The North, Castle Cerwyn.
It was midday, and the once quiet castle had been seized by blood and fire.
Under Euron's indulgence, the Ironborn had transformed into a pack of unleashed beasts, ravenous for blood and agony.
They poured into the streets, killing everyone in sight—soldiers, the elderly, women, and children alike.
The sounds of weeping, pleas for mercy, wild laughter, and the tearing of steel through flesh intertwined into a horrific symphony.
At the highest point of Castle Cerwyn, Euron stood clad in scales of midnight-black Valyrian steel, his eyes half-closed as he savored the city's lamentation.
"True music..."
Euron gazed upon the castle engulfed in blood and flames, his expression rapturous. "Go and fetch my Shade of the Evening. I wish to have a drink!"
Behind him, the crewmen of the Silence moved with mechanical steps, descending the tower stairs and vanishing from sight.
Since the fall of Torrhen's Square, Euron's pace had not slackened for long.
He had led his army on a path of burning and looting, making no effort to conceal his tracks.
Only after reducing the nearby villages to ash did Euron drive his captives toward Castle Cerwyn.
During this time, he secured the trust and loyalty of all the Ironborn through sheer atrocity and debauchery.
Even Aeron Dampair found that the Ironborn who once followed him had deserted, save for a few close confidants.
Facing this reality, Aeron, who feared Euron, dared not speak his anger.
He could only follow Euron's instructions to fell nearby trees, force the captives to assemble battering rams, and then drive those same captives forward to breach the gates.
Because the garrison at Castle Cerwyn was severely undermanned, they were powerless to stop them.
After a single day, the castle was on the verge of falling.
Clay Cerwyn, son of Lord Medger Cerwyn, realized the situation was dire and fled toward Winterfell through the North Gate with his family and a hundred soldiers.
Castle Cerwyn fell accordingly.
But Euron did not order his men to pursue the fleeing Cerwyns, nor was he in a hurry to reach Winterfell.
Instead, he remained within the walls of Castle Cerwyn to slaughter at will and cultivate terror.
At that moment, the crew of the Silence carried up half a barrel of Shade of the Evening, placing it quietly behind Euron.
They set a chalice inlaid with gold and onyx atop the barrel.
Hearing his crew's movements, Euron turned, opened the barrel, and dipped the chalice in to fill it.
He brought the cup to his nose and inhaled. Though the air carried an indescribable stench, Euron's face was full of enjoyment.
"Mmm..."
"A mellow fragrance..."
Ever since he had captured a Qartheen galleas and tasted Shade of the Evening, he had become helplessly addicted.
Wherever Euron went, he ensured the liquid followed. Beyond the taste, the most important part was that after drinking three cups, he could hear the voice of a god.
Gulp—Euron drained the deep blue liquid in one breath and let out a satisfied burp.
"The timing is just about right!"
"Send word out. Gather the terrified sheep and lock them up; stop the indiscriminate killing. I still need this herd of captives to attack Winterfell."
The crewman who had brought the liquid immediately turned to leave. But after only two steps, he heard another command from Euron.
"Also, bring my lovely brother to me!"
The crewman did not pause, vanishing from the tower top in an instant.
Euron paid no mind to how his mute crew would notify the Ironborn below; he simply refilled his chalice with Shade of the Evening and drank deeply.
He drank five cups in succession. He drank until his ears finally heard that familiar voice once more.
'Well done, my child!'
"Ah, great god, I shall offer the entire world to you!"
'My child, there is no need for haste. The funeral dirge of the old age has already sounded. We only need to proceed step by step.'
"Yes, great god. I shall capture the dragons as soon as possible and burn all the weirwood trees!"
'My child, I shall prophesy for you—when the red comet streaks across the sky, you shall see your destined enemy!'
"Enemy?"
'Go forth to conquer, to plunder, and to take all that is his as your own! Only then can you...'
"Only then can I what?"
Euron could not hear clearly. He waved his hands urgently and shouted toward the sky.
However, in the eyes of Aeron, who had just reached the tower top with the crewman of the Silence, Euron looked like a madman.
At one moment he laughed, the next he wept, dancing about and talking to himself. It was as if an invisible entity existed in the air, conversing with him.
Aeron watched his rambling brother, a flash of fleeting satisfaction and pity crossing his eyes.
'O God, please take him away!'
Just as Aeron was praying silently, Euron spun around and saw him. In an instant, Euron's demeanor returned to normal.
Seeing Aeron's strange expression, he knew his brother had witnessed his outburst.
Euron's lips curled into a smirk as he stared at Aeron. "You think I've gone mad?"
"I must have!" he answered himself with certainty. "After all, my lovely brother has always wished me misfortune."
He used a malicious tone to peel back the humiliation and fear hidden deep in Aeron's heart.
"Remember when we were children? You and Urrigon lived in the room high in the Sea Tower.
Whenever I had been drinking and came to have my way with you, I could hear your prayers. You look exactly the same now as you did then!"
"I am curious, were you praying for me to choose you, or to spare you?"
Euron's words tore Aeron's internal scars open until they bled afresh. He glared with fury. "For mistreating your brothers, the god will punish you!"
"The god?" Euron laughed loudly. "Who knows the gods better than I?"
He locked eyes with Aeron.
"The horse god, the fire god, the golden gods with gemstone eyes, the gods carved from cedar, the gods etched into mountain stone, the gods with no form...
I know them all! I have seen men offer flowers to them and slaughter goats, bulls, and children in their names.
I have heard men pray in dozens of different tongues—praying for selfish gain, praying for protection! Protection from the plunder of the Silence!"
Euron laughed uncontrollably.
"But when I stripped them bare, let their blood flow into the sea, and sowed my seed into their wailing women, where were their gods?"
Aeron pointed a bony finger. "They pray to trees, idols of gold, and goat-headed monsters. These are false gods. Only the great Drowned God..."
"The Drowned God?"
"How is he any different from those gods made of wood and gold!"
Euron thought of how he had murdered his brothers and remained unscathed. He spat on the floor in disdain, provoking a look of immense rage from Aeron.
But before Aeron could offer an angry rebuttal, Euron stepped forward and filled a cup with Shade of the Evening from the barrel.
"Compared to my god, what does the Drowned God amount to!"
"Come, drink this, and you shall see a true deity with your own eyes!"
Euron strode forward, ignoring Aeron's resistance. He gripped his brother's throat and forced the Shade of the Evening down.
Accompanied by a taste that mixed ink with rotting flesh, Aeron involuntarily finished the entire cup.
He gagged instinctively, then spat at Euron in anger. "I curse you!"
Euron didn't care in the slightest. He only said fanatically, "When you see the true god, you will be grateful to me. You will believe in me. Aeron, my brother, you will soon witness the ultimate truth of this world!"
In a daze, the Euron in Aeron's eyes suddenly transformed into a tall, twisted monster with a single black eye and ten long arms, sailing upon a sea of blood.
Each arm dragged the corpse of a different deity.
The Maid, the Father, the Mother, the Warrior, the Crone, and the Smith... even the Stranger.
Right next to the Seven were various grotesque outer gods, as well as a Drowned God whose body was half-devoured by crabs, the remaining half bloated and rotting.
Aeron clutched his head in agony and fell to his knees. "No..."
"It's fake, it's all fake!"
"This is all an illusion!"
Beside him, Euron burst into a triumphant laughter.
Toying with his brother brought him immense pleasure. After a long while, Euron stopped laughing and looked toward the North, where there was prey that excited him even more.
"Notify everyone to assemble. Within three days, I want Winterfell taken! I want that Stark girl to taste the pleasure of becoming a woman!"
"Haha!"
With a command from Euron, the Ironborn roared as they drove the captives into a march toward Winterfell.
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