The wind at Shishan Pass blew the pheasant butterflies, making a soft chirping sound.
Titus accompanied his guests, Eddard·Stark, who came from the south, out of Great Addison Gate in front of Main Keep, walking on the stone path outside Starpike.
The blue and white stone road under your feet is hard and smooth, and on one side is a tall, steep vertical stone wall.
It is from this circle of stone walls that a "giant bowl" extends out and falls on the top of the mountain, embedding the entire city within the peak.
Looking up, the stone mountain walls surrounding Starpike reach into the sky, and the sky is bright.
Eddard beside Titus had a gloomy look on his face, with no sign of joy at meeting brothers.
Looking sideways at Brother Ai, Titus also sighed secretly in his heart.
Eddard has become more silent and older.
We haven't seen each other for just over a month, and this once lively and cheerful young man seems to have aged several years. His eyebrows are filled with an irreversible gloom, his eyes are as still as a pool, and his mouth is tightly pursed——
That's a feeling.
As one tragedy after another happened, the shadow of the cheerful young man who once rode wildly and laughed loudly beside Gods Eye is disappearing little by little from Eddard.
Poor Ned had just presented the sword with which his brother had died in front of the person he once had a crush on - and it was him who killed the other person's brother.
Titus thought:
Ashara stared at Eddard·Stark with her charming purple eyes when she returned "Dawn" from Dayne's house, with hatred in her eyes.
Killing his most respected role model--the sister he had finally found, but died on the spot--and then facing the hateful eyes of his former goddess--this series of blows was unbearable for a young man.
It can be said that Ned is the one who has experienced the worst of all the people around Titus.
It's really difficult for him.
I hope Riverrun's little Caitlin can bring some comfort to Ned - of course, this will have to wait until Ned has coaxed his new wife to stop caring so much about having an illegitimate child.
This guy is really tough!
Speaking of illegitimate children——Eddard is visiting Starpike, but Titus found no trace of the illegitimate child or wet nurse among his entourage.
He must be hiding outside.
Titus can understand why he is so cautious.
He deliberately slowed down his tone and picked some relaxed topics to talk about. "Roose Bolton and Rickard Karstark kept the the North army in order and helped me a lot during the southern expedition."
He wanted Eddard to hear more good news from fellow villagers, so as to dispel some of the gloom in his heart.
Eddard nodded, his voice low and hoarse. "Thanks for their hard work."
A few simple words bring out indescribable fatigue.
"They all made a lot of money this time. As for Winterfell, I will keep it for you."
Seeing that Duke Winterfell was not very interested in the news of "making money", Titus deliberately laughed, "Only Wei Lys·Manderly---doesn't seem very happy. He never wants to say a word to me, the commander. Is it because I don't share enough of their money?"
The heirs of White Harbor Earl had met Starpike Earl as early as the Harrenhal conference. Their family always adapted to local conditions and made a fortune quickly. White Harbor was particularly rich and was one of the best in the entire the North.
Sir Wei Lys, who has a big walrus beard, will definitely not be unhappy because he didn't get enough money. Commander Ti did not let them serve as the main force on the battlefield and make meritorious deeds, but chose to cooperate with the "Flayed Man" and "Winter Sun", which may be the source of their bad mood.
Eddard forced a smile.
Titus is a storyteller. When the three brothers first got acquainted, I heard him tell about the grudges between Peake and Manderly. The other party was joking and trying to comfort himself.
White Harbor's heir, Sir Wei Lys, did not want to talk to Commander Black, and Commander Black must have done the same to him.
Eddard and Titus walked slowly along the bottom of the stone wall, their footsteps echoing softly in the corner of the empty mountain wall.
From a high point on the stone wall diagonally above the two of them, the sound of chiseling stones could also be heard, and the echo was even louder.
A dozen Starpike masons were working at high altitudes on suspended wooden ladders. The hanging ropes hung them in mid-air. Various tools were passed around from hand to hand, and they were as busy as ants clinging to the cliff.
To the left of where the masons were starting work, four huge stone statues that had already been formed were watching them quietly.
In history, the first "Peake" who chased the "Star Shuttle" to this point;
The "second generation" Emeric Peake who gave birth to seven sons;
Expelled Dustin--also known as House Manderly's Lorima·Peake;
There was also Urwin Peake who wanted to do "I'm the one who's going to do it today" but didn't do it well and was kicked out by White Harbor Earl and his gang.
They are all House Peake family heads from past generations who are famous in family history and have made outstanding contributions to their families.
Some of them are strong and determined, some wear iron helmets, and some have solemn expressions, as if they are overlooking the mountains and rivers - only Urwin Earl's head is blurry, as if he is ashamed to show his face and is ashamed to face the sages.
On the far right, the outline of a new stone statue is beginning to appear. The stonemasons hanging in mid-air are carving the facial details - that is what Titus·Peake looks like.
In just two years, he regained his family's reputation, directly took back the twin cities that the family had lost for decades, and brought glory to the Peake family, acquiring three more pieces of land.
Such "immortal achievements" are enough to fill more than N pages in the family tree.
Naturally, he is qualified to leave his own stone statue on this stone wall.
It's also a coincidence.
As soon as the work started here, Eddard·Stark came over.
Peake's "Fifth Generation" didn't want to show off deliberately, but Eddard was very surprised when he saw Starpike's "wonderful mountain scenery" for the first time.
He couldn't understand it, but he was greatly shocked.
The Winterfell from their hometown is also very majestic, but it has always been durable and simple in style. I had no idea that southerners had such fun with it!
It's really outrageous.
Eddard raised his head and looked up at the unfinished stone statue for a while, and then turned his eyes between Titus's face and the stone statue. He tried his best not to make a fuss and said slowly, "You deserve it."
The tone was quite certain, and seemed to come from the bottom of his heart.
Silence fell once again, and only the echo of stone cutting came intermittently.
After a long time, Eddard suddenly spoke again, his twenty-year-old voice carrying a hint of distant sadness. "When I was young, the person I admired most——was him."
Titus's heart moved, knowing that Eddard was talking about "Sword of the Morning" who was killed by him personally, and he echoed, "He was indeed Seven Kingdoms's most dazzling swordsman and knight."
Eddard's eyes drifted into the distance, as if they had penetrated the obstruction of Starpike's high stone wall, and also seemed to have passed through the fog of time and returned to his youth.
He was in a daze for a while, came back to his senses, rubbed the long "Ice" on his waist, and then said, "Dawn" is just a sharp weapon, and Sir Arthur is the magic sword. "He is strong, brave, and extremely skilled, but he is loyal to the wrong person."
His voice gradually became deeper and deeper, filled with pain that could not be concealed.
"If he were not bound by Kingsguard's oath, Arthur Dayne would never let Rhaegar kidnap my sister. Even if we meet at war, I still admire him.
You know--when I was young, I dreamed of being him, every boy wants to be Sword of the Morning", but I killed him--"
When talking about Arthur's death, Eddard's expression was even more gloomy.
"----Not in a one-on-one fair duel--but when he was injured and kneeling with a dagger stuck in his back--I sent him away with Ice".
Titus, I will never forget the look in Arthur's eyes at that time.
He was neither angry nor felt he was being treated unfairly. He was always so calm, and he fulfilled his oath until death, a true oath in white robes."
Even if he thought it was dishonorable----even if he knew what was waiting for me in Tower of Joy----
The unspoken words lingered in Eddard's mind.
"Arthur Dayne was a great knight who left his name in history until his death.
You sent his Dawn "back to Falling Star City. One day, House Dayne will give birth to a successor worthy of inheriting Arthur's mantle."
Titus interface replied, thinking in his heart:
And until then, Dawn will still accompany the dreams of all Westeros boys, hanging high above the fireplace of Starfall----
Then, he asked the question, "Lyanna----How did she die?"
It's not that Titus wants to poke the other person's scars, but it would seem strange if he didn't ask.
"When I found her, she was almost out of breath."
Eddard's shoulders trembled slightly.
"Lyanna couldn't adapt to the southern climate. She got a fever. Before she died, I was by her side. She just wanted to go home and sleep next to Brandon and her father."
Titus knew that Eddard had rarely lied to him.
This was the first time he had used lies to treat his brother, and it was all out of his protection of the child.
However, Eddard did it "later".
In the past, only Duke King in the North or Winterfell could "sleep" in the Stark tomb, and finally his eldest brother Brandon and his sister Lyanna were added.
In front of their sarcophagi, there is a stone wolf as a companion.
To put it this way, it's not that people at House Stark don't like to perform spectacles, it's just that they do them in a more low-key and compact way.
Titus observed that Eddard looked confused.
Promise me----
Eddard I can still hear my sister's words before she died.
Lyanna shouted to him in the red room filled with blood and the fragrance of roses:
Ned, promise me.
The high fever that lingered on took away all her strength, and she was already as angry as a thread.
But when he promised that he would keep his promise and protect the black-haired baby boy, the fear in his sister's eyes suddenly disappeared——Eddard remembered her last smile and her tight hold on his hand.
She passed away lying on a bed of blood, with rose petals pouring out from her palms, dark and lifeless.
Eddard, who seemed to not want anyone to notice his gaffe, and was entangled in memories, quickly interrupted and said, "Throughout my journey south, what I wanted to protect and what I wanted to pursue all came to nothing. I killed the person I once admired the most, and also lost my only sister.
I don't even know why I am taking this trip."
Titus stopped and said solemnly, "You avenged your father and brother, and you also avenged the North. At the same time, you also ended a decadent dynasty ruled by a crazy father and son."
"No, we did this together."
"You're right, we did it together."
Westeros One of the five largest cities, the North's largest port - White Harbor of Manderly: