Jon turned his head away, ignoring the chattering dwarf.
The only sound left in the air was the crackling of the logs in the campfire.
The smile on Tyrion Lannister's face didn't fade in the slightest.
He possessed a strong spirit; Jon's attempt at a stinging retort, which the boy thought was a killing blow, hadn't dampened Tyrion's mood one bit.
Tyrion's gaze shifted from Jon's stubborn, youthful face and landed on another, much calmer one.
Lynn.
That name had been popping up way too often in Winterfell lately.
A Night's Watch deserter who should have lost his head.
Instead, he'd transformed into a benefactor of House Stark.
He even seemed to have a close relationship with Lord Eddard Stark.
The twist in that tale was full of intriguing details worth chewing over.
"And what about you?"
"Lynn?"
Tyrion swirled the wineskin in his hand, the scent of spiced wine drifting into the cold air.
"Hero of Winterfell."
"Why did you choose to take the black?"
His voice wasn't loud, but it carried clearly to everyone's ears.
Everyone's gaze instinctively focused on Lynn.
The newly recruited criminals looked at him with a mix of curiosity and numbness.
The guards looked on with interest as well.
Benjen Stark kept his mild expression, but his hands stopped polishing his arrows, clearly paying attention.
Even Arya, who had been chirping away, fell silent and looked up at Lynn.
She didn't really know the details of Lynn's past yet.
Lynn didn't answer immediately.
The memories of his predecessor were crystal clear in his mind.
The previous owner of this body had been blinded by honor, which was why he joined the Night's Watch.
He had no criminal record.
This fact supported his story.
It was also why Ned was willing to trust him.
Lynn looked up at the night sky, flickering in the firelight.
The Northern night was deep and pure, without a single blemish.
"I committed no crime."
"The Old Gods guided me here."
Lynn's words plunged the already quiet camp into an eerie silence.
The Old Gods?
Arya's eyes lit up instantly, filled with undisguised adoration.
Jon's face also showed shock.
As a Northerner, he had grown up listening to stories of the Old Gods and believed in them.
However, the criminals from the South wore strange expressions.
The South generally followed the Faith of the Seven.
But most of these men didn't even know if they'd live to see tomorrow's sun, let alone believe in some ethereal gods.
"The Old Gods?"
Tyrion finally couldn't help but let out a short, scoffing laugh.
It was as if he'd heard the funniest joke in the world.
"Lynn, that excuse is far more entertaining than our bastard boy's silence."
Tyrion took a large gulp of wine and wiped his mouth with his sleeve.
"Let me guess."
"Did a weirwood tree in the forest speak to you?"
"Or did a raven in the sky bring you a letter?"
Tyrion's tone was mocking, dripping with skepticism.
But beneath his casual demeanor, his mismatched eyes were fixed intently on Lynn.
He was a Lannister.
A Lannister who lived in a golden castle in the South, believing only in gold and power.
The Old Gods—an ancient superstition of Northern savages.
In his eyes, they were nothing more than bedtime stories to fool simple farmers.
But, he still needed to probe.
"You!"
Arya jumped to her feet.
Her small face was flushed red, glaring angrily at Tyrion.
"Lynn wouldn't lie!"
"And the Old Gods are real!"
Tyrion looked at the bristling little she-wolf with interest, the smile on his face deepening.
Lynn reached out and gently placed a hand on Arya's shoulder.
Arya looked back and saw Lynn shake his head slightly.
She pursed her lips in frustration but obediently sat back down.
"I checked Lynn's records when he joined the Night's Watch."
A deep voice broke the slightly farcical standoff.
It was Benjen Stark.
He was still sitting by the fire, looking calmly at Tyrion.
"He has no brands."
"His name is not on any warrant in the Seven Kingdoms."
"He is not a fugitive, nor a criminal."
Benjen's voice held no emotion; he was simply stating facts.
"He was just a man who walked through the Neck, all the way to the foot of the Wall."
"He said he wanted to join the Night's Watch."
"I was there."
The smile on Tyrion's face finally froze for a second.
He could mock ethereal beliefs.
But he couldn't refute the facts stated by the First Ranger.
An innocent man, giving up everything, voluntarily coming to this frozen wasteland to become a brother of the Night's Watch.
In itself, this was something that defied common logic.
If he hadn't committed a crime, why join the Watch?
Either he was mad, or there was indeed a secret hidden within.
Lynn's story might be absurd.
But Benjen's words gave that absurdity a layer of undeniable truth.
Tyrion looked into Lynn's eyes, which remained calm in the firelight.
For the first time, he felt that he might have actually encountered an oddity that couldn't be measured by money or status.
This puzzle was more complex than he had imagined.
Tyrion's smile had solidified briefly after Benjen's statement.
But he recovered quickly.
As if his momentary lapse was just a trick of the flickering firelight.
He raised his wineskin in a toast to Benjen.
"Fair enough, First Ranger."
Tyrion's gaze returned to Lynn.
The curiosity in his black and green eyes only intensified.
"An innocent man, voluntarily giving up sunlight and wine to catch a cold on this godforsaken ice sheet."
"That story is stranger than any heroic epic sung by a bard."
"So, what are you really after?"
"Honor?"
Tyrion scoffed and shook his head.
"Honor won't keep your belly full in winter."
"Power?"
He shook his head again.
"Besides wildlings, there's nothing on the Wall worth ruling."
His gaze tried to dissect Lynn's calm exterior, to peer at the truth underneath.
"Is it... for a woman?"
The corner of Tyrion's mouth hooked up in a knowing smirk.
As if this was the only answer to all the world's irrationalities.
"Let me guess, a noble lady you couldn't have?"
"Or a scandalous affair that ruined your reputation?"
"Love always turns the smartest men into the biggest fools."
As Tyrion spoke, his eyes were frivolous, his tone filled with the cynicism and disdain of someone who had seen it all.
Arya looked upset.