The Mountain of Ice and Fire

Chapter 522: A Touch and Go

(Guaranteed update)

*

Suddenly, shouts erupted from within the Great Sept of Baelor.

The sound exploded, the battle cries deafening.

Various screams of agony filled the air.

The Sword of the Morning knights and Starry Septons guarding the gates exchanged bewildered glances.

Outside the gates, the Mountain, leading hundreds of enemies, was banging and smashing against the doors, while behind them, the sounds of fierce fighting rose abruptly and dramatically.

What was happening?

Had a large number of enemies infiltrated the Sept from within?

How was that possible?

They had been diligently guarding the seven gates, not letting in anyone suspicious.

The three hundred-odd Starry Septons and thirty Sword of the Morning knights were all astonished.

Were they already under attack from both sides?!

But how could that be?

Where was the High Septon?

Who had ordered the Sept's bell to be rung?!

Just as the Mountain was about to break open the Father's Gate, a commanding voice suddenly rang out from behind: "Pious brothers, the High Sparrow has been beheaded, and Her Grace the Queen Mother and Her Grace the Queen have been rescued. All who resist will be wiped out. Starry Septons and Sword of the Morning knights, Her Grace the Queen Mother commands you to lay down your arms and be spared. I am the Warrior of the Faith. We, the seven High Septons, will pray and atone for the lost brothers in the Great Sept. Anyone who resists will be executed, their heads displayed as a warning, and their souls will fall into hell, suffering eternally without release."

Boom!

The Mountain kicked the battered oak door, and it shattered, sending splinters flying and revealing a huge hole.

With the wooden door breached, the Mountain and his knights faced each other.

Five hundred naval soldiers gathered behind the Mountain in a fan formation, swords raised, their numbers, combat power, and momentum overwhelming the enemies inside the gate.

Inside the door, apart from the thirty Sword of the Morning knights, the Starry Septons were no match for them.

"This is your last chance to live!" the Mountain roared in a deep voice. "Either surrender and be redeemed, or resist and sink into hell forever. If the High Sparrow you follow is of the light, the Seven would not have sent me to destroy him. The Seven stand on our side. Brothers misled by evil, lay down your arms and your souls will be redeemed."

The brothers inside the gate were confused!

Was the High Septon evil? If not, why had the Seven not blessed him? The Warrior of the Faith's words told everyone that the High Septon had been beheaded. Was this to undermine their morale? Or had the High Septon truly been killed!

In the Great Sept of Baelor, why had the Seven not given the High Septon a prophetic vision?

The sudden battle caught everyone off guard!

Was their faith truly wrong?!

The morale of the Starry Septons and Sword of the Morning knights blocking the gate underwent a subtle change, their momentum weakening!

The Mountain slowly raised his ice sword: "Your High Sparrow has been beheaded. This is the will of the Seven. Evil will inevitably be eradicated, and a new High Septon will take control of the Great Sept. If the High Sparrow were not dead, he would have made his voice heard and commanded the brothers to fight. Listen carefully, is there his voice in the fighting behind us?"

Of course not. Apart from the screams of the Starry Septons and the fierce cries of the Mountain's men, there was only the Warrior of the Faith's constant urging to surrender.

Clang!

A longsword was thrown to the ground…

A Sword of the Morning knight had decided to surrender.

The High Sparrow was dead!

If the Seven believed the High Sparrow was the Son of the Seven, he would not have died!

But he was dead. In the voices urging surrender, there were only the voices of the High Septons.

Clang!

A second longsword was thrown to the ground.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

The third, fourth, and fifth longswords were thrown to the ground.

"The evil one is the Mountain! The Warrior of the Faith and the incestuous Cersei, the shameless Queen Margaery," a Sword of the Morning knight shouted. "They are the sinners who have violated *The Seven-Pointed Star*. Brothers, fight for your faith!"

A cold light flashed, and the knight's longsword pierced the body of his comrade: "All brothers who betray the High Septon are traitors who will fall into hell forever. Kill them!"

The longsword was withdrawn, blood spurting, and the first knight to discard his sword fell.

The sudden change stunned everyone!

After an extremely brief moment of shock, a longsword slashed diagonally, hitting the throat of the knight who had just killed someone. The force of the blow was so strong that it broke through the neck armor, the blade severing the throat: "You dare kill my brother?!"

The eyes of the knight who had suddenly killed his brother in faith widened in horror, and the longsword in his hand fell.

A wooden staff was thrown from the side, hitting the shoulder of the knight who had avenged his brother: "Kill him. He is also a traitor. Anyone who betrays the High Septon must die."

The hesitant Starry Septons seemed to suddenly make up their minds. They raised their wooden staffs and rushed forward, striking fiercely at the Sword of the Morning knight who had avenged his brother.

The knights' ranks were immediately disrupted.

The Mountain moved, stepping forward and slashing out with his ice sword. A huge halo of light flashed forward, and with a twist, several Starry Septons were cut into two pieces diagonally.

The sharpness of the Valyrian steel two-handed sword, coupled with the Mountain's absolute and unmatched strength, sliced through people like cheese.

Figures flashed past on either side, and the naval soldiers roared as they rushed forward, swords raised, simply hacking and stabbing wildly.

The Sword of the Morning knights bore the brunt of the attack and were immediately routed!

The Starry Septons abandoned the internal strife, brandishing their wooden staffs and turning to fight. They fought fearlessly, using their bodies as shields, and the sounds of swords hacking into flesh rang out densely…

In the courtyard behind, the sounds of battle quickly diminished, and the cries of the Mountain's elite troops converged from all directions towards the gate.

The Mountain's five hundred specially trained men, plus five hundred white-robed brothers, a thousand men encircling and suppressing the Starry Septons and Sword of the Morning knights inside the Sept, were unstoppable. The Starry Septons and the dozen or so Sword of the Morning knights who jumped up from their sleep were as fragile as tiles, collapsing at the first touch. Most of them were hacked down, and a few timid, opportunistic, and religiously weak individuals, seeing the situation was bad, chose to flee at the first opportunity.

As the encirclement and sweep progressed, they had no choice but to flee towards the gate.

The Mountain charged ahead, his giant sword sweeping horizontally and vertically. The fearless brothers who rushed in were punched and kicked, dying if they were touched and injured if they were grazed. Whether they wanted to surrender or fight, they were all killed by him, and no one could withstand the might of his sword or the force of his fist. With each step the Mountain took, several lives were taken. A single sweep of the giant sword cleared a large area.

In the blink of an eye, the Mountain had seized the gate.

The naval soldiers poured into the gate like a tide, flowing like a black torrent in all directions.

The Starry Septons guarding the gate desperately fled backwards.

Behind them, Aelin, Marwyn, Qyburn, Landon, the leader of the Forcas, the leader of the Leos, and others led five hundred elite troops, driving the last hundred stray dogs towards the gate.

With a roar, the two groups of Starry Septons, both inside and outside, crowded together, while all of the Sword of the Morning knights, numbering no more than a hundred, had already died in battle.

The Mountain's army attacked from both sides, and the Starry Septons fell one after another…

A Starry Septon shouted 'The Seven Above' and jumped out, dropping his wooden staff and short knife, raising his hands in surrender. A cold light flashed, and a short sword swept past, cutting off his raised hands. Before he could scream, another short sword plunged into his mouth, the tip of the sword piercing through the back of his neck…

The Mountain's five hundred elite troops were bloodthirsty, hacking down everyone, whether they surrendered or begged for mercy.

*

Inside the Red Keep, the Tower of the Hand.

Kevan Lannister, awakened by the Great Sept's bell, stood at the top of the tower, watching the fire in Cobbler's Square illuminate half the sky, while on the top of Visenya's Hill, the sounds of fighting roared, and the cries of battle echoed through the night sky.

The Red Keep was on Aegon's High Hill, opposite the Great Sept of Baelor on Visenya's Hill.

In the streets of Flea Bottom, flickering flames could also be seen, and the sounds of fighting never stopped.

Who had launched the sudden attack?

Was he not afraid of angering the Seven's faithful throughout the city?

This was simply too audacious.

Did he not care about the lives of Queen Mother Cersei and Queen Margaery?

It must be the Mountain. Only the Mountain would dare to do something so shocking and unbelievable.

The Mountain had assured Kevan that he would not launch a surprise attack and that all actions would be under command. The current flames and cries of battle proved that the Mountain had become a true politician.

Lying was one of the basic qualities of the Small Council members of the Red Keep.

Whether the Mountain lied or not was not important. What was truly important was that Kevan realized he could not control the Mountain at all.

He had no way to deal with the Mountain!

The Mountain launched simultaneous surprise attacks in three locations, catching the High Sparrow off guard. How had he managed to safely protect Cersei and Margaery?!

Kevan could not figure it out! Kevan felt a sense of frustration spreading throughout his body. He had many questions. Launching such a large-scale surprise attack, carefully preparing, designing, and arranging manpower was a complex process, but Kevan had not received any information at all. His own intelligence network was completely useless. And the Master of Whisperers, Bernie Clegane, was the Mountain's man.

Kevan felt his face burning!

Compared to the new Hand who was helpless against the High Sparrow, the Mountain, who had killed the High Sparrow with a single move, was clearly superior.

After this incident, who had the ability, who had the prestige, and who was trustworthy would be newly judged in the hearts of the people of King's Landing and the nobles of the country! Kevan's only advantage was that his reputation was better than the Mountain's!

Kevan felt like a cat was scratching in his heart.

His face was as hard as iron, appearing expressionless, but in reality, his heart was churning.

If Lord Tywin were here, how would he handle this situation?

The Mountain's prestige would undoubtedly carry more weight in the hearts of the people and the nobles.

The great bell, who had rung the great bell!

That magnificent sound echoing throughout the city seemed to be telling Kevan about the Mountain's glory, piercing his heart!

"Brook Lannister, have Commander Bronn gather the City Watch and quickly go to support the Mountain."

"Yes, Your Grace."

Brook Lannister, a knight from a branch of the Lannister family, hurried away.

Basically all of the direct descendants of the Lannisters had died in battle.

Kevan did not want to support the Mountain, but after the great bell rang, everyone in the city knew about this shocking battle. As Hand, standing here watching the Mountain fight to the death for the Queen and Queen Mother was not something Kevan could justify, publicly or privately. If he did not order the City Watch to attack and provide assistance, the courtiers and generals of King's Landing would look down on him. The nobles of the Crownlands would despise him in their hearts.

The sound of the ringing bell was the signal to fight for the Queen and Queen Mother.

Kevan found it difficult to calm down. The bell must have been intentionally rung by someone arranged by the Mountain. All the nobles and soldiers in the city would be awakened by the sound of the bell, and then they would discover that someone had launched a surprise attack on the Great Sept of Baelor and the High Sparrow's religious armed forces.

The nobles and soldiers must now have a big question in their hearts: who is the commander of the surprise attack?

Then, when dawn broke, they would hear a familiar name: the Mountain!

The Mountain!

It was the Mountain again!

*

In Maidenvault, at the top of the high tower, Mace Tyrell watched the fire in Cobbler's Square and listened to the sounds of fighting echoing through the night sky. His eyes widened in disbelief.

Who was launching a surprise attack on the Great Sept of Baelor?

Who had launched the battle in Cobbler's Square?

In Cobbler's Square, there were thousands of fearless Starry Septons, and the leader was Lancel Lannister.

Who had ordered the Sept's bell to be rung?

Who was fighting in Flea Bottom?

The City Watch's troops?

The troops of the nobles of the Crownlands?

The Mountain's troops?

The Mountain only had six hundred heavy cavalry. He could only attack one place!

Was it a secret operation by the Hand? Or some other sudden change?

This was too shocking! Who had ordered the attack? Who would guarantee the safety of Margaery Tyrell? She was the queen who was about to be engaged to King Tommen.

Mace had many, many questions swirling in his mind. He could not understand it, nor could he figure it out. But he knew that at this time, the most important thing was to immediately send soldiers to protect Margaery's safety.

"Garlan Tyrell, order all the knights and soldiers of House Tyrell to assemble and depart for the Great Sept of Baelor."

Garlan Tyrell's bravery was no less than that of the Knight of Flowers. He immediately ran down as if flying.

*

On the walls of King's Landing, on the walls of the Red Keep, on the walls of Maegor's Holdfast, were crowded with shocked soldiers!

Who had rung the Sept's bell? Who had launched the surprise attack? Who was commanding this midnight battle?

Commander of the City Watch Bronn and his men climbed the high walls and looked towards the Great Sept of Baelor. Cobbler's Square and Flea Bottom were both filled with fire and fighting.

The people, the citizens, the faithful of the Seven throughout the city, everyone came out of their homes. Some stood in the streets, some stood on the roofs, some opened their windows, some were looking for weapons, some were asking their neighbors…

The faithful of the Seven, the poor, they gathered in surprise. They spontaneously came to the streets, holding wooden staffs, kitchen knives, hatchets, short swords, and rusty longswords. No brothers came to inform them. The warriors in their hearts were collapsing everywhere.

Similarly, the nobles were also taking action. They deeply hated the High Sparrow and the religious armed forces. Most of the nobles had received higher education and knew the horrors of the religious armed forces in history. Now that the opportunity had come, someone from the royal family had gathered troops and launched a surprise attack. The ringing of the Sept's bell was the signal.

The guards, mercenaries, and knights around the nobles, the guards, mercenaries, and freeriders in the wealthy families, they also spontaneously dressed up, tentatively, hesitantly, shouting, and going together, wanting to have a bloody city-wide conflict with the religious armed forces and the poor armed forces who believed in the High Sparrow.

The nobles, merchants, bosses, and wealthy individuals had been suffocating under the oppression of the High Sparrow and his religious armed forces for some time. First, they were forced to make donations, and second, if any poor person accused them of wrongdoing, the Star Warriors would come knocking to teach them a lesson. The seeds of hatred and anger had long since taken root.

The Mountain's three raids were very successful, and the battle was quickly drawing to a close. However, new dangers were brewing in the night. The High Sparrow's poor followers were numerous, and they began to gather. And throughout the city, there were also many nobles, bosses, wealthy individuals, and powerful figures. Their armed forces were even stronger, and experienced mercenaries served them. They had swords, armor, and combat skills. This force was also gathering, as if an invisible hand in the night air was fueling the flames of their anger... On the streets, spontaneous groups from both sides appeared, filled with hostility towards each other.

However, this time, without the support of the Star Warriors and Holy Sword Knights, the poor followers looked like lambs waiting to be slaughtered...

Anxiety permeated the entire city, and a dangerous atmosphere spread rapidly, approaching a critical point... On one side were well-equipped and highly trained soldiers, and on the other side was a large and imposing crowd...

*

ps: There will be another update later.

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