For a moment, Aegor thought Robb had seen through his delaying tactic and sent the Karstark army ahead to cut off his retreat from the Gift. But on second thought, that didn't seem to be the case.
Karhold was located in the far northeast of the Seven Kingdoms, east of Last Hearth and separated from the heart of the North and Winterfell by the White Knife and the Lonely Hills. A week ago, when Robb Stark received the alert from the Wall and summoned armies from across the realm to gather at Last Hearth, the Karstarks naturally came directly west instead of making a detour. Due to the distance and rough road conditions, which were far less developed than the King's Road Aegor had repaired, their marching speed was average. As a result, they arrived too late to witness the White Walkers' slaughter of the Umbers. Only after the wights had moved on and the Gift army had chased them south toward the Long Lake battlefield did the Karstarks arrive, one step too late. Whether lucky or disappointed, they took over the now-abandoned castle and gathered the remains of the Umbers left behind by the Night's Watch.
Robb certainly wouldn't have had time to send word to the Karstark host, which had already departed and was en route from Long Lake. That meant this Northern army occupying Last Hearth likely didn't yet know the war was over, or that he had broken the Night's Watch's neutrality and sided with the Dragon Queen.
Aegor ordered the dragon sled to halt far from the castle and dispatched a scouting party. The enemy's behavior confirmed his judgment. Upon seeing the vanguard flying black banners, several Karstark soldiers came out to check their identity. Once they confirmed it was indeed the Night's Watch, they opened the gates without suspicion and allowed them free entry.
After verifying from his men that there was no ambush, Aegor informed the Queen, entered the keep with his guards, and met the leader of the occupying force—Lord Rickard Karstark.
---
"You Lord Commander, are you eating shit?" Rickard roared at Aegor the moment they met. "After I got Robb's letter, I gathered my men and rushed here. But after just three or four days, all I could find were corpses. Were you sleeping while the dead marched south? I could forgive that if they were all dead, but the worst part is, I can't even find the bodies of the ones I know. Crowfood, Whoresbane, Harmond Umber—where are they? Did they escape? Aren't you going to look for them?"
The Umbers? Most of them had likely been turned into wights and reduced to ash by dragonfire at Long Lake.
Aegor thought silently. The patrol soldiers of the Gift army who had previously scouted the ruins of Last Hearth had reported as much: most of the corpses left in and around the castle were the old, the weak, women, or children. The Umbers' well-fed, strong adult males had likely been selected by the White Walkers and turned into puppets. Of course, there was no need to explain all that in detail.
"Lord Karstark, the Gift lost tens of thousands of warriors resisting the White Walkers' invasion," Aegor replied. He hadn't had time to count the exact number, but the estimate was close enough to exaggerate. "Even when the enemy bypassed Crown Town and moved south, we pursued them all the way to Long Lake and annihilated them there. Despite the heavy losses, we fulfilled our duty. While we are ashamed that we failed to stop the enemy before they reached the North's doorstep, it is not your place to criticize us, arriving late, losing not a single man, and not slaying even half a wight."
"What?" Rickard froze for a moment, face flushing with embarrassment. He had indeed arrived completely unaware of what had transpired. Though rough in appearance, he understood basic reason. Hearing this, his hostility dropped by half, and his expression softened. "It's over already? Then where is Stark? He should have arrived by now with his army. And the missing Umbers... what happened to them?"
Aegor had no choice but to recount everything to Lord Karstark. He explained how the White Walkers' raid on the Wall and Crown Town had failed, forcing them to detour south. How they captured Last Hearth, turned the Umbers' warriors into wights, and took them away. How Robb Stark and the Night's Watch executed a pincer maneuver at Long Lake and destroyed the enemy. That the war against the dead was essentially over, and the Northern lords were returning home. And finally, that the Night's Watch was planning an expedition beyond the Wall to root out any remaining threats. He laid the groundwork for the next part of his plan.
---
"So that's how it is. Damn it, we missed it." Rickard listened, scowling and cursing in frustration. But his anger had faded. "Alright, I apologize for accusing you just now. The Night's Watch fought bravely, and the Umbers' loss isn't entirely your fault. Their food stores are no use to them anymore. Let your men take all the vegetables and meat. Bring them back to the Gift as a reward for the Night's Watch."
"Thank you for your kindness." It was the classic case of generosity with other people's property. Aegor didn't know what he was supposed to be thankful for, but he said it anyway. Then he added, "There is one more matter. Many of my soldiers were wounded at Long Lake and now need a warm, sheltered place to recover. The battlefield is too far from Crown Town, so we need somewhere nearby in the North. I request temporary quarters here at Last Hearth, and we'll return to the Gift once the wounded are well enough to move."
Rickard Karstark was notoriously stubborn. If Aegor had said, "The Queen's dragon is injured and needs shelter, so I'm taking your castle," then not only would that plan fail, Aegor himself might not leave the castle alive. Although the combination of the dragon and the Gift army could easily overpower the fewer than two thousand Karstark soldiers, Aegor still needed the North to supply his first batch of saltpeter. He wasn't ready to turn on the Seven Kingdoms yet, especially not the North. If he could get what he wanted with a small deception and avoid conflict, so much the better.
"Wounded? Then let them choose houses in the Winter Town outside the castle," Rickard replied without hesitation. "The original owners don't need them anymore anyway. If any are seriously injured, I've brought physicians. Let them stay inside the keep and receive proper care."
Honestly, that was quite generous, but unfortunately, it wasn't what Aegor needed.
"You don't understand," Aegor said, forcing a strained smile. "My army numbers over four thousand. Combined with your Karstark forces, there'll be nearly seven thousand men here. That's too crowded. Now that the war is over, keeping your army here only wastes food and time. If you could return to your lands for a few weeks and let the Night's Watch use Last Hearth, I'd be deeply grateful."
"What are you saying?" Rickard's face darkened, and his tone turned harsh. "Lord Commander, mind your place. We don't even know for sure if the Umbers are all dead, and even if they are, Last Hearth has nothing to do with you. Why are you trying every possible trick to push me out?"
---
The war against the dead was over, yet the Karstark army remained fully armed at their assembly point. It wasn't because they had too much food, but for many reasons.
The White Walkers didn't use fire. After their slaughter, they hadn't gone out of their way to destroy buildings or burn stored wealth. A sturdy castle like this, stocked with grain, meat, and ready for winter, could not simply be left for others to loot. As the first Northern force to arrive, Rickard Karstark had a duty to safeguard it and prevent a "broken window effect" that would lead to needless ruin.
That was the official justification. But there were also reasons he couldn't speak openly.
Just as the Gift's people didn't all crowd into Crown Town when the White Walkers attacked, not every Northern family spent winter at their liege lord's castle. Based on where they lived, subjects of different houses gathered in separate Winter Towns formed around castles and major villages, where thousands or even tens of thousands huddled together and exchanged food and labor to survive the cold months. Though Last Hearth had been emptied by the White Walkers, the Umbers still had fifty to sixty thousand subjects, most of whom had survived. This castle, along with the lands and people under its control, was still a valuable prize. Rickard had to occupy Last Hearth, the heart of Umber territory, to ensure House Karstark could gain from the aftermath.
Yes, it was about gaining advantage. But it would be unfair to accuse Rickard of profiteering from tragedy. Years of bitter experience had taught the Northern lords that if you refrained from contesting spoils for the sake of honor, ambitious houses like the Boltons would seize them instead. The Karstarks and Umbers had always been close. The latter's fall was no cause for celebration. But the tragedy had happened, and no amount of grief would bring the dead back. As head of his house, Rickard had to think of its long-term survival.
Of course, his occupation of Last Hearth didn't mean he hoped to devour the entire Umber inheritance. If later investigation showed that some Umbers had survived by being away during the attack, then Rickard would yield the castle and all its holdings without complaint. But if it turned out that the entire bloodline had been wiped out, then this excellent fortress and its surrounding lands and people couldn't be left unclaimed or allowed to fall to the Wildlings. The likely outcomes were threefold.
First, House Stark might annex the Umber lands themselves.
This was legal, but if Robb took over all the Umbers' territory, he would be governing too vast a domain to manage easily. He would also face whispers about greed and power-hunger. Given House Stark's consistent concern for honor, that outcome was unlikely.
Second, Robb could appoint a loyal vassal or deserving retainer and grant them the castle and a portion of the Umbers' holdings.
Even assuming such a candidate existed, House Umber had once ruled from Seal Bay to Long Lake and the Lonely Hills, a territory the size of the Gift. No new lord could be allowed to inherit all that land. The territory would be trimmed, with peripheral villages and forests split up and awarded to nearby senior houses, to be divided again among their vassals. In that case, whoever currently held Last Hearth would naturally receive the largest share.
Third, and most likely, even if every Umber had perished, there were still those in the North who bore Umber blood through intermarriage, even if not the name. If Robb wished to preserve the Umber legacy, he could choose someone with close blood ties from a lesser branch, have them revert to the Umber name, and reclaim the castle by "adoption." In doing so, the ancient house would continue to exist.
House Karstark, which bordered the Umbers, had records of intermarriage within the last century. They had several internal candidates who qualified. Their "effort" in retrieving Umber bodies and the fact they physically held Last Hearth would certainly weigh in their favor when a new Lord Umber was chosen.
...
No matter how one looked at it, there was absolutely no reason for Rickard Karstark to give up Last Hearth or withdraw his army at this time.
(To be continued.)
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