The Mountain of Ice and Fire

Chapter 8 Declaration of War on Arya

Iron Bank manager Bennis returned to the Iron Bank island.

He was a mess, covered in blood.

In the Iron Bank's fortress-like hall, Bennis placed his ear on the table as if it were a victorious and glorious banner.

"Arya Stark cut off my ear," Bennis announced theatrically.

Only three elders were at the conference table.

The Iron Bank only ever has three elders.

These three elders control the Iron Bank's wealth, enough to buy any powerful nation.

With money comes power, and also military strength.

On the continent of Essos, there is no shortage of mercenary organizations; as long as you pay, they will sell their lives for you.

The three elders wore faded monastic robes, resembling the elders of the House of Black and White. In fact, the three elders and the seven elders of the House of Black and White were close friends. They were also anonymous, high-ranking disciples of the Faceless Men. Except for the elders of the House of Black and White, the disciples would not know that they were also Faceless Men apprentices, but their identities were special; they were Faceless Men who did not need to complete assassination missions.

"Bennis, did you see the remains of the seven elders?" Elder Osvid, who was in charge of the bank's vaults, asked.

"Arya didn't allow me to go to the Silent Hall of the Many-Faced God."

"So you didn't see the remains of the seven elders?" Osvid said.

"No, I did not."

Osvid exchanged glances with the other two elders. Usually, only Elder Osvid spoke, communicating with the other two through eye contact to get their opinions before making a final decision.

Those unaware of the inside story would surely think the other two elders were mute.

Bennis didn't know why only Elder Osvid spoke each time, while the other two never publicly expressed their views or spoke at meetings. Bennis had been the Iron Bank's manager for seventeen years, and in those seventeen years, the other two elders had never uttered a word at any meeting, large or small.

Whether it was asking questions or making final decisions, Elder Osvid did it all alone.

Osvid's face showed disappointment in Bennis: "Bennis, if you didn't see the remains of the seven elders with your own eyes, then we can't be sure they really went to serve the Red God."

"Does the Elder mean the seven elders didn't die?"

"Most likely," Osvid sighed.

"But… why would this be… what are the seven elders escaping from…"

"Escaping the assassination contract for the Mountain."

Bennis was stunned!

"The House of Black and White never breaks contracts; this is people's habitual thinking, and it's what the House of Black and White does. But in fact, from the very beginning, the House of Black and White's teachings included provisions for withdrawing from contracts. It's just that in the thousand-year history, the Faceless Men of the House of Black and White created the famous saying 'A name is spoken, death will come,' which is their proudest glory, but also their shackles. The seven elders are very proud."

Bennis still found it hard to believe. His eyes flickered, and his expression was wary: "Elder Osvid, we are now facing a new generation of elders who have not received the ancient teachings. She is an equally proud little girl. She wants to break the contract, withdraw from the contract. From the perspective of the House of Black and White's ancient teachings, isn't that reasonable?"

"Yes, but those ancient teachings have long been forgotten by the House of Black and White, and the seven elders have long adhered to the new rule of 'A name is spoken, death will come.' But we must kill the Mountain, otherwise his paper money and Clegane Bank will be promoted on the continent of Essos, and then our Iron Bank will be ultimately replaced," Elder Osvid said in a heavy tone.

The three elders slowly looked at each other, exchanging a glance that only the three of them could understand.

Elder Osvid said: "Bennis, if we can confirm that the seven elders of the House of Black and White really died together, then we can assassinate the Mountain ourselves, with the skills of the Faceless Men. If we can't confirm the life or death of the seven elders, we can only do nothing until the news can be confirmed. First, the seven elders are too difficult to deal with. The power of our Iron Bank is not enough to provoke the seven of them. Second, the seven are too shrewd, even more calculating than our financial elders."

The three elders feared the seven elders; there was no doubt about it.

"Oh!" Bennis's eyes flickered, "Maybe only the Green Prophet can know whether the seven elders are alive or dead." Bennis thought of Bran Stark.

The reason the Iron Bank agreed to fund Bran Stark and help him sit on the Iron Throne was first that the Mountain's paper money plan and bank plan made the Iron Bank feel an unprecedented threat, which the Iron Bank could not tolerate under any circumstances. After the three Iron Bank elders learned of the Mountain's paper money plan and bank plan from Bran, they immediately reached a consensus to eliminate the Mountain.

The second point was that by helping Bran Stark sit on the Iron Throne, the tax revenue of the continent of Westeros would be managed by the Iron Bank's professional managers, and then the Iron Bank would receive ten years of tax dividends from the Bran Dynasty as interest for the Iron Bank's full support of Bran's ascension to the Iron Throne. The gold the Iron Bank funded Bran was the cost, which would be charged separately.

"Where is the Green Prophet?" Elder Osvid asked.

"Arya Stark has captured him."

"How dare she capture her own client?" Osvid said in disbelief.

The other two elders also visibly brightened their eyes, and their expressions were equally incredulous.

For a Faceless Man to attack their own client was rare, unprecedented, and shocking.

"Osvid, it's clear that those seven old things have served the Red God," one of the elders who never spoke opened his mouth. His voice was hoarse, as if his throat had been cut. He was the Iron Bank's financial elder, responsible for reviewing and calculating the cost risks and interest returns of each loan, and assessing the various possibilities of each client.

"If the seven elders hadn't died, they wouldn't have allowed Arya Stark to act so recklessly. The seven elders would never have been so reckless," another elder also spoke. He spoke very slowly, taking twice the normal time. He spoke each word extremely slowly, as if it was difficult for him to speak, and this slowness made people feel very tired.

"Can we send people to assassinate the Mountain?" Osvid's eyes flickered, and he asked in an almost whispered voice.

From this sentence alone, Manager Bennis could see that Elder Osvid had the lowest status among the three elders. The real decision-makers were the two elders who rarely spoke during normal times and meetings.

The Iron Bank dared to lend a large amount of wealth, enough to rival a country, to any king, governor, prince, or duke. The throne of a king who did not keep his promise would be overthrown by new forces they supported, and a king, governor, or prince who could not be overthrown would be assassinated by Faceless Men, dying a violent death, to warn any other borrower. The Iron Bank relied on the absolute top assassination force: first, the Faceless Men of the House of Black and White; second, the Iron Bank assassins secretly trained.

However, this secret was controlled by the three elders. They and the elders of the House of Black and White had a tacit balance and tacit agreement.

The Iron Bank assassins, whose skills came from the same source as the Faceless Men, were a more secretive assassination organization than the Faceless Men. The Faceless Men had no secular names, but they still possessed the highest glory and reputation in the secular world, while the Iron Bank assassins didn't even have a symbolic name. They were truly absolute invisible people.

The Iron Bank's secret assassins were fewer in number, but more refined. Apart from the three elders, no one else in the Iron Bank knew about them.

The internal affairs elder, who spoke very slowly, said: "Before we send out assassins, we have to see the Sea Lord. The Sea Lord needs to know that we are starting the plan to eliminate the Mountain."

"We must let Arya Stark release the prophet. We need the prophet's accurate prediction of the future. The Mountain is not easy to deal with. He killed the Night King. He has the status of a divine envoy," the financial elder with the hoarse voice said.

Manager Bennis was filled with astonishment!

For the first time in seventeen years, he had heard and seen the two elders speak.

This was a miracle!

Elder Osvid said: "Two elders, what if Arya Stark doesn't want to let go?"

"She has to let go. After the death of the seven elders, the House of Black and White can't let a little girl who doesn't understand anything control it. She will ruin the House of Black and White. Just the fact that she drew her sword against you and cut off your ear shows that she can no longer be an elder of the House of Black and White," the internal affairs elder, who spoke very slowly, said one word at a time. After he finished speaking, Bennis thought another whole year had passed.

"We can't just watch the House of Black and White be destroyed by Arya," the internal affairs elder said. "Bennis, in fact, we are also Faceless Men, but we were taught by the master of the seven elders. No one knows that we also came from the House of Black and White except for the elders of the House of Black and White."

Bennis looked at the three elders in disbelief. It was the first time he had come into contact with the Iron Bank's high-level secrets. He had been the Iron Bank's manager for seventeen years. In the outside world, everyone only knew that there was an outstanding figure named Bennis, but they didn't know that there were three elders in the Iron Bank who were the real decision-makers.

"Three elders, what should we do?" Bennis suddenly had confidence. What he feared was the elusive skills of the Faceless Men, but now, the three elders judged that the seven elders they feared the most had died, and the power of the Iron Bank had actually gained the upper hand in the House of Black and White. This… was too shocking for Bennis… The Faceless Men had always been an unmatched existence in people's minds.

Bennis's speech sped up. He was excited and continued: "Arya has announced that I am no longer allowed to enter the House of Black and White, otherwise she will pierce my heart."

Arya said she would cut off Bennis's other ear, but in Bennis's words, she said she would pierce his heart. Cutting off an ear was just a lesson, but piercing the heart was murder.

The internal affairs elder, who spoke very slowly, said even more slowly: "Arya Stark dares to say such a thing. She should be taught a lesson. The House of Black and White is unfortunate to have such a person as an elder. It's a pity for the House of Black and White's thousand-year reputation."

"Teaching Arya a lesson? This will make the House of Black and White our enemy," the financial elder said.

"So be it. The House of Black and White is no longer the House of Black and White it used to be. Overnight, the House of Black and White has completely changed. I think maybe the House of Black and White needs a real elder. Any one of us three can also serve as an elder of the House of Black and White. The return of the dragon glass candle to the House of Black and White is a sign of the House of Black and White's prosperity, but before prosperity, maybe the Red God wants the House of Black and White to experience a tribulation in order to make the House of Black and White stronger," the elder who spoke very slowly said one word at a time, filling Manager Bennis's heart with despair.

Osvid asked cautiously: "Do the two elders mean to send Iron Bank assassins to teach Arya a lesson? Then, as Faceless Men disciples, we will use the Iron Bank's influence over the monks to have the monks elect us as elders of the House of Black and White?"

Bennis was stunned. Among the devout monks, were there people from the Iron Bank? Did they take the Iron Bank's gold? When did the Iron Bank also place its own people in the House of Black and White? Wasn't this going against the Red God? Were they blaspheming the Red God? Or were the Iron Bank and the House of Black and White both children of the Red God? The Red God was like an adult, watching his two children fight with interest. In the eyes of the high and mighty Red God, this was like a children's game?

"In our Iron Bank, there are assassins loyal to the House of Black and White, and among the monks in the House of Black and White, many are our people," the internal affairs elder, who didn't look at Bennis's eyes, saw through the shock in Bennis's heart and said slowly, dispelling Bennis's doubts.

Bennis decided not to care about any high-level secrets. Arya cut off his ear, which was a great humiliation for him. He fully supported any action against Arya!

"I agree," Bennis raised his bloody ear to show the three elders. "Arya is not a Faceless Man. She calls herself Arya Stark. She has never forgotten where she came from and who her family members are. Her existence is the highest blasphemy against the Faceless Men and the House of Black and White. If we have the ability, I think we should kill her to prevent future troubles."

Bennis was still worried that Arya would come back to settle accounts with him in the future. He was not a narrow sword expert. Being targeted by a Faceless Man was basically a death sentence for Bennis. Therefore, it was better to be straightforward and kill Arya Stark to completely understand.

Soon, the three elders and an Iron Bank manager reached an agreement: send Iron Bank assassins to contact Arya, kill her with narrow sword skills, and finally cut off her right ear and bring it back to Bennis to make into a specimen.

Just as the four reached an agreement, footsteps sounded outside, and a guard hurried in: "Reporting to the elders, Lord Bennis, the Sea Lord and the Green Prophet have arrived at the Iron Bank island by boat and are now rushing here."

"The Prophet was brought out by the Sea Lord?" Bennis was surprised and delighted.

"Yes, Lord Bennis."

"Three elders, I will go to welcome the Sea Lord and the Prophet on behalf of the Iron Bank," Manager Bennis stood up and said respectfully.

After learning that the three elders also possessed the secret skills of the Faceless Men, Bennis was terrified of the three elders.