Wolf Hour-Dragonbone Passage

The secret passage was dark and damp, the thick darkness seeming to engulf even the flames of a torch.

The soldiers almost had to put a hand on the shoulder of the soldier in front of them to move forward.

The guide was just a little boy who was no more than ten years old.

Beside the little boy was a snow-white Direwolf, as tall as his shoulder. The little boy felt as if he could even feel the Direwolf's moist nose and warm breath through the back of his neck.

Harrion, who was leading the group, suddenly spoke up in a low voice, "Old and New Gods, I feel like I'm crawling inside a viper's belly."

"There is indeed a large swarm of venomous snakes lurking beneath the Red Keep," Jon Snow, dressed as an ordinary soldier, said.

Suddenly, everyone felt the torches in their hands brighten dramatically, and the flames seemed to leap up significantly. Previously, the soldiers could only see each other's outlines, but now they could almost clearly see each other's facial features.

Jon suddenly remembered the day he encountered the Sheepstealer's skeleton on Hidden Fire Peak.

The torches burned even brighter as they approached the dragon's remains! It seemed that the dragon's skeleton was stored nearby.

The soldiers had no idea what was going on and stared wide-eyed. Fortunately, they all had wooden sticks in their mouths, so they only let out gasps from their throats. Even Harrion was startled.

"Keep your voice down!" Jon said to Harrion. "The torches will burn brighter as they get closer to the dragon skeletons. We should be directly beneath the Red Keep."

"Does that mean we'll be able to get into the Red Keep soon?" Harrion asked, leaning his massive head close to Jon's and suppressing his voice.

"That's right, we should be moving upwards now. Send a few more people to carry the battering ram, and be careful not to slip!"

"Yes, sir!" Harrion responded, then turned around and relayed the order to the soldiers behind him, who then passed it on in a chain.

"Hold the battering ram ready, prepare to attack!"

"Hold the battering ram ready, prepare to attack!"

"Shoulder the battering ram, prepare to attack!"

The orders echoed among the soldiers, and the thought of soon being able to chop the Usurper King to pieces filled Harrion with excitement as he bit his cheek.

He had already heard that the current king was the queen and the Lord Commander of the Kingsguard, who was Tywin's bastard son.

Jaime killed his two brothers on the battlefield, so he must kill his son to avenge his brothers!

Thinking of this, Harrion looked at Jon again. He was confident of victory, because under Jon's leadership, they had never failed.

It's always a journey from one victory to another.

As Harrion was excitedly thinking this, the marching column suddenly stopped.

The little boy who was leading the way came to his side and said, "Sir, the exit is just ahead. The place you will go out to is the stables. Maegor's Holdfast is to the southwest of the stables."

Harrion gave a wink to the attendant beside him, and the guard placed a large hand on the little boy's shoulder and led him aside.

Soon, Jon reached the front and poked his head out of the stable. From the nearby stables, he could faintly hear the snorting of horses. There was also a house to the west, but this "house" had wheels; it was actually Cersei's Royal Carriage.

Seeing Jon retreat back into the secret passage, Harrion asked, "Jon, what do we do next?"

Jon has just gained a basic understanding of the defenses Red Keep through the Gods' Eye.

Most of the soldiers were stationed on the outer walls and arrow towers.

Although Jon couldn't ascertain the exact number of people due to the walls and fortresses, it was roughly the same as Varys's estimate of around six hundred.

"Forget everything else, surround Maegor's Holdfast! Use battering rams to break down the gates! Find Cersei and Joffrey, and victory will be ours!"

"Um!"

Like a decapitation strike, a coup d'état requires swiftness and decisiveness; one must not covet any objective other than the assassination of the enemy leader.

On the other side, the black White Wolf Banner atop the city wall had blended into the darkness of the night, with only the white Direwolf on the banner still leaping about in mid-air.

"What time is it now?" Beric Dondarrion asked, holding up his binoculars.

"It's Owl's Hour," Thoros replied, glancing at the sky.

Owl's Hour was the Westeros way of dividing nighttime.

These are the Eel's Hour, the Nightingale's Hour, the Bat's Hour, Owl's Hour.

Bat's Hour night when it's darkest, Owl's Hour at night when most people are asleep.

"Once that old bastard Tywin makes a move, Thoros, you go make sure our traps detonate in time. I'll hold them off here."

"Okay, then you must."

As a missionary, Thoros himself was not good at fighting.

On the contrary, they are more familiar with the temperament of those Wildfire.

Their Wildfire traps were also an important part of the plan.

Beric Dondarrion's defenses were merely a ploy to lure more Lannister troops into attacking the city.

As Thoros left, Beric Dondarrion looked toward the Red Keep.

Although he trusted Jon about the secret passage, he still felt somewhat uncertain.

Although he didn't know Varys well, he didn't have a good impression of him either.

I still can't understand why he would cooperate with Jon.

Even without his secret passage, the food supplies in Red Keep should be plentiful, enough to last at least a few months.

Although he didn't know the situation at the Red Keep, Beric Dondarrion knew that Jon Snow was probably about to enter the Red Keep.

All he could do was pray that Jon would succeed in taking Joffrey's head.

"My lord, Tyrell has launched an attack," a servant reported.

"Understood." Beric Dondarrion's expression was grave.

Jon had told him that Tyrell's army was only launching a feint to draw attention away from Tywin's forces; the real main attack was aimed at Tywin's side.

The walls cannot be lost too early, or Tywin will become suspicious.

Ideally, you should persist for as long as you can.

Beric Dondarrion looked at the soldiers beside him from the North, the Riverlands, and the clans and tribes.

He knew that many people would be sacrificed tonight in order to lure Tywin into the trap.

He himself was prepared to sacrifice himself.

Everything is for that one goal—to bring the chaotic country back on track!

========

"Tonight is the end for your illegitimate brother."

Sansa looked at the face that she had been so infatuated with not long ago, and felt only fear and disgust.

Joffrey, holding a crossbow, circled around Sansa, excitedly describing how he planned to execute Jon.

What do you think of me sticking his head next to your father's?

Or should we link the two of them together? Hahaha~

Joffrey grinned smugly, his shadow cast on the ceiling above him like a menacing monster.

In the past, Sansa would probably have been terrified, but now she felt a surge of courage rising in her chest.

She looked at Joffrey with her slightly sunken blue eyes and retorted, "My brothers are invincible!"

"What did you say!"

Seeing that Sansa dared to talk back, Joffrey immediately aimed his crossbow at Sansa.

His actions startled Cersei, who was standing nearby.

Cersei jumped to her feet, immediately warning, "Joffrey! Your younger siblings are still in the hands of her bastard brother!"

"She dares to defy me!" Joffrey turned to look at Cersei, but the crossbow in his hand was still pointed at Sansa.

"You are the King, Your Majesty. Punishing a little girl does not reflect your authority." A soft voice rang out; it was Varys.

He nodded slightly to Cersei, then went to Joffrey and began to gently persuade him.

Do you remember the late king? As a king, he would never stoop to angering such a young girl.

"You have the blood of both a lion and a stag in your veins, what is this little offense?"

After Varys stroked his hair gently, Joffrey finally put down the crossbow in his hand.

He saw Cersei beside him also breathe a sigh of relief.

Having dealt with the conflict, Varys returned to the window.

What Cersei and her son didn't know was that even the news of Tywin's planned siege was deliberately leaked to them by Jon through Varys.

Even if they can't escape, it will be a hassle to find them if they hide in various places. Only in this way can we keep them obediently in the castle.

Thinking of Jon's words of advice, Varys couldn't help but ponder the young man who had only recently come of age.

Suddenly, a somewhat absurd thought popped into my head: Would Jon personally attack the Red Keep?

Judging from Jon's previously revealed do-or-die attitude, he probably will.

After all, he revealed that if he succeeded in his revenge, he would return to the Wall.

If revenge fails, then so be it, I'll just die.

This kind of tough-guy attitude left Varys somewhat at a loss.

But his previous displays of cunning indicate that he is not a simple person.

His ability to seize King's Landing first shows that he foresaw early on the possibility of an alliance House Tyrell and the Lannister.

Varys also saw soldiers from the Dreadfort among Jon's army.

As far as he knew, Roose Bolton was the Commander-in-Chief of the East Road Army in the North.

Jon took his loyal soldiers with him, and it's not hard to guess what happened behind that.

Varys did not want Jon to come to the Red Keep.

If he really comes, then it means that all he cares about is revenge.

If he wants to secure his position in Stannis's new regime through him, he may have to pay an even greater price.

If he doesn't come, it means that Jon's previous statement about returning to the Wall after his revenge was just a cover; he still wants to be knighted and granted land.

In that case, he would be a partner with whom long-term cooperation is possible.

As Varys was pondering this, he saw lights flickering outside the window.

That was the horse groom, and also his informant.

This code means that Jon has entered the Red Keep.

Varys silently observed the scene before him, then made an excuse and quietly left, as he had to be wary of Jon' killing him to cover his tracks'.

Just like Tywin did when he stormed the Red Keep, he waited until the situation stabilized before revealing himself.