The great army tent at the center of the united forces was bright as day, lit by dozens of candles. Robb and the others were holding a council to discuss the battle.
"Robb, we wiped out around two thousand enemy soldiers in total. More than four hundred Heavy Cavalry, more than four hundred light cavalry, and over a thousand local militia infantry. The number of prisoners is also close to two thousand."
Theon had already sent men to compile the casualty figures for both sides. As soon as the council began, he reported,
"By the way, that medical team you specifically set up was a wise decision. Thanks to their prompt treatment, the death rate among our wounded has dropped significantly!"
"Mm, I expected that. They've had medical teams in the south for a long time. Go on."
Robb nodded and gestured for him to continue.
"Of the local militia infantry we recruited earlier, more than 2,700 were killed, leaving around 1,200.
"Winterfell's spearmen lost 200 men, its infantry lost 250, and its cavalry lost 80. More than 400 others were wounded, with injuries ranging from minor to severe."
"Even with all our careful preparations, we still suffered losses like these. House Bolton truly is no ordinary family—it's one of the oldest in the North."
Robb shook his head as he listened. He wasn't satisfied with these losses. Even though he'd done his best to deploy the troops effectively, they had still taken heavy casualties. That could only mean that House Bolton's elite troops were formidable fighters.
"In this battle, we captured nearly five hundred sets of Heavy Cavalry armor, nearly five hundred sets of light cavalry armor, more than seven hundred warhorses, and three thousand sets of standard infantry equipment and weapons.
"Thanks to the mineral resources around Lone Mountain, House Bolton has certainly lived well in the North!"
After finishing his report on the spoils, Theon couldn't help sighing.
"Mm, have the logistics troops sort out these spoils and load them onto wagons. They'll come in handy with just a little cleaning up."
Robb nodded with satisfaction at what they had captured.
Once Theon had finished reporting, Count Rickard, who had his own reasons for speaking up, was the first to ask, "Lord Robb, according to what we learned from interrogating the prisoners, there are at most just over a thousand soldiers left in the Dreadfort. When do you think we should begin the siege?"
"Everyone's seen how the siege has gone these past few days. The Dreadfort is easy to defend and hard to attack. A frontal assault would cost us more than it's worth."
Robb shook his head. He had never intended to storm the castle.
"Then we can stage a prisoner revolt, lure them out to help, and wipe them out in one fell swoop."
Theon, seated right beside Count Rickard, offered his suggestion at just the right moment.
Theon had some ideas, but they were still far too naive!
Robb was just about to reject the suggestion when, to his surprise, the Winterfell officers around him began praising it.
"Good idea!"
"Right, we can do that. Then we won't have to storm the castle."
"Not bad, Theon!"
Robb stared in stunned disbelief at Theon, who was looking rather pleased with all the praise.
He began to understand how Jaime had been lured out of the Whispering Wood to give chase by two or three hundred men disguised as House Tully cavalry.
It was because the commanders of Westeros had such crude tactical instincts!
Everyone knew that Roose Bolton, a renowned commander in the North, was a master schemer.
Yet even he had been manipulated by the young Robb.
To ensnare Roose, Robb had first used Ramsay to lure him into a trap, making his own side appear weak.
Then he waited for the North's impatient nobles to arrive and serve as an obvious target, before using a diversion to conceal his true plan.
Finally, he had used a few simple tricks from ancient Hua Country's battlefields to completely counter House Bolton's cavalry.
So it wasn't Robb's own brilliance that had defeated Roose. He had relied on the wisdom of Hua Country's ancestors to do it.
But with subordinates whose strategic thinking was at this level, the wars ahead looked bleak!
For now, Robb could personally manage every battle. But later, when the front stretched out and several armies had to advance at once, the commanders would need to judge the situation and make the right decisions on their own.
Otherwise, a defeat in one place could lead to total ruin.
"Ahem! When my father taught me about military tactics, he once analyzed Roose Bolton."
Robb cleared his throat, interrupting the lively discussion in the tent. When he saw everyone turn to look at him, he continued,
"My father said Roose's style of warfare was like a venomous snake hiding in the dark. He was good at preserving his strength, then striking from the shadows to kill as soon as his enemy showed a weakness."
"This time, we offered Roose these four thousand local militia infantry as prey, riddled with weaknesses, and let him take the bait before striking him hard.
"Do you think a venomous snake that's just been badly wounded would lead his troops out of the castle over something so uncertain?"
Robb's words fell over the tent, and everyone fell silent. The lively discussion from a moment earlier was gone.
"Then what should we do? Surround them until they run out of food and surrender?"
When the tent suddenly went quiet and no one spoke, Theon, ever eager to keep the conversation going, spoke up.
"Mm, that's one way. Our Stark ancestors did it before. They besieged the Dreadfort for two years and made House Bolton submit to us for the first time.
"But do we have the supplies and manpower to keep them surrounded now? An army's strength matters in war, but so does its supply line."
Robb smiled and praised the suggestion, then continued guiding them through the tactical problem.
"We've already destroyed most of House Bolton's elite troops and achieved our goal. So should we withdraw?
"Lord Robb, do you think I'm right?"
Eddard, who had been following Robb around for some time, had made some progress.
After thinking for a while, he offered his opinion. Then he looked to Robb, waiting for an answer.
"Mm, Eddard put it well. But if House Bolton invaded your lands and defeated your guards, would they just turn around and leave?"
Seeing that someone had finally caught on, Robb patiently continued guiding him.
"Of course not. They'd kill and rob people everywhere and dishonor the women."
At the question, Eddard tilted his head and thought about House Bolton's terrible reputation. Then he answered without hesitation.
Seeing that Eddard had grasped the point, Robb continued, "So after we withdraw, what should we do?"
"Steal all the women from their lands, and then... heh heh!"
Theon, who had been listening quietly, immediately butted in, his eyes lighting up when Robb and Eddard started talking about the subject.
"Heh heh!"
"I'm all for that!"
"Are we leaving tomorrow to go loot them?"
Before Robb could respond to Theon's interruption, the officers in the tent burst into the sort of laughter every man understood and began chiming in.
"Ahem, we're discussing serious matters!"
Theon's words left Robb torn between laughter and exasperation. He cleared his throat again and said seriously, "Apart from the Dreadfort, House Bolton's greatest asset is the mineral wealth developed around Ironstone Town.
"If the Dreadfort is a giant iron tortoise, then tomorrow we'll go to Ironstone Town and dig out this part of its foundation.
"After that, Roose will have only two choices.
"Either he comes out to fight us for the future of House Bolton, or he stays holed up in the Dreadfort and slowly waits to die."
"Brilliant! Lord Robb, you're truly brilliant!"
"How did I not think of something so simple?"
"Uh, actually, when I mentioned looting the women just now, I was going to say we should loot Ironstone Town too."
As soon as Robb finished speaking, the officers in the tent broke into another round of praise.
Listening to them heap such extravagant praise on something even a student from Hua Country could figure out, Robb couldn't help covering his face with his right hand. He dismissed the council and sent them off to rest.
"Theon, stay behind. I have something else for you to do."
As the officers began leaving the tent in twos and threes at the announcement that the meeting was over, Robb called Theon back.
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