At midnight, the moon hid its light behind clouds, as if it couldn't bear to witness the bloody battle that was about to take place.
Catapults and arrows rained down like a summer downpour and a winter hailstorm, the dense barrage firmly suppressing the defenders on the city walls.
In the blink of an eye, the western army guarding the city walls found that there was almost no place to stand, with shattered stone projectiles scattered everywhere.
They could only huddle desperately in the corner, where they risked being struck by stray arrows if they weren't careful.
Arise! Revolt! Arise!
The defending general roared as he saw the enemy below the city approaching the gate, wielding battering rams as thick as pillars.
But their voices were completely drowned out by the shouts of battle and the bombardment of projectiles from below the city.
Jon is stationed in the central command, using the Golden Finger to observe the battle situation on each offensive direction.
At this point, even with the temporarily trained miners, Casterly Rock had only two thousand defenders, and perhaps only a little over a thousand were actually capable of fighting.
Compared to the besieging army, this was a twenty-fold difference, and Jon certainly wouldn't commit all the soldiers to the front lines; that would be too foolish.
Casterly Rock is flanked by mountains. Although steep, it is not impossible to climb. Although there are garrison troops on the top, the sheer number of climbers and attackers is overwhelming. They were completely unprepared to defend against an attack by more than 20,000 people.
Jon used ravens to plan more than sixty climbing routes for the army, and these attack routes were crowded with soldiers, looking from a distance like a series of nooses that were constantly approaching.
The front of the noose was manned by heavily armored soldiers who not only wore heavy armor but also carried thick shields, while archers provided cover behind them.
Every so often, dedicated soldiers carry torches, and these climbing paths converge as you ascend, eventually becoming fiery dragons that reach the summit.
" Daven actually transferred the army away." Brynden, who was also in charge of command and offense, clearly felt that the defensive strength was lower than he had expected.
They initially thought Jon's order for a nighttime assault was just a sign he couldn't sit still anymore, but they never expected that the seemingly joking plan would actually work.
Brynden estimated that there were fewer than two hundred men blocking their way at the mountain fortress at this time. Based on this calculation, the entire garrison of Casterly Rock would not exceed two thousand.
It is almost impossible to defend such a huge fortress with only two thousand men; it is now riddled with vulnerabilities.
What other methods did he use? Brynden couldn't help but recall what Jon had said that day, but he was still completely baffled.
He was a Bloody Gate Knight in the Vale for over a decade," he said, referring to his service to the Vale and Arryn. Family guards the gateway to the valley— the Bloody Gate.
In Brynden's view, Casterly Rock is the second Bloody Gate, although not as dangerous, but just as deadly.
So from the very beginning, he advised Jon to start from the south, so that at least they wouldn't be stuck without any results before Casterly Rock.
But now— Brynden looked at the flames spreading across the mountains and knew that under these circumstances, Daven could not possibly defend Casterly Rock.
At that moment, a messenger with a Riverlands accent came to Brynden and said, " Ser Brynden, Lord Jon has ordered that Casterly Rock be breached before dawn, and you must speed up the attack!"
"I understand. "
Brynden drew his sword, pulled down his mask, and went to the front lines.
That day, after Robb laid down his crown and chose to become king, Rickard approached him and talked about Tywin. Rickard believed that he also bore some responsibility for Tywin running away, so he handed Karhold over to his sons, Harrison, and stayed behind to help Jon.
As for Brynden, Rickard told him to handle it himself.
Brynden was no fool either. After careful analysis, he realized the significance of Jon's coup and capture of King's Landing.
If Tyrell and Lannister ultimately win, then these men will be trapped and die in the Riverlands.
If Robb wants to return to the North, Tyrell and Lannister's armies will besiege him at Riverrun before he can breach it.
By then, everything will be over.
So Brynden decided to use the rest of his life to help Jon. If he died on the way to conquer the West, it would be a small way of making up for the mistakes he had made.
Meanwhile, Jon was still keeping an eye on the entire battlefield and noticed that Brynden's attack speed had suddenly increased, even to the point of being reckless.
However, he didn't care. Casterly Rock's garrison was small, and no matter how tenacious they were, they couldn't inflict much damage.
Gawen played very aggressively, and considering Gawen's special status as Jeyne's father, Jon assigned Sandor to protect Gawen's safety.
Both were from the Westerlands and were very skilled in mountain warfare, so their progress was not slow.
Rickard was the only one who seemed a bit slow, after all, he was the oldest and had to climb mountains and fight at the same time, which was extremely physically demanding.
However, his will was also the strongest. Kingslayer Jaime killed his two sons, and although he eventually went to the Wall, Rickard just couldn't swallow his anger.
He decided that he wouldn't be done until he personally killed at least two Lannisters.
As for Garlan and Loras, Jon did not put them in frontline combat.
Given Mace's doting nature, if something were to happen to the two of them, the consequences would be unpredictable. If he also chooses to lead troops into battle, then the course of the war would be difficult for him to control.
Loras was frantic about not being able to join the battle; he wanted to be the first to climb the city walls.
" Jon, let me charge this time. Look at those soldiers on the city walls, they've been beaten so badly they can't even lift their heads."
""
"No, my plan worked. I'm still the Commander-in-Chief. Your mission is complete." Jon said with a half-smile, looking at Loras, who was practically jumping up in frustration.
" What kind of mission is it to wander around with Soldiers? I want to kill the enemy!" Loras retorted, his neck stiff. "I have to go attack the city now, or else—" he said, placing his hand on the hilt of his sword.
"What else?!" Loras thought Jon would joke around like before, but to his surprise, the young man, who was two years younger than him, suddenly changed his expression and said, "I am the Commander-in-Chief of the army, Ser Loras. Do not disobey my orders, or you will be court-martialed!"
Jon stood up and looked down at Loras, causing him to instinctively take two steps back.
Ghost, who had been lying nearby, stood up and looked at him with its scarlet eyes. Although it didn't have two fangs, its intimidating presence was already evident.
Loras was still muttering something when he finally turned and left.
"How is this possible!"
Upon reaching the tower, Daven felt a chill run down his spine as he watched the dense barrage of arrows and projectiles raining down on the city below. His hands, gripping the wall, unconsciously clenched into fists.
"My lord, look up at the mountain!" the attendant beside him suddenly said.
Daven turned around in the direction the servant was pointing, but before he could even see what was happening, the wound on his back ripped open, causing him to wince in pain.
Although Leford's blow did not cause him any fatal injury, a large area of his skin was cut open, and he could feel the blood soaking through his shirt.
Taking advantage of the fact that no one was paying attention, Daven quickly suppressed the pain and turned his head to look. He saw that the mountains in the distance had been lit up with torches, and the scattered torches kept converging towards the top of the mountain. Many mountain peaks had even been lit up and occupied by the light.
Daven knew that before long, those fires would spread from both sides to Casterly Rock, and judging from the number of fires, the attacking army was definitely no less than 20,000!
Daven knew perfectly well how many defenders remained in Casterly Rock, and he knew that Dao could not withstand an attack of 20,000 men with only these troops.
Casterly Rock probably wouldn't last until the next morning, and Daven himself probably wouldn't see the sunrise either. The only thing that made him feel a little better was that the order to mobilize troops came from Casterly Rock.
I don't know Dao Jon probably figured that he and Tywin had been tricked, and he didn't know what method Jon used.
"Order the army to evacuate Casterly Rock immediately!" Daven finally made this decision, after all, if Tywin hadn't been mobilizing troops, Casterly Rock wouldn't have fallen.
"Yes, sir."
Just as he was about to set off, a messenger claiming to be from Casterly Rock asked to see him.
After verifying the identity and confirming that the other party was indeed Casterly Rock, Daven personally summoned the other party to speak with him.
" Sir Daven, Duke Tywin sent me to ask you why you keep sending troops to other places? He clearly told you to stay put and hold Casterly Rock!"
"What did you say! Hold on?!"
For a moment, Daven felt his brain was going haywire, as if someone had hit him on the back of the head when he wasn't paying attention, and he felt dizzy.
"Explain yourself! Lord Tywin clearly told me to send troops to support the southern battlefield!" Daven questioned Dao, somewhat aggrieved, but the besieging army did not give him time.
"My lord, the city gates have been breached!"
"What!"
Daven reached a high vantage point and saw an army clad in heavy silver armor breaching the city gates, moving with unstoppable force like a torrent, with an endless stream of troops behind them.
Upon seeing the banner that blended almost seamlessly into the darkness, with only the white wolf head leaping and howling, Daven suddenly felt his legs go weak. He didn't know if Dao had exerted himself too much in Mrs. Lefred's room or if he was overwhelmed by the situation of being confronted by enemies in front and questioned from behind.
But he still made his own choice.
"Follow me and drive the enemy out!" Daven roared, drawing his sword, and led his army of less than a hundred men to meet the enemy.
Although he said he wanted to drive the enemy out, Daven knew in his heart that he would most likely die in this charge.
Only death could give him an explanation for the fall of Casterly Rock.