Just as Lancelot was about to reveal that there was a large amount of wildfire stored beneath King's Landing, a guard hurried over.
"Ser Lancelot, a man named Gendry is waiting outside. He claims to be your Captain of the Guards."
"But when did you get your own guard detail? If you don't know him, we'll chase him away immediately."
"No, he's here for me. I'll go see him right now."
Lancelot stood up.
When he saw Gendry, he found the boy wearing a horned helmet, a suit of boiled leather armor, and a blade at his waist—the Damascus steel knife Lancelot had given him, which was mistaken for Valyrian steel.
"Ser Lancelot!"
Seeing Lancelot approach, the other guards immediately saluted.
Lancelot nodded.
"He's here for me!"
Lancelot then led Gendry into the Red Keep.
"Ser Lancelot, do you really have a guard detail? But your rank doesn't seem to be that of a lord yet?" Gendry asked.
When he told the gate guards he was here to be Lancelot's Captain of the Guards, they had all looked at him with skepticism.
"A guard detail... I will have one. But right now, they're all just children! Training them will be your job!"
"Children? You mean the ones from the North Sea Kindergarten?" Gendry naturally knew Lancelot had established the North Sea Kindergarten.
"Exactly. Them. I'll take you to meet them tomorrow."
Lancelot then told Gendry a story. A story called "The Bull Warrior."
After finishing the story, Lancelot said, "I hope you can become my Bull Warrior. Never take off your helmet in front of others!"
"I am willing to be your Bull Warrior! Ser Lancelot!" Gendry declared.
Years later, Gendry, the "Bull Demon King" who would terrify two continents, was born.
As for his true face, many speculated he was disfigured, just like the Hound.
---
During a royal family dinner, Prince Renly brought his close friend, Ser Loras Tyrell, the Knight of Flowers, to join them.
Everyone was curious about his presence. Renly had never brought Loras to a private royal dinner before.
Loras wasn't looking for anyone else; he was specifically looking for Lancelot.
He sat opposite Lancelot, eating with an elegance that surpassed even some noble ladies.
Privately, Lancelot thought Arya could learn a thing or two from him about table manners.
"Ser Lancelot!" Loras finished the food on his plate and declined the serving maid's offer of seconds. He looked at Lancelot across the table.
"What is it, Loras? Looking for me?" Lancelot put down his knife and fork, wiping the corners of his mouth with a napkin.
"I heard that Brandon Stark broke both legs after falling from the Kingspyre Tower."
"Yes. A truly pitiful child!" Lancelot said.
"His mother, Lady Catelyn, is heartbroken!"
"But I also heard that although Brandon Stark broke his legs, you preserved them with some miraculous medicine. You even claimed he would walk again within three months! Is that true?"
Loras looked at Lancelot nervously.
"Correct. His legs can still be healed!" Lancelot confirmed.
"In that case, do you have any more of that miraculous medicine? House Tyrell is willing to pay a high price for it."
"Eh? What for?" Lancelot looked at him, puzzled.
"Prevention for potential injuries in the tourney?" Lancelot asked.
"No. It's for my eldest brother, Willas Tyrell."
Loras began to recount the duel between his eldest brother and the Red Viper, Oberyn Martell.
At the time, Mace Tyrell had allowed the young Willas to challenge the Red Viper. Willas was defeated. Worse, his foot got caught in the stirrup as his horse fell, crushing his knee.
He had been a cripple ever since. Although he was the heir to Highgarden, he remained unmarried, while his younger brother Garlan was already wed.
"So, I hope Ser Lancelot can be generous. House Tyrell is willing to pay a premium for that ointment." Loras looked at Lancelot pleadingly.
"I only had that one portion, which I used on Bran. However, don't worry. Willas is still young, only in his twenties. I will find a way to concoct another batch of Black Jade Intermittent Paste," Lancelot promised.
Since the Black Jade Intermittent Paste came from the lottery, Lancelot wasn't sure if the maesters of this world could replicate it.
"Then I entrust this to you, Ser Lancelot!" Loras said.
---
Sitting at the head of the table, Robert seemed to recall something and looked at Joffrey.
"Joff! Remember what you said last year? You wanted to be a tourney champion too. Let's enter the tourney together this year! King and Prince taking the field together will show King's Landing the strength of our royal house."
"Father, I am willing to participate," Joffrey said.
But despite his big talk, when he sparred with Jon Snow that night, Joffrey realized he was truly rubbish. He couldn't even beat Jon Snow.
Even Ygritte could disarm him within ten moves.
"Our dear Prince, someone like you wouldn't survive three days beyond the Wall! You'd freeze, starve, or get killed by other wildlings," Ygritte commented.
"Can't I, Joffrey, just win a championship for once?" he asked.
"Well... Prince Joffrey, there are three events in the tourney. King Robert is participating in the melee. You seem to be a decent shot with a bow; maybe Ygritte can give you some pointers?" Jon Snow suggested.
Ygritte was a master archer; everyone knew that. Even Theon admired her archery skills.
"Archery... but I use a crossbow. It's less effort. With a bow, I'm okay at close range, but I can't aim accurately at a distance," Joffrey admitted.
"Then we're out of ideas, Your Highness!"
Jon Snow and Ygritte excused themselves.
Joffrey looked up at the bright stars in the sky. Suddenly, he saw a shooting star streak across the sky, heading in the direction of Lancelot's room.
"Even the heavens are guiding me to ask Lancelot for help. It's no shame to go."
So Joffrey tidied his clothes and went to see Lancelot.
Before he even entered Lancelot's room, he smelled something burnt and heard crackling sounds.
"What's going on? Is there a fire? But there's no smoke or flames," Joffrey wondered.
Then he saw Lancelot sitting in front of a cauldron, making hand signs and chanting incantations.
Lancelot had just finished refining a pot of gold liquid and was waiting for it to cool.
Joffrey walked in.
"Lancelot, what are you doing?" he asked.
"Ah, Joff! I'm studying alchemy! See, these are gold ingots I transmuted from silver," Lancelot said, pointing to the round gold cakes nearby.