The next morning, Jon Snow woke up naturally, feeling well-rested despite the nightmare he had the previous night. He felt surprisingly energetic, his mind clearer than it had been before, thanks to the full eight hours of sleep.
After finishing his morning routine, which followed the habits of his previous life, Rolle entered and reported to him. "Sir Lucien," he said.
"No, no," Jon quickly interrupted him. "Don't call me that. Just call me Sir Lucien, like everyone else. That's my current identity."
"As you wish, Sir Lucien," Rolle replied with a shrug. "Jenny Hyde, the niece of the innkeeper, Martha, came by earlier and knocked on your door."
"How could it be her? Where is she now?"
"I told her you were still sleeping, and she left."
"Go ask her to come back now."
"Would you like to order some food as well? We haven't eaten yet."
"Okay."
Rolle took the order and left, returning with Jenny just two minutes later.
Jenny Hyde was a girl not yet 18 years old. While she wasn't a great beauty, she had a pleasant appearance, especially her bright, intelligent eyes. She wore a beautiful navy blue linen dress, with her long brown hair cascading down her shoulders, and her delicate calves were exposed beneath the skirt.
Jon guessed this was probably her most expensive dress.
"Your Excellency," Jenny greeted him, lowering her head respectfully. But Jon could still feel her eyes subtly glancing at him.
"What did Martha say to you yesterday?" Jon's expression darkened.
"She didn't say much. She just asked me to recall how many of the guests who stayed here last night were visiting for the first time. She also asked me to report to you today."
"Why didn't she come herself?"
"She's still in the kitchen. You may not know, but she's the only cook at our inn. If she leaves the kitchen, the inn won't be able to run properly, so she asked me to attend to you instead."
"Are you not curious about what I'm planning to do?"
"Of course I am," Jenny replied. "But my aunt refused to tell me anything. She just told me to serve you well. She said you're the richest man in the world, a guest of the Volantis Archon and the Emperor of Yidi. She told me to seize the opportunity, even if it's just for one night or even one time. A gesture from your generous hand could keep us clothed and fed for a lifetime."
"So, you're wearing your best dress to serve me, and if you can get into my bed, you'll be set for life, right?" Jon rolled his eyes.
"Oh, sir!" Jenny's face turned red at his words. She stammered, "I... I just didn't expect you to be so young."
Two years younger than you, Jon cursed inwardly.
"Enough with the thoughts," Jon cut her off, returning to the matter at hand. He had no interest in flirting with someone like Jenny. "Tell me, who were the strangers who stayed here last night?"
"There were a total of 14 people who stayed overnight," Jenny began. "Eleven of them we had never seen before." Seeing Jon's serious expression, she quickly added, "I didn't dare to think about it much. I'm just reporting the facts as I've collected them."
"So many?" Jon asked.
"Yes, sir. It's typical for our inn. Most of the guests are just passing through and stay for a night, so we often have strangers."
"And what about these 11 people? What were they like?"
"I'm afraid I can't answer that," Jenny said, her voice trembling.
"Why not?"
"Well, only three of them are still here. The others left before dawn, buying some dry food on their way out." Jenny hesitated, her voice lowering. "At the time, I wanted to report it to you, but one of the knights stopped me. I couldn't possibly stop them myself, could I?"
"You didn't mention what you were here for at the time," Rolle said, frowning.
"I... I don't know what to say," Jenny's eyes shifted uncomfortably. She had come with the wrong intentions, so when Rolle rejected her, she became too frightened to speak.
"It's fine." Jon interrupted them. "The travelers who left before dawn were most likely in a hurry and not involved in anything. Just tell me about the three who are still here."
Jenny nodded in relief. "Okay, okay... Among the remaining three, one is a mercenary. He's in the lobby, drinking. I spoke to him briefly, and he said he came here to try his luck and see if he could find work."
"But he doesn't look like a mercenary at all," she added, shaking her head. "He's too thin and doesn't look strong. I feel like any duck in our store could beat him."
"Player!" Jon's first thought was that the man might be a player.
Since a player's combat abilities weren't determined by their physical appearance, it didn't matter if someone looked weak. Just as age didn't affect a player's abilities, the final character design wouldn't impact their potential either.
"If he's a mercenary, he might actually be a player," Jon mused.
"What about his other characteristics? What armor does he wear? What weapons does he have?"
"That's the most bizarre part!" Jenny exclaimed. "He has no armor or weapons. Just a very old silk shirt and a wallet with gold embroidery. He looks like he's powdered his face."
Jon chuckled. "Let's move on to the other two."
"The other two are a knight and his young page... A middle-aged knight and a boy, maybe 11 or 12. They got a fancy single room and asked for a bundle of straw mats, probably for the child. They're still in the room, so they probably haven't gotten up yet."
Jenny paused, then added, "Oh, when they arrived yesterday afternoon, Auntie asked the knight to go to the Ward family's manor to help Sir Wilder and the others, but he rejected her. He said he was on his way to King's Landing and didn't have time to deal with the 'poor knights' of the Riverlands."
"Do you know his last name?"
"No, he never introduced himself by name."
"What about his coat of arms? Did he have one?"
"Yes, there was something on his cloak," Jenny recalled. "It looked like a tower."
"One tower or two?" Jon asked, immediately thinking of the twin blue towers of House Frey.
"One, ser. I'm sure of it."
"What else can you remember? The color of the tower, the color of the cloak—anything else in the design?"
"The tower was yellow, and the cloak... Oh no, wait, it was red, not black." Jenny scratched her head. "Sorry, I'm not sure. I didn't pay close attention at the time."
"Black and red, with a yellow tower," Jon repeated. After a few moments of thought, he asked, "Was the cloak split into black and red, with a yellow tower in the center and four flames coming out of it?"
"Huh? Flames?" Jenny blinked. Then she realized what he meant. "Yes! That's exactly what it was! Flames coming out of the tower!"
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