(Eddard Stark's POV)
"Rodrik, you should go talk to him and see whether he would consider going to the Citadel."
"Yes, but my lord, he will ask whether I got him a pass to leave the city. How should I answer?"
"If he can defeat fifteen-year-old squires, then he can defend himself against robbers and bandits, but he is still too young. Tell him I will only allow him to go alone when he is ten. Until then, he can go out with other hunters, or accompany you on security patrols. He may also accompany you when you go to suppress small bands of bandits, but he can only observe, not take part in the fighting."
"Yes, my lord, I will go talk to him right away."
"If his answer is no, bring him here, but if he wants to join the Citadel, don't bring him. Just say you haven't found him yet. I need to talk to him first."
"Yes, my lord, I will see to it right away."
(The protagonist's POV)
Sometimes, playing with the children of House Stark was genuinely fun. I had the mind of a thirty-five-year-old, but I could find joy in children's games.
Perhaps it was because of my brain chemistry. Perhaps it was because I had a nine-year-old brain, and the most miserable thing was that I was thirty-five yet had no sexual desire at all.
Once, I walked past Winterfell's brothel and saw a topless woman, but felt nothing at all.
I was not a lecher, but I was a healthy man.
If I saw a beautiful woman, I would not stare, but I would at most take another look. Now, however, unless I paid attention, I would not even notice a woman's beauty.
I thought this body was the reason I liked playing children's games. I was not as crazy about them as Robb and Jon, but I did not find them boring either. It was a very strange feeling.
I saw Rodrik approaching from a distance, and he called out to me, "Aermir, come here a moment."
"Ser Rodrik, have you spoken to the lord?"
"Yes, I have an answer for you, but before that, there is something else I want to discuss with you. Have you ever thought about becoming a maester?"
I had never considered that question, but I had a bad feeling about the Citadel. I meant, no one knew exactly when the Citadel was founded, but it had to be at least seven or eight thousand years old. Yet since steel was invented four to six thousand years ago, technology had advanced only once. Myr invented glass, and that was all. How could there have been no major inventions for thousands of years? That was why the Citadel made me uncomfortable.
"No, I don't want to become a maester. I still have plenty to learn in House Stark's library. I haven't even finished a quarter of the books. I will need at least four to eight years to finish them. I don't need to travel to the other side of the continent to learn."
As I finished saying this, a smile suddenly appeared on his face, and when I finished, he laughed.
"Yes, you're right. You don't need to go so far to read some books. You can read all the books in the North. Let's go. The lord is waiting for us."
When we reached the lord's study, he and Maester Luwin were discussing something, and they stopped when we entered.
"Aermir, come in and sit down. I learned from Maester Luwin that you are not only gifted in swordsmanship, but also very talented in higher learning."
"Yes, my lord, I have a talent for that as well."
"So, he would like to make you an offer. Maester Luwin, go ahead."
"My child, you must have realized that when I saw you in the library and began testing you, I wanted to assess how much you understood of what you read. When I saw that you understood almost everything, I was astounded by your talent. We cannot let a mind like yours become a swordsman. You need to go to the Citadel and study the mysteries of the world; if you come to the Citadel with me, we can unlock your full potential."
"Thank you for your generous assessment of my talent, but I don't want to become a maester. I can achieve what the Citadel offers on my own, so going there would put me at a disadvantage."
As I said this, his expression began to sour, and he said, "My child, have I judged you too highly, or is this youthful naivety? How can you say that going to the greatest place of learning in the known world would put you at a disadvantage?"
"Maester Luwin, this may look like youthful naivety to you, but to me, it makes perfect sense. Since I don't need a teacher to learn things, I want to ask you something, but I want an honest answer. If a new maester and I compared our knowledge of history, herbalism, and medicine, which of us would know more?"
When he heard that question, his expression soured further, and he began to cough. He lowered his head and answered me, "The maester would know a little more than you."
Maester Luwin was a good man. He would not lie shamelessly. "So, I need to travel all that way and spend all that time for that little bit of knowledge. No, thank you! I can acquire that knowledge while working in the fields."
Maester Luwin was angry and saddened by what I said, but he accepted my decision and set aside what he was working on. After he left the room, I looked at Rodrik and the lord. They looked very happy and satisfied.
I turned to face them.
"My lord, I believe Ser Rodrik has already spoken to you about a pass to leave the city. He said he had an answer, but we hurried here, so I didn't hear it."
"I will only give you permission to go alone when you are ten. Until then, you can go out with other hunters, and you can also accompany Rodrik on security patrols. You may accompany him when he goes to suppress small bands of bandits, but you can only observe, not take part in the fighting."
"My lord, may I speak freely?"
"You have my permission."
"I can accept everything you said, my lord, but I want to hunt alone. I don't want to go with others. I may be a child, but I am not stupid. Everyone in this room knows I will become the greatest swordsman in this world, and I have no intention of dying young. If I encounter any danger, I will retreat. Even if I am ambushed, I am resourceful enough to escape alive. You can ask Rodrik. He has seen it himself."
He was a little shocked by my arrogant claim, but he turned to Rodrik and gave him a questioning look.
Rodrik sighed. "Much as I would like to contradict him, my lord, he is right. This child invented something he calls a smoke bomb. It can create a screen of fog seven meters in diameter. If he uses it, he will have no difficulty escaping from bandits."
"I want to see this smoke bomb. I will decide after I have seen it."
We went out onto the balcony, and I took out a fake smoke bomb. Looking down, I saw it was about ten meters. I threw it without any trouble, and just before it hit the ground, I cast Fog Cloud.
A cloud of white smoke rapidly spread over an area seven meters in diameter. The lord was surprised when he saw it. He went inside and sat in his chair for a few minutes, then rose and slowly walked to the fireplace, where he began poking at the burning logs. He said nothing, but I could tell from his face that he was deep in thought.
After a few minutes, he turned and said, "Will you give us the method for making these?"
"No, my lord. These are not easy to make, but I will sell you a smaller version. It won't create as much smoke as this one, but it is easier to make. The small ones can create a smoke screen three meters in diameter."
In fact, these were easy to make. Apart from sugar, all the materials were cheap and readily available, but I did not want to waste time making them.
All I needed was sugar, wax, flint, and snow tree bark. To make a real smoke bomb, I also needed phosphorus, but I did not know where to get it. I knew fertilizer contained it, but I had never learned how to refine it, so I needed to find a substitute. I found one in a book on herbalism.
It was a northern tree called the snow tree. It was not usually used for firewood, because burning it with the bark still on would engulf the area where it burned in white smoke, so the bark had to be stripped off before it could be used as firewood.
It took more work than other trees, which was why people did not use it as firewood, but its bark became very useful to me once ground into a fine powder, because it became highly flammable.
If I made them the size of oranges rather than golf balls, they might create a smoke screen close to the size of my spell, but they would become too bulky.
Because I knew someone would ask to buy it when I used it, I had spent sixty gold dragons on enough materials to make a thousand. I spent forty-five gold dragons on sugar, and the remaining materials cost only thirteen. The last two gold dragons went toward renting a warehouse for two years, and over the past two years, I had made about three hundred.
"I have about a hundred. I can sell you eighty, my lord. I think one gold dragon is a fair price for this miracle."
"Too expensive. I'll give you half a gold dragon."
"For you, my lord, I'll do this: four smoke bombs for three gold dragons. I mean, for every three you buy, you get one free."
He thought for a while, then said, "Agreed. Bring the eighty, and you will receive sixty gold dragons."
"As for the pass to leave the city, I will give you one, but you may only use it during the day. If you aren't back before sunset, you will lose it."
I broke into a broad smile and said happily, "Thank you, my lord. I cannot thank you enough." I bowed to him and left the room.