In Winterfell, as the people evacuated, the permanent population of over twenty thousand had dwindled to fewer than six thousand.
The women and children had basically all left. At this critical juncture of life and death, most of the men ultimately chose to abandon their homeland as well, leaving only a little over eight hundred behind.
Including Winterfell's five thousand guards, there were still fewer than six thousand people.
Lady Catherine had originally insisted on staying, but under the persuasion of Lord Eddard and the scholars, she left with her two sons, Bran and Rickon, and her two daughters, Sansa and Arya, heading for King's Landing.
Eddard's eldest son Robb and his illegitimate son Jon remained behind. The two had only just passed their fifteenth coming-of-age ceremony. Eddard had initially disagreed with their decision to stay, but they challenged two of his personal guards in succession and won, proving their strength.
With the lady's support as well, Eddard, as lord, had no choice but to agree.
On the fifth day of the evacuation, not long after night fell, the sentries atop the towers rang the warning bells.
Gu Ding rolled over and sat up. For the past few days, he had remained inside the blacksmith's shop and had not gone out.
The blacksmith had prepared the food before leaving, enough for half a month. He had also told Gu Ding that if he truly survived and ran out of food, he should go to the lord.
After becoming a mage, Gu Ding's need for food had greatly decreased. Food existed to provide the body with energy, while Gu Ding's body could already absorb elemental energy. The half-month's worth of food left by the blacksmith could sustain him for at least two months.
Gu Ding had not been idle during these