The Mountain of Ice and Fire

Chapter 33: Clegane Cavalry

On the road outside Clegane Keep, a troop of riders advanced at a steady pace. In the middle of the formation, a large banner was raised, depicting a lifelike peacock with its tail feathers fanned out.

Among the troop were several prison carriages, holding over a dozen people, old and young, men and women.

Adu Sharatt led his guards at the front.

To the left, right, and rear of the prison carriages were Sharatt family's most elite cavalry.

This cavalry force numbered fifty.

With a sharp, metallic whistle, shouts, hoofbeats, and the clashing of swords echoed from within Clegane Keep. Soon, a cavalry unit, lances at the ready, assembled, lined up, and charged out from the keep.

Leading the charge was the sweet-mouthed Rafford Clegane. His breastplate was newly engraved with the Clegane family's sigil: three hounds attacking with roaring maws.

Only those who bore the Clegane name were entitled to display the Clegane family sigil, to wear the Clegane family sigil pin on their attire.

A banner with three black hounds in a vertical line on a yellow background accompanied the cavalry.

This cavalry force wore scarlet cloaks, the traditional color of the Westerlands army, matching the color of the Sharatt family cavalry's cloaks.

The Clegane Keep's three-headed hound banner was held by a strong, dark-skinned rider named Black Stone, a former mine worker.

At the forefront of the charge were Gregor's Four Greats: the knight Rafford Clegane; the executioner Dunsen; the fanatical Polliver; and the scribe, Mark.

The four men surrounded a petite figure: Julie Clegane.

Julie wore light, fitted armor, with leather protection at the elbows and knees to ensure flexibility. A sword belt hung at her waist, holding a sword and a dagger, and a bow was slung across her back, with a quiver full of arrows at her hip.

The people of Clegane Keep were able to react so quickly because they were in the courtyard of Clegane Keep undergoing cavalry training.

Every rider in this cavalry carried a bow and a quiver.

Julie's primary weapon is the bow!—This was Lord Gregor's order.

No discussion, just an order.

Lord Gregor believed that Julie was small in stature, with smaller arm bones, and naturally lacked the strength of a man. Close combat would put her at a disadvantage, so he ordered Julie Clegane to focus on archery.

However, whether practicing with spears, swords, or bows, strength was essential.

Drawing a longbow with stiff arrows required no less strength than wielding swords.

Julie's practice sword was filled with lead to help her develop arm strength.

Gregor's Four Greats surrounded Julie because she was Lord Gregor's adopted daughter. Lord Gregor had married two wives, both of whom unfortunately died from broken necks, leaving him without children. Thus, his adopted daughter, Julie Clegane, became the influential only daughter of the Clegane family.

Even the four merciless devils under Gregor's command dared not bully her.

*

Adu Sharatt reined in his horse.

His troop halted with him.

Adu was surprised to see a cavalry force charging out of Clegane Keep, estimating that it numbered over fifty riders.

The cavalry roared forward, the wind snapping the three-headed hound banner.

"Where did Gregor get cavalry in just twenty days?" Adu asked.

Beside him was the most level-headed of the seven brothers, the fourth, Adam Sharatt.

Adam was skilled with the lance.

"Is it Lord Tywin's guard cavalry?"

Ser Gregor was the captain of Lord Tywin's guard, commanding an elite cavalry force of five hundred men, responsible for Tywin's safety. However, in peacetime, Tywin did not need a five-hundred-man cavalry force guarding him every day.

"It's likely," Adu Sharatt said.

The approaching cavalry was fully armed, with armor, helmets, swords, and steeds, as well as round shields on their backs. A cavalry force with such fine equipment was most likely Tywin's guard cavalry.

"It's not!" Adam stared intently at the rapidly approaching force. "Their banner is the three-headed hound."

If it were Tywin's cavalry, they would bear the golden lion banner.

"It's Ser Gregor's personal cavalry!" Adu's voice revealed his shock.

They all knew Gregor was a pauper, living off Tywin's generosity. Usually, his Clegane Keep had only three people: a cook, a servant, and a young steward. His lands were inhabited by only eleven households, making him a minor noble with the smallest territory and fewest subjects.

"The Mountain used the gold dragons we paid him to buy a cavalry," Adam said, sounding frustrated.

"Perhaps he hired mercenaries," Adu thought sourly.

"It wouldn't be mercenaries. The Mountain's reputation, his dual roles as Tywin's general and guard captain, and his small territory mean he doesn't need mercenaries to protect his small domain."

"But he also doesn't need his own private cavalry to protect his territory. Who would dare attack his land?" Adu retorted to his fourth brother.

*

Hooves thundered as the Clegane cavalry arrived. Adu noticed the three-headed hound sigil on Rafford's armor and the petite figure in the center. Julie Clegane was fully armored, wearing a helmet, so no one could see her face.

But Adu and Adam both guessed who the petite figure was.

Rafford emitted a sharp whistle, and the troop swiftly split apart, each man raising his lance, surrounding the Sharatt troop. Adu was surprised by the sound coming from Rafford's mouth, which he had never heard before.

Adam and his soldiers had never heard a metallic whistle either. In this world, during battle, generals and centurions shouted their orders. Noble children were specially trained to shout loudly from a young age because they would lead troops into battle.

Ironworking was advanced in this world, but the iron whistle had not been invented.

Gregor, from another civilization, effortlessly invented the iron whistle and, in two days, integrated various battle commands into the whistle's varied tones, using it to train the cavalry's movements.

The iron whistle's penetration and clarity were far superior to shouting, especially in the chaos of a large-scale battle.

Adu and Adam also noticed that these riders carried two javelins each, in addition to swords and lances.

This was a comprehensively trained cavalry, with bows on their backs and quivers at their waists.

Arrows for long-range attacks, javelins for mid-range throws.

The Sharatt cavalry, surrounded, was immediately like fish on a chopping board.

The petite figure in the center removed her helmet, revealing a heroic and cold face. Her monolid eyes and thin lips exuded chilliness and ruthlessness, a stark contrast to her demeanor in the mines, but it was indeed Julie Clegane.

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