Chapter 106: The Man Abandoned by the Citadel

Duosite the Maester hopes to tear down Winterfell to search for the dragon beneath it; this is a mad notion. An ordinary lord would disparage and mock Duosite's ideas, but Eddard would not.

In Westeros, many people feel that magic has become a legend, but Eddard knows clearly that the era of the return of Qi will arrive sooner or later.

Magic also has many practical uses; for instance, when forging a Valyrian Steel Sword, the Smith needs incantations; when making Wildfire, the Alchemist needs incantations; in war, if Eddard possessed a skinchanger or a Red Priest who could prophesy the future from flames, he could gain a great advantage.

Today, Eddard's children have not yet encountered their wolves. In the future, once Robb, Jon, Sansa, Arya, Bran, and Rickon Stark possess their respective direwolves, Eddard will certainly cherish them well and let these direwolves exert their greatest effectiveness on the battlefield.

Duosite's research regarding magic is somewhat mad, but Eddard believes that in the future, Duosite will certainly be able to create value for Winterfell.

Under the candlelight of honey candles, Eddard said to Duosite, "I will not tear down Winterfell to find the legendary dragon, but perhaps I will find a Dragon Egg and attempt to hatch a dragon. Duosite, I am very interested in magic and occultism; let us welcome the feast of magic together in Winterfell!"

Duosite bowed in gratitude and turned to leave.

At this moment, in the Library Tower, only Eddard and Luwin remained.

"Luwin, what do you think of the three Maesters: Duosite, Norman, and Farmer?"

"Lord Eddard, if I may speak frankly, these three Maesters do not have a good reputation at the Citadel." Luwin stroked the Chain around his neck. "I received letters from the Conclave at the Citadel and know something of them."

"Farmer is more like a farmer; he is obsessed with farming and minerals but lacks the ability to serve nobles, so no noble is willing to take him in. The Conclave unanimously agreed that if Farmer had been born in the era of Aegon V, he might have obtained the position of Grand Maester, because Aegon V was more like a farmer than a king."

"Norman comes from House Shett of Gulltown. He has a good background, yet while at the Citadel, he participated in human dissection research on living people together with a Maester named Qyburn."

"Qyburn?" This name piqued Eddard's interest.

Luwin continued, "At the time, Norman was in charge of the morgue at the Citadel. Qyburn brought living people into the morgue for dissection. After the Citadel discovered this, Qyburn was stripped of his Chain, expelled from the order of Maesters, and driven out of the Citadel."

"Norman insisted that he had nothing to do with Qyburn's research. The Conclave of the Citadel ultimately decided to retain Norman's Chain, but forbade him from continuing any research. He was no different from a servant at the Citadel, and no noble was willing to take in this tainted Maester. That is why the Citadel sent Norman to Winterfell."

"As for this Duosite, he grew up at Harrenhal. The patron who sent him to the Citadel to study back then was Catelyn Stark's aunt, Lady Shella Whent of Harrenhal."

"Although Duosite grew up at Harrenhal, he is a distant relative of the Banefort family from the Hollow Hill in the Westerlands. The Banefort family are descendants of the Hooded King. It is said that the last Hooded King, Morgan Banefort, was a necromancer; therefore, I feel that Duosite's blood carries a certain madness of the Hooded King."

The Banefort family's castle, Hollow Hill, is located by the sea in the Westerlands and is the Westerlands castle closest to the Iron Islands. Thousands of years ago, the then King of the Rock, House Lannister, and the Banefort family, the Hooded Kings, engaged in a war that lasted for hundreds of years.

The last Hooded King, Morgan Banefort, and his dark servants used necromancy to manipulate corpses to fight for them. The King of the Rock, Loreon Lannister, spent twenty years defeating the Hooded King and taking Morgan Banefort prisoner.

It is said that before the necromancer Morgan Banefort died, he placed a curse on the King of the Rock, Loreon, claiming that after he died, he would be resurrected to kill Loreon and his sons. Loreon personally cut off the Hooded King's head; fearing the curse would manifest, he ordered his soldiers to chop Morgan Banefort into meat paste and feed it to the lions in the cages of Casterly Rock.

Loreon Lannister thought this had prevented the Hooded King's curse, but unexpectedly, a few years later, the lion that had eaten the Hooded King suddenly escaped its cage and bit and devoured the King of the Rock, Loreon, and all his children.

The Hooded King's curse is still widely circulated in the Westerlands today. Duosite is a descendant of the Hooded King; no wonder he is so obsessed with magic.

"Duosite has done many absurd things." Luwin told Eddard, "He once went to the ancient battlefield of the Field of Fire, hoping to resurrect the Gardener King and the warriors of The Reach who died there; he went to the Ruby Ford, hoping to find the spirit of Rhaegar Targaryen; he stayed in the abandoned Dragonpit in King's Landing for half a year, hoping to summon a Dragon Soul and resurrect Balerion the Black Dread."

Whether it was Duosite, Farmer, or Norman, all were unable to gain a foothold at the Citadel for various reasons, which is why the Citadel sent them to Winterfell.

In fact, it is entirely understandable; Oldtown is warm and prosperous. Under normal circumstances, no Maester would be willing to give up the sunny Oldtown Citadel to come to the cold and gloomy Winterfell.

Under the candlelight, Luwin held the list of Assistant Maesters and apprentices. "As for these Assistant Maesters and apprentices, they either committed theft at the Citadel or were unable to obtain a Maester's position due to poor academic performance, which is why they chose to come to Winterfell."

Eddard sighed. "These Maesters, Assistant Maesters, and apprentices were only sent to Winterfell because the Citadel did not want them, but I believe they will be very useful to me." Eddard could only make do with what life could give him.

When Eddard returned to the bedroom, Catelyn was waiting for him inside.

"So many people from the Citadel came today, Eddard. Do we really need so many Maesters? Having Luwin is enough!"

Eddard stroked Catelyn's red hair. "Luwin has to teach the children to read, treat the people of Winterfell and Winter Town, and manage the ravens and write letters. How could he do so much work alone? There will be other Maesters to help in the future, and there will also be Assistant Maesters and apprentices!"

Catelyn frowned. "Maesters are advisors to nobles. Recruiting so many strangers at once, can we trust them?"

"Trust takes time." Eddard smiled. "When Luwin first came to our home, wasn't he also a stranger? Rest assured, I only discuss important matters with family, Luwin, the steward, and the financial advisor."

"Actually, they are not all strangers. Take Duosite, for example; he grew up at Harrenhal, and your aunt, Lady Shella Whent, sent him to the Citadel to study back then."

(End of chapter)