While Lord Randyll Tarly and Mathis Rowan were hesitating at Bitterbridge, Stannis Baratheon had already incorporated part of his younger brother Renly's army. His infantry alone had expanded from a few thousand to twenty thousand.
However, Stannis still did not attack King's Landing. He was likely afraid that if he left, the garrison at Storm's End would launch a sneak attack and cut off his supplies. Thus, as if determined to pacify his rear, he led his great army to besiege Storm's End.
Stannis Baratheon sat atop a tall horse, clad in armor, looking up at the towering fortress with a complex expression. He had been in a similar scene years ago.
Only back then, he was inside, and now he was outside. Knowing full well the strength of this castle, he did not launch a direct assault immediately. Instead, he chose diplomacy before force, preparing to parley first.
However, before Stannis could even enter Storm's End, the castellan, Ser Cortnay Penrose, had already dispatched ravens to various locations requesting reinforcements to lift the siege.
He also declared that as long as someone lent him a helping hand, he would surrender his loyalty to that person.
...
Inside Storm's End, Stannis and Cortnay Penrose confronted each other in the Great Hall.
"If you can promise to spare this child, I will surrender immediately," Cortnay Penrose said.
Cortnay Penrose was a knight from House Penrose and the castellan Renly Baratheon had left in charge of Storm's End.
Ser Cortnay Penrose was bald like Stannis Baratheon, and his weather-beaten face featured a red beard shaped like a spade.
When Renly Baratheon served as the Master of Laws in King's Landing, Ser Cortnay Penrose was appointed castellan of Storm's End and assisted in raising Robert Baratheon's bastard, Edric Storm.
He was stubborn but kind-hearted, and he deeply cared for Edric Storm, whom he had raised. Therefore, he would never hand the child over to Stannis, believing that Stannis would surely harm him.
"No, I cannot promise you that." Stannis Baratheon was a very honest man; he would never agree to something he could not guarantee.
In fact, Cortnay Penrose's initial condition for surrender was simple: he wanted to see Renly Baratheon's body to confirm that Renly was truly dead.
But Stannis Baratheon refused, because Stannis had a hardship he couldn't speak of—he truly didn't know where his brother Renly's body had gone. Since Renly's death, he had sent men everywhere to search for the body, but they couldn't find it anywhere.
In the hall, Cortnay Penrose first ruthlessly humiliated the group of Rainbow Guard who had defected to Stannis immediately after Renly Baratheon's death. He shouted:
"A bunch of turncoats who serve three masters have the nerve to bark in front of me? If I were you, I wouldn't have the face to wear that rainbow cloak out in public."
After mocking them, Ser Cortnay Penrose turned his spear toward the seated Stannis Baratheon. Pointing at Stannis, he said:
"If you have the guts, duel me yourself, or name any knight behind you. You have so many formidable knights; pick one to step forward and duel me. If you can defeat me, I will hand over Storm's End with both hands!"
With that, Cortnay Penrose threw his glove directly at Stannis Baratheon's stern, iron-hard face.
"No, I will not duel you." Stannis Baratheon refused decisively without even thinking.
Cortnay Penrose had proposed a duel against Ser Gullard Morryne or Ser Bryce Caron from Stannis's side to decide the outcome of the siege of Storm's End.
Ser Gullard Morryne agreed immediately, but as he was about to step forward, Stannis Baratheon held him back, as Stannis did not want to waste time on such matters.
"In that case, we shall begin the battle tomorrow."
Stannis Baratheon finished his sentence, stood up, and walked out, completely ignoring the other's attitude.
"I'll be waiting." Ser Cortnay Penrose replied with his head held high, refusing to show weakness.
Before leaving, Stannis Baratheon glanced sideways at the child standing behind Ser Cortnay Penrose.
The child's name was Edric Storm. He had black hair, blue eyes, and the large ears characteristic of House Florent. Because his mother's family was prominent, he was the only bastard former King Robert Baratheon had ever publicly acknowledged.
This bastard was Stannis's primary target. He hoped to use the boy to prove the strength of the Baratheon bloodline, thereby overturning the legitimacy of Joffrey and the others.
Looking at the child, Stannis Baratheon thought to himself: How could I ever harm my own nephew?
...
["Melisandre, use Shadow Assassin on Cortnay Penrose quickly!"]
[Melisandre has used Shadow Assassin!]
[Miss!]
As soon as Stannis Baratheon returned to his tent, he asked the red priestess Melisandre to use her ultimate technique, the Shadow Assassin, to assassinate Ser Cortnay Penrose in Storm's End.
Unexpectedly, it failed this time.
"What happened?" Stannis Baratheon asked in confusion.
This was the first time he had seen Melisandre's trump card fail. It had gone very smoothly when assassinating Renly Baratheon last time.
Melisandre waved her right hand, recalling the shadow into her body. She turned to Stannis and said, "Your Grace, the walls of Storm's End seem to be reinforced with magic. My Shadow Assassin cannot enter."
Melisandre's Shadow Assassin had sensed an enduring magical aura beneath the walls, a magic that filled her shadow with fear.
Hearing Melisandre's words, Stannis fell into deep thought. If the Shadow Assassin could not be used, Storm's End would be difficult to deal with.
The next moment, Stannis's thoughts shifted, and he thought of someone.
He stepped out of the tent and said to a guard, "Bring Ser Davos Seaworth to me!"
"Yes, Your Grace." The guard took the order and quickly left to find the Onion Knight.
Stannis had almost forgotten Davos Seaworth, the Onion Knight. He thought: This fellow's old trade was smuggling; he truly is a lucky general for me.
Before long, Davos Seaworth, the Onion Knight, walked in.
"Your Grace, you summoned me?" he asked.
"Yes, yes, I have a major task for you. I recall you used to be a smuggler?"
Stannis Baratheon asked happily upon seeing him enter, completely oblivious to the bluntness of his words.
"Er... I suppose so. But as Your Grace knows, I've been retired for a long time." Davos Seaworth shook his left hand, where the finger joints had been removed by King Stannis for smuggling years ago, his expression a bit awkward.
Years ago, when Robert Baratheon raised his banners and the War of the Usurper broke out, the fleet of House Tyrell, who supported House Targaryen at the time, besieged Storm's End, which Stannis was defending, for a long time.
The siege led to an extreme shortage of food within Storm's End. Even the rats in the castle were eaten clean, and they were on the verge of cannibalism.
Just when everyone was in despair, Davos Seaworth, the Onion Knight, piloted a smuggling ship full of onions through a secret passage in the Storm's End waterway, resolving the crisis.
It was said that when Davos Seaworth sailed into Storm's End, everyone wanted to rush up and kiss him to express their gratitude.
From this, Davos Seaworth earned the title of the Onion Knight, which became legendary.
However, in the subsequent rewards, Stannis Baratheon, the commander of Storm's End, emphasized that merit is merit and fault is fault; merit cannot cancel out a crime. So he personally ordered the first joints of the Onion Knight's left fingers to be cut off as punishment.
Yet, his rewards for Davos Seaworth were even more generous. Not only did he personally knight him, but he also granted him fertile lands at Cape Wrath and kept him by his side.
Because of this, some thought Stannis Baratheon was too cold and unreasonable, while others believed he was upright and fair, rewarding and punishing as deserved.
"Ser Davos Seaworth, I need you to sail my banner-bearer Melisandre past the walls of Storm's End via the waterway. Can you do it?" Stannis asked.
"Your Grace, it is my duty!" Davos Seaworth pounded his chest and agreed immediately. He was amused; he hadn't expected to return to his old trade one day.
Davos Seaworth had an ordinary appearance and a thin build, with brown hair, brown eyes, and a thick, grey beard.
On Davos's left hand, the first joints of all four fingers except the thumb had been removed. He kept the severed joints in a leather pouch as a lucky charm, hanging it around his neck.
Although he was loyal to Stannis, he hadn't expected his King Stannis to make him do this. But this time, he wasn't carrying onions, but a beautiful woman.
...
The night was still, and the ravens cried mournfully.
In the dead of night, Davos Seaworth silently piloted his small ship with black sails into the little-known secret passage of Storm's End, a route he knew well.
He looked at the rusted iron grate not far away, knowing in his heart that this was the limit.
"I can only go this far. Any closer and we might be discovered," Davos Seaworth said to Melisandre, the red priestess behind him.
"This is fine. As long as we are past the walls of Storm's End, it's no problem." Melisandre threw back her hood, her long red hair cascading down, looking very beautiful and moving.
"I heard the walls of Storm's End were reinforced with magic by Brandon the Builder, so ordinary people..."
Before Davos Seaworth could finish his sentence, his mouth hung open in shock. Melisandre, without any hesitation, had taken off her red robe and begun her casting.
A shrill cry rang out, and countless shadows crawled out of Melisandre's body. There were voices of men, women, the elderly, and children. Slowly, the voices synchronized, becoming high-pitched, piercing, and gradually less than human.
They were like beings who had suffered terrible punishment in the seven hells, scrambling to escape from the opening.
This eerie, terrifying scene nearly caused Davos Seaworth to fall into the river. He now looked at Melisandre as if she were a monster wearing human skin.
After countless shadows crawled out, they converged in mid-air into a pitch-black figure. Under Melisandre's command, it floated toward the interior of Storm's End.
Melisandre seemed long accustomed to the strange looks of others, so she ignored Davos Seaworth's shock, put on her red robe, and sat quietly in the cabin waiting for the return journey.
At this moment, Davos Seaworth, sitting in front of her, broke into a cold sweat at the hair-raising scene, muttering to himself:
"Seven hells..."