Within only a few days after Louis's meeting with Tywin Lannister, the situation in the North began to change rapidly, as if the cold winds themselves were carrying signs of an unavoidable turning point.
Jon Snow finally left the Wall, leaving behind the silence of snow and black stone, and returned to Winterfell. There, inside the ancient halls of the castle, he confronted Ned Stark with a truth that could no longer be ignored. Jon spoke about the Army of the Dead, about shadows moving beyond the Wall, and about a threat that cared nothing for banners or politics.
He told him clearly:
This enemy could not be defeated by swords alone.
Dragonglass was the only weapon capable of killing them.
According to Jon's knowledge, there was only one place where dragonglass could be found: Dragonstone.
Here, the conflict grew stronger.
Although Ned Stark did not tell his "son" about the secret agreement he had made with the Lannisters, he strongly opposed the idea. Reports from his spies had already reached him: Daenerys Targaryen had returned to Dragonstone with her army and her dragons, and she had openly declared her intention to reclaim the Iron Throne from House Lannister.
Sending Jon there was extremely dangerous, and Ned could not agree easily.
At the height of his hesitation, Ned sent an urgent message to King's Landing to inform them of the situation.
This was not submission to the Lannisters, but fear for the fate of his daughters if Jon Snow's meeting with Daenerys were discovered.
The reply from the south arrived quickly.
It was a letter sealed with the royal seal.
Ned read the letter in long silence. His expression slowly changed, as if the words forced his priorities into a new order. When he finally raised his head, the decision had been made.
He agreed at last to allow Jon Snow to travel to Dragonstone, and he even sent several trusted guards with him to protect him. It was not a decision made from comfort or confidence, but from the understanding that the danger coming from the North was greater than all other concerns.
***
In the south, different threads were being woven on another board.
Amid rumors spreading like wildfire that he had murdered his brother Jaime Lannister, Tyrion made his next move. He pretended to flee King's Landing and disappeared from sight, exactly as planned.
Following the conspiracy step by step, he successfully reached Daenerys Targaryen. Over time, he gained her trust and became her Hand and chief adviser. He took part in planning the famous battle against the Lannisters, a battle that ended in victory for Daenerys's forces thanks to the overwhelming power of her dragons.
But the victory was not clean.
Because Tyrion leaked the battle plan, Daenerys's army suffered a heavy blow and great losses, despite the enormous sacrifices made by the Lannister forces. It was a harsh lesson, even if it came too late.
***
At sea, the Iron Islands were close to explosion.
Thanks to Tywin Lannister's direct intervention, Euron Greyjoy's rebellion against his older brother Balon Greyjoy failed. Euron was captured, and Balon did not hesitate, he executed him himself, closing the matter of betrayal forever.
Driven by this internal victory, Balon later succeeded in defeating part of Daenerys's fleet, dealing her a painful naval blow, though not a decisive one.
Through these battles, on land and sea, Daenerys learned an unavoidable truth:
relying on force alone would lead to endless losses.
She needed allies, not more enemies.
***
Thus, when Jon Snow arrived at Dragonstone, the course of events shifted once again.
Knowing about the tension between House Stark and House Lannister, and understanding the scale of the threat posed by the Army of the Dead, Daenerys agreed to help Jon Snow fight this danger from the North.
But there was a price.
Jon would have to help convince House Stark to join her campaign to reclaim the Iron Throne.
Jon Snow agreed, driven by the need to save the world from a threat greater than crowns and thrones.
But he did not know…
that the army of King's Landing had already settled in Winterfell.
And that King Joffrey Baratheon himself was leading that army.
*** ***
On the road to Winterfell, while the banners of Daenerys's army waved in the cold northern wind, the silence was broken by the sound of fast galloping hooves.
A rider carrying the sigil of House Stark approached and stopped in front of Jon Snow, bowing quickly.
The messenger said seriously:
"An urgent message, my lord."
Jon frowned.
"Urgent?"
The messenger replied:
"Lord Stark said you must read it before you make any rushed mistake."
Before Jon could open the letter, Daenerys's voice came from her horse beside him, with a hint of sarcasm:
"Hmmm… it seems the Lord of the North does not trust you very much, does he?"
Jon did not answer. He ignored her comment and opened the letter. The moment his eyes fell on its lines, his expression changed, and his face darkened clearly.
Daenerys noticed immediately.
"Why did your face change suddenly?" she asked sharply. "What does the letter say?"
Instead of explaining, Jon silently handed her the letter.
Daenerys hesitated for a moment, then took the paper. As soon as she read it, her expression changed completely. Anger...burning anger, rose from deep within her.
"A truce?!" she said harshly. "And they want negotiations? With who? With the son of the man who led the coup and stole the throne from my family?"
The letter was clear:
King Joffrey Baratheon had learned about the threat of the Army of the Dead beyond the Wall and decided to offer a temporary truce with Daenerys until the common enemy was defeated.
However, out of caution in case Daenerys lost control, Louis explicitly insisted on keeping Jon Snow's sisters, Arya and Sansa Stark, in King's Landing as hostages.
In this way, Louis believed that even if Daenerys rushed to take revenge in a moment of rage, she would be forced to consider the fate of the sisters of her "new lover."
Jon suddenly broke the silence after noticing the anger in her eyes:
"I swear I did not know about this before I came to Dragonstone."
Daenerys looked at him for several long seconds… then she smiled.
"No problem. I promised to help, and I will keep my promise."
Then she added confidently:
"And if they want dialogue, I will make sure your sisters return safely before I leave Winterfell."
She continued in a cold tone:
"But if they are planning something else…"
She paused, then lifted her head toward the sky. Jon followed her gaze, and there—
Three massive dragons were flying low above the army, their wings cutting through the air with terrifying roars.
She did not finish her sentence.
She was confident to the point of arrogance. And she did not know that Tyrion had already betrayed her, leaking her travel route to King's Landing days earlier.
Even more than that… he had helped a group of Tywin Lannister's elite knights sneak in and join the rear of her army from the very beginning of the march toward Winterfell, without anyone discovering them.
*** ***
Upon arriving at Winterfell, the first decision was to hold talks between King Joffrey and Daenerys.
Fearing that Daenerys might act rashly, Louis convinced Ned Stark to prepare a table and two chairs in an open square, with no walls and no roof, where everyone could see clearly.
When Daenerys learned of this, she did not object.
But she decided… to intimidate Louis.
From a distance, she mounted her dragon Drogon and flew straight toward the square.
The dragon landed only a few meters from where Louis was sitting, the ground shaking under its claws.
Daenerys patted Drogon's neck with an arrogant smile, her eyes fixed on Louis, then dismounted and walked toward the chair opposite him.
She sat down and said in open arrogance:
"I did not expect the one sitting on the Iron Throne to be a child who has not even grown hair yet."
Louis smiled calmly.
"Oh? Would you like to check for yourself? I promise you will not be disappointed."
Daenerys's smile did not fade.
"Then give me one reason why I should not order Drogon to turn you into a burned corpse."
She added: "And do not think that holding the Stark girls will save your life."
Louis smiled even more.
"It seems your relationship with Jon Snow has grown quite deep. Wouldn't you feel sorry for him if he suddenly lost his sisters?"
She replied with cold confidence:
"He will feel no pain from loss while he is with me."
"Oh…" Louis said lightly. "So your relationship has truly reached that point. I really envy him."
She ignored his comment.
"What is the real reason for this meeting?"
"Heh, are you in a hurry to return to your lover's arms?" Louis said provocatively.
Before she could reply, he continued:
"It seems you were so busy with your pleasures that you neglected your subordinates… tsk tsk."
She frowned.
"What do you mean?"
*** ***
At the rear of Daenerys's army, the wagons carrying servants and supplies were moving slowly.
When Daenerys ordered a halt to head toward the meeting place, the group of knights loyal to Tywin Lannister moved, taking advantage of the information Tyrion had provided.
Their goal was clear.
Missandei.
The servant, who was no longer just a servant, but the closest person to Daenerys.
In the original course of events, Daenerys was ready to negotiate with Cersei to free her, and in a wave of rage, she later turned King's Landing into total ruin when Missandei was executed.
Although Tywin was not certain this card would succeed, Joffrey seemed to already understand Missandei's importance and grasp the danger of the Army of the Dead, which he had foreseen even before the news reached him.
And so…
He sent his elite knights.
One mission only.
Kidnap the servant...
The one who could force Daenerys Targaryen to accept negotiations.