Chapter 305: Preparing for War

The Red Keep, the White Sword Tower.

Oberyn Martell had donned a brand-new set of Kingsguard armor.

The gilded armor gleamed under the candlelight, with intricate patterns adorning the edges of the pauldrons and greaves.

Most striking was the snowy white cloak that draped from his shoulders, trailing onto the floor.

He sat before the desk, flipping through a thick book, the White Book.

It was the tome compiled by the Lord Commanders of the Kingsguard throughout history, recording the lives and oaths of every white knight.

He turned the pages one by one: “Prince Aemon the Dragonknight,” “Ser Duncan the Tall,” “Ser Arthur Dayne, the sword of the morning”…

Then his gaze stopped on a certain page, and a look of undisguised disdain appeared at the corner of his mouth.

Jaime Lannister.

The Kingslayer.

He sneered, flicking his finger gently against the edge of the page as if to brush away something unclean, then turned it.

He picked up the quill he had prepared, dipped it in ink, and wrote his own name on a brand-new page: Oberyn Martell.

Then, he drew the Martell family sigil beside his name. A golden spear piercing a red sun.

The door was knocked upon.

“Enter.”

The door opened, and a Soldier clad in black and red armor with a three-headed dragon engraved on his chest walked in: “My lord, Prince Aegon has convened a meeting in the Throne Room, and he requests your immediate presence.”

Oberyn nodded.

He closed the White Book, returned it to the shelf, hung a longsword on his belt, straightened his white cloak, and walked out of the room.

The Small Council was held in an antechamber of the Throne Room.

When Oberyn was ushered in by an attendant, several people were already seated at the long table.

Aegon sat at the head of the table, with a massive map of Westeros spread out before him.

Jon Connington sat to Aegon’s left, with several scrolls of documents piled before him.

There were also a few civil officials present. The only members truly qualified to attend the Small Council were Jon Connington, the hand of the king, and Oberyn, the newly appointed Lord Commander of the Kingsguard. These others were merely serving as temporary advisors.

After the door closed, the room fell silent.

As soon as Oberyn entered, he shed most of his cavalier expression.

He walked to the seat on Aegon’s right and sat down, reaching out to gently push the stone sphere representing the Lord Commander of the Kingsguard’s seat into the slot reserved on the table, which made a soft “click.”

Seeing him take his seat, Aegon swept his gaze across the people on both sides of the long table and said directly: “We recently received a raven from the Narrow Sea Fleet. Marco Sollen has led the Fleet around the south of Westeros, passed the Shield Islands, entered the Sunset Sea, and has now arrived at the designated position in the heart of the Westerlands coast.”

He paused: “At the same time, after a period of stabilization in The Riverlands, the new lord enfeoffment and The Crownlands garrison system have been initially implemented, and order has largely been restored. Therefore, it is time to take up arms again.”

A sharp light flashed in his violet eyes: “Winter is coming, and we must end this war as soon as possible.”

Oberyn leaned forward slightly: “So, we are going to attack the Westerlands?”

“Correct.” Aegon nodded, tapping his finger on the location of the Westerlands on the map. “Scouts report that Tywin has assembled a large army in the Westerlands, yet he remains hunkered down, preparing for battle but refusing to sally forth.”

“Since he wants to be a turtle hiding in its shell, we will force him out to fight.”

He stood up, walked to the massive map, and traced several routes with his finger: “Currently, our three main legions are heavily stationed in The Riverlands, from where we can threaten Golden Tooth to the west, which is the main gateway into the Westerlands.”

“At the same time, the Narrow Sea Fleet will attack the heart of the Westerlands coast from the direction of the Sunset Sea, raiding their important Ports and towns.”

His finger moved across the map and finally settled on the location of Silverhill: “Now, what we need to do is assemble a great army, advance along the Kingsroad, and enter the heart of the Westerlands from Silverhill.”

“With a three-pronged advance, we will form a pincer movement on three sides against Tywin, forcing him into a decisive battle with our main force.”

Jon Connington looked at the map and pondered for a moment: “Your Grace, according to our previous plan, was it not our intention to give Tywin the opportunity to assemble other potential opponents… The Vale, the North, the Iron Islands… and then annihilate them all at once? Will launching an active attack on the Westerlands now disrupt this plan?”

Aegon shook his head: “The overall direction of the plan remains unchanged. This active attack on the Westerlands is precisely to force Tywin to accelerate that plan.”

“If he chooses to abandon the Westerlands and withdraw his main force to rendezvous with those allies, that is fine; we can seize the Westerlands in the process, and then find an opportunity on a broader battlefield to annihilate all the coalition forces he has assembled in one fell swoop.”

His gaze was cold: “If Tywin does not leave and chooses to fight to the death in the Westerlands, that is also fine. We can take this opportunity to crush him and the main Westerlands force he has assembled right there in the Westerlands.”

“No matter what he chooses, the initiative remains in our hands.”

Jon nodded, understanding.

Aegon sat back down and looked at Jon: “It has been nearly half a year since the new system was implemented. The Crownlands garrison system implemented in The Crownlands and the Stormlands should be fully in place by now, right? How many troops can be drawn from the various garrison halls?”

Jon was clearly well-prepared. He opened the file before him, cleared his throat, and began to report: “The Stormlands have successfully established fifteen garrison halls, distributed across the region. Each garrison hall oversees military affairs within a radius of a hundred miles, and the personnel are basically at full strength, having undergone initial training.”

“According to Your Grace’s previous plan, a garrison fort is established for every five garrison halls, with one Commander-in-Chief.”

“Currently, the Stormlands have three Commanders-in-Chief: The Commander of the Dornish Marches is Earl Caron of Nightsong; the Commander of Cape Wrath is Earl Morrigen of Crow’s Nest; and the Commander of Bronzegate is Earl Buckler of Bronzegate.”

“The three garrison forts oversee fifteen garrison halls, each capable of assembling about two thousand men. If we mobilize them all, the Stormlands can assemble about thirty thousand men.”

He turned the page: “As for The Crownlands, due to its smaller area, only two garrison forts were established… the Sharp Point Garrison Fort, with an Earl from House Bar Emmon as Commander; and the Crackclaw Point Garrison Fort, directly commanded by Ser William Crab, the Guardian of Crackclaw Point appointed by Your Grace.”

“The two garrison forts each oversee five garrison halls, totaling about twenty thousand men that can be drawn from The Crownlands.”

He looked up: “That is to say, if fully mobilized, the Stormlands and The Crownlands together can assemble about fifty thousand men.”

But he paused and added: “However, the new system has only been implemented for a short time, and most of the assembled troops have only received initial training and cannot yet be considered elite. Equipment has also not been fully distributed, with the armor rate being only about thirty percent.”

Fifty thousand partially trained militia, with a thirty percent armor rate. Aegon listened without expression.

He nodded and said calmly: “A thirty percent armor rate is indeed low. But as auxiliary forces, responsible for garrisoning occupied areas, maintaining supply lines, and serving in reserve echelons, it is sufficient.”

“The main force for the decisive battle will still be the Golden Company, the Ash Company, and the Bloodsworn.”

He looked at Jon: “Issue the order: all garrison halls in the Stormlands and The Crownlands are to enter a state of mobilization immediately.”

“Draft half the troops from each garrison hall, totaling twenty-five thousand men, to be commanded by the two Commanders-in-Chief from the Stormlands and the one from The Crownlands, and have them assemble along the Kingsroad north of King’s Landing within half a month.”

“At the same time, send word to the three main legions in The Riverlands—the Golden Company, the Ash Company, and the Bloodsworn—to prepare for the westward advance. Once the grain and supplies are ready, they are to advance toward Golden Tooth immediately.”