The day of the tourney finally arrived.
The tourney grounds were set on the open plains outside King's Landing, where temporary stands were filled with nobles, while commoners crowded outside the railings, craning their necks to catch a glimpse inside.
Robert and Cersei sat on the high platform in the center, with Eddard seated to the King's right and the children behind them. Eddard watched the competition below with a grave expression; the cost of this tourney truly pained his heart.
The first day's jousting was spectacular. Knights on warhorses, wielding wooden lances, charged against each other on the tracks. Wood splinters flew, armor clashed, and from time to time, someone was unhorsed.
Among them, Loras's performance was particularly outstanding. He defeated three opponents in a row, each victory marked by such elegance that it drew bursts of screams from the ladies in the stands.
Sansa clutched her skirts tightly, worrying for every knight who fell, especially for Loras. When the Knight of Flowers faced an experienced knight from Stormlands in the fourth round, Sansa almost dared not look.
The two horses crossed, and the lances struck. After several passes, Loras's lance hit his opponent squarely in the chest, knocking him off his horse, while the opponent's lance tip merely grazed his pauldron.
"He won," Sansa breathed a sigh of relief.
However, in the next round, Loras encountered The Mountain of The Westerlands, Gregor Clegane.
This match appeared to be extremely lopsided.
The Mountain stood nearly eight feet tall, wearing specially made heavy armor and riding an equally massive warhorse. By comparison, Loras seemed slender and fragile.
"It's not fair," Sansa couldn't help but say.
"The Mountain will kill him," Arya replied from the side.
But Sansa only frowned and ignored her sister.
The horn sounded, and the two began their charge. The thundering of The Mountain's horse was deafening. Loras, however, maneuvered his mount with agility, skillfully sidestepping at the last moment, his lance striking The Mountain's helm with precision.
"A fine strike!" someone cheered from the stands.
But The Mountain only shook his head and did not fall from his horse. He turned his horse and charged again. This time, Loras tried to repeat the tactic, but The Mountain ignored it and swept his lance across.
The Knight of Flowers barely managed to parry, but the impact nearly unhorsed him. His arm was clearly injured, and his movements began to slow.
On the third charge, The Mountain's lance shattered Loras's shield and knocked him off his horse. The young knight fell heavily to the ground.
Maesters rushed onto the field to provide treatment. Sansa covered her mouth, tears in her eyes. In the stands, Lord Renly stood up, his face pale.
Loras was carried off the field; fortunately, an examination revealed only a broken arm and several bruises, with no life-threatening injuries. But the tourney was over for the Knight of Flowers.
"At least he's still alive," Arya whispered.
The competition continued over the next few days.
Among those who appeared next, Jaime's performance was the most prominent, winning five consecutive matches and demonstrating his prowess as the Lord Commander of the Kingsguard.
This time, he was not sent by Robert to The Crownlands to suppress bandits as in the original story. The Hound, Sandor Clegane, also fought his way through, but unfortunately, he lost to Jaime in the semi-finals.
The final match was between Jaime and The Mountain, both knights of The Westerlands.
The duel drew everyone's attention. Jaime's golden armor gleamed in the sunlight, while The Mountain's black armor was unsettling.
On the first charge, both of their lances shattered in the air. On the second, Jaime nimbly avoided The Mountain's heavy blow, his lance tip striking the opponent's pauldron. On the third, Jaime took a risky tactic, suddenly lowering his body at the last moment and thrusting his lance upward, hitting The Mountain's visor and sending him tumbling straight off his horse.
Cheers erupted from the stands. Jaime Lannister became the champion of the King's Landing joust.
Next was the awards ceremony. According to tradition, the champion of the joust would choose the "Queen of Love and Beauty" and crown her.
Everyone expected Jaime to choose some noble lady, or at least avoid suspicion by not choosing his own sister.
But when Jaime lifted the crown, adorned with roses and jewels, on the tip of his lance, he rode straight to the main stand and, before Robert and the entire realm, presented the crown to Cersei.
"To my queen, forever in my heart," Jaime's voice was clearly audible.
At this moment, time seemed to stand still.
A look of surprise and pride appeared on Cersei's face. However, Robert's face turned from flushed to livid, and he squeezed the wine cup in his hand until it rattled.
Only scattered applause rang out from the stands; most people were stunned. Jaime's move was undoubtedly an open provocation to the King.
Eddard saw the King's hand trembling, a precursor to rage. For a moment, he thought the King would leap up and strangle the Queen and her brother on the spot. But Robert merely took a deep breath and then burst into a deafening laugh.
Cersei seemed indifferent to Robert's laughter; she gracefully accepted the crown and smiled at Jaime. "Thank you, brother. This is the most precious gift I have ever received."
She emphasized the word "brother" heavily, as if to stress that they were merely siblings. Yet, everyone present could hear the underlying intimacy.
Eddard felt only a wave of nausea.
He looked at Joffrey and found the boy staring at his mother and "uncle," his expression shifting, though it was impossible to tell what he was thinking. Beside him, Tommen and Myrcella were utterly bewildered, having no idea what was happening.
Eddard himself did not participate in the tourney, but he did not stop his men from entering; several of his Northern guards took part in the melee. However, although they were brave, they lacked the experience and skill for such tournaments, and because they were Northerners, they were targeted, eventually falling injured one by one, with one even dying from severe wounds.
This made Eddard's heart even heavier; Northern blood was shed merely to satisfy the King's momentary pleasure.
Robert did not attend the victory feast that evening. He locked himself in his room and drank himself into a stupor.
Jaime and Cersei did attend, sitting together and chatting in low voices as if the day's incident was of no consequence. The nobles carefully avoided the subject, but private discussions were already buzzing.
Eddard left the banquet early and returned to the Tower of the Hand. He could feel the situation in King's Landing spiraling out of control, and there seemed to be very little he could do..
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