The Mountain of Ice and Fire

Chapter 653: A Battle of Wits Among Women

Western Territory, Clegane New Village. Clegane Keep.

The hall was filled with generals under the Mountain's command: General Jeko Larch, best at arranging troops and training new recruits; Captains Ellin and Joyce of the guard cavalry; Horseback Archery Generals Julie and Anguy; twelve heavy cavalry tribal leaders from the Claw Isle led by Senza Leo; more than twenty infantry leaders from the Mountains of the Moon led by One-Eyed Temi; the Mountain's direct line cavalry generals Sweetmouth Ralph and Executioner Dunsen; twelve infantry legion leaders led by Big Head Chiswyck and Reynard Westerling; twelve administrative officer leaders led by Mark the Note-Taker; Weapon Master Tobho Mott and Weapon Knight Gendry Clegane…

Beside Lady Jeyne, on her right was Sansa Stark, on her left was Dorthea Quintyne, and behind her were two burly and robust sword-wielding female generals: Zerelda the Bull and Brienne of Tarth.

The Mountain wouldn't dare say his warriors were as numerous as the clouds, but he was indeed rich in talent. If the twenty-plus leaders in Castamere and Tarbeck Hall were included, there were over eighty valiant generals in the land army. Meanwhile, the navy was still stationed at Dragonstone, where his father-in-law, Lord Gavin, and naval commander Gahl were frantically recruiting fishermen and new soldiers along the coast.

The hall was crowded, with over a hundred people, but it was quiet, the atmosphere strange.

An uninvited guest had arrived. This was also what the Mountain had stayed behind from the King's wedding in King's Landing to wait for—Melisandre had finally arrived!

She wore a red veil, revealing only a pair of enchanting eyes, the pupils of which seemed to be the color of fire.

Melisandre arrived while the Mountain and his generals were in the hall discussing matters.

*

"Melisandre!" The Mountain said in a deep voice, sitting high in the hall.

The Mountain calling out Melisandre's name sent a jolt through the hearts of Western generals like Jeko Larch. They had heard of this name: the Red Priestess most trusted by Stannis Baratheon—she worshiped the Red God. But most of the Western generals were from rogue backgrounds and tribal leaders, and knew almost nothing about Melisandre's reputation and rumors.

*

Jeko Larch looked at Brienne, and he saw the anger in her eyes, her large, thick hand gripping the sword hilt.

The first person Brienne swore allegiance to was Renly Baratheon. Renly died in Bitterbridge from a shadow assassination, and Brienne was by Renly's side at the time. She was one of Renly's Rainbow Guard: the Blue Guard. Renly fell, the shadow disappeared, and Brienne became the murderer, hunted by Loras Tyrell. Brienne had to disguise herself as a commoner to escape. When she was recognized by the Reach soldiers in King's Landing, she met the Mountain. The Mountain rescued Brienne, vouched for her innocence, and received Brienne's oath of allegiance.

Brienne had one person she was determined to take revenge on: Stannis Baratheon. After Stannis was beheaded by the Mountain in the Battle of the Blackwater, Brienne's target of revenge disappeared. But today, seeing Stannis's advisor Melisandre here, she rekindled the flames of revenge.

Renly Baratheon—Brienne's dream lover and the King she swore allegiance to.

It was Melisandre's shadow assassin who killed Renly, and Brienne was the only living witness at the scene of the murder.

As the saying goes, enemies are extremely jealous when they meet. Brienne stared at Melisandre, her eyes burning with fierce flames. But she maintained her duty as a general, standing motionless behind Jeyne.

The red priestess was evil. When the shadow assassin she sent cut open Renly's thick neck armor, it was as if cutting a piece of parchment. With that one sword strike, Renly's neck was almost completely severed.

*

The mysterious red-robed woman slowly removed the red veil from her face, revealing a heart-shaped face. Her face and slender neck were snow-white, like milk, and her skin was as smooth as satin, with a silky glow.

A face full of feminine charm, coupled with those amorous and seductive eyes, this woman exuded a charm that made men surge with passion.

Most of the martial generals on both sides of the hall were beasts full of violence and wildness, but because the Mountain was present, the beasts did not burst into vulgar words, but there was still a commotion. Many generals' eyes glittered, like wolves.

"Did my lord know it was me all along?" Melisandre said. Her voice was like birdsong in a deserted mountain in spring, clear and charming.

"Melisandre, the Red God priestess who fled Dragonstone in panic, Lord Mountain knew long ago that you would come to the Western Territory," Lady Dorthea Quintyne, standing beside Jeyne, took the lead in attacking. She said coldly.

Melisandre's neck slowly turned, finally facing Dorthea Quintyne completely. In fact, she had long seen Lady Dorthea's mouth full of black teeth when she spoke.

"Blood God priestess?"

"I am the Blood God priestess of Claw Isle," Lady Dorthea Quintyne said proudly.

"Only the Red God is the one true God, all others are false gods. The night is dark and full of terrors, madam, you must be careful," Melisandre said, staring at Dorthea Quintyne.

"The Red God is a true God, but not the only true God. In your flame prophecies, you chose Stannis, a false king, to serve. Was that the oracle of the one true God?" Jeyne Westerling immediately assisted Dorthea, her words like knives, piercing Melisandre's heart.

Melisandre's arrogant red eyes dimmed visibly.

"Stannis Baratheon is a false king, and his heir Shireen Baratheon is naturally an even greater false king," Jeyne pressed her advantage, continuing to strike at Melisandre's arrogant pride and overwhelming confidence.

The glow on Melisandre's face seemed to dim.

Before Polliver had time to ask the Mountain to borrow money to buy the red-robed woman's eyes, the three women, three witches, in the hall had already launched a sharp verbal confrontation. Dorthea took the lead, Melisandre countered sharply, and Jeyne delivered a fatal blow.

They were all beautiful, but their words, deeds, expressions, and eyes were as cold and cruel as the clash of swords between men.

The Battle of the Blackwater, where Stannis was killed by the Mountain, shattered Melisandre's confidence. She knew that her predictions had been seriously flawed. The Red God's flame hints could not be wrong, so the only thing that could be wrong was herself.

She had chosen a false king to swear allegiance to, expecting the false king to lead the soldiers to defeat the Others, which was undoubtedly like climbing a tree to catch fish or trying to catch the moon in the water.

Melisandre slowly raised her neck, looking at Jeyne as if challenging her, her words containing a threat: "Madam, the night is dark and full of terrors. Only the Red God is the one true God. The Red God's flame prophecies will never be wrong. It is his servants who make mistakes. I am merely a small servant of the Red God R'hllor. I admit that I made a mistake in identifying the reincarnation of Azor Ahai, but it was not the Red God's prophecy that was wrong."

"If the Red God were the only true God, your predictions would not be wrong," Dorthea Quintyne said sternly. "R'hllor is the god of fire and shadows. If he is the only true God, then what about the god of death? Is the god of death worshiped by the Faceless Men also a false god? Do you think all death is a lie?"

Melisandre choked again!

"The night is dark, indeed full of terrors. The Red God is a true God, the Blood God is also a true God, the God of Death is also a true God, and the Cold God is an evil God. If you cannot accept this, Lady Melisandre, please leave the Western Territory," Jeyne also raised her head, her noble and elegant manners completely gone, just like a rooster raising its feathers in battle.

Polliver was dumbfounded. He couldn't figure out what was going on at all.

The red-robed woman came to Clegane New Village for the first time, so why did Lord Mountain call out her name directly? Did they know each other before? Lady Jeyne and Lady Dorthea were clearly wary of the red-robed woman, their words full of hostility and sharp edges, and this red-robed woman, the woman called Melisandre by the Mountain, although at a disadvantage, still raised her head without fear.

Was she an evil dark wizard who came to provoke them on purpose?

Polliver put his hand on his sword hilt: "Lord Mountain, Lady Jeyne, it turns out that this red-robed woman is a dark wizard who came to provoke us. Please allow me to cut off her head, and I also beg Lord Mountain to allow me to take out her eyes. I have never seen such a perfect work of art."

Very rarely, the Mountain didn't say no this time! But he didn't order Polliver to behead Melisandre either.

Since Lord Mountain didn't say no, what were they waiting for? Clang! Polliver Clegane's longsword was drawn, and everyone's eyes focused on Polliver Clegane.

A cold light flashed, and Polliver's longsword slashed fiercely at Melisandre's snow-white and tender neck. Suddenly, his hand felt lighter, and a black shadow flashed before his eyes. The longsword in Polliver's hand snapped into two pieces with a clang.

The black shadow held a sharp blade and looked like smoke, ethereal and light. The figure was just a faint shadow, without substance, but everyone could see it.

Polliver was shocked, and looked in astonishment at the shadow person in front of him. As a general in the Clegane Legion, his longsword was forged by the weapon masters of Clegane New Village, under the guidance of Master Tobho Mott. The longsword was excellent, far better than ordinary swords.

The black shadow held a short blade and stood between Polliver and Melisandre. It cut off the longsword but did not take further action.

Polliver's eyes widened, he was very shocked, but had little fear. Perhaps people with nervous disorders were insensitive to fear. Polliver did not retreat, but stared at the black figure, his eyes filled with shock and confusion.

The Mountain said calmly: "Ser Polliver Clegane, Lady Melisandre was able to come to Westeros from the distant eastern Asshai alone. The journey was tens of thousands of miles, passing through countless countries, encountering countless mercenaries and thieves. She is unparalleled in beauty, but she was able to arrive safely in Westeros, unafraid of anyone's bullying. She has her own mysterious power. You should step back first."

"Yes, my lord." Polliver held the broken sword, retreated, walked into the ranks of martial generals lined up on both sides of the hall, stood beside Sweetmouth Ralph and Executioner Dunsen, his eyes wandering, his right eye blinking, and his right cheek twitching.

The generals in the hall saw with their own eyes a black shadow appear out of thin air, holding a shadow sword, blocking Polliver's slash. The black shadow was unharmed, and Polliver's longsword was broken into two pieces. All the generals were shocked, and everyone's face changed.

Polliver's heart was naturally even more shaken. This Melisandre was so powerful. He hadn't recovered from his shock beside Sweetmouth Ralph. Sweetmouth Ralph was the most talkative, never stopping. He whispered and joked with Polliver, saying that he was lucky to have treated her with courtesy and not forced her to buy and sell her eyes, otherwise Polliver might have been killed by Melisandre's dark magic at the entrance of the village.

The brothers knew that Melisandre's eyes must be deeply fascinated by Polliver, and this kid would definitely propose to buy them from Melisandre at the entrance of the village.

Polliver was not allowed to force the buying and selling of works of art, which was the Mountain's special request to him, and he dared not disobey.

*

Melisandre's shadow guard shocked all the generals. Zerelda the Bull, the female general behind Jeyne, widened her eyes even more, while Brienne of Tarth saw the shadow assassin for the second time. She and Zerelda both gripped their sword hilts even harder, staring at the black shadow and Melisandre. Cold sweat broke out in Brienne's palms.

Her heart was full of the flames of revenge, but if the shadow pounced on her and hurt her, how could she block the shadow sword that cut iron like mud?

Brienne had no confidence!

Dark magic, perhaps only dark magic could block it.

"Madam, be careful, that is Melisandre's evil dark magic. She used this magic to kill Renly Baratheon. I was there at the time," Brienne leaned over and whispered in Jeyne's ear.

"Don't worry, her shadow assassin can only kill one person at the moment, and then it cannot be maintained and will dissipate like smoke," Jeyne told Brienne softly.

Brienne was immediately relieved.

She completely trusted Jeyne!

The generals and guards in the hall were all loyal to the death. Melisandre's shadow assassin must not threaten Lord Mountain and Lady Jeyne.

"Her shadow assassin can only kill one person? Why?" Brienne couldn't help but ask.

"Her shadow assassin magic needs royal blood to maintain. Without the continuous maintenance of royal blood, her shadow assassin cannot last long. I can see that her shadow guard is dissipating, which is caused by the inability to maintain power."

Lady Dorthea Quintyne said: "Melisandre, your shadow assassin only has one sword. Do you want to die here? Quickly put away your dark magic."

"R'hllor is the god of fire and shadows, blood witch. Besides shadow assassins, I also have fire abilities."

"Lady Melisandre, please put away your shadow assassin. We already know that you possess terrible magical power," the Mountain said in a deep voice.

"Yes, my lord!"

The shadow assassin suddenly became thinner and quickly dissipated.

Melisandre was confrontational towards Dorthea Quintyne, but towards the Mountain, she was respectful. That was the hostility between two wizards of different faiths, like the existence of some natural enemies in the animal kingdom.

Melisandre had come for a purpose, and she did not want to be an enemy of the Mountain!

"Madam, I know that you are protecting His Majesty King Shireen Baratheon from the Others at the Wall. I wonder why you suddenly came to the Western Territory?"

"My lord, I came here to resolve a question in my heart, and I hope to reach a consensus with my lord. I hope that when I leave, I can go north with my lord to fight the Others together."

Go north to fight the Others?!

The generals stirred!

The Mountain looked at both sides of the hall, and with a sweep of his eyes, the generals fell silent.

"Lady Melisandre, we will not go north for the time being. As for whether we will go north in the future, this matter is too big, and we need to hold a meeting to discuss it before we can decide. Regardless of whether we go north or not, I will do my best to support the Northmen and the Night's Watch in fighting the Others."

Melisandre stared at the Mountain, a dazed light flickering in her eyes. "My lord, then let me resolve a question in my heart first. Why did you know that a large amount of dragon crystals were buried under Dragonstone's Dragon Mountain?"

Thanks to FishNonFishii for the reward, thank you, handshake!