Twilight descended.
The uneven hard-packed mud floor was a mosaic of fish scales, breadcrumbs, and spilled ale pressed into every crack.
Shadowy corners and alcoves were everywhere.
Amidst the stench of brine and fish, greasy smoke, and sour ale:
The coarse curses of sailors, fishermen, and sellswords, the clatter of dice, the roar of brawls, and the teasing laughter of whores rose and fell in waves.
Tom and the other two sat in a shadowed corner, slowly sipping their ale.
Once the alcohol hit, plenty of sailors, fishermen, and sellswords would become loose-lipped.
And their goal was to eavesdrop on the gossip swirling around them.
After everything was settled during the day.
Don Quixote had treated the three of them to a sumptuous lunch.
He had also briefed them on the details of their arrangement.
Don Quixote would pay each of them 1 Silver Stag per month as a basic living allowance.
Of course, they needed to actively look for employers and contracts.
They could take on simple jobs themselves, but they had to do it under the banner of the Bloody Hand Mercenary Company.
The Bloody Hand Mercenary Company!
That was the name of the mercenary company Don Quixote and the others had formed.
They already had a motto:
Homeless, but the Sword is our Home!
And a creed:
Seize Destiny with our own Hands, Sworn in Blood!
The company sigil was:
A bloody hand reaching out on a field of pure white!
With Don Quixote's funding, the group's oak badges and cloaks had all been replaced with new ones bearing the bloody hand sigil.
If they completed a contract with distinction and received a letter of recommendation or high praise from the employer.
Don Quixote would pay them a bonus based on the difficulty of the task and the quality of the evaluation.
Furthermore, if they actively found difficult job opportunities.
Or simple opportunities they didn't have time to complete themselves.
They could pass the information on to Don Quixote.
For a verified job lead, Don Quixote would pay them 1 Silver Stag.
For a verified and feasible job lead, Don Quixote would pay them another Silver Stag.
Of course, all job leads had to have a certain level of difficulty—at least enough to require a freelance knight.
Not trivial tasks like hiring a groom, an errand boy, or a squire.
————
Shane had downed quite a bit of the cheap swill and suddenly started cursing:
"Damn bastards! Aren't squires just servants for us knights?
"Damn bastards, damn bastards! What makes them so special?"
Tom glanced at Shane, who seemed drunk, and after a moment's thought, frowned and reminded him:
"Captain Don Quixote values those two squires highly.
"Besides, Cole and Alden are the Captain's squires, not ours!
"Shane, I told you long ago, don't go ordering Cole and the others around."
The journey from the Cerwyn lands to White Harbor had taken a lot of time.
During that time, especially when they couldn't find an inn before dark.
They had been forced to camp in the freezing wilderness.
Naturally, there were many chores to be done.
They didn't dare order Adele around.
They could see that Don Quixote didn't treat Adele like a servant; it was more like she was his lover.
But as for the two squires, Cole and Alden—especially when they were free and training their knightly skills.
Shane and the others had tried to order them to do chores for them.
To their surprise, Don Quixote had put a stop to it immediately.
Since being rebuffed by Don Quixote the first time, Tom and Warren had obediently done their own chores.
Shane, however, seemed to have forgotten about it.
Every now and then, he would try to sneakily order the two squires to do some menial tasks for him.
Sometimes, if Don Quixote didn't notice, Shane would make Cole and Alden stop their training to help him.
Sometimes, Don Quixote noticed.
If Cole and Alden weren't busy or training, he would let it slide without saying much.
But if they were training, that was a different story.
Shane didn't dare openly defy Don Quixote, usually just grumbling a complaint before begrudgingly doing the chores himself.
————
Warren listened carefully to the chatter of the loose-lipped patrons around him, but after a good while, he heard nothing useful.
His attention returned to his own table.
Bang!
After downing the remaining half-cup of strong spirits in one gulp, Warren slammed his cup down on the stained wooden table.
Then he said coldly:
"Shane, keep that attitude in check!
"We're working with Captain Don Quixote now. If you piss him off, that's your problem, but don't drag me into it!
"If it weren't for you! Knowing the Captain, there's no way he would have made us pay for our own rooms on our first night in White Harbor!
"If you want someone to serve you, go find your own squire!
"Don't act like a big shot when you don't have the skills to back it up!"
"You!"
Shane's eyes widened instantly as he glared at Warren.
Warren sneered and glared back:
"This is the last time I'm warning you!
"If you try to order Cole and the others to do your petty chores again, I won't wait for the Captain to get angry. I'll teach you a lesson myself!"
"You son of a bitch!" Shane, fueled by alcohol, cursed angrily and stood up with a crash:
"You think I'm afraid of you? Come on, Warren! Teach me a lesson right now! Let's see who teaches who!"
The tavern wasn't big.
Just as Tom and the others could hear everyone else, everyone else could hear them.
In seconds, people noticed the commotion and started jeering:
"Ooh, fight! Fight!"
"Hey, knight, don't be a coward! Beat his ass!"
"Fuck him up!"
Warren wasn't afraid of Shane. He stood up furiously:
"I'm going to beat you until you beg for mercy!"
————
A relatively spacious room.
Don Quixote pushed open the only wooden window.
Outside.
There was both the biting sea breeze and the warm glow of fires.
If Winterfell was the heart of the North, then White Harbor was its mouth.
It was as if the Old Gods breathed gently here, making the climate much milder.
For centuries, the waters of White Harbor had remained ice-free, even in the depths of winter.
Don Quixote looked out the window.
Before long, he felt a fur cloak being draped over his shoulders.
Don Quixote turned his head.
Adele was standing on her tiptoes, putting a thick fur cloak on him.
Seeing this, Don Quixote shook his head and smiled:
"Adele, I'm not cold.
"I opened the window, so it might be a bit chilly. You should wear more."
Saying this, he took off the cloak and wrapped it around Adele instead.
He wasn't sure if eating that large bag of Frost Spirit Rice made him immune to ice magic yet.
But his resistance to cold was already showing results, combined with his powerful constitution!
Standing here in White Harbor felt like a Southern spring to him; he felt no chill at all.
Adele could feel that the temperature here was significantly warmer than in Castle Cerwyn. Even with the window open and the cold wind blowing in, it was bearable.
"Alright." Adele enjoyed the process of Don Quixote putting the cloak on her:
"Thank you, My Lord!"
The two stood by the window, silently watching the lively night scene of White Harbor.
After watching for a while.
Don Quixote suddenly said:
"Adele, I plan to find someone in White Harbor to teach us how to read and write.
"Do you want to learn?"
Although Don Quixote had taught himself some of the world's script and had secretly asked people with basic literacy for pointers.
His current level was... he recognized some words, but not many.
...He hoped to find a fallen noble or knight in White Harbor to systematically teach him the written language of Westeros.
Or privately hire a septa from the Faith.
Conveniently, White Harbor had a sept.
As for maesters, he didn't make that his primary goal.
Maesters almost exclusively served the nobility and weren't easily accessible.
Acolytes and novices were almost all in Oldtown.
...Maybe he could find someone who was nominally studying under a maester outside of Oldtown but had no official status at the Citadel.
If he wanted to truly integrate into this world, not learning the written language would make things difficult.
As Don Quixote pondered.
"I do!"
Adele snapped out of her daze and nodded expectantly.
...