The Riverlands, the fertile region between the Trident and its many tributaries, was known across the Seven Kingdoms for its richness. Yet compared to its neighbor, the Reach, equally fertile, its fate had been far less fortunate.
Located at the heart of Westeros, the Riverlands had long been a war-torn region, a standard four-way battleground throughout history. Ever since House Mudd was destroyed by the invading Andals, no powerful local family had managed to unify the land. Unlike the Reach, it never developed a strong sense of belonging or mutual identity among its nobility. Ending the division was no easy task, and unity had only come through conquest by outsiders. After centuries of oppression and exploitation under the Storm Kings, the Riverlanders escaped only to fall into the hands of another oppressor: House Hoare of the Iron Islands, with Harren the Black ruling them for a hundred years.
Only when Aegon the Conqueror descended upon Westeros with his dragons did the Riverlands find a decisive moment. They swiftly switched allegiance and, for the first time in centuries, were ruled by a local family, House Tully.
This land, scarred by war and the pain of foreign rule, could be described in modern terms as so beaten down it had forgotten how to stand tall. Even after three hundred years of relative peace under the Targaryen dynasty, it had not developed the strength or presence to rival the other kingdoms. It had neither heroes nor mighty warriors, and even its ruling house preferred to rely on marriage alliances rather than strength. From the smallfolk to the lords, they had long grown accustomed to leaning on others for protection.
Edmure Tully and his army had recklessly pursued and harried the raiding forces Tywin Lannister had sent to burn and plunder. Yet it was not until the allied forces arrived that they finally managed to drive out a mere few thousand Lannister troops, becoming the laughingstock of Westeros.
Mockery aside, the arrival of numerous vassals and allied troops did quickly change the tide. With the Eastern Riverlands army led by House Frey and the Vale cavalry joining the fray, the outnumbered Lannister grain-burning forces soon found themselves outmaneuvered and were forced to withdraw.
After resting briefly in the half-devastated western Riverlands, waiting a few days for the Northern vanguard to arrive and arranging food supplies, the coalition forces marched westward along the River Road, singing war songs. Within days, they reached the fortress of Golden Tooth, the key barrier between the Westerlands and the Riverlands, and made camp, preparing for the assault.
At the same time, the King's army advanced along the Gold Road toward the city of Deep Den. The fleets from the Shield Islands and Arbor Island of the Reach set sail northward, preparing to blockade Lannisport. Meanwhile, the vanguard of the land army advanced north along the coastal road, crossed the border, and reached Crakehall, a critical southern defense point for Lannisport.
War loomed. House Lannister, attacked from three directions, faced the greatest military test in its history. Yet enemies came from even more directions. Unlike the general sympathy many nobles held for the righteous alliance of the Vale, Tywin Lannister's strength and ruthlessness had made him many enemies over the years. Stormland forces were already marching west along the Gold Road to reinforce the King's army, and even Dorne, usually indifferent to external affairs, had mobilized tens of thousands of soldiers, marching north through the Reach with the intent of exterminating House Lannister and avenging Princess Elia.
…
As the armies of the Six Kingdoms advanced aggressively, villages and minor houses outside the Lannister heartlands surrendered en masse. The Westerlands were famed for gold, not for vast territory, and lacked any real strategic depth. As a result, the area under Lannister control shrank by half within a few days, leaving only Golden Tooth, the Crag, and Crakehall, fortified strongholds near the Sunset Sea. Tens of thousands of Lannister troops were crammed into this small area, barely larger than the lands gifted to the Night's Watch. House Lannister's very survival hung by a thread.
While the allied forces established overwhelming superiority on the frontlines, the eastern coast of Westeros began suffering large-scale, frequent attacks by pirates of suspicious origins. Though these raids caused little real damage, the nuisance was impossible to ignore. To combat the harassment, the fleets of the Royal Navy, Dragonstone, and the Stormlands left their ports, patrolling key coastal areas. Reports of clashes with pirate ships were frequently sent back.
…
The Lion-slaying War raged at full strength. The disparity between the two sides was so great that no one doubted the final outcome. The wealth of the Westerlands was undeniable. Even though many surrendered villages and castles had been stripped by Tywin's forces, the captured spoils still offered considerable rewards to the allied vanguard. How much more gold awaited them after the fall of Lannisport and Casterly Rock? The thought alone was enough to quicken any soldier's heart. With such a bright prospect and little risk of a drawn-out quagmire, the impact on the Night's Watch Industries was much less than originally feared. Apart from the predictable rise in military supply prices, life continued almost as before. Even Aegor could not help but wonder if canceling the third paper mill had been a mistake.
Fortunately, the plan to diversify their investments was proceeding well. The newly launched improved lipstick and soap had been well received. Though not as profitable as papermaking, they had quickly drawn envy from both old and new industries alike. It was good news that the reallocated third papermaking workshop was not losing money. As for the growing backlog of book orders… if needed, they could simply build another workshop.
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The square at the heart of King's Landing was packed. The sea of onlookers stretched beyond sight. A major performance starring the Night's Watch—and more accurately, a wight—was underway. Today would be the final show. This large-scale marketing event would decide the future profitability of Night's Watch Industries. Despite his busy schedule, Aegor personally brought Nina to witness the event.
From the moment the wights arrived in King's Landing, Aegor had been planning how to profit from them. However, before he could act, the Hand of the King had ordered the wights returned to the Night's Watch. How could he let such a golden opportunity go to waste?
Yet upon seeing the caged wight again, Aegor immediately realized: its removal from the Red Keep was no accident. It had already begun to rot during its time imprisoned.
Specifically, the wight's arms had started to rot.
On the day of the King's Landing riot, Eddard Stark had personally severed one of the wight's arms. Later, whether for display or safety, someone else had cut off its other arm. Both arms had been strung up with iron hooks and hung from the corners of the cage, swinging in the air. One was crawling with maggots and emitted a putrid stench. The other could still move slightly, but it was in poor condition.
Aegor had previously speculated that a wight would perish once its ice magic faded. The decaying arms now strongly supported his theory.
The armless wight was still lively, thrashing inside its cage. Having suffered countless stabs, its chest was riddled with holes. Its heart was likely no more than shredded meat. Yet in its current "alive" state, it served the Night's Watch better. Knowing the ice magic was steadily dissipating, Aegor made a swift decision: to make the most of it through a public spectacle, then destroy it with dragonglass.
By now, half the garrison of King's Landing had aligned with the Night's Watch, and the other half sought Aegor's protection. Getting things done was ridiculously easy. After a brief conversation, Allar Deem coordinated with other garrison captains, and preparations were swiftly completed.
The garrison cleared the square in front of the Alchemists' Guild Hall, driving out street vendors, demolishing illegal stalls, and cleaning the streets. It became a temporary exhibition space for the Night's Watch. Each morning, a logistics team would bring the wight in its cage for public display until the afternoon, allowing the people of King's Landing to see for themselves the threats faced by the Night's Watch.
The show was not static. As the launch date of the dragonglass products approached, the exhibitions evolved into interactive experiences.
The wight, now hung by chains through its body, had one leg severed. Its still-moving stump was paraded around for the crowd before the limb was stabbed with dragonglass, killing it publicly and ceremonially burning it.
The next day, the remaining leg was chopped off and destroyed. The gruesome spectacle caused uproar and controversy. Ordinary citizens were shocked to see severed limbs still twitching, while the pious and the soft-hearted decried the cruelty. But none of that mattered. The important thing was that hundreds of people witnessed, and even touched, the horrors firsthand. The rumors about the terrors beyond the Wall spread like wildfire.
On the third day—today—the final performance would take place. The armies of the Six Kingdoms had launched their full offensive against the Westerlands, and Aegor's dragonglass products were officially released. The Night's Watch Industries would demonstrate publicly how to use dragonglass to kill a wight.
…
The crowd was packed shoulder to shoulder, buzzing with excitement. Everyone pushed and jostled, eager to get closer. Hundreds of gold cloaks struggled to maintain order. Most people did not even know what dragonglass was, but they had heard this would be the last chance to see the wight.
Surrounded by Guard Squad soldiers, Aegor was still being jostled about. After a moment's hesitation, he patted Nina and signaled for an escort. As the leader of Night's Watch Industries, his reputation and influence far exceeded his actual authority. It was time to maintain some mystery to sustain his deterrence.
He stepped back with Nina to the steps of the Alchemists' Guild Hall, overlooking the square.
The dismembered wight, now little more than a human stump, was suspended at the top of its cage by iron chains, still twitching and roaring. It swung like a grotesque pendulum. As a black-clad soldier carrying a shield stepped onto the stage, the crowd grew even more excited. The man raised his hand for silence and began shouting a speech. It was hard to hear from a distance, but Aegor and Nina did not care. Every word spoken on stage had been carefully scripted, approved by the department heads and reviewed personally by Aegor.
They had not come to watch the show, but simply to catch a breath of fresh air from the intense workload.
"Sir, I just had a thought," Nina said, her light makeup glowing under the sun. "After this zombie-killing show ends, we can hold an auction. Sell the spear used to kill the zombie, both tip and shaft. It will fetch a good price."
Aegor raised his eyebrows, a little surprised. "Hmm… good idea. Send someone to inform them. Have them announce it once the show ends."
On the platform, the presenter finished his speech and raised the spear with a dragonglass tip toward the wight. The noise surged. The wight, incapable of begging for mercy or dodging, thrashed helplessly. Under countless watchful eyes, the black-clad man stepped forward and drove the spear into its chest.
For a moment, the entire square fell silent, as if everyone held their breath. A second later, the roar resumed. The caged creature, which had continued to twist and shriek after countless blows, finally fell still.
The soldier withdrew his spear, wiped off the corpse oil from the dragonglass tip, and resumed speaking loudly. Aegor knew this was the start of the dragonglass introduction—explaining that this black glass could kill wights, repel evil spirits, and where it could be purchased.
"You reminded me," Aegor said thoughtfully. "Simply selling dragonglass as an evil-repelling item is too limited. We need to open up more profitable avenues. Go back and arrange the production of dragonglass daggers, shield tips, and arrowheads. Spread rumors in taverns and brothels under our control. Tell everyone that the civilian products sold openly by the Night's Watch are only low-grade scraps. The real weapons, used by the Night's Watch on the frontlines, are higher quality, imbued with purer magic, and can only be bought through special channels."
"Then we can have someone pretend to be a traitor who stole military-grade dragonglass and sell it secretly!" Nina's eyes lit up. "And we can raise the price even higher!"
(To be continued.)
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