Karl's curiosity—and growing unease—about the news from the North lingered throughout the day.
Only after night had fallen, when he was preparing to retire for the evening, did he finally have the opportunity to carefully examine the matter.
Outside the window, the Red Comet blazed across the heavens, replacing the moon and bathing the world in an eerie crimson glow.
Inside the chamber stood several trusted individuals.
Lady Aven Oakheart, who had recently been stripped of her title as Lady of Old Oak, stood quietly nearby.
Also present were Ser Alex Oakheart, Karl's sworn sword and personal guard; the Maester of Old Oak, summoned as an advisor; and Jon Snow, the White Wolf, who had personally delivered the urgent message.
Jon had not come alone.
He had arrived with two thousand soldiers.
These men were reinforcements secretly dispatched by Tywin Lannister after learning that Karl had captured Crakehall and realizing what Karl intended to do next.
Unfortunately for Tywin, he had arrived half a step too late.
Still, Jon had conveniently brought with him an important letter.
The letter had traveled all the way from Winterfell to Crakehall before eventually reaching Karl's hands.
"This letter was personally written by Uncle Benjen Stark from Castle Black," Jon explained.
"He has become the new Lord Commander of the Night's Watch."
Jon paused briefly before continuing.
"After Tywin Lannister's rebellion, he took most of the ravens with him. Winterfell had tremendous difficulty sending messages south. They exhausted nearly every available resource and rode half their remaining horses to death just to deliver this letter."
Jon clearly had much more he wished to say.
Yet the words seemed trapped in his throat.
In the end, he could only offer a brief explanation.
His expression revealed his true emotions.
Anxiety.
Worry.
And perhaps a trace of guilt.
Karl said nothing.
He quietly read the letter in his hand, his face completely expressionless.
At the doorway, Ghost lay silently on the floor.
The great white direwolf occasionally glanced toward Karl with his crimson eyes.
For some reason, even Ghost seemed uneasy.
From time to time, he let out a low whine but did not dare disturb the man reading the letter.
The room remained silent.
Several long minutes passed before Karl finally lowered the parchment and placed it upon the table.
His gaze drifted toward the blood-red sky beyond the window.
His fingers tapped softly against the tabletop.
Once.
Twice.
Again and again.
The rhythmic sound only increased the tension in the room.
Seeing Karl remain silent, Jon grew even more nervous.
Although Karl had already learned everything from the letter, Jon could no longer hold back.
"Uncle Benjen intends to honor the Night's Watch oath and avoid interfering in the affairs of the realm," Jon said carefully.
"But he desperately needs assistance."
"He hopes Your Majesty will consider sending soldiers to support the Watch."
Jon hesitated before continuing.
"There has been unusual activity beyond the Wall ever since King Robert's war against Tywin Lannister."
"The Night's Watch originally intended to investigate, but circumstances forced them to abandon those plans."
"Lord Commander Benjen is deeply concerned about what may be happening in the far north."
He swallowed hard.
"And..."
"There was also an incident at Castle Black involving what witnesses described as a corpse demon."
"Unfortunately, most of the evidence was destroyed."
"Uncle wishes to investigate the matter thoroughly in order to protect the realm."
The more Jon spoke, the quieter his voice became.
Even he felt embarrassed making such a request.
After all, King Robert had already provided substantial aid to the Night's Watch.
The Crown had supplied men, resources, and support to help the Watch handle its growing responsibilities.
And yet...
The Night's Watch had still failed.
Not only had they failed, but they had also created an enormous problem for the kingdom.
What made matters worse was that this occurred after Karl had already warned them following Robert's assassination and the discovery of the conspiracy behind it.
If Karl truly wished to pursue responsibility for the disaster, very few members of the Night's Watch would escape punishment.
Yet now the Watch was asking for even more men and supplies.
The request sounded shameless.
As for the so-called corpse demon...
Jon trusted his uncle.
He did not believe Benjen Stark would fabricate such a story.
Even so, part of him remained skeptical.
The claim simply sounded too unbelievable.
It felt more like a desperate excuse than a genuine report.
Still, Jon chose to speak on their behalf.
Not because he believed the request was justified.
But because Benjen Stark was his uncle.
And because he hoped Karl would show mercy.
Karl paid little attention to Jon's internal conflict.
His thoughts were focused elsewhere entirely.
Tywin's rebellion.
Jeor Mormont's death.
The Night's Watch's failures.
None of those things truly concerned him.
Instead, he was wondering about something far more important.
What exactly had given Tywin Lannister the confidence to launch another rebellion?
Hiring assassins to kill Robert and Karl made sense.
Tywin had already lost everything.
Using his remaining wealth to strike back at his enemies was understandable.
After all, Karl had played a major role in the destruction of House Lannister's power.
Few men could accept such a defeat gracefully.
And the Faceless Men left little evidence behind.
As far as the realm knew, Tywin was a defeated exile rotting away at the edge of the world.
No one would suspect him.
But rebellion?
That was different.
The Wall was a frozen wasteland.
Tywin possessed no resources.
No supplies.
No food.
No weapons.
No armor.
No allies.
His followers were exhausted southerners trapped in an unforgiving northern wilderness.
Under such conditions, what gave him the confidence to raise his banners once again?
Karl refused to believe Tywin had gone mad.
Tywin Lannister was many things.
Foolish was not one of them.
Which meant there had to be something else.
Some hidden advantage.
Some concealed ally.
Some card he had yet to reveal.
As that thought crossed his mind, Karl's tapping finger suddenly stopped.
His eyes narrowed.
Then he looked toward Jon.
"What about the Iron Islands?"
"The information I asked Tyrion to monitor before I left."
The sudden question caught Jon off guard.
For a moment, he blinked in confusion.
He had expected Karl's first concern to be the Night's Watch.
Or Tywin.
Not the Iron Islands.
Then Jon remembered the private instructions Tyrion had given him before leaving Casterly Rock.
Slowly, he nodded.
"There has been movement."
"Tyrion said something strange is happening there."
"But he couldn't determine their true intentions."
As Jon spoke, Karl's eyes gradually brightened.
A cold smile appeared on his lips.
"Tywin cannot truly threaten the North."
"The snow itself will bury his ambitions."
"Even if he captured Last Hearth through surprise, it changes very little."
"I trust Robb Stark can handle that problem."
Karl leaned back in his chair.
"However..."
"The Iron Islands are another matter entirely."
His smile became colder.
At that moment, Lady Aven Oakheart finally understood where Karl's thoughts were heading.
"Your Majesty..."
"Do you suspect the Iron Islands have already allied themselves with Tywin Lannister?"
The room instantly fell silent.
Jon Snow.
Alex Oakheart.
Even the old Maester.
All of them stared at Karl.
A moment later, realization dawned on Jon's face.
"The North is enormous..."
He spoke slowly.
"If Balon Greyjoy wanted to invade, he wouldn't need Tywin's help."
Then his eyes widened.
"Theon..."
"Balon's sons..."
For the first time, he began connecting the pieces.
Karl let out a low chuckle.
"I must admit."
"The more I think about it, the more impressive Tywin's move appears."
"So impressive, in fact, that I suspect he still has additional plans hidden from view."
His thoughts briefly drifted toward Roose Bolton.
One temptation might not be enough.
But what about two?
Three?
How many promises and rewards would it take before loyalty began to crack?
Fortunately, Karl had no intention of giving Tywin that opportunity.
Whether Tywin was a hidden dragon or a crouching tiger, Karl intended to crush him before he could reveal his claws.
"It seems..."
Karl said softly.
"It's finally time to make use of little Robert."
A chilling smile spread across his face.
Advance Chapters avilable on patreon (Obito_uchiha)