Chapter 77: Fishing Someone Out
He couldn't return to the Wall to participate in the capture of a wight himself, so how to remotely control the Night's Watch to complete the daring feat of capturing a live wight ahead of schedule without having formal command... that was going to require some serious planning.
Of course, since Mormont had specifically written here asking for men and supplies, he clearly didn't intend to launch the Great Ranging immediately. Egger still had a small window of time to scheme. For now, he set that aside to focus on the present.
...
At dinner, Egger relayed the urgency of the letter to Yoren. The old Wandering Crow originally had some coin left in his purse, enough to enjoy a few more days of comfort in King's Landing. Suddenly receiving orders to return immediately, the look of bewilderment and disappointment on his face was impossible to hide.
"You could always take the slow route back," Egger suggested instinctively. After a year as a man of the Night's Watch, he fully understood how the other man felt. "When do you leave?"
"Taking the slow route is a fine idea, but I wouldn't dare linger here after receiving the order," Yoren said gloomily. "I've gathered a dozen or so men anyway, and the preparations are finished. We leave tomorrow."
"Fine. Then I want to ask you for a man. The one we talked about before—Jaqen H'ghar, the one caught for stealing books. Leave him behind to help me."
"That dangerous lot?" The old man stared suspiciously at his black-clad brother. "What do you want with him?"
"Since he spent consecutive nights in the library poring over books, he must be literate," Egger explained. "The office happens to be short of someone who can read and write."
"A girl with a *toot* is rare, but a man who can read isn't that hard to find, is it?" Even as an illiterate, Yoren found the excuse laughable. "I'll be blunt, Egger. The man could come and go as he pleased in the Red Keep's library. You rescue him from the chains, and the moment you turn your head, he'll vanish without a trace. I've made up my mind: until I reach Castle Black and hand them over to Ser Alliser, I'm not letting him or those other two murderers out of the cage."
Egger fully agreed with and supported Yoren's judgment and decision, but if he couldn't keep Jaqen, could Castle Black? With the skills and mysterious methods of this top-tier Braavosi agent, even a master of Ser Barristan's caliber probably only caught him by luck, cornering him in a room. All Egger wanted to do was do him a favor—since he was going to escape sooner or later, releasing him at least a month early would be considered a significant favor. As for what came next, he would keep him for as long as possible. There was no harm in befriending such a capable person.
He stopped wasting words and shoved a rounded, shiny coin into the old crow's hand. "Don't worry about all that. Agree to this, and the travel expenses will be enough for you to eat and drink your way back to Castle Black. Not only that, the next time you come to King's Landing, I'll return ten men to you."
Return ten? It'll be a miracle if you haven't deserted by the next time I'm in King's Landing. Yoren curled his lip disdainfully, but feeling the heavy gold coin in his hand, he finally nodded. "Fine, but watch yourself. Don't let the Kingsguard find out the man they caught is out and about, and don't let the fellow gut you."
"I'll be careful."
Tyrion's passion for their venture remained high. He was up early every day and vanished from sight. This small man and his brother, Jaime Lannister, were two extremes—the elder was the chosen heir who yearned for chivalry, honor, and public approval; while the younger, a dwarf his own father wished had never been born, subconsciously craved the validation of his father and family.
His obsession with this sudden career was less about getting rich and more about earning a second glance from Lord Tywin.
Sigh. Egger, stop worrying about others and think about your own business.
Clearing his head, Egger dressed and left his room. After washing up, he met Yoren at the breakfast table to finalize the hand-over time, then headed to the office to begin another day of just going through the motions as the head of the Night's Watch office.
As the sun rose higher, Arya arrived with extreme diligence for her lesson. Unfortunately, Egger was already prepared to head out to fish out Jaqen H'ghar.
"Master!" The girl wasn't discouraged in the slightest. "Where are you going? I'm coming too!"
"No. I'm going to see off my black-clad brothers and the recruits returning to the Wall. Just a bunch of scum and rapists, nothing to see. Either wait here or go back to the Red Keep." Egger shook his head. Extracting a prisoner who had agreed to join the Watch was not something that should be seen by a Stark.
"I want to see them off too!"
Egger narrowed his eyes. "Don't start. Behave."
The girl stared back defiantly for a few seconds before softening. "Ugh... fine. Then I'll wait in the room for you. How long will you be?"
"Before the sun dips west." The Watchman's expression softened. "Watch the shop well for me; there'll be a reward when I return."
"Mm-hm!"
Egger nodded with satisfaction. The first step of training Arya was going quite smoothly.
Humans are essentially just animals. Compared to adults, the animalistic nature in children is significantly stronger than their humanity—the younger they are, the truer this is. And a clever animal is highly malleable. As long as one uses reward and punishment mechanisms to consciously guide them into habits from the start, creating a conditioned reflex where she knows when requests will be granted and when tantrums are useless, future interactions become much simpler. The girl had seen Egger's previous expression and knew it meant there was no room for negotiation; that was why she stopped arguing.
Of course, these principles were easier said than done. Egger was benefiting from the triple advantage of Arya's decent nature, her belief that he was a master, and his own lack of fear regarding offending her. By laying down the law, he was able to suppress the arrogance of the Stark princess and achieve such striking results in a short time. This clearly astonished the Winterfell guard responsible for escorting her; the grey-clad soldier's eyes nearly popped out of his head. Since when was our willful young lady so obedient?
The Night's Watch's first southern outpost was located opposite the Gold Cloaks' East Barracks—one of King's Landing's two major police stations. There was nothing valuable or important in the office yet, so after a few brief instructions, Egger confidently left Arya and the open door behind and rode toward the northwest of the city.
Riding out of the Gate of the Gods and trotting a few miles along the beginning of the Kingsroad, he soon found Yoren and his group waiting for him.
Two wagons were parked under the shade of trees by the road. One held a wooden cage for prisoners, while the other carried spices, medicines, and seasonings Yoren had just purchased. The ship of supplies Tyrion and Egger had provided for the Wall had greatly eased Yoren's burden; otherwise, he would have spent days running around making purchases and tending to a whole caravan.
Besides the two wagons and the horses pulling them, there were five or six donkeys and a dozen people under the shade. The Wandering Crow sat on the floorboards of the cargo wagon. The orphans he had tricked with promises of full bellies and warm clothes stood or squatted listlessly by the road. Along with the criminals forced into the Watch, they watched Egger's approach with curiosity. Even a fool could see that despite wearing the same black, the man approaching was much more dignified. Perhaps an officer of the Night's Watch?
The clever ones began thinking of ways to suck up to their future superior, but Egger gave them no chance to waste their energy. He rode straight to Yoren and greeted him, and the latter hopped down from the wagon.
"Haven't changed your mind?"
"Why would I change my mind?" Egger snorted and looked toward the three men in the wooden cage.
Yoren was right to be afraid of these three. One had no nose, leaving only a hole in his face. Another was a fat, bald man with sharp teeth and oozing sores on his face—his eyes looked like those of a wild beast. As for the last one, he had regular features and clean clothes, looking quite refined despite being caged with the other two. He appeared completely unscathed, creating a jarring sense of incongruity.
Very ordinary. None of the dashing charm of the actor in the TV show, Egger thought. If he weren't locked in this cage, he would never have been able to pick Jaqen H'ghar out of a crowd. As a spy and assassin, the man had mastered the common appearance.
Then again, who knew if this face Jaqen wore was his true one? Did Faceless Men change their faces more through skin masks or through magic?
He didn't let his gaze linger on his target for too long. After a deliberate look around the group, he spoke loudly: "The Night's Watch office needs someone who can read and write to help. Do any of you know your letters?"
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