Chapter 4

Magnus briskly made his way toward Rillseat, following the directions provided by Jarvis. The morning air was crisp, and Magnus couldn't help but admire his surroundings. 'Is this how Earth used to look?' He thought to himself, 'Shame, it would've been so beautiful.'

As Magnus continued his journey, he could see the village slowly fade away from his sight from behind. He was now surrounded by nothing but trees. Thoughts raced through Magnus' mind, thinking about how to achieve his goal. 'Thinking about it, I wonder how my path can lead from being a scribe for the local lord, to being a lord of my own right.' One of the reasons Magnus really considered this possibility as it would be much easier to increase his stats.

'To be a scribe, I must have access to books, allowing me to increase my intelligence. I can keep working out to increase my stamina and strength. If I keep this up, hopefully soon I will be able to upgrade my system, and get the skills function.'

As Magnus climbed over a small hill, he could see a castle appear in the distance. 'That must be Rillseat, it looks beautiful.' The castle, although not massive in size, seemed very distinguished as it stood surrounded by a small city. As he approached, he began to once again go over his plans, he wanted to establish a confident yet honest persona to the Lord and the people of Rillseat.

His monologue took him all the way to the entrance to the city, where he was simply given a look of curiosity by the guards before they parted to let them in, no words were exchanged. Magnus was confused about the lack of security, however, it soon slipped his mind as he made his way through the medieval-looking city. He got a few looks, but not too many. Magnus chucked it to his size. He had filled out his previously loose shirt, and he was always a tall man, standing at 6'4, he was sure he stood out a little bit.

The city/town was intriguing, although not super clean, and the buildings are a little small, it has a surreal and a certain magical feel. Rillseat was a bustling city, and the market area was filled with people bartering for goods and the like. It had its own charm, and Magnus wondered, 'If and when my plans work out, is this what my city would look like? I'll make it larger, and cleaner though I bet, maybe make public bathhouses for the people.'

"Halt stranger, what business do you have here?" Magnus was so busy with the marketplace he didn't notice that he was closing in on the castle. The guards stopped him and questioned his intentions, Magnus thought for a second before responding.

"I seek an audience with Lord Rodrick Ryswell, I came to offer my services to him and his maester as a scribe," Magnus replied, retaining a confident, yet respectful demeanor.

The guard glanced at his companion, exchanging a brief nod before gesturing for Magnus to follow. "You can meet with our maester first, if he confirms that you are skilled enough as a scribe, then he will take you to the Lord."

(I know scribes didn't actually exist in the Game of Thrones world. Think of it as a bit of an AU.)

Magnus entered the castle, guided through the corridors by the guard. The interior was adorned with tapestries depicting various battles and victories. However, it also wasn't overly decorated, just enough to look regal however not enough to look arrogant. Magnus could respect it.

Finally, Magnus was led into a spacious chamber where the maester sat at a table with scrolls around him. Bookshelves were around filled with old-looking tomes, this was good news for Magnus, however, he had to impress the maester here first.

"Maester Ecbert, this is Magnus, he has come to offer his services as a scribe. As previously commanded by the Lord and you we have brought him to you first so you can discern if he has the skills for the position." The measter looked towards Magnus before nodding to the guards and gesturing for them to leave.

"What brings you to Rillseat stranger?" The measter asked Magnus, after the guards had left.

"As the guards have stated earlier, I offer my talents as a scribe to study under you and better Rillseat." Of course, this was not actually what Magnus came to do, but he can't walk in and say that he needs the books to up his stats can he?

"Another eager soul seeking knowledge and service, I see. Tell me, what makes you think you're capable of handling the responsibilities of a scribe?" Maester Ecbert asked,

"Well, Maester Ecbert, I am proficient in reading and writing. I have a deep passion for learning and a keen eye for detail. I believe I can be of value to Lord Rodrick and contribute to the scholarly work here at Rillseat." Ecbert smiled and replied,

"Hmm, words are one thing, but actions speak louder. Let us put your skills to the test. Please, read and interpret this passage from this historical tome." He then looked through the shelves and then handed Magnus an old-looking book before instructing him to open it to a page and read it aloud.

Magnus did just that, word for word reading the tome out loud with confidence. Afterward, the Maester smiled and asked him to interpret the document, and Magnus did just that.

"The passage speaks of the ancient rivalry between the Blackwoods and Brackens, the Blackwoods claimed that the Brackens hired people to overthrow them, back when they were Kings. The Brackens claimed that the Blackwoods used to be their vessels before rebelling and breaking off to create their own kingdom. I believe that it shows the power of propaganda, if one of these sides were believed over the other, then it is quite likely the rest of the Riverlands would flock to their side."

[+1 intelligence]

Although this was simply for a task, Magnus relished in the knowledge he was fed, in just reading one page he learned so much about the world he ended up in, and he also gained a stat in intelligence. He also seemed to have impressed the maester, the way he was smiling indicated that.

"Impressive Magnus, you've shown a good grasp of reading alongside being able to interpret texts. Follow me, I shall take you to the Lord." Ecbert got up, and he gestured for Magnus to follow him. Once again he was led through the corridors, before coming to a large door that was opened by guards. Once inside, he saw who he assumed to be Lord Rodrick, seated upon a large wooden elevated seat in the center of the room.

"Ah maester my good man, who is this you brought with you?" Rodrick asked, curiosity donning his features.

"May I present Magnus Engel, our new scribe my lord," Ecbert responded.

"Engel huh? You have the look of a warrior, not a scribe, no matter. I have never heard of any house bearing such a name, allow me to ask you Magnus, are you nobility?" Rodrick asked,

"Back in my homeland yes my lord, but here, I have no people to rule over, I have no land to my name, so no." My story seemed to intrigue both the maester and the Lord.

"Pardon me for asking Magnus but may I ask where you hail from, you speak our tongue with mastery that even some native speakers can't boast of having."

"I come from across what you call the Sunset Sea to the west. I hail from a land called Germany, and I was one of many Jarls who ruled. As for me speaking your tongue, the people here speak the same language as we did back home. It is intriguing is it not?"

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