Dark clouds gather, threatening to crush the city; armor gleams like golden scales in the sun.
With Eddard Stark imprisoned in the dungeons of King's Landing, Jaime Lannister finally returned to the Westerlands.
Upon returning to Casterly Rock, Jaime discovered a large number of soldiers drilling outside the city walls. They were numerous—certainly more than the Stark forces.
He knew his father, Tywin Lannister, was being forced to apply pressure on House Arryn and House Stark for the sake of the family's honor.
Jaime was glad to see this, for in his entire family, he was the only one who truly loved his brother, Tyrion.
He had decided on the road that if his father did not send troops, he would take men himself to the Vale to retrieve him.
Once inside the city, he realized the troops stationed within were much more disciplined—a completely different caliber from the army outside.
Jaime realized that even though his father was sending troops for Tyrion to save face, he was only using newly recruited, ragtag soldiers. It was as if he couldn't wait for Tyrion to die out there.
At this thought, Jaime Lannister's anger flared up. He rode his horse toward the administrative hall of his father, Lord Tywin.
"Father, I have returned." Jaime walked in, fuming.
"Good to have you back." Tywin showed little reaction. He merely glanced up at him before lowering his head again to look at the map.
"Father, I..." His father's calm and collected demeanor made Jaime feel as if he had punched a pile of cotton; it caused not a ripple.
"What about you? Jaime, do you know what a foolish thing you have done? This war could have ended before it even began, but your impulsiveness injured Eddard Stark's leg, preventing him from leaving King's Landing."
"Do you realize that if he had left King's Landing and fallen into my ambush, this war would have been over!"
"I'm sorry, Father." Although Jaime had not intended it, and he had not meant to hurt Eddard Stark, the deed was done. He had unintentionally disrupted Tywin's plan.
"Jaime, how many times have I told you? You must not be impulsive. You must have a clear head and consider the big picture."
Tywin Lannister turned to look at his handsome son. He had once been his designated heir to Casterly Rock, but The Mad King Aerys had appointed him to the Kingsguard at the Tourney at Harrenhal, directly cutting off his hopes.
Because of this, Tywin had completely broken ties with his childhood friend Aerys and hated him to the bone.
Tywin knew his son's mind very well. He said calmly, "Counting the time, Gregor Clegane should already be killing and burning in the Riverlands."
To be honest, Tywin Lannister really did not want to save Tyrion Lannister, the monster born from the death of his beloved wife, but for the sake of his family's honor and face, he had to send troops.
Tywin had first sent The Mountain to invade the Riverlands, the territory of House Tully, allies of House Stark. Although The Mountain was severely injured, after treatment by the maesters of House Lannister, he was barely able to move, though his left arm had suffered permanent damage and would never be as flexible as before.
Tywin had been truly shocked when he first saw the state of Gregor Clegane. He had not expected such heavy injuries to have been inflicted by his good grandson Joffrey, who always ran to his mother whenever something happened, wielding a warhammer.
If he hadn't long known that Joffrey was a bastard born of his son and daughter, judging solely by this innate supernatural strength, he might have truly believed Joffrey was Robert's seed.
After a while, Ser Addam Marbrand walked in quickly.
"My Lord, we have received word from Gregor Clegane. He has followed your orders and driven the lords of the Riverlands back to their own keeps."
"Good. Send word to Gregor Clegane to lead his troops directly toward the outskirts of Riverrun."
"Yes." Ser Addam Marbrand winked at Jaime with a smile before turning to leave.
After Ser Addam Marbrand left, Tywin looked at his son, Jaime Lannister, and said, "Go notify your uncle, Kevan Lannister, to have the provisions and supplies ready. I will lead the troops myself to see how House Arryn and House Stark respond."
"Yes." Jaime was overjoyed; his father was finally taking this seriously.
The Riverlands, Riverrun.
Edmure Tully was the current head of House Tully, the ruler of the Riverlands, and the (acting) Lord of Riverrun.
In truth, he was not supposed to be at the forefront, but with his father, Hoster Tully, gravely ill, he had to take up the mantle and lead the lords of the Riverlands.
The name Edmure Tully was also the name of a leader of House Tully during the time of the first men; it seemed Hoster Tully had high hopes for this son of his.
Edmure Tully had a head of red-brown hair, the signature of House Tully. His eyebrows were thick and bushy, and the eyes beneath them were large. Perhaps because he rarely looked people directly in the eye, he appeared somewhat timid, but his carefully groomed beard added a touch of ferocity to him.
At this moment, Ser Edmure Tully was pacing back and forth in the council chamber of Riverrun. His brows were tightly locked, as if a sorrow that could not be resolved was brewing.
He was young and inexperienced, forming a sharp contrast with the gray-haired, seasoned lords in the council chamber.
In fact, Edmure Tully had been alert as soon as he discovered that House Lannister was assembling troops. However, he did not dare to mobilize his forces rashly, fearing that it would incite further conflict.
Thus, he had sent an envoy to Casterly Rock in the Westerlands to visit, which was actually a pretext to probe the other side's intentions. At the same time, he had secretly assembled troops in Riverrun to make all preparations.
Subsequently, he had sent Lord Vance and Lord Piper with troops to garrison the mountain pass below Casterly Rock, to prevent the Lannister army from entering the heart of the Riverlands via the River Road.
However, several days had passed, and the envoy he had sent to inquire about Tywin's intentions had not returned. It seemed likely that things had gone poorly.
A few days ago, Edmure Tully had also written to his uncle, Brynden Tully, known as The Blackfish, hoping he could speak to his sister, Lysa Tully, in the Vale about the current crisis and have her send troops to support Riverrun as soon as possible.
But his sister had stubbornly refused to send reinforcements, which left him feeling somewhat lost and disappointed. Although he was touched that his uncle, Brynden Tully, had decided to return to Riverrun to assist, compared to the powerful Lannister force, Riverrun was ultimately lacking in manpower.
And just when he had focused his attention on Casterly Rock to the west, he had failed to notice that Tywin Lannister's lackey, The Mountain Gregor Clegane, had secretly broken into the Riverlands from the southeast, beginning a campaign of burning, killing, and looting, and had left safely after slaughtering several villages in succession.
Edmure Tully sighed. Whenever he thought of the faces of the survivors from those villages who had come to seek refuge with him, his kind heart softened instantly.
Defying public opinion, he ordered the city gates to be opened to receive the refugees, providing them with medical care and food.
In wartime, this behavior was tantamount to accelerating the process of death. The grain consumption of the refugees alone became a major problem, not to mention the massive expenditure of human and material resources required.
Just as he was pacing in the hall, Uthorless Wain suddenly stood up and said:
"Edmure, the current situation is not optimistic for us. Gregor Clegane has slaughtered many villages, and the number of refugees is increasing every day. Moreover, many nobles in the Riverlands have been driven back to their own territories, and armies and supplies cannot reach Riverrun. With our current grain stores, I fear we cannot sustain such consumption."
Uthorless Wain was the steward of Riverrun. His hair and beard were completely white, and he was about the same age as Duke Hoster Tully, Edmure Tully's father, making him an elder to Edmure.
As he spoke, Uthorless Wain offered his own opinion.
"Why don't we... erm... drive these refugees out? Then we can concentrate our troops and resources to hold Riverrun, and then, depending on the situation, divide our forces to the Red Fork and other places to block the Lannister offensive. At the very least, we must hold out until the reinforcements from House Stark arrive."
In fact, what Uthorless Wain said was not just his own opinion, but the sentiment of many vassals present.
The saying goes that benevolence cannot command armies, and righteousness cannot manage wealth. In the current situation where failure could happen at any moment, accepting too many refugees would only drag them down.
However, regarding this proposal, Edmure Tully refused without hesitation.
"I am the liege lord of the Riverlands. They are my people, and it is only right and proper for me to save them. If I were to abandon them in this time of life and death, what face would I have to continue ruling the Riverlands and leading you lords?"
Edmure Tully was a very kind man who always felt sympathy for suffering and vulnerable groups, but kindness was not an advantage in war.
Subsequently, Lord Mooton also stood up to support Uthorless Wain's decision. Lord Mooton was a lord of Maidenpool, occupying a middle-tier status among the many nobles of the Riverlands.
"Edmure, don't be so pedantic. Think about it: if our grain is insufficient, not only will the soldiers starve and mutiny, but we will certainly be defeated. When the time comes, won't the Lannisters come in and slaughter even more commoners? In my opinion, it would be better to do as Steward Uthorless Wain said and drive this group of refugees out first." he said.
The scene erupted in a clamor of debate, basically all urging Edmure to prioritize the big picture.
Only Lucas Root, a young man who was an attendant to Ser Andros Charlton sitting at the end, wanted to jump out and speak for Edmure, but was pushed back down by Ser Andros Charlton.
Edmure Tully, having no other choice, blushed and dodged the issue, saying, "Let us first discuss the problem of Casterly Rock. Let us put the matter of grain aside for now. What do you think, my lords?"
Edmure Tully considered himself a soft-hearted person. He was afraid that if he were persuaded and actually went to drive away the refugees, he would regret it for the rest of his life.
Those present exchanged glances and immediately agreed to Edmure Tully's suggestion.
Although these old men, relying on their seniority and experience, kept calling him Edmure, Edmure was, after all, their liege lord. He had given them plenty of face.
Now these old foxes could see Edmure's inner conflict and decided not to make things difficult for him.
Moreover, Edmure's final point was correct. Casterly Rock was now the top priority. Once the Westerlands army in Casterly Rock eliminated the troops guarding the mountain pass in the Riverlands, there would be no terrain left to stop them.
The Westerlands army would certainly follow that wide road across the unobstructed plains and go straight into the heart of the Riverlands. At that point, Riverrun would be in danger.
At this time, Titus Blaywood, who had been silent, stood up. He was the Lord of Ravens Tree Hall and the head of House Blaywood.
He was tall and thin, with long black hair draped behind him. He had a prominent aquiline nose, and his eyes were sharp and piercing.
He wore a black cloak made of raven feathers and a suit of red armor inside. On the armor, black gemstones were inlaid to form a bare, withered tree, with a circle of ravens surrounding it.
Behind him stood a young man also wearing red armor, whose appearance was extremely similar to his. This young man was his second son, Lucas Blaywood.
House Blaywood was one of the great noble houses of the Riverlands, second only to House Tully, and the family bloodline could be traced back to the time of the first men.
"I think it would be safer to send more troops to the mountain pass at Casterly Rock. I truly dare not be certain whether Lord Vance and Lord Piper can hold that place."
Lord Titus Blaywood's voice was clear and resonant; everyone present could hear his words without needing to get close.
"My Lord, I don't think we can scrape together that many troops right now." Uthorless Wain was somewhat helpless.
Hearing this, Edmure Tully looked at the crowd and frowned, saying: "We have already done our best to gather our troops. While this ensures the temporary safety of Riverrun, I am very worried that the Lannisters will send troops to defeat the forces at Pinkmaiden and Ravens Tree Hall, which are not far from Riverrun, one by one. In that case, we would be surrounded without even realizing it."
"Edmure, do not worry. My Ravens Tree Hall is garrisoned by my eldest son, Brynden Blaywood, so it will certainly be foolproof."
Titus Blaywood was very confident. He then changed his tone and suddenly mentioned another family.
"Speaking of which, I am actually more worried about Ser Janos Bracken of Stone Hedge. That fellow is always fond of fighting and brawling; perhaps he is fighting the Lannisters quite happily right now."
As he spoke, Titus Blaywood sighed again, and in a tone of incomparable sadness, feigned concern: "I truly hope this old guy, Janos Bracken, can still be alive tomorrow."
Edmure Tully's mouth twitched violently as he heard this, thinking: Are you afraid he might die too slowly?
House Blaywood and House Bracken had been blood enemies for hundreds of years, and Edmure Tully had not expected Titus to say anything good about his old rival.
But with a powerful enemy at the gates, Edmure Tully still hoped everyone could unite.
Facing the expectant crowd, Edmure Tully knew it was time for him to make a decision, so he solemnly stated his thoughts.
"Please, everyone, listen to me! First, I believe we need to detach another thousand men to support the garrison at the mountain pass below Casterly Rock, to prevent the Casterly Rock army from driving straight into the Riverlands."
"Secondly, we need to scatter our scouts to investigate the movements of the Lannisters. However, we are short on troops, so the scouts should focus on investigating Pinkmaiden, Ravens Tree Hall, and other places."
"Our advantage lies in the fact that Riverrun is located at the angle between the Red Fork and the Tumblestone River. This geographical position means that it is very difficult for the enemy to completely surround us; they must divide their forces into at least three parts. Thus, even if they reach here, we can advance to attack and retreat to defend."
It had to be said that Edmure Tully still had a certain strategic eye, and everyone present nodded in agreement with his strategy.
Subsequently, Edmure Tully cast his gaze toward the steward, Uthorless Wain, beside him.
"Has House Frey of The Twins not declared their position yet?" Edmure Tully asked. House Frey was always a headache; they were clearly nobles of the Riverlands, yet they never listened to the orders of House Tully, their liege lord.
"Not yet. That old fellow Walder Frey must want to do as he did many years ago, declaring his position only at the very end, helping whoever wins. However, your sister, Lady Stark, wrote yesterday saying that she is prepared to go to House Frey in person." Uthorless Wain replied.
"I only hope everything goes smoothly." Edmure remained somewhat uneasy.