Chapter 169: Under Snakewood, Poisonous Plots and Assassination
The Vale, outside the Castle of the Moon, main road
The Castle of the Moon was a massive castle several times larger than The Eyrie; it served as the winter palace of The Eyrie.
It could be said that as long as this castle stood, The Eyrie was extremely difficult to capture. However, today, the atmosphere inside the castle's Throne Room was extremely oppressive.
Petyr Baelish, "Littlefinger," who had already been appointed Regent of the Vale by the Iron Throne, was currently looking at a raven message in his hand with a grim expression.
"Lord Petyr! What is the royal family's current attitude?"
Albar Royce, the Lord of the Castle of the Moon who had returned to power in his father's stead, was looking at his patron, Littlefinger, with some anxiety.
"According to the final plea for help sent from Iron Oak City three days ago, and according to Lady Anya Waywood, the enemy seems to have deployed dragons!"
The speaker was the newly appointed Lord of Longbow Hall, Harlan Hunter. This young lord was the youngest in his family; his father and two older brothers had died at the hands of Mountain Clans warriors in recent battles.
Although many knights believed this matter was related to the Lord of Longbow Hall, Littlefinger, as the Regent of the Vale, had recognized the young lord's right of inheritance.
"The knights of Redfort, Heart's Home, and Old Anchor are all showing signs of restlessness. They seem to have other ideas; we had better act quickly."
Jon Lynderly, the Lord of Snakewood, also spoke up at the right time.
In his view, the situation in the Vale was becoming increasingly dire. When facing that bastard from the North who had dragons, many lords instinctively did not want to oppose him.
The reason these men, who were on good terms with Littlefinger, were willing to stay here was entirely because he controlled a large army and had the support of the royal family.
If they were facing fire-breathing dragons, these lords would not bother lingering here with Littlefinger. But they all knew that once the integration of the Vale was complete, they would gain even more benefits.
Currently, the Vale was basically supported by a few major noble families in the center, while the forces of the Gulltown faction were controlled by House Royce.
If they won this time, those who had firmly stood by Littlefinger's side would likely gain more benefits.
"How many of our troops are left after the retreat?"
After passing the letter in his hand, Littlefinger asked with a bit of a headache.
The royal family was also in chaos right now. The fleet formed by The Reach was preparing to break through Stannis's blockade of Blackwater Bay, so they had no spare strength to come and support Gulltown.
Littlefinger hadn't expected Jon's speed to be so fast—controlling those clansmen of the Mountains of the Moon and Gulltown without warning.
In the past, Littlefinger had never taken these wildlings to heart, but now, these fellows had directly affected his strategy.
"Our army still maintains around ten thousand men. The mercenaries and levies will only be kept in the rear this time; we will not let them cause trouble at the front again."
Previously, after receiving the plea for help from Iron Oak City, Littlefinger had sent an army of about 5,000 to support them. However, on the way, those Mountain Clans cavalrymen launched an attack from the woods.
After the ambush, they even dropped giant boulders from the mountains. This directly led to chaos among the mercenary units and levies, even affecting the troops behind them.
"We should have sent scouts ahead to clear those roadblocks and obstacles beforehand. These guys are deliberately disrupting us."
Lord Albar Royce was also somewhat agitated after hearing the number of troops.
As long as they could firmly control this army, they still had great hope in the Vale.
"Knock, knock, knock…"
Just then, a series of urgent knocks on the door reached everyone's ears, causing many hearts to skip a beat.
"What is the situation?"
"Come in!"
Although feeling somewhat helpless, Littlefinger still spoke.
As the door creaked open, a burly knight ran straight in. After entering the hall, he spoke directly to Littlefinger:
"Lord Petyr! The armies of House Royce and House Waywood have all withdrawn. What should we do now?"
"What on earth are you doing? Didn't we already send soldiers to take their leaders into custody?"
Albar Royce showed no mercy toward his distant relatives. Upon learning that House Royce had surrendered, he was the first to suggest taking control of their army.
"Enough, it's too late for that now. What exactly is the situation? Describe it!"
Although Littlefinger was surprised, as the leader of this faction, he could not afford to panic first.
"When I went on patrol at noon today, I found our guards were all dead. I checked the wounds; they were all killed with a single blow. It looks like the enemy must have sent assassins."
This mercenary knight named Craster Stone was a battle-hardened sellsword from Essos, hired by Littlefinger at a high price.
"Once I realized something was wrong, I immediately blew the assembly horn and sent our cavalry to intercept them. But by the time we arrived, their troops had already withdrawn. However, all their supplies were left behind, which made up for some of our losses."
Craster Stone did not think much of these Vale knights who had not fought in years. The generation that had experienced Robert's Rebellion was already old and gray; now it was the time for men like him to shine.
"So, can we still gather an army of ten thousand now?"
Jon Lynderly, Lord of Snakewood, asked directly.
"Those two houses only withdrew about 3,000 troops in total, and only 500 cavalry had real strength. The equipment and supplies they left behind can be used by us. Once I reorganize the reserves, we can still assemble about ten thousand men."
"Ser Craster! How do you think we should deal with those dragons?"
Now that the troops had decreased again, Littlefinger felt somewhat distressed, but he knew exactly what kind of task to assign to what kind of person.
"Our advantage is cavalry, and their advantage is also cavalry. But the gap is obvious—we do not have dragons."
Although Craster Stone was born in the Vale, he had gone to Essos as a mercenary early on. There he served under the Tattered Prince, gaining extensive combat experience in just a few years.
After that, he formed his own mercenary group, and his "Stone Spikes" was now Littlefinger's most trusted force.
"So my suggestion is very simple. We should not fight on flat ground. Instead, we should choose the muddy wetlands by the lake, using infantry formations and chevaux-de-frise to block their dragons."
"But those are dragons. Can we really defeat them?"
Harlan Hunter, being a second son used to indirect politics, felt uneasy when facing open confrontation.
"Your plan is good, Ser! I think it is very feasible!"
Littlefinger highly approved of the mercenary captain's suggestion, but still felt it was not enough and intended to add another layer of protection.
"If I can make those dragons and their master unable to speak, then we will have an even better chance of winning."
At this moment, Littlefinger's judgment was clouded by ambition and anxiety.
"That's right! Didn't Dorne kill a dragon before? For creatures that cannot fly, wouldn't it be enough to use more scorpions?"
Albar Royce suddenly realized. As long as he deployed enough scorpions, no matter how powerful those dragons were, they would still be sitting targets on the ground.
As the former ruling house of the Castle of the Moon, he naturally knew how terrifying scorpions were. He had even personally tested their power during drills.
A piece of high-quality plate armor was like paper in front of a scorpion bolt as thick as a fist.
"Yes, exactly! I will issue the orders immediately. We need to bring out all the scorpions from The Eyrie and the Castle of the Moon."
Although the others misunderstood his intent, Littlefinger had to admit the idea was effective. Scorpions were indeed excellent against large, slow-moving targets.
"Good. Then let us proceed. We will decide the final battle at Griffin Lake near the Eagle's Feather River!"
The Eagle's Feather River flowed down from the peak where The Eyrie stood, eventually joining the Vale's great river system.
Griffin Lake was the closest lake to the Castle of the Moon. It was long, narrow, and surrounded by dense forest—ideal terrain for Craster Stone's strategy.
"Yes, Lord Petyr!"
With the order given, everyone's eyes lit with determination. This battle would decide their future.
Littlefinger's mind also turned rapidly. As long as he could suppress Jon and his dragons in advance, he could easily win the war. And with this victory, taking full control of the Vale would become simple.
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