Fort Clegane. The Church of the Seven.
The witch stood on the seventh-tier platform, her long, washed hair gleaming with a silvery sheen as it cascaded over her shoulders, revealing a face dotted with white spots. Every seven white spots formed a small circle, and her face was covered with these strange little circles.
Gregor had no idea what the white spots on the witch's face meant, but they looked awe-inspiring.
The witch's complexion also changed, becoming radiant.
For some reason, her teeth, which should have fallen out, returned. What Gregor found strange was that the witch's teeth were all black.
Her teeth were black, and at first glance, it looked like she didn't have any teeth at all.
The Earl of Gavin was most surprised by the witch's transformation.
At first glance, he thought the priest of the Seven Saints' Temple had changed.
The witch, dressed in a long black robe, stood ramrod straight, whereas yesterday her back was bent, revealing her advanced age.
Compared to yesterday, the witch seems to have become twenty years younger.
Yesterday, the witch that Gregor, Jenny, and Earl Gavin saw was not the true face of the witch, but rather one aspect of her: an aged and powerless one.
Perhaps, showing weakness was also a test that the witch was giving Gregor.
Perhaps the witch is hiding many of her means and abilities to retaliate against Gregor.
Maester Harry stood on a step lower than the witch, and he would lead everyone to face the witch and recite the oath.
There are two things to do in the Seven's Church today. The first is to ask the Seven Gods to witness Gregor knighting Dunsson the Executioner and Polliver the loyal follower, and to bestow upon them the surname Clegane.
The second thing was to make nearly a hundred miners take an oath before entering Jinye Bay to mine, promising not to steal gold, not to cheat or shirk their duties, not to run away halfway through, not to ask for leave, not to go home, and not to tell anyone they saw anything out of line, and to keep everything a secret.
The sixty cavalrymen watched with bated breath as Dunsen and Polliver knelt before Gregor, reciting the knightly oath with Maester Harry, beginning with the declaration of the eight virtues of chivalry: humility, integrity, mercy, courage, justice, sacrifice, honor, and soul!
Then came the oath-taking ceremony—
I swear to Heaven to demonstrate my resolve;
Do not bully the weak, and live humbly.
In every battle we have fought, we should not fear powerful enemies;
I will destroy the banner of anything that is heretical and erroneous!
Women and children, the weak and the strong, were the targets of the war.
When someone is imprisoned and asks for help, we will do our utmost to assist them.
Women are delicate and fragile; they should not be offended.
Colleagues who share the same ideals will do their utmost to support each other;
Treat your friends with sincerity, and you will be a true gentleman;
My beloved, my unwavering loyalty!
Polliver's oaths were shouted, his face flushed red. Dunsen, on the other hand, spoke slowly and deliberately, maintaining his own voice and rhythm even though Polliver's voice was drowned out.
Gregor doubted that Polliver would understand the meaning of the lyrics in the knight's oath, such as "women are delicate and should not be offended." In his rogue cavalry, including his former self, the sight of a commoner woman with even a little bit of beauty was like a vicious dog seeing a bone.
However, considering that his own chivalry was bestowed upon him by Prince Réga when he was sixteen, and that only a year later he raped and murdered Prince Réga's wife and killed Prince Réga's son, according to the code of chivalry, he had violated two of them: not to bully the weak and to live humbly; and that women are delicate and should not be violated.
Among the knights of the Seven Kingdoms, Gregor believed that besides Eddard Stark and his sons in the North, only Brienne of Tarth and Tyrion Lannister in the West could truly embody the spirit of chivalry.
But chivalry isn't important; what matters is that these guys must be absolutely loyal to Gregor.
Originally, the term "knight" specifically referred to cavalrymen who had received formal military training. Later, it evolved into an honorary title used to indicate a social class. Knighthood was not inherited but rather earned through outstanding character, exceptional horsemanship, and bravery in battle. Knights belonged to the lowest rank of the nobility.
The most valued quality of a knight is loyalty, the second is sacrifice, and the third is bravery.
Gregor strongly agrees with the requirements for chivalry. Sweet-talking Ralph, Executioner Dunsen, and die-hard fan Pollifer all meet these three criteria.
After Maester Potter led Dunsen and Polliver in taking their oaths, Gregor drew his two-handed greatsword with a clatter. He held it effortlessly with one hand, tapped the tip of the sword on Dunsen and Polliver's left and right shoulders respectively, and finally pressed it lightly above their heads, laughing loudly: "Rise, Ser Dunsen Clegane, and you, Ser Polliver Clegane."
Dunsen and Pollifer stood up and embraced each other tightly, their hearts surging with joy that they could not contain themselves.
Beside the cavalry, the officer's notebook gleamed with envy and resentment.
While Gregor led his cavalry to Casterly Rock, the notebook was in charge of all affairs inside and outside Clegane Keep. From the construction of Clegane Village and the quarrying of stone slabs from Stone Pond, to the management of the new territory and the registration of the new subjects after the raven brought back information about the new land granted to Lord Gregor by the Duke, all were completed with the assistance of Maester Potter.
Notebook Mark wasn't Gregor's cavalryman; he was the chief administrator of everything in Gregor's territory. When Gregor was away, he managed all affairs of the territory, from purchasing food and supplies to managing the armory and the stables' horses and fodder—nothing was too small for him to handle.
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The notebook also longed for Lord Gregor to promote him to knighthood and grant him the Clegane surname. He knew he needed to do even better to attract Lord Gregor's attention.
With this, Clegane's family gained two more knights.
The witch beckoned to Deng Sen and Polliver to walk up the seven steps.
The witch held a bone spur needle in her hand. With a light touch, she pierced Deng Sen's finger, and the tip of the needle became stained with Deng Sen's blood.
The witch stuck out her tongue and licked the tip of the needle, then she glanced at Gregor.
Although Gregor and the witch didn't exchange a single word, Gregor understood the witch's meaning: Dunsen had passed the witch's test. Gregor needed Dunsen to embody the four qualities of a knight: bravery, sacrifice, honor, and soul. The other four qualities—humility, integrity, compassion, and justice—were not within Gregor's purview.
Subsequently, Polliver also successfully passed the witch's test.
Beside the witch stood her temporary assistant, Miss Jenny, who held a bowl of holy oil. The witch applied the holy oil to the foreheads of Dunson and Pollyver, and the ritual officially ended.
Then all the miners took an oath before the statues of the seven gods. Finally, after the witch's holy oil was applied, the notebook led the mining team to set off for Golden Leaf Bay to mine gold.
Gregor said, "Sir Dunsen, you will lead forty cavalrymen to supervise the miners. When you find any shaped gold nuggets or granules, collect them all and do not let any miner put them in their pockets. Every day, the cavalrymen will also take turns going into the mine to mine for gold, while supervising the workers underground."
"Yes, sir!" Deng Sen's tone was full of fighting spirit.
He was still feeling excited as he became a knight.
Julie Clegane.
"Yes, Father."
"Take ten cavalrymen and urge the construction workers to finish building Clegane Village as soon as possible. The village should be expanded, with twenty more houses added. Patrol the territory's borders once each morning and evening."
"Yes, Father."
"Sir Polliver, take ten cavalrymen with me. Tomorrow we will go to King's Landing on business."
"Yes, sir!" Pollifer was overjoyed. His bald, black-bearded face gave a neurotic laugh.