iron throne of ice and fire

Chapter 659 Wolf Forest 4
Waaaaah———

The bugle call of our ancestors tore through the cold night once more. Its sound was erratic, sometimes seeming to emerge from the dark woods to the east, and sometimes circling to the west, like the wailing of a departed soul.

Stannis's standing figure did indeed bolster the soldiers' courage, but at that moment... the ancient voice of the First Men instantly shattered the last vestiges of order in the camp.

The fourth wave of attacks came unexpectedly, and Stannis's soldiers fell by more than a hundred men—more than half of whom died not from enemy arrows, but from being trampled and accidentally shot by their own men in the chaos.

The ground was littered with arrow fletchings and corpses, and the snow, stained dark red, quickly froze into ice.

When Stannis opened his eyes, all he saw were the faces of his soldiers filled with terror—only three or four hundred of the most loyal and elite veterans he had brought from Storm's End and Dragonstone remained.

Crunch!

These bravest warriors did not die in the glorious charge, but fell to Kleber's despicable tricks!
Stannis slowly stood up, paused, and then, his extreme anger caused this steely, hard man to grin.

His expression was full of mockery and disdain towards the man.

Grimm Clayber—such a treacherous man, yet he's hailed as one of the two true knights of the Seven Kingdoms?!
The other one is Ned...

Stannis felt this was the most vicious blasphemy against chivalry!

"We must hold out until dawn!"

"For the King!"

"And so that you yourselves can live to see the sun!"

"The enemy is afraid of us!"

"They only dare to hide in the shadows and play tricks! They don't dare to face our sharp swords directly!"

Stannis's captain of the guard dragged his utterly exhausted body as he moved with difficulty among the soldiers. His voice was hoarse, as if it had been sanded, but he was still trying his best to roar and try to rouse their courage again.

Stannis looked up at the dark, inky sky, his large, age-spotted hand gripping the hilt of the "Long Claw" bear-head sword.

The cold metallic touch traveled through his palm—he was still the king, and even in dire straits, his end should not be so pathetic.

Given Kleber's cunning, he would never let them get through the rest of the night in peace.

We must fight back, even if there is no hope at all!
His gaze swept over the terrified soldiers around him, but what could he do now?
Subsequently.

Stannis's gaze passed over the cowering soldiers and landed deep in the dark forest in the distance, where... it resembled a giant mouth, seemingly capable of devouring all its prey.

His thin lips were tightly closed, and his chin moved silently. He would never sit and wait to die!

To attack, or to continue defending?
Stannis's brow furrowed, but his racing thoughts were quickly interrupted by another voice.

"Who are you?" the warrior asked.
Dare to venture into this deep underground?
He's just someone who's heard secrets.
Listen to that soft yet deep whisper.

……

The sudden singing drifted slowly from the depths of the forest on the cold wind, its melody eerily like vines crawling out of the ground, as if wrapping around one's heart, tightening more and more.

The night is deepest—underground.
The dead still have control~~~
Their voices were faint yet profound.
It will guide you onto the path forward.

They tell their story in this way... they tell their story in this way...
That whisper from the earth...
But the world on earth is bright and clear now~
But no one listened to him anymore.

Yes, the world on earth is bright and clear nowadays.
There wasn't even a soul willing to listen.

……

The singing was indistinguishable between male and female, sometimes near, sometimes far, like ghosts playing hide-and-seek with the people in the camp.

"Oh!"

"The devil is coming!"

"They've got their eyes on us!"

The whole world seemed to be tinged with a cold white by the song, sending chills down one's spine.

Who are you? The lord warns, shouting loudly!
Dare to step into this place?

He's just someone who remembers the glory of the past.
Remember the heroic figures of yesteryear. ...

"I've heard this song before, I know it, I know it..."

"Yes, yes, listen to the whispers of the crypt (Chapter 17)!"

"Oh, gods, save me!"

"This is a curse of death!"

……

The camp was in complete chaos.

This ballad, which is as famous as "The Rains of Castamere," brought a look of pain to Stannis's withered face for the first time in his life.

The elite veterans who had fought alongside him across seven kingdoms and experienced countless life-and-death situations finally lost all courage at this moment, fleeing in fear like sheep being chased by a pack of wolves.

Amid the chaos, the singing continued, its tone now sharper, as if it were screaming in their ears.

Nestled in the cold embrace of the earthen walls~
The memory hasn't faded yet.
And those legends—like shadows that lure people into depravity—
They will never be forgotten.

They tell their story in this way... they tell their story in this way...
That whisper from the earth...
But the world on earth is bright and clear now~
But no one listened to him anymore.
Yes, the world on earth is bright and clear now.
There wasn't even a soul willing to listen.

……

Stannis's captain of the guard lay there motionless, trampled countless times by the panicked soldiers, like a lump of mud.

There is no king here anymore.

Stannis stumbled several times as he walked through the chaotic crowd, but he gritted his teeth and stubbornly held on, preventing himself from falling.

At last.

He finally arrived at his destination—under an old oak tree. He paused, then wearily leaned against it and sat down.

In a daze, the sound of the waves at Storm's End echoed in his ears, the Blackstone walls of Dragonstone appeared before his eyes, along with the all-consuming green flames on the Blackwater River and the biting ice of the Wall.

And... his royal banner, which is still flying.

Now, he has nothing left.
Stannis tilted his head back and slowly closed his eyes; it seemed his journey had truly come to an end.

Perhaps, he can finally rest.

The snow fell on his face and melted.

.........

...

The gray sky was gradually torn open, and the sun finally broke through the thick clouds, but it brought no warmth whatsoever.

The morning light slanted across the snow-covered Wolf Forest, reflecting a cold, blinding golden light that made the scattered armor fragments and congealed bloodstains appear even more grotesque.

Stannis remained leaning against the old oak tree, his hands and feet numb with cold, his eyelids heavy as if they were made of lead.

The horrific echoes of last night still lingered in his ears—Kleiber's tormenting bugle calls seemed to still reverberate through the woods.

Oh oh oh!
Boom boom boom!
A familiar yet unfamiliar sound slowly drifted in from the south, and Stannis, who had been like an ice sculpture, suddenly opened his eyes.

The sound of horse hooves?
Some of the muffled sounds quickly became clearer, each one landing heavily on the frozen snow crust, vibrating against the cold ground and making one's heart tremble.

The surviving Stannis soldiers also awoke; some struggled to sit up, some gripped their weapons tightly, and some screamed out in alarm.

The sound of horses' hooves pounded in unison, each step perfectly synchronized, creating a powerful sense of pressure.

Stannis leaned against the tree trunk and slowly stood up. He squinted his cloudy eyes and saw the blue fabric unfurling in the cold wind—it was a marigold banner.

The man finally arrived.

(End of this chapter)