Ronnet Connington SI

-Chapter 75-

-POV Tywin Lannister-

"Euron Greyjoy," I said, facing the leader of the Iron Fleet.

'To think I'm forced to lower myself to speak to this nobody to reclaim my fortress.'

"I suppose you're Tywin Lannister, the old lion," he said in a condescending and arrogant tone, an attitude shared by all the men who followed him.

I noticed, however, that he glanced at the nearly 40,000 soldiers massed behind me, ready to fight to the death to reclaim Casterly Rock.

Gathering an army of that size had not been an easy task, especially after the massive betrayal from Ronnet Connington.

Having lost the majority of my men in the Riverlands, I had to urgently recall all the troops I had stationed in the Reach.

But 25,000 soldiers wouldn't give me the advantage needed to win this war we had been forcibly dragged back into.

'By my own greed.'

I assembled over 8,000 men in King's Landing, whom I quickly equipped and put through daily drills.

'Enough to make them blend in with the rest of the army in a month.'

With the additional 6,000 men hastily gathered by the lords of the Crownlands, I had bolstered my forces enough to fight on two fronts at once, though that wasn't the priority.

'The priority is and always will be Casterly Rock.'

Euron Greyjoy slightly furrowed his brow, as instead of splitting my forces, I had brought all my soldiers with me, leaving only 2,000 to defend the Red Keep and maintain order in the capital.

It was a risky and bold move, but one based on a deep understanding of my adversary's mindset.

'Ronnet Connington wants to bring us to our knees, and to do that, he won't take the easy path. He'll try to destroy us completely.'

I broke from my thoughts and said to Euron Greyjoy, "You've already lost. I don't need to tell you that; you can see it for yourself."

"40,000 soldiers and a fleet? That wasn't the deal I made with your son-in-law. He told me you could only muster 25,000 men," the pirate said, frowning slightly.

"Former son-in-law. That traitor is now calling himself Ronnet, King of Storms and the Trident, and as you can see, he knows nothing of the true strength of House Lannister or our king, Tommen Baratheon," I said, trying to give him the impression I had everything under control.

"So many kings, so few kingdoms," he said, smiling at his own joke.

"Unfortunately for you, there's nothing you can do against me because I hold what remains of your family. I imagine your ex-son-in-law won't be very kind to your son and the other members of your house he has in custody," the pirate said, proud of his work.

I narrowed my eyes at him and said, "You will not touch them under any circumstances."

"That's not my intention, although I'd be lying if I said I hadn't fantasized about doing unspeakable things to your sister," he said.

"Your sarcasm won't save you."

'Nothing will.'

"I don't need saving, and don't think I'm afraid of your army of farmers. I'm only here to discuss one thing," Euron Greyjoy said, finally getting to the point.

"Speak," I said, ordering him to explain himself.

Euron rolled his eyes at the tone I had used but said nothing more and simply laid out what he wanted: "I recently learned that the queen has been… how should I put this politely, freed from her engagement."

"I see. And what are you hoping for?" I asked, though I had already understood that he wanted a marriage with Cersei.

"I want her to be my queen," he said confidently.

'He wants to continue being king even under Tommen's reign. He's going to be a problem,' I thought as I regarded him indifferently.

I took my time before asking, "In exchange for what?"

"In exchange for the North," he said with a wide grin.

"It's a no," I replied without a moment's hesitation.

'It's just an excuse to ally with us without offering anything. Winter is coming, and the Iron Fleet will never be able to take control of the North now, especially with Ronnet's capture of the Riverlands.'

"Very well, then I wish you the best of luck with the Storm King. Let's hope you're strong enough to resist him," he said, striking at my weak spot without mercy.

'Ronnet Connington has recalled all his soldiers and sent a rallying cry to his bannermen weeks ago. He's planning an attack, and there's only one target for him: the Reach. Without the soldiers of the Reach, we won't be able to maintain our advantage.'

'Especially now that he's allied with Dorne.'

"Stop," I ordered him.

"Why do you suddenly want an alliance with us after betraying us?" I asked, unable to understand why he was turning on Ronnet Connington so suddenly after abandoning us for him.

"Because to ally with Ronnet Connington, I had to give him my niece. I recently learned that he's offered your own granddaughter to Dorne. I assume you're competent enough to understand what they intend to do to your house. I refuse to let a Connington rule my kingdom," he said, though I could easily sense that this wasn't the real reason for his change of heart.

"You made a deal with the devil, and now you're afraid of the cost," I said, mocking the ironborn slightly.

"You'd be afraid too if you had the same vision I did," the pirate said, wearing an eyepatch.

'How ironic coming from a man who only has one good eye,' I thought before accepting his offer.

"I'll agree to an alliance with you, but only if you can completely break Ronnet Connington's hold on the Narrow Sea."

"That's as good as done," he said, pleased that we had struck a deal, but I wasn't finished.

"And the North," I said.

Euron furrowed his brow, knowing the difficulty of fully occupying the North, and said, "You're a greedy man, but you know what? It's your lucky day. I'll give you everything you want, but in return, you must kill that monster. You must absolutely kill him."

I frowned, not fully understanding why he was so frantically concerned, but I nodded and said, "You have my word."

"Very well," he said, letting out a sigh of relief.