Game of Thrones: The Wrath of the Sleeping Dragon

The serious expression on the face of the old Commander Mormont made Ed's heart tighten slightly.

"what?"

"You'll see when you come over."

Chapter 626 The Head of the Ice Wolf

The serious expression on the face of Commander-in-Chief Mormont seemed to indicate that this was not a good thing.

Eddard Stark's weathered face reflected this as well. After a moment of contemplation, the Northerner nodded slightly, his tone so calm it could be mistaken for arrogance or indifference.

"In that case, let's go."

Eddard briefly forgot that he was now a lowly soldier in the Night's Watch, not the high and mighty Duke of the North. He strode forward, one hand on the hilt of his sword, his black cloak fluttering slightly in the wind beneath his grey wolfskin.

Meanwhile, Colin, the "severed hand," saw this scene and quickly glanced at Commander-in-Chief Jeor Mormont, noticing that Mormont had no objection to it.

After all, old Mormont was once a vassal who swore allegiance to the Stark family. Although his status has temporarily surpassed that of Eddard, it would be dishonorable for him to become arrogant, and Jeor Mormont is not that kind of person.

"Lord Eddard Stark, we've met before. I am..."

At that moment, Maester Paisell, with a chain around his neck, walked over and spoke tremblingly.

The former Grand Maester with the white beard had his Maester's Chains stripped, but Pycelle somehow found a new chain and put it back on. However, in a place like the Night's Watch, there were no rules of the Citadel, and no one cared about his little scheme.

However, when Eddard Stark passed by Maester Pycelle and heard his words, he merely nodded slightly and gave a simple greeting.

“Grand Secretary Paisell, we have indeed met.”

Then, without waiting for him to finish speaking, he continued walking forward, leaving the white-bearded old man, who pretended to have difficulty walking, to chase after them.

Eddard Stark, Lord Commander Mormont, Maester Pycelle, and their entourage returned to the scene of the incident in a hurry. However, a large number of Night's Watch soldiers had already gathered there, peering inside and occasionally letting out panicked cries.

"My God."

"This is terrible."

"Is this the enemy we will face in the future?"

Many of the Night's Watch soldiers watching were southern nobles who had been exiled to the frontier after the Trial of King's Landing. Some of them had never seen the White Walkers, only heard of their names, but now, seeing the 'masterpiece' of these monsters, they were inevitably filled with dread.

In contrast, the soldiers of the North were more composed. Almost all of the surviving soldiers of the North had experienced the war against the White Walkers, with only a few being North refugees who were later conscripted.

They had fought these 'monsters' head-on before, but they had never witnessed such a terrifying scene. They couldn't help but look at each other in disbelief and whisper among themselves.

"Get out of the way!"

"Get out of the way!"

"Commander-in-Chief Jeor Mormont!"

"Lord Eddard Stark!"

At this moment, Ed and Commander-in-Chief Mormont and his entourage arrived from behind.

The Night's Watch veterans, including 'Wandering Raven' Yuren, drove the crowd aside, and a few people squeezed through to see what was happening.

"hiss--"

Eddard Stark, who had just witnessed this scene, couldn't help but gasp, his dark brows furrowing tightly.

The scene before me was horrifying; there were corpses and severed limbs everywhere, and congealed blood was splattered all over the ground and snow.

Human arms and the heads of warhorses spiral from a central point, eventually forming a gigantic windmill shape. If viewed from the sky, it would appear as a bizarre and colossal array, awe-inspiring and terrifying.

"Are these damn guys up to their 'art' again?"

Ed frowned, exhaled a puff of white breath, and then turned to look at Commander-in-Chief Geo Mormont and spoke.

The two had fought side by side at the Wall and even Winterfell. The first White Walker to be killed in modern history was killed by King Robert himself, and it was at that time that Eddard and Jeor Mormont saw the 'art' created by the White Walkers.

They have a penchant for arranging strange patterns using human or animal corpses, the purpose of which is not very clear.

Intimidation? The White Walkers hope to scare away humans?

Or perhaps it was some kind of dark ritual they were unaware of, where the Others piled up corpses into a great array and then offered them as sacrifices to some unknown evil god.

"more than."

However, the Night's Watch commander, who was bald with only a ring of white hair around his head, shook his head and spoke.

"Torch!"

His expression remained serious. He beckoned his men to bring torches, then exhaled a puff of white breath and strode toward the center of the formation.

"Come with me, Lord Stark."

Ed was somewhat puzzled, unsure of old Mormont's intentions, but he still followed behind him, his hand on the hilt of his sword, towards the center.

Soon a Night's Watch soldier dressed in black handed him a torch, which Old Commander Mormont took and walked to the center of the circle to shine it forward.

Now that it was completely dark, Ed could no longer see the center of the giant circular array from the outside. But as he got closer, the torches dispelled the darkness, and Ed finally saw what was at the center of the array.

It was a huge wolf head; Ed would swear it was the biggest wolf head he had ever seen.

Its once snow-white fur was now somewhat dirty, covered in blood and dust. Its face was ferocious, its fangs bared, and its pair of bloodshot eyes were wide open, staring unwillingly at the two people holding torches in front of it, as if it might suddenly open its mouth and bite them at any moment.

"This is... an ice wolf?"

Ed walked up to the wolf's head, then crouched down to examine it closely.

He gripped the dagger at his waist with one hand, fearing that the White Walker might suddenly attack and bite him. This wasn't the first time the White Walker had pulled such a stunt.

On another occasion, the White Walkers arranged the corpses of humans and animals into a bizarre formation. When the human soldiers approached, the heads of these corpses suddenly opened their mouths and screamed in unison, scaring the soldiers out of their wits and even leaving them with psychological trauma.

Eddard recognized the enormous wolf head as the Stark family crest, something that shouldn't belong to the direwolves south of the Wall.

"Do you think this will be a warning, Lord Stark?"

Commander Mormont, holding a torch, looked at Ed, who was squatting on the ground, and then asked.

However, Ed ignored his voice and instead stared intently at a wooden bow lying next to the direwolf's head. He then reached out, picked it up, and examined it carefully.

Then, when Ed turned the small wooden bow over, he saw a line of small characters carved in a childish handwriting on the grip area...

Lyanna Stark.

Chapter 627 The Human Heart Is Unpredictable

"The head of a direwolf...this is undoubtedly a warning from the White Walkers to us."

"I remember His Majesty made a northern tour a long time ago. Didn't His Majesty see this great formation?"

Only from the sky can one see the full extent of this array of human heads. Viserys, riding his dragon, would naturally have seen it, however...

"You must not speak ill of His Majesty!"

Then someone's guess was immediately shut up by others. The Night's Watch's command tent was in chaos as people discussed the array of heads.

Especially the direwolf head, which is a naked warning from the White Walkers to humanity, as if they know that the Stark family is destined to embark on this journey home.

Amidst the chaotic crowd, Eddard Stark remained remarkably calm, his grey eyes fixed on the map before him—a map of the entire North, with the small wooden bow he had just found at its center.

This is the practice bow that his sister Lyanna used when she was a child, and he remembers it very well.

...

"This great formation was made recently. Although the icy and snowy climate north of Jingze slowed down the decomposition of the corpses to some extent, they had not been dead for very long."

“Our patrol teams have all returned with few casualties. We suspect they were an expedition organized by the Free City-States and were killed by the White Walkers.”

The speaker was Corin "One-Handed," one of the Night's Watch's top rangers and former deputy commander of the Shadow Tower. He was a powerful and influential figure in the Legion.

He could live alone in the border region for a whole winter and then return safely.

His name was known to all the savages, and many even hated him to the core, considering him the creator of widows and orphans.

Based on his years of experience in the border regions, he deduced that these people had not been dead for very long, perhaps only a few days ago.

According to other people's speculation, this group of people was very likely sent by the trading city-states across the Narrow Sea.

After all, this harsh winter has also affected the other side of the Narrow Sea. In addition to the snow disaster, Braavos has experienced more than one heavy snowfall. Because Braavos and the Neck are on the same latitude and have roughly the same season, the Neck has never been this cold in previous years, almost like the northern frontier.

Moreover, the people of the trading city-states were particularly interested in the wars and disasters that occurred in Westeros, and the deserted North became a place for them to explore.

These people were commendable for their courage, but unfortunately they chose the wrong opponent. The White Walkers caused the collapse of the human alliance of hundreds of thousands of people, resulting in a series of defeats. It wasn't just fear that caused them to suffer.

However, the deaths of these trading city-state expeditions or mercenaries were not a great loss, but the words of "Severed Hand" Colin chilled everyone present, including Rickard Karstark, the Grand Master of the North, who was shouting the loudest.

Rickard Karstark is now the de facto leader of the Northern army.

However, they are still nominally required to obey the orders of Mormont, Lord Commander of the Night's Watch.

Otherwise, it would be rebellion.

The next day, His Majesty will ride the Black Death and descend upon him, sending him rolling into the seventh level of hell with a burst of dragon flame.

Rickard himself was well aware of this; his power stemmed from Viserys's imprisonment of Robb Stark in King's Landing.

Although the young master is nominally still the Governor of the North, he is merely a servant as long as he does not return. If His Majesty detains him for life, then Rickard can be the 'Governor of the North' for life.

This can be considered a brilliant touch, sowing the seeds of discord between the ruler and his subjects in the North.

Having tasted this power for the first time, the Earl of Cahors was deeply immersed in it, a feeling he had never experienced before.

Even the Northern nobles who are now surrounding him were raising their glasses yesterday, praising and celebrating his appointment as Grand Steward of the North.

These people used to flock around Lord Eddard Stark, but Lord Stark treated his vassals with cold indifference.

Stark...

Karstark...

Karstarks are still Starks; they share the same wolf blood, only they formed a branch.

The Karstark ancestors were enfeoffed in Karhor, and then the name 'Karhor' was eventually changed to Karstark.

If Stark can sit there, why can't I?

Moreover, times have changed. Apart from the North, Dorne, and the Iron Islands, the governors of all other places have changed, even people like Littlefinger...

Thinking of this, the restless desire in his heart became even more uncontrollable. The burly man with a full gray beard listened to Colin's words and then secretly glanced at the lord he once served, who was now dressed in black.

Eddard Stark had no idea how his most loyal old subordinate had changed after tasting power, or whether he would still be the trusted advisor he could rely on for his son's future.