"Take a look at this," Lynd said as Malora and the others entered the room. He gestured for them to come closer, then took out several items he had retrieved from Euron's altar and placed them on the table.
Everyone stared at the objects, which looked like some sort of handicrafts, clearly puzzled and unsure how to respond.
The items appeared quite ordinary—just a few forearm-length wooden and metal rods, engraved with patterns that gave off a faintly mysterious feel. Aside from that, there was nothing particularly unusual about them.
While the group remained confused, Graystone, the Child of the Forest—much shorter than everyone else—gripped the edge of the table with both hands, lifted his head, and peered at the objects. His face suddenly lit up with surprise.
"You got the God's Remains back from that bad man?"
"God's Remains?" The group was taken aback and turned their eyes toward the rods on the table. Some of them had never heard the term before. The name alone carried a certain mystique, but their faces remained filled with confusion. Others, however, seemed to recognize it—and their expressions shifted to ones of shock.
"This is the legendary God's Remains? It looks pretty ordinary," Malora said, curiosity getting the better of him. He picked one up and examined it closely.
"Lady Malora, what are God's Remains?" someone asked before Lynd had a chance to speak.
Malora didn't answer. Instead, Marwyn, standing nearby, furrowed his brow in thought before saying, "I remember seeing a book of etched lore in Lorath, written in an ancient script. It mentioned the God's Remains—they're what's left after a god dies. Their final bones."
Everyone was visibly surprised by this revelation.
At that moment, Lagz, head of the Silent Court, picked up the thread of the conversation.
"It's said that before the Dawn Age, before the First Men migrated to Westeros, humans were nothing more than primitive tribes. The world then was ruled by the Children of the Forest, giants, and other, even more mysterious races. Back then, gods walked among mortals—just like the stories of Garth Greenhand in the Reach. They lived with people, spoke with them, and even bore children with them. When the gods died, their bodies would vanish, dissolving into the world—but they would sometimes leave behind a piece or two of divine bone, as a token for their descendants."
"This god doesn't sound all that impressive," one of the Mage's Association assistants muttered under his breath.
"Actually, the gods of that time were not so different from the Prophet," Lagz replied. "Isn't the Prophet considered the God of Magic?"
"Lord, where did these God's Remains come from?" asked Broom, head of the Mage's Association, his voice tinged with doubt.
Lynd then explained his journey to the Shadow Lands and how he had dealt with the threat Euron posed.
The room fell into stunned silence. Those who had already known that Lynd had gone to Asshai—like Malora—were still deeply shocked. They had assumed Lynd had gone only to capture Euron, and at most, would act against him alone. None of them had imagined he would go so far as to destroy Stygai.
Even in Westeros, anyone remotely interested in magic or the arcane would have at least heard of Stygai—the City of the Dead. It was a place even more terrifying than Asshai, said by some to originate from the seventh layer of hell.
And now, this ancient city—possibly older than Asshai itself—had been completely destroyed by Lynd. The others, stunned as they were, couldn't help but wonder what kind of magic he had used to achieve such a feat.
While most were awed by the sheer power of Lynd's magic, Malora instead wore a look of deep suspicion.
"Lord Lynd," he said, "don't you think there's something odd about all this?"
Lynd frowned. "What do you mean?"
"You learned about Euron from Lord Willas and deduced that he was going to Stygai to perform a sacrifice. His goal was to replace the gods, and the sacrificial offering was the God's Remains. But anyone who understands sacrifices knows they're never balanced—you can't gain something great from giving something small. How could sacrificing the God's Remains alone allow him to take the place of the gods?
"And besides, who was he sacrificing to? The Black Rock? Yes, the Black Rock contains powerful energy, but it's nowhere near the level of the gods in legend. It's not even on par with the Greenseers of the Children of the Forest. Remember, the Greenseers once changed the very land—they drowned the entire Arm of Dorne. The Black Rock doesn't hold that kind of power.
"If he wasn't sacrificing to the Black Rock, then why choose Stygai for the ritual?"
As Malora laid out his doubts one by one, the others began to realize something wasn't right either...
Lynd didn't show much surprise or alarm. He simply nodded calmly and said, "I had the same feeling on the way back—something wasn't right. But I still haven't figured out exactly what."
As he spoke, he turned to Graystone, the Child of the Forest, and asked, "These God's Remains were kept by your people, weren't they? Do you know what they're used for?"
Graystone answered without hesitation. "To maintain the balance of nature. They serve as nodes for natural forces."
"Can they be used for sacrifices?" Lynd asked.
Graystone replied with a question of his own. "If someone gave you a human bone as a gift, would you be happy?"
Lynd paused at that, his expression turning serious. Then he asked again, "Something like the God's Remains must be very important to you Children of the Forest, right?"
"Of course, extremely important," Graystone nodded. "The Children of the Forest can live among humans if we have to, but it's nothing like being in a natural domain stabilized by a God's Remains. It's like the difference between camping in the rain and staying in a castle with a warm hearth."
Lynd pressed further. "Then if it's that important, you must have guarded it closely. How did Euron manage to steal it so easily? That happened in the swamplands, and even at Gods Eye Lake too?"
Graystone looked just as puzzled. "We've been wondering the same thing. That villain avoided every one of our traps and even cracked our main ritual stone disc. He took the God's Remains effortlessly. It wasn't until they left the natural domain that we realized something was wrong. The whole situation has troubled us ever since. Even Spark said that unless the one who planned everything was a Greenseer, no one else could have taken the God's Remains so easily."
"Only a Greenseer could take them?" Lynd muttered, a thoughtful look on his face.
"Did you think of something?" Malora asked, his voice low and serious.
"It's nothing," Lynd said, clearly not wanting to dwell on the matter. He gestured toward the God's Remains and said to Graystone, "Since they belong to you, you should…"
Graystone shook his head. "You can keep them. The balance has been broken, and the nodes have lost their purpose. These things no longer serve us in any way."
Seeing this, Lynd didn't argue. He turned to Malora and said, "In that case, I'll leave the God's Remains with you. See if you can discover anything useful from them."
But Malora shook his head as well. "My research is at a critical stage. I can't afford to be distracted."
"Then why don't you leave them to me?" Marloxin, the High Priest of the God of Magic, offered. "Maybe I can turn them into a few scepters—one for me, one for the High Priest of the God of Calamity, and one for the High Priest of the Storm God—as symbols of our faith."
Lynd thought it over and eventually handed the items to Marloxin.
After that, he shared his plans to expand east and south, seeking the opinions of those present.
While the others were still considering, Graystone spoke up first. "Are you suggesting that we Children of the Forest migrate to the continent of Sothoryos?"
Lynd nodded. "That's the idea—if safety can be ensured. The Children of the Forest are well suited to forested environments. You could serve as our forward scouts in exploring Sothoryos."
Graystone considered it, then nodded. "I'll choose suitable candidates to join as soon as possible." After a pause, he added, "Would it be possible to select a few Dragoon Guards? And if there are Wyverns…"
Lynd shook his head. "The Dragoon Guards are needed in the North to face the White Walkers. Until they're destroyed or driven back, the Dragoon Guards can't leave."
Graystone looked disappointed, but said no more.
"Our task is to assist the Miracle Guild in infiltrating Asshai and taking control of it?" Malora asked promptly, having finished his thoughts.
"Yes," Lynd nodded. "Asshai is ideal for cultivating spellcasters. The Shadow Lands are rich in resources they need, and there are vast mineral deposits in the surrounding areas. Across the sea lies Ulthos, even richer in resources. Further east of Asshai—who knows what might be there? Perhaps other civilizations, or even the potential to open a new golden trade route. These are all part of Asshai's potential.
"It's a pity that after all these years, the spellcasters occupying the city have shown no interest in developing any of it. It's a waste, plain and simple. Since they won't do anything with it, we'll just have to accept it on their behalf—reluctantly, of course."
Marwyn couldn't help but ask, "In that case, why bring Lord Jaben to Summerhall? Wouldn't it make more sense for him to remain in Asshai?"
"Because he hasn't completed the trials of the Redemption Sept, and I don't trust him," Lynd said frankly. "He'll be sent to Asshai eventually, but before that happens, I need to be sure of his loyalty."
After hearing that, Marwyn didn't press the issue. He had never undergone the trials himself, but he understood what they meant. In his eyes, Lynd was right to insist on this. After witnessing the experiments conducted in the Black Pit, Marwyn felt that only allowing those who had passed the trials to join was absolutely the correct decision. He had even volunteered to take the trials—unfortunately, both he and Qyburn were physically unfit to endure them, making them the only two in the Black Pit who had never gone through the trials.
The others also expressed their willingness to assign personnel to support the Miracle Guild and Miracle Fleet's eastern expansion and southern advance. Lynd instructed them to contact Hollis Redwyne, the Miracle Fleet's Supreme Commander, and Gorman Celtigar, the Miracle Guild's Executive President, as soon as they returned. As for mage-related matters, they were handed over to Broom, President of the Mage's Association, for coordination.
...
After everyone had left, Lynd didn't rest. He mounted the lava dragon and flew north at top speed, heading for The Wall—specifically, Icemark, where Willas was.
Landing in the castle courtyard, Lynd dismounted and proceeded straight through the corridor leading to the Wall's inner area, leaving the Night's Watch outside.
"It looks like you've dealt with Euron," said Willas, encased in ice, as if he'd known Lynd would come.
"Yes. It went much more smoothly than expected. I also destroyed the city of Stygai while I was at it. The black stone beneath the city has been suppressed by my power. I'm guessing that was your true aim, wasn't it?" Lynd stared at Willas with a grave expression. "Aren't you going to give me an explanation?"
Willas said nothing.
"You were once possessed by the Three-Eyed Crow, which means you inherited the Greenseer's memories. You knew about the two natural nodes at Greywater and Gods Eye, and how to easily extract the God's Remains placed there," Lynd said in a deep tone. "I want to know—when did you and Euron start working together? Why did he trust you so completely?"
Willas finally responded, calm as ever. "Because every hint I gave him helped him. And the pressure you placed on him was too great. Under those circumstances, trusting me was his only choice."
Lynd's tone became formal. "Euron is entangled with the White Walkers. If you're working with him, then am I to assume you're colluding with the White Walkers as well?"
As he spoke, his hand moved to the hilt of the Banished Knight greatsword at his waist.
Willas remained composed. "Everything I've done has been to prevent the White Walkers from marching south and to stop the coming of eternal winter."
"I'm giving you the chance to explain," Lynd said, eyes fixed on him.
Without any hint of emotion, Willas began his explanation. "The Wall is damaged. The ancient runes inside have lost their power. When the next long winter comes, the Wall won't be able to stop the White Walkers from heading south."
Lynd immediately shook his head. "Impossible. I can see the magical runes within the Wall—and the immense power they contain. There's no way..."
"What you're seeing is just an illusion—meant to deceive the White Walkers," Willas explained evenly. "In reality, the ancient runes were destroyed the last time the Horn of Winter was blown. The people who repaired the Wall afterward cleverly used the broken runes to create a façade."
He continued, "In fact, you proved that the Wall's magic is no longer effective. Remember the wight sent to King's Landing? If the Wall's magic were still intact, that wight never could've passed through."
Lynd froze.
He had wondered, back then, how a wight could cross the Wall. But due to memories from his past life—the show—he'd recalled that two wights, once Night's Watch brothers, had also been brought south and caused chaos at Castle Black. So he hadn't thought much of it at the time.
But now, thinking back... something really didn't add up.