Eagle of the Valley of Ice and Fire.

Chapter 313 The Old Man in the Tower
At the top of the tower, green fire dotted the snow pillars, and fire snakes were spitting out their tongues, as if they were going to melt the white wax under their feet.

The base of the tower is a reef island where Lord Hightower's flagship, the Glory of Oldtown, is docked, swaying violently with the huge waves.

Many people have complained about this, openly or secretly accusing the old man of Oldtown, Leyton Hightower, of being a fool for keeping the largest ship in the Oldtown fleet for himself.

Now, most people are keeping their mouths shut.

Although news of the sea monster also spread into Oldtown, not only in the noble fortress were these rumors flying everywhere, even the civilians on the streets of Oldtown learned that the Qingting Island fleet was attacked by the sea monster summoned by the Iron Men and was almost wiped out, with only a few ships escaping.

On the contrary, today, the "Glory of Oldtown" owned by the old man of Oldtown has become the largest ship in the River Reach.

The residents of Oldtown looked up. The green fire had not yet dissipated and the fear had not disappeared. The tall tower was like a white candle, burning with green flames that symbolized war and conflict. The owner of the towering tower, the old man of Oldtown, the guardian of the Citadel, the almost invisible Earl Leighton Hightower, was leaning against the desolate white city wall, looking at the surging waves rushing towards the reef again and again, shattering, and then rushing towards it again and shattering again.

"Sea monster?" Leighton Hightower threw the letter sent by Baelor into the fire, and it burned to ashes, without any concern for the loss of soldiers and ships.

The mad woman Morea Hightower was in her room, holding her long hair and dressing herself in front of the mirror.

Leighton Hightower looked at his eldest daughter's abnormal behavior without being moved, and there was no need to speculate on the meaning of any of Morua's actions.

But today, Moroya was uncharacteristically straightforward and said, "I want to welcome a king who can fulfill our ambitions."

Layton walked into the dark room, opened the window and let the strong wind blow in.

With his thick hair spinning in disorder in the wind, Layton picked up an ancient book on the table and opened the atlas.

"Large-sized squids have been witnessed before. Sea monsters like these can be fun to play with for a while, but they can't last forever." Leighton Hightower said in a deep voice. Unlike his usual obsession with magic, at this moment Morua saw some of the true lord of the tower.

Layton stroked his daughter's cheek. "After you dress up, I'm sure you will attract the hearts of many heroes in the Reach." There was suddenly more pity in his eyes. "This road is hard for all the Earls of Hightower. They have worked hard to summarize and study the laws of the tides. Now there is finally hope. However, Oldtown Hightower stands at the top of the tide and faces the risks of the waves."

"They are not like you," said Morea, forcing a smile. "They are lazy, and only you are diligent."

Layton laughed, a chuckle, and shook his head. "Who am I? I don't have a daughter who is as talented as me, nor do I have an old man in Old Town who neglects government affairs."

"The tides rise and fall, and not everyone can stand on the front," Morua said firmly. "Euron Greyjoy sits on the Iron Throne, and even Artis Arryn, who is at the peak of his power, will bow down. I saw it, you must believe me."

Layton did not answer. He looked at Morua's obsessed expression without any emotion. He turned around and walked down step by step along the stairs around the tower.

His legs and feet were no longer convenient, so he could only go down the stairs one step at a time.

Layton lowered his head and paused every seven steps. The seven statues of the Seven Gods stood in the niches on one side. With every step he took, he was scrutinized by God the Father, the Virgin Mary, the Warrior, the Girl, the Blacksmith, the Old Woman and the Stranger.

He could endure the severity and intimidation of God the Father, he could accept the selfless love of the Virgin Mary, he could avoid and even resist the intimidation of the warrior's sword, he could accept the blacksmith's dedication, he could ignore the old woman's chattering, and even if the stranger's pale mare reached his side, he could safely climb over it and set foot on the path beside the stream of death.

Only the girl's innocence made him lose his mind. Layton felt a little regretful. He regretted letting Morua go down this path. He still remembered Morua's appearance and confidence when she was young.

Anxiety and self-scrutiny filled the entire staircase until I reached a small door.

Layton grabbed the bell hanging in the air and struck it gently.

"Count!" An excited voice immediately came from behind the door.

The little door opened, and Hightower's steward, Jerod Waters, his childhood friend and the namesake of his uncle Jerod Hightower, appeared. The former was known as the "White Bull", and was famous throughout the Seven Kingdoms, while the latter called himself the "Black Bull", a title indicating that he would not marry anyone other than the girl from the Summer Isles whom he had met in his youth.

So he never married and turned the position of steward of House Hightower into commander of the Night's Watch.

"Black Bull," Layton looked at his old friend with gray hair, "I want to get off the tower, as you wish."

"Gods of the Seven!" Jello held Layton's arm, only to feel it was limp. "Look, you don't go hunting, you don't go fishing, you don't go to the brothel for pleasure, your arm is not heavy, your body is not strong, you have never been so weak, Layton! I am holding my dick to piss now, and I can knock you over with one hand!"

Layton waved his hands in annoyance. "Get me down here quickly! It's very cold here."

"It's not as cold as up there!"

The Earl and the butler supported each other, talked to each other, and went down the tower together.

The bells rang from the reefs of the towering tower to the sentry tower closest to the shore, then to the streets of the old town, and finally reached the ears of Baelor Hightower who was anxiously dealing with the war in Hightower Castle.

Beile hurried out, followed by "Gray Iron" Gars, who was in charge of the mercenaries and the army, and Gunthor, who had just lost his entire navy.

He met Leighton Hightower in a small study. The other nobles of Oldtown gathered outside the meeting hall, but Lord Hightower did not choose to go to a crowded place. He sat on his favorite sofa before climbing the tower, silently watching the rain outside the window, listening to the sound of the Ironborn longship being destroyed by the indestructible Oldtown garrison behind the sound of raindrops.

"Father!" Belle shouted when he saw him. "Father" Gunthor and Garce were about to shout, but the butler Jello mercilessly locked them behind the door and locked it.

The two brothers looked at each other in bewilderment, as they hadn't even seen half of their father's face.

Belle looked at Jello's actions, sighed, and sat on the soft seat beside him.

"How's the administration going?" Layton asked.

"With Garth and Gunthor helping me, everything is fine."

"How is the lady?"

"Lady Leia is in good health. She is accompanied by the women of Oldtown. She is not alone."

There was a brief silence between the father and son.

It was Baelor who broke the silence again. "Father, Euron Greyjoy has defeated the Redwyne fleet, and the Lord of the Arbor has disappeared without a trace, I'm afraid."

Layton snorted.

The two fell silent again.

"Father, you..." Beile swallowed his breath and couldn't help but ask, "What are you going to do here?"

"I'm not trying to take your power away. I'm just giving you some instructions. I have to go back to the tower in a few days."

"What?" Beile clenched his fists, his voice was fierce but not loud, "The Old Town army has gathered nearly 40,000 people, don't you want to go and take a look?"

"And the finances of Old Town. The treasury is facing a breakdown during this extraordinary period. Don't you need to go and take a look? I remember that no one is better at arithmetic than you."

"I heard that the Ironborn also have sea monsters. They have occupied the Shield Islands and the Arbor. The noble women of the Reach have become their concubines, and the children and young men have been killed by the axe. Only the gods know when they will attack Oldtown with all their might. I'm afraid Highgarden won't be able to support them. Who knows, their next target may be the Tyrells."

Layton listened to his eldest son's analysis of the current situation. Although there was some hysteria in his voice, he silently agreed with it in his heart.

"It seems that you handled it well. Just do it your way. Iron race has no race, so why are you anxious?" said Layton.

Baylor opened his mouth, but the words stopped.

"You are going up to the tower at this time," Beile said, suppressing his anger, "Isn't it a bit irresponsible? You are Earl Hightower, the master of the towering tower, and the guardian of the Citadel!"

"In my opinion, it's you." Leighton remained calm and methodically attacked Beile's vital points.

"Me!" Beile opened his mouth and then closed it involuntarily. He stood up and said, "What do you want to tell me? If you want to tell me something, please tell me quickly. After all, we are busy people, busy dealing with political, military and financial affairs that the head of the family does not want to face. There are not many people in this old town who are lazier and more irresponsible than you. In my opinion, the children who peed by the Mead River every day to discuss the invasion of the Iron Race are more diligent than you!"

Leighton listened silently. This scolding reminded him of Morua's words, and his heart was slightly moved.

"Okay," Layton whispered, "Then let me tell you what your crazy father has to say. Forty thousand soldiers are too many. We only need to keep ten thousand. The rest can go back to farming, and the mercenaries can be dismissed. Don't use too many people."

"why?"

"Don't try to be brave, show weakness, show your inexperience, show your lack of financial resources, just like how Hightower recruited so many people but was unable to afford the financial support."

Baylor frowned, "I didn't hear any reasonable reason."

"The logical reason," Layton said, "is that no amount of men can defeat Euron."

Belle's pupils shrank slightly and he looked at Leighton in disbelief.

"Our family is not good at expansion, nor do we like expansion," Layton said, taking a sip of tea on the table, "Our family has always been good at protecting itself."

"Are you so unconfident about me and Garce?"

"If it was a fight with Stannis, Tywin, or even Robert, I believe you would be able to quell any threat, but this is not an ordinary time. The tide of time is moving forward, and you just haven't seen it yet."

Layton seemed tired. "Go and send those old friends who have been waiting for me. I want to take a nap." He stood up. "When Euron's strength is revealed to you, I will tell you the next plan."

(End of this chapter)