A Son for a Son
The military camps around Riverrun shrank rapidly, and the North troops began to leave in batches, undoubtedly relieving the fortress, which was surrounded by the the Riverlands, of a huge burden.
Even the city walls seemed to have been stripped of their armor, with the number of flags hanging rapidly decreasing. Even including the House Tully's fish flags, only a handful remained.
Apart from Arya, who was clamoring to stay and fight alongside Jon in the Westerlands, almost everyone wanted to hurry back and sit by a warm fireplace with their families.
Even ordinary soldiers want to go back to their own little nest.
The shadow of war dissipated further, and the country, which had been plunged into chaos by Robert's death, seemed to finally be showing signs of returning to normalcy.
Meanwhile, Jon's army had only just set off from King's Landing's Landing and would need at least half a month to assemble. As for Highgarden's 10,000-strong army, even if they were to directly approach Golden Tooth, it would still take them quite some time.
Jon finally had a rare period of leisure, and during this time, he sought out the infamous Kingslayer, Jaime Lannister.
"Casterly Rock will never fall, you can't take Casterly Rock!" In the dungeon, the emaciated man, who looked like a vagrant, spoke, his face barely visible even under the lantern.
Jon, inhaling the damp air of the dungeon, remembered how dashing Jaime had been when they first met in Winterfell. Now, his cheeks were sunken, and his muscles had atrophied considerably.
Now, upon closer inspection, Jaime not only has a stubble beard, but his blond hair has also lost its luster, and there are even straws stuck in it harboring fleas.
No one could have imagined that the man before them was Jaime Lannister, a former Kingsguard who had been personally trained by Arthur Dayne, the Sword of the Morning.
He was captured almost at the very beginning of the war and has been imprisoned ever since.
Because of Robb's coronation as king, Jon had come and gone in a hurry and hadn't seen Jaime, who had been locked up in the dungeon. Now, with some free time, he finally had the chance to see him.
The Wall is currently short-handed and desperately needs a good man like Jaime.
Jon intends to persuade him to stay on the Wall, at least for this timeline, as his right hand is still intact and won't cause his martial arts skills to permanently decline.
After a period of rest and training, he will once again be a first-rate swordsman in Westeros.
"Is that all you're telling me? I protected your sister, and you and her child. If I hadn't intervened, Cersei would have drunk poison and committed suicide, Myrcella and Tommen probably wouldn't have survived to adulthood. Shouldn't you say a few words of thanks?" Jon tried to get closer to the cage bars, but was deterred by the smell inside.
After listening to Jon's explanation, Jaime hesitated for a long time before finally speaking, "Thank you, but I still advise you not to set your sights on Casterly Rock. Casterly Rock will never—"
"Alright, alright, have you been in the dungeon too long? Has your language ability deteriorated?" Jon interrupted him, then brought up the Wall. "Jaime, the reason I came to you is because of the Wall. I saw Wights, or White Walkers, or White Ghost, whatever you've heard about in legends, on the Wall."
"Are you making fun of me?" Jaime clearly didn't believe Jon's words. After all, this man had killed his son Joffrey and his beloved Kevan on the battlefield.
"I'd rather die than go to a garbage dump like the Wall!" Jaime said resolutely, emphasizing the word "garbage."
In his view, what difference was there between freezing himself in the Wall and being dead? Jon remembered Tyrion saying that his Jaime wasn't very bright, but he didn't expect him to be this dim-witted.
He brought up Cersei and the two children at the beginning to let him know that there were still things in this world worth caring about, but he didn't seem to make any connection to them.
"What about Cersei? Myrcella? Tommen? If you can do something good on the Wall, maybe they'll be better off. But if you die, Cersei won't have a single thought left. She won't even know how to heat a meal, and she might end up selling her body. As for those two children, they won't even get to be Varys's Little Birds— "
"Stop talking!" Jaime cried out, as if pricked by a needle. "I'll go to the Wall then!"
Provoked by Jon's words, Jaime's almost rusty brain seemed to start working again. He opened his mouth again, but was interrupted by Jon.
"I know what you're going to say, Bran, right? I told Cersei to keep it a secret, and I won't tell Catelyn or anyone else, but Bran is crippled because of you. Myrcella will take care of him for the rest of his life. A Lannister Always Pays His Debts, right?"
Jaime wanted to say something more, but after thinking about it, he nodded.
Having Myrcella serve Bran at least means you don't have to worry about her being bullied. Although the Lannister and Stark have become enemies, the Stark are still trustworthy and at least they won't take their anger out on the children.
After explaining everything, Jon prepared to leave, but Jaime spoke up again, saying, "You can't take Casterly Rock."
"Jaime, you personally killed Aerys, and as a member of the Kingsguard no less. Even the Dragon King has vanished without a trace, let alone your family hiding in the rocks. Here's what I'll do: after I take Casterly Rock, I won't exterminate the Lannister. As for what I do, that's none of your business. Just leave tomorrow with the remaining North army. Besides, if you really think I can't take Casterly Rock, why keep emphasizing it?"
In the end, Jaime said nothing more; with his limited understanding, he simply couldn't fathom how Jon would conquer Casterly Rock.
Finally, Jon spoke up, "Is there anything you'd like to say to Cersei? I can pass a message on to Ser Davos."
Robb has relinquished his crown, and Jaime has also left the Riverlands with the last of the North armies.
Jon originally intended for Robb to write a warrant to release Sam from his oath, so that he would leave the Wall and stay in Winterfell until Jon conquered Casterly Rock and then come to help him. Jon even wanted Robb to release Aemon Targaryen's oath as well.
But after careful consideration, he gave up. Sam had gradually found his place and value on the Wall.
The reason Maester Aemon was so excited to leave the Wall to help Daenerys after hearing about Daenerys resurrection in Slaver's Bay was because they were both Targaryen.
Jon is nothing yet, and it's impossible for him to reveal his true identity. If he were to do so, the two might not appreciate it and he would end up in an awkward situation.
Therefore, Jon planned to secretly bring Maester Aemon to live in Casterly Rock after his territory was consolidated, in case he couldn't find a way to hatch dragons and prove his bloodline. But with Aemon as an intermediary, it would be easier for him to seek an alliance with Daenerys.