"It really is a Valyrian steel sword!" Lancelot thought. He had previously tested the steel and sharpness of the Rose Sword.
He knew it was a blade of the same quality as Valyrian steel.
"But which house would lose something so precious in the Dragonpit and not know to come look for it? They're really muddled!" Lancelot mused.
"Lancelot, I caught it! It's that old cat missing an ear! Let's go! Back to the Tower of the Hand! Let's go see Syrio!" Arya walked towards Lancelot, holding an old cat.
"Okay, let's go. I want to meet that Water Dancer too."
When Lancelot and Arya arrived at the Tower of the Hand, they happened to see Catelyn Tully seeing Petyr Baelish out.
Baelish got into his carriage and left. Catelyn watched him go, then turned and saw Lancelot and Arya.
Catelyn frowned slightly, then returned to her usual expression.
"Arya!"
"Mother, I brought Lancelot along to learn Water Dancing swordplay from Syrio," Arya said.
"Lady Stark!" Lancelot bowed to her.
"In that case, don't keep your master waiting!" Catelyn said and left.
Arya led Lancelot to the place where she practiced swordplay with Syrio.
Lancelot saw a middle-aged man, not much taller than Arya, sitting on a rug.
He sat cross-legged with a wooden sword across his knees.
Seemingly sensing footsteps, Syrio opened his eyes.
He first looked at Arya, then his gaze rested on Lancelot.
"Syrio, this is Lancelot. He's come to learn Water Dancing with me. Would you be willing to take on another student?" Arya asked.
"Lancelot Lannister. I have heard your name, though you have not been to Braavos!" Syrio said.
"Fame spreads, good and bad! I don't care much for empty titles; as long as they know who I am, that's enough!" Lancelot replied.
The more people knew him, the more popularity points he gained. But popularity points weren't morality points, so he didn't care much how others viewed him.
"You also wish to learn Water Dancing?" Syrio asked.
Lancelot nodded.
"Then answer me a question first. What kind of cat is Arya holding? Is it a dragon-cat with dragon blood? Or just an ordinary cat!"
Lancelot was taken aback, then answered without hesitation, "An ordinary cat! But I have an extraordinary cat, Syrio. Would you like to see it?"
He was referring to the white lion, Hrakkar.
"You speak of the strange beast Hrakkar from the Dothraki Sea? I have heard of it too. They say it is three times the size of an ordinary lion? Is that true?" Syrio asked.
"Now it has grown as large as a mammoth, and it has grown three horns and a pair of fleshy wings."
"What!" Syrio showed a surprised expression for the first time in front of others.
"Take me to see it!" Syrio grabbed Lancelot's hand.
Lancelot felt the warmth from his palm.
"Appraise Syrio's stats."
Name: Syrio Forel
Identity: Arya's Sword Master, Former First Sword to the Sealord of Braavos
Class: Assassin, Water Dancer
Strength: 15
Speed: 26
Intelligence: 25
Spirit: 24
Magic: 13
Talent: Sword Saint. Achieved the highest realm of swordsmanship, heart calm as still water.
Evaluation: The foremost Grandmaster of Water Dancing.
"Although his skill and realm are high, he is still mortal flesh and blood. An ordinary sword can kill him," Lancelot thought.
Then he took Syrio to the Red Keep to see Hrakkar.
Seeing Hrakkar, Syrio clicked his tongue in wonder.
"Triceratops head, pterosaur wings, lion body... no matter how you look at it, it's a chimera!"
"It is said that in the south of the world, on the continent of Sothoryos, there are dinosaurs similar to dragons. Though they cannot breathe fire, they are even more ferocious."
"When I served the Sealord of Braavos, I saw small toothless pterosaurs in his menagerie," Syrio said.
"If the Sealord saw your lion, he would surely offer to buy it."
"I'm afraid he couldn't afford the price!" Lancelot said.
"Hahaha, spoken like a true Lannister! A lion's appetite! Hahaha!" Syrio laughed.
"To learn Water Dancing, let me first see your foundation!"
Syrio tossed a wooden sword to Lancelot, and the two began to spar.
When Lancelot's sword struck Syrio's, he felt a force redirecting his momentum.
"Just like flowing water... isn't this similar to Tai Chi? I wonder if he knows how to use an opponent's strength against them?" Lancelot wondered.
His attacks grew fiercer. Although Syrio could redirect the force in Lancelot's sword, absolute strength overcomes technique. One strike to break ten thousand methods.
When it exceeded Syrio's own limits, he too had to take damage.
The fight between the two was very strange. Lancelot attacked like a soldier on the battlefield, while Syrio danced like a dancer at a ball.
Gradually, Lancelot changed his attack style, mimicking the movements of a Water Dancer.
"Good, good, good! It seems you have even higher talent than Arya! I am truly delighted!" Syrio exclaimed excitedly.
The fight ended with Lancelot's loss. Syrio used some unknown move to vanish from Lancelot's sight and appear behind him.
With a sword held to his neck, Lancelot chose to yield.
"Future training will move from the Tower of the Hand to the Red Keep. Arya, please trouble yourself to come train at Lancelot's place!" Syrio announced.
"Do you intend to live at my place?" Lancelot asked. He didn't recall inviting him!
"What, am I not welcome? Apprentice!" Syrio retorted.
"Uh, welcome! But could you help me train some others too?" Lancelot asked.
"Who? How is their talent?"
"Their talent isn't great, but their status is quite high. They are princes and princesses."
Lancelot planned to have Syrio help train Joffrey, Myrcella, Tommen, and the others.
Whether he herded one sheep or a flock, it was all the same to him.
"Status is useless here. When the Sealord of Braavos's son trained with me, he would go back exhausted too. I never go easy," Syrio stated.
"That's good! But don't be too harsh. They aren't trying to become assassins or killers, just learning some self-defense!" Lancelot said.