Qyburn and Gendry

"Farewell, King's Landing!" As the ship sailed out of the harbor, Gendry bid farewell to the beautiful ships.

Upstream on the Blackwater River were the magnificent golden royal warships with their sails furled.

Deep-sea fishing boats and river skiffs came and went incessantly, along with the merchant ships from the Narrow Sea, the swan ships from the Summer Islands, and the royal yachts.

Slowly, Gendry saw the Red Keep atop Aegon's Hill. It consisted of seven enormous drum towers protected by steel fortifications, a colossal and stern keep, a domed hall with sealed bridges, barracks, dungeons, granaries, and thick walls pierced with arrow slits, all built from light red stone. The crowned stag of House Baratheon proudly reared on the battlements.

The brigantine that Gendry was on, the _Telescope_, had sixty oars and two masts and was one of the fastest ships. Compared to the avaricious Tyroshi, the debauched Lyseni, the Myrish had a slightly better reputation. Since the ship was packed with goods, there weren't many passengers on board.

Gendry only showed the old man his profile, with a cold iron mask covering his face. Gendry lifted his face towards the waves, as if the brisk sea breeze could blow away the past.

"I know some words, but not many!" Gendry replied. The old man seemed amiable on the surface, but for some reason, Gendry felt he was a bit odd.

"Whether you know many or few is not important. You have a good physique, which is truly enviable," the old man said, moving closer to examine Gendry's appearance. However, the iron mask concealed his looks, revealing only his deep blue eyes. He observed Gendry's physical condition, the proportion of his legs, and his build.

"How old are you?"

"Thirteen or fourteen!" Gendry lied about his age by two years.

"A strong and healthy boy, you will be a true steel in the future!" the old man praised in a low voice. "I predict you will be over six feet four inches tall when you grow up!"

Gendry felt a bit uneasy. The old man's words sounded strange and had a hint of a slave trader.

"Don't be afraid, child! I am a scholar and a healer, so I naturally know more," the old man smiled.

"May I ask your name?" Gendry felt his mouth dry.

"A name is just a label, Qyburn."

Gendry stared at the old man. No wonder he was interested in him; he was treating him like a subject of study.

Qyburn was obsessed with researching invincible warriors. Although his ethics were questionable, Qyburn's abilities were undeniable. He was skilled in both medicine and necromancy.

"Gendry!"

"Good name, but it doesn't sound like a noble's. More like a commoner's," Qyburn mused. "However, your physique and speech are not entirely that of a commoner's child. You are quite interesting!"

"Thank you for the compliment!" Gendry replied indifferently. Naturally, he was intrigued by Qyburn, but he had no leverage, so he went along with it.

"Where are your parents?"

"Dead!"

"Condolences. The Stranger will treat all in the world equally."

"Besides the stench, the only thing that truly attracts in King's Landing is the variety of banners: black with a red dragon, the crowned stag, the roaring lion. Across the Narrow Sea, it's a world of cheesemongers and butter sellers!" Qyburn stopped chatting with Gendry and reminisced about the banners above the Red Keep. "I still remember the days when the black banners with red dragons flew."

"Why did you leave King's Landing?" Gendry asked Qyburn.

"To eat, child. The lord I liked belittled and rejected me! The minor lord who accepted me was too weak. Survival and dreams, I had to try my luck across the Narrow Sea!" After saying this, Qyburn left. "The wind here is too strong for an old man like me. I'm going back to the cabin! Child, if you want to chat with an old man, you can come find me!"

"I would be honored!" Gendry watched the maester of death leave.

The brigantine _Telescope_ floated on the water like a dragonfly, its oars rising and falling in unison.

"This old man is very odd, child! He's like an old piece of wood. I think he envies your youthful fire," the Myrish captain couldn't help but whisper.

"Thank you for the warning! Captain!" Gendry thanked him.

The captain, seeing Gendry's iron mask, couldn't help but mutter a few more words, suspecting that there might be some scar under the mask, and then left him alone.

Gendry watched the waves of the sea. This was his first time on a large ship and his first time leaving King's Landing. Fortunately, he didn't get seasick, and the journey was still stable.

"The Spider!" The ship had already left King's Landing, and Gendry was curious about the Spider's reaction when he found out he had run away. There probably wouldn't be much emotional fluctuation. After all, the Spider had three or four pawns, and the occasional escape of the least important one was no big deal.

"King's Landing is not only foul-smelling but also reeks of the Spider and Littlefinger. When I come back, I will deal with them all at once!" Gendry also went to the cabin to see the legendary Maester Qyburn.

The chaos in King's Landing couldn't be separated from the instigation of the Spider and Littlefinger. The Spider controlled information, and Littlefinger controlled money.

King Robert and Hand Jon were too trusting, or rather, too dismissive of them. A eunuch, a minor noble. After all, for thousands of years, it has always been the great nobles who have dominated the country.

Gendry went down to the cabin and pushed open Qyburn's door. The old man was reading a book by himself, and there was a cup of hot drink on the table.

"I'm glad to see your concern!" Qyburn said happily. "For an old man, the vitality of the young always makes me happy."

Gendry looked around Qyburn's cabin and found that there were not many books. There were also some surgical instruments on the table: knives, chisels, thread, and poppy milk.

"It seems you are indeed a well-trained physician!" In this era, physicians had to cut flesh with knives and needed the mindset of a butcher and great strength.

"What did you do before?"

"I was a blacksmith, Maester Qyburn!"

"A blacksmith, oh, a noble profession. But blacksmithing is hard work. The Myrish have more exquisite craftsmanship, and there may not be a place for you to eat. Medicine, though bloody, makes you earn more and is more decent. Where can there be no doctor?" Qyburn curled his lip.

There was also a human body model that Qyburn had built himself on the table. Although it was rough, you could see the bones and various organs. Without a certain amount of human dissection, he could not be so clear.

"The human body is profound and vast. I have studied medicine for a long time without reaching the end. My age has also come, and I can no longer touch the future. Perhaps it is time to spread some sparks!" Qyburn said.

"Perhaps you should stay in the Citadel and continue your research!" Gendry said.

"Come on! That is a place dominated by a group of grey-clothed sheep. Why is the climate type unpredictable, and why are there white walkers in the North? They serve to lock knowledge, not to innovate. I just wanted to do some experiments, and they drove me out. Therefore, I can only go across the Narrow Sea!"

"Are you interested in these?" Qyburn picked up the scalpel in his hand and pointed to the skeletal model on the table. "I won't teach you those terrible experiments. If you are willing, what I will teach you is regular medicine!"

"Why me?"

"Very simple, you are suitable. A strong and energetic young man, it is also good to be a doctor. We need to operate with surgical knives and splints. Without strength and a vigorous spirit, it is not possible. Unfortunately, those young people in the Seven Kingdoms prefer to ride and duel rather than use surgical knives. Someone has to like medicine."