Soul Sacrifice

Tyrion smiled without reservation.

Nine prisoners knelt on the ground.

Seven men and two women, all people who had taken up weapons and killed.

Fortunately, the bald one had not died.

Tyrion happily considered how to deal with that discriminatory bastard.

Yoren approached, carrying a string of swaying heads.

"Thanks to Your Highness, the mongrels are all finished. The Wall will have several dozen more dog heads to decorate its ramparts."

But Joffrey said, "There's no need to be so harsh. There are two deserters from The Night's Watch among them. How can you call them mongrels, right?"

He looked at the two deserters.

The collapsed deserters seemed to have no intention of denying it.

Benjen snorted coldly. "They're worse than dogs! They probably haven't forgotten this face of mine. Your Highness, let me execute these two traitors myself!"

Tyrion cut in, "Leave the bald one to me."

Without even agreeing, Joffrey said, "Tell us what you know. Whoever provides more valuable intelligence gets to live."

A flicker of hope for survival ignited in the two deserters' eyes.

They already knew Joffrey's true identity. If they could obtain a pardon from the Crown Prince, would The Night's Watch dare refuse?

The two exchanged looks.

The bald brute was the first to throw himself before Joffrey. "Honored Your Highness, I truly was a man of The Night's Watch. Once, while patrolling beyond The Wall, I encountered the Others. After that... becoming a Wildling was truly unavoidable."

The gaunt man with gray stubble was only a step slower. "Stiv, how dare you deceive His Highness? I, Wallen, did make mistakes, but at least I dare admit them!"

Joffrey watched expressionlessly as the two desperately tried to shape their images.

"Cut the nonsense! I want intelligence. I don't care what kind of people you are or what you've done."

"Who is that Skinchanger? How did you gather together? Why did you keep pursuing us? What happened beyond The Wall? Have you seen anyone unusual?"

Wallen immediately replied respectfully, "Your Highness is wise. That Skinchanger is called Varamyr. The Wildlings also call him 'Sixskins.' He originally had three wolves, a Snow Bear, and a Shadowcat. When he crossed The Wall, he only brought the Snow Bear."

"Mance Rayder seemed to have recruited Varamyr, foolishly hoping to fight the Others or The Wall. Not many people had faith in him."

Stiv hurriedly seized the chance to speak.

"Many Wildlings fled south out of fear of the Others, mostly in groups of a few or a dozen. But Varamyr used the Snow Bear to force several groups into serving him. That was how we were forced to join."

"As for why he attacked Your Highness, I swear, he never said a single word about it."

"Varamyr was very quiet along the way. Other than when he ate, his soul was almost always inside the Snow Bear's body."

"Oh, right." Wallen's eyes lit up. "When Varamyr was inside the Snow Bear, his own body could still speak. I'd never heard of anything like that before!"

At this point, Joffrey had almost confirmed the mastermind behind it all.

If one's Mental Power was strong enough, one could control several bodies at once. But this Skinchanger was clearly not capable of that. So who had controlled him, even controlling both him and the Snow Bear at the same time?

Joffrey could only think of the Three-Eyed Crow.

Well, someone's awfully hostile toward me. How utterly overconfident.

Benjen stepped forward. "Speak! How did the Snow Bear cross The Wall? It couldn't possibly climb the Wall or take one of the Wildlings' broken boats across the sea!"

The two deserters fell silent. They had not crossed the border with Varamyr.

"My lord, I know."

The tall wildling woman suddenly spoke. She raised her head and flashed Joffrey and Benjen a smile.

Benjen frowned.

"Speak plainly, spearwife."

Among the Wildlings, women who took up weapons to fight were called spearwives.

Any Wildling carrying a weapon was an enemy. Benjen would not show even the slightest mercy.

"My lord, I have a name. Osha. And let me offer you some advice: the honored prince has not spoken yet." She knew who truly held authority.

Joffrey knew her. In the original story, she had been captured by Robb, then later became Bran and Rickon's early guard.

"Tell us, Osha. I'm curious as well."

"As you command." Osha was desperate to live. "I saw it with my own eyes. Varamyr's Snow Bear entered through an abandoned tunnel somewhere in The Wall."

Benjen grew anxious at once. "Impossible! Do you dare point out that tunnel?"

Osha smiled. "My lord, I would be more than willing. So long as His Highness permits me to live long enough to reach The Wall, Osha will certainly find it for you."

Joffrey swept his gaze over the other Wildlings. "Does anyone else have anything to say? This is your last chance."

The Wildlings panicked.

Having fled their homeland beyond the Wall and now kneeling here quietly as prisoners, they were no longer independent, untamed Free Folk.

They began competing to kowtow and beg for mercy.

"My lord, Your Highness, spare us! I can do anything for you!"

"I know the lands beyond The Wall best, my lord, Lord Benjen! I'm willing to guide The Night's Watch and provide any help!"

"I've seen Mance Rayder! The Night's Watch needs me!"

"..."

"Your Highness, show mercy! I'm willing to swear loyalty to you."

Joffrey shook his head regretfully.

There was probably no more valuable intelligence to be extracted.

Even so, he collected over thirty items from the Wildlings, including weapons and clothing.

The Recollection Rune could not directly investigate the past of people or animals, but these personal belongings could reveal many scenes. Perhaps he would discover something.

And there was that Snow Bear.

Although he had saved the Snow Bear, it could not speak for itself. He could only give it a mirror-image Information Rune and hope the creature would learn how to use it.

Joffrey tried communicating with the Snow Bear through the Information Rune again, but all that came back were feelings of fear and resistance.

"Uncle, this big stupid bear is yours. Talk to it more. I'm looking forward to what you find."

Tyrion immediately understood. "Rest easy, my good nephew. With my guidance, I guarantee it'll remember even how many mouthfuls of milk it drank as a cub."

Tyrion excitedly ran toward the Snow Bear. At last, he had a mount that belonged solely to him.

Joffrey gave Benjen and Yoren a look. "Get up, Osha. You can help us with something now."

The six Wildlings watched in terror as men of The Night's Watch roughly bound them and forced them to kneel in a row.

The two deserters waited nervously for their final judgment.

Joffrey recalled all the clues he had noticed over the past few months. It was time to test this conjecture.

"Stiv, Wallen, I'm sorry, but this is the last time I'll call you by your names. You should not have betrayed The Night's Watch, and you certainly should not have lied to me."

The two deserters instantly broke down, mumbling incoherently.

Had they lied? Joffrey knew the answer.

Benjen finally got his wish, dragging the two traitors into the Wildling line with one in each hand.

"Be grateful. You get such a swift and clean death, without the slightest pain. Far better than your companions, isn't it?"

Joffrey drew Dragonflame, and the blade ignited with a scorching red glow.

"These three Wildlings are mine. You each take one. When I count down to one, we strike together."

Tyrion hurriedly took his place behind the bald man.

Joffrey raised Dragonflame high and pronounced loudly, "In the name of Robert I of the Baratheon family, King of the Andals, the Rhoynar, and the First Men, Lord of the Seven Kingdoms and Protector of the Realm, I, Joffrey of the Baratheon family, heir to the Iron Throne and Prince of Dragonstone, hereby sentence you to death."

"Three, two, one!"

Dragonflame and five other blades came down as one!

Hot blood sprayed several meters from the headless necks, steaming into mist. Eight heads rolled several times through the blood, their despairing eyes freezing almost simultaneously.

The consciousnesses of eight humans sank into eternal silence.

An invisible sensation appeared, then vanished in an instant. Dragonflame's light seemed to brighten slightly as well.

That invisible sensation was Source Energy.

Joffrey took out the Ruby hanging around his neck. Upon careful sensing, the Source Energy within the gem had indeed increased abnormally.

He had his answer.

Source Energy could scarcely endure in the material world, but it could be stored in mediums such as gemstones and absorbed by Runes to be converted into magical energy.

More importantly—

It could also be brought into this world by a person's soul or thoughts, even if only for an instant.

The Magic Web had found its way to make a profit.