The king on the Great Wall

The freshly cooked broth leaked all over the floor because the iron pot was shot through, and the aroma was everywhere, and everyone's temporary residence was in a mess.A few loaves of bread that were put on the table for sharing disappeared, a dead squirrel was taken away by a wild woman, a piece of clothing and an iron spoon that was originally inserted in the pot were missing... and more Bits and pieces, unimportant things.

If you don't count the horses, they have little to lose.

"Why did they take my book? My God, is there anyone among the wildlings who can read?" Tyrion said, "It's nothing else. I borrowed that book from the Winterfell library!"

"I'm afraid they don't even know what a book is, but just looking at it is square and square, they can't help but walk away." Iger expressed regret, "Nine out of ten it was turned into a kindling for starting a fire, or it was turned into a igniter for starting a fire, or it was burned by a piece of paper." Zhang tore off and wiped his ass."

"Do you want to chase?" Yoren's face was gloomy, and he looked even more fierce: "Eight horses are missing."

"That means there are fourteen horses left." Bunyan frowned and thought about it. There were about 20 men and women who showed up on the other side. If you want to chase or kill them all, it is definitely not enough for three night watchmen. There was also an ambush, and in the end he could only shake his head and reject Lang Ya's proposal.

An inexplicable attack ended like this. This was the fourth time Iger fought against the wildlings, and it was the first time he was passively attacked. However, like the previous three times, there were no night watchman casualties.

The gap in combat effectiveness and quality between professional soldiers and farmers is so huge, just like wolves and sheep-theoretically the sheep can kill the wolves when they unite, but in fact no sheep dare to run a step slower because of this ethereal possibility.As long as they don't panic, even if they have the upper hand, the savages can only withdraw from the battlefield in embarrassment after leaving three corpses... If Bunyan was not eager to save the remaining horses, the result of the battle may be far more than this.

Only one recruit who hadn't officially joined was unlucky in the first round of sparse arrow rain. Fortunately, the savage didn't have a strong bow, and the quality of the arrows was extremely poor—they even used stone arrowheads without barbs. As long as the arrow is pulled out to disinfect the wound, it can only be regarded as a skin trauma.

For Jon, Tyrion, and his two guards who have never participated in a real war, it is undoubtedly a big victory to repel a sneak attack at the cost of zero for three; More important than anything else; but Benjen Stark felt extremely humiliated. There were not many military horses in Castle Black, and nearly a tenth of them were stolen by a group of wild men who crossed the Great Wall in his own hands. Joining the night watchman, I have never suffered such a big loss.

Compared with the loss of war horses, the meaning behind this attack is more important: the savages are fleeing south at an accelerated rate, and the situation north of the Great Wall is obviously deteriorating. The next patrol must be organized as soon as possible to determine the situation.

-

Chapter 30

The chief ranger ordered everyone to lead the remaining horses closer to the tent with a sullen face, and led Iger and Yoren to set up traps and alarms among the surrounding trees to prevent sneak attacks, and then arranged for night guards, so that they could move freely , start over to solve the problem of dinner.

……

"What did I say just now, you look like a philosopher for a while, and a real warrior for a while." Drinking the little broth left at the bottom of the pot, Tyrion was still in shock.He was protected by Iger at the first moment of the attack just now, and his feelings towards the traversers are more complicated at this moment: "I didn't believe that the Night's Watch was the most elite army in the Seven Kingdoms before, but now I start to doubt that you really killed Over the White Walkers."

In a battle with savages, any army would look like the most elite army in the Seven Kingdoms. Iger laughed in his heart, and of course he couldn't destroy his own prestige: "Uh, thank you for the compliment, but I didn't deceive you in the first place."

"Call me Tyrion, I owe you a favor." The dwarf said, "I will try my best to fulfill the things we agreed on before."

"Then thank you in advance, Tyrion...cough." Iger coughed. He had been forcing himself to abide by the title and etiquette that should exist under the Westeros hierarchy. But here comes the bend.

***

Everything started and ended quickly. The traverser didn't know what image he played in the battle just now in Tyrion's eyes, but he knew in his heart: he didn't do anything special.

The brave and powerful savages are all gathered under Mance at this moment, and they are stationed at the peak of the Frostfangs to discuss how to deal with the White Walkers. The raiders just now are extremely weak even among their kind. Any trained soldier , as long as the luck is not bad enough to be shot by the initial rain of arrows, it is impossible to lose this battle.In just a few minutes, from confronting the savages to launching a charge to drive away the enemy, it was nothing more than following the orders of the chief ranger and executing them quickly. It is impossible for any other ranger to do so badly.

Only he did it deliberately to protect Tyrion behind him, but it was purely out of consideration for himself to leave the Great Wall.Even if he hadn't, it was unlikely that the wildling's sporadic, impotent arrows would have threatened the dwarf... Maybe it was this unconscious gesture that moved the Lannister?

Now that the matter has come to an end, he naturally has no reason to expose himself. It is probably the first time Tyrion has seen a real battle. Under tension, it is understandable to imagine that the person who draws his sword to protect him is braver and stronger than he actually is. This erroneous impression was not deliberately created by him, but it didn't seem to do any harm to him, so there was no need to explain.

***

"Why did the savages appear here?" It was the first time in Jon's life that he killed an enemy with his own hands. The mixture of guilt and hormone stimulation made him flushed and he couldn't calm down for a long time: "I'm in Winterfell, and I seldom heard of this Kind of news."

"It's actually been a long time since such a thing happened. Crossing the Great Wall is a dangerous thing." Iger explained with some seriousness, "If it's just for survival, the rich resources in the wolf forest are definitely enough for the savages to eat... But this group of savages It should be to go further south, looking for a place to spend the winter and avoid the White Walkers. But there is no means of transportation or food, and it is impossible to escape the pursuit of the patrol team of the northern princes and stick to the Neck, so they can only risk attacking us. Even if If we are not caught, farmers in the nearest village will suffer.”

"White ghosts." The timid one of the Lannister guards shuddered, "Isn't that the ghost in the legends? Does it really exist?"

On weekdays, they would naturally not believe in "nonsense" such as other ghosts, but at this moment, they have just repelled a wave of sneak attacks in the dark. They swayed under the blowing, making the surrounding shadows seem to be staring at them in the dark, and the few people listening to Iger's words became a little nervous.

"Don't worry, the one in front of you has already killed one." Jon said excitedly, a little proud that he knew the White Walker Killer before others, "If that ghost thing really came out... Iger, your The obsidian dagger is still there."

"Here, don't worry, don't say that the ghosts can't cross the Great Wall, even if they can, I'll kill one by one." The traverser smiled and patted his bag, bragging.

……

Although he was full of confidence on the surface, Iger couldn't relax in his heart: at this moment, the north of the Great Wall may have turned into a hell on earth, and there are no small groups of savages still alive.Except for the [-] who had gathered together to keep warm, the rest had either crossed the Great Wall and crossed the Grand Canyon to escape to the north, or had already become part of the ghoul army.Although he made up his mind to leave the Great Wall to avoid confrontation with this group of things, he is still a part of the human race in this world at this moment... In case the Great Wall is breached and the Seven Kingdoms encounter a massive attack, he has no relatives, no reason, and no big power to back him Travelers, even if they want to escape to other continents, it may be difficult to find a way.

Everyone finished the dinner interrupted by the savage without incident, and they were still not sleepy. After sitting and chatting for a while, Bunyan came out of the tent and walked in front of everyone: "Stop chatting and go to bed early. It is still time to camp here. We can find the remnants of the wall to rely on, but further north is an uninhabited land. If we go at the speed of the previous two days, we still have to travel for three days and spend two nights in the wild. This is too dangerous, think twice, I decided to start marching at dawn tomorrow, not to camp at night, to squeeze out some horsepower, and strive to reach Castle Black in one day and one night."

Everyone nodded in agreement. Iger knew that the plot had begun to undergo subtle changes. This attack outside the original story was the biggest manifestation. Whether it was caused by his own "butterfly" is unknown: maybe his existence made the group The itinerary of people returning to the Great Wall has changed, maybe this wave of savages would have been killed by the White Walker that I killed... In short, the direction of the plot has indeed changed, and if there is an accident once, it will come a second time However, although the fighting power of the savages is not terrible, the arrows shot by the thrown stones can still kill people.

"Then, go to bed first, Jack and I are on duty in the first half of the night." Iger stood up, "Leave your things, we'll clean them up."

Everyone acted according to their words, and the camp was soon empty with few people left. Tyrion patted the traverser before leaving: "Then, you two be careful."

***

Nothing happened in the first half of the night, and Jon and Maurice were on duty in the second half of the night, and nothing happened all night.When the sun rose the next day, everyone got up early, packed up the tents and luggage, put them on the horses, put on the saddles, and set off to continue north.

The weather has gotten worse, and surface temperatures have finally dropped below freezing, which means that falling snowflakes are already able to pile up on the ground.Rapid marches are commonplace for the rangers, especially Iger, who had just experienced the ten-day escape not long ago...but the rest of the team did not have such endurance. At the end of the journey, Tyrion and the two Lannister guards had lost consciousness in their buttocks. They entered the gate of Castle Black and descended from their horses to the ground, their legs trembling as if they had forgotten how to walk.

-

Chapter 31 Fulfilling the Promise

The clanging of swords resounded across the square, another ordinary day at Castle Black.

Commander Mormont resisted the pressure from the Royce family for the three survivors on the patrol. Now, the three who escaped from the White Ghost Sword have been cleared of desertion suspicions and can move freely in Castle Black again.

At this moment, Iger and Tyrion are standing on the balcony by the courtyard of Castle Black, leaning on the railing and looking down at the recruits training below. It feels vaguely like returning to the college days, standing on the side of the playground and looking at the new class of juniors School girls participate in military training.

It's a pity that not only are there no women among these recruits, there are not even many good-looking men.

……

Jon, in black wool over a leather vest and chainmail, was taking on his opponents in the middle of the yard with a training sword.

There are nearly 20 recruits in this batch of trainees, counting Jon as a volunteer, there are many in the queue over the years.They were generally between fourteen and eighteen in age, but none of them fought against the youngest bastards—some were nimble but timid and wretched than Will; Daggers stabbing; one was as weak as a girl... More recruits had in common stupidity, dullness and clumsiness... Jon was like a tiger among the crowd, and in just a few minutes He had already defeated four people in a row, and at this moment, he used a beautiful feint to knock down the fifth recruit with a thick neck, chopped off the opponent's head, and when the opponent retreated, he pulled his sword away and hit him with his elbow. The opponent's abdomen.

The thick-necked recruit lost his center of gravity and fell hard into the snow, with the blunt sword out of his hand.

Iger has to admit that Jon's swordsmanship is indeed as good as he brags. Even if he is a "veteran" who is ten years older than him and joined the black shirt army a year earlier, he will end up competing with him. Rely on the whole defense to mix up a tie.

The training was stopped by the recruit instructor, and Alliser Thorne, who was forced to come to the Great Wall as the loser in the Battle of the Predators, naturally had no affection for the victor's illegitimate son, so he and Jon had a fight on the field. There was a conversation, the content was too far away to hear clearly, but it was obviously not a cordial and pleasant conversation, and the boy's face showed anger.

……

"This kid is really skilled." Tyrion commented. It has been a few days since the rapid march, but his buttocks are still numb and he can't sit down. He can only feel comfortable standing up. "However, for my future 'brothers', it would be too harsh."

"I joined the Night Watchman for honor, but in the end I found that this place is completely different from what I imagined. I felt that the loss and resentment brought about by my father's abandonment were beyond words, and all turned into strength and vented on the opponent."

"It's so concise, you are like a poet again now." Tyrion smiled, "But if he continues like this, it will be difficult for him to get along in the Legion. Someone needs to tell him what to do."

"You are such a kind hearted person."

"I can't help it. I just have a little problem. I can't help but want to sympathize with illegitimate children, cripples, other freaks, and all kinds of people who get into trouble because of bad luck."

"Then I'm in trouble, but I'm lucky to be sympathized with because I'm the last person on your list. Is it good luck or bad luck?"

"Well... good question, you stopped me."

As the time of acquaintance grows, the relationship between the two has become more casual and close. The dwarf does have the characteristics of being a protagonist. Although born noble, he never puts on airs or despises others. "Not to be annoying" is actually a kind of skill, one of the manifestations of intelligence. This alone, coupled with a good brain, is destined to be capable of great things.

At this moment he smiled: "how are things over there?"

"The chief ranger has already started preparing for the next patrol, and I will lead the way." Iger was very anxious, but on the surface he said lightly: "How long will you stay on the Great Wall?"

"I can stay as long as I want, and I don't have a lot of important national affairs to deal with." The dwarf shrugged: "How long does it take for a patrol?"

"It can be as little as one or two months, and as much as half a year."

"That's a pity, I wanted you to catch a White Walker and come back for me to show, so as to prove that you are not bragging." Tyrion made a deeply regretful expression, "I came here this time mainly to see Seeing the legendary Great Wall of Desperation, climbing to the top, and pissing on the edge of the world, you can’t stay for that long.”

Catch a White Walker?The collection of obsidian weapons has just begun, and the materials obtained so far are not enough to equip a patrol team, not to mention the fragile nature of glass itself, making it impossible for it to be used as a conventional weapon like Valyrian steel Using... the dragonglass weapon is destined to be used only to seize the opportunity to kill ice magic creatures. Its existence only makes human beings change from "certain defeat" to "possible survival" when facing the aliens, and it does not reverse the advantages and disadvantages at all. The heaven-defying function.If you don't make all the preparations to get out of the wall, you are thankful that you can come back alive, and you still consider capturing it alive?

The time to deal with the White Walkers was actually far from ripe, but the Stark family's stubbornness was inherited by someone. No matter how much Iger persuaded, Bunyan refused to give up or postpone the patrol.

"My lord, it might still be possible to catch a ghoul, but the White Walker... Please forgive us for not being able to do this." Iger explained a little impatiently, "Master Bunyan's patrol this time is actually to verify the existence of the White Walker. Sex, when he returns from this trip, the Night Watch may plan an operation to find evidence to prove to the world..."

If I participate in this patrol, there is a high probability that I will not come back. The best solution is to try to avoid the mission!

Although talking and laughing with Tyrion right now, the dwarf is a real Lannister and a great nobleman after all - he has already promised to help him, if he still urges the other party, what does he think of himself?

……

"Okay, just kidding, I'm willing to take you away from the Great Wall, not because you killed some ridiculous magical creature." The dwarf shrugged: "There is no need to explain, I will go to your commander now, Take you away. Also, tell me, don’t call me my lord.”

"Okay, Tyrion." Iger breathed a sigh of relief and smiled gratefully: "Then I'll wait for your good news."

"I hope you won't be disappointed," the dwarf said, and walked toward the commander-in-chief's office with a hunched back and a quick stride on his short legs. After a few steps, he turned around and waved his hand at him. "Find a place to sit, don't wait for me here."

-

Chapter 32

"Tyrion." The commander-in-chief nodded towards the dwarf behind the table. As the former Lord of Bear Island and a prince of the northern border, his seniority and status are naturally enough to call the dwarf by his name: "It's not bad to stay on the Great Wall." joy?"

"Thank you, Commander-in-Chief, for your concern. Except for the numb buttocks and the shivering at night, everything else is fine." Tyrion sat down across the table with a smile on his face: "But I have to admit that in the wolf forest to the new gift land, everything is fine." Being robbed by a group of savages on the road is really an unprecedented new experience and exciting enough."

"It is the responsibility of the Night Watchmen for not keeping the wildlings out of the city walls. Please accept our apologies."

"Okay, forgive you." Tyrion shrugged indifferently, and adjusted his posture to make his butt more comfortable: "It's been a few days, and I have some understanding of the current situation of the Night Watchman, but I really can't be cruel. Blame you... But to be reasonable, no matter how short you are of manpower, it is your responsibility to stop the savages. This time I was attacked by Bunyan and the others to protect me, but in case the savages flock to the hinterland of the northern border one day and attack Amber, Karstark and even the subjects and members of the Stark family will be in big trouble...you say no."

"Yes, the wildlings crossed the Wall from the gap between the three forts, rowed from the Bay of Seals through our two small boats' defenses, and slipped in groups from the Shadow Tower through the Grand Canyon. The Night's Watch tried to stop them all. I'm powerless." Mormont frowned, "I have asked Maester Aemon to issue a warning to the lords in the north, and Duke Stark seems to have agreed to gather an army for me to drive temporarily, but it's a pity that I don't know When will the assembly be completed and it will be in my hands."

"Duke Stark is a good lord... It's a pity that the gods came and couldn't stop the decline of the night watchman. It hurts me to see the legendary strong shield that guards the human kingdom fall into such a field." Tyrion Made a regretful expression, "So I decided to provide a grant to the Night Watch Corps."

"what?"

……

Even if he is as mature and stable as Mormont, he couldn't help being stunned for a moment—the number of residents in the land-grant and the new land-grant under the rule of the Great Wall defenders is less than 1000, and it is completely impossible to support the Night Watch Legion with nearly [-] people Therefore, whether you admit it or not, "subsidy" has actually gradually become the main source of food and supplies for the black shirt army.

Asking others for support, he, the commander-in-chief of the night watchman, is already very proficient—in fact, he was thinking of finding an opportunity to cry poorly to the queen's brother, but he didn't expect that the other party would come to his door before he even opened his mouth. Excited, even the title changed immediately: "That... that's really great, my lord, the night watchman will appreciate your generosity and consideration of the overall situation!"

"Well, don't worry, there is an additional condition - I want to designate someone to follow me to King's Landing to receive my 'subsidy'."

"Who?"

"Egger, that's the Ranger from the other side of the Sunset Sea that you sent to Winterfell not long ago."

"A very reasonable request." Mormont calmed down instantly, stared at Tyrion for a while, and said tentatively, "But the rangers are short of manpower now, so he has to return quickly."

"I haven't finished yet." Unexpectedly, he saw his true intentions at once. It is no loss that he has been the head of Bear Island for many years. In King's Landing, continue to collect follow-up food and supplies for the Night Watchman."

……

Mormont was silent for a moment before slowly speaking: "Tyrion, the status of Night Watchman is for life, no one can join and then quit."

"I know and respect this tradition or rule." Tyrion took the words, "He will be permanently stationed in King's Landing as the night watchman's material collection officer, and provide continuous support for the Great Wall. King's Landing is the largest city in Westeros. The city and capital of the city, countless dignitaries live in it, it is very easy to get some funding."

Mormont shook his head: "Tyrion, I don't understand why you want to help him like this, but please allow me to say bluntly that the Night Watch Corps lacks everything now, but the most lacking thing is people. Logistics supplies are of course They were stretched thin, but if they were only guarding the Great Wall without going out of the wall, they could survive for a few months by scraping together and saving food and clothing. No matter what, it was impossible for the northern princes to watch the night watchmen starve to death.

"But the manpower... is really in a serious shortage." The commander-in-chief of the night watchmen poured out his bitterness to the queen's brother: "Our manpower is less than one thousand, six hundred are guarding here, and two hundred are here. The Shadow Tower and Eastwatch have even fewer garrisons. Less than a third of these people can actually fight. The Great Wall is a full three hundred miles long. Please think about it. If the enemy attacks, every mile I can only send three people to guard."

"Three and one-third," Tyrion yawned, "not enough, and there must be no shortage of this one, and King's Landing has a population of 50. , can fill the few towers of Castle Black that are still intact, besides, Yoren, the night watchman 'Wild Crow' are not on the Great Wall all the year round, why can't Egger?"

"This is different. The Ravens are all veterans who have been in the Night Watch Corps for a long time. They are no longer as brave as they used to be, so they can only use their residual heat in this way... They are rooted here, and they have nowhere to go. Go, not to mention that we have also made calculations when providing food, lodging and travel expenses to ensure that they cannot continue to hang around outside for too long after completing their mission."

Commander Mormont changed the subject, "But Egger is different. A young, strong, and quick-witted young man like him can live well wherever he throws it away. Once he is let go, I'm afraid he won't be able to catch him." Back." He muttered, "Besides, the Night's Watch is no worse than a slum boy these days, and it's the kind of thing that's sent in these days... It's not a stable boy, but a thief or a rapist. When there is a shortage of people, it is true that the number can be filled. The problem is that there are too many such people, and there is not enough backbone force to train, manage and suppress them. The Night Watch Corps currently has only about [-] people who can read, think, plan or lead Even less, Lord Tyrion, I even wanted to ask you to stay and help at Castle Black, but you still ask us for someone."

"You think highly of me. If you don't mind, I'd be happy to find you all the dwarfs in Westeros."

The old man really didn't want to or was in the mood to joke with the other party, and shook his head: "Forgive me for not being able to accept your conditions. I don't insist on funding, and please don't mention taking people away."

***

Damn, the old man should be more confused and dull, why is this person in front of him so fine?Tyrion slandered, he never broke his promise in his life, and he hated the feeling of letting his friends down the most. After thinking about it for a while, he could only use his trump card: "My lord commander, how about this, I pledge the honor of the Lannister family, Iger will never run away, if I cost you a solid soldier... I promise to pay you more than a dozen... Not a thief or a rapist, but also train, manage and suppress that gang of scum for you What do you think of my subordinates?"

Mormont sighed helplessly. He refused so far, and his attitude was actually very clear, but the other party not only refused to give up, but also involved the family's reputation... It seems that the words are glorious and beautiful, but Mormont who was born in a family Naturally understand the subtext: I must take people away, please show me face—this is almost... no, this is persecution.

The implication is very simple, if you don't agree, you will offend the other party.

-

Chapter 33

What does it mean to offend the Lannisters?

There is a widely sung song in Westeros, known from the kings and dukes to the common people. Its name is "Castamere's Rainy Season", also known as "Tywin's Curse".

This song tells the story of Tywin Lannister being completely erased from Westeros because of the Reyes family's disrespect for Lannister before he became Prime Minister-only one battle, also with the lion as the main character. Heraldry, the same wealthy and prosperous Westland aristocrat Reyes family who also started from gold digging, from family members to servants and even soldiers, everything that had anything to do with it was killed and disappeared from the world Without a trace, most drama fans and book fans probably don't know that such a No. [-] family ever existed.

"Slaughtering cities and genocide", this is a vocabulary that exists almost only in legends in Westeros. It is the privilege of the Targaryen family who rides a dragon and conquers the Seven Kingdoms... Although legally speaking, the lord has the right to punish his vassals. This kind of punishment, but in the 300 years after the unification of the Seven Kingdoms, only the Lannister family has really done things like this.

Lannister relied on this battle to stabilize its precarious dominance in the Western Territory, and established a reputation throughout the continent. Even Aerys Targaryen, who would later be called the "Mad King", was impressed by Tywin's courage. Invite him to King's Landing as prime minister.

Facts have proved that Tywin's ability can indeed manage the Seven Kingdoms.

……

After that, when the Farman family in Fairy City refused to submit to the control of the monarch, Duke Tywin only sent a harpist to play this song in the hall of the opponent's castle, and the opponent immediately bowed their heads obediently; In the tune of which Robb Stark's life and career ended by playing this song as a signal for the carnage to begin; at the wedding of Joffrey I and Margaery Tyrell, at the silent instruction of the old rose This song was also played repeatedly, and the fate of the young king is well known.