iron throne of ice and fire

Chapter 449 The Lion and the Trout

"It's boiling oil! Gods!"

As the fiery arcs tilted downward from Riverrun again, the screams of fear from below seemed to tear the sky apart.

Looking at the sudden scene in front of him, Davon Lannister pursed his lips tightly and clenched his hands into fists unconsciously.

Given the current morale of the Lannister army and the current situation, he knew that continuing to stay here would only bring more casualties and disasters.

Sir Davon did not hesitate for long. He took a deep breath and shouted, "Pass my order, retreat!"

During the retreat, Ser Davon looked back at Riverrun and he had to admit... Blackfish was difficult to deal with. Brynden Tully might become another famous general in Westeros.

Sir Davon couldn't help but admire that Blackfish had anticipated the situation after the sluice gates were opened... He had withstood the many critical moments of Riverrun and saved the boiling oil until today.

The Trout soldiers on Riverrun were cheering, while smoke was billowing below Riverrun, and the Lannister army's siege weapons suffered heavy losses.

The Lannister soldiers who retreated in a panic must rest for a while, and Ser Davon can only wait for the 3,000 new troops to be transferred from the Golden Tooth.

With the addition of fresh troops, the morale of the Lannister soldiers will be boosted again, and then... a new round of competition between him and Blackfish will truly begin.

Ser Davon was also encouraging himself. Only by conquering Riverrun could the Lannister family, which had lost Lord Tywin, regain its former glory.

This is a war that can only be won...

However………

Ser Davon couldn't help but look back in the direction of Riverrun again. How much of the Lannister new army that Lord Tywin had invested heavily in would be consumed under Riverrun?
If the losses were too great, Ser Davon was more worried that it would undermine the absolute rule of the Lannister family in the West that was established by Lord Tywin.

Ser Davon shook his head slightly. This was something the Duke of Casterly Rock needed to consider, not him.

He couldn't help but think of the new master of the West, the Duchess of Casterly Rock, Cersei Lannister.

He began to recall the few memories of Cersei in his mind...

Cersei has golden hair that shines like the sun, her eyes are like emerald green gems, she always holds her head high, and has been a proud lioness since she was a child.

He remembered that Cersei's smile was as beautiful as a flower, and then... and then... her curves became more charming as she grew older?
And then...and then...nothing?
Ser Davon suddenly realized that his impression of Cersei was... nothing more than her beauty.

He believed that as a member of the Lannister family, if Cersei had other surprising qualities, he would definitely be impressed.

If this is true, can Cersei be the head of the Lannister family just by relying on her beauty? Can she govern the Westerlands well?
Could it be... that this is why Aunt Gina wants to save her family?

Ser Davan thought of another small anomaly that he had not paid much attention to. Jaime and Cersei had been so close since childhood, but why was he unwilling to talk to him more about Cersei?

Thinking of this, Davon felt that he had to talk to James immediately.

He gave his adjutant a few brief instructions, then spurred his horse and rode away, surrounded by men in red robes.

After entering the camp and coming near Jaime's tent, Ser Davon saw Ser Balon Swann standing at the door of the tent.

Jumping off the horse, Sir Davon noticed that the tent was too quiet, grinned, and gestured to Baron to keep quiet.

Sir Baron shrugged and stepped aside, while Davon walked in with a malicious smile on his face.

Inside the tent, judging from the outline of the blanket on the bed, it was obvious that... the two people underneath it were still sleeping, entangled together.

Sir Davon approached quietly like a thief and slowly lifted the blanket.

Looking at the "scenery" under the blanket, Dafon suddenly chuckled... Although James has been extremely outstanding since he was a child, whether in appearance, swordsmanship or riding skills, every time he sees it, he can straighten his chest.

Very good, it is still the same. Dafon's originally irritable mood suddenly became a little happier.

As if he had noticed something, James moved his eyelids, opened his eyes slightly, and murmured: "Cousin..."

Then he suddenly opened his eyes wide, paused, and said in a hoarse voice: "Is it time to get ready?"

Jaime remembered that the Lannister army was going to attack the city today.

Supporting himself with one hand, he sat up, rubbed his swollen head, and said, "I'll be fine soon."

Sir Davon chuckled: "Don't worry, Blackfish gave me a 'gift' this morning, and we have already withdrawn our troops."

James sat there quietly, looking intently at his grinning cousin who was standing beside the bed.

For a moment, the air around seemed to freeze, and only my cousin's undisguised smile seemed particularly abrupt.

After a moment, the joyful memories of last night finally came back like a tide, and those warm scenes and passionate moments kept emerging in my mind.

He couldn't remember her name.

James rubbed his head again. He felt a kind of... an indescribable melancholy and satisfaction in his heart.

Suddenly feeling a soft touch, James lowered his eyes and looked over. The woman beside him was still sleeping, her long brown hair scattered on the bed, a few strands of hair on her wheat-colored face, her lips slightly parted, her breathing even and steady, as if silently telling him about her fatigue and satisfaction last night.

Because the blanket was lifted, she seemed to subconsciously hug James tightly beside her.

"what gift?"

After asking casually, James gently covered her with the blanket again and was about to climb out of bed. But the moment his feet touched the Myrish carpet under the bed, he felt his legs go weak, as if the strength supporting his body had been quietly taken away in last night's passion.

His legs were trembling slightly, and he paused before saying, "Is Black Fish's gift a surprise?"

As he spoke, James stood up calmly, reached out for his robe and put it on.

"It was a surprise indeed. He used the boiling oil he had hidden to disrupt our attack."

Ser Davon spread his hands and added, "Not only did they strike at the Lannister soldiers, they also burned most of our siege weapons."

Then he complained: "I have to work hard to encourage our soldiers. I feel that this is more tiring than fighting."

James frowned and said, "I thought the Black Fish's boiling oil had run out."

He glanced in the direction of the bed, patted Dafeng's sturdy arm, and said, "Let's go out for a walk."

The river outside the camp.

Looking at his cousin who was staring at Riverrun with a frown on his face, Davon stopped complaining and instead comforted him: "Jaime, this is just Blackfish's last performance. He can't be hiding any boiling oil. As soon as the reinforcements from Golden Tooth arrive, I will launch an attack immediately. I won't give him any time to breathe." Ser Jaime retracted his gaze and nodded slightly. He pulled out the cork from the wineskin and took a big gulp of ale.

He wiped the corners of his mouth with the back of his hand and said, "I will go meet those lords who are constantly complaining this afternoon. I will do my best to appease them."

Sir Davon curled his lips, untied his wine bag and took a sip of wine, saying, "Once we win, they will immediately brag about how great their contribution was."

Sir Jaime pulled it and said, "Everyone has eyes. Your tongue cannot hide from the eyes of knights and soldiers. Everyone will know your contribution."

"I am only relying on the honor of my family to hold on..."

Ser Davon looked at James and said seriously, "My cousin, I know very well that the lords and knights of the Westerlands are still fighting because of you. I am telling the truth. The title of Guardian of the Westerlands belongs to you. I hope you will not refuse it."

"I am a member of the Kingsguard."

"Don't forget, you were once the Warden of the East, and you were also a member of the Kingsguard... Oh, yes, you told me that it was King Robert who messed up."

Seeing that James was still unwilling to talk about this matter, Sir Davon sighed secretly and changed the subject.

He nudged James with his shoulder, gave a lewd smile, and said, "Hey, you seem to like Pia?"

James raised one eyebrow. "Pia? Who is she?"

"oh---"

Sir Davon exclaimed exaggeratedly, "You are so heartless that you don't even have the interest to remember his name. I saw that she was tormented by you all night long."

Sir James shrugged helplessly and said, "Her name is Pia? I remember it."

Ser Davon chuckled. "Her name is 'Little Beauty' Pia. She used to be a maid in Harrenhal and Hean's family. It is said that she is very famous there."

Ser Jaime took a sip of his wine and asked, "Why did she get here?"

Sir Davon spread his hands and said, "Of course it's because Pia is so popular that no one can do without her. However, she will belong to you in the future, and you just happen to be in need of a maid to take care of her."

Ser Jaime was silent for a moment, then he said, "I will make sure she is settled."

Sir Davon shrugged nonchalantly and said, "Well, it's up to you. When you don't like it anymore, I'll send you another little beauty. To be honest, I've never seen a woman who doesn't love you. I've been jealous of you for this since I was a child."

Sir Jaime smiled lightly, glanced in the direction of the camp, and said, "Let's go back and get something to eat."

After walking in silence for a while, Ser Davan suddenly said, "Jaime, I want to hear you talk about Cersei. Anything is fine. I hope to know more about her."

Ser Jaime paused for a moment, looking at his cousin who was walking beside him, and asked, "Cersei?"

…………

The 3,000 reinforcements from the Golden Tooth City sped up their march under the urging of Ser Davon. They rode non-stop and entered the Lannister camp west of Riverrun in just two days.

After a brief rest, Sir Davon could not wait to launch a large-scale siege on the dying Trout Castle.

The Lannister soldiers, with their morale rekindled, carried and pushed the siege weapons newly made by the carpenters and rushed towards Riverrun like a tide.

The strongest Lannister soldiers pushed the battering rams onto the stone bridge across the moat below Riverrun again, and bravely rushed towards the city gate despite the stones and arrows thrown down from Riverrun.

Other Lannister soldiers used long wooden planks to build wooden bridges across the trenches where the river flowed.

The siege ladders that were carried to the foot of the city were erected one by one and pressed against the city wall. The Lannister soldiers shouted and climbed up.

At this moment, under the orders of Brynden Tully, the Troutmen carried all the barrels filled with boiling oil onto the battlements.

Brynden took out all the boiling oil that had accumulated over the past few days.

Brynden waved his hand, and Trout Officer roared.

"Pour the oil!"

The boiling oil pouring down like a waterfall on Riverrun once again ignited the fire of despair for the Lannisters who bravely climbed up to the city.

There were miserable screams at the foot of Riverrun. The Lannister soldiers retreated in panic and the Lannister offensive suffered a severe setback.

However, Lord Brynden's good mood dissipated by the evening... the mysterious mercenary stopped delivering boiling oil to them.

Brynden's premonition was not wrong. The same thing happened on the second and third days, as if those "smuggling ships" had suddenly disappeared and never appeared again.

While Brynden personally moved among the soldiers to boost their morale, the tenacious Davon Lannister launched a tentative siege.

After three consecutive siege attempts, Sir Davon began to gradually increase the intensity of the siege and sent out more and more soldiers.

Later, Duke Brynden donned armor and helmet and went into battle himself. He stood on the city wall with his knights and soldiers, fighting off wave after wave of attacks.

Although the Lannister army still had an absolute advantage in numbers over the Trout soldiers, who only had more than a thousand men left, both sides were fighting hard.

The continuous siege and defense battles almost exhausted the fighting spirit of the Lannister and Tully soldiers, and both sides were on the verge of death.

Whoever breaks first will be completely defeated.

If the Lannisters, who have the advantage in numbers, choose to surround but not attack at this time, they may be able to wait until the trout soldiers collapse under the anxiety.

However, there was only one month left before the deadline set by the Queen Regent. The Warden of the West, Daven Lannister, did not dare to gamble, let alone underestimate Brynden Tully.

If Black Fish is given some time to catch his breath, who knows what tricks he will play? !

The final showdown between Lannister and Trout may then break out, and a brief peace comes under Riverrun.

The Westerwarden tent in the Lannister camp.

Ser Davon's messy long hair and beard made him look like a gambler who had lost a lot of money. He stretched out his hands, tightly grasped his cousin's arms, and said, "Only two thousand, no, I only need one thousand! Jaime, as long as you can bring Crabbe's soldiers, Trout's Castle will be captured immediately! My cousin, the victory of Lannister is just around the corner, I need your help, I beg for your help!"

Sir Jaime's brows were tightly furrowed, his face full of hesitation.

After a moment of silence, he spoke: "Davon, Duke Green has made his position clear to us. He is the 'observer' of the Battle of Riverrun."

(End of this chapter)