Game of Thrones: Knight's Honor-Chapter 355: The Shifting Balance of Power

Stannis Baratheon's decision to relinquish Dragonstone and head to the Wall to join the Night's Watch quickly became the most talked-about event in the realm—so much so that even the wedding of Joffrey I was overshadowed by it.

At first, everyone assumed that Stannis's famously stubborn nature would lead to a direct clash with Lynd, expecting the Miracle Fleet to launch an assault on Dragonstone. But no such battle occurred. Lynd simply rode his dragon to Dragonstone, and Stannis yielded. This left people questioning Stannis's reputation while simultaneously marveling at Lynd's sheer dominance.

Soon after, word from Summerhall helped explain why Stannis had so readily surrendered and chosen to join the Night's Watch. Lynd Tarran had adopted Shireen Baratheon as his daughter and promised that, once she came of age, she would inherit the title of Lord of Storm's End and Warden of the Stormlands.

No one doubted Lynd's promises. Alongside his public declaration, he summoned the lords of the Stormlands to the Redemption Sept in Summerhall, where they swore allegiance to Shireen Baratheon before the Seven.

Stannis Barathon's deep resentment toward Storm's End and the Stormlands was well known. Lynd's actions had clearly resolved that inner conflict. Those at Dragonstone who saw Stannis leading his army away claimed he was smiling—as if he were not heading north to become a man of the Night's Watch, but to take up a throne.

Tywin was taken aback by how Lynd dealt with Stannis. He never imagined Lynd would so readily give up Storm's End and the Stormlands. Had it been him, he could never have done the same.

Though it wasn't the outcome he had most hoped for, Tywin was still content. The Iron Throne's greatest threat had gone to join the Night's Watch, and the new ruler of Storm's End was just a young girl—not someone who posed any real threat to the crown.

While Lynd had inadvertently helped him resolve the problem of Stannis, the situation across the North, the Riverlands, and the Vale was also shifting.

By the time the royal decree from King's Landing reached Winterfell, Roose Bolton was preparing to retake the Dreadfort. But things weren't going well. After capturing his bastard son, Ramsay Snow, Theon had forced him to reveal all the hidden passageways and traps within the Dreadfort. Theon then laid a well-planned ambush. When Roose tried to use those secret routes, he suffered a serious setback and failed to take the fortress in one strike.

Upon receiving the royal decree, Roose decisively abandoned the siege and took Lady Catelyn south to claim Riverrun. He left the matter of the Dreadfort to Sansa, the current heir to Winterfell, believing Lynd would assist her in capturing it. When that happened, Roose expected he could secure his title and lands as Lord of the Dreadfort with only minimal concessions.

But Roose Bolton and Catelyn Tully's path to inheriting Riverrun wasn't smooth either. Dacey Mormont had already left by the time they arrived. Though they crossed paths briefly on the road, Dacey didn't even greet them—clearly displeased with Catelyn's betrayal of Lord Eddard.

Blackfish Brynden also departed Riverrun on the same day Catelyn arrived, leaving for the Vale with Bronze Yohn Royce, without meeting her at all.

After formally taking on the title of Lady of Riverrun, Catelyn summoned the Riverlands lords to swear fealty. But every one of them refused. The more diplomatic lords gave excuses—claiming they were too busy rebuilding their lands. The more blunt ones simply told her messengers outright that they would not pledge allegiance.

In short, the Riverlands were fractured, and restoring order would be no easy task.

The situation in the Vale was no better. After the Wildling Uprising, the lords of the Vale had suffered heavy losses. Yet the Eyrie completely ignored their cries for help, sealing off all roads leading to it and turning a blind eye to the chaos engulfing the region. This negligence deeply angered the Vale's lords. But with no one to lead them, they had no choice but to suppress their discontent.

That changed when the Iron Throne's decree of rewards and punishments arrived. The lords of the Vale now had both an excuse and a leader. When Bronze Yohn Royce returned, they gathered in Runestone and elected him as their leader. Together, they turned their attention toward the Eyrie, demanding that Lysa Tully comply with the Iron Throne's order—hand over Robert Arryn, the heir to the Eyrie, and leave the Vale.

Lysa Tully, of course, refused. She ordered all access routes blocked and had all suitors she deemed suspicious arrested and thrown from the Moon Door—regardless of whether they had truly harbored any ill intent.

Thus, like the Riverlands, the Vale now faced a total breakdown between liege and vassals, teetering on the brink of civil war.

As for the North, its situation was somewhat better. After Dacey returned, Stannis arrived not long after. The two forces joined together and launched a direct assault on the Dreadfort. Theon and the Ironborn were captured and taken by Stannis, who planned to bring them to the Wall to serve as members of the Night's Watch.

Ramsay Snow, Roose Bolton's bastard son, was found in the dungeons, but by then he had already been tortured beyond recognition. Dacey ended his suffering.

Afterward, Dacey remained in Winterfell, awaiting Sansa's arrival to formally inherit her title and lands.

While the North wasn't as fractured as the Riverlands or the Vale, the deaths of nearly all its lords at the Twins had led to a series of succession issues.

For those houses that had surviving heirs, the transition was straightforward—the heirs could assume their lords' titles without dispute. But for houses like House Umber, where both the lord and heir perished at the Twins, the question of succession became far more complicated.

Had the Lord of Winterfell and Warden of the North still been present, they could have made the final call on inheritance. But the current liege lord of the North was still at Summerhall—and she was just a young girl, far from being able to command the trust of the remaining Northern lords.

Though Dacey Mormont had earned significant respect in the North through her battlefield accomplishments, she was still merely the Countess of Bear Island, and her station wasn't high enough to intervene in the internal affairs of the other Northern houses.

As a result, succession disputes erupted throughout the North, escalating from heated arguments to armed standoffs and even bloody skirmishes. In short, the North's condition wasn't much better than that of the other two kingdoms.

Although the state of the Riverlands, the Vale, and the North didn't match Tywin's predictions exactly, the overall picture wasn't far off. For a long time to come, none of these three kingdoms would be able to pose a real threat to him.

Now, the only faction Tywin had to keep an eye on was House Tyrell in the Reach.

Although the Reach and the Westerlands were technically allies, the alliance existed in name only. The moment Robb Stark died at the Twins, the supposed unity between the two regions became highly questionable.

Tywin was already infamous in King's Landing. Many still remembered the atrocities he committed in the city years ago. And with this war sparked by House Lannister, it was no surprise the people of King's Landing held no affection for them.

Though Tyrion had done everything he could during the war to care for the city's common folk—even going so far as to raid noble households for food to prevent famine, ensuring everyone had at least something to eat each day—his efforts were done in secret. Only a few close to him truly understood what he had done.

The people of King's Landing didn't know any of this. All they remembered was that Tyrion had forcibly conscripted soldiers, requisitioned homes near the walls, and sent the Gold Cloaks out to seize property and wealth. freewebnσvel.cøm

As a result, Tyrion quickly surpassed even Tywin in public hatred. "Little Imp" became the nickname everyone used for him—even in public.

The contrast in how the people of King's Landing viewed House Lannister and House Tyrell was also obvious when the two houses' armies entered the city.

When House Tyrell marched in, they were met with cheers, flowers, and kisses from young maidens. When House Lannister arrived, they received only cold stares—and in some cases, parents even let their children relieve themselves in front of the passing Lannister troops.

The reason the people of King's Landing dared to be so bold was entirely because House Tyrell, upon entering the city, immediately took control of all its defenses under the pretense of maintaining order. When the Lannister army arrived, it was Tyrell soldiers who were in charge of security—and they did a fine job of holding back the furious Lannister soldiers from lashing out at the townsfolk. This only further won them the affection and trust of the people.

Tywin immediately sensed that something was off. He forcibly had his own forces take over the Red Keep's defenses, and in an effort to win back the support of the people, he placed Tyrion—the man who had done the most to defend the city—under house arrest.

While this did help ease tensions between Tyrion and the powerful noble houses in the capital, it did little to sway public opinion in his favor.

And worse still, no one knew how Garlan Tyrell managed to get so close to Joffrey, but the boy king began to hang on his every word. At one public council meeting, Joffrey even openly expressed his hope that Garlan would serve as Hand of the King.

All of this made Tywin feel as though the spoils of his hard-won victory had been stolen. He had fought tooth and nail, lost his own brother on the battlefield, and in the end, it was House Tyrell—opportunists who had only shown up for a single battle—who walked away with the rewards. It was something Tywin simply could not accept. So when Petyr Baelish, Littlefinger, suggested bringing Dorne into the fold to counterbalance House Tyrell, Tywin quickly agreed. Using Joffrey's wedding as a pretext, he sent Dorne an invitation.

But once he cooled down and thought it through, Tywin realized that bringing Dorne into the King's Landing power structure was a foolish move. By then, though, it was too late to take the invitation back.

"What? Father invited Dorne to King's Landing? Has he lost his mind? Did Uncle Kevan take his brain with him when he died?" Tyrion was visibly stunned when Jaime told him about Tywin's decision to invite Dorne to join the Small Council. Under house arrest in his own residence, Tyrion didn't hold back his words.

Jaime frowned at Tyrion's reaction. "That's a bit harsh. Though..."

"Harsh? Could I ever be as harsh as him?" Tyrion took a long swig of wine and scowled. "If my last name weren't Lannister, he probably would've put my head on a spike just to win favor with those lords. I'm the one who saved King's Landing—without me, Stannis would've taken the city. And what did I get for it? Nothing. Not even a thank-you. The moment he saw me, he had me thrown into a cell."

Jaime replied in a calm but firm tone, "I think Father was trying to protect you. You've made too many enemies. There are thousands of people in King's Landing who want you dead. If he hadn't locked you up, if you were out walking the streets freely... I think I'd be staring at your corpse right now, Tyrion."

"I think your brother's right," Bronn chimed in, snatching the wine jug from Tyrion's hand.

"You really are something—you find new masters faster than anyone I know. Barely a few days, and you're already wagging your tail for him?" Tyrion shot Bronn a sideways glance.

"What can I say? I can't resist the charm of golden dragons." Bronn shrugged, feigning helplessness, then pointed at Jaime. "Lord Tywin had His Grace Joffrey release your brother from the Kingsguard. He's agreed to return to Casterly Rock and inherit the title."

Tyrion froze. The cup slipped from his hand and hit the floor. He stared at Jaime, eyes wide with disbelief.

"Who are you? You can't be Jaime. The Jaime I know would never take off his white cloak."

"How can I serve in the Kingsguard without my sword hand?" Jaime looked down at the stump of his hand, his voice heavy. "Maybe Father's right. Maybe I lost my hand but gained a brain. I think now. I weigh my choices. I consider the consequences. I'm not the man I used to be..."

"Cut the speech, Jaime. Tell the truth." Tyrion interrupted, eyes sharp. "I know you better than you know yourself. Even if you lost both hands and both feet, you'd never give up the white cloak. Just say it straight."

Jaime's face turned serious. "Father threatened me. He said if I didn't agree, he'd kill Cersei, Joffrey, and Tommen."

Tyrion stared, stunned. He hadn't expected Tywin to go that far.

"You'd better do as he says," Tyrion said grimly. "Uncle Kevan's death hit him harder than we thought. Kevan was like the voice of reason in Father's head. As long as Uncle Kevan was around, he could keep Father's temper in check, help him stay rational. But now? Kevan's gone—and so is Father's reason. He's only going to get harsher, more dangerous... just like—"

"Just like the Mad King Aerys," Bronn said suddenly.

Tyrion and Jaime exchanged a look, their expressions darkening.