Chapter 9 - Adventures in the North 06.
[Chapter Size: 2231 Words]
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Jon Snow POV
Northern Kingdom, Icehill Farm, 289 AC, a few days later.
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Jon slowly opened his eyes; his body seemed reluctant to forget that the boy had pushed his limits. The pain was still intense, but compared to the brink of death as far as he could remember, it was bearable. Now, staring at the familiar ceiling, he knew he was in some room on the farm. With a sigh, he thought, 'At least, they survived the attack...' With this solemn thought, he admitted that his pain and near-death experiences were worth it.
Considering his state at the end of the battle, Jon figured he must have been in this bed for at least a few days. Even with the accelerated healing from his magic, he had pushed his body, mind, and spirit to the limit and beyond; it had almost killed him.
Turning his gaze away from the ceiling, Jon exclaimed, "!"
He was quickly startled by the sight around him. He hadn't noticed before, but in the room, there were four giant furballs around the bed; evidently, his giant wolves were making sure everything was okay and protecting him.
The boy couldn't help but be touched by this; he began to realize he was forming his own family, even if it wasn't made of his blood or his own kind.
Unable to suppress a small laugh, he thought the room he was in must be the biggest on the farm to accommodate his four giant wolves. 'I doubt anything else would fit in here now,' he chuckled at his own joke.
The wolves, who had been dozing, quickly raised their heads with their master laughing softly; seeing the boy awake, in an instant, the bed was surrounded by wolves standing at their full 2-meter height.
Jon felt their eyes inspecting him and saw concern in those various colors; seeing the boy smile at the sight, the wolves approached more, and they all started licking his face. Jon couldn't help but burst into a happy laugh at this moment, which he returned by petting each of them.
Even surrounded by wolves, the boy's attention was stolen when Caraxes appeared at the window, screaming with jealousy for attention; his bird seemed like some kind of mother.
Jon never had the experience of being scolded by a mother, but he believed it would be similar to what was happening now when his partner began giving a lecture through their connection on how Jon had become reckless and nearly died multiple times.
Jon patiently listened to his friend; he was right, an 8-nameday boy couldn't do what he did. However, he didn't regret it and would do it all again despite the risks. He did exactly what he felt in his heart and would do everything to have no regrets in his life.
Slowly getting up after petting Caraxes, who was already at the head of the wooden bed scolding the boy, Jon, still feeling pains throughout his body, limped a bit with his small childlike body. It was at this moment that he heard a horse causing a commotion outside the house. He walked to the window after his wolves gave some space, sticking his head out and seeing what was happening. Jon could only hear voices and the neighing of a horse at the entrance of the main house until then.
"GREG! What do we do with this horse? It's been trying to get in every day." He heard one of Dult's sons shout.
"For the gods' sake, and today it's even worse, damn! I don't know what the boy did with the horse, but it became like this after they handed it to him, Dult." Hearing a new voice that he didn't yet have in his memories, he figured it would be Greg, the man who handled the commercial agreements in this place.
Jon heard and then saw this person from his window; with some effort, he could see the entrance of the house, which turned out to be a comical scene as it was a view of four men trying to hold back a horse that wanted to forcefully enter through the door. The boy could only smile at this.
"It seems this nag recognized a new owner now. He acts as if he could fit in that room that is currently filled with giant wolves! By the gods, the lad even has the wolves we only heard about in ancient legends!" Dult exclaimed.
Jon, diverting his eyes from the entrance of the house, looked at the field and saw that the harvest was almost all stored in the barns. He was sure they would sell everything soon. His thought made him happy for the family, but one thing bothered him: how Lucas reacted when he lost consciousness. 'I wonder if he survived...' His thoughts turned dark at this moment, causing his smile to fade.
Without further delay, he quickly navigated through the wolves with a bit of difficulty due to the limited space. Then, he started walking towards the door; the wolves didn't fail to accompany him from behind, while Caraxes flew to the window, waiting for him to leave the house quickly.
The boy stepped out, hoping to find someone as soon as possible to understand the situation, as it wouldn't be possible with these furballs around him in the room. Passing through the corridor, Jon entered the main hall, where he fortunately found all the women, boys, and girls, engaged in activities like sewing and playing among the children.
When they noticed him, their eyes widened quickly, and even before they could say anything, Jon interrupted them with a raised palm. "First, I'm glad everyone is okay; now, if we need to talk, let's do it outside because I am accompanied by many space occupants." Jon couldn't help but laugh at this comment, and seeing the corridor lined with giant wolves, as only one could pass at a time, he tried to ease the tension the women and children had in their eyes as they looked at the wolves right behind him, which was understandable, especially after they found out how these wolves mutilated four bandits.
Stepping outside and being followed by everyone behind their animals, soon Jon was surprising the rest of the family and the horse neighing with joy when it saw him. He passed by all the young and adult men and went to the animal, patting its head, then continued to a more open area with his animals. Soon, more people who were elsewhere on the farm came to him. Now, all the people of Icehill gathered to talk to him.
All the men who participated in the battle were injured in some way while sporting some poor bandages, which this farm could offer until then. Jon was happier to see that Lucas survived and was among them. Unfortunately, he walked with a limp, and it's quite possible that he'll stay that way for the rest of his life, but he still lived in the end.
No one said anything, not after all Jon did for the family; they waited for him to say something. Jon was a little nervous with this attention; he never had to speak in public in his life. Robb was trained for that, not him. Jon sighed and began speaking nonetheless.
"I-I'm glad we managed to get out of such a critical situation. Can I ask how many days I was unconscious?" Jon said somewhat uncomfortable under the gaze of everyone in the family.
"Miraculous, Jon, you were in bed for 2 days!" Dult's girl, the one Jon's age, exclaimed with a red blush on her face.
"Miraculous Jon? Why are you calling me that?" Jon found this sudden nickname strange.
"Because you're our miracle, lad. You, first, give us a harvest like none other seen; second, you save us from bandits when all odds are against us; third, you bring us legends we thought were just myths like magic and giant wolves!" Dult said, looking at those wolves sitting around. Never in his life did he imagine that such fierce creatures would be so comfortable near people, but that, thanks to little Jon, was apparent. "And fourth, you saved Lucas from certain death!" He smiled at Jon.
Jon, in turn, felt very embarrassed by the recognition. Dult liked that; even with all the inexplicable things the boy could do, he was still a boy at the end of the day. With his smile, he asked, "Little Jon, from what I saw, it was the first time you took someone's life. I'm not sure if your age is appropriate for that, but after that, you must be considered a true man. So, why not tell me how it went?" He asked with the same smile.
Jon was surprised by the question and didn't know how to feel. It was a strange feeling; there was no joy, but there was also no sadness when he thought about why he did what he did. However, he didn't have time to voice his thoughts because Dult's wife quickly gave Dult a slap on the back of the head, making him wince in pain and fear. "Is that something you ask a boy?!" She growled. Everyone laughed at that, and Jon mentally thanked himself for not answering that question. He wasn't sure about his feelings on that yet.
Still laughing at Dult's antics, Jon quickly asked about some things that happened after he passed out. "HAHA, what happened to that bandit with the broken leg?" Jon asked, thinking there was still one man left from the group.
"We tied him up; he's in an empty room, and with a broken leg, he can't do much. Instead of killing him, we'll hand him over to our lord's forces," Greg said, and when silence settled, Lucas asked a question that had been bothering him since he managed to survive. "Little Jon, where did you get that bow? If it weren't for that weapon you got, we would be dead. But can you satisfy this old man's curiosity?" Lucas asked with his crutch by his side.
"You must already know about my abilities with animals, right? I can also see their memories, so I connected with the animals around the farm and found in the memories I investigated. There was the body of a soldier buried to the east over time, with an old bow, some arrows near the body caught in roots with a sword buried. Fortunately, it wasn't affected much by time, and I realized it could be used, as you witnessed. There was leather armor buried along with the body, but Jon didn't have time. He also hid the fact that he almost died in the process when he took the memories of the animals, as he didn't want to scare these people even more.
Silence settled in the group once again. The families were marveling at Jon's abilities and powers. Many might judge him as a demon or having evil powers, but where would these families be if not for the boy? Jon has only benefited this farm since he arrived, how could these people have the heart to mistreat this humble, kind, and god-blessed child. Everyone on the farm had the same thought. Dult took a step forward and spoke, "Even being an 8-nameday child, I would like to thank on behalf of all these families, little Jon. You not only helped us but saved everyone's life while Greg and I were away. We couldn't imagine our lives with all our relatives dead." He bowed with his forehead on the ground.
Jon was surprised by this display. "Please, sir, this is not necessa...!" Jon couldn't finish because everyone in front of him made the same gesture. Jon, an 8-nameday boy surrounded by four giant adult wolves, a horse, and an eagle circling above his head while more than a dozen people knelt before him, thought, 'Maybe this world isn't as bad as I thought...' He smiled with tenderness at this thought.
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Some time later.
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Jon stayed one more day on the farm, talking with the families and helping with the final part of the harvest as much as he could, as he was very tired from the battle.
Jon finally had his precious map, a new horse that wanted to be with him in any way. The families smiled at this interaction and let the horse accompany Jon, who seemed very happy about it.
Not failing to notice how strange the situation was, as it seemed the horse was much more intelligent than it was accustomed to be or how the horse seemed weak in endurance, but now it was a very energetic animal. However, everything related to the beautiful-eyed child was magical and couldn't be explained by common sense.
The families made sure to leave some money with him as well. The next day, he departed. He bid farewell to everyone; the families wanted him to stay, but Jon had his mission, and thanks to it, he got to meet fun people who didn't judge him for his bastard status. So, finally, he headed north with a heart not as dark as it used to be.
Little Jon had no idea that his actions on the farm would cause a stir throughout the North.
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