How About No? 9 (Patreon)

How About No?

Chapter 9

-VB-

It took me a week to travel, and it was during that week that, yes, the popularized and canon map of Westeros had to be depicting the correct measurements for the North. Why did I think this?

Because it took me using multiple strength potions to boost my running strength (because I didn’t have a speed potion), and it still took me a week to reach the Neck, a swampy area between the Riverlands and the North.

And it was here that I realized my second problem.

Swamps were generally riddled with disease (there’s a reason why people didn’t settle there normally, failed to settle there, or were people who were descendents of those who were forced to stay there) and I had no disease protection because I wasn’t a native.

I could, technically, try to walk around the entire swamp by following the coast, but the coasts of Neck in the east was mountainous and cliff-filled while the western coasts were filled with swamp forests that I may not have an easy time leaving. Also Ironborns were close by, and I was not a fan of running into pirates or bandits.

Speaking of which, there could be bandits hiding in the swamp-forests, huh?

So what were my options?

I could stay at the northern edge of the Neck to find a combination of herbs, minerals, chemicals, and animal products that will give me some kind of disease resistance. I was sure I’ll be able to find one within a month or two, but that was also time that the royals could use to come find me again.

I could walk through the Kingsroad, but again, that would leave me exposed to the royals wanting to find me, and unlike the rest of the North, there weren’t a lot of places I could run off to in the Neck that wouldn’t leave me choking with fever, coughs, and more once the diseases get to my unprepared ass.

I could ask for someone to take me across the waters to either the Westerlands or the Vale, but the case of the former, Ironborns were once again an issue (even if they professed that they never attacked Westeros shipping because of course they were loyal subjects of the Iron Throne). In the case of the latter, I could go up to White Harbor.

Again, using White Harbor will mean that the royals would be able to track me when I might have made one mad, so I wasn’t inclined to do that.

… But what if I made a potion to change my appearance? That was a thing in Warcraft, right? Deviate something? If I can change my appearance on a whim, then I could hide in public and not have to worry about the pesky royals!

Ha!

That’s an idea that would … leave me huddling in the summer snows (?) of the North while trying to find a combination of materials that will change my appearance temporarily. What if the change turned out to be permanent? That might be bad. Or good. Being the Faceless Man of the West might have its advantages.

I paused in my ruminations as I heard people coming down the Kingsroad, which I was still on.

I looked over my shoulder and met the eyes of the cart driver. He was old with white hair, beard, and moustache.

“Woah there, girl,” the driver said as he came to a stop. “You look like you’re lost.”

I guessed he was happy to meet someone on the road. In an age without smartphones or radios and long roads… I supposed that a stranger on the road who wasn’t out to kill you was as good of a conversation partner as any.

“Not lost but simply trying to find the best way forward,” I replied. I turned back to face the front and saw the marshes of the Neck. Behind me was the rest of the North. Below me was the Kingsroad.

“Is it? Kingsroad is really the only road you need to take to go forward. What are you worried about lad?”

“... I pissed off some nobles.”

“Ah.” A moment of silence. “What did you do…?”

“I had the gall to survive what others couldn’t.”

“Oh dear. You met with one of those cruel lords, haven’t you?”

Was the Targaryen girl cruel? I didn’t think so. She was just trying her best to get me involved with her shenanigans, but the knight gave me the perfect excuse to get out of there.

“After a fashion.”

“After a fashion,” he repeated in agreement with a sigh. “I suppose that they will have your face everywhere for a reward?”

“If they haven’t yet, then they will soon.”

“Poor lad. White Harbor is not somewhere you can walk to then. Have you tried Oldcastle, then?”

“Oldcastle?”

“Yes,” he nodded. “Oldcastle is the castle of House Locke. Though their docks are smaller than that of White Harbor, they still have ships that go to the Three Sisters and the Vale. I am sure you will be able to escape through there if you are worried about the lord chasing you already waiting on the other side of the Neck. Oldcastle is on the other side of the gulf here, so you will have to walk around White Harbor and then head down south along the coast from there.”

I looked at him for a moment before smiling. Reaching into my pocket, I pulled out a silver stag and flicked it to him. He caught it out of the air with expertise and speed I didn’t expect from a man who had to be past his 60’s and gave me a grin in return.

“My, I didn’t tell you that to get paid for it, lad.”

“It is a token of thanks.”

“... Well, then, I suppose I’ll tell whoever is searching for you that you are headed toward Flint’s lands.”

I nodded in thanks and turned back.

Oldcastle…

Yes, and if I was careful, then I might even be able to visit White Harbor for more exotic materials.

And I might run into more bandits on the way back up north. It was always nice to have human test subjects.