The Mountain of Ice and Fire

The Northmen's tents were pitched inside and outside the Godwood.

The Starks' large tent was set up under the three millennia-old weirwood trees in the Godwood.

Here were the Three Eyes hot springs, the water steaming with heat.

The walls of the Stark family's castle were hollow, with flowing hot spring water used for heating.

In the depths of winter, the Starks were able to live above ground thanks to the underground hot springs.

Only Winterfell in the entire North had underground hot springs. Legend has it that this was because of the Others' invasion and the great war with humans eight thousand years ago, when magic was at its peak and dragons were plentiful. All the dragons that died in battle were buried beneath Winterfell, and their bones transformed the groundwater into hot springs.

But this rumor had not been confirmed by the maesters of the Citadel.

*

Eddard Stark returned to the large tent beneath the weirwood trees.

It was late, but he had no desire to sleep.

South of the Godwood was the glass garden, which before the great battle, was always filled with vegetables and flowers.

Now, the glass garden was gone, reduced to ruins.

West of the glass garden was the Stark family crypt: for thousands of years, the Starks had been buried in the crypt after their deaths.

The crypt was intact.

The wildfire explosion had no effect on the Stark family crypt.

To ensure the crypt's safety, no wildfire was buried around it.

Eddard Stark left the tent and walked towards a small tent near the hot springs.

He was alone.

Eddard Stark told the guards to stop and not follow him any further.

All the hundreds of tents here were occupied by Northmen.

Eddard arrived at a solitary small tent in the middle of the Three Eyes hot springs, and he lifted the curtain and went inside.

Bran Stark sat in his wheelchair, a black sable pelt draped over his legs. His large eyes looked at Eddard Stark, his gaze as bright as the stars in the winter night sky.

"Bran!"

"Father!"

"Not asleep yet?"

"I sleep very little, Father."

Eddard Stark noticed that the Three-Eyed Raven was not perched on Bran's shoulder.

"The Mountain was attacked," Eddard said, looking at Bran.

"I saw it."

"You saw the attack on the Mountain through the Three-Eyed Raven?"

"Yes, Father."

Eddard Stark still felt a sense of unfamiliarity with the returned Bran.

"Who attacked him?"

"Lannister."

"Lady Dorea Sand says it wasn't Jaime who did it."

"There's more than just Jaime in the Lannister army."

"Night's Watchman Lancel Lannister?" Eddard said grimly.

"Yes!"

Eddard was silent for a moment. "The Mountain killed his father, Kevan Lannister. Lancel came for revenge."

"Perhaps that's not the case, Father. Before becoming a black brother, Lancel was a friar in the Great Sept of Baelor. He was loyal to the High Sparrow, and the Mountain's men killed the High Sparrow, destroyed the Faith Militant, and forced him to go to the Wall and become a Night's Watchman."

Lancel was a capable assistant to the High Sparrow, leading a legion of Starry Knights.

"Oh, I must go to the Mountain's tent now. I'll tell Lady Dorea Sand that we must capture Lancel. The Mountain has done great service to the North and the Starks. He killed the Night King, and he has done a great service to the entire continent."

"You don't need to go, Father. Melisandre and the skinchanger Varamyr Sixskins are tracking down the real culprit. They will find Lancel Lannister. With Varamyr's help, Lancel will be caught sooner or later. He won't be able to escape."

Eddard Stark looked at Bran. Bran was very calm, as if nothing had happened. But in fact, he seemed to know everything.

"Bran..."

Bran looked at his father, waiting for Eddard to speak. Eddard had stopped talking after calling his name.

"When Lancel attacked the Mountain, you didn't warn him. Lancel's arrows were poisoned with deadly venom. If they had hit the Mountain's eye socket, Lady Dorea Sand said it would have been fatal. During the Battle of Winterfell, if it weren't for the Mountain's support of the North, we wouldn't have been able to defeat the Others, and you and I wouldn't have been able to kill the Night King. Anguy and Julie, in order to kill the ice spiders, one lost a leg, and one died in battle. Julie is the Mountain's adopted daughter."

"Lancel's arrow didn't hit the Mountain's eye socket, Father. The blood witch is also the most skilled poison healer, and Melisandre's magical abilities are also very powerful."

Eddard Stark looked at Bran. Bran said a lot, but in fact, he didn't say a word of what Eddard wanted to know. Eddard wanted to know why Bran saw Lancel attacking the Mountain but didn't warn him. The Three-Eyed Raven saw everything in the night sky, he could have crowed a warning.

Eddard still didn't know that the Three-Eyed Raven could speak human language. The Three-Eyed Raven only spoke human language in front of the Mountain, he told the Mountain which wildfire pile the Night King was hiding in.

"If the attacker had hit the Mountain's eye socket, and he hadn't been treated in time, the arrow wound and the poison would have been fatal to the Mountain," Lady Dorea's words flashed through Eddard Stark's mind.

"The poison the Mountain was hit with is very potent, very rare. Bran, was Lancel acting on someone's orders, or was he alone?"

"Father, there are many things I cannot know. Lancel attacked the Mountain, it's an old feud."

"Bran!" Eddard looked at this son who was becoming more and more unfamiliar to him. "The Mountain has done great service to the Starks and the North. If you know anything, I hope you can tell me everything."

"Yes, Father." When Bran answered, his eyes had already shifted to somewhere on the ceiling. He was silent for a long time, then said, "Father, the Mountain killed the Night King, his glory is unmatched. The Vale, the Westerlands, the Claw, Dorne, and the Iron Islands all support him. Uncle Edmure of the Riverlands is his brother-in-law, the North is his staunch ally, your power and strength are now unmatched. Do you think the Mountain will covet the Iron Throne?"

Eddard looked at Bran, his brow furrowed slightly. "Bran, the North is already independent."

Bran looked at his father, looking deep into his eyes. He said slowly, "Father, in times of chaos, it's difficult for the North to remain independent. Across the Narrow Sea, Daenerys Targaryen's army is very powerful. Once the hundred thousand Dothraki cavalry land in Westeros, no one can defeat her."

"Oh!"

"The glory of the Mountain killing the Night King has increased his prestige. If he leads an army to fight Daenerys, will the North send troops to support the Mountain?"

"The North will fully support the Mountain!"

"Father, the Mountain no longer has a dragon."

"His dragon is in the North."

"No, Father. The Mountain's dragon will die in a month at the most, ten days at the earliest. The Night King's ice spear severely wounded it. Lady Dorea Sand and the Faith healers couldn't heal its wounds. This is an extremely cold place, which is most unfavorable for the dragon's recovery."

"You saw that the Mountain's dragon is failing?"

"I overheard the conversation between Lady Dorea Sand and the Great Sage. She told the Great Sage herself that she was powerless to help the Mountain's dragon. The dragon can barely fly, and Lady Dorea Sand forcibly revived it with magical power. Lady Dorea wanted the Mountain to be in a good mood to attend the victory banquet first."

Eddard was dismayed!

Lady Dorea Sand had instructed him not to tell anyone the truth about the dragon's failing health before the Mountain knew it. But Bran already knew.

"Father, Daenerys Targaryen has three dragons, a hundred thousand Dothraki cavalry, tens of thousands of infantry, and tens of thousands of naval forces. Now the total strength of the Seven Kingdoms is less than a hundred thousand. On the battlefield, Daenerys's cavalry has an unstoppable advantage over the continent's infantry. And in the sky, there are her three dragons—three dragons that are growing rapidly every day." Bran looked at Eddard. "Father, in my visions, I saw Daenerys defeat the Allied forces of the continent, capture King's Landing, and enter the Red Keep."

Eddard was silent, his gaze deep, his brows locked together!

Three hundred years ago, King Torrhen Stark of the North launched a battle against Aegon the Conqueror. He led his army south, and on the south bank of the Trident, when he saw Aegon's dragon with his own eyes, he bent his knee and surrendered to Aegon Targaryen. Now the place where he knelt and surrendered has become an inn, which is the Riverlands' famous Kneeling Man—the bottom floor of the inn is made of gray stone, the upper floor is made of wood plastered with lime, and the roof is covered with slate. It has stables and a vine-covered gazebo, and long, low厢房 extend to the river, as if to embrace passing travelers. The sign on the door depicts a kneeling king: King Torrhen Stark of the North.

Torrhen's kneeling and surrender lasted for three hundred years. It wasn't until more than a hundred years after the extinction of the dragons, in 283 AL, that Robert Baratheon and Eddard Stark, Jon Arryn, and Hoster Tully joined forces to overthrow the Targaryen dynasty and establish a new kingdom. This new kingdom did not last long. Sixteen years after Robert sat on the Iron Throne, with the king's unfortunate death, the kingdom disintegrated and fell into years of civil war.

"Father, once Daenerys Targaryen wins, I don't think she will allow the North to be independent; but we can send envoys to secretly meet her at this time, and reach a cooperation agreement with her, assisting Daenerys Targaryen in seizing the Iron Throne, in exchange for her recognition of the North's independence."

Eddard Stark's gaze at Bran became solemn. "Bran, the Starks will not help Daenerys seize the Iron Throne. The North can still exist because of the help of tens of thousands of Southern Allied troops outside. The Starks value honor above life."

"Father, after Daenerys seizes the Iron Throne, she will attack the North."

"Then we will fight her!"

"Father, we cannot defeat a hundred thousand Dothraki cavalry and three dragons," Bran said calmly, "unless the Mountain's dragon doesn't die. But Lady Dorea cannot expel the cold poison from the dragon's body, and that dragon doesn't have much time left."

Eddard took a deep look at Bran, his heart filled with disappointment: the dragon died in battle, having done great service to the Northmen, but Bran felt nothing, without the slightest pain. Two ice spiders came to kill Bran, and Julie disguised herself as Bran and risked her life, and finally died in battle, but Bran didn't have the slightest gratitude afterwards. Julie Clegane died to save Bran's life!

Eddard felt a stuffiness in his chest that he couldn't exhale. He turned and strode out of the tent.

When Robb's burial ceremony is over, I have to have a good chat with Bran to understand how he became a greenseer. The child's enthusiasm and justice seem to have been completely lost. He has become unfamiliar, snobbish, scheming, cruel, and cold-blooded.

This is no longer Bran of the Starks!

*

Jon Snow was awakened from his sleep, and the shouts of countless people came from outside. The sound of longswords being drawn echoed all around. Jon was startled, rolled over and got up, only to realize that it was already broad daylight. He quickly rushed to the tent wall and with a clang drew his Valyrian steel sword Longclaw. Several people came before him like wolves and tigers, led by two generals, one male and one female, one ugly and one beautiful, one black and one white.

The people who came were the Mountain's infantry commander, Big Head Chiswyck. He was not wearing armor, only a thin garment, with muscles bulging under his clothes. The other general was a female general, and she was Big Head Chiswyck's wife, Jorelle Sand of Dorne.

Originally, Dorne was hot, and people mostly had dark skin, but most of the women of the Dornish noble families were fair-skinned and beautiful. Jorelle Sand was a perfect-figured, fair-skinned beauty.

The two generals brought four guards, all fully armed, wearing armor, holding longswords, and their gazes at Jon Snow were like knives.

"Jon Snow, you're sleeping soundly! Your ranger Lancel Lannister, that bastard, attacked our Lord Mountain last night, and a poisoned arrow hit the Lord's left cheek. I've come to invite the Lord to our military tent. I want to ask the Lord to cut off Lancel's several dicks and stuff them down his throat," Big Head Chiswyck said barbarously.

Jon was startled and said, "General Chiswyck, how is Lord Mountain... how is his injury?"

"You fucking go now, Jon!" Big Head had no manners or grace. The rogue's 'don't touch me' attitude was fully displayed. In his anger, Big Head hadn't actually figured out the specific situation. He only knew that the Mountain had been attacked by the Night's Watch's Lancel, with an arrow wound, and a poisoned arrow at that.

Outside the tent, the sounds of shouting, cursing, and fighting were everywhere. The Night's Watch's tents were completely surrounded by the Clegane army. Most of the Night's Watchmen were blocked in their beds.

As Eddard had feared, after dawn, the news of the Mountain's attack spread instantly throughout the Clegane army. Big Head Chiswyck, who hadn't completely sobered up from his drinking, was shaken awake from his sleep by his guards. He only heard the sentence 'Night's Watchman Lancel attacked the Mountain', and without saying a word, he immediately led his men to surround the Night's Watch's tent area. Because he got up late and left in a hurry, Big Head Chiswyck didn't even have time to put on his armor.

Outside, all the Night's Watchmen who resisted had already had several longswords pointed at their chests, backs, and abdomens!

The already small number of Night's Watchmen could be said to have been 'completely wiped out'.

Jon Snow came out and saw that all the Night's Watch brothers had been subdued by the Clegane bandits, and most of the brothers were still in their sleeping clothes.

"General Chiswyck, does Lord Mountain know that you brought troops to surround our Night's Watch?"

"Bastard, you don't need to fucking worry about this," Big Head Chiswyck said with a mouthful of dirty words. "I'll tell you clearly, if anything happens to Lord Mountain, all the Night's Watch will die! Not a single one will survive!"

As he spoke, there was a dense sound of marching and shouting coming from the south. A group of people were rushing towards this side, and looking at the flags, it was the Clegane cavalry regiment.

Thanks to [偶尔咗下白日梦] for the reward, thank you, handshake!