I could hear whispers behind me.
"He's still a child."
How did he kill those bandits?
As I approached the villagers, one of them stepped forward and spoke.
"Thank you, sir, thank you for saving us. We owe you our lives."
"I'm not a gentleman yet, you can call me Aermir."
"You mean Aermir Drasil? It's an honor to meet you; we've heard about your achievements."
"Am I that famous?"
"Yes, we could say that your name began to instill fear in the robbers."
I smiled.
"You don't need to exaggerate. I'm not helping you people for praise. I'm helping because it's what I should do."
He bowed and said, "My lord, your wisdom surpasses your age."
"Don't call me 'sir,' I'm not a nobleman. What brings you here at this hour without even a guard? You're just asking for trouble."
Their faces fell instantly, and a gloomy and sorrowful atmosphere filled the air.
" Red Fever destroyed our village; of the more than three hundred people, only these few remain. If we don't abandon the village, we will die too. That's why we have no guards. We just want to reach the nearest town."
"Then I will escort you to the nearest town."
We decided to bury the dead, and as the big man carrying the body with the enormous wooden pole stumbled and fell to the ground. Swinging such a huge log must have exhausted him. I tried to lift him up by supporting his arm, while the young man with the dagger supported his other arm.
"Sir, are you alright? I bet that log wore you out."
As soon as I said that, the young man burst into laughter, falling to the ground. The big man turned around, his face grim.
"Sir? Why are you calling me sir? I'm only 13 years old."
His words left me speechless with astonishment.
"No, that's not true! You've grown a beard!"
He seemed flustered, rubbing his face as he spoke.
"That's not a beard, just stubble. Don't believe me? Ask him. He's my twin brother."
I turned around and looked at the young man's face. Yes, they had the same dark brown hair and features, and looked very similar, but they looked more like uncle and nephew than brothers. Then the boy said.
"Uncle, why did you do this? Don't provoke Aermir's servant."
The big guy's face turned red with anger, and he said...
" Caygan, if you call me uncle again, I'll smash your face in."
"I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry. Yes, he's my twin. He ate everything Mom ate while she was pregnant with us, leaving me nothing, that's why I look like this."
Yes, they are brothers. It's unbelievable that he's only 13 years old, considering his size. I'm a big guy for my age too, but I grew this big because of magic, while these two are genetic freaks. One is agile, and the other is a giant.
Can you get up?
"Yes, I'm just too hungry. We haven't eaten anything since yesterday."
-Dad, we're done.-
-Are you all alright?-
-fine.-
Then tell your Crow retinue to find me some large animals.
After burying the dead, everyone rested. Bo contacted me saying he wanted to hunt some deer. I took a few men hunting and brought back some food. I looked closely at their faces and noticed they all looked haggard.
After finishing our game, we set off again. We are now on the main road between White Harbor and Barrowton, and have not yet reached the intersection with Kingsroad. We are moving very slowly because we do not have enough carriages, and most of us have to walk.
At the same time, I got along very well with the twins and learned that they were orphans and didn't know what to do in the future. During a few breaks, they asked me to teach them some things, and I could see that they were very talented.
"No, no, no, Harik! Stop attacking like a bull!"
"Because you always attack with all your might, once you miss, you'll spin like a top."
I pressed the stick in my hand against Harik's throat and said:
"You're dead again. You must learn to control yourself, you can't go crazy like a mad bull."
After nearly a week of travel, we arrived at Barrowton.
" Ser Aermir, we owe everything to you; without you, we would be dead long ago."
Everyone started bowing to me in thanks.
"I've said I'm not a knight yet."
"Sir, we don't care. You are our savior."
"I hope you all have a good life here."
I turned to the twins.
"As for the two of you, what are you planning to do?"
"We don't know, and we're not exactly good farmers. I think we'll try other things."
"Then I'll give you two a suggestion. How about you join the army and work for me?"
Their eyes lit up, and they said excitedly.
"Can we?"
"Yes, you have a talent for this."
They said it without hesitation.
"Okay, then we'll go with you."
I laughed and said, "You're not feeling well right now and can't travel with me. To be honest, you'll be an obstacle. I want you all to wait for me in Winterfell. I'll be back in a year."
If they come with me, I'll have to show them my true colors, and I don't have that much confidence in them yet.
Tomorrow morning, I will arrange for them to travel to Winterfell with a large group of merchants. I showed the caravan leader Lord Stark's pass and emphasized the importance of their safe arrival in Winterfell.