Game of Thrones: The Wrath of the Sleeping Dragon

Arya, however, was like a gentle pool of water, trying her best to contain Brienne's sharpness. Yet, Arya, like a pool of water, also had her moments of sharpness. The first two times Brienne underestimated Arya, she was caught off guard.

However, Brienne then got serious, wielding her greatsword with great force, leaving Arya with little chance, given the vast difference in their strength.

Where did you learn that?

Arya, slightly out of breath, patted the footprint on her chest where Brienne had kicked her away, and then spoke.

"I figured it out myself."

“I have had many teachers, and each of them taught in a different way. In the end, I chose to follow a path that suited me.”

Arya and Brienne have both deviated from their original paths.

Brienne is stronger than the female knight in the original Trails series because she has walked through real mountains of corpses and seas of blood. The murderous aura she carries and the sharpness of her greatsword are enough to inspire fear in those who behold her.

Unlike the original Trails series, Arya did not become a Faceless One, but she is not necessarily much weaker than the original Trails series in direct combat.

She studied under her brother Jon Snow, who was exceptionally talented in swordsmanship.

Although Jon Snow is not well-known and currently serves at the Wall, he is actually a swordsman who is almost unmatched among the Seven Kingdoms.

Later, her father Ed saw his daughter's talent and aptitude for swordsmanship, so he sent someone across the Narrow Sea to find her an assassin from Braavos.

Although Arya's teacher was not Cyrio Forel, he still imparted the essence of the Water Dance to Arya.

Arya later practiced archery and swordsmanship with her aunt.

Her martial arts talent is undeniable; in the original timeline, she would have been chosen by Jaqen H'ghar. Although she hasn't chosen the path of the Faceless Ones, she wouldn't be weak if she took another path.

Chapter 941 begins

Another two weeks passed, and this year's martial arts tournament officially began.

King's Landing was bustling with activity as people with nothing better to do flocked to the arena for the martial arts tournament.

"It's finally starting!"

"I heard that Her Majesty the Queen will be attending the event today with two princes and a princess."

The crowd was noisy and chattering, and the venue for the martial arts tournament was set up in King's Landing, on a newly developed piece of land between the first and second ring walls of the city.

This is actually the site of the tournament held during the reign of King Robert.

Because King's Landing has undergone three expansions, its external land resources are abundant, unlike the inner city where land resources are scarce and extremely valuable.

Therefore, following municipal planning, a training ground capable of accommodating 10,000 people was rebuilt on the original site where King Robert held his tournament. This ground will be used to host a series of large-scale events such as victory parades and tournaments in the future, and will be open to the public as a tournament venue on weekdays.

Its first real function was to host this martial arts tournament.

"set off!"

"We must return victorious today!"

Knights from all over the country were eager to show off their skills at the martial arts tournament.

"Lord Dickon Tully is incredibly brave and will surely achieve great results."

"Don't make promises you can't keep."

A group of knights from the Reach gathered together to chat. The young heir of Horned Ridge, hearing his companions' flattery, quickly shook his head modestly, then couldn't help but turn around and look behind him.

His older brother, Samwell Tarly, did not approve of his younger brother vying for a spot in the Kingsguard because it was dangerous, but Deacon did not share that view.

My father disappeared on the battlefield, never to be seen again, dead or alive. I had a glimmer of hope, but so many years have passed without any news, so that hope was dashed. Randyll Tarly must have been reduced to ashes by the dragonfire.

With the fall of the River Bend General, the eldest brother Samwell, with the support of his mother, inherited the position of Earl of Hornbill. The Tully family of Hornbill gradually declined, losing its former glory, and many of the family's private armies were also disbanded.

But his elder brother Samwell Tarly ignored this and devoted himself to his studies, earning the chain of a maester. In the past, obtaining the chain of a maester meant giving up a secular title, but now that the Citadel had been split up, the old rules no longer applied.

Therefore, Dickon was anxious to see this. He had to take responsibility and restore the family's glory. This opportunity to compete for a spot in the Kingsguard was the best chance for him.

We will definitely win!

Then the burly young knight clenched his fist slightly, encouraging himself, and thought to himself.

Because this martial arts tournament is for selecting the Royal Guards, which requires both loyalty and bravery, the entry threshold is set at members of noble families with the rank of knight or higher.

Loyalty is more important than martial arts skills, and some skilled mercenaries and wandering knights are not qualified to participate in this tournament.

Even so, the number of participants in this tournament broke previous records; the largest tournament held during King Robert's reign only had one or two hundred participants.

This time, the entry requirement was limited to knights, but the number of knights and nobles who came from all over the country has exceeded a thousand.

Among them were even local lords who, instead of being proper noblemen, chose to compete for a spot in the Imperial Guard.

The same applies to knights who could easily become village chiefs in the outside world. They could act arrogantly and domineeringly in the countryside, but when they came to King's Landing, they found that there were more knights than dogs here, and that a brick thrown down could hit three knights.

The main reason for this phenomenon is that Viserys lowered the bar for knighthood, and he bestowed many knighthoods in large quantities during the conquest of Westeros to boost morale.

The knight did this not only to boost morale, but also to dilute the power of the nobility.

Therefore, a tournament is now being held in King's Landing to select the Kingsguard, and the number of knights who have gathered from all over the country is enough to reach a thousand.

If so many people were to fight in pairs, it would take forever. Therefore, the first round of the martial arts tournament was a team competition.

Each match consists of fifty players, divided into two camps. Each camp has twenty-five players who are randomly selected and then freely choose their weapons, which are all wooden blunt-tipped spears, longswords, and wooden bows and arrows. Players can even choose to ride horses.

Although these wooden weapons cannot completely prevent casualties, participants in the tournament must be prepared for injury or even death. Wooden weapons can minimize casualties and protect the knights participating in the competition as much as possible.

The number of fifty people was also carefully considered. While ensuring the efficiency of the preliminary selection, it was also necessary to ensure that individual abilities could shine on the team battlefield, otherwise it would defeat the original purpose of this martial arts tournament.

A battlefield of 25 against 25 is neither too many nor too few. A knight with strong individual abilities still has a chance to lead his team out of the encirclement and defeat his opponents.

Otherwise, if the battlefield expands to fifty against fifty, or even one hundred against one hundred, then even the strongest knights, even if Arthur Dayne the Dawn is reborn, cannot change the situation on the battlefield. Knights with exceptional individual abilities may be buried in team battles.

Therefore, after comprehensive consideration, and in addition to the need to balance the efficiency of the preliminary selection process and avoid prolonging the selection time, the final decision was made to have fifty people per battlefield for the group operation.

Currently, more than a thousand Imperial Knights need to participate in more than twenty group battles, with an average of about five matches per day. The preliminary selection can be completed in four to five days.

The preliminary selection, as the name suggests, is meant to eliminate many people; four or five days of group competition is enough to eliminate more than half of the participants.

Because injuries and even deaths are inevitable in team battles, and some people may choose to quit even if they win, after eliminating more than 500 people, there are about 500 knights left.

Five hundred people is still too many, so a team competition is needed to eliminate half of them.

However, the second team competition will not continue to use the fifty-person battlefield, but will be reduced to a twenty-person team competition, that is, a ten-person vs. ten-person competition.

This allows you to maximize your individual abilities and avoid being too affected by the skill level of your teammates.

The second round of the team competition, consisting of 25 rounds, also required several days of competition. Including injured and withdrawn players, approximately 200 riders remained.

These two hundred-plus knights were the ones who made it to the final rounds and participated in the real tournament. They were then assessed in three areas: mounted combat, foot combat, and archery. The top ten with the best overall performance were selected.

The Imperial Family will then select the Imperial Guards from these ten individuals, taking into account loyalty, courage, responsibility, and martial prowess, regardless of their ranking.

The Imperial Guards don't necessarily have to be champions; loyalty is more important. Although there are five spots available now, we would rather have none than accept the wrong one. If there isn't a suitable candidate, we would rather give up than fill a spot with someone of inferior ability.

Chapter 942 Cheers

thump—

The bells of King's Landing rang, and the tournament opened promptly at dawn.

The entrance ticket cost two silver deer, and there were 10,000 places available. After paying for their tickets, a large number of spectators poured into the arena of the martial arts tournament.

The exchange rate for one gold dragon is approximately two hundred and ten silver deer. Therefore, the ticket revenue generated by the martial arts tournament in one day is negligible, barely enough to cover some costs.

But the money the 'heartless' Prime Minister wanted to earn was definitely not from the entrance fees to the martial arts tournament.

In reality, the two silver deer were simply used to exclude those who were penniless or stingy but wanted to watch the spectacle, so as to prevent them from occupying the precious spots. Even the most ordinary people in King's Landing would not be deterred by the two silver deer.

What Velas is really eyeing is the profit from the betting, which is the best way to fleece people.

After all, people might not be able to accept a ticket price as high as twenty silver deer, but they are willing to throw away two gold dragons in a gambling game.

Ultimately, people perceive this as a way to make money with a small investment, not a waste.

Many people want to test their courage and judgment, and they won't stop if they make a small profit, but they want to make it back if they lose. That's where Velas's scythe is waiting.

"Get out of the way!"

"Get out of the way!"

"Make way for the Unsullied Legion!"

After the ticketed audience members had all found their seats, shouts and heavy, synchronized footsteps suddenly echoed from outside the martial arts tournament venue.

Swish swish swish—

A squad of fully armed Unsullied soldiers, carrying the banners of the Targaryen royal family, escorted Queen Arianne and the carriage carrying three princes and a princess to the scene.

"His Majesty!"

All the courtiers on the VIP platform knelt on one knee, while the First Queen Arianne, supported by her maid Sansa, stepped out of the carriage first, eliciting cheers and applause from the crowd.

Then, Princess Diana Targaryen, who had been bestowed the title of Princess, stepped down from the carriage.

Hello!

The girl with short, silver-gold hair that reached her neck wore a white cloak, and with bright eyes and white teeth, she looked heroic and dashing.

Diana stepped down from the carriage, which immediately drew even louder cheers and applause from the crowd.

"your Highness!"

"Your Highness!"

The title of Princess of the First Rank originally belonged to Diana's aunt, Rene, but after Rene married her father, the title of Princess of the First Rank was automatically revoked.

However, some elderly people in the palace or those familiar with Renis still refer to her as the Eldest Princess.

But in reality, the title of princess has now fallen to the silver-gold-haired girl.

Diana was Viserys' first child and only princess, so she was very popular in King's Landing, winning even more applause and cheers than her mother, Queen Ariane.

However, Prince Heros then stepped down from the carriage, and the crowd erupted in applause and cheers.

The brown-haired boy was polite and seemed quite approachable. A long sword hung at his waist, and he waved to the people around him.

The cheers even made Arya, who was silently preparing in the arena below, look up.

"Who is this? Why is there such a big cheer?"

Bran Stark, who was standing beside his sister, shielded his eyes with his hand, squinted, and tried to avoid obstructing the light, before speaking uncertainly.