloth, and several sets of cutlery were laid out on it, indicating that Jon would be inviting other people as well.

Sandor, as a guard, knew he was not qualified to sit, so he took out a piece of dried meat from his pocket, lifted his mask, and put it in his mouth to chew.

The salty taste of the jerky spread in his mouth. He wasn't hungry, but he was mainly satisfying his craving so that he wouldn't be drooling when Jon and the others ate later.

Soon after Jon and Margaery appeared arm in arm. Upon seeing the couple, Sandor quickly spat out the jerky he hadn't finished chewing and hid it behind his back.

"My lord, my lady."

"Sir Sandor," Margaery responded with a smile.

After the couple entered the dining room, Margaery turned to them and said, "Come in, Sir Sandor. Today is His Majesty's seventeenth Name Day. By the way, your Name Day is around today too, isn't it? His Majesty intends to celebrate both of your Name Day together."

"My lord." Sandor felt his head spin a little when he heard Margaery say that.

Jon wants to celebrate his Name Day with him? And he's even inviting him to dinner?

Although when he swore allegiance to Jon, Jon's oath included the promise that "there will always be a place for you by my hearth," it was still somewhat inappropriate for him, as merely a guard, to dine with a lord.

To be honest, Sandor himself had almost forgotten his own Name Day, and he was very touched that Jon had managed to find out.

"Madam, this is the master's Name Day, so I won't use it—"

"Ah, I understand." Jon interrupted him. "You want me to come over and invite you to sit down myself?" He then got up.

Sandor dared not let Jon come and invite him, so he hunched his shoulders and bent his back, jogging all the way to the dining table.

He sat four or five seats away from Jon, not because he didn't want to sit closer to Jon, but because he felt apprehensive, yet he still felt uncomfortable.

When he appeared in public as a bodyguard, Sandor liked to stretch his body and straighten his back to make himself look taller.

But now he desperately wants to look smaller, like a giant bear trying to hide behind a sapling.

His comical yet endearing appearance made Margaery chuckle.

"Sir Sandor, why don't you take off your helmet? It's so inconvenient!" Margaery said.

"Madam, my face is burned. I... I am ugly," Sandor said embarrassedly. He used to enjoy using his face to frighten people, but now he was afraid of offending the banquet.

"Sandor, I've prepared a gift for you."

"A gift? Me?"

Upon hearing Jon's words, Sandor was once again flattered, to the point of being restless.

A maidservant approached Sandor with a white box in her arms. This was the first time Sandor had ever received a gift in his life, and he was both excited and Jon about what Jon had given him.

"Open it and take a look."

"Yes, sir."

Upon hearing Jon's words, Sandor nodded, his hands, which had slain countless people, trembling slightly.

However, upon opening the box, they found a piece of flesh-like material inside, along with a clump of hair.

Sandor was momentarily confused about the purpose of the gift. Was Jon playing a trick on him? No, based on his understanding, Jon Snow wasn't that kind of person at all.

On the contrary, Joffrey might put a dead rat or something in his food dish to test whether his dog "would eat rats."

"Put it on Sir Sandor."

"Yes, sir."

"Put it on?"

Sandor was somewhat confused, but when the maid picked up the flesh-like object, he realized it was actually a mask! However, it seemed to only show half a face.

Suddenly, a thought struck him, and he seemed to understand what Jon's gift really was.

The maid put a mask on Sandor, fastened a wig, and then pulled a mirror out from under the box.

Sandor looked at himself in the mirror and subconsciously turned his head away, but he was still drawn to the person in the mirror. A brown wig covered his ears, and a mask that closely matched his skin tone covered the scars on his face.

The mask felt cool and didn't fit him perfectly, but it gave him the courage to face the mirror.

Suddenly, the burly man, who had spent years licking blood from the edge of a knife, had tears in his eyes and actually burst into tears, crying like a child, his body trembling, even the wine glasses on the table trembled slightly.

Seeing Sandor's overwhelming excitement, Jon gently said, "This mask was made for you by Qyburn. It's not particularly nice, and it might not be very comfortable to wear. If you wear it for a while, you can go back to him and ask him to make you another one."

"Mmm!" Sandor was still crying, and could only stand up and nod and bow frantically to express his gratitude.

Receiving this mask would make him happier than giving him a chest of gold.

At this moment, Margaery spoke up, "Actually, the master didn't know exactly when his Name Day was. He just asked Sir Brynden, and based on the time when Duke Eddard took him through Riverrun, he calculated that it was around the same time as your Name Day, so he invited you to celebrate with him."

Margaery added that with the campaign imminent, and Jon needing to personally face danger, she and Jon devised this way to win people's hearts.

Sandor, as Jon Snow's bodyguard, went to great lengths to ensure that Sandor could fight bravely and protect Jon without hesitation.

By this time, Sandor had almost recovered. He might understand the situation regarding the attempt to win Jon Snow over later, but for now, he was incredibly grateful to the couple and secretly resolved that once they reached the Iron Islands, he would absolutely not let Jon get hurt before he died.

"It is my honor to celebrate your Name Day on the same day as you, sir. Thank you, sir, and thank you, madam."

Sandor's voice, though still somewhat choked with emotion, was full of sincerity.

"Alright, have a seat. More people are coming soon."

"Yes, sir."

Sandor returned to his seat, and although he didn't say anything, he admired himself in the mirror.

Not long after, two young noblemen arrived together; they were Garlan and Loras.

The two brothers naturally sat down next to Margaery, and then they both noticed Sandor.

The two looked at Sandor with some curiosity, and Sandor immediately stood up and bowed when he saw them.

"Sir Garlan, Ser Loras."

"You're Sandor?!" Loras exclaimed in surprise, having already discerned it from the other's physique.

"Yes, sir, this is a mask. It was a gift from you and your wife."

Loras leaned closer to look, Jon chuckled, saying, "Not the Sandor you remember, but his martial prowess is just as formidable!"

Listening to Jon's teasing, Sandor became even more embarrassed. A little while later, Martin arrived and happened to sit opposite Sandor, so he could be seen from time to time.

Soon, Randyll Tarly, Brynden, Rickard, Haken, and Elder Vidor also arrived.

Almost everyone who entered and bowed to Jon and his wife noticed the tall but shy Sandor, staring intently at the intricately crafted mask.

Previously, Sandor had mostly felt fear or disgust at the self-light he perceived. This was the first time someone else had looked at him with this kind of self-light, and half of his face turned red.

Seeing that everyone had arrived, Jon stood up and said, "Gentlemen, you have all fought alongside me. Actually, I wanted to take this opportunity of the Name Day celebration to talk about the war."

Upon hearing Jon's words, everyone sat up straight.

Jon clapped his hands, and several servants came to them carrying Raven cages, saying, "These Raven were personally trained by me. Ser Loras, Garlan Garland, Ser Brynden, and Martin, each of you will take one. They can provide early warning for your fleet through their calls. I've also prepared a manual for you; you can determine the number and direction of the enemy by observing the Raven ' flight paths."

"Such a clever Raven?" Loras looked at the Raven with amazement.

Brynden and Rickard glanced at the Raven while reading the manual, thinking that such a clever Raven was like giving the commander eyes that could fly!

Jon looked at the expressions on everyone's faces and felt very satisfied. With these Raven, he could completely remotely control the fleet to coordinate with his operations on the Iron Islands.

At the banquet, Jon Snow spoke to everyone about some precautions for battle, especially the importance of not getting carried away, and how they could gradually wear down the enemy's strength by using distraction to their advantage.

"Although our goal is to eliminate future threats, we must not forget that the purpose of war is to annihilate the enemy and preserve ourselves. Killing the enemy is important, but the latter cannot be ignored!"

The idea of celebrating the Name Day was Margaery's. She believed it would bring Jon closer to the others, since Jon would need their support for his operations on the island.

Of course, those Florent were excluded; if they were all won over, it would be the same as not winning them over at all.

Jon didn't say much at the banquet; instead, Margaery, with her slightly protruding belly, greeted everyone one by one.

Brynden, Martin, Rickard, Raynard, Paxter all expressed their feelings.

After the Name Day banquet, Sandor and Jon went together to meet the elites contributed by the various families.

Inside the military camp, some of Jon's bastard sons, who were to serve as his personal guards, were discussing the matter privately.

Like their biological siblings, they received almost the same education and possessed a certain degree of critical thinking ability, thus having their own opinions on Jon's plans, which even led to some debates.

"We're completely unfamiliar with the terrain of the Iron Islands, and we're with a bunch of Wildlings. To be honest, we'll likely fail more often than not." The speaker was Aes, the illegitimate son from Honeyholt.

"I think Lord Jon has certainly considered this. He has never lost a battle since he went to war, and those tribesmen have just come down from the Moon Mountains, so I don't think the terrain is a problem." The speaker was Giles Flowers, the bastard son of Margaery's uncle.

"Yes, once we go to the Iron Islands, we're all meant to live and die together, and so are you, sir," Robin Flowers said.

He was a bastard son of the Hightower, and because Jon bravely rescued Alerie, he had a very good impression of Jon.

However, some people soon pointed out that Jon was a duke, and a duke could not possibly die. Even if they were defeated, they could be brought back with a ransom.

Others wanted to refute this, but upon closer examination, wasn't it also true?

The weight of life is inherently different.

Sometimes they do think about how much better it would be if they weren't illegitimate children.

Therefore, many of them regarded Jon as their role model, hoping that one day they could build their own family through military achievements.

For the bastards of the Seven Kingdoms, Jon was not just a legend, but also a role model.

He showed many illegitimate children who faced discrimination the possibility of changing their fate.

So although following Jon to the Iron Islands was a very risky undertaking, they knew it was one of the few opportunities to change their fate.

Just then, news came that Jon was inspecting the military camp, so they all rushed over, eager to meet the new Lord of Casterly Rock.

Since Jon took control of Casterly Rock, he has erected flagpoles in many places, on which Stannis's Fiery Heart Stag Banner and Jon's own black White Wolf Banner fly.

Jon stood on the flag platform, looking at the elite troops, including many bastards, that each family had contributed. He knew what they were thinking, and said, "You have all heard, to varying degrees, how much damage the Iron Islands have caused to the Sunset Sea coast. I doubt any family has escaped their pirate raids. This time, you will accompany me to the Iron Islands, deep behind enemy lines. Admittedly, the dangers are great. Therefore, regardless of whether you achieve anything on the Iron Islands, I will, in the name of the Lord of Casterly Rock, reward you with land in the Westerlands! If you perform meritorious service, I will not hesitate to bestow titles upon you."

Upon hearing Jon's words, everyone was greatly shocked, as such a generous bestowal of a lord was a rare occurrence.

"Furthermore, at least half of you will have the opportunity to inherit your father's surname, I guarantee at least half! If your fathers disagree, I will personally speak with His Majesty. If His Majesty disagrees, then I will allow you to use your fathers' surnames in the Westerlands."

This is an immense temptation for illegitimate children, and they are all eager to try.

Then Jon changed the subject. "The tribal warriors who came with us into the Iron Islands and the Moon Mountains —I know some of you call them Wildlings —but in the Iron Islands, we'll be comrades-in-arms, back to back, fighting side by side, including me. I beheaded eight thousand Ironborn in the Battle of the Bay of Severed Heads. If we fail in the Iron Islands, do you think they'll let me go?"

Hearing Jon say this, they chuckled softly, feeling a sense of admiration. Jon had chosen to venture into the Iron Islands knowing that failure would mean certain death; he truly deserved to have risen from a bastard to the Lord of Casterly Rock.

"Therefore, I will not allow any sectarianism among you after we reach the Iron Islands. If I find out that this causes conflict or even affects our occupation, there will be only one punishment: immediate execution!"