Torrhen and the other guards crowded nervously around Lynn, unsure what to do.
They watched helplessly as Lynn's skin turned bright red, his veins bulging beneath it like earthworms, his entire body radiating a terrifying heat.
"My lord! Are you all right? Should we fetch Maester Aemon?"
Torrhen was sweating profusely with worry.
"I'm fine."
Lynn slowly opened his eyes, a frightening gleam flashing through them.
"My lord, you..."
Torrhen stared at Lynn, who had returned to normal, his face full of shock and doubt.
Lynn did not answer.
He simply stood and walked over to a dead pine so thick it would take two men to encircle its trunk.
Then Lynn drew a deep breath, clenched his fist, and punched it!
Thud!
A dull, teeth-jarring crash rang out.
Lynn withdrew his fist.
A shallow fist-shaped dent marked the trunk, surrounded by fine cracks.
It looks like this single attribute point made a very noticeable difference to my strength.
That was Lynn's silent assessment.
Torrhen and the guards around him nearly popped their eyes out.
What... what was going on?
They were all elite soldiers from the North and considered themselves strong.
But even with all their strength, they could leave little more than a scuff on a tree.
Yet Lord Lynn's punch had clearly surpassed them!
And he had not been this formidable on the training grounds just a few days ago.
Had he been holding back?
Their awe deepened.
Lynn stretched his limbs, savoring the unprecedented power surging through him, his spirits soaring.
[Strength: 6 (28%)]
A single herb had pushed his strength attribute straight past its bottleneck.
It had even filled nearly a third of the progress bar as a bonus.
The Haunted Forest was a treasure trove!
Unfortunately, his teacher Aemon had said that after taking Frostheart Grass once, further doses would be far less effective.
Still, using it to strengthen his loyal followers seemed like a good option.
After all, the stronger they were, the more experience they could earn.
That would indirectly strengthen him as well.
"Clean this place up. We're moving on."
Lynn's voice held an excitement he could barely contain.
"My lord, we're... we're still going farther?"
Torrhen hesitated.
"We've already gone nearly thirty li into the Haunted Forest. Any farther, and we might encounter a Wildling tribe."
"Wouldn't that be perfect?" Lynn grinned.
To Torrhen, that grin looked more dangerous than any beast in the Haunted Forest.
"My lord, but..."
"No buts, Torrhen."
Lynn gave his shoulder a hearty pat as usual, but the force made Torrhen stagger, nearly knocking him off his feet.
Lynn quickly caught him.
Embarrassed, Lynn hurried to speak.
"What did we come here to do? Hunt."
"And if we're hunting, we should go after big prey."
Lynn looked into the depths of the forest.
His gaze was like that of a hungry wolf that had caught the scent of blood.
"These little ones aren't even enough to fill the gaps between our teeth."
Torrhen swallowed at the wild hunger for battle in Lynn's eyes.
He had no idea what his lord had just experienced.
But he knew that his lord was now stronger than ever.
"Yes, my lord!"
Torrhen stopped trying to dissuade him and answered loudly.
He turned and roared at the other guards:
"What the fuck are you all standing around for? Pack up and get ready to move!"
His shout snapped the guards out of their stupor, and they hurried into action.
The party set out again.
Lynn rode his horse, feeling the power coursing through his body.
The Frostheart Grass seemed to have worked even better than he had expected.
It filled him with anticipation for this unexplored forest.
If there was one stalk of Frostheart Grass here, there had to be a second and a third!
He wanted to grow stronger-stronger than anyone!
And he wanted his followers to become stronger too!
Only then could he truly control his own destiny on this chaotic continent.
Instead of being a pawn at the mercy of those so-called nobles and kings.
The party traveled another dozen or so li.
The sky gradually darkened.
The light in the forest dimmed, and the shadows of the surrounding trees began to look like clawing, snarling ghosts.
The scout who had been scouting ahead came riding back.
"My lord!"
His face held a mixture of nervousness and excitement.
"Up ahead... I've found something big!"
Lynn raised an eyebrow.
"Speak."
"There's a valley five li ahead."
"In the valley... there seems to be a Wildling tribe!"
The scout swallowed.
"It's a large one. I only took a quick look, but there were at least a hundred tents!"
A hundred tents!
The number made everyone catch their breath.
Beyond the Wall, a hundred tents meant roughly three to five hundred Wildlings.
Among them, there should have been at least two hundred men capable of taking up arms.
Lynn's party, meanwhile, numbered only a hundred.
They were well-equipped, well-trained elite soldiers of the North.
But facing an enemy twice their number, on the enemy's own ground, was undoubtedly an extremely dangerous gamble.
"My lord?"
Torrhen looked wary.
"Should we... retreat for now?"
"Take the news back to Castle Black and have Lord Commander Mormont send a larger force?"
This was no longer something their little hundred-man unit could handle.
Charging in would be no different from throwing their lives away.
They
The other guards also turned their eyes toward Lynn.
They were not afraid to fight, but they did not want to die for nothing.
"Retreat?" Lynn laughed.
His gaze swept over every guard's face.
"Why would we retreat?"
"Torrhen, tell me. What are we?"
Torrhen froze for a moment, then answered instinctively:
"We're Lord Stark's guards, soldiers of the North."
"No."
Lynn shook his head.
"Right now, we're hunters."
"And those Wildlings in the valley ahead are our prey."
"Are you afraid?"
No one answered.
But their tight grips on their weapons and their tense bodies said it all.
"You should be."
Lynn's voice suddenly softened.
"If you're not afraid when facing twice your number, then you're a fool."
"But remember this."
Lynn's gaze sharpened.
"We're different from them."
"They're just a bunch of savages wielding stones and bones."
"But we!"
Lynn pointed at himself, then at their iron armor and the steel swords in their hands.
"We are warriors from the civilized world!"
"We have sharp weapons, sturdy armor, strict discipline, and... a mind smarter than all of theirs."
Lynn tapped his temple.
His powerful confidence seemed almost magical, dispelling much of the guards' fear.
"My lord, do you mean..."
Torrhen asked tentatively.
"We won't fight them head-on."
"We'll use our heads to defeat them."
"Now, everyone dismount and follow me."
Lynn left the horses in the care of a few guards, then led Torrhen and several other squad leaders stealthily toward the valley.
They climbed the ridge on one side of the valley, hid behind a dense stand of black pines, and looked down.
The sight before them made everyone draw a sharp breath.
More than a hundred crude tents made of animal hides and dry bones crowded the valley.
Countless campfires burned between the tents, sending up billowing smoke.
Groups of Wildlings-men, women, old and young-gathered around the fires.
Some were butchering their kills, some were grinding weapons, and children chased one another through the snow.
The entire valley resembled a chaotic anthill.
Loud shouts, women's laughter and curses, and children's cries mingled and echoed through the valley.
"Gods..."
A young guard's voice trembled.
"There... there must be at least five hundred people here!"
"More than that."
Lynn's gaze settled on the largest, most elaborate tent in the very center of the valley.
It had been sewn from whole giant bear hides.
The skull of some unknown beast hung at its entrance.
Several exceptionally burly Wildlings, their bodies painted with blood-red totems, stood guard at the entrance with spears in hand.
Clearly, that was the tribal chief's dwelling.
"This is a medium-sized tribe."
Lynn's tone was calm.
"If they can feed this many people, their chief is probably no ordinary man."
Yet Lynn's mind was racing with calculations.
Five hundred Wildlings.
How much experience would I get if I killed them all?
The moment that thought surfaced, Lynn's heart began pounding uncontrollably.
This was a tremendous crisis.
But at the same time, it was an unprecedented opportunity!
I have to take down this tribe!
Besides, the two sides were already enemies. Lynn had no reason to show mercy.
Turning them into experience was the best fate for these Wildlings.
"My lord, what do we do now?"
Torrhen's voice pulled Lynn out of his thoughts.
"Wait."
Lynn gave a one-word answer.
"Wait?"
"Yes. Wait until dark."
Lynn's gaze swept swiftly over the terrain of the entire valley.
The valley had only one narrow exit.
Steep cliffs rose on either side.
It was a place that was easy to defend and hard to attack.
But it was also a perfect trap.
"Torrhen, I need you to do a few things right away."
Lynn lowered his voice and began issuing orders.
"First, have the archers get all our poisoned arrows ready."
"Double the concentration of the poison on the arrowheads. Use up every last bit of the paralytic poison!"
"Second, send a squad to set traps at the valley's exit. The more, the better, and the harder they are to spot, the better."
"Dig pits, bury spikes, set snares. Use every method you can think of."
"Third, have everyone eat their fill and get plenty of rest."
Lynn's eyes shone with startling brightness in the darkness.
"Because tonight, we're going to pull off something big."
Before you continue