Chapter 97 - Negotiations with Free Folk (IV)
"Gods, demons or any entity of chaos, all will die on my sword. That is a fate I have decreed upon the Nexus of Time and Space." Aenar Targaryen.
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After listening to Aenar's explanation of what was about to happen, Jeor remained silent. On the one hand, there was the fight for humanity's survival; on the other, his responsibility as Lord Commander of the Night's Watch. In the end, being a cold and pragmatic man, he chose the obvious.
"I've prepared Castle Black to receive the... Savages." Jeor spoke with a bored tone, showing a slight touch of anger at the mention of the Savages. For someone who had fought against them for many years, he never thought that one day he would be preparing negotiations with these people.
"Thank you for being understanding, Lord Commander. We can't just let the Others get another hundred thousand almost immortal troops. Besides, with Mance holding the Horn of Winter, he would destroy the Wall with his people." Aenar was sincerely grateful to hear that Jeor had agreed to the negotiations.
When he announced that he would negotiate with the Wildlings to get them into the North, most of the men of the Night's Watch would be outraged. Not because they didn't care about the survival of humanity, but because they had spent so long fighting the Savages that they simply saw the act of breaking the oath as something completely unacceptable.
"Does Your Grace think they'll bend the knee?" Jeor asked in a calm tone. As someone who had fought against the Savages for many years, he knew very well what they were like and how their society worked. The so-called Free People was not just a title, but a way of life that had lasted for thousands of years.
It wouldn't be easy to get the Savages to let go of all their history and customs, even if it meant surviving. Many people would rather die than betray their own traditions.
Aenar certainly knew what Jeor was talking about. Looking into the eyes of the former Lord of Bear Island, he replied in a calm tone: