Aegor had thought that once he left King’s Landing and returned to the Wall, he would no longer need to rely on clever words and strategy to solve problems. With the resources of the Night’s Watch and his position within the Legion, he hoped life would become simpler. Unfortunately, things didn’t go as planned. He soon found himself face-to-face with Lord Commander Mormont once again. The first new task the old bear gave him was—predictably—to persuade others for help.

Fortunately, this time, the target was relatively easy to deal with.

The mountain clans survived by hunting and gathering in the hills north of the Wolfswood. They had long maintained a mutually beneficial relationship with the Northern lords and the Night’s Watch, with no real conflicts of interest. This longstanding familiarity made them naturally inclined to be friendly. Poor, proud, and sensitive to honor, these simple, face-conscious folk were actually some of the easiest people to negotiate with.

Aegor’s method was simple: approach them respectfully, bring gifts, and offer blank checks.

—

Like most of the Night’s Watch, Mormont had been quite content with the “tribute” Aegor regularly sent from the South. He had no intention of recalling him, nor had he expected that the “chief logistics officer” he personally appointed would return to the Wall on his own initiative.

So, when Aegor reappeared at Castle Black with his men—much to everyone’s surprise—and immediately joined the fighting upon arrival, the old bear, who had no idea Aegor had come north to avoid catastrophe, began to feel that all his earlier precautions had been nothing but judging others by his own standards. Aegor had now become one of his most trusted subordinates.

The Northerners’ thinking was simple: why wouldn’t you trust a man with such a sharp mind, whose personal contributions to the Night’s Watch were unmatched, and who returned voluntarily at the most dangerous moment?

…

When Aegor set out to visit the mountain clans and requested permission to bring Jaime Lannister and a few others as escorts, the old bear agreed without hesitation. Naming Jaime wasn’t just about having a top-tier fighter on hand—it was also about Aegor’s instinct to “stay close to important plot characters.”

…

…

Accompanied by twenty newly promoted rangers and ten of his personal guards, he first visited the southern area near the Shadow Tower, which was closest to the Wall and home to the largest of the mountain clans—the Flints.

The Flints of the Mountains. The prefix was necessary because, throughout the long and harsh history of the North, some accomplished members of the vast Flint clan had left the mountains, earned lands, castles, and even lordships, establishing branch families of their own. To distinguish this group from others bearing the same name, such as the Flints of Widow’s Watch and the Flints of Flint’s Finger, it was essential to emphasize their mountain origins.

The Flints who remained in the highlands often preferred another title: the original Flints.

The hospitality of the mountain clans was as genuine as their reputation. After presenting their gifts—a full suit of armor donated by Tywin Lannister, several freshly forged steel weapons, a small pile of dragonglass items, and some southern trinkets—and announcing their names and status, Aegor and Jaime were warmly welcomed. The mountain folk were not as isolated as Aegor had imagined. To his surprise, not only had they heard of his title, “White Walker Slayer,” they also knew Jaime’s infamous nickname. Most amusing of all, the arrival of “the man who killed two kings” drew a crowd of young onlookers.

The clan leader, Torghen Flint, personally hosted a banquet for the Night’s Watch guests. Aegor had never eaten such rich food in his life. Once they were full and satisfied, he laid out the reason for their visit.

“In the past six months, the Flint clan has also been attacked by wildlings several times… To be honest, we have a common enemy and are willing to help the Night’s Watch.”

Old Flint was direct and showed no signs of refusal. His reasoning was simple: the Flints in the mountains and the Umbers of Last Hearth were the two families nearest the Wall. If anything happened at the Wall, they would be the first to suffer. They were on the same side. “But Lord Ned’s son went south to fight the lion, and our clan already sent thirty warriors to aid him, so we’re stretched thin… If too many of us go to help the Night’s Watch, we’ll be defenseless when we’re attacked.”

This wasn’t an excuse to refuse. The Flint clan truly needed to maintain their own defenses. Not every wildling who crossed the gorge south of the Wall was an elite soldier under Mance Rayder, rushing directly to attack the Night’s Watch. Most simply fled south to escape the White Walkers and the winter, just trying to survive. With no food or transport, they resorted to robbery along the way.

“That is indeed a problem.” Aegor paused, then asked, “How many people are in the Flint clan?”

“More than a thousand, maybe close to two thousand. I haven’t counted. We’re a large clan, but we don’t all live together. We’re split into five villages, each with hundreds.” Old Flint added, “How many people do you need to help the Wall? If it’s only a few dozen, I’ll let you choose freely. But if you need more, I truly can’t manage it.”

A few dozen? Even if all 40-some clans contributed that many, it would still fall short. Not to mention, some smaller clans had only a few hundred members in total. “That’s not enough, my lord. The more, the better.”

The clan leader shrugged. “I’m sorry, friend. We must leave enough warriors behind. If the wildlings come knocking, how will I protect the elderly and children?”

Old Flint’s attitude was already generous. As a guest and ally, Aegor couldn’t demand he abandon his own people. The Wall needed defending, but so did the elders and children of the clans. He took a few sips of the clan’s homemade wine, pondered, then suddenly slammed the table: What if the old and young from the clan were moved to the Wall, which also needs protecting? Wouldn’t that solve the problem?

“Lord Flint, what if I propose your entire clan relocates from the mountains to the Gift, settling near the Wall? Would you consider it?”

“Live in the Gift?” Old Flint blinked, clearly never having considered it. “It could be a win-win, but we live off the land. We hunt and gather. We don’t farm… What will we eat in the Gift?”

“You may have forgotten that the man before you is the Chief Logistics Officer of the Night’s Watch. My greatest talent is finding ways to feed people.” Aegor raised his head, full of confidence. “I swear, if even one person in your clan starves to death under the Night’s Watch’s protection, I’ll bring you my own head!”

…

Aegor quickly did the math. Setting aside weapons, just feeding them enough to avoid starvation, the entire Flint clan wouldn’t cost more than 100 gold dragons per month. Even if only a tenth could fight, the return on investment was far higher than hiring mercenaries. With Stannis in King’s Landing and the Night’s Watch industry running smoothly, they could absolutely afford it.

Money isn’t everything, but sometimes having money really does make you feel powerful.

This was the first time the clan leader had heard such a proposal. He scratched his head, glanced at the restless clan members on both sides, and didn’t know how to respond.

Aegor seized the moment and pressed on. “In addition to ensuring a food supply, the Night’s Watch will assign your people an abandoned fortress. Once cleaned and repaired, your clan can live in warm, sturdy stone houses through the winter. No more digging pits to escape the cold winds!”

“Stone houses!”

Before Old Flint could reply, many of his clansmen grew excited. Some of the younger ones had visited Winterfell and long dreamed of those tall, solid stone structures. Now, someone was offering that opportunity directly.

Just like how rural children all dream of the city, how could the clansmen not long for stone homes? The younger members at the banquet all looked at the clan leader with expectant eyes, hoping he’d say yes.

Old Flint, though, was no fool. At over forty, he’d seen enough to not be swayed so easily.

He’d heard of Aegor West’s reputation and did not doubt the man’s promise. And in truth, guaranteeing no one would starve during winter was no small feat. He was tempted. But in his youth, he’d wandered the North and seen how people lived in various places. Thanks to the North’s traditions of storing grain and building “winter towns,” peasants under Northern lords often died less frequently from cold and hunger than the mountain clans. Still, during long, mild summers, the Flints—living in vast, resource-rich forests—had better lives than most self-reliant farmers in the Seven Kingdoms. He couldn’t easily give up such territory just for stone walls.

He tapped the table with his red, rough fingers and said hesitantly, “Chief Logistics Officer, I trust your word. But if we leave the mountains and someone else—wildlings or rival clans—takes our land, what then?”

…

After a year of navigating King’s Landing and now back in the North, Aegor found these honest, straightforward people refreshingly easy to read. It took him less than a second to grasp their subtext: they wanted stone houses and food for the winter, but didn’t want to lose their ancestral mountains and forests.

It wasn’t greed. It was entirely reasonable. Aegor gritted his teeth and made another promise. “Leave one village behind to watch over the territory. If anyone takes advantage of your absence to seize your land, when the war is over, the Night’s Watch will stand behind you. We’ll step in, send troops if needed… and defend your rights to the land, no matter the cost!”

“I thought the Night’s Watch was neutral?”

“The Night’s Watch is neutral,” Aegor said without pause. “But the Night’s Watch industry is not. To put it plainly, when our allies’ interests are harmed, so are ours… And if someone bullies us, why should we stay impartial?”

One side had money. The other had modest needs. The negotiations went far smoother than expected. Everything was resolved. Old Flint grinned. “The Chief Logistics Officer is a real man. In that case, here’s my answer: I’ll leave a hundred men to watch over the land. The rest will move from the mountains to the fortress provided by the Night’s Watch. In the next war against the wildlings or anyone else, we’ll stand with the Night’s Watch!”

(To be continued.)

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