The Mountain of Ice and Fire

"Hey! What do you think you're doing?" Polliver spread his hands, yelling at the group of vicious-looking men. "Don't scare the little brother."

The arrogant soldiers immediately lost their bluster, stopping in their tracks, but glaring fiercely at Gendry, their eyes full of warning.

Clang!

Gendry swung his hammer again, striking the iron ingot.

This was his response to Polliver and the others.

"Hehehe, little brother, what will it take for you to stop?" Polliver asked ingratiatingly, his face plastered with a fawning smile.

Clang!

Another skillful and perfect strike.

"Hey, little brother, this isn't a good way to solve problems," Polliver lowered his voice. "I'm a good person, easy to talk to, kind-hearted, but if my lord comes here himself, he'll tear this place down." Polliver spoke in a cautious tone, as if telling a close friend a secret that couldn't be known by outsiders. He even looked around, as if afraid of being overheard.

Gendry felt goosebumps all over his body.

Why did this guy always have to get so close when he talked?

Gendry swung the hammer again, striking the iron ingot accurately with a clang. The strange fellow dodged the hammer's path again with skillful ease. As soon as the hammer fell, he nimbly stuck close again, his eyes on Gendry's muscles as if he were looking at a delicious cat. He licked his lips from time to time, as if savoring something.

Gendry felt a chill in his heart.

He stopped swinging the hammer and said sullenly, "Only my master can make me stop."

Whoosh!

The hammer swung again!

Clang!

The hammer struck again. Under the heavy blow, the iron ingot trembled.

"Oh, I understand." Polliver smiled politely, then turned and shouted to his men, "What are you standing around for? Go grab his master."

"Yes, knight!"

The soldiers, like wolves and tigers, immediately rushed through a doorway.

Bang!

The soldier in the lead kicked the door open.

Bang, bang, crash!

The rapid sound of footsteps echoed on the stairs as they rushed upstairs.

This was a three-story building.

The bottom floor was the blacksmith's shop, the second floor was Master Tobho's residence, and the small attic on the third floor was Gendry's small bedroom.

"What are you doing?!" Gendry exclaimed, shocked.

He had seen many vicious mercenaries, but he had never seen anyone dare to break into Tobho's second floor.

This was King's Landing. No matter who you worked for, few dared to cause trouble on the Street of Steel. Tobho Mott was not someone to be trifled with. If anything happened, the drunken king would be even harder to deal with. Although the king loved wine and women and neglected affairs of state, he was genuinely good to his people.

"Hey!" Polliver said with a grin. "Little brother, what kind of weapon do you use?"

Swish!

Polliver drew the short sword from his waist.

The short sword was bright, the blade reflecting the red light of the furnace, obviously a fine sword made of good steel.

"What are you going to do?" Gendry's arm muscles bulged as he raised the hammer.

"Your weapon is a hammer?" Polliver licked his lips. "Excellent. Come on, if you can hit me even once, I'll let you go tonight."

Whoosh!

Polliver's sword was fast, drawing a cut on Gendry's arm with a single stroke.

The feeling of the blade gliding across his skin sent a surge of anger through him.

Whoosh!

Gendry swung the hammer, aiming for Polliver's waist.

Polliver was tall, so a horizontal swing was an easier way to hit him.

It was difficult for Polliver to dodge by crouching, as the entire area of the hammer's horizontal sweep was within the range of attack.

However, Gendry's angry strike missed, his opponent's agility exceeding his expectations.

Polliver jumped back, nimble as a wolf. Gendry's hammer brushed past his body, but just barely missed.

Gendry hadn't yet retracted the hammer—the hammer was heavy, with great momentum, and once swung, it couldn't be stopped mid-swing—Polliver nimbly dodged the hammer and stepped in front of Gendry. The sword in his hand casually pricked Gendry's arm again, stopping just short of injuring Gendry's bone. "Kid, let's make a bet. If you can't touch me ten times in a row, you have to come with me."

Gendry was stabbed again, his stubbornness flaring. He swung the hammer back around and slammed it towards Polliver's chest with a whoosh.

This time, Gendry knew that his opponent was skilled in swordsmanship, agile, and highly skilled in martial arts, so he dared not hold back and attacked with all his might.

Polliver saw it clearly, smiled, and dodged to the side as the hammer came crashing down, missing again.

"One!" Polliver said with a smile.

He could see that this stubborn kid was strong, coordinated, and had nimble footwork, but it was obvious that he had never learned any real combat skills.

Polliver slashed with his backhand, cutting Gendry's chest without even looking.

Each time, he would retract his strength as soon as the blade made contact, unwilling to seriously injure Gendry.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

Gendry swung three hammers in a row, all easily dodged by his opponent, while his body gained several more bloody cuts.

When Polliver shouted 'Six,' Gendry shouted, "Wait!"

Both of them were honest people. Polliver stopped as expected. Gendry dropped the hammer, rushed to the wall, and took down a battle axe.

Polliver's eyes showed admiration as he said, "Not bad, not bad. The battle axe is lighter than the hammer. This way, your speed will be faster than before. The handle of the battle axe is also longer, so I'll need to distance myself further to dodge. It will be even more difficult to cut you."

With two whooshing sounds, Gendry charged at Polliver with the battle axe. Sure enough, his speed was much faster than before. Polliver tried his best to dodge, and the short sword in his hand clashed, making a 'clang' sound, and was knocked away.

Gendry's brute strength was truly profound!

Polliver laughed heartily.

Gendry's stubbornness flared, and he swept the battle axe fiercely.

Polliver dodged behind a pillar, and with a crash, the blacksmith's pillar was hit, swaying and creaking.

"Knight, what are you still playing at? Let's go quickly," a dissatisfied voice said.

These soldiers didn't have the obvious hierarchy and polite language of other legions; they were all desperate thugs.

Polliver turned around and saw several soldiers with bruised noses and swollen faces. They had captured a similarly bruised and swollen man, who had already been subdued, his mouth stuffed with a black rag, his eyes filled with fear.

Gendry was startled and shouted, "What are you doing? Put down Master Tobho!"

He went straight for the soldiers.

Suddenly, a heavy blow struck Gendry's head from behind. With just one blow, he was knocked unconscious. As his battle axe fell to the ground, he spun and fell, falling into someone's arms.

Polliver said with a grin, "Little brother, you're very strong, but your martial arts are terrible! But, I can teach you in the future! Are the sacks ready?"

"Ready."

"Carry him away!"

"Yes, sir."

The group quickly went out, closed the door, locked it, and then posted a pre-prepared note on the door: Closed for Business!

"Knight, tell Ser Gregor about the matter we need to take care of tomorrow. I'll go too."

"Alright!"

"Sir, is the lady Ser Gregor chose for you a virgin or a widow?"

"I don't know. All I know is that we're going to snatch someone, just like today."