Scheming

Garon stood up and watched Ned depart.

"Bran fell from the tower, but what about Theon?"

He pondered for a moment, and just as he was about to question the messenger, he saw Ned turning back.

Ned rode his horse up to Garon, his brows furrowed tightly. "Garon, I must return to Winterfell first. You are in charge of the camp for the time being."

"Inform Robb, he must take good care of the King and the Prince!"

Garon nodded. "Understood, I will arrange for someone to find Robb immediately!"

He paused for a moment, then added with concern, "Lord Ned, you need not worry too much. Bran is protected by the Old Gods; he will surely be safe!"

Hearing Garon's comfort, Ned forced a faint smile, then turned his horse around and galloped toward Winterfell.

Once Ned's figure disappeared from the camp, Garon narrowed his eyes and looked at the messenger.

"What exactly happened to Bran?"

"How could he have fallen from the high tower?"

The messenger had not witnessed the fall himself, so he shook his head. "Lord Garon, I do not know."

Garon frowned and asked again, "Then who was the first to discover Bran?"

"It was Hodor!"

The messenger recalled, "I heard others say that Hodor heard a wolf howling, went to check, and found young master Bran lying in a pool of blood."

"Hodor..."

In Garon's mind, the image of a simple-minded, seven-foot-tall man carrying a basket appeared. In the original story, he served as Bran's transport after the boy's spine was broken, and later even carried Bran on the journey to find the Three-Eyed Crow.

"Anything else?"

"Were there any traces of other people at the scene?"

Garon's eyes flickered slightly as he feigned indifference while pressing for more.

Unfortunately, the messenger had not been to the scene and knew nothing.

He shook his head. "Lord Garon, I was serving Maester Luwin at the Maester's Tower at the time. I only learned of young master Bran's fall when someone reported it."

"Then I was sent by Maester Luwin to notify Lord Ned."

Seeing this, Garon knew he would get nothing more out of him, so he waved his hand, signaling for him to go and rest.

He sat slowly in his chair, picked up a glass of wine from the table, took a sip, and pondered silently.

"Bran fell from the tower; was Theon involved?"

"If he was involved, what is he doing now?"

"Is he alive, or has he been killed?"

The richness of the wine spread through his mouth as Garon narrowed his eyes, carefully considering his next plan.

"If Theon dies as well, Winterfell will likely be turned upside down!"

If Ned's own son fell from a tower and his ward was murdered.

In such a situation, no matter how little Ned cared for political maneuvering, he would realize something was deeply wrong.

Furthermore, to provide an explanation to the Iron Islands, Ned and Robert would inevitably tear Winterfell apart.

By then, even if Jaime and Cersei didn't die, they would certainly be stripped of their defenses.

Perhaps!

It would even cause Ned to harbor extreme caution toward King's Landing and the Lannister family.

It is possible that when heading south, Ned would lead even more men to King's Landing than in the original plot.

If the Lion wants to swallow the Wolf, it will have to pay a much higher price!

"But if Theon is still alive, there are only two possibilities!"

"Either he never went to the Broken Tower or didn't run into Cersei and Jaime."

"Or, he reached some kind of agreement with the two of them..."

The first possibility had no impact on Garon; it would simply be a return to the original plot.

But if it were the second possibility...

Garon's lips curled into a playful smirk. "Then things become much more interesting!"

He set down his wine glass and thought earnestly, "Perhaps after I return to Winterfell, I can request that Ned allow me to investigate Bran's fall."

"If Theon was involved, he will show his true colors sooner or later."

Garon smiled and looked up toward the direction of Winterfell, as if he could already see Theon being forced out of the castle by his own hand.

"Soon, very soon!"

"The Iron Islands will not be able to hold back for long, and that is precisely my opportunity."

"Balon is old, Asha has obvious weaknesses, and Theon is useless; only Euron is my true mortal threat!"

"Especially since he has the Dragonbinder in his possession!"

Garon carefully recalled the plot; although the Dragonbinder had obvious drawbacks, its ability to control dragons was enough to make people ignore its negative effects.

This horn was one of the means he had envisioned for contending with the Dragon Queen.

"It's a pity I transmigrated too late, and Jorah Mormont has already fled."

"If I could have reached the Dragon Queen through him, perhaps it wouldn't have been so much trouble."

Garon sighed slightly, then his eyes filled with anticipation.

"But it's not too late now. As long as I keep the Iron Islands under my control, I can fully revitalize Deepwood Motte!"

"For now, I just need to wait a little longer..."

Just then, Jon, who had been following the Baratheon knights to haul the giant bear, returned to the camp.

As soon as he arrived at the camp, he hurried toward Garon without a moment's rest.

It seemed he had already learned about Bran falling from the tower.

"Garon!"

Sure enough, Jon rushed over, calling out from a distance: "Something happened to Bran?"

Garon composed himself, immediately stood up to meet him, and said in a deep voice: "Yes, the servant just reported that Bran fell from the high tower, and his life or death is unknown."

"Lord Ned has already returned now..."

But before Garon could finish his sentence, Jon turned around and walked away with an anxious face.

Garon hurriedly stopped him, "Hey, where are you going?"

Jon shook off Garon's hand and said anxiously: "Move aside, I'm going back to see Bran!"

But Garon did not move aside, instead shaking his head and saying: "Calm down, Jon. You won't be able to see Bran even if you go back now!"

"Maester Luwin is treating him, and Lady Catelyn will be by his side every step of the way; you won't even be able to get through the bedroom door!"

Jon froze in place instantly.

He knew Garon was right; Lady Catelyn had never liked him.

If he went to visit, it would only make Catelyn, who was already worried about Bran, despise him even more.

But Jon and Bran were as close as biological brothers; how could he just stand by and do nothing?

"Garon, are you just going to let me wait here like a fool!"

"I... whenever I think of Bran... I..."

Jon's voice choked with sobs, his heart filled with terror, fearing that he would hear news of Bran's death upon returning to Winterfell.

Garon knew that Jon valued emotions above all else, so he stepped forward to comfort him: "Don't worry, Bran is protected by the Old Gods; he will definitely be fine!"

But Jon remained in a state of sorrow and grief.

Seeing him like this, Garon had no choice but to think of other ways to divert his attention.

"Jon, Robb is still hunting in the Wolfswood and doesn't know about Bran's situation yet."

"My strength hasn't recovered yet, so I can't go into the Wolfswood to find him."

"Take a few men to find Robb, inform him of this as soon as possible, and have him return quickly."

Jon was stunned, and after a moment of hesitation, he agreed.

He turned and left in silence, preparing to call a few Winterfell soldiers to head into the Wolfswood together to find Robb.

Garon watched Jon's retreating figure as he rode away and couldn't help but think.

"If Jon is like this, I'm afraid Robb will be just as anxious and worried when he returns later."

"I still have to come up with a narrative to steady Robb."

The King had not yet left; if the Starks were to leave one after another, it would only make others think the Starks did not respect the King.

It would be one thing if Ned had a good relationship with the King.

But if even Robb left, the Starks would truly be unable to clear their name.

Now that Garon and the Starks were in the same boat, he had to convince Robb to stay no matter what.