Chapter 206: Impossible to Guard Against
After staying for one night, Egger departed from the Golden Tooth with the Kingslayer in tow.
Traveling east along the River Road, he picked up his little squire at Riverrun and reunited with the Logistics Department supply train waiting for him at Lord Harroway's Town. Carrying Jaime Lannister—a man who had now committed regicide twice—and Arya Stark, who had caused a massive scene and was currently obsessed with escaping her marriage, along with one hundred Northern and fifty Westerman soldiers, this bizarrely composed group set foot on the road north to the Wall.
To prevent potential conflicts along the way, Egger simply took out dozens of sets of armor donated by Tywin and equipped his Logistics Department soldiers. Since the armor had been pre-dyed black at the Golden Tooth, the black-clad, black-armored soldiers of the Night's Watch Logistics Department didn't look out of place at all. Consequently, aside from the Northern soldiers sent by Robb, the rest of the column was a uniform sea of black. Jaime and his bodyguards wore exactly the same attire as Egger's men, blending seamlessly into the ranks.
Egger couldn't help but admire Tywin's thoroughness. By having Jaime don the black early, unless someone was bold enough to slaughter the Kingslayer along with the Night's Watch, it would be difficult to even find the target in the chaos of a sudden raid.
...
The father had wagered the family's destiny on a war and, after paying a staggering price, won his son the right to be exiled to the Wall. Shamed by this, Jaime Lannister appeared decadent and despondent. Since leaving the Golden Tooth, he had merely followed the column in silence, refusing to say a word beyond what was strictly necessary for communication. He was even more tight-lipped than Jaqen H'ghar.
As for Arya... after being swatted by Egger, she was presumably full of resentment. She remained quiet and made no scenes along the way, but whenever her eyes met his, she would immediately huff and turn her head away. In a child's world, ignoring is considered a cruel punishment; she likely never imagined that adults actually preferred her to be this low-maintenance.
With the two potential troublemakers keeping quiet and the Northern soldiers refraining from clashing with the Westerman volunteers now wearing the black, Egger enjoyed the peace. He led this strange black-and-grey procession toward their destination without wasting a single moment.
Historically, the North and the West had never shared a border. Before Jaime attacked King Robert, the nobles of the two regions had never had a direct conflict; their relationship could best be described as minding one's own business. The poor relationship between the two was due to a series of religious and cultural reasons, but ultimately, it was influenced by their mutual proximity to the Riverlands and the prevailing impression that Lannisters have no honor.
Despite his terrible reputation, Jaime had not actually infringed upon much of the North's interests. Furthermore, he had spent the war hiding in Casterly Rock recovering from his wounds rather than fighting the six-kingdom coalition. In this timeline's world of Ice and Fire, the Lannisters did not control King's Landing, and Jaime had not become the sworn enemy of the Northmen. These were the practical reasons why Robb Stark eventually agreed to peace with the West, and why his primary bannermen did not oppose it.
With the Old Wolf still alive, the deterrent power of the Young Wolf's decisions was stronger than imagined. Though many things happened during the trek through the Riverlands to the Neck, no noble led an army to openly block or threaten Egger and Jaime. Once they crossed the Neck into the North, the possibility of Jaime being intercepted and killed dropped significantly. If even the Riverlands lords—whose fields and grain had been burned by Westerman fires—could stomach letting Jaime pass, what reason did the Northern lords have to demand the Kingslayer's death when they had suffered no actual harm?
This was merely Egger's assessment. Even if the nobles didn't act, threats could come from many other quarters: to the north, more and more Wildlings were crossing the Wall; to the east, pirates from the Narrow Sea occasionally landed to harass and plunder; and with the Northern lords and their elite armies having marched south, local bandits and petty thieves had increased. Though far from the battlefield, the North was still full of danger.
Out of caution, Egger kept his soldiers fully armed and vigilant. However, he never expected that trouble would ultimately appear in a form he could not possibly guard against, right by his side.
...
The North is vast and sparsely populated. After passing Moat Cailin and heading further north, one must cross a sprawling expanse of wilderness and hills known as the Barrowlands. For over a hundred miles, there is little sign of human life; even in the North, which has the lowest population density in the Seven Kingdoms, this is the most desolate and lonely of regions.
As the column moved slowly and orderly, Arya—who had been in a cold war with Egger for over ten days—suddenly approached him with a crestfallen face. Her first words gave him a start.
"Master... I... I think I'm going to die."
"What nonsense is this?" Egger thought the girl was up to another trick. "What's wrong?"
"I... I'm bleeding."
"Where? Let me see."
Arya didn't move. She sniffled, her face flushing a deep red.
After staring at the girl with a bewildered expression for a few seconds, Egger sucked in a breath of air, his pupils gradually dilating. "Is it... down there?"
"Yes." Fear had overwhelmed her shame. Arya's face was a mixture of confusion and panic. "It's been a few days. At first, it was just a little, but today... suddenly there's so much. My breeches are..."
So much? Breeches? Egger's gaze shifted downward. Sure enough, the dark grey fabric near her seat and inner thighs had been soaked with blood, forming a dark, messy patch. He could almost catch a faint, metallic scent of blood in the air.
Egger swallowed hard. Since entering this world, he had faced life-or-death crises and entrepreneurial hurdles. Through luck, hard work, and the help of friends, he had navigated one difficulty after another. But this time, he was truly stumped.
The girl before him was undergoing a momentous physical change. Under normal circumstances, Arya should be with her mother, or at the very least an older woman like Septa Mordane. They would tell her that what she was facing was a normal physiological phenomenon and patiently guide her on how to handle it.
But now?
Egger clutched his head with both hands and looked left and right for help. Around him were either Northern brutes or Westerman soldiers; only a few Logistics men in the group even knew Arya's identity. For dozens of miles in any direction, he doubted he could find a second woman.
Was it normal for an eleven-year-old girl to start this? Was it brought on early by the physical exertion of her constant sword practice? What should he do now?
Arya looked up at Egger imploringly. His mind was a chaotic mess, and he even began to regret taking on the job of escorting her home. However, his battle-hardened logic quickly grasped the key point: regardless of everything else, he had to take immediate action—both for Arya's health and to preserve the secret of her identity.
...
As a rigid straight man, gender severely limited his imagination and field of knowledge. Facing the mystery of a period, Egger had no relevant knowledge beyond drink hot water and keep warm. But since he was the only person Arya was close to, he had to bite the bullet and find a way to deal with this trouble that had erupted at the most awkward possible moment.
...
"Halt the column. We're making camp early today," Egger shouted to a nearby sergeant. "Tents up, now!"
Egger had Arya find a place to sit nearby while he personally helped set things up. The sun was still high in the sky, with at least two or three hours of daylight left. Most of the men were puzzled by the command to stop early, but no one complained about an early rest. Soon, Egger's own tent was the first to be erected.
"Alright, don't overthink it, and don't say a word. The bleeding... is a normal occurrence. it means you're growing up! Get inside and stay there. I'll go boil some hot water for you. Later, you'll wash yourself and change those breeches." Egger pushed Arya into the tent and pulled down the flap, whispering a final instruction: "And remember to pad your breeches with a towel!"
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