The Riverlands had once been wealthy, but now it had been smashed to pieces.
As the crossroads and public latrine of the Seven Kingdoms, perhaps this was simply its fate.
In the Riverlands camp, bulls and goats were driven in one after another. Some had already been butchered into cuts of meat, while others were still alive and kicking, all of them supplied for the Dragon's enjoyment.
They had gathered a large Wolf Pack before this, but the wolves' appetites were nothing compared to the Dragon's.
Ever since the Dragon arrived, the horses and wolves in the camp had all settled down. The horses had already been trembling before; now they were even more frightened.
"You originally intended to bypass Golden Tooth City," Gendry said to Eddard Stark.
"Yes, Your Grace," Great Lord Eddard replied. "We would concentrate our superior forces and march straight for Casterly Rock."
The Great Lord of Winterfell had the long Stark face passed down through his bloodline and a full head of long brown hair. His neatly trimmed beard was threaded with white, and his gray eyes were stern and unyielding.
But before Gendry, Great Lord Eddard seemed somewhat short, and his presence could not compare at all.
Eddard himself had not been the strongest or most handsome Head Wolf of his generation, but as a second son who inherited the title, he had still kept his house together very well.
Judging by the heirs of the great houses, only the rose Tyrells and the wolf Starks could still be considered normal.
They loved one another and respected strength and the people.
As for the Lannisters, Martells, and Arryns, the children they raised were, more or less...
"There's no need for that now. We attack Golden Tooth City head-on. If Golden Tooth City refuses to surrender, I guarantee I'll turn this place into barren ground."
His strength and dominance were backed by three Dragons and an undefeated record.
"Your Grace has already taken Silver Mountain, Deep Den, and The Goldroad," Sansa Stark added for her father.
"Did you rely on the Dragons?"
"It wasn't that simple. We do have Dragons, but the hard part was crossing the mountains and appearing without warning. It all depended on the soldiers fighting with their lives. The defensive line around Silver Mountain wasn't that solid," Gendry said easily.
"Tywin still believes he only needs to hold the Ocean Road and Golden Tooth City. He would never expect Your Grace to risk the mountain roads," The Blackfish said. "He assumed a king would not act so boldly, especially after gaining a complete advantage and having every reason to advance steadily."
"Tywin has always been cautious in war. To put it nicely, cautious. To put it bluntly, rigid. That is why he is Tywin, and I am Gendry."
Only those who understood the terrain knew the danger and courage it took to cross those mountains.
In war, one truly had to strike where the enemy least expected and attack where they were unprepared.
"Winter is coming, and I do not have the habit of grinding myself down against him. Every bit of blood spilled here drains one more bit of strength for the Long Night."
"Understood, Your Grace."
"Your Grace, our house's Ice..." Eddard said, somewhat embarrassed.
The Starks would not be able to gain the lands of the Westerlands, but Ice was the Stark family sword and the symbol of their authority.
Having lost Ice, Eddard felt as if the spirits of his ancestors would curse him to death.
Daenerys understood that feeling. A family sword carried extraordinary meaning, almost equal to a crown.
The Targaryen family sword, Blackfyre, had also been seen by many as a symbol of royal authority, representing legitimacy.
"The Unworthy King" Aegon chose to pass Blackfyre to his bastard son Daemon instead of his lawful heir Daeron, and that gift became the seed of the later Blackfyre Rebellion.
"Don't worry, Lord Eddard," Gendry said. "They say there are no Qohor smiths in the Westerlands. We should still be able to take Ice back."
"That is good." Eddard let out a breath of relief.
Valyrian steel swords were rare, especially greatswords like Ice.
A century before the Doom of Valyria, the King of the Rock had spent a great deal of gold to obtain Brightroar. It was said the weight of the gold used to purchase that greatsword was enough to raise an army.
The wealth and effort the Starks had poured into their greatsword had been no less than House Lannister's.
"But I've heard this is already the second Ice?" Gendry asked.
"Yes, Your Grace." Great Lord Eddard nodded. "Ice was originally a family sword passed down from the Stark kings of the Age of Heroes, but it vanished when Brandon the Shipwright journeyed into the far distance. Around four hundred years ago, our house obtained a Valyrian steel greatsword and still named it Ice."
"That truly is a pity." Gendry guessed that the first Ice might have been made of some strange material similar to Dawn or Just Maid, something that looked like glass.
Margaery Tyrell listened quietly. House Tyrell had no standing to speak in a conversation like this.
If one were choosing the oldest and most ancient houses, then House Hightower, House Stark, House Dayne, House Gardener, House Durrandon, and House Lannister were the ones that belonged at the same table.
House Arryn, by contrast, were later Andal knights. House Tyrell had begun as stewards, and House Tully had spent thousands of years as old guides for outsiders.
Gendry drew Just Maid, and its blue blade came to rest on Golden Tooth City on the map.
The hilt of Just Maid was shaped like a beautiful maiden with one arm outstretched, with ancient runes carved above her.
At the center of the hilt was a large round blue gemstone, exquisitely beautiful.
The magic sword's blade gave off a faint blue glow, like blue glass, or like the gentle ripples of an azure sea.
Just Maid was a sight no one could forget.
"Pass down my order," Gendry said. "Prepare rewards for the soldiers. Today, I will take Golden Tooth City."
"As you command."
"As you command." Eddard Stark and his son accepted the order solemnly, and the whole command tent became a machine set into motion.
Gendry sheathed his sword.
"Is that the Just Maid of Ser Galladon of Morne?" The Blackfish, Brynden Tully, asked in surprise.
"That's right."
Aside from the Valyrian steel swords passed down through the ages, only two swords in Westeros, made from different materials, had fame that had never faded and legends that were unmatched.
House Dayne's famous sword Dawn, and the legendary magic sword Just Maid of Tarth.
"Your Grace obtained this sword from the rocks of the Isle of Tarth. Other than Your Grace, no one could draw it," Sansa Stark declared proudly.
"Is it really that magical?" Arya asked suspiciously, then noticed another purple sword. "But there's also a purple sword."
"This Supreme Sword is also one of Your Grace's trophies, a Valyrian steel sword taken from the traitor Crow's Eye Euron. Even the black armor Your Grace wears is Valyrian steel," Daenerys said with a proud smile.
"Your Grace truly is a warrior and Smith descended to earth, the knight of knights, blessed with matchless fortune." The Blackfish stared enviously at all that equipment, his jaw nearly dropping.
House Tully's history could be traced back to the Age of the First Men, but that amount of history was nothing much in Westeros. They had never seen divine gear like this.
"How many swords is this now, Your Grace?" Eddard asked in astonishment.
Just Maid and the purple Supreme Sword were priceless legendary weapons, not fish to be bought and sold at a market.
"At the moment, I only have six weapons, though I'm still one short of seven.
"I have four swords: the blue Just Maid, the purple Supreme Sword, the golden Fury, and the black Orphan-Maker. I also have a scimitar called Storm and a great axe called The Kraken's Howl.
"Oh, and the Dragonkeeper armor I'm wearing," Gendry explained.
Besides, he had not spent money on any of this equipment. Almost all of it had been looted from men he killed, and none of it had cost him a coin.
Eddard, Roose, Edmure, and Robb all felt their heads buzzing. What kind of man was this? Only six? One short of seven?
Was he buying equipment wholesale?
It felt as though Gendry obtained Valyrian steel weapons as easily as buying cabbages, with no sense at all that they were rare treasures.
They were Great Lords and lords, yet even when House Stark had been at its richest and most ancient, it had possessed only one Ice.
Gendry, on the other hand, seemed blessed with heaven-defying luck, looting equipment all across the world. He truly did seem like a man of great fortune.
"Lord Stark, stay behind for a moment. I have something to tell you."
Lord Roose glanced over, his heart as still as water. He did not panic in the slightest.
Although King Gendry relied on Lord Stark, judging from the situation, it was reliance rather than true kinship. After all, the two of them did not share the iron bond Robert and Eddard had once had.
King Gendry's true fatherly friends were Fletcher, Qyburn, the old brothers of the Wolf Pack, and even Ser Barristan and the others.
Edmure Tully, Lord Roose Bolton, and The Blackfish, Brynden Tully, left the tent to set the army in motion.
Only the king and queen, Margaery and Sansa, Eddard Stark and his son, and Arya Stark remained inside.
"Once House Lannister is destroyed, you can focus fully on preparing for the Long Winter and the Long Night," Gendry said to Eddard.
Eddard looked at the king. "None of this can be done without Your Grace's support, whether it is winter or the Others. The North alone is too weak."
"I understand that already."
Once winter came, The North felt like a bleeding wound. The king would have to keep transfusing it with blood.
"Can I touch Just Maid? It's the legendary Hero's magic sword," Arya Stark said hopefully.
"Arya..." Eddard was just about to scold his daughter.
But Gendry only smiled easily and drew Just Maid from his sword belt. "Come."
Arya cheered and stepped forward, but even after using all her strength, Just Maid did not move an inch.
"It really is a magic sword, a Hero's longsword!" Arya exclaimed in amazement.
"The real thing." Daenerys smiled. She quite liked the She-Wolf, who felt like a true Stark in both looks and temperament.
Arya had also played a major role in the war. As a warg, she could communicate with Nymeria and coordinate attacks on castles.
Too many wolves were a disaster for the Riverlands. Most of them had to be removed.
...
The rain kept falling, and the horizon looked heavy and black.
"Awooo! Uhhh!"
The sound of horns rang out.
The huge, powerful she-wolf began charging into the rain, followed by pack after pack of her followers.
Other wolves also lunged out from the darkness and the fine rain. They formed a vast pack, gaunt, wet, and silent.
Only behind the Wolf Pack came the silent Northern cavalry and soldiers.
"Wolves. So many wolves." On the walls of Golden Tooth City, the lookout saw a terrifying sight.
"Damn it, I've had enough of the Stark wolves howling. Today, we kill them all!" one soldier shouted, cursing.
"Exactly. We have the high ground. Are these wolves coming here to die?"
Just then, the sound of rushing wind suddenly came from the horizon, and a black speck grew larger and larger.
"A Dragon! It's a Dragon!"