Chapter 232: Raising the Stakes
Time was pressing. Now that the looming collapse of the logistics supply was clear, Egger dared not waste a single moment. Early the next morning, he led the reinforcements and recruits from the south back north toward the Wall.
Arya was left behind in Queenscrown. Egger had originally planned to send men to escort her home, but the Kingsroad was currently unsafe; he feared eight or ten men wouldn't be enough to protect her, yet sending more would leave his own base vulnerable. After wavering for a while, he decided to return to Castle Black first... he would notify the brat's family via raven and let the girl's guardians at Winterfell decide how to handle it.
If the Starks can't manage their own child, why should I be the one to wipe their tail?
Queenscrown was only a few dozen miles from Castle Black. Leaving Melisandre's caravan and the new recruits behind, Egger quickly returned to the Night's Watch headquarters. After reporting to Mormont regarding the reinforcements Stannis had sent and the difficulties the North faced in supplying the Wall, he proposed his plan to resolve the crisis.
"Apply for a loan from Braavos and buy grain from across the Narrow Sea?" Mormont asked uneasily. "The Iron Bank consists of jackals that pick bones clean. When Robert was alive and controlled the taxes of the Seven Kingdoms, it was barely enough to pay the interest on his debts... what will the Night's Watch use to pay them back in the future?"
"The Lord Commander is familiar with the Iron Bank as well?"
"Brothers at Eastwatch heard of them from sailors on docked ships. It might be an exaggeration, but it's certainly not made of thin air. You haven't answered my question—what will the Watch use as repayment?"
"The Night's Watch industries as collateral," Egger replied without hesitation, shrugging. "Rather than worrying about that, we should think about how to convince those fellows at the Iron Bank to lend to us in the first place... I want to organize another ranging beyond the Wall. Capture a wight and send it by ship to Braavos to convince those bloodsuckers: if the Wall falls, the North and even the Seven Kingdoms will not be safe. If Westeros falls into chaos, the Iron Bank will never recover the loans it already put out."
"There is no need for a ranging. I didn't have time to tell you, but news came from Eastwatch... three ships from Braavos docked at the port the day before yesterday. The people who disembarked called themselves an investigative team from the Iron Bank," Mormont said. "Cotter Pyke asked their purpose, but they wouldn't say a word, insisting they would only speak with the Chief Logistics Officer."
The Iron Bank is here?
Melisandre didn't lie to me!
But this happened incredibly fast, didn't it?
For the second time, Egger personally experienced the Red Priestess's astonishing craft. After a few seconds of shock, he felt a wave of relief: Wonderful, someone has finally come to share the pressure. The busyness of recent days had given him the illusion that he was playing the role of a savior, as if he and he alone—this transmigrator—were busy saving Westeros... but when it came to fighting natural enemies and an extinction-level event, how could he be the only one worried?
Stannis, wearing a crown, had made a judgment completely opposite to the original plot: "Only by settling the wars of men can we free our hands to save humanity." Egger couldn't say for sure if it was the wrong choice, but it had certainly plunged the Night's Watch into a predicament. Fortunately, the Iron Throne wasn't the only power on earth capable of putting out fires.
The Iron Bank had millions of Golden Dragons out in loans to Westeros; with their interests at stake, they couldn't remain indifferent. Though their reaction was a bit slow, it wasn't too late.
Amidst his relief, Egger didn't miss another detail: "Talk only to me?"
"Mhm, only to you." Mormont shrugged. "They are currently traveling west along the Wall under the escort of a small party of rangers. They'll likely inspect the newly reactivated forts of Sable Hall and Stonedoor along the way... they should arrive at Castle Black in a few days. When they do, you talk to them."
This was very strange.
Yes, Egger had maintained a firm stance against letting any other Night's Watchmen interfere with the industries; the Logistics Department was essentially his personal dictatorship... completely independent of the Night's Watch leadership except in name.
This was a fact, and it was a clear manifestation of having a second heart, but Mormont had prioritized the big picture and tacitly accepted this state of affairs. The two had reached a silent understanding: the Watch would not interfere with Egger's tinkering with the money he earned to defend the Wall, and Egger would behave like a normal officer in public, giving the Lord Commander plenty of face and never undermining him.
He and the Night's Watch were actually same bed, different dreams, but this inside information was likely only known to Mormont, Jaime, and a small circle of Egger's followers and close friends. Even Jon Snow, the First Ranger, the Builder, and the Steward might not fully grasp the extent of it. Why did the Iron Bank, all the way across the Narrow Sea, know this so well that they would send an investigative team to the Wall and explicitly state they would only talk to the Chief Logistics Officer?
This was a clear display of having an intimate grasp of the internal situation of the Night's Watch—an amazing show of intelligence-gathering capability. However, by so blatantly bypassing Mormont, where did that leave the Lord Commander?
Fortunately, Mormont didn't seem to hold a grudge. This noble who had voluntarily joined the Watch truly placed the interests of the Order above his own.
"Fine, I will talk to them when they arrive and try to secure a loan for the Wall to buy grain from across the sea." Ignoring the storms and foul weather of the Narrow Sea, the distance from Eastwatch to Essos was actually shorter than the distance from the Wall to the Reach. "But the problem we face now is: even if the negotiations end quickly and our people return to Braavos with this team to start arranging grain purchases, it will take at least two or three months for the food to actually reach the Wall."
"Our reserves won't last that long?"
"If we pinch pennies, they can," Egger said, shaking his head. "But these are thousands of mouths. Relying on the theory that we can just barely make it isn't safe; any small problem would be a disaster. We need to find a way to bridge this gap first."
Mormont nodded. "Your idea?"
"Reach a settlement with the Wildlings as soon as possible, let them cross the Wall, and acquire their stockpiled grain. At the same time, free up manpower to go south and help the North drive out the Ironborn, restoring the North's logistical supply to the Wall. If the first half of the plan succeeds, it buys us an extra month or two. And once we restore the Northern supply lines..."
Mormont frowned. "The Night's Watch shall take no part in the internal struggles of the Seven Kingdoms."
"I see no internal struggle of the Seven Kingdoms; I only see a bunch of pirates from the Sunset Sea harassing the North, cutting off the Watch's grain transport lines, and disrupting the normal operations of the Logistics Department." Egger snorted. "Furthermore, I guarantee that not a single brother of the Night's Watch will participate in the war to drive out the Ironborn."
Technically, the Iron Islands were indeed not one of the Seven Kingdoms, and they were certainly in the Sunset Sea... and if not a single brother participated, it seemed it could indeed be done?
This was clearly a case of sophistry, or even lying through one's teeth, but even a cornered rabbit will bite. War can be waged over any excuse one finds; at a moment when interests are damaged or even life and death are at stake, who would be so rigid as to cling to the rules?
...
"Oh... Egger, you have a clever mind. I trust you, so I support your series of plans, but you are truly raising the stakes higher and higher now." Mormont tapped his fingers nervously on the desk, his mind racing. "The plan is feasible, but everything must go smoothly to continue... What if the Iron Bank refuses to lend to us, or we fail to get enough food from across the sea? When there isn't enough food to feed everyone, are we supposed to slaughter the Wildlings we let inside the Wall? Even against an enemy, I cannot do such a thing!"
"There's no need to decide now. We'll wait until after I've spoken with the envoys from the Iron Bank. If we don't get the loan, then we'll feign negotiations with the Wildlings, promising to let them through the gates. When they gather, we launch a massive surprise attack to crush them and seize as much food as possible." It was cruel, but there was no room for warmth in the face of winter. "If we get the loan and are certain of food support from Essos, then we'll hold another meeting to discuss the feasibility of a settlement with the Wildlings."
"That works too."
"Mhm... two more things. Stannis's priestess—the woman rumored to be his true Queen—will arrive at Castle Black before dark. Tell Lord Bowen not to be neglectful." Egger pondered for a moment. "Also, we still have a few Wildling prisoners in the dungeon, don't we? We've been feeding them all this time; it's time to put them to use. Release two and have them tell Mance Rayder that we are willing to negotiate."
Whether it was a real negotiation or a fake one, they had to find the man first. Mormont nodded quickly. "Fine, we'll do it that way."
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