iron throne of ice and fire

Chapter 614: Blessings from the Old Gods
Most of the swamp people are small in size, good at guerrilla warfare in the swamp, and accustomed to using poisoned weapons. Therefore, they are a nightmare to enemies who invade the Neck Swamp, and are also called "swamp devils".

Legend has it that the people of the swamp once had their own king, the Swamp King. Blessed by the old gods, they also have special abilities like the children of the forest, such as communicating with animals.

It is said that Rickard Stark, the King of the North known as the "Laughing Wolf", killed the last King of the Crooked ...

From then on, all the crannog people submitted to the Stark family and became one of the most steadfast allies.

【Robb: ……】

……

"Thank you, Your Majesty!"

Led by Chief Li De, the leaders of the marshland people nodded to Green again, and then stood up together.

Then, Chief Holland presented the King with a treasure of the Marshlanders, a carefully polished and ancient dragon crystal dagger.

"..."

Lord Green was pleased to allow Ser Brienne to accept the gift from the crannogmen, and then he rewarded each crannogmen leader with a gilded dagger.

Among them, the dagger given to Chief Reed was inlaid with a large emerald.

Then there was the King's Banquet for the Marshland Chieftains, which lasted till late in the night.

The next morning, with the marshlanders as guides, His Majesty Green led his army along the King's Road and entered the Neck.

Except for the main road where at most five horses could run side by side, the roadsides were covered with wetlands and swamps.

The dense bushes had been immersed in a swamp for years, with fungi hanging down between the branches like curtains. Green saw many lizard lions and giant snakes shuttling among them.

After marching in Neck Marsh for two days, Green couldn't help but sigh that this was a natural fortress. If he forced his way through, he would suffer heavy losses.

During the lunch break, Green called Chief Li De over and sat down to eat together.

Putting down the roasted lamb leg, Green picked up the napkin to wipe his hands and said casually, "Captain Holland, did you guys survive the winter smoothly?"

Chief Reed paused for a moment, swallowed the food in his mouth, and spoke slowly: "Thank you for your concern. Winterfell has promised to provide us with a batch of food and grass, and will also send craftsmen to help us build more stone houses and fireplaces."

"very good."

Green picked up his glass and took a sip of Summer Red. The Reed family was Stark's vassal, not the king's vassal. Green had no reason to support them directly because it would cause misunderstanding.

If the Reed family accepted the king's aid, it would also be seen as a betrayal of the Starks.

Putting down the wine glass, he suddenly said, "To be honest, before entering the Neck Marsh, I thought the people in the marshland would live well."

Looking at Chief Li De, Green's lips curved slightly: "In my imagination, this is a must-go place on the north-south trade route. The cost of sheltering merchants alone is enough to live an enviable life."

Along the way, Green saw many marshland people who came to pay their respects... or to see what the king looked like.

From their attire, Green could easily tell that they were poor, or even naked.

Moreover, in addition to the steady Chief Li De, the expressions of the marshland leaders he brought with him when they saw the palace delicacies also testified to this point.

Crash---

The sound of Leo Tyrell's wine waiter pouring wine brought Chief Reed, who had been lost in thought, back to his senses.

He took a big gulp of wine before responding respectfully: "Your Majesty, thank you for your concern. Actually..."

He paused for a moment, then continued, "If it weren't for the approach of a long winter, I would have been forced to ask for help from Winterfell. Well, normally, the food in the Neck Swamp would be enough to feed the people of the Swamp."

Hearing this, Green curled his lips and said, "Captain Kalei's roasted snake meat really impressed me."

Chief Li De was slightly startled. Although they had not met for a long time, he had to admit the king's friendliness, especially his elegant jokes, which he could only describe in this way.

Just eating lamb legs and drinking together, the leaders of the Neck Marsh he brought with him became more and more fond of the young king. He tried to find out the reason. Was it because the king was a descendant of the ancestors? After all, the Marshlanders were also descendants of the ancestors...

……

Chief Li De couldn't help but smile: "The piece of 'black charcoal' he cooked was praised by His Majesty, and he has already crowned himself the best barbecue chef in Jingze."

Green smiled, then changed his tone and asked the previous question: "Captain Holland, I rule the Seven Kingdoms, and I look forward to the prosperity of the Seven Kingdoms, which naturally includes... Neck Marsh."

After listening to this, the short Chief Li De sat on a folding chair and couldn't help scratching his hair.

In the battle seventeen years ago, Howland accompanied Ned to the Tower of Joy to rescue Lyanna Stark, and in the end only the two of them survived.

Ned was not only his lord, but also his good friend.

The reason he kept his distance from Green I was that the Reed family guarded the "gate" into the North.

but……

When he heard that the Targaryen had returned to the Iron Throne with his three-headed dragon, he thought that the war seventeen years ago would continue, and this time... the North would suffer a great disaster.

However, the war did not come, and the Starks and the North successfully submitted to the Iron Throne again.

Apparently, it was Queen Targaryen's husband, King Grimm I, who spared the Starks and the North.

……

Thinking of this, Chief Li De said sincerely: "My majesty, compared to going through the Neck Marsh, the fur traders and horse traders in the north prefer to take a ship from White Harbor to the south..."

Green hesitated for a moment and said, "Is it because of the cost?"

Chief Reed nodded and said, "We must arrange a lot of escorts along the way. If we encounter bad weather, it will be easy for merchants to suffer losses. Until now, only the horse traders from Winterfell have gone south through the Neck. This is the care of the Stark family for us."

"understood."

Green took a sip of wine and added, "I will discuss this matter with Lord Ned. I rule the Seven Kingdoms, and I hope that trade between the north and the south will prosper."

A gentle smile appeared in the pair of brown eyes staring at Chief Li De: "Holland, prosperity is the real guarantee for maintaining peace."

Chief Reed paused for a moment, then stroked his chest and said, "May the old gods bless you, King Green."

Green reached out and patted him. "Later, a large amount of food and grass will be transported to Winterfell. I will leave all the guarding duties of the Neck to you."

Then, as if jokingly, he said: "I am a generous king."

The new king before him...who had buried tens of thousands of people in the valley and overthrown the deer and the lion single-handedly, was unexpectedly kind.

Thinking of his unnecessary vigilance before, Chief Li De could hardly hide his embarrassment: "Well, thank you very much for your trust, Your Majesty."

Green stretched his body a little and stood up from his chair: "It's time to set off. We have to reach Kalin Bay as soon as possible..."

As he spoke, he suddenly paused and looked up at the sky with sharp eyes.

Seeing this, Chief Li De also shifted his gaze upwards vigilantly. What happened? Is there an enemy? !
His eyes narrowed slightly, and following Green's gesture, a guard immediately handed over a dragon bone bow that was shining with black light.

Whoosh!
A hair-raising sound of breaking through the air suddenly rang out, and the arrow cut through the sky like lightning, heading straight for... the small flying shadow.

I don't know how much time had passed, but amid the sudden cheers of the crowd, the eagle with an arrow in it slammed heavily into the swamp in the distance.

Green smiled faintly, waved to the screaming swamp people, and then gestured for them to pick up his prey.

His eyes trembled imperceptibly, the Green Prophet...

(End of this chapter)