Jon was stunned upon hearing this. He could now be certain that Theon's attack and occupation of Winterfell were truly not arranged by Lynd, otherwise Lynd would not punish Asha so severely. Asha's personality, being confined to a temple for three months, living a boring life like a nun, would surely make her suffer more than death.
He did not plead for Asha but thought for a moment and asked, "Now that Theon has occupied Winterfell, do we need to do anything?"
"What do you plan to do?" Lynd countered.
Jon hesitated and asked, "Like issuing a public announcement stating that Theon's occupation of Winterfell has nothing to do with us?"
"How many people do you think will believe that?" Lynd retorted.
Jon didn't answer, because he also felt that probably no one would believe such an announcement.
In fact, just as Lynd and Jon thought, when Theon Greyjoy attacked the North and occupied Winterfell, everyone who heard the news immediately assumed that Lynd intended to indirectly intervene in the chaotic war by using the Iron Islands.
Because when Theon led the Ironborn from the Iron Islands to attack the North, Lynd was on the Iron Islands. Many people knew that although Theon was sent to Winterfell as a hostage and foster son, the Duke of Winterfell, Eddard Stark, treated him as his own, not only giving him the same living conditions as his own sons but also having him and Robb learn swordsmanship and knowledge together. Whatever Robb had, he had too, which made him and Robb as close as brothers. Under normal circumstances, he would never betray Robb.
But if an unusual situation arose, it would be different, such as pressure from Lynd. Only someone like Lynd could make Theon abandon brotherly affection and stab his brother in the back, as there were very few people in this world who could withstand Lynd's pressure, and Theon Greyjoy was certainly not among them.
More importantly, over five thousand Ironborn accompanied Theon in attacking Winterfell. Everyone knew that Asha Greyjoy managed the Iron Islands like an iron barrel. Without Asha's consent, these five thousand people could not possibly have sailed out, let alone attacked the North; they would probably have been intercepted by the Sea Hag Dagmer Cleftjaw midway.
So everyone believed that Theon's occupation of Winterfell was at Lynd's behest.
It was precisely for this reason that the ongoing war suddenly seemed to hit a pause button, everything stopped, and everyone's attention was focused on Summerhall, on Lynd, waiting for his next move.
Although the ancient nobles of the Seven Kingdoms looked down on Lynd's origins, they had to admit that Lynd's strength had reached a level they could not hope to match. Both Lynd's army and his dragons were enough to sweep across the entire Westeros continent.
When Lynd stated that he would not interfere in the civil war on the continent of Westeros, both the nobles already involved in the chaos and those waiting for an opportunity to join in all breathed a sigh of relief, because they knew very well that if Lynd personally entered the fray, they would have no chance of winning even if they united, and then this game of thrones would be unplayable.
Now, Theon Greyjoy's actions made everyone mistakenly believe that Lynd was preparing to enter the game, so they were waiting for Lynd's next move before deciding what to do themselves, such as whether to submit or resist.
However, some people were suspicious of Theon's capture of Winterfell, because everyone knew that Lynd had a very good relationship with the Stark Family. Robb Stark's personal sword was one of the two hand-and-a-half swords Lynd was famous for back then. Sansa Stark was currently in Summerhall and was reportedly serving as Jon Bulwer's assistant there, with access to Summerhall's internal affairs. Eddard Stark's body was also personally retrieved by Lynd from King's Landing and sent back to Winterfell for burial. Given such a close relationship, it seemed impossible that Lynd would instruct someone to attack Winterfell.
However, as news from the Iron Islands reached the mainland, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
Asha Greyjoy was stripped of all her powers by an order from Lynd and sent to the Storm God Temple for three months of confinement, with all duties transferred to Bale Blackteas. It was clear that Theon's attack on King's Landing was entirely the doing of Asha and Theon, perhaps as revenge for Duke Eddard's attack on Pyke back then.
As the misunderstanding was cleared, the people of the Seven Kingdoms once again felt awe towards Lynd. A mere guess could bring a war to a standstill, and he, with just a single order, stripped the Lord of the Iron Islands of her power, making her obediently go into confinement, and the Iron Islands had no objection to this, which showed how strong Lynd's control over his subordinate forces was.
The Iron Islands were not directly under Lynd's control, merely an peripheral force, yet he had already achieved this level of control. How strong, then, was Lynd's control within the Summerhall territories, the Disputed Lands, and other territories he actually controlled, was something all people in the Seven Kingdoms could not fully imagine.
However, just as the chaos caused by Theon had subsided, another sudden incident shifted everyone's attention to Storms End, because the Duke of Storm's End, Renly Baratheon, the most promising contender for the Iron Throne, was killed before his wedding.
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