Casterly Rock was carved from an immense rock, said to stand three times as high as the Wall and taller even than the Hightower in Oldtown.
Aegon stood beside the battlements at its highest point, gazing down at the foot of the mountain.
The houses of Lannisport looked like children's toys, its people like ants. Even the fleet anchored outside the harbor looked like mere scraps of wood from such a height.
He had never visited the Wall or climbed the Hightower, but he had seen Harrenhal.
Harrenhal's five towers were among the grandest structures in Westeros, but in the steepness of its terrain and the height of its perch, Casterly Rock far surpassed it.
Perhaps the only place higher in all of Westeros was the Eyrie in the Vale.
He turned his gaze from the battlements and continued along the wall.
Footsteps sounded from one side.
A figure in black armor approached Aegon. It was Luke, commander-in-chief of the Ashen Company.
Earlier, in Lannisport, Aegon had ordered the three great armies to stop advancing toward Lannisport and turn instead to attack Casterly Rock.
The Golden Company and the Ashen Company had now taken Casterly Rock together. Aegon had come to inspect it himself upon receiving news of its fall.
Luke approached and bowed slightly. "Your Highness, Casterly Rock has been thoroughly cleared. It is safe to enter."
He paused. "Casterly Rock truly is a formidable stronghold. Had Tywin not withdrawn his troops of his own accord, this castle would never have fallen easily."
"Just a few thousand defenders could hold off tens of thousands, even a hundred thousand men."
"Of course Tywin had to run," Aegon said casually. "That is precisely what makes the Old Lion so shrewd. However formidable a castle may be, it can stop infantry, but