A young, blond nobleman emerged from the tailor's shop.
He was dressed in a dark purple hunting coat made of exquisite brocade and velvet, with a shawl woven from silver thread and soft red-gold silk draped over his left shoulder.
The bold and flamboyant large lapels on his chest clearly displayed the two superior fabrics of the inner lining and outer surface of the garment.
A gilded belt embossed with intricate flowers was cinched around his waist, from which hung a finely crafted Lannister sigil sword.
This hunting coat was said to have once belonged to a sworn knight of House Hoare, and now it was for sale in a tailor's shop directly owned by Madam He'an, which could only be described as the capriciousness of fate.
Since House Hoare was granted Harrenhal in 281 AC, House Hoare had been one of the most prominent families in the Riverlands, the most powerful vassal in the Riverlands.
In the very year they acquired Harrenhal, the Earl of Hoare hosted a grand tourney there, where the then Crown Prince Rhaegar Targaryen (Dragon Mother's eldest brother) won the jousting championship.
But then he rode past his wife, Princess Elia of the Dornish Martell family, and placed the crown of winter roses, symbolizing the 'Queen of Love and Beauty,' on the lap of Lyanna Stark, who was at the time betrothed to Lord Robert Baratheon of Storm's End (now the King on the Iron Throne), causing a huge scandal.
Soon after, Lyanna was allegedly abducted by Prince Rhaegar, and Lyanna's father and brother successively perished at the hands of the 'Mad King' Aerys Targaryen II for seeking justice.
The following year, 282 AC, Robert's Rebellion, which changed the landscape of Westeros, broke out.
Lord Jon Arryn of the Eyrie, the liege lord of the Vale, raised the banner of rebellion, nominating Robert Baratheon as the leader of the uprising, and uniting the Stark family of the North, the Tully Family of the Riverlands, and the Baratheon Family of the Stormlands, over two years, they overthrew the Targaryen Dynasty, which had ruled Westeros for nearly 300 years.
House Hoare of Harrenhal, however, lost most of its power by mistakenly siding with the Royalists.
To this day, Madam He'an, the ruler of Harrenhal, can only utilize a small fraction of Harrenhal's halls, and her forces number no more than a mere hundred men.
The myriad weapons, armor, clothing, and jewelry that once belonged to the knights and ladies of House Hoare are now sold in these establishments directly under Madam He'an's ownership to subsidize House Hoare's increasingly strained finances.
To buy this well-fitting hunting coat and belt, Ivan spent 5 gold dragons and 180 silver deer, praise the old blacksmith.
In short, to make his image appear more like a true nobleman, Ivan had already spent most of his funds.
Therefore, he became a bit strapped for cash, still needing to buy a good horse.
Leading his horse to the stables of Harrenhal, Ivan began to ponder whether he could, by virtue of his identity as a Lannister noble knight, trick or borrow a good horse from Madam He'an's stable master.
After all, as the wealthiest family in all of Westeros, and with the motto 'A Lannister always pays his debts,' if he offered a high enough reward, he might genuinely be able to borrow a good horse.
After showing his Lannister knight's identity to the stable guard, Ivan successfully gained permission to enter and look around the stables.
Stepping into the empty stables of Harrenhal, Ivan felt a sense of desolation.
It was inherently a very large building; judging by its area and the number of troughs, it could perhaps accommodate a thousand horses without issue.
But now, it seemed only less than a tenth of it was still in use, with about 30 horses being kept in one corner, serving as the last remaining proof of House Hoare's existence in Harrenhal.
Ivan had once visited the stables of an ancient castle in Europe, and according to the guide, in that stable, there used to be dedicated rooms for special hunting coats, riding boots, fine wine, vinegar, olives, oil ointments, etc., and also dedicated rooms for storing horse armor, heraldic horse caparisons, hunting bows, and other weapons.
In the area exclusive to warhorses, there was not only top-grade wheat as food, but also slots for oil lamps, and every winter, the stable master would light the oil lamps to warm the warhorses.
Such a stable was more like a small military camp; noble knights could arm themselves in the stable at any time and could also rest there.
However, here, these functions had clearly been lost.
Ivan's arrival caught the attention of a stable hand who was pouring water into a trough; he quickly stopped what he was doing and trotted over to Ivan.
"Hey, that guy… Oh, Sir," he had just opened his mouth when he recognized Ivan's extraordinary status from his attire, so he quickly corrected himself, "Excuse me, Sir, this is Madam He'an's private stable, and outsiders are forbidden."
"Of course, I know where this is, but I still came in, didn't I?" Ivan deliberately turned sideways, seemingly observing a brown trained horse next to him, but in fact, he was showing the side with his sword hanging to the stable hand, hoping he could see it more clearly.
"Oh, yes, Sir." The stable hand responded blankly; he then remembered that there was a team of guards outside the stable, and yet this knight had still entered, which meant that the other party had actually obtained permission?
"I am Sir Lucian Lannister, son of Sir Damion Lannister." Ivan fabricated an identity for himself; when facing non-player natives, he could exercise more creative freedom.
"May I ask what brings you here, Sir?" The stable hand immediately asked respectfully upon hearing Ivan's name.
Although he had never heard of any Sir Lucian Lannister, this did not prevent him from deferring to a knight.
"I would like to temporarily board my horse here with you," Ivan did not directly reveal his purpose; he pointed to the trained horse he was leading, "Of course, I will pay for it."
"Of course, Sir, it is my honor; I promise to take good care of your horse." The stable hand quickly agreed; looking after horses for passing noble knights was one of their duties, and usually, the fees knights paid would be higher than the horse's maintenance costs.
"At the same time, I also need to borrow a horse from you," Ivan said then.
"Of course, no problem, Sir, please take a look." The stable hand extended his hand and led Ivan towards the horse stalls; he did not suspect this knight was a fraud, after all, his own horse was left here, wasn't it?
"I'm going to Maidenpool for a hunt hosted by William Mooton," Ivan said, while surveying the horses in the stalls.
Most of the horses here were just ordinary riding horses; there were only a few true large warhorses.
Soon, he immediately spotted a white horse among them.
Ivan estimated its shoulder height to be over 1.65 meters; compared to it, his own Riverlands horse, with a shoulder height of less than 1.4 meters, could only be described as small and cute.
"That's the one, how about it?"