Chapter 137: The Dispute Between the Dreadfort and Hornwood

The strength of House Hornwood cannot be compared to that of the Bolton House of the Dreadfort at all; it would be good enough for House Hornwood to just hold onto their own lands, and their soldiers would definitely not dare to go to the Dreadfort's territory to stir up trouble.

Lord Haris Hornwood is also a good-tempered man, completely lacking the ruthlessness of Roose Bolton.

Now that a bloody conflict has occurred between House Hornwood and the Bolton House in the border region between the two great houses, Eddard knows even with his heel that it was the Dreadfort that provoked the incident.

On Lord Haris Hornwood's list of accusations, Eddard heard the names of Reek, Ben Bones, and Damon the Dancer. Eddard could not help but wonder if the bastard of the Dreadfort, Ramsay Snow, had any involvement behind this bloody incident.

The little flayer Ramsay Snow is a potential threat; this person is bloodthirsty and perverted, stopping at nothing to achieve his goals. Now, the heir to the Dreadfort is Eddard's ward, Domeric, and it is entirely possible for Ramsay to strike at Domeric for the sake of the inheritance.

Roose Bolton is an ambitious man; keeping Ramsay means the Dreadfort has one more mad dog, which is a potential threat to Winterfell.

If there were an opportunity to get rid of him, Eddard would act decisively; however, the little flayer is, after all, Roose Bolton's bastard, and Eddard cannot simply execute a noble bastard without proof or cause.

At the meeting of the Lords of the North in Barrow Hall, Lord Haris Hornwood looked around, his gaze resting on Eddard.

"Lord Eddard, the Flayed Man soldiers of the Dreadfort have been burning, killing, and looting on the lands of Hornwood. Not only does Roose Bolton refuse to admit his mistake, but he also bites back, slandering that it was my soldiers who attacked them. Please, act on behalf of House Hornwood!"

Eddard pondered and said: "Lord Hornwood, who is leading the soldiers of the Dreadfort? Could it be some relative of Roose Bolton?"

Eddard hoped to hear the name of the little flayer, but Lord Hornwood said: "The one leading the team is Reek, that foul-smelling soldier."

Lord Wyman Manderly cleared his throat: "Lord Eddard, the Dreadfort is simply lawless! Openly going to a neighbor's territory to kill and rob. White Harbor supports Hornwood!"

Haris Hornwood looked at Lord Wyman with a face full of gratitude. Roose Bolton's eyes, like black ice, held no emotion as he said in a soft voice: "Lord Hornwood's wife is the cousin of Lord Wyman. Does White Harbor think it can bully the Dreadfort just by forming cliques?"

Ser Herman Tallhart of Torrhen's Square said: "Lord Roose Bolton, Lord Hornwood's sister is married to my brother Lamberd Tallhart; House Tallhart and House Hornwood are relatives. I support Lord Hornwood, not because of our kinship, but because he is the weaker party. Anyone with eyes can see that House Hornwood would not dare to provoke the Bolton House."

Lord Galbart Glover of Deepwood Motte said: "The Dreadfort's territory is several times larger than that of House Hornwood, and Lord Haris Hornwood is a famously honest man. Roose Bolton, why must you bully an honest man?"

Roose Bolton wore a faint smile: "Galbart, everyone knows that Lord Hornwood's bastard is your ward at Deepwood Motte, and you are biased toward House Hornwood because of this."

Lord Roderick Ryswell of the Rills is Roose Bolton's father-in-law and the father of Lady Barbrey.

This man, who loves forming cliques the most, said: "Forming cliques is shameful. Lord Hornwood relies on marriage and sending away wards to gain the support of White Harbor, Deepwood Motte, and Torrhen's Square, thinking he can bully the Dreadfort. In front of all you friends of the North, I want to tell you that I support Roose Bolton and the Dreadfort!"

Lord Wyman of White Harbor patted his big belly and sneered: "Lord Ryswell, you say others are forming cliques, do you not feel guilty yourself? Who was it back then that married off two daughters to Barrowton and the Dreadfort respectively, creating the three-house alliance of the Rills, Barrowton, and the Dreadfort?"

Lord Ryswell's expression seemed as if he were choked; he flushed red and said to Eddard: "Lord Eddard, I cannot accept such rude accusations from Lord Wyman! Especially in my daughter's castle, I cannot accept it!"

The Lord of the Rills clearly hoped that Lady Barbrey could speak up to support him; after all, Lady Barbrey is the head of the Dustin House and the mistress of Barrow Hall, and her words carry great weight.

Lady Barbrey smiled: "I support the Dreadfort only because of my nephew Domeric. My lords, tomorrow is my wedding, there is no need for everyone to be so awkward."

Eddard interlaced his fingers and said calmly: "In the end, this is a bloody conflict. Once I investigate the culprit, I will show no mercy. Before that, I declare that the Disputed Lands between the Dreadfort and Hornwood are to be reclaimed by Winterfell, and Winterfell will establish a military colony in the disputed area."

"The military colony will be garrisoned by Winterfell soldiers; whoever dares to have designs on the military colony is a traitor to the North."

Such a ruling meant that House Hornwood lost a small piece of territory, but because Winterfell stationed troops in the Disputed Lands, the Dreadfort could no longer encroach upon the lands of House Hornwood. Therefore, Lord Haris Hornwood was very satisfied with this ruling.

"With the protection of the soldiers of House Stark, our Hornwood is much safer. Lord Eddard, I welcome you to my territory to station more troops."

As the party in the wrong, Roose Bolton could only accept it.

Once Eddard stationed troops in the territory of Hornwood, it was equivalent to Winterfell establishing an outpost near the Dreadfort's territory by Sheephead Hill. House Stark strengthened its control over Hornwood, and the Bolton House of the Dreadfort would find it difficult to continue wantonly encroaching on their neighbor's territory.

The territory of Hornwood is located between White Harbor and the Dreadfort, and its strategic position is very important. Eddard's setting up of a military colony in the territory of Hornwood serves as a reminder to the Bolton House to maintain loyalty and obedience.

Just as the territorial dispute between Hornwood and the Dreadfort ended, Luoerjie, Luce Ryswell, and Rickard of the Rills began to complain to Eddard about disputes over pastures and villages.

These men are all cousins of Lord Roderick of the Rills, and they all possess their own lands, frequently breaking out in conflicts over pastures and villages. Each of them has a different horse-head crest.

Under normal circumstances, these problems should be adjudicated by the Lord of the Rills, but these Ryswells chose to bypass their house head to petition Eddard, which made the Lord of the Rills lose face.

The Lord of the Rills angrily scolded his cousins: "You fellows, do you also have to trouble Duke Eddard over pasture matters? Do you want the scandals of the Rills to be brought out for the nobles of the North to laugh at?"

In the end, under the scolding of the Lord of the Rills, these Ryswells reluctantly withdrew their accusations.

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(End of this chapter)