Divergent Views, Striking Similarities, Different Rule, Equal Sin

Beggar Bana's figure disappeared at the end of the road.

Suleiman reined in his horse and watched him go without looking back.

"Let's go."

He spoke flatly and turned his horse around.

The thousand-odd cavalrymen behind him followed in silence, their hooves striking the dirt road with dull thuds.

The army marched on, raising clouds of dust.

The fields lining the road lay barren, and nine out of ten homes in the villages stood empty.

The scars left by the Ironborn war were like ugly wounds etched across this land.

Before those wounds could heal, war had broken out once more.

Suleiman turned a blind eye to it all.

His gaze remained fixed ahead, his young face carrying a hardness that did not match his age.

Nader Shah.

The name echoed in his mind.

Just as his thoughts churned, a scout came galloping back from ahead.

"My lord!"

The rider pulled up before him, his expression strange.

"A group of people is blocking the road ahead."

Suleiman frowned slightly. "Who are they?"

"A priest...

...and... and a group of Riverlands orphans."

The rider sounded hesitant.

"They're standing in the middle of the road, singing... singing."

Suleiman said nothing. He merely tapped his saddle lightly with his whip.

He urged his warhorse forward and rode toward the front of the column.

Soon, he saw the sight the scout had described.

A tall, gaunt priest stood barefoot in the middle of the road, leaning on a crude wooden staff.

Behind him followed several dozen ragged children. The oldest were no more than ten, while the youngest still needed to be supported.

They were like a pack of abandoned little animals, their eyes filled with terror and numbness.

A low, strange chant drifted from them, scattering in the wind.

The song had no