Chapter 29 Suspicious

  "Why does it have to be a foreign knight?"

  "I don't know why, but Sir Wilder gave this order. If you're willing to accept this task, I can take you to find them tomorrow."

  "Shall we go find them?" An alarm bell rang in Ian's heart, and he signaled Rohr to close the door. The situation was highly suspicious. An alliance of knights, supposedly formed to deal with a bandit group not mentioned in the original works, asking the inn's proprietress to help them locate 'foreign knights' was raising red flags.

  Ian couldn't ignore the fact that, at this stage of the game, any player appearing out of thin air would be considered a 'foreign knight' wherever they went. It seemed like Martha's entire story was a trap designed to ensnare other players.

  While it was unlikely for any player to amass such a large force on the first day of the game, Ian considered that someone might be setting up this background in front of the trap to lower their target's guard.

  Upon receiving Ian's signal, Rohr promptly stood up and closed the door to the room.

  "This? Sir Lucien?" Martha seemed surprised. She gave Rohr a curious look. "Gentlemen, if you're in need, we have many fine girls in our establishment. I can wake them for you right away."

  "No need. We're not interested in you or your girls," Ian shook his head gently. "What I'm interested in are the knights you mentioned."

  "Sir Wilder and the others?"

  "Yes, Wilder, or whatever they call themselves," Ian shrugged. "Where can we find them?"

  "Sir Wilder and the others? They're currently at Sir Willy Ward's manor," Martha quickly explained.

  "Ward's family manor?" Ian was momentarily taken aback. He had assumed they would be at this inn and ready to make a move. Martha's revelation that they were not on the premises, and her specificity, surprised him.

  He was familiar with the Ward family, loyal to the River House of Harrenhal. Their fiefdom was indeed nearby, with a family emblem of three white dogs on a yellow background, and their native language was "untouchable."

  Martha's claim that they were at the manor left Ian pondering. He hadn't heard of such a mission in the original works.

  "Yes, Sir Willy's manor is on the border between the Riverlands and the King's Territory, less than half a day's ride from here," Martha added quickly.

  "And when you said you'd take us to find them tomorrow, you meant going to their manor?" Ian inquired.

  "Yes, that's what Sir Wilder ordered. He tasked me with gathering as many out of town knights as possible within a week," Martha replied. "I hope you're not playing any tricks on me," Ian said, weighing his options.

  "Trick? I don't understand what you mean Sir" Martha seemed puzzled.

  "Do you know a knight named Sir Wilder?" Ian pressed on.

  "Yes, Sir Wilder Reg is the local lord. How could I not know him?" Martha replied.

  Ian's instincts, honed through years of gaming, led him to suspect that Martha's story might not hold water. The more plausible a story sounded, the more likely it was that a player had crafted it.

  "You're lying!" Ian slammed the table, introducing a new twist to the story. "We're here to track down a fugitive who fled King's Landing. He's a robber who has been ambushing and killing other knights under the guise of offering missions."

  Martha blinked, appearing confused. "What are you talking about, Sir? You just said you're not busy. If you have a task, I won't bother you."

  "They killed a knight of the Lannister family in a King's Landing tavern not long ago," Ian continued. "The queen was furious and placed a bounty of 50 gold dragons on the fugitive. If you provide a valuable clue, you can earn 100 silver stags."

  Martha gasped and quickly covered her mouth. Ian kept up the ruse, spreading a few golden dragons on the table. "We tracked him to this vicinity today. If he passed through here, it was today. Have you seen someone matching his description? If you can provide a valuable clue, I'm prepared to share half of the bounty with you."

  "Oh!" Martha exclaimed, looking at the golden dragons on the table with anticipation. "So you've really seen him?" Ian's eyes narrowed.

  Martha hesitated for a moment and then said, "No, I haven't seen anyone like that today. But I can help you find out. I know many people, and the most informed people here are my old friends. Give me a little time. As long as they are in this area, I can give you an answer by noon tomorrow. Not just this. I can help you locate people nearby and around the entire northern shore of Divine Eye Lake. If they enter this area, I can find clues."

  Ian pondered the situation. Martha's reaction suggested that she was sincere, not part of a trap.

  "By the way," Martha added, "Do you have any specific details about the fugitive you're tracking? The more information you provide, the easier it will be for me to help you locate him."

  Ian smiled, realizing that the tables had turned. "So, I'm the one being pursued? Seeing Martha's reaction, he decided to drop his doubts and laughed sarcastically. If Martha's story was true, Sir Wilder and the others weren't players. There must be another reason behind their request to recruit foreign knights.

  "What did you just say?" Ian asked.

  Martha frowned, puzzled. "I said I could help you find them."

  "No, before that," Ian said, his interest piqued.