Chapter Summaries

After dying in his original world, Li Qing awoke as Suleiman, the sole surviving heir of the impoverished House Foulkeep in Westeros. He learned that his family had been wiped out in the Greyjoy Rebellion and faced the news of their deaths as he began recovering.

• Li Qing remembered being killed by a falling meteor and inherited the memories of Suleiman, a petty knight in the service of House Deddings.
• Suleiman recalled how Ser Blei, Lorent, Beren, and most of their men died fighting the Ironborn during the Greyjoy Rebellion.
• The survivors carried word of the family’s deaths to Foulkeep, and Suleiman’s mother leaped from the tower in despair.
• Suleiman remembered House Foulkeep’s humble origins as trusted servants to the Deddings lords and its motto, “Grace Everlasting.”
• Old Nicken told Suleiman he had been unconscious for a month, and Suleiman acknowledged that his father, brothers, and mother were dead.

Suleiman forgave two farmers who had mistakenly reported his death and appointed them to guard him and Foulkeep. Alone afterward, he considered the wars he expected to devastate the Riverlands and resolved to use his memories and knowledge of the future to find a way to survive.

• Old Nicken brought the two frightened farmers before Suleiman, and they begged him to forgive them for delivering the mistaken report that led to Lady Suleiman's death.
• Suleiman spared the farmers, explaining that punishing them would not bring back the dead or help their families.
• Suleiman declared that the farmers would serve as guards for him and Foulkeep, and Old Nicken took them to find armor and weapons.
• Alone in his room, Suleiman thought about the Greyjoy Rebellion and the greater war he expected to engulf the Riverlands in ten years.
• Suleiman considered his lack of allies and resources, then resolved that his memories and knowledge of the future could help him find a way forward.

Suleiman learned that his lands had only thirty people, dwindling food supplies, and no reserves, then planned to seek formal recognition as Knight of Foulkeep. A woman named Hark broke down after losing her husband at Seaguard, and Suleiman was left facing her family’s desperate situation.

• Suleiman questioned Old Nicken about the people and resources on his lands and learned that only around thirty remained and the granaries were nearly empty.
• Old Nicken explained that Suleiman needed Lord Balon Deddings’s recognition and investiture to formally become Knight of Foulkeep, and Suleiman planned to visit Deddings Castle when he recovered.
• Suleiman and his companions went outside after hearing a woman’s anguished cries and found her sobbing beneath a tree.
• Lushen told Suleiman that the woman was Hark, whose husband Old Hack had died at Seaguard, leaving her and their two children without support.
• Suleiman stood silently as Hark continued to sob in the mud.

Suleiman spared a starving peasant woman and gave her family grain and coins, then ordered aid for the families of those who died fighting for House Foulkeep. He began planning to build loyalty among his people by ensuring they would not starve under his care.

• Suleiman learned that the peasant woman’s husband, Old Hack, had died at Seaguard and that she feared her children would starve.
• Suleiman promised not to punish the woman and ordered Steward Niken to give her two sacks of grain and three coppers.
• After the woman thanked him and left, Suleiman told Steward Niken to inventory House Foulkeep’s remaining supplies and identify the families of peasants killed at Seaguard.
• Suleiman ordered Lushen and Roslyn to help distribute compensation and punish anyone who stole from or mistreated the bereaved families.
• Suleiman said he wanted to calculate how much food and money was needed to keep those families from starving.

Suleiman discovered that his body had become unusually quick, coordinated, and perceptive after his transmigration, and he tested those abilities with his guards. After easily defeating Lushen and Roslyn in a spar, he concluded that transmigration had strengthened his body.

• Suleiman sent Lushen and Roslyn to escort the farmwife home and ordered them to spread his law against mistreating House Foulkeep's former servants.
• Suleiman practiced with a rusty longsword and noticed his movements felt effortless while his senses had become sharper.
• Lushen and Roslyn described Suleiman's swordplay as graceful but lacking power, prompting him to ask Lushen to spar.
• Suleiman dodged Lushen's attack, circled behind him, and knocked him into the mud with a light push.
• Suleiman faced Lushen and Roslyn together, evaded their attacks, and left both guards exhausted in the mud.
• Suleiman recognized that his body and mind had been strengthened by his transmigration and wondered if it was his special ability.

After discovering that House Foulkeep had no food or money left, Suleiman decided to travel to Deddings Town to ask the lady of the house for help. Lushen and Roslyn swore to follow him even into battle, and Suleiman reassured them that they would not die so easily.

• Suleiman learned from Old Nicken that the granary held only enough food for four people for seven days and the treasury was empty because he had given everything to the families of farmers killed in battle.
• Suleiman told Old Nicken he would go to Deddings Town to ask the lady of the house for help, leaving the steward to manage Foulkeep and its remaining subjects.
• Suleiman summoned Lushen and Roslyn and ordered them to accompany him to Deddings Town, warning that Lord Balon Dating might send them to fight the Ironborn at Seaguard.
• Lushen and Roslyn knelt and vowed to follow Suleiman and protect him, even if they died in battle.
• Suleiman helped the guards up and told them that following him would not mean they would die so easily.

Suleiman inspected his impoverished wetland village before leaving for Deddings Town and saw how grateful its people were for the aid he had given the families of fallen soldiers. He left for the tower convinced the villagers would remain loyal while he was away.

• Suleiman toured his muddy, impoverished lands with Old Nicken, Lushen, and Roslyn, and learned that the meager harvest was nearly their only source of income.
• Lushen broke up a fight between children who were arguing over who got to play the Ironborn and who could be Lord Suleiman’s soldier.
• Old Hack’s wife thanked Suleiman for supporting her family after her husband’s death, and the village gathered to kneel and pray for him.
• Suleiman reflected that he had spared the fallen soldiers’ families from losing their land or being forced into marriages, unlike other lords.
• Suleiman turned back toward the tower with Old Nicken, Lushen, and Roslyn, believing his people would cause no trouble during his absence.

Suleiman Foulkeep joined Raymun Darry’s company on its way to Seaguard after nearly starving during his journey with Lushen and Roslyn. He traveled with the soldiers and hoped the food in Deddings Town would be better, while Raymun regarded him as a disgrace to the nobility.

• Raymun Darry studied Suleiman Foulkeep and his two shabby guards, puzzled by the young nobleman’s appearance and conduct.
• Suleiman recalled leaving most of Foulkeep’s supplies behind for Old Nicken and walking until he and his guards ran out of food.
• Suleiman introduced himself to Raymun Darry as Foulkeep’s sole heir, and Raymun gave him a horse and temporary shelter with the company.
• Suleiman ate black bread and thin broth alongside Darry’s soldiers, who welcomed him and praised Lord Deddings.
• Suleiman told the soldiers he wondered whether the food in Deddings Town would taste better, and they assured him it would.

Raymun Darry faced a tense dispute among his vassals over the slow march, then heard Ser Ronald explain House Darry’s secret Targaryen loyalties and introduce Suleiman of Foulkeep. Curious about the young knight, Raymun summoned him, leaving Suleiman nervously on his way to the lord’s tent.

• Darry’s vassals argued that the army should march sooner, and Ser Joseth accused House Darry of needing to prove its loyalty to King Robert.
• Ser Ronald ended the meeting before Raymun Darry’s loyal soldiers could act against Joseth, then warned Raymun that House Darry’s Targaryen sympathies and aid to the young dragons needed to stay concealed.
• Ser Ronald told Raymun that Suleiman of Foulkeep had fought the Ironborn and lost his father and two elder brothers, which stirred Raymun’s interest.
• Raymun ordered Ser Ronald to summon Suleiman, and a Darry soldier delivered the message while Suleiman queued for food.
• Suleiman worried that Raymun had discovered his food-taking, urged Lushen and Roslyn to eat more, and anxiously headed for the lord’s tent.

Suleiman met with Raymun Darry and Ser Ronald, who asked for his assessment of Darry’s soldiers against the Ironborn. He challenged their confidence by questioning whether the soldiers understood what they were fighting for, then pressed Ronald to defend his claim.

• Raymun Darry asked Suleiman about his father and brothers, and Suleiman explained that his family had sworn to answer their liege’s call to war.
• Ser Ronald asked Suleiman to compare Darry’s soldiers with the Ironborn, and Suleiman first offered an exaggerated boast before bluntly describing Darry’s men as badly outnumbered.
• Ser Ronald angrily rejected Suleiman’s assessment, but Raymun ordered him to let Suleiman explain.
• Suleiman asked how many soldiers Darry had and how many knew why they were fighting; Ronald claimed they were all willing to die for House Darry.
• Suleiman questioned Ronald’s claim with, “Really, Lord Ronald?”

Suleiman warned Lord Raymun Darry and Ser Ronald that Darry’s inexperienced levies were vulnerable to the Ironborn’s reckless, chaotic fighting and advised avoiding close combat. Raymun ordered better scouting and camp defenses, then asked Suleiman and his guards to teach the soldiers what they knew about fighting the Ironborn.

• Suleiman recounted how Ironborn raiders overwhelmed a larger, orderly force at Seagard by charging into its ranks and fighting savagely.
• Suleiman explained that Darry’s conscripted farmers and townsfolk feared for their lives and families, unlike the Ironborn, who sought death in battle and lived by plunder.
• Raymun Darry asked Suleiman what the army should do, and Suleiman advised keeping the Ironborn from turning the fight into a chaotic melee and choosing favorable terrain if battle could not be avoided.
• Raymun ordered Ser Ronald to increase reconnaissance near coasts and rivers and to choose campsites with strong defenses.
• Raymun thanked Suleiman and asked him and his two guards to share their Ironborn combat experience with the soldiers; Suleiman asked whether they would be paid, and Raymun agreed.

After Joseth’s squires brutally beat Lushen and Roslyn, Suleiman challenged Joseth and his squires to a three-on-three Trial by Combat to the death. Joseth accepted, leaving the fight set for the next day in the Darry camp.

• Lushen and Roslyn warned the Darry soldiers that the Ironborn were fearless and brutal, but Joseth insulted them and Suleiman.
• Joseth ordered his squires Marwyn and Tobias to attack Lushen and Roslyn, who were badly beaten while the soldiers watched.
• Suleiman arrived, checked his guards’ injuries, and accused Joseth of insulting his family and breaking the laws of the Seven Kingdoms.
• Suleiman declared a three-on-three Trial by Combat for the next day, naming himself and his guards as his side and Joseth and his squires as the opponents.
• Ser Joseth Burke accepted the challenge and announced that he would face Suleiman and his farmers.

Suleiman refused Ser Ronald and Lord Raymun Darry’s offer to settle the dispute, choosing to face Joseth in a Trial by Combat. After receiving a Myr sword, he encouraged Lushen and Roslyn to stand up to those who bullied House Foulkeep, and declared they would prove themselves in the duel.

• Ser Ronald urged Suleiman to accept compensation and avoid fighting Joseth, but Suleiman refused to back down.
• Lord Raymun Darry gave Suleiman a fine Myr sword and offered to help him withdraw before the Trial by Combat began.
• Suleiman visited the injured Lushen and Roslyn, who said they were not afraid to fight but regretted failing him.
• Suleiman told Lushen and Roslyn that they should not let others mistake their kindness for weakness and must defend House Foulkeep.
• Suleiman assured them they were not going to their deaths and would show everyone not to mess with House Foulkeep.

Lord Suleiman faced Ser Joseth in a Trial by Combat at Darry Castle and defeated him with brutal precision. Suleiman left Joseth alive in agony and declared that anyone who insulted him or House Foulkeep would receive no mercy.

• Ser Ronald urged Suleiman to withdraw from the Trial by Combat, but Suleiman refused.
• Ser Joseth charged at Suleiman, who severed both of Joseth's wrists, blinded him, cut the tendons behind his knees, and pinned him to the ground.
• Suleiman signaled Lushen and Roslyn to fight Joseth's squires, and both men killed their opponents despite their pleas for mercy.
• Suleiman pulled his sword from Joseth's shoulder but refused to grant him a quick death.
• Suleiman warned the silent crowd that those who insulted him or House Foulkeep would face endless pain and torment.

Suleiman left Darry with Lushen and Roslyn after maiming Ser Joseth in a Trial by Combat and refusing to grant him a merciful death. Lord Raymun Darry supported Suleiman’s defense of House Foulkeep and equipped the three travelers, who rode away with Darry’s nobles still furious and fearful of him.

• Suleiman recalled how he defeated Ser Joseth, leaving him blinded, crippled, and suffering after rejecting Ser Ronald’s plea to end his pain.
• Suleiman explained that his choice was his judgment as victor and a warning to anyone who insulted him or House Foulkeep.
• Lord Raymun Darry eventually killed the badly injured Ser Ciseth, while the camp’s soldiers and nobles kept their distance from Suleiman and his companions.
• Suleiman apologized to Lord Raymun for the hostility his actions had caused, but Lord Raymun said he had rightly defended his family’s honor.
• Lord Raymun gave Suleiman, Lushen, and Roslyn armor, swords, and horses, and promised that Darry’s gates would remain open to Suleiman.
• Suleiman, Lushen, and Roslyn rode along the Kingsroad, dressed and armed far better than before.

Suleiman arrived at Deddings Town and appealed to Lady Roslin for aid, presenting himself as a grieving and impoverished heir. Lady Roslin seemed ready to help, but urgent military news interrupted their meeting and left Suleiman waiting for her decision.

• Suleiman, Lushen, and Roslyn reached Deddings Town, where guards verified their identities and escorted them to Lady Roslin.
• Lady Roslin asked Suleiman whether he had come to claim his family title, and he tearfully described his relatives’ deaths and Foulkeep’s poverty.
• Suleiman asked Lady Roslin for aid, and she praised his compassion after learning he had given food and money to his fallen subjects’ families.
• A guard delivered urgent military news, prompting Lady Roslin to postpone her decision and tell Suleiman to wait in the city.
• Suleiman left with Lushen and Roslyn, uncertain what the military message contained and whether Lady Roslin would still help him.

Suleiman paid Lushen and Roslyn wages for their service, insisting that House Foulkeep soldiers deserved rewards for their work. Meanwhile, Lady Roslin and Maester Walder faced a Mountain Clan invasion and decided to send Suleiman with three hundred soldiers to defend Valleydeep Town.

• Suleiman gave Lushen and Roslyn wages earned for helping train Lord Raymun Darry’s soldiers, and persuaded them to accept the money for their families.
• Lushen and Roslyn swore to serve Suleiman, moved by his recognition of their efforts.
• Maester Walder told Lady Roslin that more than a thousand Mountain Clans raiders had descended into House Deddings’ lands and that fewer than four hundred defenders remained.
• Maester Walder proposed sending three hundred soldiers under Suleiman’s command, using the mission to answer the people’s pleas while putting Suleiman’s leadership to the test.
• Lady Roslin ordered three hundred soldiers sent to reinforce Valleydeep Town and called for Suleiman.

Lady Roslin summoned Suleiman to lead an inexperienced force toward Valleydeep Town as Mountain Clan raiders threatened House Deddings’ lands. Suleiman accepted her offer of war spoils, expanded lands, and authority to raise soldiers, seeing the mission as a chance to build his power.

• Lady Roslin told Suleiman that the Black Ears, Burned Men, and Stone Crows had joined forces and were raiding House Deddings’ lands with more than a thousand Wildlings.
• Lady Roslin asked Suleiman to lead over three hundred newly conscripted farmers and townsfolk to Valleydeep Town rather than attack the Mountain Clans.
• Lady Roslin promised Suleiman all his spoils, expanded lands, and authority to conscript soldiers throughout House Deddings’ lands.
• Suleiman accepted the task and asked for information about his recruits, their equipment, and supplies.
• Suleiman left the Lord’s Hall with Lushen and Roslyn, determined to use the opportunity to build his strength.

Suleiman tried to turn three hundred poorly equipped conscripts into a force that could march in formation, but a veteran soldier challenged his authority. The chapter ended with Suleiman watching to see how Lushen would respond.

• Suleiman recalled persuading Lady Roslin to provide the conscripts with equipment after finding them armed with rusty tools and clubs.
• Suleiman ordered the conscripts into two squads and put Lushen and Roslyn in charge of forming them up.
• The conscripts began forming ranks, and Suleiman felt briefly relieved.
• A burly soldier from Deddings Town challenged Lushen, boasting of his experience and mocking him as a farmer.
• Suleiman held back as the soldier taunted Lushen and demanded that he get lost.

Lushen executed Rolf for defying Suleiman’s military order, then used the killing to bring the troops into formation. Suleiman praised Lushen and Roslyn as trusted soldiers of House Foulkeep, leaving them encouraged to take on greater responsibilities.

• Rolf of Deddings Town mocked Lushen and refused to obey Suleiman’s order, so Lushen beheaded him in front of the troops.
• Lushen declared that Rolf had been executed for disobeying Suleiman and ordered the soldiers to form a square formation.
• The frightened troops fell into formation, and Suleiman felt relieved to see the disorder end.
• Lushen and Roslyn knelt before Suleiman, and Lushen admitted killing Rolf and explained why he had done it.
• Suleiman approved Lushen’s actions, helped him rise, and told Lushen and Roslyn that he trusted them to take on greater duties for House Foulkeep.