Chapter 310: A New... Beginning?
No one at Giant's Nest was prepared to host the Northern inspection tour with food or drink, and even if they had been, the group of nobles and soldiers were in such a hurry to depart that they likely would have had no heart to enjoy it. They left as soon as the word was given; less than a minute after Robb bid farewell to the Giant King, every soldier was mounted. The weeks-long inspection tour drew to a close as the silhouettes of hundreds of Northern elites, bound for the battlefield, vanished into the white expanse of the swirling snow.
Despite having prepared a series of measures to handle the inspection tour, Egger now found himself without the chance to use them. It seemed like a cause for regret, but in truth, it was the first time Egger felt happy that his hard work had gone down the drain. Although he was technically an enemy of Euron Greyjoy, Egger couldn't help but offer a silent word of thanks to the madman.
This invasion had truly come at the perfect time.
As it turned out, unexpected circumstances weren't always a bad thing.
On the other side, Arya, who had also watched the group depart, saw her feigned grievance and dissatisfaction vanish in an instant. Like a theatrical mask being swapped, her face lit up with an irrepressible, secret joy. Since taking up the mantle of Warden of the North, Robb had become a different person—no longer the doting brother of the past, he spent his days forbidding this and restricting that, managing her more strictly than their parents ever had. These days by his side had nearly suffocated her.
Compared to going to the West Coast with him, she was much more willing to stay at the Wall with Egger and Jon, whom she liked far better!
She turned and squeezed in next to Egger, grabbing his arm—a breach of decorum she wouldn't have dared in front of her elder brother.
"Master!"
"What is it?" Egger turned to look at her. Though they were close, there were still several Winterfell soldiers who hadn't left yet. This was hardly appropriate.
Arya lowered her voice mysteriously. "You go tell Ser Rodrik that the storm is too heavy for travel—let me stay at the Wall for a few more days."
What is there to stay for in this freezing place?
Egger smiled helplessly. He could roughly understand why Arya liked the Wall; in her eyes, the Night's Watch's domain was likely like Grandpa and Grandma's house was to him as a child—interesting, with no parents to nag her, naturally making her want to linger.
Rationally, with his impending inauguration as Lord Commander and a mountain of work ahead, Egger didn't want to keep such a troublemaker at the Wall. But Arya had been a massive help just a few days ago... and he had promised to take her to see the trees if given the chance. A man had to keep his word.
"Your brother entrusted you to Ser Rodrik. Will my word carry any weight?"
"It definitely will! Don't be fooled by Ser Rodrik's stern, grumpy face; he's actually very easy to talk to. Have some wine with him tonight, swap some stories, and once he's drunk, bring it up. He definitely won't object."
Well now, she's even planned out the methodology for me, Egger thought.
Seeing Egger still hesitating, Arya shook his arm forcefully. "Hey, who was it that said all those sappy things the other day about looking out for me? Don't break your word!"
"Fine, fine, I'll try—and behave yourself in public." Egger glanced up at Rodrik. The old knight was approaching with a puzzled look, seemingly trying to overhear the whispered conversation between the man and the girl. Egger quickly pulled his arm free of Arya's grip, coughed, and straightened his expression. "Alright, everyone, the Warden of the North has departed. The weather is wretched; let's get back to IceMark and hide by the fire!"
In this world, everyone has their place.
Robb hurried toward Deepwood Motte to command the war against the Ironborn, and Egger needed to return to Castle Black as soon as possible to take up his responsibilities. After one last night at Ice-Mark, he gathered his subordinates and made haste back to headquarters without further delay.
Arya had wanted Egger to use the heavy snow as an excuse to convince Ser Rodrik to let her stay. Unfortunately for her, she had predicted the weather correctly: the blizzard intensified day by day. After struggling through the harsh elements to reach Nightfort—where Egger fulfilled his promise by staying a day to let Arya see enough of the glowing heart tree—the weather turned so foul it was no longer fit for travel, at least not for a Lady of House Stark.
Left with no choice, Egger hunkered down in the ancient fortress for another two days, waiting for a break in the weather.
The resilience of ravens proved itself during such times. Even in weather where men dared not step outside, the exchange of information between the forts of the Wall continued uninterrupted thanks to the birds. The impact of Denys Mallister's actions—including his withdrawal from the election—hit like a massive boulder dropped into a small pond, instantly rippling across the entire Wall.
Egger had never expected that a two-day delay by a snowstorm would result in him becoming not only the first foreigner Lord Commander in the history of the Night's Watch but also the first... to be elected while not even being present at the scene.
Sam sent the final voting data from Castle Black: after Egger had systematically funneled one or two hundred men into the ranks, the total number of the Night's Watch had reached a fifty-year high of 1,205 men. In the final day's vote, the number of abstentions also set a record: 219 men, nearly one-fifth. Of the remaining 986 valid votes, Egger received 661—a margin of only a few votes over the two-thirds requirement. Thus, the months-long election concluded, and he was elected the 998th Lord Commander of the Night's Watch.
In the detailed accounts that followed, Egger learned why the election had ended sooner than expected: of the 236 soldiers of the Shadow Tower, 3 abstained, 5 supported Cotter Pyke, and the remaining 228 votes went entirely to him.
Ser Denys had not only withdrawn—creating a vacuum of abstentions at Castle Black that lowered the threshold for victory—but had also delivered 96.6% of the Shadow Tower's votes. It was a high-profile demonstration of his absolute control over his fortress and a direct announcement that he and Egger had reached an accord.
Faced with such a powerful gesture of allegiance, even Egger had to admit: a commander's influence over his fort was perhaps far greater than he had anticipated.
This unmistakable signal finally crushed the hesitation of the wavering neutrals at Castle Black who had been undecided after Denys's withdrawal. On the third day after the field was narrowed to two candidates—the day the result was finalized—the Night's Watch chose its next leader.
By relying on a decisive retreat to avoid the heat, a timely return, internal infiltration, and external maneuvers—with every tactic deployed and the help of allies and supporters... finally, after a bold gamble, Egger West, the transmigrator and crow, stood at the starting point of countless heroes and protagonists. After nearly three years in this world, he finally truly possessed a territory that belonged to him, both in law and in fact.
His allies were so efficient that he was the one falling behind the rhythm. Under the circumstances, even though the storm had only slightly weakened, the new Lord Commander could wait no longer. Ignoring Arya's tantrums, Egger left her at Nightfort and pushed ahead through the snow with his confidants to return to Castle Black.
At the headquarters of the Night's Watch, the fortress gates swung open for the new supreme commander. Egger and his followers passed slowly through the tunnel, returning to a place he knew intimately, yet could never look at the same way again.
Willing or not, the officials and soldiers of Castle Black—especially Egger's supporters—had gathered in the courtyard to welcome the new Lord Commander.
Melisandre stood at the back of the crowd with a cryptic, thin smile. Her red robes were striking, but Egger noticed something else: Cotter Pyke and the men of Eastwatch actually hadn't left, and the atmosphere was far too heavy. Even close friends like Jon Snow and Samwell Tarly didn't have a trace of a smile on their faces.
"What's happened? Why the long faces?" Egger dismounted and walked toward his supporters, questioning Jon at the head of the group.
"Maester Aemon passed away last night. Sam, who was caring for him, only discovered it this morning."
Jon, who answered, was relatively composed, but Sam looked as though he was a second away from bursting into tears. "I truly didn't expect it. Maester Aemon was still talking to me the day before yesterday... He held on until the end of the election, but he never got the chance to offer even a single word of advice to the 998th Commander in person."
Egger froze instantly.
The acceleration of Maester Aemon's decline had shown signs for some time. Having lived for over a hundred years, his passing at any moment could be described as dying of natural causes at a ripe old age. Yet, Egger had not expected that the first page of his chapter as the 998th Commander would begin this way.
If there were people in the Night's Watch he truly respected, Maester Aemon would occupy a seat on that list no matter how much it was narrowed. He was not only a polymath maester but the medical teacher for everyone at Castle Black and a benefactor to countless Watchmen, including himself. The passing of such an elder was undoubtedly a massive loss for the Night's Watch—this was no mere platitude.
I actually missed seeing Maester Aemon one last time because I was off watching trees with Arya?
A wave of intense regret washed over him. He looked around and suddenly lost all heart to proceed with the planned inauguration ceremony. After frowning for several seconds, he decided to postpone his own affairs to show respect for the venerable elder.
After a moment of silence, he turned and announced loudly: "Disperse! In one hour, we will hold Maester Aemon's funeral here. Afterward, I have words for you all and will announce my first set of directives as Lord Commander!"
The crowd dispersed, and Egger walked toward the residential tower with Jon and Sam.
"Did Maester Aemon leave any instructions for me before he died?"
"Yes... he hoped you would not seek retribution against your opponents after taking office. He also suggested minimizing changes to the high-ranking personnel of the Watch... if you absolutely must replace someone, he prepared a list of candidates for your reference."
Egger had already agreed to those terms with Denys Mallister. He waved a hand. "Keep the list; I have it handled. Anything else?"
"No... nothing else." Sam sniffled, his face a mask of grief. "What do we do now? I... I still have so much to learn."
"Figure it out yourself, or ask questions so we can discuss it. There are always more solutions than problems!" Egger said sharply, scaring the weakness off the fat boy's face before softening his tone again. "I'm giving you your first task: write to the Citadel. Tell them to either send someone as absolutely reliable as Maester Aemon to take his place or to recognize your status as a maester. Until then, you're filling in. Then write to Eastwatch; order them to cooperate fully with the unloading of the Iron Bank's grain. And while you're at it, recall Jaime for me! That's all for now; we'll talk about the rest tonight. Jon, find someone to oversee the preparations for the pyre. We'll meet at the funeral."
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