The Mountain of Ice and Fire

Chapter 570: Those Who Cross the Flag, Shall Be Killed Without Mercy

(Bonus Chapter)

*

“Your Majesty, there are bandits and outlaws in the Kingswood, and the Mountain is causing trouble in the capital again. This is not a good time to go out.” Kevan suddenly understood Tywin's cold ruthlessness. In the game of thrones, there is no such thing as reconciliation, only you die or I live.

Since Grand Maester Qyburn is also the Mountain's man, then kill him!

Tommen looked at Kevan with displeasure. Qyburn and Margaery made him happy, but Hand Kevan made him extremely uncomfortable, not only because of Kevan's expressionless face, but also because Kevan's words and actions always made the child king feel awkward.

If it weren't for Grand Maester Qyburn and Queen Margaery by his side, Tommen wouldn't know how he would get through the lonely days without his mother.

“Lord Hand, Ser Loras Tyrell of the Kingsguard will protect me,” the King said with emotion. Although he tried his best to act like an adult, he still couldn't hide his childishness.

“And our brave City Watch,” Margaery's clear voice was a moving note in the night wind.

Qyburn nodded and smiled in agreement.

Judging from the Grand Maester's appearance, he didn't seem to be sensitive to Kevan's murderous intent towards him. Kevan said that the Kingswood was unsafe, with bandits and outlaws, and his words contained murderous intent.

Many ordinary words in the court of the royal palace contain profound meanings. In these troubled times, people who are not smart enough are betrayed by those around them at any time, and they will not understand how they died in the end.

“Your Majesty, if you insist on going to meet the Queen Mother, I hope you will bring more guards,” Kevan said lightly.

“The knights of House Tyrell will protect me.” Tommen looked at Margaery, his words full of dependence. Since Margaery was going with him, the knights of House Tyrell would naturally be there as well.

This made Kevan see the rise of another 'Cersei'!

This feeling brought him to the verge of collapse.

One 'Cersei' was already giving him a headache, let alone two 'Cerseis'.

Was Margaery's ambition for House Tyrell? Was it Mace Tyrell who was directing her from behind? Mace was an inflatable fish, he wouldn't have such meticulous thinking and schemes, so, Margaery's plot to control the King, was it because of herself? Kevan didn't know Margaery's true intentions, maybe it was the temptation of power. Regardless of Margaery's motives, for the sake of the kingdom's rule, Kevan decided to assassinate Margaery at a suitable time.

Kevan had reached the peak of power, and the pressure of the Mountain's backlash forced him to transform into another Tywin Lannister very quickly.

*

Randyll Tarly led his troops on a forced march, wanting to return to King's Landing before the Mountain.

From Riverrun to King's Landing, it was closer than from Clegane's village in the Westerlands to King's Landing, but the Mountain had gone first, and Randyll Tarly had to buy time.

Randyll Tarly led three thousand cavalry on a forced march.

From Riverrun all the way east, take the wide River Road, pass the famous Inn of the Crossroads, and then go to the Kingsroad, all the way smooth, speeding forward.

With good roads, the speed will naturally be faster.

Randyll Tarly had a conflict with the Mountain in Harrenhal. The Mountain picked up Randyll Tarly and smashed him on the table, causing Randyll's spine to hurt for a long time. Randyll feared the Mountain's fists. The Mountain only needed one punch to kill Randyll, but when it came to marching and fighting, Randyll never took the Mountain seriously.

By order of the Hand, garrisoning King's Landing and confronting the Mountain was a legal opportunity that Randyll favored.

He wanted to teach the Mountain a hard lesson and let the Mountain know who was the most capable general in the Seven Kingdoms.

Marching and fighting is not a street brawl, nor is it a duel. This is a game that emphasizes team strength and military strategy. Randyll believes that he can crush the Mountain, and there is no doubt about this.

Now the only thing Randyll had to do was to enter King's Landing for garrison before the Mountain.

The Mountain once broke through King's Landing and captured Duke Tywin alive, which made the soldiers and civilians of King's Landing admire him. Randyll knew that the King's Landing City Watch had a fear of the Mountain, and he had to rush back to do the work of encouraging the soldiers and civilians of the city and ignite the fighting spirit of the King's Landing City Watch.

A famous general is a famous general, and his actions are different from Kevan and others. The first thing Randyll had to do was not to train troops and deploy defenses, but to give the soldiers the confidence to win: in a war between two armies, morale comes first!

Mace Tyrell also issued an order after the Hand, asking Randyll to return to King's Landing to garrison as quickly as possible.

The Mountain is an evil person who does not play by the rules. Mace hoped that the Mountain and Kevan would reconcile, because Margaery Tyrell and Tommen Baratheon I had not yet officially become husband and wife. They still lacked a grand royal wedding, and this wedding required the promoter of the marriage, Kevan Lannister.

Before Margaery and Tommen were officially married, Mace hoped that Kevan would not be killed by the Mountain.

This was the Tyrell family's plan.

The Queen of Thorns, Olenna Redwyne, unfortunately died in King's Landing. Her only purpose in coming to King's Landing was to have a queen from House Tyrell. Marrying Margaery Tyrell to the King was the last wish of Mace Tyrell's mother.

Duke Mace believed that as long as Randyll Tarly returned to King's Landing and deployed a tight defense, when the Mountain led his army to the city of King's Landing, he would see that it was impeccable, and then he would only be able to accept the peace talks. Otherwise, the Mountain would be defeated by Randyll. Mace believed that the Mountain would make a wise choice at that time.

After Tommen and Margaery got married, Mace would be happy to see the Mountain kill Kevan, or Kevan get rid of the Mountain, and would not interfere. If both sides asked him to form an alliance, he would naturally know how to overcharge.

Randyll Tarly's three thousand Reach cavalrymen each had two horses to switch between, and rushed back to King's Landing as quickly as possible. He was racing against the Mountain on another parallel golden road.

In the Mountain's army, the vanguard was a mixed cavalry and infantry regiment from the Westerlands, followed by Ironborn and pirates whose morale was still unstable. These people were all infantry. Marching on two legs was not as good as war horses on four legs. Moreover, the cavalrymen each had two horses, and the horses could take turns resting, so they were faster, day and night.

Randyll's main force of seventeen thousand men, mainly infantry, was slowly advancing towards King's Landing.

Although Brynden Blackfish of Riverrun was a famous general, he did not dare to cross the river to pursue the enemy after seeing them retreat. Riverrun had a limited number of soldiers, only three thousand soldiers, not the opponents of the nearly twenty thousand Westerlands army and Reach coalition forces. Brynden Blackfish needed more troops, but he didn't have them. Of the nobles in the Riverlands, ten out of ten had been conquered by Randyll Tarly. Randyll and the Westerlands coalition forces fought vertically and horizontally in the Riverlands, killing many soldiers in the Riverlands. In the border mountains and primeval forests of the entire Riverlands, bandits were in groups, and many noble soldiers were forced to go up the mountains to become robbers. In addition, hundreds of captured Riverlands nobles were imprisoned in prison wagons and returned with Randyll's main infantry force.

*

Randyll led the cavalry across the Inn of the Crossroads, turned from the River Road onto the Kingsroad, passed through the territory of Harrenhal, and passed the west side of the Gods Eye Lake. A raven descended from the sky, bringing a very special letter.

The letter was written by the Mountain. The Mountain, in his capacity as Master of War, issued an order to Randyll Tarly, ordering Randyll Tarly to march slowly and not rush to King's Landing to garrison. Otherwise, Randyll would be violating military orders, and the Mountain had the right to arrest Randyll Tarly and conduct a severe trial.

Randyll tore up the Mountain's order with a cheerful mood. From the Mountain's letter, Randyll saw the Mountain's fear of him. He led his army to continue south.

The next day, another raven came, still the Mountain's military order, ordering Randyll Tarly not to interfere in the conflict between the Mountain and Kevan. The Mountain reiterated that he was the Master of War of the Seven Kingdoms, and Randyll was a noble general of the Seven Kingdoms. The Mountain ordered Randyll not to obey the orders of the Hand, but only the orders of the Master of War. The Mountain ordered Randyll to obey, otherwise the Mountain would punish Randyll Tarly for disobeying military orders.

Randyll laughed loudly on his horse. Obviously, the Mountain was afraid, and he didn't even know what he was muttering.

Randyll led his army to continue forward.

On the third day, another raven brought the Mountain's military order. This time the military order was very simple: stop, or face military law.

Randyll stopped as expected. He sent scouts to scout ahead.

The Mountain sent three ravens in a row for three consecutive days, as if he was watching Randyll Tarly on a forced march. The Mountain was advancing towards King's Landing on the Golden Road hundreds of miles away. The two armies were separated by rivers, forests, mountains and plains, but the content of the Mountain's letters seemed to be by his side? This was a bit strange!

Randyll Tarly marched day and night, and he was sure that he had arrived before the Mountain. The soldiers were tired, so it would be better to rest for a day, which would be more conducive to the next marching speed.

Randyll rested for a day and did not receive a raven letter from the Mountain. The scouts in front reported that there was nothing unusual on the Kingsroad.

Randyll secretly laughed at himself for thinking too much. The Mountain used a little trick of intimidation to make him suspicious, which was not good.

The Mountain sent out ravens for three consecutive days, desperately trying to prevent Randyll Tarly from returning to King's Landing, which could only prove one thing: the Mountain was afraid of Randyll Tarly. This made Randyll Tarly feel good. The Mountain crushed Randyll in Harrenhal in his capacity as Master of War. This was a bad breath that had been held in Randyll's heart for a long time.

No one in the Seven Kingdoms dared to underestimate Randyll.

His prestige as a famous general was earned by leading troops to fight eighteen years ago!

During Robert's Rebellion, the only general who had defeated the combined forces of Robert and Eddard was Randyll Tarly. He led his troops from the Reach to fight, attacking Storm's End, attacking the Crownlands, attacking Duskendale, and fighting the combined forces of Robert and Arryn on the border between the Riverlands and the Crownlands. He was invincible and was recognized by the nobles of the Seven Kingdoms as a famous general. When Randyll was at his peak, the Mountain was still a seventeen-year-old boy.

Randyll rested for a day and continued to advance. This time the speed was faster. The cavalry galloped on the Kingsroad, and the iron hooves of six thousand war horses struck the Kingsroad, and the sound of hooves was like thunder.

At noon, another raven descended from the sky, bringing the Mountain's military order. The Mountain strictly ordered Randyll to stop advancing. Randyll was shocked, but it was not far from King's Landing, only a few days away. Randyll ordered the army to advance rapidly.

The next day, Randyll was faintly looking forward to the arrival of the Mountain's raven, but there was none.

On the third day, the cavalry continued to advance. At noon, the scouts in front reported from afar that two huge flags had appeared next to the Kingsroad in front. One was the King's crowned stag banner, and the other was the Mountain's red smoke beast ice sword banner, but these were two empty flags, and there was not a single soldier under the flags.

Randyll was shocked when he heard the report and hurriedly led his entourage to check. Sure enough, next to the Kingsroad in front, there were two large flags erected, one was the royal flag, and the other was the Mountain's military flag, and there was not a single soldier under the flags.

What does this mean?

Randyll Tarly had been marching and fighting for many years, and had never seen such a strange thing.

Two flags were inserted on the side of the road, fluttering in the wind, but there was not a single soldier.

Randyll was shocked and suspicious. He came under the flag and saw a line of large characters engraved on the flagpole - Military Order, Randyll's army will stop here, those who dare to cross the two military flags will be killed without mercy!

Randyll looked around. In front was the empty Kingsroad, and on the left and right were small forests, with a clear view. Behind him were the three thousand elite Reach cavalrymen roaring forward, their military power whistling and unmatched.

Randyll shouted: "Come on, pull up the royal flag and cut off the Clegane military flag."

Captain of the Guard, Brye Tarly, said: "My lord, don't cut off the Mountain's military flag, just pull it out. We don't need to anger the Mountain."

“This is a small trick by the Mountain's small group of scouts to harass and intimidate. The more the Mountain's people act mysteriously, the more it proves their fear of us. Our army of twenty thousand sweeps across the Riverlands, and our military power and morale are extremely high. The Mountain's rebellion is unjustified. How can he be our opponent. Come on, cut off the Mountain's military flag.”

Two guards jumped off their horses, one pulled out the royal flag, and the other drew his long sword and slashed at the Mountain's military flag.

With a loud crack, the Mountain's military flag was cut off and fell down. Randyll dismounted, stepped the Mountain's military flag into the mud, laughed loudly, jumped back on his horse, and led the cavalry to continue forward.

The next morning, two more flags appeared on the Kingsroad, one was the royal flag, and the other was the Mountain's military flag. There was still no one under the flags. This time, without Randyll Tarly's instructions, the guards of House Tarly rushed up, pulled out the royal flag, cut off the Mountain's military flag, and burned the Mountain's flag into a beautiful flame.

Nothing happened that night.

Early the next morning, Randyll Tarly broke camp and advanced. In one more day, the cavalry would enter King's Landing.

At noon, far away, on the road ahead, another royal flag and a Mountain military flag appeared. This time, the two flags were not on the side of the road, but in the middle of the road built of bluestone slabs. Under the flag was a general, tall and mighty, and unmatched, it was the Mountain.

The Mountain's red smoke beast had long sharp horns on its head, and was wearing a full set of plate armor. A huge oak shield was held in his left hand, extremely heavy, and the edges were wrapped in iron. The hilt of the ice giant sword stretched out diagonally from his left shoulder. The man was like a god, and the horse was like a divine beast.

When Randyll Tarly's vanguard saw it, everyone was frightened and stopped their horses, and no one dared to step forward.

The generals lined up next to the Mountain were young squire Comm Warner, adopted son Landon Garner, Captain Arryn, Captain Jois Foote, archer Anguy, archer Julie, the Greydon Goodbrook brothers, Norris the fanatic, Crab Claw Peninsula tribal chief Solos Cortnay, Ser Leo of Lorn... a total of seven of the tribe's most valiant chiefs.

Behind the crowd were a thousand Clegane heavy cavalry elites, densely packed, blocking the entire Kingsroad.

The Mountain roared, his voice like thunder, extremely powerful: “Randyll Tarly, you are insubordinate, repeatedly disobeying military orders, and trampling on the laws of the Seven Kingdoms, quickly get out, dismount and accept your death!”

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