Chapter 37

"Are you ready?!"

"YEAH!!!!"

"Today, justice will be delivered to these men who have committed crimes against the people of Westeros!! I believe that most of you remember the day I arrived at the walls of this great city. That day, I spilt the blood of Targaryens and Lannisters... Men who have leeched upon the lives of the common folk. Aerys Targaryen was going to kill you and yours with his wildfire, but, I stopped him. The Lannisters had come to sack this city and commit atrocities against you and again, I stopped them! You accepted me as your champion and thus, it shall be me who will offer the blood of these men to the Stranger!"

"YEAAAAAHHH!!!"

"CURRAN!!"

I raised my halberd high in the air and yelled, "Bring me the accused! Let their skill decide their fate!!"

Amongst the roars and cheers of all those gathered, my victims were escorted to the makeshift battleground. Each one of them were armed with plate armour and the weapons of their choice... Which happened to be swords and shields.

The four Lannister brothers eyed me with extreme caution. Meanwhile, the former Kingsguard still looked defeated. Their will was broken after Rhaegar's insanity was unveiled in front of them.

I could see it in their eyes... Especially in case of Barristan Selmy and Arthur Dayne. Rhaegar was truely a great actor. He just couldn't contain himself when things went completely out of his control.

With his house having lost so early in the war and Lyanna not being heads over heels for him, Rhaegar simply snapped when Dorne, the one kingdom he was sure that would support him, arrived at his doors to arrest him. It must have been quite a sight... I couldn't believe that I missed it...

I looked at my victims and announced, "Today is your trial by combat and you are your own champions. All of you will be fighting against me. The winner, or, winners, get to live to see another day. Kill me and you will be free to leave, having been judged as not guilty of crimes against the realm. I'm your only opponent and, your last."

One of my men who was assigned to signal to start of the trial, played the drum as soon as I got into my stance. The men weren't ready for my sudden lunge and nor were they ready to see their numbers fall by one, so soon into the battle.

Kevan Lannister was his elder brother's shadow, always supporting Tywin in every decision. He was the old lion's most loyal man. A big and strong man with a heavy jaw and great skill with the sword, Kevan was feared on the battlefield. But, in that trial by combat, he didn't even last for a moment.

His brothers could only watch as Kevan's head was cut through by a vicious slash of my halberd. His cranium flew along with part of his brain while his body dropped immediately with a fountain of blood mudding the ground underneath.

The remaining six men stood gawking at the fallen man's carcass. A rage fueled Gerion, the youngest of the brothers, charged at me, roaring to the skies as he lost all reason. His demise was swift as well. With a fine cut, I severed his head and he fell to his knees, his head tumbling down towards my feet.

I could tell that Tywin and Tygett were simmering with unparalleled rage, but, they tried to remain level headed. The five looked at each other and began to circle me. They were going to attack together.

"Do you know what you should do when you are facing an enemy that's too strong for you?"

[Apex aura activated]

"First, you synchronize your breathing."

I could feel it... Their breaths were becoming one..

"Ready your weapons.."

Their swords were ready to spill my blood..

"Charge together!!"

All five of them attacked me from all sides. Years of training and experience in battles had made them strong. The five were amongst the best warriors of Westeros. Their swords cut through air and with unquenchable thirst for my blood, they swung with all their might, each slash meant to end my life. It was a brilliant display of unparalleled skill.

Sadly, their opponent was me.

"And die..."

Plagiarizing the words of Okita Sougo, I countered their attacks with mine. The air was saturated with sounds of steel clashing against steel at such blinding speeds that it almost resembled a continuous tune of death.

It was an exhilarating battle and I entered into a trance. My attacks and parries became more fluid. I acted more with instinct and my technique became more savage.

The strength behind my attacks was more than enough to rip through plate armour and thick sheets of steel that made their shields. One by one, showers of blood spurted out of them as their screams were muffled by the continuous clashes of our blades.

They fought with everything they had, but, I was simply too strong and fast for their skill to make a difference. I tried to prolong the battle for as long as possible. I could feel the improvement in my technique. As I fought them, my proficiency in HEMA soared high and above at speeds I thought was nigh unachievable.

[Adept HEMA 78%]

I surpassed them in skill and overwhelmed them. With a slashes so fast that they appeared to have been made at the same time, I ended their lives by mincing them into pieces, all five of them, at once.

Silence reigned the battlefield and onky the sounds of my breath echoed around. Then, everyone errupted into an explosion of jubilation.

I raised my halberd high and yelled, "Death to the guilty!!"

"CURRAN!!"

It was in that moment, every highborn present realized that regardless of who sat on the throne or who was the wealthiest and had the biggest army, ultimately, I was most powerful man in all of Westeros.

(ACJTF)

A/N: Exams from 21st Feb.

No more chapters until mid march.

I won't apologize, it's my final year exams. Thanks for understanding.

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