Melisandre's beautiful eyes widened slightly. Her gaze immediately shifted from the dripping scarlet blood to Gryn. Her parted red lips moved as if in a whisper, yet also as if delivering a verdict. "The blood of mortals."
Her nostrils twitched. "Beneath the stench is a trace of an ancient... aura."
"I had thought..."
With a sigh, Gryn spoke with undisguised disappointment. "Clearly, you are merely one of the creatures that has mastered mysterious powers. Perhaps you can glimpse certain secrets, but you are not suited to appear beneath the sun."
The Three-Eyed Crow seemed unable to feel the pain in his palm. His slashed hand slowly curled, and his voice remained utterly flat. "I am the protector of all living beings in this world—the King of the Seven Kingdoms—I am the observer of the paths of all beings... and a bystander to fate... The White Walkers will drag this world into an eternal Long Night—the White Walkers are the common enemy of all living beings..."
As he spoke, his voice suddenly took on the clear quality of a child's. "I am Bran Stark—abandoned by fate, then reclaimed—the Long Night is coming—the previous Three-Eyed Crow awakened my talent as a Greenseer—before his death, he passed all his abilities and memories on to me—linking the past and the future—I am the new Three-Eyed Crow..."
His hollow blue eyes lifted and fixed upon Gryn. "Gryn I."
Gryn ignored the Three-Eyed Crow's account. After giving him a brief appraisal, he asked directly, "Whether you are Ned's son or the Three-Eyed Crow, I want to know... can you die as well?"
A long silence followed.
The Three-Eyed Crow slowly spoke. "The Night's King's cold blade... has always pursued my trail... He will not give up... nor will he ever let me live... I have one