Melisandre came to the bed, took a deep breath, placed her hands on Stannis' chest, and chanted a spell.
After finishing the spell, Melisandre looked at Stannis who was motionless, thought for a moment and then recited the spell again.
Three minutes passed and there was still no response. Melisandre looked at Davos and Jon who were looking at her in confusion with some embarrassment, and put her hand on Stannis again.
Although she had not asked Thoros about how he resurrected Beric, it should be similar to hers. However, when she saw Stannis repeating the spell but getting no response, Melisandre didn't know what went wrong.
Was it because her resurrection ritual was wrong, or was it because the Lord of Light didn't want to waste his power on Stannis?
After reciting the spell twice more, it still didn't work, so Melisandre stopped insisting.
I've recited it so many times, it should have taken effect long ago. The lack of effect means Stannis cannot be resurrected.
"Have other priests of the Lord of Light ever resurrected the dead?" Davos asked curiously when he saw that Melisandre stopped chanting the spell but Stannis did not move.
He did not doubt Melisandre's ability because he had seen those strange spells with his own eyes. He just doubted whether the Lord of Light could really resurrect the dead.
"I have seen people being resurrected before, but the Lord of Light must have his reasons for resurrecting the dead."
Melisandre didn't want Davos and Jon to think that they were incapable of resurrecting Stannis, so she stated that the Lord of Light would not resurrect the dead at will.
After hearing what Melisandre said, Davos and Jon nodded slightly.
They knew in their hearts that resurrecting the dead was not an easy task, even if the other party was the King of Light.
"Let's prepare to evacuate Hearth City first. Once we're ready..."
Jon looked at Davos and Melisandre who were still standing by the bed and said hesitantly.
Davos nodded, glanced at Melisandre, and asked her to continue guarding Stannis. He and Jon went outside to gather the remaining troops and raise food and supplies.
After Jon and the other man left, Melisandre looked at Stannis who was lying there quietly. She didn't know what he was thinking and she had no intention of chanting the spell again.
There was chaos in the Hearth City at this time. The Amber family members in the castle were busy packing up. The remaining soldiers outside the castle were still slowly gathering, and more than 8,000 people had already gathered.
More than three hours later, Bran told Jon that the Army of the Dead had arrived at the newly added area, and if they didn't leave, the tail end of the migration team might encounter the vanguard of the Army of the Dead.
Jon and Davos came to Stannis' room and looked at him, who had not changed at all. They knew that there was no hope for his resurrection. They glanced at Melisandre who was still in a daze, and the two of them worked together to carry Stannis out.
Looking at Jon carrying the corpse, Melisandre's lifeless eyes brightened up again, frightening Jon so much that his heart began to panic.
This reminded him of the night when Melisandre came to see him on the night when the wildling king Mance was burned. The look in her eyes now was very different from then, even more terrifying than before.
After Stannis was carried out, Davos officially announced the news of Stannis' death, and most of his soldiers lowered their heads sadly.
They were either Stannis's direct subordinates at Dragonstone or the Baratheon army at Storm's End.
Stannis can be said to be the current patriarch of House Baratheon.
Although Tommen Baratheon still sits on the Iron Throne, everyone knows that he is not King Robert's son. The death of Stannis instantly makes these soldiers lose their backbone, and in the end they can only be temporarily led by Stannis' cousin Kickor.
The wildling army was handed back to Tormund Redbeard, and with the addition of Jon's Night's Watch, the three-party coalition was no longer as tight as when Stannis was there, but they were still largely united during the period of escape. A total of 15,000 soldiers were gathered and temporarily led by Jon.
The army held a simple memorial service for Stannis, cremated him, and then prepared to move south along the King's Road.
Before setting off, Jon divided his soldiers into three teams. Five hundred cavalrymen stayed in Hearth City to cover the rear and wait for the soldiers who had not yet gathered. They would chase the main force three hours later.
After the main force passed the End River Bridge on King's Road, the bridge was destroyed to slow down the march of the Death Legion.
Although Bran said that the wights were afraid of water, even the magic on the Wall could not stop the suicidal wights. They certainly would not expect that a river could stop the Death Army from invading the south.
In addition to the 500 people left behind, Jon sent another 1,000 people to various parts of the North to notify nobles or civilians to gather on the King's Road and rush to Winterfell with the army.
......
On Dragonstone, Daenerys and her group were discussing how to attack Casterly Rock when they suddenly received an urgent letter for help from the Wall two hours ago.
After reading the contents of the letter, everyone's first feeling was that it was hard to believe.
Jon had only been gone for a few days, and according to the time, the defenders retreated within two days after the White Walkers arrived at the Wall.
But how is this possible? The Wall is 200 meters high and has magical protections specifically designed to prevent White Walkers. How could it be lost in such a short time?
Even if the defenders had difficulty defending because of the large number of White Walkers, they could have requested support instead of just losing the wall.
Moreover, the content of the letter was very simple, and it did not even state the reason for the loss. This shows how urgent the situation was when this letter for help was sent.
The fall of the Wall also greatly surprised Drogon. He didn't expect that without the Dragon Queen sending ice dragons to blow down the Wall, the place would suddenly fall.
After reading the letter, everyone fell into silence. They were just discussing how to isolate King's Landing, but they didn't expect to suddenly see the news that the White Walkers were marching straight in.
Without the natural defense of the Great Wall, the North no longer has any better terrain than the Wall to resist the White Walkers. Wherever the Death Army passes, the people will be devastated.
Now is not the time to think about how to isolate and attack King's Landing, but how to resist the Night King's army of the dead.
Otherwise, they would not only march straight into the north, but also cross the Neck Marsh to invade the south. By then, the number of the Death Legion would more than double. The number of wildlings returning from outside the Wall of Despair to the south of the Wall alone would reach 100,000.
Add to that the indigenous people of the North and the dead buried in the tombs of the ancestors, the number of the Death Army will be unimaginable.
Of course support is needed. Daenerys cannot just watch the entire North being slaughtered and let the Night King expand the Army of the Death.
But the army of Dragonstone had just captured Storm's End and the Twins, and occupied Riverrun and Harrenhal. If they went to support the Night's Watch in the North now, the occupied cities would soon be retaken by Cersei, and all previous efforts would be wasted.
Moreover, if Cersei sits safely at home while the Dragonstone army goes to fight against the White Walkers, the Dragonstone army will suffer heavy losses as the other side gains strength, and Cersei will reap the benefits. Daenerys is certainly unwilling to see such an outcome.