Dual Sword Dancer

"Bain's gonna be in trouble this time!"

"Embezzlement? Will the Smiler embezzling? I thought he was someone who regarded honor as his life?"

"What do you know? Embezzlement is just a pretext. He actually got caught up in the internal strife of the Clegane family."

"Chose the wrong side?"

"No, the right side, but he didn't realize he wasn't as important in that person's heart as he thought."

"What do you mean?"

"Idiot, he was used as a pawn in a trade!"

Among the crowd that came out of the tavern to enjoy the spectacle were merchants from various cities. Their information was much more extensive than that of the average person, and their quiet conversations revealed the recent power shifts in Red Lake.

Lind, with his somewhat mutated hearing, could easily pick up the content of these conversations, understanding the reasons behind the current situation and deciding on his next course of action.

Actually, without Bain's command, Lind had already planned to go all out because he needed this Sir Clovis Clegane to make a name for himself in the noble circles of Red Lake.

Thinking this, Lind nodded to Bain to show he understood, then, without giving another glance to Sir Clovis, walked to the open space in front of the tavern and calmly said, "Come on!"

Lind's demeanor surprised everyone around. They expected him to show anger or fear.

After all, as an innocent caught in the internal strife of the Clegane family, targeted out of the blue, and even forced into a highly unfair duel, there should have been some strong emotional response.

Yet Lind was exceptionally calm, facing a fully armed opponent as if he was facing an ordinary person, which made people recall the various rumors about Lind lately.

The soldier chosen by Sir Clovis also became tense because the calm Lind exerted immense pressure on him, as if facing a terrifying entity, reminding him of the rumors about Lind consuming the spirit of a bear.

However, like Lind, he had no way out and had to brace himself.

So, when Sir Clovis showed impatience, he took a deep breath, tightened his grip on his sword, and without any warning, charged at Lind, swinging his sword in a diagonal slash towards Lind's shoulder and neck.

Watching the attacking sword, Lind wasn't flustered. He stepped forward like taking a stroll, slightly leaning his body to easily dodge the incoming sword, then suddenly rushed forward, crashing into the soldier.

The soldier was knocked to the ground without resistance, and before he could react, he saw a foot coming towards his neck, then felt a sharp pain and lost consciousness altogether.

The surroundings quieted down, as people hadn't fully grasped what just happened. They only saw Lind take a few steps, the soldier fell, and Lind broke the soldier's neck with his foot, ending the fight.

Seeing his man taken down by Lind, Sir Clovis struggled to keep his composure, darkening his face, and signaled another soldier to take the place and continue the combat with Lind.

That soldier, knowing his strength was comparable to his fallen comrade and realizing the ease with which his comrade was defeated, knew he stood no chance against Lind but had no option but to face him head-on.

As expected, Lind easily dispatched this soldier as well, as effortlessly as snapping a twig by the roadside.

Immediate discussions erupted among the onlookers. Clearly, Lind's display of power was excessively strong. While there were mercenaries among them who could take down such soldiers, none could do it as effortlessly as Lind. Moreover, after killing two soldiers, Lind remained as calm as ever, giving the impression that human life meant little to him.

"The spirit of the bear, it's the spirit of the bear!" Many from White Village in the crowd, who were very familiar with Lind's previous character and actions, found Lind's current display vastly different from their memories, further solidifying their belief in the magical rumors about Lind.

As for Lind himself, he was unaffected by the surrounding gazes and conversations. He bent down, picked up the swords of the two soldiers, swung them a bit to get used to their weight, and then turned to the noble in front of him, saying, "Let the rest come at once!"

Hearing Lind's words, Sir Clovis's face turned unsightly. He felt humiliated, initially seeing Lind's strength and considering recruiting him, but now he only thought of eliminating Lind to erase the disgrace he felt.

"You all go together," Sir Clovis barked at the remaining four soldiers.

Although it was Lind who suggested they come at him together, Sir Clovis's actions still drew disdain from those around, with audible scoffs coming from the crowd, leaving Sir Clovis feeling extremely embarrassed and growing more loathsome and irate towards Lind.

Upon Sir Clovis's command, the four soldiers did not rush forward immediately but looked at each other, took off their round wooden shields from their backs, and coordinated to form the most common shield wall formation, advancing towards Lind.

Seeing the four soldiers use such a formation against a single person, the people around felt even more disdainful. The previously suppressed jeers and insults were now fully unleashed, filling the open space with various sounds of disapproval. Even the villagers of White Village, who were not on good terms with Lind, voiced their support for him against this unfair matchup.

Yet, Lind showed no sign of panic upon seeing the military formation of the four men. He remained as calm as before, without any change in demeanor.

However, unlike his previous defensive counterattacks, this time he chose to take the offensive. He charged towards the gap between the two shield-bearing soldiers, seemingly aiming to break through their formation with a charge.

This tactic, often used by knights to counter formations of multiple defenders, relies on heavy armor to enhance the charge's force and provide defense against surrounding attacks, ensuring the knight wouldn't be injured even if the charge failed.

But now, Lind was only wearing a thin shirt, making his charging action seem like a death wish in the eyes of many.

The two soldiers bracing for Lind's charge thought the same. They pressed their arms against their shields, attempting to withstand Lind's force. Even if they couldn't stop him, they aimed to slow his momentum so the soldiers on either side could converge and attack Lind.

The other two soldiers, anticipating their comrades' thoughts, coordinated seamlessly, raising their swords to strike at the position slightly in front of the shields.

However, to everyone's astonishment, just as Lind was about to collide with the shields, his momentum vanished unusually. Then, like a master dancer stepping to the rhythm of a waltz, he spun around from in front of the shield wall, moving past the four men before they could react and positioning himself behind them.

As Lind spun, his dual swords were not idle. Along with his body's rotation, he delivered precise slashes to the napes of all four targets.

The force of his body's spin, combined with the strength of his arms, was too much for the soldiers' necks to withstand. Three heads were cleanly severed and flung away by the remaining force on the blades, while the last head was left hanging by a thread of flesh at the wound.

Blood sprayed from the neck wounds like fountains, drenching the surrounding area and staining Lind's clothes red.

The jeers and insults directed at Sir Clovis and the four soldiers vanished instantly. The surroundings fell silent, with everyone staring at Lind in shock, only the sound of blood spurting could be heard.

"The Bear Slayer!"

"The Bear Slayer!"

...

It was unclear who shouted Lind's nickname first, but the silence was immediately shattered. Cheers in various accents rose and fell, with even the people of White Village excitedly joining in, as if the victor of the fight was one of their own.

Despite the battle being incredibly brief, lasting only a few seconds, it was undoubtedly the most spectacular fight the onlookers had ever witnessed. They couldn't recall anyone else capable of dispatching four opponents so swiftly and elegantly.

"Don't come any closer!" At this moment, Sir Clovis could no longer maintain his noble demeanor. Seeing the blood-drenched Lind looking his way, he panicked, retreating hastily. Then, without a word, he fumbled to untie his horse, mounted it, and charged out of the crowd, disappearing down the road outside the village.

While the onlookers scoffed at Sir Clovis's disregard for his fallen men, they didn't say much more. After all, as lacking as he might be, he was still a member of the Clegane family, even a titled one. Regardless of the family's decline, they remained the rulers of Red Lake, far beyond what ordinary villagers could afford to provoke. A few mocking words were the limit of their defiance.

"Disperse, everyone disperse!" Bain, rather than taking pleasure in Lind's performance, maintained a serious expression. After shouting at the crowd a couple of times, he turned to instruct his tavern staff, "Get Squint to come here, clean up these bodies. Also, strip their weapons and armor off and keep them safe. The Clegane family will likely send someone to collect them."

After finishing, he gestured for Lind to hand over the weapons to the tavern staff and then led him towards the tavern's backyard.

Although Lind had left and Bain had signaled for the crowd to disperse, those who had come to watch were still not over their excitement. Some bold mercenaries even approached the bodies to examine the wounds and mimic Lind's sword technique, wondering if they were capable of executing it.

However, more people were discussing whether the Clegane family would blame Lind for this incident and even send someone to arrest and execute him.

As the crowd speculated about Lind's potential troubles, Bain discussed the matter with Lind in the tavern's backyard.

"How did you do it?" Once they reached the backyard, Bain couldn't wait to ask.

Lind, puzzled, asked, "How did I do what?"

Bain attempted to mimic Lind's execution of the four soldiers. While Lind's movements resembled a dance, Bain's imitation looked more like a wobbling barrel, comically awkward.

Lind almost laughed but restrained himself, replying, "You asked me to go all out."

"Yes, I did ask you to go all out," Bain acknowledged with a wry smile. "But I never imagined your full effort would be so formidable, so ruthless. The Clegane family's guards may not rank among the top in the Riverlands' lordly guards, but they are still the regular army of Red Lake. To think you dispatched six of them so swiftly... I must have underestimated your abilities. Had I known your true strength, I wouldn't have bothered with Will. It would have been better to approach Lord Fossoway directly; things wouldn't have turned out this way."

Lind inquired, "Dad, what exactly happened in Red Lake? Why did a noble suddenly come to trouble me today?"

Bain sighed with a hint of apology, "Ah, you got dragged into this because of me. I didn't expect the Clegane family's internal strife to flare up again, especially right after I approached Will."

He then explained the situation to Lind.

It turns out the Clegane family had long been divided into two factions over allegiance issues.

One side believed that since the Tyrell family were the Dukes of Highgarden, the supreme rulers of the Riverlands, and the guardians of the south, the Clegane family should naturally align with them.

However, the other faction saw the Tyrell family as distant relations, with no history of intermarriage, and believed that siding with them brought no benefits to the Cleganes.

Instead, the Florent family of Brightwater Keep, who had a good relationship with the Cleganes and multiple intermarriages, sharing blood ties, economic, and political interactions, appeared a better ally. The Florents' power was not much less than the Tyrells', making an alliance with them more beneficial for the Clegane family's development.

The family's internal split hadn't escalated due to a sudden reconciliation between the Florents and the Tyrells.

However, the division within the Clegane family didn't disappear but intensified, culminating in a recent explosion.

This explosion's outcome was both expected and surprising. The members siding with the Tyrells were utterly defeated, and the family's power was completely seized by those aligned with the Florents, with the recent Sir Clovis being from this faction.