If Balon Greyjoy had experienced Edward's tyranny for a year or two, those pirates had seen it for decades since Edward became a lord. Edward was a legendary boss in their eyes that controlled the sea. They could only threaten Balon that they would leave him on his own if he even tried to do that.
Since the Greyjoy knew that they could not afford to fight Edward, they concentrated on the North. They were only waiting for a signal or the right time to move and attack.
They had a long grudge against the North anyway, and they could release their anger on the Northerners. Although their hate towards Edward and his kingdom was unmeasurable, they did not dare to attack him.
They instead focused their attention on the North and the Westerlands since those two were attacking each other. Since The war against them, Edward stopped their trade and denied their pass through the summer sea, making their life like hell without any resources on the islands.
Rob Stark, who was lacking men after he attacked Westerlands and destroyed their armies there, had to find a new ally to support him with enough men in order to continue his war.
At this time, his supposed brother and his most closer ally, Theon Greyjoy, told him about his idea. Theon convinced Rob to send him to the Iron Islands to seek their help to support Rob with their fleet. Although the Iron Islands were not as powerful as before, they could give the Lannister some trouble, and Rob liked this idea.
Rob received Edward's letter not long ago, telling him how sorry he was after hearing his friend's death. He told Rob that he would finish his war in Essos soon and return to fuck up with those Lannister. He advised Rob to wait for him and keep his lords' trust.
Edward did not forget to advise Rob to keep his promise to every lord, especially the Frey's. Rob, who read those words, did not know how Edward get the news that he met Talisa.
What made Rob even more perplexed was how Edward knew he had those thoughts about this girl. In the end, he still decided to ignore Edward's words.
Rob, who finished reading this letter, was a little angry since he believed that Edward should have returned long ago to save his father, but Edward decided to continue his selfish request for power and ignore his father because of the war.
It seemed that because of the rivalry between him and Axel or something else, Rob had some resentment against Edward and his family deep down in his heart, making that cloud his judgment at this moment.
"What are you saying, Rob? Do you know how much the Stormking loved your father and helped the North all those years? Without him, life in the North would have been so difficult." Said Catelyn Stark after hearing her son's angry words that could result in disaster if anyone heard them. The problem was that there was someone else in the tent, making her face turn pale.
Rob had spoken his mind earlier in front of her and Theon, making her face change because of that. She believed that these were the nonsense words that Theon had been telling Rob after she left Winterfell.
She never liked that boy or any Ironborn because of their way of living and how they killed and raped the town in Riverlands. They had attacked the North and Riverlands multiple times. Plus, she knew how Theon hated Edward to the core because of the humiliation he had been through every time Edward visited the North.
"If he really was Father's friend, he should have come to help him. In the end, Father was the one that got beheaded in King's Landing while he was enjoying his time in Essos conquering more lands for his own and his children." Said Rob with some anger behind his words. It seemed that his mind got corrupted by the poisonous words spoken by Theon. Rob had taken the bad road by saying those words.
As for Catelyn, who heard those words, she could not believe her ears because she knew how Edward liked and treated all Ned Stark's children with kindness. It seemed that her late arrival to the frontline of this war made Theon's words got deep into her son's heart. She wished that it was not too late to fix that or everything would turn into a disaster.
As for Theon, he was smiling from ear to ear because that was his wish all this time, and he finally managed to pull Rob to his side. He hated Edward and wanted everyone to hate him as well. It was Theon that convinced Rob to call himself the King in the North in this timeline.
Every lord in the North had deep respect towards Edward because of how he helped them in the past, even the annoying Roose Bolton. Edward had done a lot for those lords, making them think that he was one of them. Plus, Edward did not stop at that, but he would visit those lord's castles from time to time when he came to the North, making them open to him more and more.
And since he was a friend of the late Ned Stark, no one dared to say that suggestion to Rob. Only Ramsy Bolton, who was not on this expedition with the rest of the lords, hated Edward since Edward did not give him face when he visited his father one time and slapped him for a mistake he made back then.
That was when Theon's role kicked in and saw the opportunity to make Rob take his side. At the meeting between Rob and the other lords, the lords agreed to support Edward's claim to the throne in this timeline when Theon used the hatred of the North towards the South to butt in by calling Rob; the King in the North.
If the others did not want to get labeled traitors, they had to follow his steps and acknowledge Rob as their King. Plus, this was the freedom they longed for and wished they could have long ago, making it an easier decision for them to accept.
After that situation, Theon and Rob became even close, and Rob started taking Theon's side and advice more, making him look more like a puppet in Theon's hands. When Catelyn Stark arrived, everything had changed a lot, and she could not do anything to separate those two.
"Rob, you could not afford to anger the Stormking. You don't know what he is capable of and what he would do to those opposing him. You were not there during the rebellion and was a child during most of his achievements. You can't anger him!!! Do you understand?" Said Catelyn Stark with a grim look on her face.