Game of Thrones: Knight's Honor-Chapter 344: Harrenhal Changes Hands

"What a ruthless leech," Lynd muttered, his face visibly shocked as he finished reading the freshly delivered battle report.

Margaery and Sansa, who were sorting documents nearby, glanced up at him.

Sansa, recently reassigned by Jon, was clearly more reserved than Margaery. Though curious about what had caused such a reaction, she didn't ask, instead lowering her head and continuing her work.

Margaery, however, was bolder. She walked over to Lynd's side and glanced at the report in his hands. After reading it, the same stunned expression appeared on her face. She couldn't help but exclaim, "How could he do that? Weren't they allies with the Riverlands?"

"Allies? That depends on where you're standing," Lynd said, placing the report on the table as he began contemplating the future course of the war.

Margaery picked up the report again and brought it over to Sansa, handing it to her. Sansa looked to Lynd, a bit hesitant. Seeing no objection from him, she took the document. Like Margaery before her, her expression changed as she read it, and she cried out, "How could Lord Bolton do this? The Riverlands will hate the North for this!"

The report detailed a siege that had taken place two days earlier in the Riverlands, at Harrenhal. The attacking force was the Northern army led by Roose Bolton. The defenders were Westerland forces stationed at Harrenhal. The result: Roose Bolton had captured the castle. Amory Lorch had died in battle, while Daven Lannister and Ser Gregor Clegane, the Mountain, had retreated with the remaining Westerland troops to Duskendale, where they regrouped with Kevan Lannister.

But what had truly shocked Lynd wasn't that Roose Bolton had taken Harrenhal—it was how he had done it. The method was so unconventional it bordered on madness.

As everyone knew, Daven Lannister, in fleeing from Dacey Mormont, had destroyed all bridges over the Trident. To further prevent Dacey from crossing, he had ordered all boats on the river burned. Using the natural barrier of the river, he had kept the Bear Island troops pinned to the opposite shore.

This maneuver also effectively stranded Dacey, preventing her from joining Robb Stark's offensive in the Westerlands. Had her Bear Island warriors joined the fight, the Westerland defenses would have been overwhelmed—save for a few strongholds, most of the region would've been swept clean by the Northern host.

There was no denying it—Daven Lannister was a rare military talent among his generation of the Lannister family.

But even the most talented commander could do little when faced with someone as cold-blooded and ruthless as the Flayed Leech.

Roose Bolton had found a way to cross the river with a single move: under cover of night, he sent a team across the Trident on rafts to the opposite shore where the river's three forks met, and ordered them to dig a breach in the embankment.

The confluence of the Green Fork, Red Fork, and Blue Fork was a well-known region where the river flowed above ground level due to the buildup of sediment. Though the upper currents were strong, the width and flatness of the confluence slowed the flow, causing silt to pile up and raising the riverbed above the surrounding land.

The Riverlands, already a low-lying region composed mostly of plains, was especially prone to flooding. During the rainy season, when the Trident rose, the river typically overflowed from this very point. To prevent frequent floods, the Tullys and other Riverlands lords had constructed a flood channel to divert overflow into the Gods Eye.

But this time, Roose Bolton didn't wait for nature. He had the embankment sabotaged directly. The breach wasn't like past floods that spilled over—it was a catastrophic rupture. The torrential river burst through the opening, widening it further and ultimately destroying an entire section of the riverbank.

A massive volume of water flooded the Riverlands plain. The flood channels couldn't handle it. In a single night, the flatlands from High Heart in the west to the Gods Eye in the east, from the Red Fork in the north to the upper reaches of the Blackwater Rush in the south, were transformed into a vast swamp. Countless fields were submerged.

All of this, just so Roose Bolton could cross the river unnoticed—and it worked. As the upstream waters rushed into the breach, the downstream level dropped dramatically, low enough for ordinary men to wade across with ease.

Roose Bolton then led tens of thousands of troops across the Trident and caught Harrenhal completely off guard. Mercenary companies like the Brave Companions, already bought off by Bolton in advance, launched a surprise assault on the gates. They killed Amory Lorch and the gate guards, allowing Bolton's forces to storm the castle without much resistance.

Even under such dire circumstances, Daven Lannister managed to lead the remaining troops out of Harrenhal and preserve most of the garrison. He even set an ambush along the escape route, wiping out the Brave Companions who had pursued them—avenging their betrayal.

With the fall of Harrenhal, the Westerlands coalition found itself in grave danger. Tywin and Kevan Lannister were now completely cut off from each other, and both were being pinned down by separate enemy forces. It was no exaggeration to say that a single misstep could lead to total disaster for their army.

After reading the report, Sansa, despite her initial shock, couldn't help but smile. To her, any crushing defeat suffered by the Westerlands army was good news.

"You've all read the battle report. Tell me—what issues do you see in it?" Lynd finally emerged from his thoughts and posed the question to the two women in the room.

This wasn't the first time he had asked them for their opinions. Over the past few days, he had often sought their views on political and military matters—or rather, guided them to think through these issues themselves.

So when Lynd spoke, both of them instinctively fell into deep thought.

Normally, Margaery was the first to respond, but this time, it was Sansa. It seemed the Westerlands coalition's defeat had lifted her spirits—her thoughts were more fluid than usual.

"Although Lord Roose Bolton succeeded in capturing Harrenhal, the cost was too high. Half the Riverlands has been flooded—and it was all prime farmland. That's bound to cause a rift in the alliance between the North and the Riverlands," Sansa said, her expression growing solemn. "If Robb doesn't handle this carefully, the rift will only deepen, and it could eventually affect the war against the Westerlands."

"Hmm." Lynd nodded. "And what should he do to mend that rift?"

"He absolutely can't punish Lord Bolton. Doing so would only demoralize the Northern lords," Sansa said after some thought. "If I were Robb, I would compensate the Riverlands lords for the damage by giving them all the Westerlands territory we've captured so far. Their lands were only temporarily flooded—once the waters recede, they'll still be there. But if they also receive new lands as compensation, they won't have anything to resent. And to protect what they've gained, they'll have even more reason to support the North. After all, only if the North wins will their compensation be secure."

"That's a solid plan." Lynd gave an approving nod, then shifted the conversation. "But if you do that, what will the Northern lords think? Those castles and towns in the Westerlands—they were taken by their own blood and effort. They've yet to be rewarded, and now you'd hand those spoils to the Riverlands lords instead. How do you think they'll take that? Remember—before the North entered the Riverlands, the entire region had already been swallowed up by Tywin Lannister's forces. The Riverlands lords were on the brink of ruin. It was the Northern army that defeated Jaime's forces, lifted the sieges, and bound the Riverlords to their cause. And now the Riverlords are taking spoils from the hands of the very men who saved them. What do you think that'll lead to?"

Sansa froze, her face clouding over. She fell back into thought.

After a long silence, she finally shook her head. "I don't know how to satisfy both sides."

Lynd smiled. "Nothing in this world can satisfy everyone. So when you're caught between two sides, your job is to make the choice that satisfies you. Whether others are satisfied doesn't matter—at least, not immediately."

"Make myself satisfied?" Sansa hesitated, then asked, "You mean... I don't have to worry about the Riverlords' dissatisfaction?"

Lynd shook his head. "I'm not Robb. And Robb isn't me. My decision isn't one you can use as a guide." He turned to Margaery. "Weren't you always the first to answer my questions before? Why so quiet now?"

Margaery looked confused. "There's just one thing I haven't been able to figure out. That's why I didn't say anything."

Lynd chuckled. "What is it you can't figure out? Say it. Let's think it through together."

Sansa looked over curiously as well.

Margaery frowned slightly and said, "I just don't understand—why would Lord Roose Bolton do this?"

Sansa looked puzzled too. She couldn't make sense of what Margaery meant. What did she mean, why did Lord Bolton do it? Wasn't it to defeat the Westerlands coalition and take Harrenhal? The report had spelled that out clearly. Anyone could see that—Margaery included. Even commonfolk could understand it.

But Lynd, upon hearing her question, looked genuinely surprised—as if he hadn't expected Margaery to ask that at all.

"Why do you think Roose Bolton did this?" Lynd asked with interest.

Margaery replied, "Although Lord Roose Bolton's actions appear to be ruthless tactics used in the name of victory, breaching the dike to divert the river just to cross the Trident was completely unnecessary—utterly excessive."

"How could it be unnecessary?" Sansa couldn't help but argue. "Lady Dacey Mormont has been stuck behind the Trident for months. Without such a method, crossing the river would've been impossible."

Margaery glanced at her calmly and said, "Sansa, you're very smart—but sometimes you don't quite know how to use that intelligence. You let your emotions cloud your judgment. Think about it calmly, and you'll understand why I say it was excessive."

Sansa blinked, then fell silent and started to think seriously. As Margaery had said, she was clever—and soon, her expression shifted to the same puzzled look Margaery wore.

Seeing this change, Margaery knew Sansa had figured it out too. "So you've realized it as well," she said. "The reason Dacey Mormont was trapped so long is because her forces are entirely cavalry. For cavalry to cross a river, you need either a strong bridge or large ships capable of carrying horses. Otherwise, they'd have to abandon their horses and cross as infantry. But if her army became foot soldiers, they wouldn't stand a chance against tens of thousands of Westerlands troops across the river. That's why Dacey was pinned down on the far side.

"But Roose Bolton's army is different—his forces are mostly infantry with very few cavalry. And just beside the Trident lies the Mountains of the Moon, rich in timber. He could have built plenty of rafts upstream and floated them down. Before the Westerlands troops could react, he would have crossed and assembled his forces downstream. There was absolutely no need to break the dike and flood the Riverlands."

"Then why use such an extreme method?" Sansa still looked confused. "Did he not think of any other options?"

"How could that be?" Margaery shook her head. "Lord Roose Bolton is clearly a brilliant man. If we can think of alternate solutions, surely he can too—and likely more than we ever could." Her expression turned serious. "From the way I see it, there are only two outcomes Roose Bolton might have been aiming for. One is to make the world see him as a fearsome man who stops at nothing. The other is to intentionally drive a permanent wedge between the Riverlands and the North."

"That's impossible!" Sansa shook her head. "The North and the Riverlands are working closely together to fight the Westerlands. Why would Robb let Lord Bolton sabotage that?"

"Who said your brother, Robb Stark, ordered Roose Bolton to sabotage the alliance?" Margaery sighed and gave Sansa a look that was both concerned and faintly amused. "Your House and House Bolton haven't exactly had a warm history. Several of your Kings in the North were once captured and flayed by House Bolton, and many in their house died at the hands of the Starks too..."

"That was all long ago. The Boltons are loyal now. My father used to say—" Sansa began to protest, but suddenly paused. Something occurred to her, and her voice faltered. Doubt crept into her eyes.

"Margaery... are you saying Roose Bolton is planning to betray my brother?"