(Third-person perspective)
Jon had to prove they had nothing to do with it, but he had to be sure. First, he questioned Lord Belmore, who believed Belmore would never dare to do such a thing. He denied any knowledge of it, Jon believed him.
Now, he stood before Lord Grafton's room; he was different now. If Grafton wished, he could arrange such a thing immediately.
He had to be careful; the accusation of attempted assassination was a serious matter, and he needed to find out the truth to prevent the tensions from escalating further. The door creaked open, revealing Lord Grafton, who met Jon's gaze with a mixture of disdain and hostility, for he had done nothing to Aermir.
" Lord Grafton," Jon began, his tone measured, "I need to discuss something extremely important. An attempt to assassinate Lord Drasil has just occurred, and we must get to the bottom of it."
Lord Grafton's eyes narrowed, a cold smile playing on his lips. "Attempted to murder that barbarian? I'm not surprised. Many want to see him eliminated."
Jon nodded in agreement. "That may be true, but as High Lord, I have a responsibility to ensure the safety of everyone present, regardless of personal feelings. I need your assurance, Lord Grafton, that you and your men are uninvolved in this matter."
Grafton's reply was bitter. "Guarantee? You doubt me, Arryn? I may have no liking for that fake nobleman, but I wouldn't be foolish enough to resort to such methods. I don't hide my dissatisfaction with him, but I'm not an assassin. I thought the lord would punish him for what he did to us, but it seems I was wrong."
Jon pretended not to hear Lord Grafton's taunts. Jon studied Grafton's face, searching for any sign of deception. The hatred was obvious, but whether it would translate into a direct threat to Aermir's life was uncertain. "I need your assurance, Lord Grafton. Can you honestly tell me that you have nothing to do with this?"
Grafton scoffed, crossing his arms defensively. "I may despise this man, but I wasn't involved. Having recovered from the pain, I didn't have time to think about him."
Jon sighed, weighing Grafton's words. "I'll believe you for now, but you must understand, Lord Grafton. We're here to negotiate, and this action threatens not only Aermir but also the fragile peace we're striving for. If your involvement is exposed, the consequences will be dire, not only for you but for the Vale."
Lord Grafton looked at him with venomous eyes and said.
"I've said before that this has nothing to do with me, but sir, if you find out who did it, could you please tell me? I would very much like to send a thank-you letter."
Jon stormed out of the room, furious. What could they expect from him when faced with two armies attacking from both sides and a damned spellcaster capable of besieging a Citadel single-handedly? They were the fools, daring to attack an unarmed man with weapons. Even if he killed them all, he couldn't risk starting a war with the North.
The Mountain Clans were too disciplined in their actions, and their objectives were clear. He was convinced that the Druid and Aermir were behind it all, but aside from intuition and some arms deals, he had no evidence.
Then a possibility occurred to him, but he shook his head in denial. It was too absurd, too insane; it couldn't possibly be a real plan. One wrong step and he would die.
Aermir and Lord Stark rode at full speed, almost crossing the mountain pass. His other men also successfully left the Citadel and joined them.
Sith had no problem with the pace. To her, it was even slow, but the rest of the mounts needed a rest, so they began to slow down to a trot. Seeing this opportunity, Lord Stark approached Aermir with an angry glare.
"How could you possibly have been hit by an arrow?"
Aermir had already pulled out the arrow and healed his wound. He shrugged and said.
"Isn't it obvious I didn't cast a defensive spell?"
Eddard narrowed his eyes suspiciously. For someone who had survived an assassination attempt, Aermir was remarkably calm. Then, it dawned on him.
"You did it! You arranged it. Why?"
Aermir looked at him with an obvious expression and said...
"I must appear to want peace, otherwise Jon might be able to persuade the king to mediate, leaving me no choice but to agree. Peace is impossible until we yield in the Vale."
At that moment, Eddard felt a surge of anxiety. To achieve his goals, Aermir was even willing to harm himself. As the years passed, he became more cunning and ruthless. But one thing was certain: he preferred to stand on his own side rather than accept his sinister terror.
He knew Aermir was long beyond his control, but at least Eddard wished he could be more human. "Why are you so eager to fight the Vale? I know you can reason with Jon, as long as you stop being unreasonable. As long as Jon remains the leader of the Vale, what you fear won't happen."
Aermir sighed. He seemed annoyed by Eddard's incessant chatter and said...
"My lord, when have I ever broken my promise?"
Eddard seemed somewhat troubled by this problem.
"You have never broken any promises."
"Then why are you riding on my head? Do I seem Undeserving that I need constant reminders to stay peaceful?"
"If you didn't want war, why did you assassinate yourself? Why did you go to such lengths?"
Aermir knew Ned wanted him to be a responsible lord. For someone with such great power, he was trying to be a voice of reason. His nagging was always well-intentioned, but knowing this did little to lessen his annoyance.
"As long as you don't try to warn them, I will keep my promise; Drasil and his army will remain on the Three Sisters and Pebble. As for Jon as chieftain, I will not entrust my fate to anyone else. My lord, I told you before that we need to establish a buffer zone along the Vale, and I will do that."
Aermir looked at him, her eyes filled with determination.
"But one army cannot defeat the Vale Army. I need another army to share their manpower and draw their attention. That is why I cannot make peace with them."
With the assassination attempt thwarted, the Vale will have no backup plan to deal with Aermir and will have to leave a considerable force on the coast of Bite.