Chapter 105

An alliance with House Tully could indeed bolster House Tyrell's influence across the Seven Kingdoms, while also consolidating their control over the Reach. However, in times of peace, such benefits were merely decorative. Wasting the only marriage opportunity of their precious daughter for this marginal gain seemed unwise—even Aegor, an outsider to the noble games, could see that.

With Margaery bent on becoming queen, failing to seduce the king would undoubtedly shift her focus to the prince. Poor Edmure—who knew when he’d finally resolve his marital predicament? Then again, as the future Lord Paramount of the Riverlands, Edmure might lack a wife, but he’d hardly be without mistresses or lovers. What business was it of a Night’s Watchman to concern himself with Tully marriage affairs?

Thinking of the Night’s Watch, a sudden surge of anger welled up in Aegor’s chest. While his sworn brothers were locked in life-and-death struggles beyond the Wall against wildlings and inhuman threats, the nobles of the Seven Kingdoms were holding an extravagant matchmaking festival here in the camps beneath the Bloody Gate. Soldiers were dying in waves at the most perilous choke point in Westeros, while the lords divided their spoils and schemed for their petty interests.

What utter absurdity! The vile reality of feudalism!

…

The anger came as quickly as it went, leaving Aegor bewildered by the intensity of the emotion. Could it be that his constant pretense as a loyal Night’s Watchman had, over time, genuinely turned him into one? He scoffed at himself and dismissed the thought. “In summary, everyone wants to marry up, yet no one can. What a mess.”

The Earl of Buckwell didn’t notice Aegor’s brief lapse in demeanor. Gazing at the sprawling camp of tents, the Earl let out a long sigh. “Indeed, it’s a mess. But not everyone’s aiming to marry up. The ones I mentioned earlier are the great lords—those with rank, status, and power well above my modest Antlers. Their ambitions are understandable. Still, the Seven Kingdoms are built on countless counts, landed knights, and smallfolk with steady feet on the ground. At least two marriages, that I know of, have already been agreed upon in this camp, and the first battle hasn’t even begun.”

“Congratulations to those four families,” Aegor replied with disinterest. For some reason, his curiosity waned, and he didn’t bother asking who the families were. He changed the topic. “Today’s siege attempt was thrilling, but the defenders were a step ahead. What are the king’s plans? Besides clearing out the rebel strongholds in the Vale, surely we can’t just sit here and wait at the Bloody Gate?”

…

The Earl seemed equally unenthusiastic about dwelling on the noble alliances. The mention of his son fighting wildlings at the Wall had soured his mood, so he gladly followed Aegor’s lead. “Of course we can’t wait. Beyond the Bloody Gate lies not a lone castle but the entire Vale, home to hundreds of thousands. If the rebels wanted to, they could hold out for a hundred years. We’re the ones racing against time. Should the Eyrie’s supplies run dry and they’re forced to surrender, yet we fail to breach the Bloody Gate in time to rescue them, this campaign will be a loss.”

The Earl spoke with clear logic and sharp insight. “This chokepoint is a nightmare. The Bloody Gate is so narrow that attempting a traditional ladder assault would incur staggering casualties before we’d gain any ground. The war council has brainstormed numerous ideas to break through: tunneling under the walls, piling up enough earth to build a ramp as tall as the gate, and even digging into the mountainside to bypass the gate entirely. As a Night’s Watchman experienced in defending castles, what do you think of these plans?”

Though Aegor had never personally defended a castle, he could easily spot the flaws. “Tunneling into the gatehouse would simply make us sitting ducks. The defenders could dump barrels of oil and set us ablaze. As for the ramps and tunnels... didn’t you say time is of the essence? Such plans would take far too long.”

“Exactly,” the Earl nodded. “These are the issues. But since these ideas were proposed in the war council, we can discuss them privately, but be mindful not to spread them around.”

“Military secrets—I understand.”

…

The two continued their casual conversation as they strolled back toward the royal encampment and the Buckwell army’s quarters. Judging by the steady stream of soldiers retreating from the front lines, it seemed the commanders had decided there would be no further assaults on the Bloody Gate today. After exchanging farewells, Aegor returned to his tent.

…

On the second day after the failed assault, the army of eighty thousand stationed outside the Bloody Gate split into smaller forces. Over thirty thousand soldiers were dispatched to mop up rebel strongholds scattered throughout the Vale. The remaining troops were divided into six groups by their respective regions, taking turns to attack and defend.

The logic behind this strategy was clear: while the rebels had blocked the Bloody Gate, cutting themselves off from the rest of the Vale, they had also prevented any chance of launching ambushes or raids on the royal army. In such a situation, keeping the entire army on constant alert would only lead to exhaustion. Rotating responsibilities reduced overall strain on the troops.

Each group on duty was responsible for camp defense and conducting token attacks on the gate—a strategy that seemed like a war of attrition against the rebels. However, with thousands of defenders inside the Vale, the rebels could rest in shifts as well. It became apparent that Robert hoped to use the capture of the remaining strongholds in the Vale to pressure the rebels into surrendering.

After two more unsuccessful attempts to storm the walls, with hundreds of casualties and no progress, the campaign reached a stalemate. Both sides were now locked in an awkward deadlock.

The so-called “Justice Alliance” had not anticipated such fierce resistance. They had hoped that righteous rhetoric and the impregnable Bloody Gate would drive Lysa Arryn out of the Vale and restore their autonomy. They never expected Robert to respond with overwhelming force, summoning six of the Seven Kingdoms to crush them. On the other hand, Robert had underestimated the difficulty of breaching the gate and now found himself in an embarrassing quagmire, with the entire realm watching.

Days passed with the two sides glaring at each other across the gate. Finally, the rebels extended an olive branch: they proposed that if Lysa Tully were removed from power, Yohn Royce, the leader of the rebellion, would admit to treason, relinquish his position as head of House Royce to his son, and take the black. In return, Robert would cease pursuing the other rebel houses.

It was a reasonable offer, full of concessions. But Robert refused. He demanded unconditional surrender, insisting that all terms be negotiated only after the rebels laid down their arms.

Aegor understood Robert’s reasoning. Even in modern times, many governments followed a similar hardline policy: never negotiate with terrorists. The principle was simple: if rebellion could secure favorable terms, the realm would never know peace.

In the relative calm of the siege, Aegor focused on his own goals. Moving quietly through the encampments of the six armies, he promoted the industries of the Night’s Watch to any potential customers he could find.

Convincing others to “invest” in such an archaic era was no small challenge. But extracting funds from the wealthy nobility was far more efficient than trying to raise money from the impoverished smallfolk. After countless rejections and honing his pitch, Aegor’s skill at persuasion had grown immensely. With tangible examples of Night’s Watch goods and strong sales numbers as proof, he found more and more nobles willing to sit down and listen. Many even agreed to visit the factories in King’s Landing during their travels.

Unknowingly, Aegor was laying the foundation for something much larger.