Chapter 153: The Moon God of the Bright Moon Mountains
The Vale, Seagull Town, Seagull Tower
"Thank you for your help, honorable Ser Uther Shett. I believe my friend will like this very much. Your family's lineage is truly ancient!"
After discerning some interesting information, Jon immediately expressed his gratitude to Uther Shett, then ordered his subordinates to bring in a small chest.
"Oh! By the seven! Are these things really worth so much money?"
Uther Shett's bastard, Rousseau Stone, asked in surprise.
"Some things are worthless to you, but in the eyes of others, they are priceless. Therefore, this item is a very important treasure to my friend, whereas you merely treated it as a stone."
After hearing Jon's explanation, Uther Shett solemnly put away the treasure chest.
Looking at the shabbiness of his home and the meager hospitality for his guests, Uther Shett took out two gold coins from the chest and then gave some instructions to his old servant and his bastard son.
"Honorable Lord Ben Leer, our House Shett truly doesn't know how to thank you for your kindness. Please wait a moment; regardless, I must prepare a welcoming banquet for you."
Uther Shett spoke very solemnly, and Jon naturally did not refuse his kindness.
Moreover, now that there were no outsiders, certain matters were naturally easier to discuss.
"Eh? Ser Uther, what is the story embroidered on this tapestry? I haven't heard of it before."
The tapestry Jon mentioned was a reddish-brown wool rug hanging by the fireplace on the first floor of House Shett's home. It depicted a battle between a knight and a wolf-headed humanoid monster.
"Oh! That is the story of my ancestor, King Augustus Shett, campaigning in the Bright Moon Mountains. He slew a werewolf who called himself the Moon God. Some say it was truly a werewolf, while others say it was a human wearing a wolf-head mask."
"The Moon God!?"
Upon hearing this term, Jon also associated it with a specific term on the stone tablet. It seemed House Shett had found something extraordinary in the Bright Moon Mountains.
Seeing that there were no outsiders around, Jon composed himself and then spoke to Uther Shett.
"I didn't expect your family to actually be kings from the era of the first men!"
Hearing Jon's words, Uther Shett fell into deep thought, his eyes unconsciously drifting toward the main district of Seagull Town.
"Seagull Town was once the territory of House Shett, but an incompetent member of the family allowed it to change hands."
"Perhaps all you lack is an opportunity!"
After hearing Uther Shett's words, Jon directly spoke those words.
"What!? Lord Ben Leer, do you... do you know what you're saying?"
"Saying what? I'm just telling you about the possibility of a certain matter. What's wrong? Are you afraid?"
As Jon's way of addressing him changed, Uther Shett's heart couldn't help but throb.
"All you lack is an opportunity, and I can give you that opportunity!"
Jon's expression was very calm, his tone as casual as if he were talking about eating or drinking.
"Who... who are you?"
"Someone who helps you. You can choose to accept or not, because it makes no difference to me, as I lose nothing!"
Jon didn't offer much explanation to Uther Shett's question, because the man wasn't yet qualified to know such things.
"Can... can I?"
Hearing Uther Shett's question, a faint smile appeared on Jon's face.
"All you lack is wealth. With my help, you will surely be able to reclaim everything you've lost."
Jon's words were like a devil's whisper, igniting the flames in Uther Shett's heart.
"What do I need to do?"
Looking at the solemn Uther Shett, Jon knew the man was tempted.
"In one month, you will marry a girl named Eva Omorren. Her father is a Magister of Lys, and this Magister will send people here to help you buy property and hire staff. Afterward, a bank in Seagull Town will be sold to you at a low price."
Jon's words sounded like a story, making Uther Shett's jaw nearly drop.
The plan was very brief; Jon only gave a general outline. It was precisely because it was so simple that it made Uther Shett itch with anticipation, as if he would acquire Seagull Town by tomorrow.
After about an hour or so, Uther Shett did his best to provide Jon with a reasonably lavish dinner.
After lingering at Seagull Tower for a few hours, Jon and Jeyne Arryn finally returned to the tax building in Seagull Town, led by Thomas Stone.
The stone tablet was also carried into his bedroom by Jon's men. The tax building was a multi-purpose structure; besides tax collection, some distinguished wealthy merchants were also housed there.
"Shua, shua, shua..."
After placing the stone tablet on the table, Jon began to study the Old Tongue runes on it. The Old Tongue of the first men is a very ancient language. Rumor has it that during the Dawn Age, giants and the Children of the Forest communicated with the first men using the Old Tongue.
Even today, some wildlings Beyond the Wall still only speak the Old Tongue of the first men instead of the Common Tongue. These strange symbols were the legendary Old Tongue runes.
Rumor has it that Old Tongue runes possess magic; by arranging these runes in different patterns, one can imbue items with magical power.
"Do you have any research on these things?"
Seeing Jon making rubbings of the stone tablet, Jeyne Arryn felt a hint of curiosity; even the dragon egg in her hand didn't seem as interesting.
"I'm just curious about a certain entity on it, especially the one called the 'Moon God'."
"'Moon God'? What is that? One of those miscellaneous Old Gods of the first men?"
Jeyne Arryn had some understanding of the Old Gods of Westeros. Some dragonlords had experienced the powerful consciousnesses residing within the weirwoods, even suffering at the hands of these terrifying entities.
"The Moon God is the god of the Bright Moon Mountains. The first men would sacrifice hearts to the heart tree under the moonlight to seek the Moon God's favor, so they would gain strength as powerful as a wolf's."
This type of pictographic script wasn't very difficult to decipher. With some knowledge of the Old Tongue, Jon could understand its meaning. He had Maester Luwin of Winterfell to thank for this; without him, Jon likely would have struggled to understand these things.
"I'm just not sure what this spiral pattern means. Isn't this the symbol of the Night King? Why would it appear here?"
"It means 'descent'!"
Jeyne Arryn, having taken the rubbing from Jon's hand, spoke up directly.
"Descent!?"
"Yes. Magic is actually a use of the soul. Using the power of the soul to draw out the power within frost and fire, and using the power of the soul to draw out the power within bloodlines—that is the true principle of magic."
Jeyne Arryn's explanation gave Jon a sense of sudden enlightenment. He finally understood why his system operated using soul power; ultimately, it was just a variation of using soul power.
"Under the blood-colored castle, we sacrifice to the gods, and the gods descend into our bodies, granting us divine power... Uh, the last sentence should mean something like that!"
After getting Jeyne Arryn's explanation, Jon finally understood the meaning.
"If we're talking about where the most famous blood-colored castle in the Vale is, it's likely only the legendary Red Keep. I was wondering where to find those clansmen; now it seems that if we find information about this Moon God, we might have a different kind of harvest."
Jon's purpose for coming here was to stir up trouble in the Vale. Besides winning over the local Vale forces, the clansmen in the Bright Moon Mountains were also Jon's priority for recruitment.
These clansmen are mostly descendants of the first men, and the reason they are at odds with the Vale nobility also involves differences in faith.
"Will those guys behave and listen?"
Since Jon decided to conquer Westeros, Jeyne Arryn had done a lot of homework. She was very clear about the clans of the Bright Moon Mountains; they were very primitive indigenous people.
"As long as there's profit, these guys would even believe in the seven. So for me, this isn't much of a problem at all."
Jon had never worried about this issue, because to him, these guys were just meant to wear down the Vale's strength. With the delays from Seagull Town and the Bright Moon Mountains, the vale would gradually fall under Jon's control.
"Those clansmen are truly unlucky! They might even thank you, thanking you for bringing them hope."
Jon's strategy seemed very interesting to Jeyne Arryn. From the look of it, he seemed to be planning to use these forces to exhaust the vale's overall strength.
"Aren't you afraid that the vale's overall strength will be consumed by you?"
Jeyne Arryn's question caused a different expression to appear on Jon's face. After bowing his head in thought for a moment, Jon explained:
"These clan warriors will become qualified soldiers after a period of training, so what I should really be discussing now is how I should rule this place."
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