The king on the Great Wall

The guy in front of him looks quite refreshing and clean, I don't know if he is straight or not?Oberyn smiled charmingly with interest, held the spear, and opened his arms as if to hug his opponent: "Come on, you do it first."

Iger didn't know that the Prince of Dorne in front of him suddenly had a strange interest in him. He only saw that the opponent's chest was wide open at the moment. This was finally a real flaw. Lun Xin is impatient, I'm afraid he will suffer later!

I want to lose, not win, no matter how much, go!

His left leg stepped heavily on the ground and stirred up dust, and Iger rushed out.

Thanks to the organizer of the competition outside the field, I picked a sword that was really light enough for Iger; I thanked the custom-made high-end light black suit, which did not hinder the movement of the wearer at all... There is not even a piece of leather armor on the whole body Under such circumstances, this stab made Iger feel as fast as lightning.

……

The three-point interest in Oberyn's eyes has turned into seriousness. Of course, he participated in the competition between soldiers in the army not just for fun or to get nervous, but also with some ideas: when you meet an irrelevant opponent, just play casually. Play around and get rid of him, but if you meet someone from the Lannister family, you should beat him hard enough until his nose is bruised and his face is swollen. Not only must you hit hard, but you must also let everyone see that you are deliberately targeting the Lannister family. The Lannisters, it would be great if they could get them to go home and get help, and if they could get Gregor Clegane out... that would be great.

It's a pity that after standing in this circle for a while, the number of Lannisters became less and less. In the end, there were no one left, and a seemingly famous night watchman turned up——Oberon saw Iger being arrested The Dornishmen naturally showed no hostility towards such an innocent onlooker... Just a few tricks, knocking him to the ground or making him surrender would be enough.

Who would have thought that this guy was quite quick!

Oberyn instinctively turned around and slid sideways to avoid the thorn. At the same time, he flicked Iger's sword with the tip of the spear, and firmly prevented the thorn. Somersault, but the extremely fast strike of the night watchman made him feel like a contest, Oberyn decided: ignore the defenseless weakness of the opponent, and play a few tricks.

-

Chapter 110 Night Watchman vs Red Viper

It has only been a few months for Iger to go south from the Great Wall, and he will also do a little exercise in his spare time during King's Landing, and he often spends two or three hours practicing with Arya's energetic brat... Maybe the skills have not grown, but the muscles Basic physical qualities such as speed and reaction speed have not regressed at all.He missed the stab but was unharmed. Knowing that he had won the bet, he immediately exerted force with his right hand, changed his move and sank, bypassing the opponent's spear point. He swung the light one-handed sword with all his strength without holding back, and suddenly it was swift and fierce again. With an unusual flirt, Oberyn twisted his spear, drew a circle to dispel the blow, and returned it unceremoniously.

The spear came head-on, although it had no pointed end, it still gave Iger the intuition that he was going to be stabbed to the bone, but he subconsciously raised his shield and twisted his body, and he avoided the spear dangerously close to his body. The tip of his spear was lightly tapped on the small shield, and Iger's left hand was a little numb from the shock.I know best that the night watchman can't guess that he has become the object of marksmanship and "pity" for no reason. He also said that Oberyn was merciful to save face, and he couldn't stop before the three axes were used. Scalping it close to her body, she slapped her up at close range again.

"Pretty!"

An inch is long and an inch is strong, and a one-handed sword is inherently weaker than a long spear. If you want to win, you can only rely on closing the distance between the two sides. Everyone knows this truth.Iger's bullying was an impromptu performance, but who would have thought that it caused a round of applause: the ordinary soldiers born in the fields and the lower-class knights with half a bucket of water couldn't see the details and doorway between the two of them at all. Iger's lightning-fast attack somehow broke into the inner circle of Oberyn's spear, which was difficult to use, and seemed to have the upper hand.

If Brienne hadn't left, or if there was a master like Barristan or Jaime Lannister among the spectators, he would definitely tell the spectators with disdain: Oberyn gave Iger far more than three points .The night watchman's attack was disorderly and full of flaws. The only thing worthy of praise was that it was quite fast. However, the Red Viper turned a blind eye to the countless flaws exposed by Iger's blind attack, and wanted to win the opponent's only praiseworthy speed. burden!

You can say that Oberyn is swaying, but it can also be said that this is the pride of a master. As the best spear wielder in the world, he will overwhelm Iger in the strongest point of this attack, and use attack against attack to win. The night watchman is speechless!

"Ping!" "Bang!"

……

Not to mention that ordinary people can't see what's going on, even Iger himself is a little confused. He only feels a blur in front of his eyes, and two strong forces are instantly transmitted from the small shield on his left arm and the sword on his right hand, not only the murderous attack is instantly contained , even his body was forced back half a meter, and he was forced out of the range where Oberyn could be slashed with his sword - Prince of Dorne's "broken move" immediately won a burst of applause, but he didn't know the truth The onlookers actually had the illusion that they were lucky enough to see the "master's tricks" amidst the commotion, and their evaluation of Iger was even higher.

"Come on, go on!"

Oberyn grinned and bared his teeth, and then made a provocative gesture of opening his arms and showing his chest. Iger was a little dizzy by his counterattack that was going to the extreme. He wanted to find a chance to deliberately lose but found it impossible. After warming up It didn't seem right to surrender so quickly, so he simply gritted his teeth and rushed forward again.

Protecting the body with a horizontal shield, raising the sword over the top, while rushing forward, he slashed swiftly and powerfully. The last time Iger used this move was against a strange ghost. Bo Lun had no intention of hurting himself, but with full confidence, this sword was full of momentum.

"Okay!" Oberyn praised, and stepped out of the range of slashing lightly. While retreating, he did not forget to poke Iger's sword with the tip of his spear, and then moved forward as quickly as a poisonous snake spit out a letter. Probe, swayed a dozen centimeters in front of Iger's face—then sank, and tapped on the small shield again.

(Even if it was a pointless gun, Oberyn could have shot himself in the head just now.)

Is this the strength of the top master in the cold weapon era?It doesn't count if you dodge and counterattack in an instant, and you even have to shake it in front of yourself and then touch your own shield, telling yourself with actions: If this is a real battle, you will already have more on your body within a second. Two holes!

Iger was still abused by the sea even though he was already performing at a super level!

Hurry up and deliberately lose?You have to be strong enough. If you can't even see your opponent's movements clearly, then what's the use of being clever?Holding the sword in his hand tightly, Iger realized how ridiculous it was to disdain the so-called "killing skills" a moment ago-martial skills reaching a certain level can really produce qualitative changes.No matter how much I play the money game in the future, if I meet such an opponent, I will make trouble for me and even kill me... I don't have a dozen Kings Guards to protect me. Even a traverser is as vulnerable as ordinary civilians or cannon fodder.

(I should also practice a little bit of agility and swordsmanship, it doesn't need to be high, just enough to protect myself!) This idea suddenly appeared, and quickly replaced the previous disdain for personal force!

The audience on the sidelines are still applauding loudly for the Night Watchman's "ferocious attack" and Prince Dorne's "clever resolution". Iger in the field is already in a dilemma. He has seen Oberyn's intention to tease him, but unfortunately he didn't take advantage of it at all. What's more embarrassing is the strength of the opponent's mistakes and careless comebacks - if you can't even show the ability to be teased, the situation will only be more ugly!

***

The level gap between the two sides is so large, but it also brings an unexpected benefit: Iger can just do his best, and he doesn't have to worry about angering or hurting Oberyn.

Attracted by the titles "Red Viper" and "White Ghost Killer", the number of onlookers increased, and the cheers and urgings became louder and louder.Gritting his teeth and stomping his feet, the night watchman rushed forward again without hesitation, opened the blunt end of the spear with his shield, and Iger squeezed into the side of the Red Viper again!

……

The crisp sound of weapons clashing and the screaming and shouting of the onlookers could be heard endlessly. Iger's few attacks were resolved and he was not injured. With the cooperation of Oberyn's faster gun shadow, the onlookers were dazzled.

Stabbing...don't stop for a moment, make the next slash while panting...then use the shield to smash away the opponent's spear while panting for the next time, and continue to pursue closely...very few people fight like this, if you are not good enough, you will Adopting this kind of attack without any pause can easily cause rhythm confusion and movement deformation, which will lead to flaws, but right now the person using this tactic is a person who has given up defense, so there is no problem!

"Ping!" "Pong!" "Bang!"...

The monotonous and dense sound keeps repeating in the circle of people. How long has it passed? 30 seconds? 1 minute?Or longer? Iger can't figure it out, he only knows that he used a bunch of sword moves that he was teaching Arya two months ago one by one, but the skill gap between the Red Viper and himself is far greater than that between him and Ai. Leia's room is even bigger, no matter how fast, unreasonable, or desperate his attack is, the Prince of Dorn in front of him will stop it neatly at the moment when his attack reaches its fiercest level, and at the same time turn around and use the tip of a spear or the barrel of a gun The tail tapped or slid across the small shield lightly, the force was just enough to leave a mark on the shield surface but not enough to crack the shield or knock it into the air.

The situation is one-sided like a master playing an apprentice. The funny thing is that the onlookers on the sidelines don't have the strength to appreciate the wonderful display of self-improvement difficulty of the first gun master in Westeros. Everyone can only see that the two sides are at odds Always fighting together, the crisp sound of weapons clashing and the muffled sound of guns and shields colliding can be heard endlessly.

"boom!"

Iger was repelled by the strong force from the shield again, and stopped for a moment after standing still.He has used his explosive power to the limit, and he can no longer continue to attack. He is panting and no longer takes the initiative to attack.Looking down from the corner of his eye, the small wooden shield is already covered with small pits caused by percussion and imprints from the spear point - and nine of the attacks that left traces should have fallen. On himself, this--has been merciful to the extreme.

The night watchman was tired and injured—his left hand holding the shield must have scratched the skin. Although it was a skin trauma, it really hurt a lot from the rubbing. I knew I should have needed a pair of gloves.Panting for breath, he continued to confront the Red Viper and pondered his next move, but when he looked up, he saw Oberyn wink his right eye inexplicably at him.

(What do you mean, do you want to surrender by yourself, or continue to attack?) The night watchman didn’t dare to act rashly for a while. In terms of swordsmanship skills, Iger, who has studied swordsmanship for a year, basically knows it. It took a few minutes to fight, but now my physical strength has begun to decline, and the most proficient moves have been used up...

Deliberate defeat is impossible, while there is still three points of face left, it is time to surrender!

"Iger! Where are you kid?"

In a trance, Iger heard someone calling himself.

Distraction is the most taboo during a martial arts competition, but for Iger, this is an excellent opportunity to escape... Even if he would not be distracted, he still has to act as if he is distracted and has no intention of continuing the fight.Although I couldn't remember who the person who called me was at the moment, but he really came in time!

Iger made a puzzled expression, he lowered his arms and looked towards the source of the sound.

"Huh?" Oberyn also stopped his hands and looked in the same direction: on the hillside tens of meters away, a guy in black was leading towards the competition ring led by another soldier from Buckhorn Castle in bright armor.

With not bad eyesight, Iger recognized the person who came: Yoren!

These few days have not been in vain, just in time!

"My lord prince's martial arts skills are extraordinary, let me open my eyes!" Iger quickly took off the shield hanging on his wrist and forearm, for fear that Oberyn would not let him go: "But the Great Wall sent people south, there must be something important Xiangshang, I have to go receive my colleagues—I surrender!"

For the first time, Iger discovered that surrender can be such a pleasant act. He walked to the sidelines and gave the equipment to the provider, and planned to walk out of the competition circle.

"Since there is business, let's end this contest, let's fight again next time." Oberyn also put his gun on the ground, watching Iger with a smile on his face: "I don't know when the Chief Logistics Officer will be free? How about we meet at night, continue to explore the knack of the sword contest, and discuss life by the way?"

-

Chapter 111 Work Handover

Iger was very grateful for being merciful during the martial arts competition, but now that he has surrendered and the outcome has been decided, Oberyn is thankful for not mocking and slapping himself in the face. As the Prince of Dorne, why should he brag about himself?A logistics officer of the night watchman with mediocre martial skills, how can he have the right to discuss life with him?

This is a bit...too weird, right?Iger looked at Oberyn in confusion, only to see that the other party blinked at him inexplicably again, and then his mind moved, thinking of a certain special hobby of the other party, could it be? !

"This... the night watchman has been busy recently, so don't bother me. When this battle is over, I will discuss it with the prince again!" Iger felt a chill behind him, and quickly refused - he didn't want to travel over, what? People didn't get on, but they got on.

No one can stop the contestant from surrendering. Although the onlookers clamored and hoped that the two could fight for a while, they finally gave way to Iger.

Suppressing his nervousness, he squeezed out of the competition circle, and met Yoren who was walking in front of him.Before leaving King's Landing to join the king's army, I wrote to the Great Wall asking them to send an officer to the valley to take over my boring job of "night watchman with the army". Even refused, just let Yoren come over alone to do two jobs?

If Robert can break through the Blood Gate, Yoren will be responsible for escorting the allied princes of the Righteous in black back to the Great Wall. No mistake!

……

Although he knew exactly why Yoren came here, he just surrendered on the grounds of receiving his colleagues in the martial arts arena. At this moment, I don’t know how many people are still staring at him from behind, so he can only continue to act.

"Youren! You have worked hard on the road!" Iger greeted him with a smile on his face, held his breath and gave Lang Ya a big hug, "When did you arrive?"

"Just arrived. Seeing how big the barracks is, I thought it would take a little effort at first. Who would have thought that you are a celebrity, and you found it just by asking!" Yoren was baffled by Iger's overzealous enthusiasm, but he didn't think too much about it. , I just thought it was because he lived comfortably in the south that he behaved so strangely: "You kid, you have a good life, and you still have the intention to participate in the competition?" Yoren, who hadn't seen him for several months, became unshaven again, Wearing the clothes Iger bought for him in King's Landing earlier, probably only this summer suit, he smiled and looked at Iger up and down: "Oh, no, now I should call you—Master Chief Logistics Officer!"

"Pull it down, call me by my name, it sounds weird." Iger was eager to leave this place, dragged Yoren, and hurried to the tent where he was staying: "You came just in time, and I will leave this place to you. I'm going back to King's Landing, hurry up and train some recruits, so that I can give you a job when needed."

"Huh?" Yoren asked strangely, "Training recruits? Was it Mormont's request to you, but you've finished training...why do you need Alliser?"

"I can't explain it clearly for a while. It's not like you don't know how difficult conscription is, and the Great Wall is so short of people now. I decided to hire you a group of helpers first." Iger took Yoren and continued to the antlers He quickly left the competition circle behind: "But the commander-in-chief was afraid that mixing the hired helpers with his brothers would affect the morale of the army, so he stipulated that the people I hired could not go to Castle Black to participate in recruit training...no training People who go to the Great Wall will die, and I can't afford to hire mercenaries, so I can only go up by myself."

"I see."

"The plan has already been laid out, but Robert... His Majesty the King ordered me to be the night watchman with the army. I don't know how much time I wasted. I haven't started training recruits yet, although I have already told those who stay in King's Landing to start first." Recruited, but people outside don’t know how they are doing.” Iger was full of anger when he thought of this absurd thing, but seeing that there was a soldier from Buckhorn Castle who had just led the way for Yoren, he held back The desire to complain: "Fortunately, you are here, I can spare my hands and try to give you some manpower before you go back this time."

The two night watchmen were muttering about the Great Wall as they walked. From Yoren, Iger learned that the night watchman rangers were already trying to capture the ghouls, but they hadn't made much progress yet. Good news...they didn't stop, and they quickly returned to Iger's tent.

"Thank you for your hard work. Use this little money to buy some wine." Iger smiled at the Antler soldier who led the way for Yoren, stuffed him with a few silver stags, and led the raven into the tent.

"I'm going back to King's Landing right away, and you stand here." Iger said to Yoren, then tilted his head slightly and said: "Cathy, tidy up my personal things, and you can buy them in King's Landing City. Take it, and keep it for Yoren."

Depart in the afternoon, and you will be able to arrive at the Crossroads Hotel before dark tonight, and the road back to King’s Landing is the flat and open King’s Road, with dense villages and small towns along the way, so you don’t have to worry about accommodation and meals at all.

"Yes, my lord!" Casey had just watched his lord fight back and forth with the world-famous Prince of Dorn, and now he admired Iger so much that he even worked harder with his work.

"After tidying up, go and lead the horse and wait for me at the door of the tent!"

"Yes, my lord!"

This kind of work can be left to the young man. Iger's own hands are still a little numb, and he has more than enough energy to do what he wants to do.After explaining the matter, he took Yoren out of the tent again: "My current identity is 'Night Watchman with the Army'. God knows why King Robert would have such an idea. In short, your safety and board and lodging are now up to Antlers." The Earl of Fort is in charge. Before I leave, I will take you to meet him. Before that, I will take you for a walk in the middle of the barracks, and let you know where the temporary commercial street in the barracks is and when you want to eat something good. Yes, take a bath and play with a woman, everything is there.”

"Temporary commercial street?" Yoren chuckled: "Forget it, I don't have money to spend when I know the place."

"It's okay, the night watchman is not short of money now." Iger smiled, "I will pay for your living expenses before you return to the Great Wall."

Since Mormont sent Yoren again on this trip, it is very possible—this guy has been working with him from now on. Although this old guy is a bit sloppy, he is not a bad person. Spend a little money to get along with each other relationship, no loss.

……

"How many people are there in this barracks?" Yoren was not polite to Iger, and followed up as he said. When he turned down, Lang Ya's eyes were a little straight. He had never seen so many soldiers in his life. "The king has so many soldiers. If you send someone to the Great Wall to help, you will die. Why do you want us to recruit soldiers?"

Most of the soldiers are not the king's, but it is difficult to explain the details of the noble game to such a rough man, so Iger will not do this kind of useless work: "There are about [-] left now. Counting logistics, it should be close to [-], this is still more than before when there is no need for a large number of civilian laborers to fight in the local area, there is an overwhelming advantage, the supply line will not be attacked, and the troops are divided again." Iger helplessly spread his hands: "But no matter how many people, People won’t send them to the Great Wall. If you kill the Blood Gate, you will still get loot, ransom and war compensation. What can you get from running the Great Wall to fight the savages? The thankless job of guarding the Great Wall is left to us night watchmen after all. Not to mention This is a mess, let’s rely on ourselves, let’s go, I’ll take you to see Earl Buckwell.”

The soldiers of Antlers Castle basically knew Iger, and knew that their lord appreciated the night watchman very much.Seeing him coming to visit and say hello, he didn't even stop him.

Inside the big tent, the old earl was sitting at a desk, thinking hard about something that looked like an account book.

"Lord Buckwell."

"Egger." The old man looked up and smiled at him friendly: "The guy next to me just came here, and I sent someone to take him to find you. It seems that you haven't gone far."

"Thank you for your help, my lord. I didn't introduce myself just now. I am Yoren the Raven." Yoren has seen many nobles, and he is not stage-frightened: "If there is any scum in the prison of your Antler Castle that needs to be dealt with, you can hand it over to him." Give me."

Dude, do you know how hard it is to improve the image of the Night's Watch, can you leave out the scum?Iger rubbed his head with a headache, and quickly answered the words: "My lord, the Legion sent someone to take over my position. I will leave and return to King's Landing soon. Brother Langyao, please take care of me."

"It's easy to say." Earl Buckwell nodded, agreeing wholeheartedly. "However, now I have encountered some troubles... To be precise, the entire counter-insurgency army has encountered some troubles. You have always had a bright mind, why don't you come and come up with an idea and see what to do?"

-

Chapter 112 The quagmire of war

Iger patiently listened to Earl Bockwell's narration, and finally understood the main source of "trouble" - morale, and military pay.

There are two mere words, but it is a long story to explain.

***

When more than 3 soldiers of the coalition army rushed out of the camp to various places under the order of Robert, and scattered and besieged many castles outside the Vale of Arryn with a scale of thousands of people, a strange situation appeared: no matter which one The castles of the family only waited for the counter-insurgency army to arrive, and before they could gain a firm foothold, the flags were immediately erected and lowered on the top of the city. When the army loyal to Robert entered the city cautiously, they were dumbfounded: only a few responsible people were left in the castle. Sweeping and door-keeping servants.Whether it is core or not, important or not... As long as they are family members with status, they have already left the castle with valuables when Robert was rectifying the king's army outside the city of King's Landing, and they are probably already in the Vale of Arryn. It's safe.

It's hard to say that there is no valuable loot, and the six nations did not gather here for robbery - but without noble prisoners, there is no way to ask for ransom, let alone force the "rebels" to surrender with hostages.Robert's plan to pull out the stronghold to put pressure on the Alliance of the Righteous has failed. If he still refuses to compromise, he can only storm the Blood Gate.

If you want to make a strong attack, the difficulty will come: the so-called one effort, then decline, three exhaustion.The allied forces stationed in this fertile field outside the Blood Gate ranged from a dozen days to a month, except for the first two days when Robert personally commanded the army to carry out several decent fortifications.Later: the nobles ate and drank to talk about marriage with their relatives, and the soldiers spent their days with Xiao Huangben and even competed with each other to pass the time. They only played once every six days.Even if it was his turn, he would rush forward and shoot some arrows just like the drill, forcefully cause some casualties, and immediately withdraw the troops...

After a few rounds, the shortcomings of the military system and backwardness in training were immediately exposed: Robert's reputation was indeed extremely high and powerful throughout the country, but this kind of morale maintained by the ruler's personal reputation and charm did not last long at all. If you don't rush to knock on such a dangerous door, if you delay for a while, the fighting spirit of the soldiers will flow away like water in a bamboo basket.

If he had used the human wave tactics to attack regardless of the casualties from the beginning, and he would not hesitate to pay tens of thousands of casualties, Robert might already be in the Eagle's Nest at this moment and start budding for the chicks in the valley, but now, he just wants to It may be difficult to organize a strong attack.

……

Morale is only the lesser of the two major troubles. Although the difficulty of the battle has dropped a lot, it has not suffered any major defeats and dropped to a negative value. The outstanding generals of the six countries are gathered here, and they can always cheer up if they think of a way Yes, but another trouble is more realistic: military pay.

In this era of Westeros, joining the army when the lord issued a conscript, in Westeros belongs to the "corvette" that the people should obey, and the rewards that responders can get mainly come from the spoils of war, the rewards of the lord after winning, the year Reduction of family taxes, promotion of officials and nobles after meritorious deeds, etc.

Except for personal guards and standing guards, most of the peasants and soldiers recruited during the war are not paid. If the lord has money, he will provide equipment. Those who are poorer like the northern border, even have to bring some weapons - peasants They fight for the nobles, and they are working for free until they win!

Existence is reasonable. This seemingly unreasonable conscription system can be realized because it is limited: to carry out defensive operations of the nature of defending the home and country in the [territory] of the lord to which it belongs, and within [a certain period of time], Only then can we not pay military pay at all.This time, the army of the Six Nations left their hometown and ran to the valley to put down the rebellion for King Robert and Duke Arryn. Not only the travel expenses and transportation expenses had to be borne by the lord, but also the military salary had to be paid once the time limit was exceeded!

According to different local customs and traditions, the time limit for conscripting soldiers from the six nations ranges from forty days to sixty days. Iger is busy selling the Night Watchman industry all day long and doesn't feel the passage of time, but in fact, this counter-insurgency war has already begun. Unknowingly, it has been delayed for overtime, and the lords of various places will soon start to worry about military pay!

And this is the reason why Robert asked Littlefinger to go to the Iron Bank to borrow money in advance-not only the king himself would ask for money from the soldiers he recruited from King's Landing, but the princes paid the soldiers beyond the time limit. He has the right to ask the king for reimbursement!

***

"The Chancellor has defected?"

"It can't be regarded as a defection. Petyr disappeared after getting off the ship in Braavos, and he didn't bring the loan from the Iron Bank... At best, it can only be regarded as absconding in fear of crime." The old earl sighed: "This The matter is very troublesome, and it’s not just about not getting any money, I heard that the Iron Bank is planning to send people to King’s Landing to investigate the financial situation of the Iron Throne.”

Littlefinger didn't dare to touch the iron treasury's wealth. As Iger expected, the ruler of Braavos deliberately promoted their deterrent power for the Faceless Ones. Isn't it just to use it at a critical moment? He shrugged: "If I were Iron Bank, I would be nervous when something like this happened to a client's house."

"Not only that, Littlefinger's run is tantamount to pleading guilty, telling the world that Lysa Tully indeed conspired with him to kill the old Duke Arryn... Now, even our counter-insurgency coalition forces are in a dilemma .”

Iger nodded thoughtfully: "It's really troublesome. If it were me, I would definitely choose to accept the terms of the Alliance of the Righteous and honorably cease the war."

"But His Majesty is not you after all." The old earl shook his head with a wry smile.