Eagle of the Valley of Ice and Fire

Outside Storm's End, at the border lord's barracks.

The servant of the Karen family knelt on one knee beside the bed in the tent and stuffed warm stones wrapped in animal skins into the bed. These warm stones were all pebbles carefully selected from Nightsong City. They had smooth and round surfaces. Dozens of pebbles were placed in a brazier or bonfire and burned until hot. After a few moments of cooling in the air, they were placed under the bed to keep the knight warm at night.

Beric Dondarrion was not so particular. He only left a brazier in his tent to keep himself warm. Normally, these tasks were handled by his squire Edric Dayne.

He looked at the busy servants of the Cullen family, and the image of the child appeared in front of him again.

I don't know how he is doing in Starfall City, or how his fiancée, Alyria, is doing.

Bryce Cullen walked into the tent and sat down in front of the brazier. He glanced at Dondarrion and stretched out his hand to ask the waiter outside the tent to bring some wine.

"Don't be so sad. Drink some Summer Red, Dorne's fine wine."

Beric Dondarrion took the wine, took a sip, and let the mixed bitterness and sweetness flow into his throat.

"There's still no movement from Stonehelm. Could it be that old Gillian really can't lift his sword anymore?" Berry asked, putting down his wine glass and digging his unmanicured nails into the flesh of his palms.

Bryce Cullen held the sword in his hand and hung it over the brazier to roast. His face was reflected in the sword's light. "I heard that Gillian Swann is already very ill and will not live long. Clifford Swann is in charge of Stonehelm, and Gillian's eldest son Donnel is said to be still in King's Landing. He may be heading here with Ser Barristan's army."

"Didn't they say some time ago that there were bandits in the rainforest?" Beric Dondarrion remembered the details mentioned by Bryce. He looked at Bryce cautiously. "Stonehelm is on the coast of Dorne. Strictly speaking, it has nothing to do with the rainforest. But the Earl used this as an excuse to shirk his duty. Isn't he afraid that the Iron Throne will punish him?"

Bryce Cullen stared at Dondarrion intently. "This is what I am worried about." His lips moved, as if hesitant. Looking at Beric's determined eyes, he chose to speak: "None of the ravens sent to the rainforest have returned. Rain House City, Mist Forest City, and Amber Land, if it weren't for the limited number of our troops, I would have sent scouts to Storm Cape and the rainforest."

Just as he finished speaking, Astan Selmy rushed into the tent, bringing with him a gust of wind from outside, causing the two men to suddenly feel cold all over.

"Our Borderland troops have been here for so long. Have any of you seen Storm's End send out any scouts?"

Bryce Cullen sheathed his sword and looked at Selmy appraisingly. "What do you mean?"

"We rushed to Storm's End and encountered many villages and castles along the way, which had a large amount of food and supplies," Arstan's powerful voice became more persuasive. "And our army marched strictly. To prevent attacks from Stannis's army, we sent out scouts to explore and infiltrate every place we came across. Lord Beric knows this better than I do."

Beric Dondarrion looked at Bryce and nodded slightly.

"This is all common sense. Gilbert Faryn, who lives in Storm's End, cannot be unaware of this. If he had a little understanding of the situation, he would have known that Stannis is finished. The next goal of Artis Arryn's army must be to completely destroy Storm's End and Dragonstone. It is nothing more than a matter of time and preparation. Only the gods know why Euron Greyjoy suddenly appeared." Arstan Selmy sat down beside the brazier.

Bryce Cullen looked at Arstan and nodded slightly. "Stannis has nearly 20,000 men. More than half of them stayed in King's Landing and the Kingswood. The rest went to the distant North. The garrison at Storm's End has lost control of the surrounding villages and cannot even fully warn of the war. Otherwise, these food and grass supplies would not have fallen into our hands. All they can do is be extremely cautious and hide in Storm's End."

He turned to look at Dondarrion, who nodded slightly.

"I'll arrange for people to go to the rain forest and Storm Cape. Report back immediately if there is any situation."

Bryce Cullen sighed, resting his elbows on his knees and narrowing his eyes. "In order to show their loyalty to the Iron Throne, the lords of the Marches willingly assisted Ser Barristan's army in retaking Storm's End, the largest castle in the Stormlands and the last piece of the puzzle. Logically, this is in the interests of the entire Marches, but Gillian Swann could not send troops to help. I remember that he did not lose much in the previous war."

After the words were spoken, the three of them fell silent.

Astan nodded. "The bandit problem in the rainforest is a strange one. If we don't figure it out, it will be a hidden danger."

"As for Storm's End," Bryce Cullen looked at his colleagues, "if everyone in Storm's End knew that their destiny was to defend this castle until the end of their lives, then there would be no need for us to force them. Their internal problems are the ones that need to be solved urgently. In the short term, even if they try desperate measures, our army will still have no worries due to their advantage in numbers."

"So." Beric Dondarrion looked at Bryce.

"We should stay put and set up camp here, siege but not attack, and make plans after Ser Barristan arrives," Bryce sighed, a little frustrated, "It seems that we will not be able to take the first credit for retaking Storm's End until we understand the surrounding situation."

Astan shrugged his shoulders, not caring at all. He raised his glass and called to the waiter, "Perhaps before we attacked Storm's End, those people, a bunch of snakes and rats, all escaped from the cliff port of Storm's End. In my opinion, it is better to go all out first. Who knows, the defenders may surrender in a few rounds."

Beric Dondarrion swallowed, his Adam's apple rolling, and he looked into Bryce Caron's eyes. The hand holding the wine glass stopped in front of him, trembling slightly.

As dawn approaches, the sky is always cold, especially when standing at the southeast corner of Storm's End and looking at the gray floating on the sea in the distance. Even though he is wrapped in a heavy tweed cloak and a wool lining under his chain mail, Elwood Mather's hands are shaking slightly.

Fortunately, the waiter handed him a pot of hot fruit wine. He took a sip and was almost vomiting because of the sourness of alcohol and the rotten smell of rotten fruit flesh.

"Damn it!" Elwood Meidou tried in vain to cover the wine flask with his hands to keep warm, cursing under his breath. He no longer had the heart to appreciate the morning light. He turned around and went into the warm and almost hot castle.

Stannis took Storm's End because of him, thought Elwood Maeddle, and the king, who seemed as hard as iron, seemed to be still beside him, with one hand on his sword, saying to him as he had done when he first met him:

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"You are the first to take down Storm's End." When Elwood Muldo heard these words for the first time, he trembled with excitement.

"I ask you to assist Ser Gilbert Farring, he is an excellent officer and you can learn a lot from him." But Stannis gave him a blow on the head, shattering his fantasy.

Elwood Meidou looked at the king he had just knelt to swear allegiance to in disbelief, "Your Majesty, this, this."

Stannis turned his calm eyes towards him, seeming to read his mind. "If you want to defend a castle for a monarch, you can't rely on ability and merit alone. You betrayed my brother. Even though it was of great benefit to our army, it was still a betrayal."

Elwood Maydew clenched his fists. His lip was split open as if he had been cut by a Valyrian dagger. "I will remember your teachings, Your Majesty."

Thinking back to this, Elwood slammed his fist on the wooden table in front of him, causing the candle to shake, and the waiter beside him hurried over to stabilize it.

"Count, what are you thinking about?" The wine waiter looked at him with innocent eyes, as if he was still frightened.

Elwood couldn't help feeling annoyed, "It's none of your business!" He put down the wine jug and left the room alone.