Gals Tyrell clutched his stomach; it had been bothering him since the morning.
Although this was an old ailment of his, it was appearing at an inconvenient time, as he had been dispatched to receive Lord of Summerhall Linde Terra.
If his old ailment suddenly flared up in front of Lynd, House Tyrell would be greatly embarrassed.
In truth, he was very reluctant to greet Linde Terra, because ten years ago Lynd was merely an ordinary vassal of House Tyrell.
At that time, given his status as the Steward of Highgarden, when meeting Lynd, Lynd should have bowed to him first.
However, now he had to wait in Rose Bay beforehand to welcome Lynd's arrival, which made him feel very uncomfortable, like a servant.
Yet, he had no choice but to come this time, because in all of Highgarden, in terms of status, those suitable to welcome Lynd were few and far between, and currently, only he was available.
If he refused this task, surely the Duke of Highgarden couldn't go to welcome his own vassal, could he?
Although somewhat dissatisfied with the welcoming task he had undertaken, Gals was not dissatisfied with Lynd himself.
In fact, he greatly admired Linde Terra, believing it was an absolute honor for House Tyrell to have such a legendary figure among its vassals.
More importantly, with the rise of Linde Terra, Highgarden also benefited greatly.
As the Steward of Highgarden, Gals was very sensitive to Highgarden's various incomes.
In recent years, the profits and taxes generated by various trades between Highgarden and Summerhall had already accounted for one-third of Highgarden's total income, and this proportion was still increasing, likely to become one-half this year.
This was not the most important thing; the most important thing was that with Lynd's rise, Highgarden's status also rose in the Seven Kingdoms.
After all, no matter how much Lynd rose, he still belonged to Highgarden's vassals.
Therefore, this time Garlan personally went to Summerhall to invite Lynd to his wedding, to show respect, and his being sent to greet Lynd conveyed the same meaning.
Just as Gals was considering how to face Lynd later, a commotion suddenly came from the back of the procession.
He turned his head to look and saw more than a dozen figures wearing the robes of the Seven Gods Church monks approaching, led by the new Archbishop of Great Sept, Tasi.
"Lord Gals," the procession arrived, and Archbishop Tasi nodded slightly towards Gals, bowing.
Seeing this procession of Seven Gods Church monks also coming here to greet Lynd, Gals's face showed no unusual expression, but he felt quite displeased internally.
However, despite his displeasure, he still performed the necessary courtesies, so he also nodded to the other party and said, "Archbishop Tasi."
After exchanging greetings, the two acted as if they were strangers who had never met, making no further unnecessary conversation, each standing on opposite sides of the road, not even glancing at each other.
In the past, the appointment of the Archbishop of Great Sept was mostly proposed by Highgarden, and then the Seven Gods Church would select a suitable candidate from among them.
However, this time, the Seven Gods Church appointed the Archbishop of Great Sept without notifying Highgarden at all, directly transferring a bishop from the Vale to serve as the Archbishop of Great Sept.
If it were merely the appointment of the Archbishop without informing House Tyrell, that would be one thing, as similar incidents had occurred in the past.
But the problem was that this Archbishop Tasi was very restless, even attempting to interfere in Highgarden's internal affairs, which had already touched House Tyrell's bottom line.
Therefore, Duke Mace had already planned to request the Seven Gods Church to replace the Archbishop of Great Sept after Garlan's wedding.
The reason Archbishop Tasi ran to greet Lynd now was clearly because he had heard some rumors and wanted to use Lynd's status as the Chosen of the Seven to back himself up, which was also what made Gals somewhat worried.
It was well known that Lynd and the Seven Gods Church were one; even if he created a storm god faith, it did not affect his relationship with the Seven Gods Church in the slightest, and in fact, the two became even closer.
Especially after Lynd returned from Beyond the Wall and brought legends of Others and wights into the Seven Kingdoms, various faith factions within the Seven Gods Church related to Linde Terra, such as the Chosen Redemption Faction and the Chosen Salvation Faction, grew day by day and had already become the most core and mainstream faith factions of the Seven Gods Church.
It was no exaggeration to say that the current Linde Terra had completely replaced the Archbishop of the Great Sept of Baelor in King's Landing, becoming the leader of the entire Seven Gods Church.
With Linde Terra's influence in the Church, if he were to openly express his support for this Archbishop Tasi later, then even if Highgarden requested the Church to change the Archbishop candidate, the Church would likely not agree to Highgarden's request.
"My Lord, Lord Linde Terra's party has already reached Shoemaker's Mill."
Just as Gals was feeling a headache over the sudden unexpected development, the knight he had sent out earlier had returned, reporting Lynd's current location.
Upon hearing this, Gals immediately straightened his clothes and told the Highgarden knights behind him to be more alert.
Archbishop Tasi, on the side, also had his subordinate monks help him put on his ornate and heavy Archbishop's vestments, and he picked up his self-made Archbishop's crozier, dressed like a peacock displaying its feathers.
Soon, a procession proudly bearing the blood-red longsword banner appeared at the end of the road, and the composition of this procession made people feel somewhat strange.
At the very front of the procession, leading the way, were a dozen knights in ornate full plate armor, which was normal.
What was abnormal was that following behind them were two squads of Church monks and nuns.
These two squads of monks and nuns were very tall and robust, each like a smaller version of the Mountain, and their attire was as striking as their physiques.
The monks on the left wore the robes of Silent Monks, but underneath they wore chainmail, and the staffs they held were actually long spears, making them look more like warriors.
The nuns on the right wore even more exaggerated attire: a full leather armor worn internally, with their nun's robes being a layer of chainmail.
Additionally, she held a Seven Gods holy book that looked like it was made of metal, and in her hand, she wielded a half-man-high iron rod, with rhomboid armor-piercing spikes on both ends of the rod.
"It's the Silent Monks and Redemption Sisters of Summerhall," someone among the knights behind Gals whispered.
As implied by that statement, although the Silent Monks and Redemption Sisters both came from the Redemption Sanctuary, those who knew their origins preferred to classify them as armed forces under Linde Terra.
According to rumors, these Silent Monks and Redemption Sisters were all specially selected by Linde Terra to protect his family, and each of them had received personal training from Lynd, possessing exceptionally high combat skills.
How strong these monks and nuns specifically were, few people knew, but everyone was well aware that since Lynd dared to entrust the safety of his wife and children to these individuals, it meant that their strength was absolutely extraordinary.
However, Lynd's actions caused some knights to be dissatisfied, because they felt that protecting the safety of the lord and his family should be the responsibility of knights, and Lynd's actions clearly showed a distrust of knights.
Some even accused Lynd of covertly restoring the armed religious orders.
Gals was also one of those who were dissatisfied with Lynd allowing Church power to interfere with secular authority, because Archbishop Tasi's overstepping behavior originated from Lynd.
Therefore, when he saw the Silent Monks and Redemption Sisters also in Lynd's procession, his expression darkened slightly but quickly recovered.
Archbishop Tasi, on the other hand, had a smile on his face, seemingly thinking that given Lynd's relationship with the Church, he should be able to get the support he wanted this time.
As the procession drew closer, everyone quickly saw Linde Terra walking in the center of the group.
At this moment, Linde Terra was not wearing the dragon armor known to the world, but rather a set of golden armor that looked even more magnificent and formidable.
The knights who had heard about Lynd's legendary experiences on the continent of Essos in taverns and inns quickly recognized that the armor Lynd wore was the Golden Lion Knight Armor from the stories.
And in their hearts, the real Lion Knight Armor was even more splendid and dazzling than the Lion Knight Armor they had imagined while listening to the tales.
Although they wholeheartedly wished for a set of Lion Knight Armor for themselves, looking at those heavy armor plates, they could only smile bitterly and give up their dreams, because they knew very well that even if they forged such a set of armor, they probably wouldn't be able to wear it.
Compared to the Highgarden knights who were all captivated by Lynd's magnificent armor, Gals Tyrell's attention was focused on Augustus Terra, who was sitting on the front of the saddle, held in Lynd's arms.
As the heir to Summerhall, Augustus Terra's level of attention among the high-ranking officials of the Seven Kingdoms was no less than Linde Terra's.
It was just that Lynd and Nameria were too protective of the little one; outsiders didn't even know the little one's appearance, which naturally made everyone even more curious.
However, Lynd actually brought his son to Garlan's wedding this time, which undoubtedly showed his closeness and trust in House Tyrell of Highgarden.
Gals, who had originally been somewhat worried, also broke into a smile.
The procession stopped in front of Gals.
Lynd dismounted, also lifted Augustus from the saddle, and, holding his hand, walked towards Gals.
As they passed the groups of monks and nuns, two individuals from each group stepped out and followed Lynd, protecting Lynd and Augustus in the middle.
"Lord Gals, I am truly sorry to have troubled you to wait here!" Lynd took the initiative to bow to Gals upon reaching him.
"No, I..." Gals was about to respond.
Archbishop Tasi, on the side, took a step ahead and walked to Lynd and Gals, saying, "Godsworn, I am Archbishop Tasi of Great Sept.
More than a month ago, I visited your Lordship at Summerhall, but unfortunately, you were..."
"Archbishop Tasi, I know you." Lynd raised his hand to interrupt Archbishop Tasi's self-introduction and said, "I have always believed that the Sanctuary governs divine faith, and the lord controls secular power.
The two can cooperate and communicate, but they cannot meddle in powers that do not belong to them.
Your actions in Highgarden have already caused no small trouble for the Church.
The Church should have already made a decision regarding your behavior.
You should honestly stay at Great Sept and await the Church's news!"
Archbishop Tasi, who had been full of confidence just a moment ago, heard Lynd's words, plopped down on the ground, and was completely stunned.
None of the monks who came with him stepped forward to help him up; they all watched indifferently, clearly indicating that this Archbishop's actions had also displeased the other monks of Great Sept.
They had only feigned compliance due to his status as Archbishop.
Now, Lynd's words undoubtedly told them that this Archbishop would not last long, so there was naturally no need to give him a good face anymore.
Looking at the performance of the Great Sept Archbishop and the monks, Lynd couldn't help but sigh.
In his opinion, both the Archbishop and the monks were unqualified and needed to be completely replaced, preferably with his own people, or at the very least, some truly devout monks.
After all, Great Sept was a very important sanctuary in the entire Seven Gods Church and could not have any problems.
The Archbishop of Great Sept's disheveled appearance not only disgraced himself but also the dignity of the Seven Gods Church.
Lynd naturally wouldn't ignore it.
He turned to the four Silent Monks behind him and said, "Archbishop Tasi is feeling unwell.
You escort him back to Great Sept and let him rest well.
As for Garlan's wedding, let Great Sept nominate another monk to preside."
Upon hearing the command, the four Silent Monks immediately walked to Archbishop Tasi, helped him up from the ground, and, each holding an arm, walked towards Highgarden.
Archbishop Tasi recovered from his panic and tried to say something, but he was struck in the neck by a Silent Monk's fist, knocking him unconscious.
The monks of Great Sept were stunned when they saw Archbishop Tasi being taken away by the Silent Monks.
Then, after bowing to Lynd, they all followed the Silent Monks' footsteps.
"My apologies, Lord Linde, for letting you see a joke," Gals said with a helpless expression.
"No, it should be me apologizing to House Tyrell.
Because of me, some ambitious individuals have appeared within the Seven Gods Church.
These fellows actually aspire to meddle in secular power, and this has happened not only in Highgarden but also in the Vale, Riverlands, and so on."
Lynd also said with a serious expression, "Before I came, I had already discussed with the Seven Gods Church's Tribunal.
They will punish these bishops and monks who have overstepped their bounds, and the Archbishop of Great Sept will also be replaced.
The new candidate will still follow tradition, proposed by House Tyrell and selected by the Church.
I hope House Tyrell can finalize the list of candidates as soon as possible."
At this moment, Gals was very satisfied with Lynd's attitude.
Although Lynd's action of dealing with the Archbishop of Great Sept was considered interference in Highgarden's affairs, it did not cause him any dissatisfaction.
Instead, he felt that entrusting it to Lynd was the most appropriate course of action.
If Highgarden had handled it, unpleasant incidents with the Church would inevitably have occurred, which would have been detrimental to House Tyrell.
Therefore, in his view, Lynd had solved a major problem for House Tyrell; he was overjoyed and certainly not displeased.
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