Chapter 83: Dickon Tarly

If one is familiar with Highgarden, one would know this is a very ordinary evening party; the main guests, the Count of Arbor and Count Tarly, are both regulars, and the members of the Tyrell family, aside from Loras, have basically all come out to entertain the guests.

But for Dickon Tarly, it is very extraordinary.

Not to mention that his stern and cold father, Randyll Tarly, hardly ever lets him come to Highgarden, just meeting the champion of the tourney, Arthur Bracken, at this party is enough to make his mood incredibly stirred.

This is the champion of the entire continent's tourney, and the champion of both the lance competition and the melee.

Based on these two points alone, Arthur will surely have a place in the mouths of future bards.

The elders have their circle, and the young have their circle.

Dickon and many young men from the Reach families surround the twins of the Redwyne family, listening to them boast about the deeds of how Arthur smashed The Mountain's greatsword with a few swings of his hammer and saved Loras.

"At that moment, my heart jumped to my throat, thinking about how the fallen Loras could escape from under The Mountain's greatsword, and then Mr. Arthur, carrying that peerless giant hammer, appeared."

Hobber, with spit flying, described his feelings at the time somewhat exaggeratedly.

It was just that the continuous talking made him thirsty, so he grabbed a cup of his family's fine wine and drank it.

The surrounding audience, whose interest had just been piqued and were at the height of their excitement, could only watch Hobber's Adam's apple bob up and down and listen to him gulp down the wine.

To avoid an awkward silence, his brother took over the conversation:

"At that time, all of King's Landing was shocked; no one believed Mr. Arthur could save the Knight of Flowers. After all, The Mountain's reputation for cruelty is well-known, but after only a few exchanges, The Mountain fled in a panic because his greatsword was smashed by Mr. Arthur."

"And unlike the foolish commoners of King's Landing, I knew the moment Mr. Arthur appeared that The Mountain losing was only a matter of time; my judgment has always been accurate."

Most of the Reach nobles let out sounds of amazement, regretting that they could not be there to see such a famous scene.

But someone curiously asked Horas: "Why did you think that from the very beginning?"

The protagonist they were talking about, Arthur, was busy devouring a plate of grapes; after hearing this, he answered vaguely:

"Because he was hammered by me once, and I know well that under my great hammer, everyone is equal."

Everyone chuckled, Horas's face turned slightly red, and the atmosphere became cheerful.

Dickon looked at Arthur with complex eyes; he truly yearned for such a life of becoming famous in one battle and then being pursued and praised by everyone.

He also yearned for Arthur's free state; he heard he was a minor noble, yet he could go to King's Landing and Highgarden to have fun.

Dickon himself could not; he was still young, and his rigid and stern father would only make Dickon follow him obediently and would not let him leave Horn Hill to wander the entire continent.

"If only I could follow Lord Arthur for a while!" he whispered with a sigh.

Someone encouraged him: "Mr. Arthur is right here, Dickon, you can just ask directly."

There was some melancholy on Dickon's stern face, "But my father won't let me leave the territory to go on adventures."

Arthur heard this dialogue and looked at Hobber with some confusion, wanting to know who this young, stern lad was.

"This is Dickon Tarly, the second son of Randyll Tarly," Hobber whispered to introduce him to Arthur.

Arthur was amused, and the unpleasantness caused by Randyll Tarly in the morning instantly vanished.

Dickon is the younger brother of Samwell Tarly of the Night's Watch, and he has been raised by Randyll as an heir since childhood, possessing very high military literacy.

Randyll himself is a famous general of the current age, having defeated the previously three-for-three Robert at Ashford, on the border between the Stormlands and the Reach, during the Usurper's War.

Although it was only a battle of a few thousand men, it was enough to demonstrate Randyll's military command ability.

How could the heir he focused on cultivating be bad?

At the very least, he is an excellent military commander.

In Arthur's squad, what is missing is exactly this kind of person.

He put down the plate, wiped his mouth with Hobber's silk sleeve, and then walked quickly to Dickon, whispering:

"I heard you want to go out on an adventure with me for a while; I formally invite you to take a trip to my territory."

First, trick this Dickon into his hands and get him to the Riverlands.

In a few weeks, Tywin will lead a main force of twenty thousand Lannisters to garrison the Golden Road; by then, the connection between the Reach and the North will be cut off, and it will be difficult for Dickon to go home.

The long-faced, stern-looking Dickon immediately became excited, "I... this, I haven't prepared yet, and my father won't agree either."

His expression changed visibly from excitement to dejection.

Arthur glanced back at the Reach lords gathered around Duke Mace Tyrell and the Queen of Thorns on the other side of the hall, found Randyll Tarly, and after confirming he was not paying attention to this side, said quickly:

"How old are you, still thinking about needing your father's permission? Even if he doesn't agree, you can sneak out."

Dickon, however, looked very conflicted, stammering and unable to say anything.

Most of the young Reach nobles around knew the situation in Dickon's family.

In order to pick a suitable heir, Randyll Tarly would rather send his eldest son Samwell to suffer in the far North with the Night's Watch, which shows his iron-blooded, stubborn, and ruthless nature, as well as his extreme desire for control.

With such a father, how could Dickon's childhood and present life be happy?

So they urged Dickon one after another to make his own decisions and go out to wander for a while with Arthur, who was already a legendary warrior.

Arthur thought for a moment and whispered again: "Your brother, Samwell, is currently in the Night's Watch in the North. Given his personality, I imagine his Night's Watch brothers often make things difficult for him. You can go see him, and by the way, use your noble status to back him up and make his life a bit more comfortable."

Fat Samwell did indeed have a hard time when he first arrived at the Wall, and a few Night's Watchmen often bullied him, but after the kind Jon Snow helped him teach these people a lesson, Samwell's life was actually okay.

Of course, Arthur would not tell Dickon these things; he only needed to get this person under his command.

"I do miss my brother; he is a person with a very good personality," Dickon said, and then he and Arthur, who was looking at him with eager anticipation, stared at each other for a long time.

Until both of them felt a bit awkward, he finally made up his mind.

"I will go with you; after I return to Horn Hill with my father tomorrow, I will sneak out."

The Tarlys' Horn Hill is only a few leagues south of Highgarden, not far at all, just about a day's ride away.

Arthur was very happy to see Dickon being so cooperative, so right there in the same hall as Randyll Tarly, he conspired with the son of this famous Reach general on how to rendezvous.

The final result of the discussion was that after Dickon returned home, he would find a time when his father was not paying attention to slip out, ride north, and meet up with Arthur.

And calculating by the distance from Horn Hill, Dickon would arrive at the banks of the Mander River two days after leaving home, at which time Arthur should have started his journey north.

But the time of Dickon's departure was uncertain; perhaps Randyll would keep his son by his side, leaving Dickon no opportunity, so Arthur agreed with him to meet at Bitterbridge.

Bitterbridge is located at the intersection of the Roseroad and the main branch of the upper Mander River; it can be said to be a must-pass place for heading north, and Dickon and Arthur's party would inevitably not miss each other.

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(End of chapter)