Game of Thrones: The Wolf of Deepwood Motte

"Balon."

Euron's right eye flickered with unreadable thoughts. "You absolutely do not need to worry about me taking your place after I control the dragon. On the contrary, I will even help you fulfill your dream of conquering Westeros!"

Balon sneered inwardly. He knew Euron too well, especially whenever he deliberately acted friendly. He stared coldly at Euron and scoffed, "I do not remember you ever being so kind."

Euron shook his head slightly and said earnestly, "Then you underestimate me, Balon!"

He paused before speaking with fanatical fervor. "Only by looking up at the gods can one understand how vast this world truly is! Compared to the mission the gods have bestowed upon me, what are the mere Seven Kingdoms?"

Euron spread his arms as if embracing the entire world itself, his expression as crazed as a devout zealot.

Asha looked at Euron in his current state, and a trace of fear involuntarily surfaced in her heart. She subconsciously asked, "The gods' mission?"

"Hahaha!"

Hearing Asha mention the mission, Euron burst into manic laughter before revealing part of the prophecy from his dreams.

"Dragons will breathe fire upon the weirwoods, and the supreme gods shall return to the world!"

"And what I must do is obey the gods' commands and burn every weirwood with dragonfire!"

Victarion frowned deeply, confusion filling his face. "Burn the weirwoods?"

He had long since grown accustomed to Euron's madness, but now he was more curious about why Euron wished to destroy the sacred heart trees.

However, he quickly reacted and stared sharply at his brother. "Euron, have you abandoned the Drowned God to worship some foreign evil deity?"

Euron did not explain himself.

He stopped laughing, and his face instantly returned to calmness before he spoke again in a strangely seductive tone.

"Balon, as long as you help me capture the dragon and allow me to complete the gods' mission, I can give the dragon to you."

"Think about it. House Greyjoy will become the second dragon-riding family in history, and your dream of restoring the Old Way can be realized at any time."

"Conquering the Seven Kingdoms will become inevitable!"

Balon remained unmoved by Euron's temptations.

He frowned and stared at Euron for a long time without speaking until a thought slowly formed in his mind.

"Euron is probably insane."

"The horn is clearly a Valyrian artifact, yet he insists on attributing it to the gods and has become obsessed with this so-called mission…"

Balon sneered inwardly before probing cautiously, "I can help you capture the dragon, but the horn must remain with me. And you must swear in the name of your god that after completing your mission, you will hand the dragon over to me."

To Balon's surprise, Euron agreed without hesitation.

After hearing Euron swear his oath, Balon became even more wary.

However, when he thought about how empty the North currently was, his eyes shifted slightly as a new plan formed in his mind regarding Euron.

As for the dragon, that matter could wait for now.

Balon was not foolish enough to blindly trust Euron's ramblings.

At the very least, he intended to thoroughly study the dragon horn first.

"Then we should discuss how to reach Skagos Island, shouldn't we?"

Only then did Euron finally ask Balon about the plan.

At Balon's signal, Victarion stepped forward and spread a map across the table before explaining the situation regarding Skagos.

"You have been to Skagos before, so you should know it lies north of the Shivering Sea at the mouth of the Bay of Seals in the North."

Victarion pointed at Skagos Island on the map and slowly shook his head.

"From the Iron Islands to Skagos, there are only two routes available to us."

"Either we sail south around the entirety of Westeros, or we land in the North and cross through it until we reach the Bay of Seals."

He frowned deeply.

"Both routes are filled with danger, especially at a time like this."

Euron immediately understood Victarion's meaning, and his expression shifted slightly.

He never expected that during his years away, the entire political landscape of Westeros would be overturned so drastically.

First, King Robert had died unexpectedly.

Then Eddard Stark, serving as Hand of the King, was imprisoned for treason by the Lannister Queen.

The war between lion and wolf had officially begun.

Even the other kingdoms of Westeros were gradually being dragged into the conflict.

Now the wolf pup of the North had already led his forces beyond Moat Cailin and entrenched himself at the Twins.

Meanwhile, the Lannisters had divided their armies into two. One force was besieging Riverrun, while the other lay waiting along the Kingsroad.

At the same time, as the war escalated, Stannis Baratheon of Dragonstone publicly declared Joffrey a bastard born of incest with no right to inherit the Iron Throne.

He had already raised Dragonstone in rebellion and called upon the Stormlords loyal to House Baratheon to rally to his cause.

However, most of the Baratheon bannermen had instead gathered under Renly, who fled from King's Landing and now used the legitimization of Edric Storm as justification to challenge Joffrey together with the Reach.

The realm had fractured into multiple camps.

Given the current situation, it was only a matter of time before even the Vale and Dorne were dragged into the chaos.

At this moment, Westeros had descended into perhaps the greatest turmoil since Robert's Rebellion.

"Sailing south is not only an extremely long journey…"

Victarion continued his analysis calmly. "We would not only have to deal with storms and uncertain seas, but also the risk of encountering enemy fleets."

"Once we are discovered, even if we have no intention of fighting, the other factions will fear us joining their enemies and force us into battle."

Euron's eyes flickered. "So you mean we only have one option left, to cross through the North?"

Victarion pointed at the map again and sighed.

"But crossing the North is equally dangerous."

"Although the wolf pup has taken most of the Northern army south, there are still many forces left behind to guard the North."

"If we were simply raiding according to the Old Way, striking quickly and retreating immediately, there would naturally be no issue. But this time we need to cross the entire North…"

He looked toward Balon, his eyes full of concern.

"Once Winterfell discovers our movements, if they are not complete fools, they will absolutely gather their forces to surround us. If our retreat is cut off, all of us will freeze to death in the North."

After finishing his explanation, Euron and Asha both turned their gazes toward Balon, waiting for his decision.

Balon already had a plan in mind.

He slammed his hand heavily onto the table and said coldly, "Since that is the case, then we may as well go all out and seize the entire North!"

Asha's eyes immediately lit up with excitement. "Father, you mean an all-out war against the North?"

Balon nodded, murderous intent radiating from him. "Exactly. This is an opportunity that cannot be missed, and your brother's death must also be avenged!"

He lowered his gaze toward the map, carefully studying the possible routes before finally issuing his commands.

"Victarion, you will lead the Iron Fleet to seize Moat Cailin and cut off the wolf pup's connection with the North."

"Euron, you will lead the Silence, and I will grant you another thousand men to land at Sea Dragon Point, seize Deepwood Motte, and attack Winterfell through the Wolfswood."

"Asha, I will give you two thousand men to land on the Stony Shore, move through Torrhen's Square and the Rills, and head directly for Winterfell. You and Euron will work together to take Winterfell."

"Once Winterfell falls into our hands, we can control the wolf pup and safely cross the North toward the Bay of Seals!"

After Balon finished speaking, Asha immediately protested.

"Father, let me lead the attack on Deepwood Motte!"

"Those people from Deepwood Motte killed my crew, and I still have a score to settle with them!"

"Besides, I also want to capture a castle worthy of boasting about!"

Balon hesitated briefly before nodding in agreement.

"Very well. Euron, what do you think?"

Euron showed no objection.

To him, as long as he could obtain the dragon, everything else was insignificant and unworthy of his attention.

The four gathered around the map spread across the long table and began discussing the exact timing of their departure.

Soon enough, they finalized the plan.

Three days later, the Ironborn armies would set sail, and both invading forces would regroup at Winterfell within a month before capturing the ancient Stark stronghold.

At the same time, Garon was still handling troublesome matters back in Deepwood Motte.