The golden quartered banners fluttered in the wind, and the Knights advanced like a long, winding snake, a river of steel, turning and twisting towards The Bloody Gate.
Crossing the Mountains of the Moon, everyone's nerves were as taut as a drawn bowstring. Besides wildlings, there were also falling rocks, landslides, and Shadowcat ambushes—it was a perilous journey. However, due to the large number of people and suitable guides, the journey was relatively smooth.
"The Imp did one good thing," Gendry thought. The Imp, in a flight of fancy, had conscripted a group of wildlings from the mountain pass into the army. After these most savage and warlike wildlings left, the mountains became a bit safer.
On Gendry's saddle lay a thick, ancient, black-lacquered book with a golden background and a black crowned stag: "storm king – Genealogy and Legends of House Durrandon of Storms End." This book recorded all the storm kings, from Durran of the legendary Age of Heroes to Argella Durrandon, the last self-proclaimed queen.
In truth, compared to other royal families, House Baratheon was truly a parvenu. Through marriage with the Durrandon family, it instantly became the youngest Great House among the Seven Kingdoms, later ascending to kingship.
This speed of advancement would make the Frey Family weep and House Tully fall silent. However, from the maternal line, House Baratheon could also be considered an ancient royal family, compensating for its own lack of history.
"This is truly an unexpected delight," Gendry mused, weighing the thickness of the large book. "storm king" had been lost for a long time; Maester Qyburn had mentioned it to him several times. He never expected to find it in the Frey Family library. House Stark also had a similar ancestral history, "Kings of Winter – Genealogy and Legends of House Stark of Winterfell."
Gendry was certain that the Freys of the Frey Family wouldn't bother reading such a book. The Freys preferred counting coppers, collecting tolls, or hunting. Even the Maesters of past generations probably hadn't thoroughly read it, merely tossing it into a pile of books.
In this era, the dissipation of knowledge was quite rapid. Ancient tomes like "The Four Kings" (written by Grand Maester Kaeth, narrating the deeds of four kings: Young Dragon Daeron, Baelor the Blessed, The Usurper Aegon, and Daeron the Good, omitting King Viserys's record) had only four copies remaining.
Gendry understood this was the underlying reality of the era: the pen was no match for the spear and greatsword, and Knights were what the Lords loved most.
Throughout the history of Westeros, Lords valued tourneys, hunting, falconry, and even womanizing far more than reading. After all, an illiterate Knight was somewhat excusable, but a weak bookworm would bring disgrace to the family. The history of House Baratheon even included a Duke who was illiterate, Duke Borros, who suffered from dyslexia.
"Knowledge, craftsmen, magic. I'll have to deal with The Citadel in the future," Gendry thought. He was a blacksmith by trade and naturally had a passion for technology. Skilled artisans were more popular than Maesters; a blacksmith could always make a living anywhere.
As for knowledge, intellectuals were indeed not highly valued in the era of feudal military Lords, but they did monopolize learning. The management of library towers, medical technology, and information exchange largely depended on Maesters, and The Citadel should not be underestimated.
According to Qyburn, there might be an entrenched faction within The Citadel that deeply detested magic, striving to create a world without it. If news of the appearance of magic dragons spread throughout the known world in the future, he would have no choice but to deal with these grey sheep. The Citadel, seemingly detached from worldly affairs, was in fact not so honorable internally.
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