The Mountain of Ice and Fire

Inside Harrenhal, shouts and the neighing of horses filled the air as all the legions assembled, preparing to march and camp on the eastern bank of the Green Fork near the Inn of the Kneeling Man, where they would rendezvous with Lord Tywin's twenty thousand strong army.

A letter from the Duke revealed that the Northern army, numbering over twenty thousand, had already crossed the Neck and entered the Riverlands, currently marching through the territory of Lord Walder Frey of the Twins.

Lord Tywin ordered the Mountain and Ser Amory Lorch to lead their forces to meet him, with the Mountain as the vanguard and Amory Lorch as his second-in-command.

Early in the morning, the Clegane cavalry, Clegane infantry, the Brave Companions, and Ser Amory Lorch's mixed force of three hundred riders and foot soldiers were all busy packing their belongings and forming ranks for departure.

The Mountain, atop his tall warhorse, surveyed the scene. He approached Anguy, who was adjusting his saddle. "Anguy, Centurion, it's a pity Ser Amory might not return. A real shame."

The words were abrupt. By the time Anguy looked up, the Mountain had already ridden away.

It was as if the Mountain's words had never been spoken.

But Anguy knew what he had heard.

What did the Mountain mean? The beginning was abrupt, the end even more so, and he gave Anguy no chance to ask questions.

Anguy had made his desire to kill Amory quite clear. He had never concealed his hostility towards him. And many other squad leaders and centurions shared that hostility.

Anguy's eyes followed the Mountain's movements.

The cavalry captain, Dunsen, blew his iron whistle, signaling the cavalry to assemble.

Anguy swung onto his horse, squeezed his legs, and his warhorse trotted forward. He held the reins of another horse, a standard arrangement for the Clegane cavalry. The other horse's saddle was laden with quivers and a spare bow.

What was the deeper meaning behind the Mountain's words?

Could it be that the Mountain deliberately sent Amory Lorch to hunt down Thoros and Lord Beric, intending for him to die?

Thinking this, Anguy turned to see the Mountain's towering figure heading towards the Clegane infantry camp.

If it were as the Mountain said, that would be wonderful. In recent days, rumors of Amory Lorch's evil deeds had spread throughout the army, his cruelty unbelievable to Anguy.

The Mountain intended to kill Amory—a secret that could not be revealed. But why would he tell Anguy alone, so abruptly?

Anguy fell into thought!

The Mountain would only tell him his secrets if he completely trusted him. Anguy wanted Amory dead, and the Mountain told him that Amory would never return!

*

At the foot of a low mountain range, outside a village.

"Can I trust what your leader, Beric, says?" Amory asked Little Horse, drawing his short sword.

"Lord Beric is a true knight," Little Horse said proudly.

Though he had been captured and tortured, he had not revealed a single word about Thoros and the others. He had only admitted to being a 'spy'.

"I also believe Lord Beric is a true knight."

With a flash of cold light, Amory's short sword severed the ropes binding Little Horse's hands. "Go back to your leader. We will meet in Oakenshield."

"You're really going to let me go?"

"Only by releasing you will Lord Beric show himself at Oakenshield to duel me," Amory laughed. "Tell Beric that I will definitely kill him, and this time, there will be no resurrection."

"You can't kill Lord Beric."

"I won't make the same mistake as when I hanged him the first time. Tell Beric that after I kill him this time, I will burn his body with fire," Amory said with a smile. "Thoros will never be able to resurrect Beric again. After I kill Beric, I'll kill Thoros too, heh heh!"

Little Horse looked at Amory, not turning around, but walking backward.

"Don't worry, if I wanted to kill you, you'd already be dead," Amory sheathed his short sword. "Hurry up and go, child, don't give me a reason to change my mind."

Little Horse turned and ran forward.

Amory waved, and a guard presented him with a bow and arrows.

Amory tested the longbow, nocked an arrow, and laughed, "Be careful not to accidentally shoot him in the head."

Little Horse turned and saw Amory aiming at him with a drawn bow.

Little Horse hesitated for half a heartbeat, then suddenly burst into a frantic sprint.

Amory and his knights laughed heartily.

"Little Horse, that's right, but still not fast enough!" Amory shouted.

Little Horse ran desperately, not looking back.

Amory looked at the direction of the flag at the top of his head, and then looked at the swaying of the leaves around him. He drew his bow, aimed, determined Little Horse's running frequency, and with a flick of his hand, swish, the sharp arrow was like a meteor, drawing a perfect arc, and swooshed after Little Horse. With a poof, the long arrow stuck beside Little Horse, scaring him into a cold sweat.

Testing the bow and accuracy, and helping Amory find his feel for the arrow! Amory felt good!

Little Horse ran even faster.

The threat of death unleashed his potential for survival.

Amory was not in a hurry. He drew his bow for the second time, pulling the bow like a full moon, and the arrow went like a meteor. A black shadow flashed, and with a poof, this arrow hit Little Horse's calf.

Ah!

Little Horse's screams came, and he fell to the ground.

"Good archery!" A chorus of cheers rang out around Amory.

Amory Lorch handed the bow to the guard next to him and said with a smile, "Okay, let's slowly follow this guy and let him lead us to Thoros and Beric."

*

Stone Bridge Village is a necessary route to Oakenshield Town and is also very close to Oakenshield Town.

The time when Amory was ordered by Lord Tywin to burn and kill the people of the Riverlands to lure Eddard Stark, Amory targeted the burning and killing of Stone Bridge Village and Oakenshield Town.

They followed Little Horse slowly, neither too far nor too close. Little Horse dragged his injured leg into Stone Bridge Village.

The village was covered in rubble.

However, most of the houses have been rebuilt: taverns, blacksmith shops, small chapels, villagers' houses, water mills, etc.

Amory's warhorse walked onto the stone bridge, and the stream flowed under the bridge. A small fishing boat went down the river, and the awning of the boat was dark. The fishing boat passed under the stone bridge, and as soon as the bow of the boat emerged, a person holding a short crossbow stood on the bow. He pulled the trigger, and with two swishes, the short arrow hit Amory Lorch's warhorse, one arrow nailed into the horse's head and one arrow nailed into the horse's neck.

The warhorse suddenly stood upright, knocking Amory Lorch over, and fell into the water with a plop. The team on the bridge was in chaos. Poof poof poof, several more crossbow arrows shot from the boat, and several guards were shot in the throat, chest, head, and arms, and fell into the water.

"Enemy attack, deploy!" The soldiers who did not get on the bridge immediately drew their long swords and hard bows, and several arrows shot at the fishing boat. The fishing boat went down the river and had drifted away.

Amory Lorch was wearing armor and sank straight to the bottom after falling into the water.

He was lucky. The river under the stone bridge was not very deep. The soldiers took off their armor and jumped into the water to fish Amory Lorch out. The knight had fainted. After a burst of pressing on his chest, he woke up after spitting out a few mouthfuls of yellow water.

This time it was very unfortunate. Three of Amory's family knights died, and a free rider was injured in the arm. By the time Amory recovered and got back on his horse, the awning fishing boat was long gone.

Amory sent scouts to the front to look for Little Horse. The scouts returned to report that Little Horse with the arrow wound in his calf could not be found.

Not far ahead is Oakenshield Town where they agreed to meet Beric.

Amory decided to rest in the tavern in Stone Bridge Village, have a full meal, and then enter Oakenshield Town.

Beric is a pedantic and arrogant earl, who demands himself with knightly oaths. With his character, Beric will not break his promise.

The tavern was naturally rebuilt, with new tables, new benches, and a new thatched roof. This tavern was burned to ashes by Amory's soldiers.

The soldiers went in to search first, and the houses adjacent to the front and rear were also checked, and there was nothing unusual. The tavern was also equipped with a stable, just enough for the tavern's handyman to feed the warhorses.

A small jar of wine was brought out by the owner. The owner was still the old man from before, with a simple and fearful look on his weathered face.

Amory liked to see such expressions.

The wine was poured out, and the guard handed the wine to Amory Lorch. The knight did not drink it, but gestured, "Old man, I'll treat you to a bowl of wine, and I'll pay for the wine." Amory took out a silver deer and threw it on the table.

So the old man drank a bowl of wine to the last drop, "Sir, can I go into the kitchen to cook?"

Amory nodded, and waved for two soldiers to watch the old man cook, to prevent the old man from doing anything in the food.

He was quite frightened by what happened on the stone bridge just now. If the other party had aimed at him, he would have been dead. It must be that Beric wanted to catch him and judge him himself, so he shot the horse instead of the person. It's just that the knights around him were not so lucky.

The wine had already been drunk just now, and there was nothing wrong with it, so he could drink with confidence.

A small jar of wine was not enough for so many soldiers, so the soldiers went to the counter to take out the wine jar. Everyone filled the tables in the tavern. Twenty soldiers were responsible for guarding, and the other brothers began to follow the rules set by Amory, no more than two bowls per person.

The food came up, steaming hot, and everyone scrambled to eat. Halfway through the meal, they heard a yo sound, and someone fell to the ground. Amory initially thought it was everyone having fun and didn't care. The brothers were also making a fuss, followed by the second, third, fourth...

Except for the guards at Sir Amory's table, the rest of the brothers all fell to the ground one by one, foaming at the mouth and convulsing.

Clang clang clang!

Amory and a total of eight people drew their weapons together, and the twenty soldiers responsible for guarding also drew their swords. Amory personally rushed into the kitchen. The old man and the tavern apprentice had long since disappeared.

"Go!" Amory shouted.

A group of people rushed out of the tavern. Some soldiers were busy going to the stable to lead the horses, but twenty horses were also poisoned. Although they were not dead, they could no longer stand up. Obviously, the horse feed was also added with ingredients.

Amory was not a careless person. The reason why he was still tricked was because of his trust in the knightly character of Thoros and Beric. Beric sent him a letter of challenge. Before the duel in Oakenshield, he did not think Beric would have any other actions, especially doing anything in the wine and food, which was a shameful act despised by true knights.

Amory realized that he had overestimated Beric's knightly spirit.

In this way, he had only twenty-eight people left, which was comparable to Beric's manpower, and they had all lost their warhorses.

Amory decided to return to Harrenhal and mobilize more manpower to come.

Amory was a decisive person and immediately retreated towards the stone bridge.

At the bridgehead of the stone bridge, on the other side, stood five longbowmen. They were all riding on horses, drawing their bows and aiming at the stone bridge. In the river under the bridge, several boats were fishing, but it was difficult to determine whether these people were fishermen or Beric's warriors.

Amory could recognize that all five horses came from his team.

If Amory wanted to seize this stone bridge, he would face a frontal shooting by five longbowmen, and walking could not catch up with the speed of warhorses.

"Where is your Lord Beric?" Amory shouted as he stood on the bridgehead on this side.

"Lord Beric is waiting for you in Oakenshield Town," one of the longbowmen said easily, with a smile on his face.

These five longbowmen were all soldiers from the King's Landing Garrison. Because they couldn't stand the smoky atmosphere of their comrades, they had always been resentful. When Thoros and Beric decided to rebel against Joffrey and refused to slaughter Robert Baratheon's bastards and young mothers, they chose to follow.

"Shield!" Amory shouted.

He decided to attack strongly.

So, four shields were pushed in front of Amory Lorch. Under the protection of the shields, twenty-eight people rushed onto the stone bridge.

Swish swish swish swish!

The five longbowmen used the hanging shooting technique. The long arrows crossed the shield and fell from the sky, falling into the crowd behind the shield.

Screams sounded, and someone was hit by an arrow.

In the river, several fishing boats also rowed over, and the fishermen lifted their hats and picked up bows and arrows in their hands.

Several fishing boats shot arrows at the stone bridge, and several soldiers were shot and fell into the river.

Amory ordered a counterattack. It was just that the speed of the counterattack slowed down.

Inside Stone Bridge Village, Thoros, Beric, Edric, and Little Horse, who was being supported, walked out of the blacksmith shop, the small chapel, the water magic room, and the villagers' houses. His injured leg had been bandaged.

Beric's followers appeared one after another. There were more than thirty people in Stone Bridge Village alone, which had exceeded Amory's number. More villagers gathered at both ends of the stone bridge, dragging out hoes, rakes, machetes, and carrying poles. The crowd was furious. Some villagers cursed with foul language.

Amory and others were blocked on the bridge.

In the river and at the bridgehead, the bows and arrows were still slowly aiming at them and shooting. On the bridge, soldiers were shot by arrows from time to time.

"Hey! Ser Beric, duel with me. If I win, you let me leave with my people; if I lose, I accept the trial."

"That's fair, I accept!" Beric said.

So, Beric raised his hand, and the bows and arrows in the river and at the bridgehead stopped together.

"Order your soldiers to drop their weapons. We will have a fair duel under the witness of the Red God," Beric said.

"Okay!" Amory ordered, and the twenty soldiers had to drop their swords and bows and arrows.

Beric stepped aside from the bridgehead, and Amory and others retreated. People immediately blocked Amory and others.

The villagers remembered the bloody cases committed by Amory in Stone Bridge Village and Oakenshield Town.

Beric said, "Do it!"

So, Thoros took the lead, leading the villagers and brothers, and worked together to tie up all of Amory's unarmed soldiers.

Cold sweat broke out on Amory's forehead, "Lord Beric, Lord Thoros, this is not your knightly spirit."

“I won’t let any of your soldiers return,” Beric said coldly. “I want to ensure that no one will lead soldiers here again to retaliate against the villagers.”

Deep marks from the rope were still visible on Beric's neck. Although Beric had been resurrected, the injuries he sustained did not disappear.

“You lack knightly honor, Lord Beric!” Amory deliberately emphasized the words 'honor' and 'Lord'.

“I won't speak of honor with a beast.”

“Then what about a duel? You don’t dare?” Ser Amory sneered.

“Of course, I will duel you. If you are innocent, the Red God will naturally grant you victory!” Beric slowly drew his longsword.

Amory also drew his longsword: “If I win, what then?”

“I’ll let you go!” Beric said coldly.

“Let me go? I will still lead soldiers here to slaughter Stonebridge.”

“If the Red God truly wants you to win, there must be a deeper meaning. I trust the Red God. You will not be going back today, Lord Amory. Your death is at hand.” Beric casually flourished his sword and tested his footwork.

In the streets of Stonebridge, the Brotherhood Without Banners and the villagers formed a large circle, tensely watching the two men slowly circling each other: Lord Beric and Ser Amory.

Amory suddenly roared, stepped forward, and fiercely chopped at Beric's head. A flash of cold light, the whistling sound of the sword.

Beric did not parry, sidestepping to evade. His wrist rotated, the sword blooming like a flower, light and agile. Amory spun and slashed, his longsword fiercely cutting at Beric’s waist. Beric slid back, not taking the opportunity to counterattack, instead retreating two steps to create distance. Amory changed his spinning slash into a direct thrust, as fast as lightning, fiercely stabbing at Beric's chest.

Beric flicked his wrist, a loud clang ringing out, easily deflecting Amory's direct thrust, and slid to Amory's left side. His golden hair was beautiful, his movements elegant, his eyes like shining stars, his handsome features striking. He smiled and said, “Amory, your footwork is too slow.”

Thanks to 【念丿小繁】 for the support! Thank you, handshake!