Casterly Rock boasted the largest concentration of the finest smiths in the realm. The dozens of smelting furnaces alone formed a considerable workshop complex.
Tywin, accompanied by Damion and Addam, didn't even need to step inside the workshop to feel the sweltering heat seeping through his clothes. Just a few steps in, and beads of sweat began to form on his forehead.
Entering the workshop was like stepping into an oven. The bright, crimson flames were almost blinding, and the clanging of hammers was denser than raindrops. Seeing Tywin's group, the overseer immediately hurried over. He was a man past forty, wearing only a thin grey linen undershirt.
His chest and back were stained brown with sweat. Upon seeing Tywin, he immediately shouted to those behind him: "Lord Tywin is here! Everyone, come pay your respects to Lord Tywin!"
This shout brought the hammering to a rapid halt, like a sudden stop to a rainstorm—from a dense clatter to scattered taps, until complete silence.
Although stopping halfway would turn the weapons or tools being forged into scrap, this was Tywin's order. He believed the dignity of the Lord of Casterly Rock was worth more than a few pieces of steel.
Addam watched the scene, his eyes widening slightly. A different thought rose in his mind.
"How is the recent production?" Tywin picked up an arrowhead casually. Its tip glinted coldly, sharp enough to leave a white mark on his hand with a light scratch.
"My lord, recently we can produce between 2,800 and 3,300 arrowheads a day, 340 to 540 spears, and about 12 to 16 suits of armor. As for longswords—"
Tywin had once said that true conquest relies on steel and blood. He had personally selected the overseer of Casterly Rock's armory, so he knew the production capacity like the back of his hand. Tywin was very satisfied.
"Forget the longswords for now. Prioritize making more spears and arrows. Also, tell the smiths that for every weapon produced above the current quota, I will pay double."
"Yes, my lord!" The overseer's smile reached his eyes as he bowed to Tywin in pleasant surprise.
After a simple inspection, Tywin left the armory.
Beside him, Damion said, "My lord, our current stockpile of weapons is still plentiful, enough to arm an army of twenty thousand."
Tywin nodded and indicated he wanted to inspect the warehouses.
Casterly Rock didn't need specially dug warehouses. Following old customs, they simply renovated hollowed-out mine shafts to store supplies.
The group arrived at an abandoned gold mine. The gate was made of bronze and oak, secured by a copper lock the size of a human head.
However, this warehouse seemed recently established; the copper lock was bright yellow, showing no signs of green patina.
The warehouse keeper took out a key, unlocked the brass lock, lit a torch, and led them into the dark warehouse.
By the light of the torch, Damion briefed Tywin on the storage situation.
"My lord, while you were away on campaign, we cleared out four more mine shafts to use as warehouses. I have filled them with grain and steel."
"You did well. This isn't ten years ago. Exchanging gold for steel and grain is the wise course of action."
Tywin once again approved of Damion's work.
Truth be told, the gold mines beneath Casterly Rock had run dry three years ago. The last vein had been mined clean.
This was a bad sign, but he hadn't let anyone know. Instead, Tywin decided to turn the empty mine shafts into warehouses for supplies.
These tunnels in the rock were very dry and spacious, perfect for storage.
The group arrived at the grain storage. Sacks of grain were stacked two men high. Looking around, there were thousands of such sacks, and there were no fewer than ten such warehouses!
"My lord, counting soldiers, craftsmen, and servants, there are seventeen thousand people in Casterly Rock. Our grain reserves are enough to last over a decade."
"Mm. It is enough."
Tywin nodded. If anyone thought they could starve them out by besieging Casterly Rock, it was simply impossible.
Besieging Casterly Rock would require at least twenty thousand troops. The provisions needed to sustain twenty thousand troops on a distant campaign would be astronomical; even Highgarden might not be able to bear the cost.
Besides, the soldiers might not be able to endure being away from home for so long.
Next, they visited Casterly Rock's cisterns. The cisterns were massive, and compared to the armory earlier, the area was damp and cold.
After all, Casterly Rock was built on a stone mountain. Only a few wells could be dug around the foot of the mountain, far from enough to support nearly twenty thousand people.
However, Casterly Rock's coastal location made up for this. Ample rainfall allowed them to replenish their water supply through precipitation.
Ample food and a secure water source were the true reasons behind Casterly Rock's reputation as "impregnable."
"The water in the cisterns is enough for Casterly Rock to use for at least a month. Although consumption at the armory might increase, it is autumn now. The rains will soon be heavier than in summer. Before long, it will rain again. We won't lack water," Damion said confidently.
"Addam."
"My lord." Seeing Tywin call him, Addam hurried forward.
"Tell the kitchens to prepare extra meat today to reward the soldiers."
"As you command."
The reason Tywin suddenly decided to inspect the supplies and boost morale was that he had received news that Jon had breached the Golden Tooth and raided all the way to Sarsfield.
This had greatly exceeded his expectations.
Tywin naturally didn't believe Daven would fall for Jon's petty tricks. There must have been a problem with the ravens.
Thinking of the mysterious deaths of Renly and his castellan, and the widespread rumors about Stannis favoring a witch, Tywin judged it was likely related to sorcery.
However, regarding sorcery, the maesters of Casterly Rock couldn't provide any useful answers.
"I plan to continue expanding the army. Order the entire Westerlands to conscript at least another fifty thousand troops. Lower the age limit to thirteen and raise the upper limit to fifty-five. Also, conscript physically fit women into the army as well!" Tywin looked at the curved horizon in the distance, speaking as if allocating manpower was like allocating gold coins from the vault.
However, Damion spoke up: "But my lord, this will drain the Westerlands of its young men. Even if we win, we—"
"If the Lannisters cease to exist, there is no need for the Westerlands to exist," Tywin interrupted Damion directly, his voice carrying a chilling ruthlessness that made one shudder.
"Understood, my lord," Damion replied, casting aside his compassion.
He knew that at the beginning of the war, Tywin and Jaime had taken about forty thousand men. Later, Daven's father had raised twenty thousand new recruits in the Westerlands, only to be crushed by Robb. Not to mention the Ironborn had also raided the Westerlands extensively.
Less than three months after returning to the West, Tywin was conscripting tens of thousands more. regardless of the war's outcome, the Westerlands would be severely weakened, perhaps not recovering for twenty years.
"Also, we can consider discussing peace terms with Stannis." Seeing Tywin finally make this decision, Damion breathed a sigh of relief.
In fact, they still held many cards. For example, they could choose to forgive the debt previously lent to the crown—a staggering three million gold dragons.
Though those three million were practically unrecoverable anyway; Stannis certainly wouldn't repay Robert's squandered gold.
Back then, Tywin's sack of King's Landing yielded less than a million gold dragons. Robert spending those three million lavishly in the capital could be considered Tywin's compensation to the smallfolk of King's Landing.
However, the crown still owed the Iron Bank and other Free Cities banks three million gold dragons. They could use paying off these debts as a bargaining chip.
Additionally, Tywin could bear heavy fines, but only on the condition that the Iron Throne returned Cersei and Jaime to him.
Within this condition, Cersei was secondary; Jaime was the priority. As for their children, Tywin had already given up on them.
Of course, these conditions wouldn't be offered all at once, but compromised little by little with Stannis. Tywin set a bottom line for negotiations and gave Damion full authority to handle it.
These were the terms for peace talks. The true foundation for peace, however, remained the impregnable Casterly Rock.
Neither Stannis in King's Landing nor the Tyrells in Highgarden could sustain a long-term campaign in the Westerlands. Once they left, the Westerlands would still belong to the Lannisters.
"There is one more crucial point. We need to remind Stannis of the possibility of an alliance between the Tyrells and that bastard," Tywin continued. "We can accept that bastard occupying the Golden Tooth, or even splitting the Westerlands with the Lannisters. But as long as the Lannisters still hold Casterly Rock, we will eventually take the entire Westerlands back!"