When Viserys and the others returned to Maester's Tower, the warm fire in the house dispelled the cold air from Wall on their bodies.
Maester Aemon was still sitting in front of the window, enjoying the rare sunshine that Castle Black saw. Samwell was sitting in front of the desk piled with parchments, holding a quill in his hand and frowning, as if he had encountered some problem.
Hearing the sound of the door opening, he raised his head suddenly and saw that it was Viserys and Daenerys. He quickly stood up, sorted out the documents on the table in a panic, and then quickly saluted respectfully.
Being easily irritable and excited when things happen is one of Sam's shortcomings. In addition to not liking martial arts, this is also one of the main reasons why his father Randyll Tarly doesn't like him.
Viserys raised his hand to signal him to excuse himself, but his eyes fell on the messy pile of parchment rolls and he said, "What did you find that made you so confused, Sam?"
Sam swallowed and rubbed the quill holder on the table nervously with his fingers. His eyes flickered and he hesitated and said, "Yes... it's about the records of Long Night. Your Majesty, I was comparing the records sent by Winterfell with the early records of Wall, and found that some of the details were inconsistent."
Daenerys first said hello to Aemon, then walked to the fireplace out of habit, stretched out his hands to keep warm, and some color returned to his originally pale face.
When she heard Sam's words, she was also a little curious and said, "Not right? What do you mean?"
Sam hesitated for a moment, then pulled out a roll of yellowed leather paper from the bottom, unfolded it carefully, and said, "Night's Watch's original record mentioned that Long Night did not come for the first time, but in the record sent by Winterfell, there is no sign except for the most recent one. It's as if... it's as if someone deliberately erased that record."
Viserys After listening, his eyes narrowed slightly. He lowered his head to look at the roll of yellowed paper, and said with a bit of scrutiny in his voice, "Are you sure that was not a clerical error by the recorder?"
Sam shook his head, and because of nervousness, he spoke much faster than usual, and said, "I thought so at first, Your Majesty, but these two records are from Common Tongue of the same era, and the degree of damage is similar."
"In the original records of Night's Watch, Long Night was described as the 'second' coming of Others, while the records sent by Winterfell only mentioned Long Night, it is blank going forward, and even the legend of the First Men era has been skipped, as if someone deleted the first Long Night from all circulating versions."
As he spoke, he pointed at several vague symbols on the edge of the leather paper with slightly trembling fingers, and said, "And here, there are several descriptions related to Long Night Others. The sentence patterns are very similar, as if they were copied from the same older document, but they express completely opposite meanings."
Maester Aemon At this time, he had slowly stood up from the window and walked closer. Although his eyes were dim, he could still clearly hear what they just said.
The old man walked over silently, and then whispered, "Sam may be right. This simple mistake is not like a clerical error, but more like later generations deliberately choosing different wording to cover up a truth that they don't want to be mentioned."
Daenerys also left the fire source of the fireplace and walked to Viserys. Her eyes fell on the black ink stains, but she did not speak. She just frowned slightly and took Viserys's arm.
Viserys held Daenerys's cold fingers with his backhand, squeezed gently to show comfort, and then his eyes fell back on the roll of paper.
His eyes slowly traced along the vague symbols pointed by Sam, and he frowned slightly. Now he remembered that he had seen it somewhere. The ancestors of House Stark did this on purpose. They seemed to be trying to cover up the situation that one of their family members would become Others.
"If this information was really deleted deliberately."
After thinking clearly, Viserys said directly, "Then the person who erased this information must have extremely high authority, and may even have the right to speak at the time. House Stark of Winterfell, as the guardians of the North, their records should be the most detailed. Now that there is such a gap, it is extremely unusual in itself."
Viserys feels that since he has hinted to this extent, the people in front of him should think more in the direction of House Stark.
After all, there are too many secrets hidden behind the most powerful family in the North that are not known to others, such as those things in the underground Crypt of Winterfell.
If it were not for his help, I am afraid that the current Stark people and the civilians near Winterfell might have died without knowing anything and become the new Wights and Others.
However, if they are allowed to live peacefully, ruling the entire the North is not what Viserys wants to see. This is a special period and they still need stability, but if Others's matter is over.
If someone talks about the relationship between House Stark and Others at this time, then House Stark will not be able to safely sit in the position of Warden of the North, but will be in danger, and may even bear the hostility of those whose relatives have died.
Viserys did not say these dark calculations. He just calmly withdrew his gaze, gently pushed the yellowed paper back in front of Sam, and put on that elusive and gentle mask on his face again.
When Sam just heard Viserys's words, his pupils contracted slightly, as if he thought of something, but he quickly calmed down, but he still seemed to be shocked by his bold speculation.
He opened his mouth and wanted to speak, but he swallowed the words when he reached his lips. After all, House Stark enjoyed a very high reputation in Westeros.
"Your Majesty..."
After a while, Sam spoke. His voice sounded a little dry and hesitant, and he said, "If this is true, then there is probably some kind of... connection between House Stark and Others, or are they themselves part of the participants in that erased history?"
Maester Aemon coughed slightly, and the old voice was particularly clear in the quiet Maester's Tower. He said, "Sam, although history is written by the victors."
"But if you want to accuse an ancient family that has lasted for thousands of years of being related to Ancient Other God, you need solid evidence, not just guessing based on gaps in the literature. You can't say these things outside."
Viserys did not flinch because of Aemon's reminder. On the contrary, the corner of his mouth evoked a meaningful or successful smile.
He let go of Daenerys's hand, walked to the desk, and tapped his fingertips gently on the table, making a rhythmic sound that attracted the attention of several people.