Chapter 64: Guardian of Peace
The noisy chatter pulled Aeg back to reality, and he realized that it was not the time to be lost in thought. After taking care of Eddard Stark's captain of the guard's horse and inviting the two guests, one big and one small, into the yet-to-open Night's Watch office to sit down, he continued his contemplation in secret.
To protect his scam, it seemed he had no choice but to strive to become a guardian of peace, which was somewhat ironic. But Aeg couldn't laugh; this was a serious and troublesome matter. Preventing the War of the Five Kings. just thinking about it gave him a sense of déjà vu, like trying to prevent Bran's fall. Was this war also something a god wanted to incite?
Wait, thinking this way wouldn't lead to any results. Forget about those damn supernatural beings. There was no doubt that getting rid of Littlefinger, Varys. these two schemers would be the most effective and permanent solution, but unfortunately, he couldn't do it. As for seeking external help, Aeg quickly thought of Jaqen H'ghar, but the thought of this man gave him a headache.
The scabs from the wounds inflicted by Melisandre's bloodletting hadn't fallen off yet, and on that night, he remembered the existence of this Faceless Man. He hadn't gone to recruit him not because he had forgotten, but because he really couldn't think of a good way to do it.
*****
Jaqen came from Braavos, and Braavos's uniqueness was not just in having an Iron Bank. This city across the narrow sea was a place with a distinctly futuristic flavor: a multi-racial immigrant city-state, a free land built by slaves and with slavery permanently abolished, a bustling maritime port with developed trade, a relaxed and free environment for diverse religions and cultures, the Iron Bank with its unfathomable financial and political power, the elite assassin organization known as the Faceless Men with their formidable reputation of "guaranteed kills," and the Sealord, the official ruler of Braavos, elected by the city's upper echelons through a mysterious and perplexing process from all citizens. This city-state's history included several large-scale foreign wars, and it had never suffered a defeat. Even Pentos, an older and seemingly more powerful free trade city-state at the start of the conflict, was forced to publicly declare the abolition of slavery after being thoroughly subdued by this upstart.
Winning wars without fail, and against opponents who were never pushovers, this astonishing ability to win was no accident. To win wars of this magnitude required extremely high levels of coordination, mobilization, and integration of internal resources, organization, and armed forces. the Sealord, the Iron Bank, and the House of Black and White in Braavos were certainly not unrelated independent entities. There must be some form of mutual assistance agreement or even strategic cooperation between the high-level figures behind these organizations, and it wouldn't be surprising if they were directly controlled by the same group of people.
Aeg even dared to boldly speculate that the House of Black and White played the role of training spies and assassins in Braavos. responsible for gathering intelligence and eliminating key figures hostile to Braavos's interests!
In short, as a core organization of Braavos, positioned within the ruling class, and with Jaqen as a high-ranking Faceless Man assassin with the authority to take on apprentices, a top spy from across the narrow sea, what right did Aeg have to subdue this man and make him kill for him?
An organization with allegiance, a faith to which it is loyal, and a terrifying individual with broad experience and a penchant for killing, how could such a person end up in the dungeons of King's Landing? Was his hitching a ride with Yoren to the Wall a coincidence or intentional? Why did he come to Westeros, to kill someone or to carry out some other mission?
Knowing nothing, how could he go and talk to someone? This high-ranking Faceless Man was currently in the black cells and had already expressed his willingness to join the Night's Watch to Yoren. Aeg had indeed considered staging an accident and then pretending to rescue him to gain his favor, but after much thought, without trusted confidants or reliable accomplices, it was simply impossible.
The path of violence, using murder to break the deadlock, was not feasible. Therefore, the only option was to think of ways to suppress chaos and help Eddard win the game in King's Landing, or at least not suffer a disastrous defeat.
Going against Littlefinger? Aeg didn't believe his political maneuvering skills were up to that level, not to mention the temporary alliance between the eunuch and the troublemaker, whose goals were different but who also wanted to stir up trouble at this stage. In this situation, where proficiency in conspiracy and the ability to gather intelligence were extremely unbalanced, his advantage of knowing the plot was hardly significant. With two high-level players wholeheartedly causing trouble, and himself, a novice, having to manage the Night's Watch bonds while trying to stabilize the situation, he was likely to make more mistakes the busier he got, and inadvertently expose himself to be eliminated.
Not to mention, what he knew was only the plot before the changes.
The failed attempt to prevent Bran's fall left Aeg with lingering fears. He really didn't want to get directly involved in the plot like this. How did he manage to extricate himself from the mess in Winterfell in the end?
[Secretly inform the Starks.]
The past success suddenly inspired Aeg. Just as he didn't have to personally deal with the assassin to clear his name in the attempt on Bran's life, he didn't have to play a direct game with Littlefinger to help Eddard. As the de facto ruler of the North, Aeg had his own power and ability to think. As long as he could sow discord between Eddard and Littlefinger and prevent Eddard from being led by the nose, it would be enough!
"Aeg, my lady is talking to you."
A male voice suddenly interrupted Aeg's thoughts again. He looked up to see a young face in front of him.
"Oh, sorry, I was thinking about the recruitment. What can I do for you, Lady Arya?"
"Are you the Aeg that Jon mentioned?" Arya pouted, repeating what she had said earlier: "The Night's Watch ranger who killed the White Walker?"
"Yes."
Aeg glanced at Jory, the captain of the Hand's guard, whose face was written with disbelief, and somewhat reluctantly admitted. It felt strange to feel guilty even when telling the truth.
"Are White Walkers very powerful?"
"Very powerful. Gared and I fought two against one, and we almost got killed together."
"But you still killed it in the end. Your swordsmanship must be very good!" The girl's eyes lit up. "Come here, I have something to tell you."
"Don't follow me!" The girl called out to her father's guard and then dragged the bewildered Aeg into the "Chief Logistics Officer's Office" in the inner room, closing the door behind them. She then whispered mysteriously, "Can you teach me how to use a sword?"
"Huh?" Aeg was puzzled. He calculated the time and realized that at this stage, Eddard should have already hired a swordsmanship coach for her, one from Braavos, named Syrio Forel. "Why don't you ask your father to hire a coach for you?"
"How could he agree? Are you stupid or what! I'm a girl!"
This was a bit strange. What plot change caused things that should have happened not to happen? Aeg understood that this was likely caused by himself. The characteristic of the butterfly effect was that a small disturbance in the initial conditions could lead to long-term and massive chain reactions in the entire system: It could be that his false accusation against Joffrey had changed Eddard's thinking, or perhaps Arya had carefully hidden her Needle and her father hadn't seen it. The specific reasons were irrelevant. Now he was busy as a ghost and had no time to deal with this Stark girl.
"I'm very busy, I'm sorry, my lady." Aeg thought to himself that he was busy saving her father, but politely shook his head: "Go to your father's guards."
"My father just did you a big favor, and you won't even agree to such a small request!"
The favor was done by your father, not you, Aeg thought wryly. Arya was undoubtedly an important character. If there was nothing else, improving his relationship with her could be considered a spare move. but she would only be useful to him after completing her training as a Faceless Man. At this stage, the girl was of no use to him.
Evaluating others based on "usefulness" was undoubtedly somewhat utilitarian, but Aeg was now in the midst of the game and really couldn't afford to be romantic. He shook his head firmly and, under Arya's threatening glare, organized his words of refusal. But at the last moment, he suddenly had a different idea.
*****
A/N: I encourage you to take a peek at my other literary endeavors. I'm confident that you'll find them captivating. They're waiting to whisk you away on new adventures.
Also, a gentle reminder: "Don't forget to vote with your Power Stones. It will be a tremendous help in getting my works noticed by a wider audience. Your votes are like beacons in the night, guiding others to the stories we've built together."