Robert was stunned at first.
Then he seemed to have misunderstood what Titus said, and his smile became rippling,
Titus saw him and slapped him on the shoulder angrily:
"What are you thinking about? I mean "Finger Dance" that I heard from Oswin."
This Finger Dance is not the kind of young lady.
It is a cruel game widely circulated among the Ironborn group of Iron Islands.
This popular game among marauders requires at least two voluntary players to throw hatchets at each other.
The person being thrown must catch it with his hands, or try to avoid the sharp ax whirling back from the "dance partner", but he must stay in place and is not allowed to move even half a step.
The reason why the game is called "Finger Dance" is because the person who "dances" not only needs strong palms and nimble fingers, but also the game process often requires one participant to lose at least one finger before it can end.
Hearing these things about killing and killing, Robert was most interested. Titus continued in his urging:
"Have you heard of this kind of "dance"? It's very exciting. If you try, you will fail. If you are unlucky, you will die immediately. The game is to maim the brave and laugh at the timid..."
According to the legend of Ironborn, there are even people who took advantage of Finger Dance's duel to win the title of "King of the Iron Islands".
This person is the original owner of Harrenhal and the ancestor of Harren the Black "Limp-Hand" Heras Harl.
He lost two fingers and took the throne of Iron Islands.
Some people also believe that Heras was able to obtain the throne not because he won the game, but because he married an Andals lady as his wife during the Andals invasion of Westeros, thereby gaining the support of her father and other powerful Andals families...
Before I knew it, Hall of a Hundred Hearths had already added three rounds of firewood.
The wine jug on the long table was mostly empty, the musicians' fingertips began to feel sore, but the chatter among the well-fed and drunk guests became even more intense.
When the last dance came to an end, the conversation naturally turned to tomorrow's highlight - the martial arts tournament that the entire kingdom was looking forward to Hand of the King.
"I bet Sword of the Morning can win the jousting championship!" Eddard, who ran back to reunite with his brothers, asserted, knocking on his wine glass.
Titus knows that this guy's idol is Kingsguard's most handsome Arthur·Dayne... Well, with the addition of newcomers Jaime·Lannister, Arthur Ser's status may be challenged.
Next to him, Robert retorts to his second brother every day. "Ser Barristan Selmy has been in great shape in recent years. You can't ignore this popular candidate just because he competes with you for your dance partner, right?"
Titus focuses on participation. "Hey, I'm not bad either. It's all a bet anyway, so why can't you choose me? You can't just ignore me as a popular candidate just because I compete with you for your dance partner!"
Eddard almost spit out the drink in his mouth after hearing this.
He finally knew that he still had something to learn from this road of talking nonsense.
The three of them also talked about "Bronze" John Royce, "Eagle" Jason Mallister and others in the lord circle who are particularly keen on participating in various competitions. They also discussed whether Oswell·Whent Ser, who is half the host, can help defend House Whent's ring?
Time flows by in a hurry.
It was late at night, Hall of a Hundred Hearths gradually became less lively, and the guests got up and left one after another.
Titus first sent Ashara, who came over specially to say hello, and her maid to leave... After dancing with White Knight Barristan, Miss Ashara declined all subsequent invitations.
Then help Robert and Eddard, who had drank a lot tonight, put on their cloaks, hand them over to a reliable entourage, and stagger back to their respective homes.
When parting, although the two drank a lot of wine, their eyes were still shining. Even if they did not participate, they were still talking about tomorrow's schedule.
The young man Earl who returned to his residence seemed to be able to hear the roar of horse hooves on the ground tomorrow, the crisp sound of spears colliding and shattering, and the cheers from the audience like a tsunami...
The next day.
The morning fog filled the air and did not clear up for a long time.
Harrenhal There was already a buzz of people inside and outside the competition ground.
The rising sun passed over the tall buildings with Targaryen Royal House as the main color red, and dyed the hundreds of shields hanging on the sidelines with a bright golden light.
The patterns on the shields include beasts, plants, weapons, cities, and more creative noble family emblems or personal coats of arms. Each shield represents the family glory and personal identity of a knight who comes to compete, silently announcing the upcoming competition.
Center of the arena.
At both ends of each track, Squire people are already making final preparations. The competition lances, which are nearly three people high, are neatly stacked on the wooden racks, and the rifles are painted in different colors.
This lance, custom-made for competition, is more than twelve feet long, made entirely of wood, and has no iron covering the front end.
To use it, it requires the cooperation of arm strength and core strength, and it will break into several pieces when encountering external force. However, this kind of spear can still pierce an unarmored horse. If it hits a plate armor of poor quality, it will even leave an obvious deep dent on the armor surface.
The long gun used in competition is too cumbersome and not very practical on the battlefield. However, it is frequently used in one-on-one duels because it is three or four feet longer than the military lance and can knock the enemy off his horse first.
Generally, after a jousting duel, the winner can win the loser's horse and armor, which is a considerable loss for some participants who are not wealthy.
Some tournaments held by devout lords only allow anointed knights to participate, but most competitions have no hard requirements. Authentic knights, wandering Free Rider, and people with rich or prestigious families can sign up to participate.
Just the minimum requirement for counselors wearing human and horse equipment stopped a large number of people.
Titus noticed that the tops of those neatly stacked lances were equipped with blunt tips of the same wood. Some were polished into rounded spherical shapes, and some were carved into petal shapes to ensure impact and avoid fatal injuries.
This also made him smile knowingly, secretly thinking that the knights of Westeros were playing very fancy games.
Fortunately, Titus was well prepared and ordered three dozen odd-looking gun heads from Tob's the Smith shop. The head ends were all made into the shape of a clenched fist, which was very eye-catching.
Unfortunately, his Berserker Armor has not been delivered yet, so he can only wear the original plate armor first.
Soon the stands on both sides of the stadium were filled with spectators. Not to mention the aristocrats, the common people still brought their own benches and watched the game around the stadium with undiminished interest.
Horn sounded, and the whole place fell silent.
The referee in red robe walked to the center of the field, stood up straight, and read the rules in the loudest voice:
"The knights on both sides of the contest wore armor, each held a spear, and rode their horses against each other from both ends of the arena!
The one who knocks the opponent off his horse wins directly!
If both sides do not fall off their horses, the lance competition will continue.
After several rounds, no one fell off the horse, and the scorer determined the score based on the location of the hit - three points for the helmet, two points for the chest, and one point for the arm.
If the scores are close or difficult to tell, the king will decide the winner!"
The red-robed referee pointed to the scorer's table on the sidelines, where several scorers wearing feathered hats were on standby holding small white flags. Once a knight scored, the flag would be placed above the heraldic shield representing his identity.
After the rules were read out, the first batch of knights who had drawn the first lottery before the game began to enter the venue one by one.
Most of these knights were beautifully dressed, and even the horses under them were covered in glazed armor and various colored silks. They reined in the reins in front of the viewing platform, took off their helmets and paid tribute to the distinguished guests on the platform.
According to tradition, some unmarried knights would turn to the side of the stands where the also unmarried noble ladies and widowed young women gathered, and bow down to ask for tokens from each other.
If the other party agrees, he will tie his personal belongings to the knight's lance and slip it into the hands of his favorite knight who wishes victory.
The lance competition of the tournament has officially begun.
Black Fist head on the rifle: