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On the water stair, the Blackfish, Brynden Tully, watched Lord Leo surrender and tilted his head toward the soldiers behind him. A squad of men with ropes came out in file and disarmed and bound all the Lannister soldiers whose retreat had been cut off.
Because Lord Leo was a noble and had surrendered sensibly, Brynden treated him with enough dignity. He was merely disarmed and escorted away, not tied up.
Once all the enemies had been taken away, Brynden looked deeply at the water gate blocked by rubble, and admiration for the young King in the North rose in his heart.
Yes, the ambush at the water gate exit had also been prepared in advance after Brynden considered Robb's advice.
Before the war between wolf and lion began, Robb had already made his arrangements and prepared the route from the Iron Islands to Lannisport. He had known then that Riverrun would face unprecedented pressure in this siege.
In his view, Riverrun had strong terrain, enough soldiers, and enough food. The most likely breakthrough was this water route, the same one through which Brynden had let Brienne escape in the original story.
In Robb's previous life, the Lannisters had taken Riverrun by using Edmure, captured at the Red Wedding.
But because of the butterfly effect Robb had caused, he could not rule out the possibility that the Lannisters might use the water gate. That was why he had explained the matter so thoroughly in his letter.
It was also why Brynden did not trust Edmure and insisted on personally guarding the western wall.
Only from the western wall could one observe movement on the Tumblestone, and anyone trying to reach the water gate through the rushing current had to start from upstream.
Perhaps in Tywin's plan, the defenders of Riverrun, wholly focused on the siege, would not spare any attention for the Tumblestone.
But the opposite was true. Brynden had kept his eyes on the river the entire time. The moment he saw the small fishing boats, he left the basically stabilized western wall to his deputy and personally led men to set the ambush.
Robb was no true prophet. He could not foresee that Lord Piper, defending the wall, would flee the field and almost cause the entire southern wall to collapse, nearly losing Riverrun.
By the time Brynden escorted Lord Leo and his men toward Riverrun's dungeons, the left section of the southern wall had been fully retaken by Riverrun's defenders.
Small hills of corpses had piled up on the wall. The Westerlands soldiers still attacking saw that the first men to gain the wall had all died, and the momentum that had almost carried them to victory was instantly suppressed.
Tywin stood in the Westerlands army's position. When a cavalryman brought news that the water gate had collapsed and Lord Leo's fate was unknown, his pale green eyes filled with coldness, and veins rose on his forehead.
"Hah. Order the retreat."
After forcefully suppressing his anger and letting out a long breath, Tywin gave Kevan his command.
"Retreat? Lord Tywin, the surprise attack failed, but from the look of things, if we press just a little harder, we can still take Riverrun!
"We have already lost so many..."
Hearing the order, Kevan was puzzled. He had clearly seen their men climb onto the wall several times and gain the advantage.
"Riverrun has roughly seven thousand troops. The two walls together hold only a little over five thousand defenders. That means they still have two thousand reserves they have not used.
"Today's general assault was meant to cover Leo's surprise attack. Since the surprise attack has failed, this siege has lost its meaning. Continuing will only increase our losses."
Scouts had constantly reported the battlefield situation. From the whole picture, Tywin knew that once the assault force failed, today's siege had been lost.
"This... yes. I will pass the order."
Kevan understood Tywin's analysis, his expression turning grave, and went to deliver the command.
Watching his brother leave, Tywin felt as if a thousand-pound stone had sunk into his heart. From the moment the northern army had suddenly vanished at Moat Cailin, he had been inside that wolf pup's calculations.
Not long ago, news that Casterly Rock had fallen had been personally denied by Tywin to stabilize the morale of the Westerlands army.
But that only treated the surface, not the disease. So Tywin had intended to take Riverrun with all his strength and bring the entire Riverlands under his control. Once he sat in Riverrun, he could advance on the North or retreat to the Westerlands or the crownlands as he pleased.
Yet Kevan's long preparations and his own surprise attack plan still had not taken Riverrun.
Given the situation, Tywin pressed his lips together lightly and began considering what his future plans should be.
A long horn sounded across the whole battlefield around Riverrun.
All the Westerlands soldiers heard it and immediately raised their shields over their heads, desperately fleeing toward their own lines. Those unlucky enough to be on siege towers or scaling ladders were caught between retreat and advance.
After a brief hesitation, even knowing that turning their backs would lower their chances of survival, instinct still drove them to turn and run.
The defending archers on Riverrun's walls would never let such an opportunity pass. They shot into the fleeing men without mercy, harvesting Westerlands lives one after another.
Before long, the unlucky Westerlands soldiers had all fallen beneath the two walls, and most of the others had withdrawn beyond the archers' range.
Oh!
Seeing that the enemy attack had been successfully repelled under his command, Edmure immediately raised his sword and gave a victorious shout.
Under his lead, nearly two thousand soldiers on the southern wall roared in triumph, and then nearly two thousand men on the western wall answered.
The walls and the ground below were covered in corpses and severed limbs. All the siege towers and scaling ladders had been abandoned beneath the walls.
Before the western wall, the wildfire on the wheeled battering ram had already gone out. The burned-out ram had become a pile of black ash, still giving off smoke.
The shouts of the victors on the wall formed a sharp contrast with the silence of the countless corpses below.
When Brynden, in the dungeon, heard the cheers from the wall, he knew the Westerlands army had retreated. Riverrun's defenders had held the city without fear of death. They deserved this victory and this credit.
But Brynden knew Riverrun had also held because of the King in the North, wherever he was now.
After questioning the surrendered Lord Leo for a while, he left Riverrun's dim dungeon, a windowless place lit entirely by braziers.
Brynden had just closed the heavy wooden door wrapped in iron when he heard loud arguing from the center of Riverrun's yard.
"You cowardly fleeing bastard! You nearly got us all killed!"
"Fleeing? Are your eyes blind? Can you not see this arrowhead?
"I withdrew only to have my arrow wound treated. After it was bandaged, I climbed back onto the wall and continued fighting.
"It just happened that the enemy retreated at that moment!"
At the center of the yard, Lord Tytos, covered in blood and leading his own soldiers, was locked in a fierce argument with Lord Piper, who also had his guards with him. Piper's left arm was bandaged, with the broken arrowhead still left in place.
The soldiers of both houses looked hostile, and the atmosphere in the yard was tense enough to draw steel.
"Lord Tytos, what do you think you are doing?"
Edmure, who had spent a good while on the wall savoring victory, had just come down when he saw the conspicuous group. He immediately questioned Lord Tytos.
"Lord Edmure, Lord Piper abandoned the defense of the wall and fled without cause, nearly leading to Riverrun's fall. He should be punished under military law!"
Lord Tytos turned to Edmure and loudly stated his opinion.
"Lord Edmure, look at the arrowhead in my left arm. I withdrew only because I was hit and needed emergency treatment. The moment the wound was treated, I returned to the wall to fight."
Seeing Edmure, Lord Piper immediately displayed his wounded left arm and loudly protested, sounding wronged.
Edmure looked at the bloodstained left arm, then turned to Lord Tytos and said, "Lord Tytos, Lord Piper was wounded, received treatment, then returned to battle. That cannot be counted as fleeing without cause.
"To slander his honor like this damages the dignity of Riverrun's nobles."
"I..."
"Lord Piper, I would like to ask whether the arrow in your left arm was shot up from beneath the wall or fired from a siege tower."
Lord Tytos, who had no hard proof, was about to speak when Brynden, who had been listening silently outside the crowd and carefully observing Piper's wound, squeezed his way in and cut him off.
"Lord Brynden, where was it shot from? From beneath the wall... I think."
Seeing Brynden come over, Lord Piper gave a perfunctory salute and answered hesitantly.
Brynden tilted his head and examined the wound, then said loudly in a surprised tone, "That is strange. Arrows shot from beneath the wall must arc upward, so they would enter the body at an angle.
"The arrow in your left arm is so level. It should have come from a siege tower firing straight at you."
"Yes, yes. It was fired straight from a siege tower. I may have remembered wrong."
Hearing his analysis, Lord Piper hurriedly nodded, saying he had misremembered.
"Heh. If it was fired straight from a siege tower at such a close range, yet failed to pierce your left arm and only made this wound, I would say that Westerlands archer was too weak to draw a bow.
"Lord Piper, in my view, this arrow was shoved in by hand."
Seeing Piper's reaction, Brynden sneered and loudly gave his final judgment.
"The wound is shallow? Perhaps something blocked it.
"Shoved in by hand? Lord Brynden, are you saying I forged my own wound?"
Lord Piper finally realized he had been led into a trap. Embarrassed and angry, he shouted back.
"I am not suspecting it. I am certain."
"Enough, enough! We won today. Everyone go rest for a while. Tonight we hold a victory feast, and all of you can drink your fill!"
Edmure seemed to understand what had happened. He took the chance to smooth things over and change the subject.
"No. If a man who forged a wound and fled goes unpunished, while those who bled to retake the wall go unrewarded, how can anyone be convinced? How are we supposed to drink happily?"
Brynden could spare Edmure's pride in other matters, but absolutely not in this. Since his nephew wanted to muddy the waters, Brynden simply tore the matter open.
"Ser Marq Piper is still in the Riverlands, harassing the Westerlands supply troops everywhere. If we punish his father without solid proof, I doubt everyone will be convinced either."
Ser Marq was Edmure's close friend and Lord Piper's eldest son and heir. The young lord brought up his service directly, trying to persuade the crowd.
"I... I saw Lord Piper shove the arrow into his own left arm. That arrow had originally hit one of his guards. The guard's corpse is still on the wall. The marks on the arrows can be compared."
As soon as Edmure finished speaking, a soldier who had defended the southern wall spoke with some hesitation.
Because they had feared commanders might preserve their own house strength, all the defenders of Riverrun had been broken up and reorganized, except for the guards around the commanders themselves.
Judging by the sigil on the speaker's body, he was a soldier of House Vance of Wayfarer's Rest. As a member of a neutral house, his words carried more credibility.
"Lord Piper, is what he says true?"
Edmure turned to Lord Piper and asked.
"I..."
"Sigh. You disappoint me greatly."
Seeing him at a loss for words, Edmure shook his head with a sigh, then spoke loudly.
"Lord Piper of Pinkmaiden forged a wound and fled the field without cause. He is to be imprisoned in the dungeon to await judgment.
"Ser Marq Piper is appointed acting lord of Pinkmaiden. All soldiers of House Piper will be reorganized into the army and continue fighting for House Piper's honor.
"Lord Tytos of Raventree Hall fought bravely and retook the wall. He is rewarded with one hundred gold dragons.
"Every soldier who fought today will receive a silver stag, with battle merit counted separately."
"Lord Edmure is wise!"
"Long live House Tully!"
Hearing Edmure's rewards, every soldier present smiled and shouted together.
Lord Piper, of course, looked ashen. His eyes shifted as if he were thinking about something.
Soon, several soldiers stepped forward to escort him to Riverrun's dungeon.
When he was locked into a noble cell, he happened to see Lord Leo sitting quietly across from him.
"Judging by your sigil... you should be of House Lefford of the Golden Tooth. If you are fortunate enough to get out, could you deliver a message to Lord Tywin for me?"
On the south bank of the Green Fork, at the Twins' southern castle.
"Did you hear? The King in the North took Casterly Rock in the Westerlands not long ago, that stone castle that had never fallen in thousands of years."
"Of course I heard. They say those northmen stuffed their pockets fat in the Westerlands. I hear they even stole Tywin Lannister's golden chamber pot."
"Lord Walder was already a vassal of House Tully. Why help House Lannister?
"If he had helped the King in the North, maybe we would have had a chance to plunder Westerlands gold too."
"Who says otherwise? Of the four thousand men who marched with them, fewer than fifteen hundred came back to the Twins. The dead did not even have bodies to bring home.
"Some time ago, Lord Walder gathered another thousand men to join the Westerlands army. One of my relatives went with them to Riverrun. I wonder how things are there now."
Several Frey soldiers wearing black hoods stood guard under the afternoon sun.
Because of the Twins' special location, it had not been attacked for many years. They were truly bored, so they had gathered to chat.
"Eh? What is that thing?"
One Frey soldier casually glanced ahead, then suddenly pointed into the distance and cried out.
The other Frey soldiers heard him and looked in the direction he indicated.
They saw a strange, enormous H-shaped object moving toward the Twins.
Its surface seemed to be inlaid with many bits of metal. Under the sunlight, it shone dazzlingly and looked quite beautiful.
As the strange object drew closer, the Frey soldiers finally saw clearly that it was a huge wooden sculpture of twin towers. From its shape, it should have been modeled after the Twins.
What covered it was not metal at all, but large amounts of gold and all kinds of gems, enough to tempt men into crime.
The huge twin-tower sculpture was tied all over with ropes and placed on a solid wooden platform. In front of it, fifty or sixty soldiers were pulling the ropes with great effort, moving the sculpture forward.
Below the wooden platform were more than ten round logs. Twenty or thirty soldiers were methodically moving the logs one by one to the front.
Aside from them, an armored knight led about two hundred escort cavalry on both sides of the twin-tower sculpture.
"Go report to Lord Walder. The army from Seagard has brought a sculpture outside our castle."
As captain of the guard in a stronghold neighboring Seagard, he immediately recognized the banner of the silver eagle with outspread wings. He ordered a nearby guard to report.
The guard obeyed and left. Before long, a short, broad-shouldered man with a black beard followed him to the watch platform of the southern castle.
This squat man was also named Walder Frey. But there were far too many Walder Freys in the family, so to distinguish him, others usually called him Black Walder.
He was the second son of Lame Lothar, grandson of Stevron Frey, and great-grandson of Lord Walder Frey.
"Nearly three hundred Mallister soldiers, bringing a strange sculpture to the Twins. What are they doing?
"Still, so few men cannot make any trouble. Raise the outer oak gate. I will ask their purpose through the portcullis."
Black Walder observed the group approaching the southern castle for a while, then gave the order to the guard captain behind him.
"Yes!"
Clack, clack, clack!
The captain answered and passed down the command. The outer oak gate of the southern castle opened, and Black Walder came before the iron grid of the portcullis to wait for them.
The Seagard party gradually approached the Twins. The knight at their head was Lord Jason Mallister. When he saw Black Walder behind the portcullis, he immediately called the group to a halt and rode forward alone.
"Lord Jason! May I ask what important matter brings you to the Twins?"
Black Walder naturally knew the lord of nearby Seagard. A smile appeared on his face as he asked.
"You are... Walder?"
"Of course. Among our younger generation, almost all of us are Walder."
Hearing Black Walder joke about himself, Lord Jason smiled faintly and stated his purpose directly. "I wish to pay a visit to Lord Walder. When he took his eighth Lady Frey, I was dealing with those squids and had no time to attend the wedding.
"The sculpture of the Twins behind me is my wedding gift to Lord Walder. I hope he can forgive my offense in missing his wedding."
"For that reason alone? Lord Jason, you bring such a costly gift?"
Hearing Lord Jason's words, Black Walder raised an eyebrow. A smile hung at the corner of his mouth, clearly not believing him.
After all, Lord Walder had held too many weddings. Many nobles had attended the earlier ones, but the later the marriage, the fewer nobles came.
Even House Frey itself had grown used to it. For Lord Jason to bring such a gift as an apology for missing the wedding obviously hinted at something abnormal.
"Heh, of course. But there are also some matters I need to discuss with Lord Walder in person."
Jason laughed and nodded, then said the remaining matter was something he wished to speak of only to Lord Walder.
"If it is only you, I can let you in now and bring you to Lord Walder."
As fourth in line to the Twins, Black Walder's status was not equal to Lord Jason's. Hearing him, he answered directly.
"That suits me. Let me in."
Lord Jason agreed without hesitation.
After entering the Twins, he was disarmed and searched by the guards.
After all, House Frey had joined the Lannister camp, while Seagard still served House Tully. The two sides were enemies now.
Led personally by Black Walder, Lord Jason met Lord Walder in the audience hall of the northern castle, where the old man sat in his black oak chair.
"Lord Walder, your body remains strong. I believe it will still be so ten years from now."
The moment Lord Jason saw Lord Walder, he saluted politely and offered a courteous compliment.
"Cough. Whether my body is still this strong ten years from now, I cannot know.
"But I can be certain that before long, my eighth wife will be pregnant and give me another son."
Lord Walder looked at the courteous Lord Jason, but his mind remembered the previous rude envoy. He coughed lightly and chatted about trivial matters.
"Lord Walder, I have brought you a belated wedding gift, a huge sculpture of the Twins inlaid with countless pieces of gold and gems. It is fitting for a great man of your status."
Lord Jason did not want to idle with him and went straight to the point.
"Oh? Then why does Lord Jason give such a precious gift?
"Do not tell me some nonsense about missing a wedding. Speak your true purpose."
Seeing Jason take the initiative, Lord Walder was equally direct.
"I would like... to ask you to introduce me to Tywin Lannister. Seagard wishes to join his side."
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