CHAPTER 409: CHAPTER 409: AFTER THE BATTLE

While the Seven Kingdoms, the Free Cities, the Kingdom of Lorne, and Qarth—all under Lynd’s control—cheered for his victory over the White Walkers and the salvation of the world, Lynd was inside the intact Queensgate Castle, tallying the losses with the surviving officials and officers.

"Don’t report them one by one. Just give me the total losses for each corps," Lynd said in a low voice as he sat in the command tent of the God’s Chosen Corps, looking over the surviving men.

Samwell Tarly, who had lost an arm, had already taken the God’s Chosen potion, which accelerated his healing. Yet the pain and weakness from blood loss remained. Pale and exhausted, he forced himself to stay focused as he gave a detailed report on the army’s casualties.

Though the fiercest fighting had lasted only a few short hours, the final losses were devastating.

The collapse of the Wall had led to the near-total destruction of the Hand of the Holy Fire. The Night’s Watch suffered nearly half its forces lost, and thousands of Free Folk warriors were killed.

In the ensuing battle to hold the breach, the stationed God’s Chosen Corps suffered a casualty rate of seventy percent. The Redemptor Sisters and the Silent Men lost an entire regiment. The support forces from the Seven Kingdoms, initially deployed as logistics units, were also thrown into the fray—and nearly all of them perished, with only about a thousand surviving.

The Night’s Watch and the Free Folk, temporarily sustained by the power of the black oil stones, had maintained their strength for a while after the battle. But once that power faded, their injuries—which had been forcibly suppressed—erupted all at once. Combined with the toll the black oil stones had taken on their bodies, their health collapsed rapidly, leading to massive losses. Within two days, all the frontline Night’s Watch brothers and Free Folk warriors had died. Without exception. Fewer than three hundred members of the Night’s Watch remained, nearly wiping out the entire order.

After hearing the report, the tent fell into heavy silence. Everyone had known the losses would be staggering, but hearing the actual numbers still left them shocked and grieving. After all, the fallen had been comrades who had fought and bled beside them.

Lynd remained silent for a moment, then turned to the representative of the Secret Arts Institute and asked, "What about your side?"

The dark sorcerer from the Secret Arts Institute answered truthfully, "Ella and Yara have fallen into a deep sleep, though their bodies are largely unharmed. Some other casters have suffered magical backlash, and it’s unclear whether they’ve temporarily or permanently lost their spellcasting abilities. As for Lord Willas... he volunteered to become a sacrifice and has already..."

The assistance of Willas, Ella, and Yara had been critical in this war. Without Ella and Yara’s efforts—channeling the power of the Wall’s black stones to stimulate the Night’s Watch and Free Folk into fearless berserkers—the Wall might have fallen before Lynd had a chance to act.

And if Willas hadn’t willingly sacrificed himself to summon a powerful being from beyond the heavens, even the Lord of Light’s descent would not have been enough to restrain the controller behind the White Walkers—the God of Eternal Winter. Besides his own terrifying divine power, the God of Eternal Winter also possessed the environmental might of the long night and everlasting winter, giving him both the advantage of time and terrain. Even the fully manifested Lord of Light, R’hllor, might not have been able to defeat him, let alone a mere avatar.

"There’s nothing more for you to do here. Several ships have docked at Eastwatch-by-the-Sea. You’ll set sail tomorrow and return to Summerhall," Lynd said gravely. "Also, take Willas’s body with you. Seal it with a rune necklace and preserve it properly. Deliver it to Duke Mace."

"Yes, Your Grace," the sorcerer replied.

Lynd then asked, "What about the bodies of Bran Stark and the Reed siblings?"

Sam answered, "Jon... uh, the Lord Commander has already taken their bodies back to Winterfell. He said he would personally deliver the remains of Lord Bran, Lady Meera, and Lord Jojen to Lady Sansa and Lord Howland."

Just as Lynd was about to ask when they had departed, a knight from the Vale hurried into the tent. After bowing deeply to Lynd, he said sorrowfully, "Your Grace, Lord Brynden Tully has just passed away."

Hearing this, Lynd fell silent for a moment. Although this wasn’t the first piece of grim news he had received, it still weighed heavily on his heart.

Brynden Tully had led the Seven Kingdoms’ support forces without the aid of supernatural powers, holding the White Walker army at the breach at Long Barrow until final victory. During the battle, he had been wounded by the bite of a White Walker’s mount, an Ice Spider... and now, he too was gone.

Although Lynd had used the finest medicine to treat him, the ice spider’s venom was far too potent, laced not only with toxins but also with extraordinary powers, making it impossible to fully cure. Since last night, when Brynden "Blackfish" Tully had fallen into a deep coma and the venom began to spiral out of control, Lynd had already suspected that the old Blackfish might not survive.

In this great battle, the losses among ordinary soldiers had been catastrophic, but the deaths among commanders and officers were equally devastating. Stannis Baratheon, along with all the castle commanders and officers of the Night’s Watch, as well as Mance Rayder, all the tribal chiefs, and the warrior captains—nearly all had died in battle. Now, Jon Snow had taken over as acting commander of the Night’s Watch, assisted by Samwell Tarly, while leadership of the Free Folk alliance had fallen jointly to Val, Mance Rayder’s sister-in-law, and Tormund Giantsbane.

Jaime Lannister and Cersei Lannister had also perished during the siege by the elven White Walkers. Lynd had arranged for their bodies to be transported to the western shores, where ships from Bear Island would carry them home for burial in the Westerlands.

Lynd sighed. Jaime’s death should never have happened. The implant Lynd had given him was more than enough to ensure his survival even under a White Walker assault. But after Cersei was slain by an elven White Walker, Jaime had lost all will to live. In the end, he died beside her, just as he had wished.

After a moment of thought, Lynd gave his orders. "I’ll be returning to King’s Landing in a few days. The task of cleaning up the battlefield falls to you. I’ll send reinforcements to assist, but make sure to recover every fallen warrior’s body. I want to build a Hero’s Tomb at the old site of the Wall."

"Yes, Your Grace," everyone responded in unison.

Just as Lynd was about to dismiss the meeting, a God’s Chosen rushed in, his expression grave.

"Your Grace, there’s been trouble with the Free Folk tribes in the Gift."

At his words, everyone sprang to their feet, turning fierce glares toward Val and Tormund inside the tent.

Val and Tormund exchanged confused looks before turning to the God’s Chosen.

"What happened?" Val asked.

The God’s Chosen then relayed everything he knew in detail.

Due to the staggering casualties, the balance of power near the Wall had been severely disrupted after the war, sparking concerns that the Free Folk tribes settled in the Gift might become restless. It wasn’t until Sansa arrived with forces from the North, replenishing the depleted ranks, that these fears began to ease.

However, those concerns were not baseless. When word of the catastrophic losses—especially the near-total annihilation of the Free Folk warriors—reached the tribes in the Gift, rumors began to spread. It was said that during the battle, the Night’s Watch had deliberately pushed the Free Folk warriors to the front lines, causing their massive losses. Seizing on this resentment, agitators encouraged the remaining warriors to form a coalition army and strike while the Wall’s defenders were still weak. If they succeeded in crushing the garrison, there would be no one left in the North—or even the Seven Kingdoms—to stop them. It was a once-in-a-lifetime chance to seize the entire realm.

"These wildlings really are treacherous! Daring to rebel at a time like this!" someone shouted, immediately stepping forward. "Your Grace, allow me to lead the remaining troops and suppress the rebellion!"

With one man leading the call, others quickly stood up, volunteering to march to the Gift and crush the uprising.

Val and Tormund’s faces turned grim. Though they desperately wanted to insist that the Free Folk wouldn’t rebel and that it was all just rumor, they knew all too well the nature of the tribes from Beyond the Wall. Those people would seize any opportunity to strengthen their own power—and with the Wall’s defenses so weakened, it was indeed the perfect time to rebel.

Tormund immediately stepped forward, his voice deep and steady.

"Your Grace, let me lead the remaining Free Folk warriors to the Gift. I, Tormund, swear I will give you a proper account."

Lynd studied Tormund for a moment before speaking.

"You going alone is not enough. Val will go with you. I’ll also assign two thousand soldiers from the God’s Chosen Corps to accompany you. Don’t disappoint me."

Hearing Lynd’s decision, not only Tormund and Val were stunned, but the rest of the officers and generals were also left in shock. One after another, they voiced their objections, arguing that it was too dangerous to let Tormund and Val leave without keeping one of them behind as a hostage.

"It’s settled then." Lynd ignored the concerns raised and firmly pushed through the two decisions.

As the meeting concluded, Val and Tormund led the Free Folk warriors and the soldiers of the God’s Chosen Corps toward the Gift.

Two days later, they reached the Free Folk settlement in the Gift and quickly seized control of the tribes. They began arresting those who had incited rebellion, capturing several ringleaders shortly after.

Although the rebels had painted an enticing vision of the future, most of the Free Folk were sensible enough to see through it. Before the rebels could unite and organize a resistance, Val and Tormund moved swiftly to arrest them. The captured conspirators were sent directly to the ruins of the Wall for Lynd to judge, preventing any real unrest from erupting.

Val and Tormund deliberately refrained from executing the rebels themselves, concerned that Lynd might suspect them of silencing potential witnesses.

Lynd, burdened with numerous pressing matters, spared little attention to personally dealing with them and delegated their punishment to others.

In the end, those who had incited or plotted rebellion were tied above the great pits used to burn corpses, and slowly roasted to death.

With Sansa arriving at the Gift with the forces of the North to reinforce order, all lingering troubles were swiftly suppressed. After giving a few final instructions, Lynd mounted Deltos and returned to King’s Landing.

...

The very day Lynd returned to King’s Landing, the city held a grand celebration to honor the epic victory. Everyone, from the highest nobles to the common folk, and even the priests of the Faith, no longer addressed Lynd merely as "Your Grace," but as "Your Majesty" or "Your Divine Majesty," for in the eyes of most, Lynd was no different from a god.

Lynd did not bother to correct these new titles, taking them as a quiet acknowledgment. For now, he set aside the affairs of state and joined in the revelry.

...

"Your Grace, the details of the imperial founding ceremony..." After the festivities ended, Lynd convened a Small Council with the principal nobles, lords, and ministers. At the meeting, Grand Maester Pycelle eagerly rose, clutching a thick tome of ceremonial protocols, ready to present his meticulous preparations for the Empire’s founding ceremony and Lynd’s coronation as Emperor.

However, Lynd raised his hand to silence him and said firmly, "The founding ceremony will be kept simple. I have no intention of staging a grand spectacle. Just send official letters to inform all regions. Also, have someone prepare a map of the Empire’s current borders and post it on bulletin boards everywhere, so our people can see for themselves how vast the Empire has become."

"Yes, Your Grace," everyone replied, realizing there was no room to argue with Lynd’s decision.

Then Lynd’s expression turned serious as he looked around and asked, "How are the preparations for the migration I ordered coming along?"

Everyone was momentarily stunned, their faces showing confusion.

It was Garlan Tyrell who finally voiced the question on everyone’s mind.

"Your Grace, didn’t we already defeat the White Walkers? Why is migration still necessary?"

Lynd gazed at the bewildered crowd and sighed softly before answering.

"The White Walkers may have been destroyed, but the Long Night and the Land of Always Winter are still coming. After the battle, the Cold God of the Land of Always Winter has been fully awakened. The Long Night may arrive sooner than we ever anticipated."

"How can this be?" the room filled with murmurs of confusion and fear.

Lynd then patiently explained everything, recounting the events of the final battle against the White Walker Queen. He described how Willas sacrificed himself to summon an entity from beyond the stars; how the Red Priests used Beric Dondarrion as a vessel to bring forth the Lord of Light; how both deities clashed with the Cold God, struggling against each other; and how Bran Stark and the Reed siblings offered themselves as bait, summoning a nature deity to trap the White Walker Queen, the Cold God’s chosen vessel and avatar, allowing Lynd to deliver the fatal blow.

Though Lynd’s recounting was plain and direct, without embellishment or dramatics, to those listening, it far surpassed any epic they had ever heard. Even ancient myths rarely spoke of gods engaging directly in battle. Yet here was a firsthand account of a divine war, told by a man who had fought in it himself—no wonder the people had hailed Lynd as the "God Emperor" during the celebrations.

...

"Your Grace, what should we do next?" asked the Red Viper.

Lynd thought for a moment and then issued his orders.

"After announcing the founding of the Empire, declare that the Long Night and Eternal Winter are imminent. Tell the people in all regions to submit migration lists to their lords and officials. The Empire will allocate land to them in the new territories according to these lists. As for those who refuse to migrate—that’s their choice. Do not coerce them. Let them stay if they wish, including the lords."

"Yes, Your Grace!" everyone replied in unison.