Chapter 147: The New High Septon

The peak of the Faith of the Seven's influence was during the reign of King Maegor, when Septons in various places contacted minor lords and Landed Knights, sparking a militant uprising that spread across the Five Kingdoms.

Later, when the Old King Jaehaerys I took the throne, he reconciled with House Hightower and took the opportunity to select a High Septon loyal to the crown, after which the influence of the Faith began to decline.

After the divinely blessed Baelor I Targaryen chose a mentally disabled stonemason and an eight-year-old child to serve as High Septon in succession, and moved the residence of the High Septons to the Great Sept of Baelor, most of the Most Devout and subsequent High Septons began to become vassals to the powerful and House Targaryen.

Pious Septons were often found among the lower classes; many of them had no fixed Sept and traveled between villages and towns that needed Septons, being known as the Begging Brothers.

As for the royal family's attitude toward the Faith, it can be seen from the emblem above the Iron Throne.

During the Targaryen era, the three-headed dragon was hung in the Throne Room; during the reign of Robert I, the emblem above the Iron Throne was the prancing stag, which was a stag leaping through the grass.

During the brief reign of Emperor Joffrey, he changed his father's prancing stag to the weeping Seven-Pointed Star.

Although the Seven-Pointed Star could indeed represent the Seven, to the Seven, the weeping Seven-Pointed Star carried a hint of disrespect.

After Stannis took King's Landing, the emblem above the Iron Throne became a burning flame to represent the Red God, the Lord of Light, R'hllor.

Although the Most Devout had become corrupt, many Southern nobles who had undergone complete Knight training still valued the faith of the Seven.

They anointed themselves with Holy Oil in the Sept, pledged their marriage vows under the witness of the Seven, and even the major events of their lives were witnessed by the Seven and the gods in heaven.

Moreover, with the frequent wars recently, lords were busy fighting hostile forces, and the popularity of responsible lower-class Septons gradually rose.

Therefore, if a new High Septon could be elected, the great lords of the Stormlands felt that the current King was still worth following.

The stern and anxious Stannis walked slowly up the steps, paced to the Iron Chair, and sat down slowly.

"Do you have any candidates?" the blue-eyed King asked.

Although in most cases High Septons were elected by the Most Devout, in special times, the King could also order the appointment of a High Septon.

A dozen great lords looked at each other, and finally, one person stood out.

Selwyn Tarth was the lord of Tarth, the largest island in the Stormlands, and was quite old.

Previously, when Renly was still alive, he had met with the Onion Knight representing Stannis in a forest on his own territory and refused to pledge allegiance.

But after Renly died, the Earl of Tarth's attitude immediately flipped one hundred and eighty degrees, and he took the initiative to defect to Stannis.

He stood up, walked forward, bowed to the King first, and replied: "We are currently in a turbulent time, and the High Septon should be someone with high prestige and good health, so that he can walk among the people to bless and pray. I nominate a Most Devout: Septon Lucan."

After hearing an unfamiliar name, Stannis asked again: "This person's age, family, and life achievements?"

Earl Selwyn Tarth hurriedly said: "Lucan Frey, from the Frey family, lords of The Crossing, is forty-five years old. He strictly follows the doctrines on a daily basis and has a quite good reputation."

The blue-eyed King glanced at the lord of Tarth with disdain. "I heard that you change your wife every year; isn't that a bit contrary to the doctrines of the Seven? Furthermore, this Septon Lucan comes from the Frey family, a family that successively supported the false kings Robb and Arthur. How could I appoint such a person as High Septon?"

Although Er Lu had not spent much time in the Stormlands in the last dozen years, he had still heard some local anecdotes.

For example, the Selwyn before him would change to a new wife every year.

Given that the vows made during marriage are also Sacred Oath and cannot be violated, unless one party dies, the other cannot remarry, so the fate of the former wives can be imagined.

It is said that it is precisely because his father is reckless that "The Beauty" Brienne of Tarth is very observant of the spirit of the Knight.

The Earl of Tarth flushed red. "Your Majesty, one wife a year is still a rumor; I have only one child, Brienne, to this day..."

"Your Majesty." Seeing that the development of the situation exceeded expectations, the Onion Knight hurriedly stepped forward to smooth things over. "The Septon has already left his family; the rebellious acts of the Freys have nothing to do with Septon Lucan. How could you, who have always been fair and strict, wrong him?"

"The situation is turbulent now. Because of the matter of the fat High Septon, many people in King's Landing have complaints about you. You could use the re-election of the High Septon to make them believe that Your Majesty is an open-minded and excellent King who can accommodate different faiths."

Stannis looked at his most trusted subordinate with an expressionless face. After a few breaths, he replied: "Then follow the Earl of Tarth's suggestion and let Septon Lucan serve as the new High Septon. The specific ceremony will be handled by Knight Davos, and everything should be simplified. Our attention remains on the rebel army outside the city; do not spend too much time on these matters."

The Onion Knight, who believed in the Seven, and the various nobles of the Stormlands breathed a sigh of relief and praised Stannis one after another as a good King worth pledging allegiance to.

Harvard City.

The development of the situation was slightly different from what Arthur had expected.

Under the blow of the rumors that Tommen was dead and the "betrayal" of his subordinates, the mediocre Lord Pufferfish began to be at a loss.

After seeing the letter smeared with some time and location, Duke Mace Tyrell, under the advice of several Sworn Knights of House Tyrell, prepared to place Earl Mathis Rowan under house arrest and sent Viscount Valen Beesbury to take over the four thousand soldiers of the Rowan family.

But Mathis was not an easy person to deal with. He first refused to go to his liege's camp and actively sent people to communicate with House Tyrell, trying to prove that he was still a loyal subject of the liege of the Reach, while letting his house troops prepare for the possible riots and uprisings.

But these two points further aroused the suspicion of Lord Pufferfish, who also ordered his soldiers to prepare for battle and repeatedly invited Earl Mathis Rowan to the main tent to prove his innocence.

Under the mediation of Lady Aiwen Aokehete and Viscount Valen Beesbury and others, Mathis Rowan reluctantly agreed to go, but wanted to bring a two-hundred-man squad to protect his side.

Duke Mace Tyrell also agreed, so the two sides, protected by heavy troops, began to argue bit by bit, trying to restore mutual trust.

Learning that although the Reachmen were in chaos, it had not yet reached the point of a major fight, Arthur felt that he should add more fuel to the fire.

So he took several skilled warriors such as Hosteen Frey, Locke Holt, Hugo Vance, and Ronald Vance, as well as a batch of the most elite Cavalry under their command, and killed his way directly into the still-confronting Reach Army camp, and snatched Duke Mace Tyrell away.

Of course, during the battle, the Riverlands King specifically ordered several Knights to shout loudly not to attack the Rowan soldiers.

Because most of the Tyrell soldiers were guarding against the Rowan family, this operation went quite smoothly.

After this, more than two thousand ready-to-fight Cavalry from House Tyrell came out to pursue, and the remaining soldiers captured Mathis Rowan on the spot.

Seeing their lord captured, the Rowan soldiers, under the command of Sworn Knights and senior officers, immediately attacked the Tyrell camp.

Several minor lords who were on good terms with the Rowan family but loyal to the liege family tried to separate the two sides, but to no avail.

A considerable number of soldiers directly under House Tyrell went to retrieve their lord, while the remaining Reachmen were passively drawn into the infighting.

The next thing went as the Riverlanders had prepared.

The territory of House Hafo is mostly hills and low mountains, which is not suitable for Cavalry to deploy for battle—this is also the reason why Duke Mace Tyrell had been dragging his feet and not attacking—so the Riverlands Army, which was mostly infantry, actually had the advantage of terrain.

After luring the pursuing Tyrell Cavalry into the encirclement, the two sides fought a bitter battle, and the Riverlands Army finally defeated this force.

Afterwards, Arthur ordered the soldiers to rest briefly and began to attack the Reach Army camp.

Similarly, they only attacked House Tyrell and its vassals, and took no measures against the Rowan family and the Reach families who fought to rescue Mathis.

The Rowan family and the Oakheart family who supported Rowan had a total of six thousand soldiers, the armored warriors fighting for the Tyrells totaled around seven thousand, and the rest were all servants, while the Riverlanders had a full ten thousand, which made House Tyrell, known for its strong military strength, at a disadvantage in terms of troop numbers for the first time.

After half a day of fierce fighting, more than two thousand Reach soldiers loyal to the Tyrells were killed, and the rest surrendered to the Riverlanders and the Rowan side.

To show his sincerity, Arthur took the initiative to send someone to apologize to Earl Mathis, taking the blame for Duke Mace Tyrell's misunderstanding of him upon himself, and strove for the Rowan family to join his side.

"After my dragon grows up, the territory south of the Golden Road and north of the Reach will be under the name of Goldengrove, and parts of the territories of Bitterbridge and Dumbleton will also be divided among the Rowans." This was the condition Arthur offered.

Originally, according to the Riverlands King's vision, the four earldoms in the Riverlands Lake region, as well as Maidenpool, Saltpans, Crab Peninsula, etc., would all join the Great Crownlands; the earldoms of Silverhill and Deep Den in the eastern Westerlands, as well as Goldengrove, Bitterbridge, and Dumbleton in the northern Reach, and Greenstone, Harvest Hall, and Haystack Hall in the western Stormlands were also within the scope of consideration.

In this way, Goldengrove, a second-tier house of the Reach, became one of the most powerful vassals in the greater Crownlands region, and one worth winning over.

It was not originally Mathis Rowan's intention to have his own soldiers besiege the army camp of his liege lord's house; he was a man who acted with caution. But the impulsiveness of his sworn knights and senior officers was also for their own sake, so the Lord of Goldengrove accepted it.

In the current situation, even if the Rowan and Oakheart houses led their troops back to outside King's Landing, they would be besieged by Garlan and Loras, who had lost their father, and the Reach lords who had lost their liege.

Therefore, after weighing the options many times, this steady-acting Earl made a bold decision:

To defect to the Riverlands King with dragons, Arthur Targaryen.

In his speech, the Riverlands King's surname was always Targaryen.

Arthur had no objection to this; as long as the soldiers of House Rowan fought for him, that was enough.

After settling the details, the Rowan and Oakheart forces joined with the Riverlands Army, all stationed near Hafo, waiting for the Battle of King's Landing, which would soon have a result.

……

Night fell, in the central command tent.

The Riverlands King sat before the table, studying the military map marked with troop strengths, while Arianne held a candlestick for him at his side.

Dickon and Lothar Frey suddenly burst in.

"Your Grace, there is good news and bad news."

Arthur looked at Dickon, "Tell me the bad news first."

Although the addition of the Rowan and Oakheart houses had increased his troop strength by nearly five thousand, the situation was still very grim.

Stannis had twenty thousand men, the Lion-Flower coalition outside King's Landing still had a great army of fifty thousand, and it was said that the mercenary company under the name of Aegon VI in the south was the famous Golden Company, with a strength of twenty thousand as well.

Every side was stronger than him.

But one does not worry about debt when there is too much of it; the Riverlands King could still accept some of the situation.

"Desmond Grell, the Master-at-arms of Riverrun, has left our army with the soldiers of House Tully. He took over four hundred men; it must have been a direct order from the Blackfish."

Previously, to meet the invasion of the Westerlanders, Riverrun, under the Blackfish's command, had provided five hundred soldiers, but this did not mean House Tully recognized Arthur as the self-proclaimed Riverlands King; it was purely because the hatred between House Tully and House Lannister was greater.

Moreover, during the Usurper's War, Duke Hoster provided all the military food supplies and a quarter of his soldiers, as well as two beautiful daughters, but in return, he only received a severe injury and did not even secure a seat on the Small Council. Coupled with the fact that the Iron Throne supported the "suppression of rebellion" in the Riverlands by the Westerlands at the beginning of the War of the Five Kings, House Tully was not very satisfied with Baratheon and Tommen either.

Therefore, even though Robb had been dead for three or four months, Riverrun still claimed to be a vassal of the King in the North and the Trident, and did not pay heed to the other kings.

"Where have we offended this upright old knight again?" Arthur asked, puzzled.

Lothar Frey said, "It should be that our good news has displeased Ser Brynden Tully. A group of bandits ambushed Earl Tytos Blackwood and his party while they were in the territory villages mobilizing the smallfolk, and then my brother Jiemosi led a team to station themselves at Raventree Hall to help defend against the bandits' attacks. Because my house is your vassal, the Blackfish may have thought this was your intention. As everyone knows, the Blackwoods and Brackens are natural enemies..."

In front of Dickon, Lothar changed the identity of his nephew, Bloodthirsty Aegon, to that of a bandit.

In fact, Bloodthirsty Aegon's current public identity really was that of a bandit.

Arthur stared at Lothar for a long time, making the Frey feel uncomfortable, before saying:

"It is not a major matter. Since Edmure was shot and severely wounded by Kevan's order, and later forced to participate in the Battle of the Red Fork, where he was wounded even more heavily by Tywin's soldiers, plus the fact that Robb also died at the hands of the Westerlanders, the Blackfish, who cherishes his kin, hates the Lions far more than he hates us. Riverrun has at most one or two thousand men now, and with Sansa's connection, there is no need to worry for the time being."

It is not yet known whether Edmure can leave behind an heir, so even if Roslin Frey manages the castle and territory as the Duchess of Riverrun, just like Lady Dustin of the North or Lady Aiwen Aokehete of the Reach, the heir to Riverrun after Roslin is still the line of Hoster's eldest daughter, Catelyn Stark.

As it currently appears, the Blackfish may let his grandniece Sansa inherit Riverrun and its lands.

So House Tully is really not a major issue.

"By the way, what about Black Walder?" Arthur asked casually.

He still remembered the only remaining person from the eldest branch of old Walder Frey.

Lothar smiled even more awkwardly, "My nephew is working near the Blue Fork and did not pursue Black Walder, who fled east of the Green Fork. We only sent a team of average-strength cavalry to pursue him, and he escaped into the Mountains of the Moon. It seems he intends to enter the Vale to seek help from his relatives, House Royce, to take back The Twins."

"Which Royce? Bronze Yohn?" the Riverlands King asked curiously.

"Yes, my father's first wife came from House Royce of the Vale."

Due to the Frey family's massive family tree, they could claim relations with one-third of the nobles in the Seven Kingdoms.

PS: Seeking recommendation votes and monthly tickets.

(End of chapter)