The Mountain of Ice and Fire

A black-cloaked brother sped along the River Road.

The Red Fork River was on his right.

The river had transformed into a sea, swollen to more than twice its usual size.

The current surged violently, the water crashing against the black rocks in the river with a deafening roar.

The famous Ruby Ford was completely submerged, the water too deep for warhorses to ford, and all the nearby villagers had been evacuated.

Along the way, many villages were deserted, floodwater inundating courtyards, each house knee-deep in water.

The turbid, reddish-brown water, when cupped in hand and filtered, left a layer of sediment—the Red Fork River, named for its reddish-brown water and high sediment content.

The black-cloaked brother was fully armed, but aside from the black cloak on his back, he didn't resemble a true brother of the Night's Watch from the Wall.

His name was Holt Lannister, from Lannisport, a branch of House Lannister of Casterly Rock; his light brown hair revealed the diluted pure golden blood of the Lannisters in his lineage.

Holt Lannister had been galloping west along the River Road, starting from the Trident's river crossing.

The three famous rivers of the Riverlands plain—the Red Fork, the Green Fork, and the Blue Fork—converged at the crossroads of the Kingsroad and the River Road, merging into a single river that flowed southeast into the Bay of Crabs in the Narrow Sea.

The famous crossroads of the Trident was also a river crossing.

There were no boats at the crossing.

Without a boat, travelers arriving here to cross the river had to find one.

Tywin Lannister and his party had arrived at the crossroads of the Trident, but they couldn't find a ferry, so Tywin ordered Ser Holt Lannister to find a boat.

Here, the east-west River Road and the north-south Kingsroad were interrupted by the river.

The River Road was a wide main thoroughfare in the riverlands, extending east to the Bloody Gate of the Vale of Arryn after crossing the river, and west to Casterly Rock, the capital of the Westerlands and seat of House Lannister.

The north-south Kingsroad and the east-west River Road intersected at the confluence of the Trident, forming a crossroads.

The crossroads was also the only river crossing in the Trident riverlands.

Without boats, and with the river swollen, the original banks of the crossroads were invisible, submerged in the swirling torrent.

Last year, the Battle of the Green Fork had taken place on the opposite bank, and the Inn at the Crossroads had served as Lord Tywin's military headquarters.

The Inn at the Crossroads had later been burned to the ground by the Mountain 'during a standoff with Roose Bolton.' A year later, Tywin Lannister led a hundred black-cloaked brothers to the site, finding that the inn had been rebuilt.

Tywin entered the inn, driving out all those seeking shelter from the rain and preparing to cross the river, leaving only one person behind.

Then, he ordered Ser Holt Lannister to find a boat.

Having pledged to join the Night's Watch at the Wall, Tywin had to go through the motions. Once the three-month recruit training was over, he would return home. The Night's Watch wouldn't accept recruits who failed training. It was easy to fail; Tywin wouldn't participate in any training, he was just going on a vacation.

The Night's Watch had its price; Tywin would give them whatever they needed: weapons, armor, food, more manpower, patrol horses, and so on. But clearly, the Night's Watch didn't need a 'Tywin Lannister'.

Holt Lannister rode all the way to the Kneeling Man Inn on the River Road, but didn't see a single boat on the river.

The river had burst its banks, the crossing was closed, and the fishermen and boatmen had sailed away to avoid the flood.

The torrent was fierce, a disaster. Many skilled boatmen had perished in the flood.

If he continued, he would reach the Tully family's lands at Riverrun.

Boats could certainly be found at Riverrun; perhaps all the missing boats from the Red Fork were docked at Riverrun's wharves, but Holt Lannister wasn't foolish enough to go there.

On the way, the hundred-man party had encountered a Northern army marching south to attack Duskendale, and Lord Tywin had ordered them to hide in the woods to avoid a clash. If the Northern army was led by someone without chivalry or warrior's honor, a conflict might erupt, leading to unforeseen consequences.

Tywin Lannister wouldn't risk it; he chose to avoid it when he could.

It was said that once you donned the black cloak, all worldly ties were severed, but that wasn't true, because some foolish humans had stubborn memories and scorned the old and new gods in the sky.

Lord Tywin had originally planned to take a ship north from Blackwater Rush, but that was too risky, as the Mountain controlled all ships entering and leaving the Blackwater River.

But traveling north would be fraught with danger when passing through Northern territory.

So the Lord wouldn't cross through the North; instead, he would cross the river at the Trident crossroads, then detour east to Gulltown in the Vale—the place where Littlefinger Petyr Baelish had risen to prominence. Because of his management of Gulltown's taxes, tripling the profits in three years, he had attracted the attention of Lord Hand Jon Arryn, who promoted him to Master of Coin, making him a key member of the Small Council. The Lord decided to take a ship north from Gulltown, complete his work of washing away his sins, and then return to the Westerlands legitimately and openly, re-entering the royal palace.

Tywin's grand plan was as clear as the lines on his palm, but now all his ambitions were blocked by a great river, and all the glory and honor of his life, the hope of revenge, and the pinnacle of power, rested on Ser Holt Lannister—find a ferry.

Holt Lannister was an excellent rider, having been by the Lord's side in battle last year; he was familiar with the River Road. Because of the flooding, three sections of the River Road near the Red Fork were submerged, but this didn't deter Ser Holt. He detoured into the woods, following the riverbank, but his efforts were in vain, and he returned…

*

Inside the new Inn at the Crossroads, Tywin had driven away all the guests, leaving only one, the only one, a player of the lute.

The rain continued, the river roared, and the Lord didn't need a lute player to sing and amuse him, but he thought his knights, sergeants, and soldiers did.

Ser Davos Lannister was asking the lute player with interest.

"What's your name?" Davos asked, drinking the small ale brought by a little girl, frowning but forcing himself to drink it.

"They call me Tom Sevenstrings, I'm from Sevenstreams, so people also call me Tom of Sevenstreams, my Lord."

Tom Sevenstrings, a lute player, a singer, and also a member of the Brotherhood Without Banners. He was an excellent spy, gathering information in the Riverlands, sworn to Lord Beric Dondarrion, the Lightning Lord.

Tom Sevenstrings was small, about fifty years old, with a large mouth, a pointed nose, and sparse brown hair, heading inexorably towards baldness.

"Oh, Tom of Sevenstreams, what songs do you sing?"

"I can sing any song my Lord can name." Tom Sevenstrings had the pride of a singer.

"Then sing 'The Dornishman's Wife'."

"As you command, my Lord."

Tywin, who had been silent, suddenly said, "Tom, have you been singing in the Riverlands all the time?"

"The Riverlands, the Vale of Arryn, King's Landing, Gulltown, even across the Narrow Sea, I've been there, my Lord," Tom Sevenstrings immediately stood up and answered respectfully.

*

Tom Sevenstring's sharp eyes naturally recognized who the leader of these black-cloaked brothers was. He also recognized who the leader was: Tywin Lannister.

During the battles in the Trident Riverlands last year, the enemy of the Brotherhood Without Banners was the Westerlands army led by Tywin Lannister. They used guerrilla tactics, killing one or two Westerlands soldiers before disappearing, raiding and burning supplies at night, or ambushing and stealing a few horses, burning a few marching tents. Lone soldiers and small scouting parties were often eaten by the Brotherhood Without Banners. The Westerlands army was annoyed, like a small grain of sand in a shoe, extremely irritating but impossible to remove.

Tywin Lannister, a butcher who massacred the commoners in the Clegane lands. Lord Beric, the Lightning Lord, and Thoros of Myr, the Red Priest, had issued arrest warrants for him. Under the leadership of Beric Dondarrion, the Brotherhood Without Banners had become a righteous organization in the common folk, protecting the commoners and the weak, and punishing evil in the name of the Red God.

The new Inn at the Crossroads was also run by the Brotherhood Without Banners behind the scenes, serving as a base for the brothers, an intelligence station, and a place for the Brotherhood to earn money to support their troops.

Since last year, more and more people had joined the Brotherhood Without Banners: defeated soldiers, landless peasants, miners from the mountains, bandits, and vagrants, all gathered under the banner of 'justice' raised by Beric Dondarrion, but their finances were worrying, and the brothers began to exchange IOUs for food and sour wine from the people.

*

Tywin stared at Tom Sevenstrings: "When we came in just now, some guests were talking about the Frey family's Red Wedding, have you heard of it? What happened?"

"My Lord, if you want to know what's happening in the Riverlands, you've come to the right person to ask Tom Sevenstrings." Tom Sevenstrings' expression was exaggerated. Wandering singers who made a living by singing were all braggarts.

Tywin looked at Tom Sevenstrings coldly, and Tom Sevenstrings felt a murderous aura. He quickly said, "My Lord, the Frey family and the Bolton family joined forces to slaughter all the Stark family's forces and vassals under the guise of a marriage alliance with the Stark family, but someone leaked the news, and the Stark family found out in advance."

"If it was a conspiracy, how could the Stark family have known?" Tywin said calmly, his eyes narrowing.

"My Lord, although I'm well-informed, I don't know the real secrets behind the scenes! I heard that King Robb wore chainmail, brought his direwolf Grey Wind and his vassals to the wedding feast, and prepared men in ambush near the western drawbridge. He also invited Brynden Tully to lead a Riverlands heavy cavalry ambush outside the city. When the Northern horn sounded, the drawbridge ropes were cut, and the Blackfish led his troops into the western city, slaughtering all the main figures of the Frey family."

The golden threads in Lord Tywin's emerald eyes shone brightly; his carefully planned 'Red Wedding' had been leaked in advance and notified the Stark family.

That was impossible!

Unless… the witch…

"The Northern cavalry were all stationed on the east bank of the Green Fork. All those who followed King Robb were cavalry, not a single infantryman. The Frey family and the Bolton family had more than a thousand cavalry and more than five thousand infantry, intending to annihilate the Northerners in the three wedding tents on the east bank. Who knew that the long-missing Lord Eddard Stark would suddenly appear, raise his arms and shout, and the Bolton soldiers would defect on the spot. The cavalry and infantry joined forces, killing the Frey soldiers and causing them to collapse and surrender on their knees."

Lord Tywin felt a sharp point pierce his heart, and his whole body trembled with pain.

His sense of defeat was too strong, the pain almost convulsed him.

A foolproof plan, an absolutely irresistible price, what did I do wrong… could the witch have seen everything… and notified Stark…

The Lord suddenly felt hot, but he was breaking out in a cold sweat, the cold sweat crawling on his back like small ants, making him extremely uncomfortable and extremely uneasy.

Would the witch see him forced to become a member of the Night's Watch, see him arrive at the Trident river crossing, and then… no boat…

The absolutely perfect Red Wedding had failed?!

The Lord was unwilling to admit it, and absolutely refused to face it; he had… the illusion of dreaming.

During his vacation to the Wall to cleanse his sins, according to Tywin's perfect plan—the Starks of the North had been destroyed by his 'Red Wedding'; Joffrey and the Tyrell family had successfully married; Dorne had submitted; Littlefinger had entered the Vale of Arryn and married Lysa Tully, and the Vale of Arryn had declared allegiance to King Joffrey; when he returned from the Wall, the Seven Kingdoms would be unified.

What remained was to concentrate his forces to destroy the Mountain on Dragonstone, then destroy his ally—Lord Balon Greyjoy of the Iron Islands—to seize iron ore, and then kill Roose Bolton, who had been appointed Warden of the North by the King, and let Tyrion and 'Sansa's' child become the Lord of the North…

However, the first link in his grand plan: the carefully designed Red Wedding—a complete failure!

The atmosphere in the inn suddenly changed subtly because of Tywin alone, Tywin's face was like iron, and his emotions were clearly off… Lord Tywin was having difficulty breathing, feeling as uncomfortable as drowning and suffocating…

The guards around him were horrified—the unflappable Lord Tywin—his face was pale, and small beads of sweat were seeping from the golden hair on his forehead—this was a loss of control that the Lord had never shown in decades.

*

At dusk, Ser Holt returned, riding his horse into a forest, the road was submerged by the river, and he had to detour.

Shhh!

Someone ahead hissed!

Ser Holt was immediately alert, drawing his longsword: "Who's there?"

"Our Lightning Lord Beric sends his regards, Lannister," a voice said from above, with a frivolous laugh.

Holt suddenly looked up, and on the branches above, sat a barefoot, ragged man, a sheathless short sword on his back, and a bow and arrow in his hand.

Thwack!

A sharp arrow shot down, landing in front of the warhorse.

Thwack, thwack, thwack!

Several more arrows shot down, landing around the horse.

"Knight, dismount and accept judgment," an archer said with a light laugh.

Holt could tell that these archers were extremely skilled. He didn't expect to find such formidable figures among the bandits.

Holt shouted, "I am Holt Lannister, a knight of the Westerlands, a member of the Night's Watch of the Wall. According to the laws of the Seven Kingdoms, you cannot kill me."

"Whether or not we can kill you is not for you to decide." A handsome young man with messy hair and a scruffy beard slowly walked out from behind a large tree. "Knight, our people have been following you since you entered the Riverlands. Can't find a ferry? Of course not, we've stopped all the ferries."

On the young man's tunic and shield was a purple lightning bolt: "The Lannisters have committed many heinous crimes. You cannot deny the crime of slaughtering innocent civilians, so you must accept judgment, the judgment of the Red God."

"Lord Beric!" Holt exclaimed in surprise.

Beric Dondarrion walked over, thinner and darker, but he seemed more robust, his eyes full of a wild, animalistic aura.

Many members of the Brotherhood Without Banners appeared from the woods, at least a hundred and fifty people.

"Knight, dismount. I will duel with you, and no one else will interfere. If you are innocent, the Red God will grant you the strength to defeat me; if you are guilty, the Red God will let me plunge my sword into your throat."

Beric raised his sword, and with a loud whoosh, the blade burst into flames.

Holt looked around, there was no escape. He had no choice but to dismount and adopt a defensive stance.

Beric shouted and lunged at Holt, gripping his sword with both hands and slashing down. Holt retreated and parried, and with a loud clang, Holt was knocked to the ground.

"Good!" The members of the Brotherhood cheered.

"Get up, Knight, I saw you tripped by weeds." Beric Dondarrion casually twirled his wrist, creating beautiful circles of fire with his sword.

His swordsmanship was exquisite, and his character noble.

Holt Lannister rolled over and got up, thrusting his sword towards Beric's lower abdomen. Beric lowered his wrist, and with a clang, the flaming sword easily deflected the thrust, drawing a fiery arc and slashing down at his opponent's head. Holt quickly raised his sword to defend, but the flaming sword swerved, slipped past his parry, and Beric slid to the right, slapping the flaming sword on Holt's back. Whoosh, the black cloak was set ablaze.

Holt was shocked and quickly slashed horizontally, forcing Beric back.

Beric withdrew his sword and stood still, not attacking.

Holt hurriedly tried to remove his burning cloak, when suddenly, a sword thrust towards his face, ablaze with fire. Holt was shocked and quickly dodged, but Beric's flaming sword was already aimed at his abdomen. He desperately parried, but Beric's sword had already changed, slashing at his neck. Holt quickly ducked his head and retreated...

Amidst the cheers of the Brotherhood Without Banners, Beric's sword moved left and right, up and down, Holt was flustered and struggled to cope. The raging flames blurred Holt's vision, everything looked red, and a heatwave assaulted his back. In a moment of panic, his sword missed its parry, and Beric's flaming sword plunged into Holt's throat, entering from the front and exiting from the back of his neck, the sword still ablaze...

Holt fell, his face full of unwillingness - I am a brother of the Night's Watch, you have no right to kill me, not even the Red God!

A moment later, Holt's body was hung up, suspended from a large tree. A brother used a short knife to carve the details of the trial: Holt Lannister, knight of the Lannister family, guilty of slaughtering innocent civilians, sentenced to death by the Red God through the hand of Lord Beric!

"Brothers, tonight, capture Tywin Lannister alive. His crimes are too numerous, we will publicly judge him one by one, and finally sentence him to hanging."

"Good!" The members of the Brotherhood agreed with a roar.

A brother rode over on horseback: "Lord Beric, Lord Thoros has arrived with the brothers."

*

ps: There is one more update [MaxW]'s reward update is temporarily owed, thank you for your support.