The Mountain of Ice and Fire

Littlefinger's conditions for the Hound to come to King's Landing were actually quite generous.

Grain, cloth, weapons, and salt.

This moved the hearts of the pirates.

Littlefinger's target was very precise.

The pirates all came from the Skagos islands.

Although the Skagos islands have always been de facto independent, the people on this island rarely became pirates. For survival, in ancient and modern times, some warriors from the Skagos islands volunteered to go to the Wall and become brothers of the Night's Watch.

After the Hound arrived at the Skagos islands, winter came, and the islands entered a cold season. Heavy snow froze the island's hills and mountains, and the people on the island lived even more difficult lives. The Hound, without any hesitation, led the men of the island to become pirates.

Under Littlefinger's patient persuasion, the Hound was swayed by Littlefinger's words.

The people of the Skagos islands treated the Hound very well, and the Hound felt that he had finally found a place where he could find inner peace.

But in the winter, the people on the Skagos islands, located in the extreme north, faced extremely difficult survival, and winter had only just begun.

If this winter lasted ten years or longer, almost all the people on the island would freeze to death or starve to death, assuming they held fast to that isolated island.

When the Hound left the Mountain and went north to join the Night's Watch, he had already vowed never to meet the Mountain again in this life.

He couldn't kill the Mountain, so he decided not to meet him again, completely isolating himself.

But the reality once again forced the Hound to change his original intention.

The Hound's first vow had already been broken by himself: the deadly vow to kill the Mountain was ultimately rejected by the Hound because the Mountain had spared him several times, so he chose to leave.

But life didn't seem to give the Hound much more freedom of choice. Just when he finally found a place to settle down, he seemed to have to go out and face the Mountain again.

The Hound looked at his followers, these pirates who were fishermen, farmers, and hunters from the island. Their eyes had already said everything: they hoped to get the grain, cloth, weapons, and salt that Littlefinger had mentioned.

"I'll go to King's Landing with you," the Hound finally said.

The pirates cheered after a brief silence.

"Chief, we really didn't expect your brother to be the King of Westeros," an elderly pirate stepped forward and said, his words full of excitement and joy, and of course, mostly gratitude.

Because of the Hound, they could get the grain, cloth, weapons, and salt that Littlefinger had mentioned. And the condition for the exchange was that the Hound would meet his brother in King's Landing.

The Hound gave a chilling smile. The scars on his face were truly terrifying, but on the Skagos islands, he was regarded as the greatest hero.

The Hound was forced to jump into the sea during the battle with the Others and was then rescued by fishermen from the Skagos islands in the sea.

The people on the island often bartered with the Night's Watch and had a good impression of them. The Hound quickly fell in love with the simplicity of the people on the island. He chose to stay on the island and won the title of the strongest tribal warrior in the island's wrestling and fighting competitions, earning the respect and love of the entire island. And after he conquered a black unicorn at the foot of the snow mountain, the Skagosi regarded him as a true great hero of the tribe.

"Chief, I'll go to King's Landing with you," the elderly pirate said emotionally. In case something unexpected happened, the Hound wouldn't be without help.

"Chief, I want to go with you too," a young pirate said with anticipation.

Soon, many pirates expressed their desire to go to King's Landing with the Hound. If the Hound was punished by the King for being a pirate, they would bear it together with the Hound. Even if they were executed, they would choose to stand with the Hound.

The Hound knew that the Mountain wouldn't execute him.

If the Mountain wanted to kill him, he would have died before the civil war even started.

The Mountain had several opportunities to kill him, but in the end, the Mountain spared the Hound and spared his life.

"Littlefinger, I want to see the grain, cloth, weapons, and salt delivered to their hands with my own eyes," the Hound pointed to the Skagosi.

"We'll go to Braavos, take your ship, and when these ships return, they will be loaded with grain, cloth, weapons, and salt. However, the winter will be very long, and this aid will not be enough to help the people on the island get through the winter."

The Hound knew that Littlefinger was telling the truth.

"My Lord, how can we help the people on the island get through the winter successfully?"

The Hound's address to Littlefinger changed, turning Littlefinger into "My Lord."

This was exactly what Littlefinger wanted. The question the Hound asked was exactly what Littlefinger had been expecting.

"Go to King's Landing, and all the problems can be solved. I guarantee this with my life. If I tell a lie, you can kill me."

The Hound's gaze moved away from Littlefinger. He hated Littlefinger's narrow smile. He looked at the Skagosi beside him, these warriors who were looking at him with hope. They regarded him as the hero of their tribe, as one of their own. They were willing to live and die with him.

These tribal men were all good warriors.

Although they suffered a crushing defeat the first time they boarded a ship, they were facing Commander-in-Chief Vincent, General Ian, General Steven Clegane, and the madman Polliver Clegane… Facing ordinary soldiers and knights, these men were not easy to mess with, and they always managed to win.

"The only thing I know how to do is fight," the Hound was very clear about his strengths. He also knew that if he wanted to help the Skagos islanders get through the winter, he couldn't get anything without doing something for the Mountain.

The Hound's character wouldn't ask the Mountain for things for free! His pride wouldn't allow him to accept the Mountain's gifts for nothing. The Skagosi were the same. Temporary small aid was no problem, but long-term uncompensated help would be repaid with death by the Skagosi.

Some of the men among the Skagosi also worked as mercenaries abroad, but very few.

"Ser Sandor Clegane, we will soon launch a war, and we need generals like you, as well as the warriors around you. The King's soldiers have very high salaries, and if they die in battle, their families will receive very high rewards, something that previous kings and noble lords have never done. We have money, and the Iron Bank already belongs to His Majesty the King."

The Skagosi's eyes lit up when they heard that soldiers could have high salaries.

They looked forward to joining the Royal Army under the leadership of the Hound, which could help their families get through the long winter. Every winter, many civilians in the North would freeze to death. The same was true on the Skagos islands, where many people froze to death and starved to death.

The long winter was a huge survival test for the Northerners, whether on the island or on the mainland.

*

Mid-November of the 301st year of Aegon's Conquest.

King's Landing.

"What is that?" a soldier standing on the watchtower on the city wall said, looking at the several warships entering the harbor on the Blackwater Rush.

"Those are ten warships," his comrade said with disdain.

"I know, but look at what flag is that?"

"The Royal Standard, the mockingbird flag. The Royal Standard is His Majesty the King's flag, and the mockingbird is Lord Littlefinger's sigil."

"Anything else?"

"A white flag."

"What is the pattern on the flag?"

"It looks like a unicorn."

"In the Seven Kingdoms, which noble house has a unicorn as their sigil?"

"The Red Kraken, Ice Sword, His Majesty the King's sigil."

"His Majesty the King's sigil is the Red Kraken, red, and a sword, but this is a white flag, embroidered with a black unicorn. Among the nobles of the Seven Kingdoms, who has a black unicorn as their sigil?"

The comrade was speechless for a moment.

"Littlefinger is back. Could it be that he brought back the Hound and the Hound's pirate fleet?!" The soldiers were all rough men, and they wouldn't call Littlefinger Lord Petyr Baelish in private. In private, when they drank and chatted, they also called the King the Mountain, not His Majesty the King.

The Hound's flag was indeed a black unicorn on a white background. The white background symbolized the white snow on the Skagos islands, because in the North, the mountain peaks of the island were covered with snow all year round, eternally frozen. The temperature on the island was not hot even in summer. And the black unicorn was the Hound's mount.

The ten warships were not Royal Navy warships, but the Hound's pirate fleet.

Soon, the warships entered the naval port and docked. Under the guidance of three large flags, a team appeared from the naval port's pier. Walking in the front was Littlefinger Petyr Baelish, riding a horse. And next to him was the Hound, without his dog-shaped helmet, riding a unicorn that was taller than a horse. His face was painted with black and white paint.

Behind them were several rows of neat infantry troops. The soldiers in these troops had weapons of different lengths, wore leather and coarse cloth, and had black and white paint on their faces like the Hound.

When the Skagosi went to formal occasions, solemn occasions, prayed before the gods, or went to see someone extremely important, they would paint black and white stripes on their faces to show respect.

The Hound, like these Skagosi, painted black and white stripes on his face to show that he was now a Skagosi, denying his identity as a Westerlander, and indicating that he had severed ties with his past self.

Except for Littlefinger, no one understood why the Hound and the Skagosi would paint black and white stripes on their faces, which quickly attracted the attention of the people of King's Landing.

The tall Hound riding on the unicorn made him even taller, attracting everyone's attention.

The Hound was also once a celebrity in King's Landing. Although the black and white stripes covered his face, some people still recognized him.

Behind the Hound were five hundred Skagos island warriors. These were all the warriors on the entire island. The Hound had brought them all out and came to King's Landing. That was five hundred big mouths to feed and high-capacity stomachs to fill.

Littlefinger rode a horse beside the Hound, looking like a slender teenager, but this did not affect his self-confidence in the slightest. A narrow smile was always on his face, in his eyebrows, eyes, and at the corners of his mouth.

Kyu!

A dragon's roar came from the sky. The Hound and the others looked up together and saw a huge red cloud passing overhead. Instantly, it became dark in front of them. It was the sheep-stealing dragon's body that blocked the sunlight. The huge wings opened as if they could cover the earth.

The Skagosi were all dumbfounded!

The dragon flew overhead, and the sunlight reappeared.

Kyu Kyu!

Two more dragon roars sounded again. A black dragon and a white dragon flew from the west of King's Landing, passed over everyone's heads, and flew east, chasing after the sheep-stealing dragon.

"Ser Sandor, I once told you that the kingdom already has seven dragons. You have seen three of them."

Although the Hound was mentally prepared, he was still shocked.

The majesty of the dragon, if not felt up close like a mountain pressing down, cannot be engraved in one's heart!

The team went up the River Road and entered the Mud Gate. The Hound sighed in his heart, this familiar Mud Gate was still the same as before in appearance and smell.

"Is that thing covered with canvas on the high platform the cannon you told me about?"

"No, there are no more cannons there. Only the high platform has been preserved."

The Hound walked into the Mud Gate Square before asking about the high platform at the dock, as if he had only just reacted now, or perhaps because he was getting closer to the Red Keep and his emotions were a little complicated, he was just making conversation.

Sure enough, after the dry conversation was over, the Hound closed his mouth again.

He really didn't like being pointed at and laughed at for the black and white stripes on his face, the citizens of King's Landing regarded the paint on his face as a sign of a savage.

But this was actually the most solemn etiquette of the Skagosi.

Finally, the team arrived in front of the bronze gate of the Red Keep. The gate opened, and behind the gate stood a giant: His Majesty the King, Gregor Clegane. Beside him was Her Majesty the Queen, Jeyne Westerling. A small dragon with gold-red and dark black patterns stood on Jeyne's shoulder. The dragon's head moved flexibly, its claws gripping the Queen's shoulder. The dragon claws were sharp, and Her Majesty the Queen wore specially made leather on her shoulders.

The Hound saw the fourth dragon—a small dragon.

Beside the King and Queen stood several Kingsguard in white robes.

Besides that, there was no one else.

Littlefinger Petyr Baelish hurriedly rolled off his horse, and the Hound was also stunned, then got off the unicorn and, together with Littlefinger, knelt on one knee and paid homage to the King and Queen.

Five hundred Skagos warriors knelt on one knee together and lowered their heads.

Many warriors saw the Mountain for the first time, and the awe in their hearts was uncontrollable.

It was hard to believe that there was such a burly and mighty King in the world, almost like a giant.

The Hound really didn't expect the Mountain to come to the bronze gate with his wife to greet him. The Hound was a person who hated etiquette and hypocritical courtesies, and the fact that there were no courtiers or generals present except for the King and Queen was very much to the Hound's liking.

"Sandor, I'm glad you're willing to come back," the Mountain said, his voice like a thunderclap.

The Hound didn't say a word!

He didn't know what he should say?

Thank you? Courtesies? Long live the King?… He didn't want to say a single word.

The Hound, kneeling on one knee, looked up at the Mountain, silent and without saying a word.

*

In mid-November of the 301st year of Aegon's Conquest, His Majesty the King's younger brother—the Hound Sandor Clegane, led five hundred warriors from the Skagos islands to form a legion, stationed themselves in King's Landing, and swore allegiance to the Mountain. From then on, the Skagos islands also officially became part of the kingdom's territory, and Sandor was granted the title of Marquis of Skagos. The Skagos islands officially became the farthest royal territory.