Chapter 353: Empty, Battle at Shipbreaker Bay

After leaving Zengdi, Clay's army immediately launched a defensive formation.

Because they have entered the Wild Hunt's perception range.

Hounds could emerge from the portal at any time and attack his army as they set out to reclaim the Last Hearth.

Although the North is already considered the coldest area in the entire Westeros except beyond the Wall.

But as soon as we entered the area covered by hoarfrost, the temperature still dropped significantly.

Even if they were traveling from north to south, in theory they should have entered a warmer place.

Ever since he was driven out of Castle Black by Clay last time, Wild Hunt has been thinking about how to deal with this powerful opponent that suddenly appeared in front of him.

The resistance they encountered became stronger each time.

From the barbarians on Skagos Island to the current elite troops, it is really getting more and more exciting.

Caranthir could only vaguely feel that the ancient blood was in the south.

But where exactly.

The power of the old gods completely blocked him.

He couldn't understand.

Without the power of the ancient blood, their hometown and their race would be finished sooner or later.

Therefore, they must find a way to conquer this place and find the ancient blood.

They can also feel that the magic of this world is getting stronger and stronger.

Every time the portal is opened, the cost to the navigators is increasing.

When they can no longer open the portal, then they can only take their entire family to escape from the original world.

There is no other way.

After all, under the hoar frost, except for guys like them, all living beings are equal.

"Your Majesty, the area around Last Hearth City... shouldn't be so desolate, right?"

The guard next to Clay raised his doubts.

Although the northern territory is vast and sparsely populated.

But at least hundreds of thousands of people live on this land.

The Amber family is also considered a big family in the north.

In the past, when the Starks gathered troops at Winterfell, the Amber family could send at least two thousand troops.

This shows that the population in their territory is very large.

After all, under this social model, the conscription rate is a shockingly low proportion of the population eligible for military service.

This is not some game where you spend some political points to cut the bill and immediately start the magical operation of general mobilization.

But now, after Clay's army entered the territory of Last Hearth City, they found that they did not see anyone.

It's not an exaggeration, it's true.

As they continued to approach the City of Last Hearth, they passed through many villages.

But the strange thing is that there is no one in these villages.

Fortunately, it didn't disappear in the same place that made people feel chilled.

There are a lot of traces of violence.

Obviously, the original villagers here were driven away.

Later, they could no longer tell whether this was near the Last Hearth City, which was already desolate, or if there was another reason.

But Clay understands that the Wild Hunt army has a tradition of enslaving the natives of other worlds.

It seems that the people of Jon Amber's territory are being forced to "aid the construction".

Forget it, after the war is over, just transfer a group of people from the south to fill in.

Clay thought.

Although there is no real threat.

But as the army moved closer to the City of Last Hearth, the atmosphere within the army became tense.

It still spreads involuntarily.

Humans are social animals.

If you leave the group, you will subconsciously think that you are in a very uneasy state.

This is the result of evolution and is written in genes.

Therefore, this situation is very understandable.

In view of this situation, Clay was not in a hurry to send troops.

Finally, Hearth is not far from the King's Row.

The logistics are extremely convenient.

So, Clay ordered the army to stop in a small village fifty miles away from the Last Hearth City.

Setting up camp now would be a clear warning to the Wild Hunt.

I have a weakness, come and attack me.

This is absolutely impossible.

But it is very good to scout the opponent's movements in advance.

Therefore, Clay ordered his forward cavalry to assemble an elite team, without the need to use the hidden reconnaissance method of the scouts.

Anyway, now my side must have been discovered by the Wild Hunt.

In this case, save those unnecessary actions.

A group of elite cavalry, armored and huddled together, headed towards the Last Hearth City first.

Check out the strength of the Wild Hunt there.

At the same time, he told them that he was here.

Look at how these guys responded.

…

The Reach

High Court

"Look, there's a letter from your father."

Kevan Lannister handed a letter with a wax seal of a roaring lion to Jaime Lannister who hurried over.

Hearing news about his father again.

Let Jaime Lannister breathe a sigh of relief.

Ever since he was a child, he has been accustomed to obeying his father's orders.

Although he may say he is rebellious, he really feels like this in his heart.

This trip to Highgarden was not going well. Even though Kevan Lannister, his uncle, was in charge, Jaime still felt unsure.

Now, this letter has arrived lightly, but it seems like the disconnected line has been reconnected.

Jaime Lannister suddenly became a lot more confident.

When I opened the letter, I saw it read:

"I already know the Rose's plot. Remember, wait until the Dornish people launch an attack in the south. Wait until they come to us before we start talking about this matter. If possible, bring the Rose of Highgarden back to the garden of Casterly Rock."

Lord Tywin didn't take the so-called negotiations seriously at all.

He could tell at a glance that the Tyrells were making random demands, trying to bluff people in front of the lion.

Therefore, after receiving the letter, he immediately expressed his opinion.

Everything before was just waste paper.

The real treaty cannot really begin until the Tyrells are cornered by the Targaryen and Manderly armies in the south.

As for the sentence "Bring the Rose of Highgarden back to the gardens of Casterly Rock".

Both men understood that this was actually asking Margaery Tyrell to marry to Casterly Rock.

Tywin Lannister is obviously not going to be that match.

Therefore, the one who wants to get married will only be Jaime Lannister.

Kevan looked at James, smiled, and said nothing.

Jaime Lannister's expression was a little ugly:

"Uncle, this... Cersei, and Joffrey..."

Knowing what he wanted to say, Kevan raised his hand to interrupt.

Looking at his nephew, Kevan sighed:

"James, haven't you realized that in your heart, you have given up hope of rescuing Cersei and Joffrey?"

"Otherwise, why would you come here with me?"

One sentence made Jaime Lannister freeze on the spot.

It seems a bit convoluted, but the logic here is actually very simple.

The legitimacy of the West comes from the crown on Joffrey Baratheon's head.

No matter who has caught the king now, everyone is holding their noses and admitting it.

But as negotiations failed repeatedly, everyone in the Western Territory knew that unless they completely defeated Clay Manderly.

Otherwise, these two hostages will definitely not be returned to their hands.

Tywin Lannister is not a fool, and he has certainly made efforts in this regard.

If you can welcome back your own king, it will be a huge help in uniting people's hearts.

However, Clay Mandler received the envoy.

But for this matter, there is no talk at all.

No matter how high the price Tywin offered, it was useless.

Once again, it was probably because the envoy's diplomacy was so poor that he directly annoyed Clay, who had just returned to the Twins.

Directly threatening this messenger said:

If you keep talking nonsense, I will marry Cersei directly to one of my nobles and send Joffrey to be a night watchman.

This time, the Western Region was honest.

Because they know very well that this is both a threat and a real possibility.

The first one is just one sentence to Clay Mandler.

Don't expect the nobles of Westeros to have any moral aberrations.

There are a lot of old widowers, and even young nobles who have never been married, all have a strong interest in the previous seven queens.

As for what kind of mentality it is, you can experience it yourself.

I understand everything.

Let’s talk about the second one, that’s not even a problem.

Under the leadership of Clay Manderly, the Night's Watch relied heavily on him as their king.

After all, it has developed so far that Clay has to order the North to supply even food.

Therefore, let alone sending him to be a night watchman, there would be no problem if Joffrey was stripped naked and hung outside the Great Wall.

Later, Lord Tywin also understood Clay's attitude.

I won't mess with you, and you shouldn't mess with me either. The rest of the matter will be settled later.

But for these two people, you'd better just treat them as dead.

After accepting this objective reality, Myrcella and Tommen changed their names and became James's fake wife.

This is all Tywin's attempt to erase the influence of Cersei and Joffrey in the Westerlands.

Otherwise, it's just a scar that keeps bleeding.

Marrying Margaery Tyrell and taking advantage of Jaime Lannister are the natural advantages of men in this social condition.

Suppress the Tyrell family.

This is Tywin Lannister's plan.

Since they chose Aegon Targaryen, who promised not to hold grudges, they must make arrangements for their position in the new dynasty.

Lannister has dominated the world for more than ten years during Robert's time, and has long been accustomed to the enviable position.

But now, in the entire Seven Kingdoms, except for the North, there are almost no unmarried women who are direct descendants of them and are suitable for marriage.

Therefore, Aegon Targaryen's wife will only be a weak family.

This will not interfere with the political reality that Lannister, who is tied to the Tyrell family, will continue to be powerful in the new dynasty.

Although this must be based on a complete win.

But no matter what, you must plan ahead and make arrangements in advance.

Otherwise, what's the point of forming an alliance?

…

Regardless of whether Jaime Lannister wants his family's arrangements for him or not.

The entire history of the Seven Kingdoms is rushing forward irreversibly.

The main force of Stannis's royal fleet pulled anchor and set sail from Dragonstone.

However, they did not know that their whereabouts had been firmly controlled by Aegon Targaryen's fleet from the beginning.

Stannis's intelligence work has never been very good.

In other words, he doesn't have such a person on hand, and he is not interested in this aspect.

In his opinion, you kill me and I kill you on the battlefield, just relying on strength to speak.

These small tricks can be used, but they are not the key to determining victory or defeat.

In the past, nothing might have happened.

But this time, he lost the opportunity from the beginning.

If the navy's movements are known to the enemy in advance, the actual results will be greatly compromised.

After all, I knew you were coming, why not open a dumpling restaurant and just put you in it?

In fact, Aegon Targaryen did just that.

His fleet, led by Lord Jon Connington of Falcon's Nest, has moved to a position near the strait between Tarth Island and the Stormlands.

Hiding in the bay, quietly waiting for the arrival of Stannis' fleet.

With the demise of House Tarth, the island of Tarth was taken out by Renly as a reward.

The final owner will be the one who contributes the most in his war.

However, this decision has now harmed him.

The remaining fleet in the Stormlands, without a leader, was wiped out in a short period of time by the rushing Aegon Targaryen fleet.

Not one of them got out.

As a result, Storm's End is still kept in the dark, thinking that its waters are still particularly safe.

This fleet consists of almost all of Pentos' main navy, plus some hired pirate ships.

A total of more than sixty warships were waiting in the Shipwreck Bay.

Although this number is less than half of their opponent, Stannis's royal fleet.

But that fleet is not all battleships, so the combat effectiveness on paper is not too different.

The northernmost side of Tas Island, the narrowest opening from the mainland.

It was Aegon Targaryen's fleet, the battlefield chosen for the royal fleet.

Due to terrain reasons, the fleet must narrow its formation when passing here.

This is an excellent opportunity.

It was an ordinary early morning for Stannis.

Unable to sleep, he walked out of the cabin and came to the deck, hoping that the biting sea breeze would wake up his groggy brain.

He didn't know why, but he was always upset.

The fleet went all the way south, leaving behind some of the guards, and all the rest of his capital was here.

Originally, logically speaking, the ship should not be docked here.

But due to the arrival of winter, it would get dark much earlier than he expected.

And sailing at night, especially in fleets, is extremely risky.

Therefore, after ensuring safety, he ordered the sails to be lowered and the ship to stop.

However, he knew very well that this place was not safe.

Therefore, he did not sleep well this night.

The longer I stayed on deck, the more annoyed I became.

Looking at the still dark sea in the distance, he always felt that something was coming to devour him.

Finally, Stannis couldn't bear it anymore and asked the fleet to set sail immediately and leave this place of right and wrong.

The king's orders cannot cease.

So, the Wang fleet anchored on the shore pulled anchor and set sail.

Just as Jon Connington expected, they tightened their formation, with battleships in front and behind, and troop transports in the middle.

The entire royal fleet, like a long snake, began to pass through this narrow opening in the dim light of the early morning.

However, the danger came in an instant.

"Your Majesty! We have a ship!"

Montford Velaryon had better eyesight, and he immediately spotted a large shadow of sails swooping towards the waist and abdomen of his fleet in the darkness.

To say that Stannis's decision was actually right, if they did not set sail in advance.

Jon Connington is also preparing to launch a surprise attack on Stannis's fleet in the port without battle formation in the early morning when the men and horses are exhausted.

It's just that it's just a different place now.

He took a deep breath.

Stannis knew immediately that he was in trouble.

At this time, there was a strong northeasterly wind, and the fleet in front that had passed the narrow mouth was unable to turn at all.

This group of uninvited guests obviously came with the intention of cutting them into two pieces.

"Damn it, someone betrayed us."

Stannis cursed harshly.

Montford Velaryon was stunned for a moment, and then he immediately realized why his king said that.

Able to accurately find his position on the vast sea and carefully plan the attack.

Without the help of internal agents, it would be a fool's errand.

But I can’t care about that much now.

The fleet was already a third of the way through.

It happened that all the leading warships were placed south of the narrow mouth.

"Order, all the warships in the rear slow down, turn around, and meet the enemy head-on. Hold them back and don't let them get close to the troop transport!"

"Send an order to the fleet in front. After the troop transport has passed, don't come back north to rescue them. That would be a headwind."

"We'll get out."

Stannis gritted his teeth.