Chapter Summaries

Jaime led the Lannister soldiers in hunting the fire-breathing Mountain Giant Lion, capturing it at the cost of six lives and several wounded men. Joffrey secured the lion for the journey to Winterfell and told Hannah to remain in King's Landing to watch over the Red Keep.

• Jaime charged into the woods and led the soldiers as they surrounded the Mountain Giant Lion.
• The wounded lion attacked Jaime and the cavalry, killing six men and injuring others before Jaime ordered the soldiers to keep firing.
• The soldiers brought down the Mountain Giant Lion, and Jaime promised rewards for the survivors and the fallen men's families.
• Joffrey saw the chained lion secured in a cage and said he would take it to Winterfell as his mount.
• Joffrey refused Hannah's request to accompany him and instructed her to stay in the Red Keep and prevent King's Landing from falling into chaos.

Joffrey returned to King's Landing with a Giant Lion, received the three Dragon Eggs, and learned that Tyrion had prepared a game involving the death of the Hand. The chapter left Tyrion realizing Joffrey had chosen Stannis as the first target while Joffrey focused on the mysterious Runes in the eggs.

• Cersei's procession entered King's Landing, and Joffrey showed the servants the Giant Lion he claimed as his mount.
• Littlefinger told Joffrey that the Dragon Eggs had arrived and that his attendant Elin had been left in Pentos; Joffrey ordered him ignored.
• Joffrey and Tyrion inspected the three Dragon Eggs, and Joffrey gave Tyrion the green egg to carry away.
• Tyrion presented Joffrey with a plan called Death of the Hand, listing suspected conspirators, gathered intelligence, and hidden agents.
• Joffrey asked Tyrion to go into the city with him the next day before they traveled north, then noticed faint Runes on the eggs.
• Tyrion read Joffrey's written instructions, burned them, and realized Stannis was the first target.

After losing his mother and being driven into poverty, the boy survived by begging and working at the docks until Joffrey recruited him for a mission against Stannis. Joffrey equipped the boy with rune magic and sent him away, while Tyrion questioned whether he would carry out the dangerous task.

• The boy endured hunger, beatings, and extortion after leaving the Red Keep, then survived by working at the docks and begging.
• Joffrey arranged for the boy to be brought to a deserted alley, where Tyrion recounted his hardships and the boy recognized Joffrey from the Throne Room.
• Tyrion asked whom the boy hated most, and the boy settled on Stannis as his target.
• Joffrey attached a Solid Rune mirror image to the boy’s knife and gave him mirror images of the Solid Rune and Fire Rune.
• Joffrey’s secret agent led the boy away, and Tyrion questioned whether the boy would follow through on the mission.

The Son of the Prostitute used a mysterious power to assassinate Stannis, who survived the first knife attack and a poisoning attempt before fleeing toward the harbor. The assassin struck again with a flaming knife, killing Stannis before Davos killed him, and Joffrey awakened far away in the Riverlands.

• Silver Stag directed the Son of the Prostitute to ambush Stannis in King's Landing, and the boy stabbed him in Fishermen's Square before escaping.
• Stannis recognized the attacker as the bastard son of a prostitute, then survived the wound and refused Davos's advice to leave immediately.
• Dick poisoned Stannis's venison stew, but the plot was discovered before Stannis drank it, so he set out for the harbor that night.
• The Son of the Prostitute charged Stannis's torchlit procession and stabbed him again with a flaming knife, burning his soul and killing him.
• Davos beheaded the assassin after his eyes turned gray, and Joffrey opened his eyes in the Riverlands.

Joffrey trained with Jaime, learned that the death of the Son of the Prostitute had brought him a surge of Rune Energy, and used the Giant Lion to test his Mirror Image powers. After fusing a Fire Rune Mirror Image into the lion, he found that its power had greatly increased while remaining under his control.

• Joffrey sparred with Jaime, who taught him about swordsmanship and the realities of killing.
• Joffrey recalled sensing the Son of the Prostitute’s death and receiving a large amount of Rune Energy, bringing his total to 33 units.
• Joffrey reflected on the Growth and Contract Runes and learned that his Rune Energy increased by five units per day.
• The Hound told Joffrey that the Giant Lion had recovered, so Joffrey stopped training and went to see it.
• Joffrey challenged the caged lion with Dragonflame, then fused a Fire Rune Mirror Image into it and sensed the Mirror Image grow several times stronger while remaining under his control.

After Stannis’s death, Robert ordered an investigation and named Joffrey Prince of Dragonstone. Joffrey rode his tamed Giant Lion, Rainwater, with Tyrion, leaving the camp in awe.

• Robert learned of Stannis’s death, raged over the murder, and demanded that the killer be punished.
• Ser Barristan noted suspicious details, and Tyrion urged Robert to have Petyr and Lord Varys investigate in King's Landing.
• Joffrey comforted Robert, who sent ravens announcing Stannis’s death and naming Joffrey Prince of Dragonstone.
• Joffrey brought Tyrion to see the tamed Giant Lion, Rainwater, and brushed aside Tyrion’s questions about Dragonstone.
• Joffrey and Tyrion rode Rainwater out of camp as the soldiers watched in awe.

Joffrey arrived at Harrenhal, where its strange magic called to him and revealed another possible source of Runes. As King Robert celebrated in the castle, Joffrey reaffirmed his decision to kill him and planned to dedicate a piece of music called “King’s Landing” to the king as both a gift and farewell.

• Joffrey and Tyrion reached Harrenhal, where Lady Shella Whent initially challenged them before recognizing their royal party.
• Lady Whent escorted Joffrey through Harrenhal, and he sensed a new Rune calling to him from within its ancient walls.
• King Robert arrived with his party and accepted Lady Whent’s invitation to stay in Kingspyre Tower.
• At the feast, Joffrey decided he would kill King Robert and planned to present him with “King’s Landing” as a final gift.

As the royal party crossed the Neck, Joffrey reviewed the powers of his thirteen Runes and realized he could combine them to create a powerful, obedient magical beast. He set his sights on transforming the Neck’s lizard-lions, leaving their role in killing the king uncertain.

• King Robert raged over Illyrio Mopatis sheltering the Targaryen siblings, while Joffrey waited for news of Elin.
• Joffrey ordered nearly a hundred gathered musicians to keep perfecting his composition, “King’s Landing,” as the party traveled through the Neck.
• Joffrey reviewed the abilities of his thirteen Runes and worked out how Valyrian wizards combined Runes to communicate and create illusions.
• Joffrey identified combinations of his Runes that could control, communicate with, and strengthen a magical beast.
• Joffrey decided to make the Neck’s lizard-lions more legendary and wondered whether one of them, or another beast, would kill the king.

Elin found Viserion and Daenerys in Pentos and persuaded Viserion to accept him as a loyal servant. Illyrio allowed Elin to serve the Targaryen siblings, and Elin began flattering Viserion with promises of a returning true king.

• Elin knelt before Viserion and declared his loyalty to the Targaryens, despite Viserion's anger at his Lantel name.
• Elin claimed he had been forced to serve Joffrey and had stayed in Pentos rather than return to Westeros, winning Viserion's favor while Daenerys remained suspicious.
• Viserion accepted Elin's offer to serve him and promised him the honor of killing Joffrey, while Illyrio weighed whether Elin posed a threat.
• Illyrio permitted Elin to serve Viserion and Daenerys, warning him to set aside Westeros because he was in Pentos.
• The next morning, Elin met the siblings in the garden and praised the coming return of a true king.

Jon Snow waited with House Stark for King Robert’s arrival at Winterfell, where the Crown Prince’s musicians performed a dramatic new song. The procession entered, and Jon saw the Crown Prince riding a Giant Lion.

• Jon left Ghost in the cabin and joined Arya at Winterfell’s East Gate.
• Theon Greyjoy needled Jon, while Sansa and Catelyn kept their distance from him.
• Robb told Jon, Arya, and Sansa that the Crown Prince had composed a song and brought a Giant Lion as his mount.
• Bran reported that King Robert’s party was approaching, and the assembled people prepared to welcome the king.
• King Robert entered Winterfell as the musicians launched into the forceful second half of the song.
• Jon saw the Crown Prince riding a Giant Lion, and the prince glanced at him.

At Winterfell’s welcome feast, Joffrey courted Sansa and asked her to marry him, while Jon reconsidered his plans to join the Night’s Watch after Joffrey mentioned a place for him in King’s Landing. Sansa accepted Joffrey’s proposal and shared her first kiss with him.

• Robert praised his arrival in Winterfell and told Eddard that his son had named King's Landing.
• Joffrey invited Sansa to tour the castle, and he told Jon there was a place for him in King's Landing.
• Jon thought again about joining the Night’s Watch but told Benjen he had nothing on his mind.
• Joffrey gave Sansa his cloak and walked with her through the snowy castle.
• Joffrey asked Sansa to be his wife, and she gladly accepted.
• Joffrey kissed Sansa, who felt certain the moment was real and wished it would last forever.

Joffrey defeated Theon in a training-yard spar and demonstrated Dragonflame’s extraordinary sharpness. With Robb, Jon, and Theon gathered, he proposed a different kind of game.

• Sansa watched Joffrey from the covered bridge while Bran defeated Tommen in a wooden-sword match.
• Joffrey challenged Theon and overwhelmed him, breaking Theon’s wooden sword and holding his own sword to Theon’s throat.
• Theon demanded a fight with real swords, and Joffrey accepted while warning him about Dragonflame.
• Joffrey cut through Theon’s steel sword with Dragonflame, leaving the spectators amazed by the blade.
• Joffrey sheathed Dragonflame and told Robb, Jon, and Theon that he had thought of a game better suited to them than one-on-one sparring.

Joffrey's King's Game turned a land dispute between Robb Stark and Theon Greyjoy into a contest for allegiance. Theon won a Great Council after swearing fealty to Joffrey, and Jon Snow then requested Lordship Conferment.

• Robb challenged Theon over a seized Stark holding, but Jon defeated Ser Rodrik in a Trial by Combat, causing Robb's challenge to fail.
• Theon countered by accusing Robb of seizing Greyjoy holdings, and Robb called for a Great Council.
• As the soldiers prepared to vote, Theon pledged his loyalty to Joffrey, who accepted his fealty and knighted him.
• The soldiers voted overwhelmingly for Theon, costing Robb two knights and much of his strength.
• Theon issued another challenge, while Jon knelt before Joffrey, pledged his loyalty, and requested Lordship Conferment.

Joffrey revealed his magical powers to Tyrion and offered him the position of Master of Coin. Tyrion accepted, while Joffrey prepared to deal with Littlefinger and purge King's Landing.

• In Winterfell's library tower, Tyrion asked Joffrey how he intended to rule Westeros, and Joffrey described uniting the Seven Kingdoms into a powerful empire.
• Joffrey used the Flames, Information, and Location Runes to let Tyrion experience magic and communicate with him mentally.
• Joffrey offered Tyrion the position of Master of Coin and asked what to do about Littlefinger.
• Tyrion warned Joffrey that Littlefinger's network of loyalists and the realm's debts made reckless upheaval dangerous.
• Joffrey insisted that King's Landing belonged to the Iron Throne and said he would purge its corruption, and Tyrion accepted the appointment.

Joffrey took Bran and Sansa into the Winterfell Crypts, then followed Bran and Arya deeper underground after discovering ancient bones. His runes led him to a vast chamber and the Black Stone Throne, where he finally saw the light of magic.

• Joffrey descended into the Crypts with Bran and Sansa and showed them the Stark statues, including those of Rickard, Brandon, and Lyanna.
• Joffrey turned back with Sansa, but Bran and Arya later rushed ahead and found bones in the deeper passage.
• Joffrey used the Location Rune and Scout Rune on a bone and glimpsed an ancient throne among the visions.
• Joffrey led the group through a vast underground hall to the Black Stone Throne, which left the soldiers kneeling and Bran and Arya transfixed.
• Joffrey saw the light of magic before the Black Stone Throne.

After Joffrey, Bran, and Arya emerged from the Wolfswood tombs, they returned to Winterfell and joined the king’s feast. Joffrey discovered that the King of Winter’s throne had given House Stark the Warg gift through a Bloodline Rune, and he resolved to see whether Bran’s fate could be changed.

• Eddard found Joffrey, Bran, and Arya at Winterfell and sent Vayon Poole to recall the soldiers from the tombs.
• Bran and Arya told Eddard about the tombs and the King of Winter’s throne, while Joffrey took responsibility for their adventure.
• At dinner, Bran invited Joffrey to explore Winterfell and asked him to let Bran join the Kingsguard when he became king.
• Joffrey used the throne’s visions to learn that sacrifices had empowered Starks with the Warg gift through a Bloodline Rune.
• Joffrey considered whether Bran could become a Kingsguard knight called Brandon Stark the Warg instead of following his destined path as Greenseer.

A Lannister spy watched Maester Luwin while Joffrey used runes to monitor Winterfell and prevent a secret letter from turning House Stark against the Lannisters. When a messenger delivered a hidden letter, the spy killed him, but Maester Luwin retrieved the box, and Joffrey suspected the Three-Eyed Crow had interfered.

• A Lannister spy kept watch on Maester Luwin from a concealed ledge, while Joffrey monitored the maester and Eddard with the Mind Rune and Scout Rune.
• Joffrey reflected on the hardships faced by noblemen's younger sons and decided to fight for their rights.
• Joffrey detected a cautious figure carrying a carved wooden box with a hidden letter and watched him approach Maester's Tower.
• The Message Ravens took flight, and Joffrey used the Information Rune to wake the sleeping spy with a dream.
• The messenger fled after Maester Luwin opened his eyes and picked up the box, and the spy leapt down and killed him with a slash across the throat.
• Joffrey sensed the Three-Eyed Crow's power around Bran and blamed it for disrupting the spy's work.

Bran dreamed that the Three-Eyed Crow urged him to fly and showed him visions of Winterfell, the Weirwood, and the threat beyond The Wall. When the crow tried to claim him, the Crown Prince intervened, and Bran woke beside Little Wolves.

• Bran fell through a gray mist toward the ground as a crow told him he had to fly.
• The crow fed on Bran's corn and told him that fear was keeping his wings folded.
• Bran saw visions of Winterfell, his family, the Weirwood, and the frozen lands beyond The Wall.
• Bran spread his arms and flew, but the Three-Eyed Crow moved to merge with him.
• The Crown Prince appeared with a dragon and attacked the crow, warning Bran that it wanted to take over his body.
• Bran's rain mist helped the Crown Prince destroy the crow, and Bran woke beside Little Wolves.

After Maester Luwin was buried, Joffrey considered the danger posed by Lysa and comforted Sansa in the Godswood. As Eddard’s party departed Winterfell for King’s Landing, Joffrey gave Arya a communication disc and presented Sansa with a crown of Winter Roses.

• The Starks buried Maester Luwin, while Joffrey reflected that his death had prevented a secret letter from stirring conflict between the Starks and Lannisters.
• Joffrey comforted Sansa in the Godswood and learned that Eddard’s household would leave for the south the day after tomorrow.
• Bran rode ahead toward the Kingsroad, and Joffrey gave Arya a steel disc that let her speak with Jon across long distances.
• Cersei reluctantly boarded the Wheel Palace as Joffrey prepared to remain behind and travel to the Wall.
• Joffrey gave Sansa a crown made from Winter Roses and told her his love for her surpassed Rhaegar’s love for Lyanna.

Elin recruited Jorah Mormont to help carry out the Crown Prince’s mission to capture Viserion and Daenerys, despite Jorah’s doubts about their chances. The chapter ended with Daenerys asking for stories of Westeros, and Elin offering to tell her about King’s Landing and the Westlands.

• Elin confronted Jorah Mormont about serving Viserion and revealed that he knew Jorah was the Spider’s informant.
• Jorah admitted that he longed to return to Bear Island, and Elin offered the Crown Prince’s pardon if Jorah helped with his mission.
• Jorah objected to Elin’s plan to capture Viserion and Daenerys, but Elin persuaded him to hear it and join him.
• Elin described his resolve to complete the mission and promised Jorah that they would seek a way to survive it.
• Daenerys asked Elin to tell her stories about Westeros after he said Jorah had gone to sleep.