Kevin ducked into the frame, lay down, and stretched out his arms and legs. After confirming that the wooden structure could shelter his entire body, he finally accepted that this was a sleeping hut Aldric had built for him.
He crawled out, stood up, and bowed gratefully to Aldric. "Thank you for your care, Ser Aldric."
Aldric smiled and waved his hand. "Come, with me."
This time, Aldric led Kevin into the forest. He used his sword to cut down long, slender grasses while Kevin gathered them.
Back at the camp, they sat on the ground, and Aldric showed Kevin how to weave the grasses into mats. Working together under his guidance, they wove two thick grass mats to serve as the roof for the hut.
Once the openings at both ends of the hut were also covered with mats, Kevin finally had his own little nook in this desolate forest. He could sleep soundly without worrying about being woken up by the rain.
Over the next few days, Aldric took Kevin to the seashore to find food and work alongside him, learning the local language in the process.
With the aid of his enhanced memory, Aldric learned to speak the Common Tongue of Westeros with astonishing speed, picking up a fluent accent from the Fingers.
Initially, he had thought that since he was learning the language from the boy, he would take care of him, providing him with food as a form of tuition.
To his surprise, he discovered that this boy, Kevin, was an excellent swimmer.
Not only was he good at catching fish, but he was also a skilled diver.
The day after Kevin woke up, Aldric's diet upgraded from a daily seafood-medley soup to whole sea fish caught by Kevin from the water.
Whole fish were not only easier to cook, but their taste and texture were also much better.
Once dried into jerky, they were also more convenient to carry.
Aldric had tried to go fishing with Kevin in the sea. But as someone who grew up in an inland province, he could barely swim in a river, let alone dive in the ocean. He quickly gave up, abandoning his grand ambition of becoming the Pirate King.
Saving a life is a one-time event; living together is a long-term affair.
Having Kevin go fishing alone to feed both of them was fine for a meal or two, but as time went on, Aldric began to feel uneasy.
Aldric was a fair person, not just to others, but to himself.
It wasn't his style to use his superior size and strength to make someone else do all the hard work while he comfortably enjoyed the fruits of their labor.
So, should he pay Kevin in gold coins?
No, the fish weren't worth that much. If he really gave him gold, how many fish would the boy have to catch to pay off that debt?
But right now, I'm so poor all I have is money...
As he worried about how to achieve a trade balance with Kevin, Aldric suddenly noticed that Kevin was very interested in his daily sword practice.
During these days of stockpiling food and adapting to the environment, Aldric would take his weapons to the beach to practice after he'd eaten his fill.
Kevin would quietly follow him, find a shady spot on the beach, and sit there watching him silently.
Well... I could teach him a few moves to protect himself.
Seeing Kevin's eager yet hesitant expression, Aldric walked over to a large tree and, with two swings of his sword, cut down two straight branches.
After trimming them, he tossed one at Kevin's feet.
Kevin looked at the branch at his feet, then back at Aldric, a look of confusion on his face.
"Come," Aldric said. "I'll teach you."
Kevin stood up, bewildered, and stammered, "I'm sorry, Ser Aldric. I didn't mean to spy. I'll go back to camp right now."
But before he could turn, Aldric stopped him. "Go back? For what? I'm going to teach you how to use a sword."
Aldric swung the other stick, executing a beautiful flourish.
Kevin understood. He pointed to his own nose in disbelief. "Me? You're willing to teach me?"
Aldric nodded and walked back onto the sand. "Come on!"
After sparring with Kevin for a few rounds with the sticks, Aldric had a clear measure of the boy's skill his fundamentals were solid, and his strength was decent for his size. His only weaknesses were a lack of practical experience and very crude technique.
But considering he was only a fourteen-year-old boy, and the second son of a mere village head, his level was commendable.
After all, the combat experience and abilities of a warrior with memories of slaughtering tens of thousands of humanoid and non-humanoid monsters were far beyond what an ordinary boy could compare to.
After a few varied rounds of "sparring" (which was more like one-sidedly schooling a child), and based on Kevin's own wishes, Aldric ultimately decided to teach Kevin his two-handed sword techniques.
The teaching method he adopted was this: Aldric first spent two days organizing his techniques into a set of forms. Then he force-fed them to Kevin, making him memorize them by rote.
Once Kevin had practiced the moves in the forms until they were second nature, Aldric would spar with him, teaching him how to apply those moves in actual combat.
At first, Kevin wasn't used to this teaching style.
As long as he could remember, his father, John Turner, had taught him by throwing him a wooden sword and having him fight Lannor. After they'd beaten each other black and blue, their father would offer critiques and corrections.
This was the traditional teaching method in Westeros. In Kevin's eyes, while Aldric's sword dance was indeed impressive, you never started a real fight by performing a dance routine.
To this, Aldric simply stated, "I'm your teacher. You do as I say."
Kevin pouted almost imperceptibly but raised no further objections and began to learn earnestly.
After two days of practicing the simplest form until he was proficient, Aldric decided to spar with him to spark his enthusiasm.
Under Aldric's deliberate guidance, Kevin was delighted to find that the moves from the forms he had painstakingly practiced flowed out naturally in the spar, as naturally as a river flowing to the sea. The effectiveness of these moves in combat was also far superior to the little tricks he had come up with on his own.
Now completely convinced, Kevin began practicing the sword forms proactively. Every day, aside from necessary chores, he would practice his swordsmanship, sometimes forgetting to eat or sleep.
If Aldric hadn't worried about him overexerting himself and stopped him in time, Kevin might have unknowingly wrecked his own body.
Aldric wasn't surprised by Kevin's burst of enthusiasm. From their conversations, he knew that as the second son of a common knight, Kevin had never been exposed to any advanced martial arts.
Yet, the education he had received since childhood demanded that he rely on his martial prowess to win his own glory.
If not for the shipwreck, Kevin's fate would most likely have been to follow his uncle and become a sellsword, drifting between the various city-states of the east.
If he were lucky, he'd gain some experience after a few battles, earn a little money, and then spend it all in taverns and gambling dens. Once broke, he'd lie drunk on a tavern floor, waiting for the next fight.
If he were unlucky, he might become a nameless corpse in his very first battle, his gear stripped by the enemy or even his own comrades, his body abandoned in the wilderness to become food for wild dogs.
The encounter with Aldric had opened up another possibility for his future, a real opportunity to change his predetermined fate.
At the very least, being a highly skilled mercenary was better than being a mediocre one.
So, during their time by the sea, Kevin's skill with a two-handed sword improved visibly. In return, through their chats and Aldric's guidance, Aldric learned a great deal about Kevin's home and this world. He finally began to understand what kind of world he had been exiled to.
This continent, called Westeros, was almost entirely comprised of a single kingdom called the "Seven Kingdoms." The kingdom was made up of seven great duchies, and the rulers of these duchies all swore fealty to the king who reigned from King's Landing.
The current king was named Robert Baratheon. About a decade or so ago, he and the Duke of the North, House Stark, had joined forces to overthrow the previous king. With the support of the other lords, he had declared himself King of the Seven Kingdoms.
Dukes swore fealty to the king in exchange for his protection, and they, in turn, had their own vassals who swore fealty to them.
Layers of allegiance, layers of vassalage a typical feudal structure.
In terms of social structure, it was roughly equivalent to China's Spring and Autumn period or Europe's Middle Ages.
And Kevin himself came from a family of the lowest rank of nobility in this structure the knightly class.
Although, in Aldric's opinion, John Turner, who hadn't seen battle in a long time, was more of a village headman than a knight.
In that case, doesn't that make Kevin the village headman's idiot son?
At this thought, Aldric couldn't help but chuckle.
This confused Kevin, who was practicing nearby. "Ser, did I do something wrong?"
Aldric snapped back to reality, immediately suppressed his smile, and pretended to turn the fish roasting over the fire. "No, not you," he said casually. "Your form is perfect. Keep it up."
"Ser" was a title Kevin had started using for Aldric on his own. In Kevin's eyes, a man as highly skilled, strong, handsome, well-equipped, and cultured as Aldric must be a knight from a wealthy southern noble house.
Aldric, of course, knew he was no nobleman's son, but his true origins were hard to explain, and he couldn't be bothered to try. So, he just let it be.
Kevin nodded. "Yes, Ser."
"No, the force there is too weak. Put more power into it!"
"Yes, Ser!"
After more than half a month of training, Kevin had finally mastered the basic forms of the two-handed sword style. All that remained was to break down the forms into individual moves in real combat situations and integrate them into his fighting style. This was a long, grinding process, not something that could be accomplished overnight.
At the same time, Aldric was now able to converse fluently in the Common Tongue. More complex language would require more time and interaction with more people to improve another long, grinding process.
Well, it was about time to get back on the road.
On the morning of the seventeenth day after Kevin had awoken, Aldric brought his "Lightbringer Set" to the campsite. Under Kevin's shocked and envious gaze, he asked, "Kevin, have you ever helped your father put on his armor?"
"Yes, Ser, I have."
Even though it was only twice, that should count, right? Kevin felt a little unsure.
"Come, help me put this stuff on."
Aldric hadn't worn his armor since taking it off at the beach.
Even when he needed to carry weight, he just loosely draped it over himself.
That was fine for heavy lifting, but not for a long journey.
After Kevin, under Aldric's guidance, tied the last strap of the backplate, he asked, "Ser Aldric, are you one of the Kingsguard?"
"Hm? Why do you say that?" Aldric asked curiously.
"This armor is too beautiful. I've never seen a suit so magnificent and sturdy."
Aldric chuckled. "Have you seen a lot of armor?"
Kevin nodded. "I once went with my father to Coldwater Burn to attend the knighting ceremony for the lord's son. None of their knights' armor was as fine as yours."
The transmog set Aldric had chosen was a very popular one for both Alliance Paladins and Horde Sunwalkers in the current version of World of Warcraft.
Countless Paladins, Warriors, and Death Knights had burned the midnight oil, forgetting to eat and sleep, just to collect this set.
Even so, Aldric still hadn't gotten the most dazzling shoulder pieces, which was a great regret.
Aldric thought for a moment and said, "I'm not part of any Kingsguard. I'm just an ordinary warrior. But I was once the commander of a warband."
Kevin had never considered this possibility. "Ah?!" he said, surprised. "A warband in the Free Cities?"
"No, farther than the Free Cities. So far that I can't find my way back." Aldric didn't want to dwell on the topic. "By the way, do you know where we are now?"
"I don't know for sure. But if I'm not mistaken, we should be on the east coast of the North. I can't say the exact location. But if we follow the coastline south, we'll eventually reach White Harbor. That's where my uncle and I boarded the ship."
Aldric adjusted his armor to the most comfortable position and asked, "Alright, then we'll head south. Is everything ready?"
Kevin nodded. "All ready. Five waterskins and three bags of dried fish."
"Then let's set out after breakfast."
"Yes, Ser."
After finishing their morning seafood soup, Aldric, now fully armored, stood on the river shoal and looked at the cave that had been his home for nearly a month, silent for a long moment.
"Ser, what are you looking at?"
"Nothing. Let's go."
With that, he shouldered his sword and shield. Kevin pushed a wheelbarrow piled with supplies, and they set off south.
Aldric had built the wheelbarrow from memory. The wooden wheel was wrapped in a thick layer of grass rope for shock absorption. The fish-skin bags for food and water were made by Kevin: he had sewn large pieces of fish skin together with thin leather strips, and the seams were sealed with glue made from fish bladders. As long as they didn't fill it with hot water, the water inside wouldn't leak.
They would have to drink the water from the bags first and replace it at any suitable source, otherwise, bacteria would grow if it sat too long.
With a ready supply of food and water, they had more flexibility in choosing their route.
After leaving the camp, the two of them crossed cliffs and navigated treacherous shoals. No matter how difficult the path, they never let the coastline leave their sight.