Chapter Summaries

Corleone used his newly acquired [Dignity Lv2] to negotiate with Roose Bolton as an apparent equal, proposing a mutually beneficial friendship. He presented the destruction of Vargo Hoat and the Brave Companions as his first gift, then began to address Bolton’s allegiance to Robb Stark.

• Corleone’s [Dignity Lv2] made his words and presence inspire trust, prompting Roose Bolton to take him seriously.
• Corleone proposed that he and Ser Jaime seek a friendship based on shared interests rather than protection or charity.
• Roose agreed to hear Corleone’s proposal, opening negotiations between them.
• Corleone called Vargo Hoat and the Brave Companions a threat to Bolton’s reputation and presented their removal as his first gift.
• Roose acknowledged that the Brave Companions’ destruction benefited him but did not consider it enough to make him yield.
• Corleone raised a second point and began discussing Bolton’s service to Robb Stark, the King in the North.

Vito Corleone argued that Robb Stark’s poor decisions and treatment of Rickard Karstark made his rule unreliable, then negotiated with Roose Bolton for safe passage to King’s Landing. Roose agreed to consider the deal but demanded that Brienne of Tarth remain as a guarantee.

• Vito Corleone listed Robb Stark’s broken marriage pact, weakened Riverlands alliance, and lack of justice as reasons the North could not win the war.
• Corleone cited Rickard Karstark’s execution and asked Roose Bolton whether he wanted to suffer the same fate.
• Roose declared House Bolton’s loyalty to Robb remained unshakable but shifted the conversation to their mutual interests.
• Corleone asked Roose to provide safe passage to King’s Landing for him and Jaime Lannister in exchange for unspecified benefits.
• Roose said he needed a tangible guarantee and demanded that Brienne of Tarth stay.

Roose Bolton arranged to keep Brienne of Tarth hostage at Harrenhal so Jaime Lannister could be exchanged for Catelyn Tully's daughters, while Corleone stayed silent. Jaime trusted Corleone's plan and let Brienne be taken, leaving her convinced that both men had betrayed her.

• Brienne rejected Roose Bolton's proposal to remain at Harrenhal as a hostage, but Roose argued that doing so would honor her vows and protect the Stark girls.
• Brienne realized Corleone had tacitly accepted Roose's plan and accused him of trading her freedom for Jaime's safety.
• Walton and two guards seized Brienne, while Jaime nearly intervened before noticing Corleone's subtle gesture beneath the table.
• Jaime restrained himself and urged Brienne to trust him, but she took his words as proof of betrayal.
• Brienne condemned Vito Corleone and left the reception hall under the escort of Northern soldiers.

Vito Corleone proposed a ruthless strategy for Roose Bolton to retake Moat Cailin from the Ironborn without a costly assault. He left Roose weighing whether to use psychological warfare and deliberately spread disease to break the defenders.

• After Brienne left, Roose Bolton watched Corleone to see how he would handle the fractured negotiations.
• Corleone proposed discussing how to reclaim Moat Cailin, prompting Roose to listen closely.
• Corleone suggested encircling the fortress and using children to sing Ironborn songs at night to deepen the defenders’ hunger, homesickness, and despair.
• Corleone proposed catapulting diseased carcasses or corpses into Moat Cailin and contaminating its water to trigger panic and division.
• Jaime recoiled at the plan, while Roose fell silent as Corleone predicted the Ironborn would surrender or destroy one another.

Roose Bolton tried to recruit Vito Corleone by offering wealth and status, but Corleone asked first for a hot bath. At Harrenhal, Corleone trained with Yego until Brienne arrived and corrected his sword technique, wearing an ill-fitting gown that made him laugh.

• Roose Bolton praised Vito Corleone's mind and offered him gold, land, a title, or greater rewards in exchange for his service, but Corleone asked for a hot bath.
• Corleone trained with an iron longsword under Yego's instruction and found that his system skills had not changed.
• Yego told Corleone that his late-developing body and lack of strength would make defeating a trained soldier difficult, while insisting that Corleone was invincible because of his divine protection.
• Corleone resumed training and vowed to complete three hundred swings before eating.
• Brienne corrected Corleone's sword technique, and he laughed at her pale blue gown, which was far too small for her.

Brienne demonstrated proper longsword technique to Corleone, who trained until exhaustion and earned her respect. She apologized for misjudging him and accepted his offer of friendship, and Jaime arrived ready to lead them to King's Landing.

• Brienne took the sword from Corleone and demonstrated disciplined longsword moves, explaining to Yego why Corleone needed to learn proper technique.
• Corleone studied Brienne's movements and practiced until his arms gave out, while Brienne praised his perseverance and potential.
• Brienne apologized for misjudging Corleone and thanked him for sacrificing his promised gold, title, and lands to secure her release.
• Corleone invited Brienne to call him Vito and said he would never abandon a friend; Brienne gripped his wrist and promised, in the name of the Warrior, that she owed him a favor.
• Jaime arrived on horseback, teased them about Brienne's clothing, and told everyone to pack for their departure to King's Landing.

Jaime charged Walton and his men after they captured Rorge, forcing Corleone and the others to follow despite Corleone’s wish to avoid trouble. The chapter ended with Jaime stopping his horse just short of Walton and mocking him.

• Jaime teased Brienne about sharing a lovers’ bath with a highborn lady, making her furious and embarrassed.
• Walton and several soldiers dragged the bound Rorge across the training yard and threatened to mutilate him.
• Corleone recognized Rorge and decided against confronting Walton, but Jaime charged ahead before he could finish speaking.
• Corleone ran after Jaime, followed by Brienne and Yego, and Brienne grabbed a rake as she hurried toward the group.
• Jaime rode down Walton, reared his horse inches from his head, and asked whether he had frightened him.

Corleone confronted Walton over Rorge, a prisoner he had captured, and demanded a ransom while Jaime threatened to accuse Walton of helping cut off his hand. Walton was left terrified and forced to choose between paying for Rorge or releasing him.

• Walton accused Jaime of stealing his old horse, but the horse urinated near him before Corleone, Brienne, and Yego arrived.
• Corleone told Walton that Rorge was his prisoner and rejected Walton’s claim that Roose Bolton’s orders let him seize him.
• Walton ordered his soldiers to take Rorge, but Corleone and his companions stopped them and Corleone offered Rorge for a thousand Gold Dragons.
• Jaime backed Corleone’s demand and warned Walton that he could tell Tywin Lannister that Walton had wielded the blade that severed Jaime’s hand.
• Walton shouted that Jaime was lying, and Jaime asked whose word Tywin would believe.

Corleone settled the dispute with Walton by paying him thirty Gold Dragons and securing Rorge, then prepared to leave Harrenhal before Roose Bolton could change his mind. Jaime questioned whether the deal was worth the money, but Corleone insisted he had not made a losing deal.

• Walton faltered when Corleone warned that Roose Bolton might blame him for defying Jaime and disgracing House Bolton.
• Corleone offered Walton a respectable way to end the dispute, promising to take Rorge and pay for the horse.
• Corleone gave Walton thirty Gold Dragons, and Walton accepted the money and left with his soldiers to celebrate.
• Corleone told Yego to carry Rorge and ordered his companions to leave before Roose Bolton changed his mind.
• Jaime teased Corleone about paying too much for Rorge, and Corleone claimed he would prove the deal was profitable.

Roose Bolton sent Walton to escort Corleone to King's Landing and collect an unspecified payment, while Corleone and his companions traveled along Gods Eye with Rorge as their prisoner. Their journey was interrupted by an approaching cavalry troop bearing a white sunburst banner.

• Roose Bolton ordered Walton to serve Corleone after Walton took Corleone's money and failed to kill his target.
• Walton told Corleone that Roose had ordered him to protect the party and meet Lord Tywin in King's Landing to collect an unspecified payment.
• Corleone kept Walton's possible betrayal to himself and told Yego to keep the unconscious Rorge alive for a planned deal.
• A horn sounded, and Corleone, Jaime, Brienne, Yego, and Walton formed a defensive formation as cavalry approached.
• Corleone recognized the white sunburst banner at the head of the approaching troop.

Corleone encountered a Karstark patrol near the Gods Eye and tried to hide Jaime from their search for the Kingslayer. Captain Harag Stow examined Corleone’s pass, then admitted he could not read it.

• Walton recognized the approaching banner as House Karstark’s, and Corleone warned his party not to provoke the northerners.
• Corleone gave Jaime a cloak and told him to hide his golden hair.
• Harag Stow arrived with more than twenty armed riders and announced that he was searching for the Kingslayer.
• Corleone claimed his group were refugees with a pass from Roose Bolton and handed the document to Stow.
• Stow looked over the party, eyed the cloaked Jaime, and confessed that he could not read the pass.

Corleone bribed Harag Stow and then convinced him that the cloaked Jaime had greyscale, making Stow and his soldiers leave. Jaime stayed calm despite Stow's insults and vowed to make him pay, but the Karstark party soon returned in pursuit of Arya Stark.

• Corleone offered Stow a hundred Gold Dragons, but Stow demanded that Jaime remove his cloak.
• Corleone claimed Jaime had contagious greyscale, and a North Cavalry soldier backed up the story with a tale from Essos.
• Stow abandoned his inspection and rode off, hurling insults at House Lannister as Jaime remained still beneath the cloak.
• After the soldiers disappeared, Jaime revealed himself, told Corleone he would settle the score with Stow, and declared that a Lannister always paid his debts.
• Chaotic hoofbeats and shouts came from the road as the Karstark party returned, demanding that Arya Stark be caught.

Corleone and his companions found Arya Stark and the Hound surrounded by Soldiers of the North, but could not safely intervene. When Harag Stow ordered a doctor to save his wounded companion Hogg, Corleone saw a chance to act and declared himself the best doctor in the Riverlands.

• Brienne recognized Arya Stark in danger and rushed toward the fighting, but Corleone and Jaime stopped her and urged her to wait for a plan.
• Corleone saw the Hound fighting the Soldiers of the North while carrying Arya, until Harag Stow struck him with a warhammer and knocked him from his horse.
• The Hound shielded Arya from the fall, but Stow punched her down and declared he would use her to force Robb Stark to repent.
• A Soldier of the North reported that Hogg had suffered a deep thigh wound, and Stow urgently ordered his men to find someone who could save him.
• Corleone devised a plan and called out that he was the best doctor in the Riverlands, addressing someone named Derek.

Corleone persuaded Harag Stow to take him to the wounded Hogg, while Brienne and the others stayed behind with Jaime. Corleone diagnosed Hogg’s arterial bleeding and prepared to operate, leaving his companions near the northern soldiers and The Hound.

• Harag Stow demanded that Corleone treat Hogg and threatened Jaime when Corleone hesitated.
• Brienne, Yego, and Walton objected to Corleone going alone, but Corleone agreed to Stow’s terms and told them to wait behind.
• Corleone exchanged a knowing glance with Jaime, then rode with Stow and his men to Hogg.
• Corleone examined Hogg and diagnosed a deep wound to the thigh’s main artery that was causing severe bleeding.
• Stow promised Corleone twice the Gold Dragons if he saved Hogg, while The Hound was being bound and hoisted toward a tree.
• Corleone took out his surgical tools and confidently assured Stow that Hogg would live.

Corleone stopped Hogg’s severe bleeding with rough surgery, earning Stow’s gratitude and some freedom to move around camp. He then watched the bound Hound face the soldiers’ rage, until someone’s regretful remark interrupted their attempt to hang him.

• Stow feared Hogg would die, but Corleone calmly operated on the wound while the soldiers held Hogg down.
• Corleone stitched the severed artery and stopped the bleeding, warning that Hogg could still develop a fever or infection.
• Stow thanked Corleone and allowed him to move around camp, though he still kept him from leaving and did not return the hundred Gold Dragons.
• Corleone saw the bound Hound being beaten and taunted by Karstark soldiers who wanted revenge for their dead comrades.
• The soldiers moved to hang the Hound, but a voice said, “What a pity...”

Corleone revealed that Sandor Clegane had won forty thousand Gold Dragons, prompting the northern soldiers to beat him for the location of the prize. When Sandor stayed silent, Corleone proposed using Arya Stark to make him talk.

• Corleone explained that Sandor Clegane had won a forty-thousand-Gold-Dragon prize at King Robert's tournament.
• The northern soldiers, led by Rhaegel, searched Sandor and then beat him, demanding to know where he had hidden the gold.
• Sandor silently endured the beating, knowing Beric Dondarrion had robbed him of his winnings and that admitting it would humiliate him.
• Arya Stark tried to speak up as the soldiers continued beating Sandor, but Corleone stopped them.
• Corleone pointed out that Arya was important to Sandor and suggested tormenting her in front of him instead.

Corleone convinced the Northern soldiers that the Hound was pretending to reject Arya in order to protect her, then startled Arya by speaking the phrase “Valar morghulis.” As the soldiers urged him to torture her, an unknown voice interrupted them.

• Arya and the Hound traded insults, leaving the Northern soldiers unsure whether they were allies.
• Corleone silenced the Hound with Rhaegel’s help and persuaded the soldiers that the Hound’s hostility was an act to protect Arya.
• Arya demanded Corleone’s name, and he replied, “Valar morghulis,” shocking her with the phrase she had heard from Jaqen H'ghar.
• The soldiers called for Corleone to torture Arya, and he reached toward her ropes before someone ordered the Southrons to stop.

Corleone exploited divisions among the Karstark soldiers to stop them from tormenting Arya Stark, offering to use potions on the Hound instead. When Stow questioned his motives, Corleone admitted he wanted a larger payment if he found the forty thousand Gold Dragons.

• Halsen confronted Rhaegel and Stow for threatening Arya, insisting that Karstark honor forbade mistreating her.
• Stow and Halsen drew swords as their men took sides, but Corleone intervened before the soldiers fought.
• Corleone proposed returning to his camp for potions that could loosen the Hound’s lips without harming Arya.
• Halsen withdrew with his men after warning Stow not to touch Arya again, and Stow ordered Rhaegel to escort Corleone to fetch the potions.
• Stow asked what Corleone wanted, and Corleone said his services would cost extra if he found the forty thousand Gold Dragons.

Corleone and his companions lured Rhaegel and the four Soldiers of the North into their camp by promising medicine and tempting Rhaegel with a noble title. They killed all five in a coordinated ambush, leaving Rhaegel dying beside Corleone.

• Jaime hid his blond hair as Rhaegel arrived with five Soldiers of the North demanding medicine for the Hound.
• Corleone stalled Rhaegel with talk of the potion and forty thousand Gold Dragons, then welcomed him and his men to the fire.
• Walton served meat and broth while Corleone secretly took a scalpel and drew Rhaegel into conversation.
• Corleone tempted Rhaegel with the prospect of a title, a castle, and a life in Duskendale.
• Corleone stabbed Rhaegel beneath the ear as his companions simultaneously killed the other four Soldiers of the North.
• Corleone told the dying Rhaegel, “Take a deep breath. Feeling dizzy is normal.”

Arya provoked a North soldier into approaching her, then cried out for help and accused him of trying to rape her. Halsen killed the soldier in a rage, and Stow arrived to find the body and confront him.

• Arya recalled Corleone’s instructions and pretended she needed to pee to lure a leering soldier closer.
• Arya headbutted the soldier, bit his hand, and screamed for help as he struck her.
• Halsen seized the soldier and listened as Arya accused him of trying to rape and beat her.
• Arya mentioned Cersei, Joffrey, and her dead father, intensifying Halsen’s anger.
• Halsen drew his sword and killed the soldier.
• Stow arrived with the remaining men, saw the dead subordinate, and demanded to know what Halsen was doing.