iron throne of ice and fire

Chapter 507 Surrender
The Count of Dreadfort approached the fireplace. The fire dyed his bloodless face, which was like an ice sculpture, with a layer of fiery red. In the interweaving of light and shadow, his expression looked even more stern.

"If the long winter comes, the most difficult problem for the North is the storage of winter food. More than a year of war has almost devoured all of this year's harvest, Lord Ned."

Duke Eddard nodded slowly. "I have ordered White Harbor to purchase grain from the south with all its strength. Wyman (Wyman Manderly, Earl of White Harbor) sent someone to contact me a few days ago, and the trade is going smoothly."

[White Harbor is the main trading port in the North, located at the mouth of the White Blade River. It is the smallest of the five major cities in Westeros]

Roose Bolton glanced at the Lord and said, "Lord Ned, please forgive me for being frank. The more food we buy, the more expensive it will be. Our demand is like a bottomless abyss, which will completely drain the wealth of the entire North."

Duke Ed was silent for a long time with a solemn expression on his face. The wolf's grey eyes turned to Count Luce and said, "Let me hear your idea."

Earl Luce did not rush to respond. He slowly pulled over a chair and sat down. After a pause, his small but penetrating voice came over: "The long winter is coming. Your decision is related to the survival of the entire North. If we don't get support from the Red Keep, those greedy grain merchants will be able to defeat us. The consequences may be more serious than I expected. They will never have the slightest mercy on the people of the North."

He stroked the armrest with his pale, slender fingers and continued, "We can no longer waste time with Lord Stannis. This will give the southern nobles an excuse to punish the North. Before the price of food skyrocketed, we should surrender to the Red Keep as soon as possible and return to the Seven Kingdoms."

He pursed his thin lips and said, "To be precise, we should submit to Lord Green Crabbe."

The fire reflected in his eyes was jumping. "If the Targaryen royal family returns to King's Landing, the North and the Iron Throne will urgently need a solid bridge, and Regent Green is the only choice for the North. My lord, before the Targaryens enter King's Landing, we must go south as soon as possible and show the Regent the North's sincerity in surrendering as soon as possible."

The wolf is heading south...

Duke Ed's thoughts were instantly pulled back to the painful past.

The Mad King burned his father to death and strangled his brother. His sister is sleeping forever on a blood bed in the Tower of Bliss. And his eldest son...

Even if he had not been secretly rescued by Green, his head would have been hanging on the gate of King's Landing and become the object of everyone's scorn.

Duke Ed exhaled lightly, and his deep voice rang out: "Luce, I will consider your suggestion carefully."

After a pause, he patted the silent Count Luce with his big hand and added: "I know the seriousness of the matter. I won't delay too long."

Count Luce glanced at Duke Ed with his light eyes and nodded slightly without sound.

Then, Duke Ed's tall and upright figure stood up from his chair, his figure like a towering mountain.

"I'll go over and confirm that now."

"You are going to visit Lord Stannis now?"

"Yes, now."

…………

Castle Black, King's Tower.

The wood in the fireplace crackled. Tyrion bowed to Stannis, who was sitting beside him, and said, "Good night, your majesty. I hope you will be happy tonight."

Stannis stared at Tyrion in silence. The gentle voice of Melisandre, the red-robed priestess standing beside him, with an accent from the Jade Sea region, came over like a warm breeze.

"Good evening, my lovely little lion."

Tyrion smiled reservedly, and just as he was about to speak, Stannis's cold voice sounded first: "They finally admitted that the children born to Cersei were all bastards..." His teeth creaked: "... However, no one wants to welcome back their legitimate king."

Stannis's blue eyes were fixed on Tyrion. "Glynn Crabbe, and his puppet, the Small Council, have no right to deprive the Baratheons of their ancestral lands, or the legitimate rights of the rightful King of the Seven Kingdoms."

Melisandre placed her white and tender hand gently on the king's thin shoulder and said softly, "That's because the young regent has no idea of ​​the power of the Lord of Light. Ignorance is fearless."

She approached him lightly, and her slender fingers slowly stroked his shoulders. "When he truly realizes the greatness of the King of Light and the great cause you shoulder, submitting to you is his only way. Under the shining light of the King of Light, all darkness and evil will be exposed."

Stannis snorted coldly and said, "Now that Cersei's crime of tarnishing the royal bloodline has been exposed, they should know that Green's position as regent is not legitimate..."

His teeth creaked again. "Those people, are they all blind? Why do they turn a blind eye to Green's actions?"

Melisandre placed her hands on the king's shoulders, her fiery red eyes turned to Tyrion, who was a little distracted, and said, "What do you think of this, clever little lion?"

"Well, Green Crabbe's behavior is indeed like that of a robber..."

Tyrion began to speak, but Stannis interrupted impatiently, "Come closer, my advisor, and speak directly."

Tyrion opened his mouth, and his black and green eyes quickly swept over the king and the priestess who were behaving intimately, and he came up to them with a respectful look.

"Please continue, little lion."

Glancing at them again, Tyrion coughed lightly, cleared his throat, and said, "Green has robbed you of your legitimate rights like a bandit... However, from what I know about him, he would not be so foolish as to leave himself an obvious excuse for others to criticize him."

He shrugged: "From the results, he did so..."

Stannis added coldly, "As long as he can successfully bear the Mad King's seed, everything he does will be legal. This is his real conspiracy."

He sneered: "I didn't expect that the Seven Kingdoms would be played around by a young man."

Melisandre smiled and whispered in Stannis' ear: "No matter what kind of conspiracy or trick, it is futile in the face of the power of the Lord of Light. As long as you get me the blood of the king, all problems will be solved. The power of the Lord of Light will dispel the darkness and pave the way for you to the Iron Throne."

Stannis gazed deeper into the fire. "The King's blood."

Melisandre nodded gently: "Yes, the blood of the king. Only it can awaken the dormant power."

Her left hand rested on Stannis's other shoulder, her seductive red lips almost touching his ear. "Tyrion has tried his best to persuade your majesty, but he still cannot shake the wolf's selfishness. His insistence on protecting Robert's bastard will bring great disaster to your kingdom and all living people. The night is dark and dangerous everywhere. Your majesty must make a choice."

Tyrion's eyes trembled as he listened. Glynn and Lord Eddard... With only two thousand soldiers, Stannis seemed to be able to deal with them at any time?!
Is it false statement or the truth?

Tyrion's pupils suddenly shrank, and a terrible thought suddenly flashed through his mind, Shadow Killer... He remembered the rumor about Renly's death!

Suddenly, Tyrion looked up at the king and his witch who seemed to be snuggling together, and his eyes met Melisandre's gaze.

She smiled at him, and a chill ran down Tyrion's spine.

(End of this chapter)