The ale in the wineskin had run dry, and stubborn Arya finally succumbed to sleepiness. Curled up in a wooden chair, her breathing gradually deepened.
After carrying the sleeping Little Wolf Girl away, Ser Brienne returned to the king's tent with a sealed letter that a messenger from Winterfell had just delivered in hand.
"Your Grace, it is a letter from Queen Daenerys."
Gryn's brow lifted slightly. He accepted the tightly rolled letter and opened it. As he read that... Dany had once again been plagued by nightmares, his eyes darkened.
The Night's King, or the Three-Eyed Crow?
The captain of the Queensguard, Brienne of Tarth, who faithfully carried out her duties, had long been instinctively sensitive to Gryn's emotional shifts. After a pause, she asked, "Your Grace, is there anything I can do for you?"
Putting away the letter, Gryn did not choose to hide it. "White Walkers have begun haunting Dany's dreams again. It started not long after we left King's Landing."
Ser Brienne knew that Daenerys had suffered from this before. Her thick lips moved. "The queen is carrying your child. Over time, it may..."
After hesitating, she said directly, "...bring danger. The queen is strong-willed, but she still needs your protection."
Gryn's fingertips tapped against the chair's armrest, producing dull thuds. Then he slowly nodded. "That is precisely the outcome 'he' or 'they' want."
"They?"
Soon, Ser Brienne's clear blue eyes trembled. "Could it be... you mean... someone is secretly targeting the queen of the Seven Kingdoms?!"
After a pause, Gryn nodded faintly at first, then gently shook his head. "Not someone."
He added, "Perhaps 'they' have also set their sights on Dany's three dragons."
At those words, Brienne's large hand tightened around her sword hilt. "Your Grace, are 'they' something that can be killed?"
A