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Led by a young attendant, Ian and his group entered the Ward family's "castle hall," which looked even more run-down than the Black Falcon Mercenary Castle. It was built with wood and adobe, giving it a shabby appearance.
"Welcome, Ser Lucien Lannister." Before entering, Ian had asked Jenny Hyde—the niece of Martha, the innkeeper at the Crossroads Inn—to go ahead and announce his arrival. Thanks to her, the castle's owners already knew he was 'Ser Lucien.'
"I am Ser Wilder of House Reg," said a voice, but it wasn't the castle's owner. It was Ser Wilder, the local knight who had reportedly seen the three-headed black dragon emblem on the bandits.
He was an older knight with a gray beard, but he looked as strong as a man in his twenties. Just from looking at him, Ian could tell he was not someone to take lightly.
After introducing himself, Ser Wilder pointed to the tough-looking middle-aged man standing next to him. "This is Ser Willy Ward, lord of this castle."
Willy Ward met Ian's gaze but only gave a stiff nod, saying nothing.
Cold, just like in the stories, Ian thought, cursing silently.
"Nice to meet you," Ian said. Since Jenny had already introduced him by name, he didn't repeat it. Instead, he introduced his companions. "These two are the Old Dog and the Mute," he said, pointing at Rohr and Case. "They're both commoners from the Westerlands and serve as my attendants."
"And the two outside are their attendants," he added, referring to Bronn and Chiggen.
Hiss—
The two knights in front of him inhaled sharply at his words.
"Jenny must have told you why I'm here?" Ian asked directly, not giving them time to recover from their surprise.
"Of course, Ser," Ser Wilder replied warmly, though his words didn't sound all that welcoming. "It's just that you may have come for nothing. Our business here is already finished."
Ian had sent Jenny ahead to announce that he had come to offer his help after hearing they were "recruiting foreign knights for a week." So it made sense that Ser Wilder explained himself right away.
Looking around, Ian saw that besides Ser Wilder and Ser Willy, there was no one else in the hall. Earlier, in Willy Ward's manor, he had only seen two knight attendants and fewer than twenty guards. There were no signs of any large army.
Ser Wilder's words seemed believable. But if they had taken any big action, how could there have been no news at all?
"What exactly did you do?" Ian asked, cutting straight to the point.
"Sorry, that's a secret," Wilder said, shaking his head.
A secret? Ian narrowed his eyes.
"You made me come all this way for nothing, and now you refuse to even explain yourself?" Ian's voice grew cold. The proud arrogance of a young 'Lannister' showed clearly on his face. "Should I take this as a personal insult?"
Ser Wilder frowned. Bloody hell, he thought. Why did we have to offend such a spoiled brat? While he was still thinking of how to deal with 'Ser Lucien', Ian continued.
"I heard that a group of bandits called the 'Ghosts of White Wall City' have been active around here," Ian said, his face turning red with anger. "They're said to be searching for some treasure left behind by the former Lord of White Wall for the descendants of House Blackfyre."
"I thought, since you had been trying so hard to find me, that you intended to work with me. But instead, you dare to humiliate me!"
"We didn't mean to, Ser Lucien. I asked Martha to help find men several days ago, but the operation ended earlier today. This can't really be called playing tricks on you, can it?" Ser Wilder said, forcing a smile. He fought back the urge to lose his temper and explained patiently.
"Since I'm not welcome here," Ian said, speaking over him, "I'll simply head to Harrenhal and send a message to King's Landing. It would take less than a day for a raven to reach them." He held a letter in his hand, already prepared.
"Once the Lannister elites arrive here — and that will take no more than five days — if you haven't found this so-called Blackfyre treasure by then, it will have nothing more to do with you."
Ser Wilder's face darkened instantly.
"Wait, Ser," Wilder called out quickly as he saw Ian turning to leave. "I'm sorry we misunderstood your intentions earlier. The operation I asked Martha to find knights for has indeed ended. But if you wish to join our alliance to search for the Blackfyre treasure, you are more than welcome."
"Oh?" Ian stopped and turned back around. "And what would my share be?"
"If we manage to secure the Blackfyre treasure, you'll receive one or two percent of the proceeds," Wilder said, gritting his teeth as he offered the minimum amount.
"This is robbery!" Ser Willy burst out in shock, staring at Wilder. "When we worked with the Black Falcon Mercenaries, we only promised them fifty percent — and they had two hundred men! Now this guy shows up with five men and demands twenty percent?"
Ser Willy had always had a bad temper. To prevent him from offending others, Ser Wilder had warned him to speak less — and normally, he obeyed. But this time, he couldn't hold back.
Ser Wilder shook his head slightly at Ser Willy, signaling him to stay quiet. Then he forced a smile and turned back to Ian. "As you can see, Ser, this is the best offer we can give."
"Twenty percent," Ian said thoughtfully. "If I report this to my family, they probably wouldn't give me much more than that anyway."
Hearing this, Ser Wilder let out a breath of relief.
But Ian's next words made him tense up again.
"However, Ser, I'm not pleased with your lack of honesty."
"Whatever do you mean?" Ser Wilder forced another smile.
"If I'm not mistaken," Ian said coldly, "the operation you asked Martha to recruit foreign knights for hasn't actually happened yet. And it already involves crucial clues about the treasure."
"Why would you think that?" Wilder asked, unable to even fake a smile now.
"Because of your attitude."
"My attitude?"
"The Blackfyre treasure isn't exactly a secret around here. Every mercenary company within a hundred miles knows about it. Yet when I asked you about the operation you organized before, you said it was 'a secret.'"
"If that mission didn't involve vital clues about the treasure, there would have been no need to be so secretive."
"This—" Ser Wilder swallowed hard. "Isn't that a bit of a stretch?"