The last remaining horse collapsed. Though it still breathed, it couldn't stand up no matter what.
Aegon glanced South, then looked behind him, and plopped down onto the ground.
...
Ten days had passed since the terrifying night they encountered the White Walkers, and the two had been fleeing for a full ten days and nights. In these ten days, the total time they had slept was less than a day. At this moment, their bodies and minds were exhausted, and they truly wanted to fall to the ground and never get up again.
Fortunately, the destination was now only a few leagues away. No matter how much they dragged their feet, they would definitely be able to sleep safely in the Wall tonight.
The escape hadn't been smooth. Although they had escaped from the White Walkers, they quickly ran into trouble: The supplies carried on the patrol were divided among the four men performing the mission. As the officer, Waymar Royce rode a warhorse and naturally carried the lightest but most precious jerky and shredded meat; Aegon's horse carried blankets and spare clothing, Gared carried bread, and Will was in charge of the oats for feeding the horses...
If you were told to choose two of these four items to abandon and only take the other two to escape, what would you choose?
The answer wasn't important, because Aegon and Gared had no choice. Will's horse was killed by the White Walkers, and Waymar's was spooked and ran off. The two surviving Night's Watchmen were left with only half their food and warm supplies...
Problems quickly arose: Provisions, provisions, there must be food and grass. Horses in the wild could certainly survive on grass alone, but their horses were carrying loads. To maintain their strength, the oats to feed them were indispensable.
Now that the grain was lost, the two couldn't possibly give their already limited bread to the animals. Gared's horse collapsed after eating grass for two or three days, and Aegon's mount was only slightly better off—as for the reason, Aegon suspected it was purely because he was lighter.
After the first horse fell, the two stopped briefly and quickly made the decision to cut off their wrist like a brave warrior. They killed the first horse for meat and distributed all the remaining bread to the last remaining horse as rations. They placed dozens of pounds of weight from weapons, food, and blankets onto the horse's back, while they themselves walked lightly to escape... The three survivors, with men eating horse meat and the horse eating bread, fled for several more days. After feeding the last piece of bread, they finally approached The Wall.
Gared sighed, took the things off the horse's back and threw them aside, and drew his steel sword.
Aegon, who was leaning against a tree for a brief rest, looked at him in confusion: "What are you doing?"
"Killing the horse."
"Killing the horse?" Aegon felt bewildered. "It escaped with us the whole way, it deserves credit even if not merit. We're almost home, and you're going to kill it? We're still half a day's journey from The Wall. We could crawl back even on empty stomachs, not to mention we haven't finished the horse meat yet."
"Hmph." The veteran snorted disdainfully. "Are you planning to go back to Castle Black?"
"What the f*ck do you mean?" Thinking also consumed energy, and Aegon really wasn't in the mood to play guessing games with the veteran right now. "Where else would we go if not back to Castle Black?"
"I'm going to cross The Wall and go South, find a place to hide." Gared stared at Aegon. "At the westernmost end of The Wall, there's a natural chasm, a Great Canyon running east-west that cuts through the Frostfangs mountains. Because of its existence, the original builders of The Wall thought this section didn't need fortifications. They just built a sturdy tower on the South side of the Great Gorge and ran an iron chain bridge across. This tower is called Westwatch-by-the-Bridge. We all know the Night's Watch built nineteen castles along The Wall, and this is the only one that doesn't rely on The Wall..."
Fleeing? Aegon's heart pounded. He had been thinking about this for a long time. "So, we can bypass The Wall from that bridge and go South? Commander Mormont wouldn't let such a huge loophole exist, would he?"
"Of course not. Skull Bridge has been sealed, and Shadow Tower sends men to garrison Westwatch-by-the-Bridge to prevent Wildlings from climbing over the Great Gorge using the iron chains. We have to cross through the Great Gorge, first descend to the bottom of the gorge, then climb up to the South side of the gorge... There's almost no path, it's dangerous and difficult to traverse. A large force with supplies couldn't possibly get through, but if the two of us are lightly equipped, there's a good chance we can cross."
"What about after bypassing The Wall? Do you have any subsequent plans?"
"No." The veteran shook his head. "We'll take it one step at a time."
"Then running is pointless. You know what happens to deserters." Aegon shook his head. "Although the White Walkers are terrifying, there are ways to deal with them. As long as we hunker down within The Wall, relying on..."
"You don't know a damned thing," the veteran interrupted him. "Waymar Royce is dead! He was a noble!"
"We didn't kill him."
"We didn't kill him, but in some people's eyes, it's no different than if we did!" the veteran said bitterly. "Subordinates must protect their officers. Now the officer is dead, and the two of us sneak back. Whatever we say will be met with skepticism. White Walkers? Those cursed White Walkers! If that kid Waymar were alive, it would be easier to explain. Now that only the two of us are going back, those guys will believe us? Impossible!"
"What will happen to us?" Aegon furrowed his brows. He had been so focused on escaping that he hadn't considered this.
"What will happen to us?" Gared sneered. "Although we're bringing back information about the White Walkers' appearance to Castle Black, whether we'll be treated as deserters is just a matter of a word from above. Since we might be treated as deserters, why not just truly desert?"
Aegon was silent for a moment, then said uncertainly, "The Night's Watch is so short-handed right now. After all, the two of us are Rangers... Commander Mormont can't just execute us on a whim, can he?"
"Commander Mormont certainly doesn't want to execute us, but that kid's family will demand an explanation!" Gared said resentfully. "The Royce Family were once the High Kings of the Vale, also an ancient First Men family with thousands of years of history. After being subdued, they have always been the most powerful vassals of the Arryn family in the Vale. Even the Stark family treat them with courtesy. And that kid's father generously provided a large amount of supplies to the Night's Watch after sending his son here. Such a great noble family, if they demand an explanation for their son's death, do you think Commander Mormont will protect us?"
***
In the original plot, the rulers of the Vale did not participate in the War of the Five Kings, so most people might not have much impression of the Royce Family. But if I tell you: The Vale cavalry that Sansa brought to Winterfell to help Jon Snow defeat Ramsay Bolton in the Battle of the Bastards were all under the command of Waymar Royce's father, Jon Royce, and half of them were even directly provided by the Royce Family, you will understand what a great family this is.
Aegon didn't know if Gared was exaggerating. Although he had been transmigrated for nearly a year, having been born in a world that advocated for equality for all, he honestly didn't know how much influence and power the great nobles in this world truly had. But he knew very well that while those great families were being played like puppets under the schemes of Littlefinger and the Grand Eunuch, dealing with a low-ranking Night's Watch soldier... was still as easy as turning one's hand.
No wonder the survivor of the original patrol trio ran away.
Now the problem was: The patrol survivor who crossed The Wall ultimately died by Eddard Stark's sword. Aegon didn't think that he, a transmigrator who didn't know the way or anyone, joining the escape team could change this fate... Should he return to Castle Black or escape South by bypassing The Wall through the Great Canyon in the Frostfangs? Or, to put it more abstractly, should he hand the decision of his fate over to the Night's Watch, or take it into his own hands?
***
"Even if the Commander doesn't end up chopping off our heads, we'll be blacklisted. The next time there's a dangerous, suicidal mission, we'll be the first choice." Gared continued, adding another highly convincing reason to flee. "Putting everything else aside, that guy Benjen Stark will definitely lead men the North himself to figure out if the White Walkers really exist. If the two of us haven't had our heads chopped off by then, we'll undeniably be the guides and cannon fodder. I've been at The Wall for forty years, and I know the temperaments of these officers perfectly. They don't even need to stick out their butts, and I can guess what kind of shit they'll take."
Aegon was speechless and sighed. At least Gared wasn't wrong about one thing: Benjen Stark did indeed subsequently lead men the North in the original plot to search for Waymar Royce, and also disappeared during this search.
Even if he could survive another patrol, there would later be Commander Jeor Mormont's Ranger expedition to find Benjen Stark; and after that, there would be Wildling invasions and White Walker sieges... He was just an ordinary person who had only just learned to use a sword and ride a horse. Who could guarantee surviving crisis after crisis, time after time?
It seemed there was no time for long-term planning; he had to leave the Night's Watch as soon as possible. There's no time like the present; why not just run with Gared!
What a pity for this horse he was used to riding. It had escaped from the White Walkers' swords with him, sharing life and death, only to ultimately become rations on his path as a deserter.
Just as he hardened his heart and was about to make a decision, the horse, which had collapsed on the ground from exhaustion, began to whimper uneasily, struggling to stand up, as if it sensed Gared's intention to draw his sword. The veteran swung his sword, intending to quickly end its life. Just as he was about to strike, his expression suddenly changed, and his movements hesitated. "What's that sound?"
"Don't scare me." Aegon's hairs stood on end. After being motioned to be silent, he quickly shut up. The two remained motionless, one sitting and one standing, quietly receiving the information from the surrounding environment through their senses.
The howling of the cold wind and the rustling of branches formed the background sound between heaven and earth. Besides that, there was only the sound of their breathing and heartbeats, and the uneasy snorting of Aegon's horse. But gradually, a dull thud with a regular frequency emerged from the background sound... From far away to near, changing from seeming like an illusion to being clearly audible, "thud", "thud", highly rhythmic, clearly approaching the two of them.
This was the sound of hooves stepping on thin snow. The two had heard it continuously for ten days, so they were certainly not unfamiliar with it. But the horse that had escaped with them all the way was currently collapsed on the ground, so where were the hoofbeats coming from?
Was it Waymar's horse that had been spooked and ran off catching up, or...?
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[T/N: if you're still here reading, then check out what to expect of the novel in the review section made by yours truly.]