The Riverlands.
Roose Bolton rode his horse, leading his troops, traveling along the east bank of the Green Fork.
Now, he was preparing to head north to The Twins to plot the Red Wedding with House Frey.
In truth, after Winterfell was occupied by the Ironborn and the Lannisters won the Battle of the Blackwater, Roose Bolton had already begun to curry favor and collude with House Lannister.
At the time, Roose Bolton first wrote to Herman Taoha, ordering him to retake Darry from the Lannisters. After Herman Taoha completed the task, Roose Bolton then ordered him to immediately execute the prisoners in his custody and burn Darry to the ground in the name of King Robb.
This first step was intended to sow discord between the nobles of the North and the Riverlands, weakening the prestige of Robb Stark.
Subsequently, Roose Bolton ordered Herman Taoha and Robett Glover to lead three thousand men to attack Duskendale, but by that time, Duskendale was already heavily guarded by troops sent from King's Landing.
This move by Roose Bolton was effectively delivering troops and prisoners to the Lannisters, and using the Lannisters' hands to eliminate dissidents.
Because within Roose Bolton's current army of ten thousand, only two or three thousand were directly from The Dreadfort, and only these men could firmly follow him in betraying Robb Stark.
Therefore, Roose Bolton had to purge dissenting voices from his ranks and align himself with the Lannister side as quickly as possible.
As expected, Tywin Lannister sent Lord Randyll Tarly to crush these men at Duskendale. With The Mountain also flanking from the rear, Herman Taoha and Robett Glover were captured as hostages, and their three thousand men were almost completely wiped out.
It was also at this time that news arrived of Robb Stark breaking his marriage vow.
The members of House Frey at Harrenhal were incensed, casting aside their Direwolf banners and declaring they would no longer follow Robb Stark.
Roose Bolton's nine-year-old squire, Elmar Frey, even burst into tears, saying he could no longer marry a princess of House Stark.
However, these men did not immediately return to The Twins; instead, they were temporarily placated by Roose Bolton, and many of them even participated in Roose Bolton's plan to weaken the Northern soldiers.
It was also from this moment on that Roose Bolton, without any further hesitation, immediately defected to the Lannisters.
Therefore, after his men in the Bravos Company captured Jaime Lannister, he secretly released him behind Robb Stark's back and sent men to escort him all the way back to King's Landing.
However, there was a small complication: the leader of the Bravos Company, Vargo Hoat, sensed Roose Bolton's intentions.
To prevent Roose Bolton from defecting to the Lannisters, Vargo Hoat even cut off Jaime Lannister's right hand, hoping to create friction between Roose Bolton and the Lannisters.
However, for Roose Bolton, this was merely a minor matter that would not affect the overall situation.
After sending Jaime Lannister away, Roose Bolton led his men out of Harrenhal and headed north toward The Twins.
Roose Bolton also left Vargo Hoat and the others of the Bravos Company at Harrenhal to wait for their deaths, knowing that the Lannisters would certainly retake Harrenhal soon.
Furthermore, Tywin would certainly not let the matter of his son Jaime's right hand being cut off go unpunished.
Consequently, of the seventeen thousand troops under Roose Bolton's command, nearly all were wiped out, save for the men from The Dreadfort.
Calculating carefully, seven thousand of Roose Bolton's troops died in the Battle of the Green Fork, and later another three thousand were lost in the Battle of Duskendale.
Moreover, on the road back to The Twins, he would sacrifice a great many more; he had already conspired with Tywin to sacrifice another two thousand at the Ruby Ford.
After that, Roose Bolton would let the nine hundred men of House Frey go first, and then feign an order for the six hundred Northern men to guard the crossing, effectively leaving them to fend for themselves in the Riverlands.
Thus, of the original seventeen thousand troops under Roose Bolton's command, only the three thousand five hundred men directly from The Dreadfort remained.
The Riverlands, Witch's Mire.
Witch's Mire was a village in the Riverlands, the territory of House Nayland, who were vassals of House Frey.
If anyone wanted to bypass the Blue Fork of the Trident, they had to pass through Sevenstreams and Witch's Mire.
True to its name, this area was filled with swamps and ruined roads. Moreover, the area around Witch's Mire was covered with green pools and soft ground, looking as if a witch were brewing potions in jars and pots.
Robb Stark and Catelyn Tully rode side by side at the front, with Kings Hand Ragu and Greatjon Umber in the second row, and the rest arranged behind them according to seniority and rank.
It seemed that no matter where one went, seniority and rank were always paramount.
Robb Stark, riding in front, frowned as if lost in endless contemplation.
When they first arrived at Sevenstreams, Robb Stark received news that Balon Greyjoy of the Iron Islands had died, and that the Iron Islands were now ruled by Euron Greyjoy.
Naturally, Robb Stark was pleased by this, which strengthened his resolve to cross the bridge at The Twins and fight his way back to the North, though this matter still required secrecy and careful deliberation.
Originally, Jeyne Westerling could have shared his worries, but to avoid provoking the highly prideful Walder Frey, Robb Stark had his queen, Jeyne Westerling, remain at Riverrun.
By the time they reached Witch's Mire, Robb Stark felt an indescribable palpitation in his heart.
What kind of feeling was this? Robb Stark thought to himself: Is it fear? A premonition? Or death?
"Robb, what is the matter with you?" Catelyn Tully asked.
How could a mother fail to see that her son was troubled, even though Catelyn Tully was very unhappy about her son Robb Stark breaking his marriage vow.
However, she had to admit that ever since her son Robb Stark had taken Jeyne Westerling as his wife, the smile on his face had never faded.
Furthermore, Jeyne Westerling was sensible and knew her place; Catelyn Tully got along quite well with this daughter-in-law.
"I..."
Robb Stark frowned, not knowing how to put it into words.
At this moment, Kings Hand Ragu, who had been following behind, guessed Robb Stark's thoughts and rode forward.
He rode up to Robb Stark's left side and said with a smile:
"Your Grace, do you wish to draft an important decree as a precaution?"
Robb Stark stared at him with wide eyes, but then sighed.
"I still cannot hide anything from you," Robb Stark sighed, looking at the green pools in the distance.
This Kings Hand Ragu was like a worm in his own stomach, Robb Stark thought: But now that Jeyne was not by his side, he could only confide in Ragu.
Robb Stark had very complex feelings toward Ragu, who believed in the red god; he knew in his heart that Ragu was indeed looking out for his best interests.
Although Robb Stark did not quite believe that Ragu could serve him wholeheartedly based solely on the reason that "the red god needs to unite with the old gods," he trusted Ragu deeply.
This trust was somewhat inexplicable, as if Robb Stark had known Ragu for a very long time.
Moreover, what surprised Robb Stark was that his Direwolf, Grey Wind, was actually very close to Ragu—a level of closeness that should be second only to himself.
"Ragu, what should I do?" Robb Stark asked, feeling very conflicted; he truly had no idea what to do now.
To be honest, the situation in the North was very bad right now, with both Sansa Stark and Arya Stark in the hands of the Lannisters.
(Tywin Lannister had always claimed to hold the two Stark girls, though Sansa Stark had not suffered any harm and was about to be made queen by Joffrey. Meanwhile, Arya Stark had long since escaped from King's Landing with the help of Borin Storm.)
After the fall of Winterfell, the two youngest Stark children, Bran and Rickon, had perished as well. (Only Ramsay Snow and Theon Greyjoy knew that the two were actually still alive.)
Therefore, the only children left of the Stark family in the North were Robb Stark and Jon Snow, which was very dangerous.
Once the King in the North, Robb Stark, died, the Northern army would almost instantly collapse due to a lack of leadership.
Because Robb Stark and Queen Jeyne Westerling had no children yet, and Jon Snow could not inherit the family estate because he was a bastard.
"Your Grace, this matter is actually very simple. You only need to draft a last will and testament to legitimize Jon Snow's status as a bastard, which would at least serve as a precaution."
Ragu looked at Robb Stark and continued:
"I recall that you have a very good relationship with this bastard brother of yours."
Ragu's words were a perfect reflection of Robb Stark's inner thoughts; every word spoke directly to his heart.
"Then..." Robb Stark was just about to agree, but was interrupted by his mother, Catelyn Tully.
"No!" Catelyn Tully said.
"There will be no last will and testament here! My son, what has gotten into you? You will be fine, we will all be fine, and we are going to fight our way back to Winterfell together."
"Besides, I will absolutely not let that bastard have a chance to inherit your father's Winterfell."
Catelyn Tully was the standard template of a loving mother; she always saw the best in her son and hoped for the best for him.
But a doting mother often ruins her child; Catelyn Tully's normally keen senses failed to detect the potential crisis.
Defeated by love, declined by love.
Besides that, Catelyn Tully particularly loathed her husband's bastard, Jon Snow.
Just as the "kingslayer" Jaime Lannister had mocked, Snow was truly a pleasant-sounding surname.
Whenever she thought of Jon Snow, Catelyn Tully could not help but think of her husband Eddard Stark's infidelity to their marriage.
Especially when this bastard grew to look more and more like Eddard Stark, even more so than his other children.
Robb Stark, who had intended to follow his heart, wavered once again; he did not know what to do.
On one side was the voice of his own heart, and on the other was his mother's caring instruction; Robb Stark became conflicted.
"Lady Stark, although as an outsider I should not say much, I still hope you can consider the big picture. After all, the scales where we once held the advantage are rapidly tipping to the other side," Ragu said.
"A competent monarch must make their subordinates feel secure; only then can they work wholeheartedly for the monarch."
"The situation now is very clear; the allied forces of the Lannisters and Tyrells have gained the upper hand. Our King in the North must first stabilize the rear as quickly as possible before he can contend with them."
"Among this, the most important thing is to give the men under his command a sense of solace and hope, telling them that the King in the North is not alone, and that there are descendants or brothers to inherit."
Ragu did not get angry at Catelyn Tully's attitude; instead, he continued to persuade her earnestly.
"No, as long as I live, I will not let that abomination tarnish my Ned's faithfulness."
Catelyn Tully said through gritted teeth; she truly loathed this bastard.
"Lady Stark, I hope you know that some things are not as they appear. I can assure you in the name of the red god, rhllor, that your husband, Lord Eddard Stark, is the most upright and honorable man in the world."
Seeing that Catelyn Tully had softened slightly regarding the last will and testament, but was still fixated on Jon Snow.
Ragu struck while the iron was hot and continued: "Although your husband had many flaws, infidelity to his marriage was not among them."
"Are you lying to me? Is Jon Snow's mother Ashara Dayne or some fisherman's daughter? Do you think I cannot guess?"
Catelyn Tully was hesitant; she could hardly believe that anyone would question the only stain on her husband's character.
"Lady Stark, please believe me. You will know the truth, just not now," Ragu said.
Catelyn Tully, upon hearing this, did not want to believe it, but she did not say anything more.
Robb Stark understood his mother very well; he knew that she had tacitly accepted his decision.
So, Robb first ordered someone to bring him paper and a pen to quickly write the last will and testament, and then immediately issued an order:
"Lady Maege Mormont, Lord Galbart Glover, I ask you two to take this decree to the Reed family at the Neck and find my father's close friend, Howland Reed."
Maege Mormont was a gray-haired, short, yet strong woman. She always wore armor, and her weapon of choice was a spiked mace.
After her brother Jeor Mormont's only heir, Jorah Mormont, fled due to slave trading, Maege Mormont became the head of House Mormont and the ruler of Bear Island. She worshipped the old gods and was very loyal to House Stark.
Galbart Glover was the head of House Glover and the lord of Deepwood Motte. He was loyal, witty, kind, and steady; what he lacked was the ability of "The Blackfish" Brynden Tully.
He had an average appearance, with long red hair and a thick red beard. He was robust, with a resolute gaze, and was indeed a man of unwavering loyalty.
Upon hearing Robb Stark's order, Maege Mormont and Galbart Glover immediately ran forward and knelt to receive the decree.
But they heard Robb Stark continue:
"Tell him to bring troops and go with you to Castle Black to find my brother Jon Snow, and to legitimize his status as a bastard."
"If... if anything happens to me, then my brother Jon Snow will be the new King in the North, and I need you to be as loyal to him as you are to me."
"Do you understand?"
"As you command, Your Grace!" Maege Mormont said very loudly.
"As you command, Your Grace!" Galbart Glover said earnestly after nodding.