Chapter 146: Three Great Armies

The eagle circled high above the Wall, seemingly mocking the Northern Army and the Night's Watch legion below.

Being a warg himself, Eddard recognized at a glance that this was an eagle controlled by a warg.

Once a warg bonds with an eagle, they can gain the eagle's vision and control it to attack enemies. Eagles are sharp tools for reconnaissance and assault.

Eddard had long anticipated that there would be wargs among the wildling army gathered by Mance Rayder, the King-Beyond-the-Wall; the power of the Old Gods is strong beyond the Wall, where the weirwoods are more ancient and the last Green Seer resides, making wargs more common there than in the Seven Kingdoms.

Whether it was the mountain clans or the Rockborn army that arrived at Castle Black via Eastwatch, both had sent ravens to deliver news to Castle Black, but not a single one of these two ravens had arrived successfully; clearly, the ravens had all been killed by this eagle controlled by a warg.

Eddard recalled that Mance Rayder, the King-Beyond-the-Wall, had a warg named Orell by his side who could bond with an eagle. Was the eagle before him Orell's eagle? Or another warg's? Eddard did not know.

Ever since awakening his warg talent, Eddard had almost nightly wolf dreams, bonding with the direwolf in the night to roam, hunting and running together.

While direwolves possess great deterrent power and lethality on land, they have no wings and cannot kill this hunting eagle. Eddard had never bonded with the female wolf, Summer, but he believed that one day in the future, perhaps he could control her just as he controlled the male wolf.

Eddard looked up at the eagle on the Wall; the Wall was seven hundred feet high, and the eagle was even higher than that distance—at such a height, it was far beyond range.

If archers were sent to the top of the Wall to shoot, the possibility of downing this warg's eagle would be greater, but to ascend the seven-hundred-foot Wall, one must either take the cage or climb the stairs. By the time the archers climbed up, the eagle would likely have long since slipped away.

The eagle in the air seemed to sense Eddard's gaze; it spread its wings to glide and began to dive.

Eddard beckoned to the archers nearby.

"Whoever can shoot down this eagle shall be rewarded with 1 Gold Dragon!"

Alliser Thorne, the Master-at-Arms of the Night's Watch, the Ranger Jeremy Lake, Thoren Smallwood, Benjen, and others all looked at the eagle in confusion, and even Maester Aemon raised his blind eyes to look at the sky.

Benjen said, "Eddard, eagles are common enough on the Wall and beyond; why would you be willing to spend a Gold Dragon to buy one?"

The Lord Steward Bowen Marsh said, "Lord Eddard, in fact, the hunters among our stewards can kill eagles from time to time; if you offer such a high price to purchase them, my stewards can satisfy you."

The eagle continued to fly downward, hovering near the icy wall of the Wall, and Eddard said, "Only this eagle is worth a Gold Dragon; the others are worthless. This is a warg's eagle."

The Night's Watch officers and the Northern lords, Greatjon Umber and Lord Rickard Karstark, instantly erupted.

"A warg? There are actually wargs left in this world."

"Just like the Others, they're all things from Old Nan's stories, all nonsense."

"Wargs are just wolf-spirits, right?"

Maester Aemon spoke, and the crowd immediately fell silent.

"My lords, among wargs, those who can control wolves are called wolf-spirits; wolves are indeed animals commonly controlled by wargs, but according to ancient books, some wargs can bond with bears, seals, sea monsters, shadowcats, and even eagles."

"Therefore, wolf-spirits belong to the wargs; all wolf-spirits are wargs, but not all wargs are wolf-spirits. In the end, it depends on what animal the warg controls."

The crowd was clearly greatly shocked; after all, once a legend is verified by a learned maester, its credibility increases significantly.

Ser Thoren Smallwood, a Ranger, smiled nervously, "Maester Aemon, the legends of wargs are all fake; how could they possibly be true?"

Maester Aemon nodded slightly, "Few have witnessed wargs, that is a fact, but to deny the existence of wargs on that basis is to deceive oneself. After the dragons went extinct, no one had seen a dragon; could one therefore deny that dragons had existed? It is entirely possible for dragons to reappear in the world."

Ser Jeremy Lake shrugged, "Even if wargs existed, they died out long ago, just like the Others. The eagle before us cannot be a warg."

Daven stepped forward; he had wooden teeth, a head of silver-white hair, a lean build, and arms covered in knots like tree burls. He had been a Ranger beyond the Wall for decades, and it was said that no one understood the Haunted Forest better than he did.

"If others don't believe in wargs, that's one thing, but Jeremy, Thoren, you two are Rangers who often fight and communicate with wildlings—do you not believe in wargs either? South of the Wall, ancient powers may have vanished, but beyond the Wall, hehe, wargs certainly exist. When I patrol the Haunted Forest, I can feel the gaze of beasts' eyes."

Daven's words plunged the Rangers into a long silence, and everyone stared at the eagle in the sky.

Eddard said, "I have no doubt that it was this very eagle that shot down the ravens flying from Eastwatch and the mountain clans; this fellow is monitoring us."

Lareza, the black-blooded bastard from Dorne, picked up a yew bow, nocked an arrow, and fired; the bow's range was insufficient, and the arrow eventually fell to the ground in vain.

Fellan picked up the dragonbone longbow, a gift bestowed upon him by Eddard, and fired an arrow after aiming.

The dragonbone longbow had a longer range, and the arrow flew rapidly to strike at the eagle; the eagle flapped its wings to ascend, and the arrow ultimately struck the ice-covered Wall, embedding itself deeply into the wall as a large chunk of ice scattered and fell.

The eagle circled in the air for a while before disappearing above the Wall.

The Old Bear Mormont frowned, his forehead like a ravine, "Lord Eddard, if this eagle is truly a warg's, wouldn't Mance Rayder be able to see the movements of the Night's Watch and the Northern Army? Our military intelligence is leaked; wouldn't we be very passive?"

Eddard nodded, "This eagle will constantly scout our movements, and besides this eagle, the wildlings have other wargs. Entering beyond the Wall, wild boars, wolves, goats, shadowcats, and even bears could all be the pets of wildling wargs; we must be careful at all times."

The Ranger Daven's wooden teeth made a grinding sound, "I often chat with wildlings in villages beyond the Wall; whether it's the wildlings around Whitetree or Craster at Craster's Keep, they have all mentioned a 'Sixskins' named Varamyr. This fellow controls at least three wolves, a bear, and a shadowcat."

Thoren Smallwood said disdainfully, "Varamyr is nothing but a bragging local tyrant, the same sort as the braggart Tormund. Tormund has many nicknames, such as Husband to Bears, Father of Life, Horn-Blower, and Giantbane; these nicknames are just self-aggrandizement and cannot be taken seriously."

Benjen said wistfully, "That may be so, but we should still heighten our vigilance; if the wildlings truly have wargs, the reconnaissance advantage of the Rangers and Northern scouts will be neutralized."

In the courtyard at the entrance of Castle Black, a weirwood heart tree was planted, facing the entrance of the tunnel through the Wall; the weirwood heart tree watched those passing through the tunnel.

Originally, Castle Black had no godswood; when people needed to pray to the Old Gods, they had to go to the godswood in the Haunted Forest, where nine weirwoods huddled together—the power of the Old Gods is strong beyond the Wall.

At the suggestion of Duke Eddard, the Old Bear Mormont stopped the Ranger patrols; whether it was the Night's Watch or the Winterfell garrison on the Wall, few went to the lands north of the Wall.

To facilitate prayer, weirwood heart trees were planted at Castle Black, Eastwatch, the Shadow Tower, and the fortresses of the Winterfell garrison: Green Guard, Westbridge, and the Nightfort.

Before the heart tree at Castle Black, Eddard stood with the Old Bear, surrounded by Rangers and officers like Benjen, Jeremy Lake, and Alliser Thorne, as well as Northern lords Greatjon Umber and Rickard Karstark, and Rockborn leaders Billy Stern and Resson Magnar, along with mountain clan leaders Big Bucket Wull, Donnel Flint, and Liddle.

Eddard looked up at the sky; the damned eagle was still circling above the Wall.

"We need to carry obsidian daggers and obsidian bows and arrows to deal with the Others."

The Old Bear frowned, "Lord Eddard, do you truly believe there are Others beyond the Wall?"

"I hope there are not, but it is never wrong to be prepared." Eddard raised his voice so that every commander could hear, "The Others are a far more dangerous enemy than the wildlings; if you encounter Others, use obsidian weapons to attack. If you encounter wights, use torches to attack."

Thoren Smallwood suppressed a laugh, Alliser Thorne let out a shrill, mocking laugh, and Jeremy Lake shook his head in disdain. These Night's Watchmen clearly did not believe the Others were real; Eddard truly wished the Others would snatch all these fools away.

Alliser Thorne's laughter was too loud, and Greatjon Umber heard it; Greatjon clenched his fists.

"Alliser, what the hell are you laughing at? Duke Eddard is speaking, and you're just giggling there—where did your manners go? Lord Eddard is arranging combat missions."

Alliser Thorne gave a light hum, "The Night's Watch legion is the army of the Seven Kingdoms, swearing allegiance to the Iron Throne, not Winterfell."

Lord Rickard Karstark said angrily, "Besides the North, who else cares about the Night's Watch legion? Lord Eddard is helping the Night's Watch repair their fortresses and keeping them fed and clothed, and this is the attitude you show?"

The Lord Steward Bowen Marsh hurriedly mediated, "My lords, the North is the friend and greatest supporter of the Night's Watch; Ser Alliser just misspoke, please don't mind it."

The Old Bear roared, "The wildling army is attacking, and the Night's Watch has begged the Seven Kingdoms for help, but only Winterfell and Duke Eddard have responded. Duke Eddard has brought an army to reinforce the Wall; Alliser, is this your way of treating guests? If you don't know how to speak, then shut your mouth!"

"Maester Aemon also believes that the Others are a potential threat; therefore, brothers of the Night's Watch, I command you to carry obsidian weapons and follow Duke Eddard's words!"

Skagos is rich in obsidian, and obsidian has also been found in the Lonely Mountain, the Northern Mountains, the Sheephead Hill area, and within the jurisdiction of Winterfell. Eddard ordered the military colonies at Queenscrown and the Wall to produce obsidian weapons in large quantities, so obsidian daggers and bows and arrows were plentiful.

Eddard spread out a map of the lands beyond the Wall, "Since Mance Rayder's wildling settlements have appeared all over the lands beyond the Wall, we have no choice but to strike everywhere." Eddard's finger pressed down on the Fist of the First Men, "The Fist of the First Men guards the middle reaches of the Milkwater, the key passage between the Haunted Forest and the Frostfangs; our army will be stationed at the Fist of the First Men."

The Fist of the First Men is situated exactly in the middle reaches of the Milkwater, with the Frostfangs to the west and the Antler River and the Haunted Forest to the east; once the Northern Army and the Night's Watch establish a camp at the Fist of the First Men, Mance Rayder, the King-Beyond-the-Wall, cannot bypass the Fist of the First Men while dragging along the Wildling host, families and all.

The Old Bear looked full of admiration, "Lord Eddard, the Fist of the First Men is indeed a strategic location! You have never been Beyond the Wall, so how do you understand the terrain Beyond the Wall better than the Rangers of the Night's Watch?"

Eddard said modestly, "I often read ancient texts regarding the terrain Beyond the Wall; although Wildling settlements frequently migrate, these mountains and rivers have remained the same for thousands of years, have they not? In marching and warfare, one must understand geography."

On the map of Beyond the Wall, the Frostfangs mountain range is particularly conspicuous; it is a high-altitude region covered in ice and snow, and Eddard does not doubt that Mance Rayder has hidden many Wildling settlements in the Frostfangs, with the number of people potentially exceeding tens of thousands.

"We must drive the Wildlings out of the Frostfangs." Eddard looked at the Old Bear, "Which Ranger of the Night's Watch knows the Frostfangs best?"

The Old Bear stroked his snow-white beard, "The Rangers of the Shadow Tower often go to the Frostfangs to patrol; the one who knows the Frostfangs best is Qhorin Halfhand."

Qhorin Halfhand has already arrived at Castle Black a few days ago with one hundred Rangers of the Shadow Tower.

Qhorin Halfhand stood before Eddard; he had gray eyes and a clean-shaven face, his hair tied into a large braid, and his right hand was crippled. This is a legendary figure; his palm was severed by a Wildling leader in a battle, yet he still relied on his bloody, crippled hand to kill the enemy. He is the second-in-command of the Shadow Tower, and because the commander of the Shadow Tower, Ser Denys Mallister, is advanced in years, Qhorin Halfhand has been responsible for the marching and warfare of the Shadow Tower in recent years.

Eddard said, "Halfhand, you take one hundred Rangers of the Shadow Tower as guides; I will dispatch two hundred cavalry and one thousand mountain clansmen infantry to follow you. The Night's Watch must assist the Northern Army in driving the Wildlings out of the mountains."

The other officers of the Night's Watch all widened their eyes; one must know that the total number of the Night's Watch adds up to no more than one thousand men.

Qhorin frowned, "Duke Eddard, the mountain clans are skilled in mountain warfare, but they may not be willing to listen to the command of the Rangers of the Night's Watch; they are not brothers of the Night's Watch."

Eddard smiled, "Rest assured, Big Bucket Wull, Middle Liddle, and Donnel Flint will manage the mountain clansmen Warriors well."

Only then did Qhorin Halfhand accept the mission, and the other officers of the Night's Watch revealed envious gazes.

Next are the Wildlings in the Haunted Forest; the Wildlings here directly threaten Eastwatch and Green Guard. Eddard looked toward Jory.

"Jory, you take three hundred cavalry and one thousand Rockborn Warriors, with the Ranger Daven as your guide, to sweep the Haunted Forest and drive the Wildlings out of the Haunted Forest."

The Rockborn Warriors are almost all infantry, suitable for forest warfare, while Daven is the Ranger who knows the Haunted Forest best; he has patrolled the Haunted Forest for decades and also knows quite a few Wildling friends Beyond the Wall.

Thanks to "Book Friend 20200903215802069" and "Book Friend 20211003204032353" for the monthly tickets sent; thank you for the support!

(End of this chapter)