The Great Sept of Baelor is more renowned than the Starry Sept, the headquarters of the Faith of the Seven.
Jon's order for Martin to take control of the Starry Sept naturally drew the attention of the common people in King's Landing.
Especially since finding wildfire required digging three feet deep, such actions were considered "blasphemous" by some.
However, the Northern Army had only controlled King's Landing for a day, so any discontent did not have time to fester. Moreover, the current High Septon was hiding in the Red Keep, not daring to come out at all.
On the other side, the Riverlands forces, whose attack on King's Landing was blocked, temporarily encamped outside the city.
Although they could not assault the city, they could send people to inspect the defenses of each city gate.
After receiving news that the Northern Army had completed their defensive lines, the atmosphere in the camp grew even more tense.
Especially since Mace had already arrived with his large army, his complaints made everyone even more irritable.
"Jon Snow?! Gods, why do you torment me like this!"
"Didn't Tywin keep urging us to be faster? Why isn't he here yet?"
"This isn't sixteen years ago. Sixteen years ago, we could wait for Rhaegar to win, even though he failed. But what are we waiting for now?"
A brown-haired nobleman with a potbelly and a prosperous face paced anxiously in the military camp.
His thick palms occasionally scratched his belly.
Fortunately, he had not practiced martial arts for many years, so his hands had no calluses, otherwise he would have snagged his expensive green silk outer robe.
Yet, everyone had to revolve around him. Who could blame them? He was the Warden of the Riverlands and the commander of an eighty-thousand-strong army.
"My lord, perhaps we can wait for Lord Tywin to arrive and launch a joint attack. That bastard's army certainly won't be too large; he won't be our match," Petyr humbly explained.
"But if Margaery can't be queen, then what's the point of this war?"
"Sister Margaery will definitely succeed. I am very confident that King Joffrey is still alive."
"What king or no king, I've seen more kings than your brothels!"
Mace waved his hand impatiently. Petyr knew he could only temporarily shut his mouth and wait until the Duke was in a better mood to say anything.
"Duke."
Watching Mace shout incessantly and others grovel before him, Petyr murmured softly. He felt it was unfair; why could such a character be above everyone else? But he quickly suppressed these distracting thoughts, as Jon Snow's sudden appearance had also put Petyr in a very bad mood.
Just then, a message arrived: "My lord, Ser, the Western Army has arrived forty leagues from King's Landing. Lord Tywin has reached the outside of our camp."
"Tywin."
Upon hearing that Tywin had arrived, Petyr felt a surge of excitement, thinking that Tywin might have a solution.
Petyr suddenly remembered that when the alliance had just been formed, Tywin had sent people to urge the Riverlands army to advance north as quickly as possible to prevent any unforeseen changes.
Petyr had thought Tywin was wary of Stannis's fleet, but now it seemed that Jon's actions had even eluded the Duke of Casterly Rock.
Moreover, there was still one thing he couldn't understand: how did Jon gain command of such a large army?
Judging from the Northern Army's defensive posture and the scouts' reports, Jon's army would not be less than ten thousand men.
Suddenly, another thought flashed through Petyr's mind: Tywin dared to come alone to the House Tyrell's camp. What if they detained him?
If Tywin were detained alive or killed, then the House Tyrell could escape from their previous mistake of "backing the wrong side."
As the proposer, perhaps—
But Petyr quickly dismissed the idea.
Tywin dared to come because he was certain that, unless absolutely necessary, the House Tyrell did not want to cooperate with Stannis. More than a decade ago, Mace, with tens of thousands of troops, had besieged Storms End for more than half a year, forcing Stannis to eat leather shoes and dead rats for several months. There was old animosity between them.
And cooperating with Stannis, the House Tyrell would not get what they wanted. Stannis's wife, Selyse, was still alive, so he couldn't marry Margaery, and he only had one daughter.
There was no basis for an immediate cooperation between the two sides, let alone the difficulty of convincing Mace. It was better to see what good ideas Tywin had for attacking the city.
Soon, a tall, burly, bald, green-eyed nobleman in red armor met with Mace.
Tywin was followed by a group of retainers, but the soldiers and knights of the Riverlands did not see the infamous Mountain.
"I heard he was killed by Eddard Stark's bastard."
"Really?"
"Yes, Eddard's bastard, back at the Green Fork, used the river—"
Tywin could hear some whispers, but he couldn't concern himself with them at the moment.
His stern face could not hide his exhaustion. Before arriving at King's Landing, he had fought a battle with the blocking force Jon had left behind.
Although victorious, it had come at a considerable cost.
Before the Green Fork, he still had an army of over twenty thousand men.
Now, he only had about fifteen thousand.
And this was a weary army.
Many soldiers' spears were broken, and their swords were blunted.
To make haste, he had lost nearly a fifth of his cavalry.
Yet, it seemed he was still late.
Tywin and Mace met in the House Tyrell's opulent tent.
As soon as he entered the tent, Tywin felt soft underfoot. This Mace actually had carpets laid in his tent!
No wonder he couldn't capture Storms End with tens of thousands of troops back then.
Despite his disdain, Tywin composed himself and sat before Mace.
"Lord Tywin, you seem to be a bit late," Mace said, holding an exquisite golden cup. "That bastard is in the city now. Tell us, what should we do?"
Tywin did not mention being ambushed but stated that he understood the situation.
"That bastard said he captured the Red Keep. We can certainly verify that."
"Verify?" Mace said, "Doesn't that still require us to enter the city?"
"Ravens!" Petyr suddenly realized how Tywin intended to verify it.
However, he chose not to speak, otherwise it would make Mace seem too foolish.
Indeed, Tywin's proposed method was to find a nearby castle under their control and have the maester there write a letter to King's Landing.
If the Red Keep could send a reply, it would prove that it had not been captured by Jon, and Joffrey was not only alive but also not under control.
Then they could attack the city without restraint.
"What about Myrcella and Tommen?" Mace asked.
"Compared to the future of the entire Westeros and the Lannister family, what are two grandchildren? Even my eldest son is still in Riverrun."
Tywin said coldly, and Mace subconsciously turned his body away.
Putting himself in Tywin's shoes, if Jon held his own bloodline, he doubted he could make such a resolute decision.
Although Mace had no great abilities and was not a strong monarch, he was devoted to his children.
Looking at the map, there was a small town southwest of King's Landing. They decided to send someone to verify Joffrey's situation by sending a raven.
========
On the city wall, Jon stood with some of his personal guards. He closed his eyes, controlling ravens to monitor every move of the Lion and Flower Alliance. Earlier, Martin had excavated a large amount of wildfire from beneath the Great Sept of Baelor, and this wildfire was being gradually transferred to the city wall.
With this wildfire, Jon was confident that he could defend King's Landing against a siege by a hundred thousand troops.
Although the Lion and Flower Alliance, now at the city gates, had not yet decided to attack, a large number of siege engines were being transported.
From the very beginning, they had prepared for King's Landing to be captured by Stannis and then retaken.
Catapults and siege ladders were continuously converging on King's Landing.
Jon knew that once they were fully prepared, the defensive line would face immense pressure.
If the ten thousand or so men under him had been personally trained by him, Jon could have held King's Landing firmly even without wildfire, but such a motley crew of soldiers was truly unsettling.
Jon looked towards the Red Keep. The Red Keep's walls were almost twice as high as King's Landing', and its moat was even deeper and wider.
Even with secret passages, it would be difficult to conquer. Just then, a child was brought before Jon by Sora, holding a letter.
"Jon, he says he's here to deliver a letter to you."
"A letter?"
Jon took the letter, held it away from his body, and shook it to check for any poisonous powders.
Then he opened it and found deliberately altered handwriting:
"Respected Jon Snow, I have heard of your deeds at the Green Fork and Darry City, and I admire them greatly. But at this moment, outside King's Landing is an army of a hundred thousand. It is truly difficult for you to defend it with thirteen thousand men, and once you fail, I think the consequences are self-evident."
"Now I have a suggestion: if you are willing, I can send you out of King's Landing. You can go to the Free Cities across the Narrow Sea. I have a friend there who can offer you refuge."
"Also, your secret passages may not be accurate."
The content of the letter was very brief, and the sender expressed extreme confidence and control, as if seeing through everything.
But after reading the content of the letter, Jon sneered. He had already guessed who this person was.
Varys!
The Master of Whisperers who tried to help the Targaryen family be restored.
It was just hard to say whether that child was Rhaegar's son or a descendant of the Blackfyres.
The reason he sent Jon such a letter was precisely because Jon's previous performance had caught his eye.
Perhaps he saw Jon's potential, believing that he could assist the "Targaryen orphan" in retaking Westeros in the future.
In his opinion, Jon was now at his wit's end and could only accept his suggestion.
Speaking of which, after capturing King's Landing, Jon had asked the Gold Cloaks and mercenary prisoners about Tyrion's whereabouts, but they all claimed not to know.
It seemed he had been rescued by Varys, just as in the original story.
However, Jon also considered another layer.
That was, Varys worried that if Stannis seized the throne, he might not be able to continue as Master of Whisperers.
Especially since Stannis had clearly expressed his dissatisfaction with Varys's practice of instigating children to gather intelligence.
Losing his position near the core of power, Varys's importance would greatly diminish, and the matter of assisting the Targaryen orphan would naturally be out of the question.
Varys controlled the Red Keep's secret passages. If the passages contained traps, mazes, or other complicated things, it would indeed be difficult for him to pass through. And what Harrion was doing outside the Red Keep, Varys probably saw clearly, knowing that he was looking for the entrance to the secret passages.
In any case, the current Varys did not want him to attack the Red Keep.
Unless Jon could fight a battle with the "Lion and Flower Alliance" outside and prove to Varys his ability to defend the city, letting him see clearly who truly controlled the fate of King's Landing!
Only then would this self-proclaimed all-knowing The Spider speak to him as an equal.
After reading the letter, Jon looked at the child still waiting there.
He wore a brown linen shirt, looked about ten years old, and probably came from the slums, but his cheeks were unusually plump.
It seemed he would gain a lot from delivering the letter, and the reason he hadn't left was because he was still waiting for Jon's reward money.
However, he was disappointed.
Jon tore the letter to shreds and then told him, "Tell your master that I came to King's Landing to avenge my father. Failure means only death. I have no interest in his proposal."
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