The morning mist has not yet dissipated, and the city gate of the Eyrie slowly opened in the morning light.
Randyll·Tarly reined in the reins and glanced back at the black-armored knights lined up neatly behind him.
Nearly a hundred war horses snorted in the morning wind, and their white cloaks rustled. The black hand emblem on the cloak sticking out from the shadows was particularly eye-catching in the morning light.
"That's all?"
Petyr·Baelish stood inside the city gate, his gray eyes scanning the elite killing team at first glance, with a hint of concern in his tone. "Master Tarly, do you really not need the knights of Vale to follow you?"
"Mountain Clans appears and disappears in the mountains and forests, will your manpower...
,"No need."
Randyll interrupted him unceremoniously, "Vale The knights and my men have not gotten along well. Taking them will only get in the way. If there are too many people, our whereabouts will be easily exposed."
He paused and his eyes fell on the thin young guide behind Petyr.
"A guide is enough."
The guide shrank at his gaze and quickly lowered his head.
Hearing this, Petyr still had that gentle smile on his face and said nothing more.
"Then I will be at the Eyrie, waiting for your good news."
Randyll·Tarly nodded and took one last look at the window high up in the castle.
With a pinch on the horse's belly, he drove out of the city gate first.
Nearly a hundred knights in black armor followed closely behind, and the team gradually moved farther and farther along the winding mountain road, and the black-hand flag finally disappeared at the junction of the mist and the mountain forest.
In a room high up in the castle.
Sansa·Stark stood in front of the window, his eyes following the long dragon that was gradually moving away, until the last black flag was swallowed up by the morning mist.
"Miss Sansa."
Before waiting too long, a slightly impatient voice came from the door.
Turning around, I saw Petyr·Baelish appearing outside the door.
"Can I come in?"
Sansa smiled, "Of course, Lord Petyr, this is your castle!"
Petyr was obviously very impressed by the fact that Sansa said that the Eyrie was his castle. He walked in with brisk steps, his eyes swept around the room, and finally landed on the two black-armored knights who seemed to be forever inseparable from Sansa.
"You guys go out first." His tone was as casual as if he was ordering his servants.
But the knights remained motionless.
Petyr's smile did not change, he just turned to Sansa and spread his hands.
Sansa hesitated for a moment before speaking softly, "Please... go to the door and guard it first."
Hearing this, the knights moved.
They exited the room silently, but did not close the door. They just stood silently at the door as if monitoring their every move.
Petyr walked to the window and stood side by side with Sansa. He looked at the deserted mountain road outside the window and sighed softly.
"Master Tarly is a capable commander. The matter of Mountain Clans should be resolved soon. By then you will be able to complete Master Corleone's mission and return to King's Landing to marry him."
"Although I can't become a queen, marrying Hand of the King is not a bad choice, right?"
However, facing the bright future described by Petyr, Sansa didn't say a word.
Petyr turned his head to look at her, and saw the morning light slanting in from the window and falling on Sansa's beautiful face, but there was no hint of happiness at all.
She was just as quiet and well-behaved as ever, like a canary in a cage.
"You don't look well."
Seeing this, Petyr mentioned it again very timely. "I've been bored in the castle these days, and I haven't even gone to the garden much."
"I... it's not very convenient." Sansa's voice was very soft, his eyes still focused on the window.
"Is it because of those knights?" Petyr asked.
Sansa did not answer, but silence itself is the answer.
"Alas..." Petyr sighed, with a hint of helplessness in his tone. "Corleone is also worried about your safety. After all, King's Landing has not been peaceful recently."
He didn't say any more, just shook his head.
The room was quiet for another moment.
"The weather is nice today."
Seemingly aware of Sansa's move, Petyr suggested in a brisk tone. "Vale's autumn is very beautiful, much clearer than King's Landing's."
"You've been here for so long and you haven't had a good look at it, have you?"
"You mean..." Sansa turned his head, with a trace of doubt in his blue eyes.
"Go out and relax." Petyr smiled, "Just take a walk near the Eyrie, not too far away, look at the red leaves in the valley, and breathe in the fresh air."
He paused and his eyes fell on Sansa's face. "Your guards will also follow. There will be no problem with safety."
Hearing this, Sansa kept intertwining his fingers with his hands, seeming to be hesitating.
"Master Tarly warned before leaving...
1
"Tarly-sama is worried about Mountain Clans."
Petyr interrupted her gently, "But the place he went to was deep in Mountains of the Moon. We were just walking around at the Eyrie's feet. There will be no danger."
"And...
"You don't think that I will harm you, do you, Sansa?"
Hearing this, Sansa raised his head and saw that her eyes were full of gentleness and sincerity, with no flaws to be found, just like when she first saw her in King's Landing.
There was silence for a moment.
"Okay." Sansa finally said.
As soon as these words came out, a heartfelt smile appeared on Petyr's face, and he turned around and walked towards the door without hesitation.
"I'll get the horses ready!"
About half an hour later.
A group of people slowly drove out from the side door of the Eyrie.
Walking at the front were two knights in black armor, wearing long swords at their waists and scanning the woods on both sides of the road with vigilant eyes.
Followed closely by Petyr·Baelish.
He took advantage of the time to dress up for a while, and he looked in high spirits.
Beside him, Sansa is riding a docile gray mare.
Behind her, ten black-armored knights fanned out, protecting her and Petyr in the middle.
At the end of the team was the tallest knight in black armor. The war hammer hung on the side of the saddle, and the hammer head swayed gently with the pace of the horse.
From the moment he set off, his eyes never left Petyr's back.
The team slowly descended along the mountain road.
Petyr rode his horse close to Sansa and walked side by side with her.
His voice was neither too loud nor too quiet, just enough for her to hear. "I remember the first time I went to Riverrun, it was the same autumn.
"At that time, your mother was playing with Lysa in the mud. She deliberately made mud cakes for me to eat. I ate them all and became ill for a week."
Sansa listened quietly, with the corners of his mouth slightly raised, showing a polite smile, "My mother rarely mentioned things from the past."
"Really?" Petyr raised an eyebrow. "She is... a person who is not willing to recall the past.
The team continues to move forward.
The black-armored knights behind him were always vigilant, their eyes constantly scanning the surrounding woods and cliffs.
Sansa's mood seemed to have improved a lot because of the trip. The two chatted for a while, talking about the ancient legend of House Arryn, how the Eyrie on Giant's Lance was built, and how beautiful the red leaves in autumn are on Vale.
The team gradually moved away from the Eyrie's sight and entered a relatively remote valley area.
The woods on both sides of the mountain road are even denser, almost blocking the sky.
Driving into a more remote valley, the mountain walls on both sides narrowed abruptly, and the road could only accommodate two horses walking side by side.
"Xu~~~"
The knight in black armor who was walking at the front suddenly tightened his reins and raised his right hand to signal the team to stop.
"What's wrong?" Petyr stuck his head out.
The knight did not answer, but listened attentively.
It was very quiet in the valley, so quiet that it was abnormally quiet, even the chirping of birds had disappeared.
The knight warned, "We can't go any further...
"Whoops!!!"
But just before he finished speaking, a sharp whistle sounded from the dense forest on the left hillside, like the roar of some kind of raptor.
"Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!"
Immediately afterwards, whistles came one after another from all directions.
"There's an ambush!"
The black-armored knight suddenly pulled out the long sword from his waist and shouted sternly, "Shrink your formation! Protect your wife!"
Ten black-armored knights rode towards Sansa almost at the same time, trying to form a defensive formation.
But their enemies are faster.
An arrow was shot from the depths of the dense forest and nailed to the ground less than three feet away from the Sansa horse's front hooves.
Immediately afterwards, arrows poured down like a torrential rain.
The black-armored knights raised their shields to block. The thick armor formed quite good protection, but the arrows were just an appetizer.
Because they soon discovered that the rain of arrows was actually mixed with throwing axes and hammers, and these people were very professional and quickly targeted the unprotected horses!
The war horse of a black-armored knight was struck in the neck by a flying axe, and collapsed with a shrill neigh.
The unlucky knight had no time to react. He was crushed under the horse and died on the spot!
Fortunately, the enemy did not have many long-range weapons. After paying the price of two deaths and three injuries, the long-range attack finally stopped.
But before they could take a breath, there were heavy footsteps in the woods again.
Countless figures emerged from the trees, wearing rough animal skins and holding various weapons in their hands, even a few stone axes!
"It's Mountain Clans!" Petyr exclaimed.
"Protect Miss Sansa!"
He held the reins tightly with one hand and waved the other hand in vain in the air, as if he could command the troops that had become a mess.
But his personal bodyguards did not seem to be as elite as the black-armored knights. On the contrary, they seemed very clumsy.
They rushed left and right like headless chickens, and some even "accidentally" bumped into the horses of the black-armored knights, making the already unformed formation even more scattered.
"What the hell are you doing!"
The captain of the black-armored knight roared, but his own horse was knocked two steps laterally by a Petyr guard who was panicking.
At this time, the enemies of Mountain Clans have already come up to kill them.
"Form up! Come closer to me!"
It was too late to investigate the responsibility, and the captain of the black-armored knight drew his sword and shouted.
But the knights under him were rushed to pieces by Petyr's guards and frightened horses, and they could only fight in small groups.
Soon, the Black Hand Knights fell into a bitter battle.
Although the enemies are not elite, there are too many of them!
A black-armored knight had just raised his spear and stabbed, when an enemy jumped out from behind, and the short knife penetrated the gap in his leg armor, causing blood to spurt out.
Another knight was hit by a war hammer on his shoulder armor and fell off his horse. Three or four enemies immediately surrounded him and hacked him to death!
Petyr was protected by two personal guards. His face was full of horror, but he still did not forget to shout, "Hurry! Protect Miss Sansa and break out!"
His guard was in a hurry and "accidentally injured" the gray mare's hindquarters under Sansa's crotch with a slash of his sword.
The frightened mare kicked her hind legs wildly, knocking everyone away and running towards the depths of the valley, leaving the entire chaotic battlefield far behind!
Bang!!!
In the center of the battlefield, the tallest black-armored knight knocked a man away and was about to pursue him in the direction of Sansa. However, five or six enemies suddenly appeared beside him and thrust their spears at him at the same time.
He had to turn around to block, the war hammer swept across, and several spears broke.
But more enemies had already filled the gap, clinging to him in place. When he looked again, Sansa's figure had disappeared from sight.
Deep in the valley, the wind howled, blowing the vague shouts of killing intermittently in the distance.
Sansa didn't know how far he was carried by the horse, and the trees on both sides of his field of vision quickly retreated.
It wasn't until the road ahead was cut off by a steep slope. The mare's front hooves hung on the edge of the slope that she finally reined in her horse and stopped moving forward.
Sansa slipped off the horse and sat helplessly on the ground.
Not long after, the sound of horse hooves came from behind.
Turning around, I saw that Petyr·Baelish arrived "just in time", followed by a dozen knights.
These people are definitely not the ones who traveled with them before, Sansa is sure of it.
Because the armor on their bodies was too new, there were no traces of the battle at all.
"Sansa!"
Petyr got off his horse and strode towards her, saying with concern, "Thank you Seven, you're fine!"
"Petyr-sama... go help my guards!"
"I know, there's still a scuffle outside, and I've already sent people to notify for backup."
"The most important thing now is your safety. I can't let you be put in danger again."
"But...
"No but!" Petyr said without a doubt, "When I get you to a safe place, I will immediately take people back to support you, I promise!"
He said and waved to the guard behind him.
A guard brought a spare horse forward and planned to help Sansa onto the horse's back. Everything was just right.
"No, I'm not leaving!"
Sansa, who has always been well-behaved, acted extremely tough at this time. "Unless you agree to take people to rescue them!
Hearing this, Petyr first narrowed his eyes slightly, and then sighed helplessly.
"Sansa yo...Sansa."
"Lee is still as naive as before, but it's precisely because of this that I am... I love Lee.
There was an almost pathological look of fanaticism on his face, which made Sansa feel a chill in his heart and subconsciously retreated.
"Don't worry, I won't hurt Li."
Petyr pressed forward step by step, and said in a gentle and soothing tone, "Li is Catelyn's daughter, and her blood is flowing on her body. How can I bear to hurt Li?"
"But that Corleone, he doesn't deserve the benefit!"
He stretched out his hand and gently brushed away the dust on Sansa's cheeks, his movements as gentle as a caress between lovers.
"He doesn't love Lee, Sansa."
"He only married Li for the sake of Li's surname and the North inheritance rights."
"And I...
Petyr's voice roared, as if he was talking to himself. "I've been waiting for too long.
"From the moment Li Zai King's Landing smiled at me for the first time, I knew that Li Zai, like Li's mother, was a gift given to me by Seven."
"Catelyn is married to Eddard·Stark. There is nothing I can do about it, but you don't have to make the same mistake she made."
"Marry Vito·Corleone."
"When I returned to the Eyrie, I told them that the Tateyama clan raided Ri's team, and Ri was kidnapped by clan Warrior and fell into the valley."
"We searched the whole mountain and only found your relics."
"From now on, Sansa·Stark will be dead, and Lee can start over, in a place where no one knows Lee... a place where there is only me and Lee."
Sansa's body is shaking.
Not because of fear, but because of anger.
When King's Landing was there, Corleone told her everything, telling Sansa all the conspiracy about Petyr·Baelish. At first she only believed most of it.
However, despite careful precautions, all the purposes of Petyr after arriving at the Eyrie turned out to be so obvious.
Didn't she really see it until she came clean now? What this guy who once cared about her like an elder did, made her feel extremely... disgusting!
"You are right, Lord Petyr."
Sansa stared at Petyr and said coldly, "Corleone did have political considerations in marrying me. He has never hidden this from me."
"Does Daniel know what the biggest difference between him and Lee is?"
"He never pretended."
"He clearly told me that he needed the support of the North and the surname Stark, but he also told me that he wanted to protect me and my family."
"He doesn't treat me like a canary that needs to be locked in a cage. He doesn't treat me like a canary and is so hypocritical. He says he loves me while taking me away from everyone!"
After the words fell, the valley was quiet for a moment.
Petyr looked at her, the smile on his face fading little by little, looking in disbelief at this Maiden who had told herself before that she didn't want to marry Corleone at all.
Did she already know?
But why Bu still has to follow his own plan and walk into the trap step by step?
Although he couldn't figure it out, he had to shoot the arrow now. Petyr snorted coldly and ordered the guards.
"Take her away!"
However, just as the guards were about to step forward and take Sansa away by force, an ax shot out from the dense forest and hit one of them heavily.
The power attached to it was so terrifying that it directly tore the man's helmet apart and embedded it deeply into his chest!
Petyr was shocked and turned around suddenly.
I saw a body coming quickly from the direction of the entrance to the valley.
The knight on the black horse, the whole body of the dull sun was coated with a dazzling luster, and the heavy war hammer was dragged casually with one hand, as if it was not too heavy at all.
His helmet covered his entire face, leaving only his eyes exposed.
I don't know if it was an illusion, but Petyr seemed to see a faint red flame beating in those eyes!