Roose Bolton didn't meet with Jon in his own camp, but instead chose the camp of House Darry.
Arriving at their camp, Jon found quite a few soldiers engaged in sparring or discussing the war and the current situation.
These were things only "educated" people would do.
Upon seeing Jon, they cast scrutinizing glances his way.
Of course, most of those glances were cold.
Jon's "tactless" behavior at Riverrun that day had indeed displeased many.
But Jon didn't care. He was thinking about something else.
House Darry only had fewer than four hundred soldiers left.
But they still retained over twenty knights.
Furthermore, the quality of these remaining soldiers was excellent.
Having fought alongside their liege lord through many battles, their loyalty was guaranteed.
Although Jon's forces had expanded rapidly, the lack of mid-level officers made conveying commands extremely difficult.
It also prevented him from fully utilizing the advantage of his "mini-map hack."
If he could integrate such a force into his own, his army's combat effectiveness would instantly jump a level.
But this was likely just wishful thinking.
House Darry was an ancient noble house. Forget submitting to a bastard like him; even Robert Baratheon might not have garnered their genuine respect.
House Darry had produced a Kingsguard.
He had died fighting alongside Jon's biological father, Rhaegar Targaryen, at the Trident.
It was said that the cellars of Darry still hid Targaryen banners and portraits of past Targaryen kings.
You could say there was only one sun in their hearts, and that was House Targaryen.
As soon as Jon arrived at the Darry tent, he saw Roose Bolton waiting for him.
With him were the two bastard brothers, Martyn and Munda, and the current Earl of Darry, little Lyman.
Lyman seemed excited upon seeing Jon.
Jon's impression on him at the Great Hall of Riverrun that day had been profound.
A boy not yet ten years old was right at the age for hero worship.
Seeing Jon enter the tent, Lyman immediately tried to stand up to greet him but was pushed back down by his bastard cousin.
After all, Lyman was the Earl of Darry, and Jon was just a bastard.
There was no logic in an earl bowing to a bastard.
Although the cousins were bastards too, this concerned family honor.
There could be no ambiguity.
Still, the two gave Jon sufficient respect; his military achievements and the army he brought back were undeniably real.
"Lord Jon... I am Martyn Rivers."
"Lord Jon, I am Munda Rivers."
Jon nodded to them and offered a few words of praise.
Seeing Jon arrive, Roose Bolton explained his purpose.
"Jon, you've done very well. You actually brought back another army for us."
"Heh, Lord Bolton, there was a bit of luck involved," Jon said humbly, as if the person who had spat at Roose's feet previously was someone else entirely.
Roose continued:
"Here's the situation, Jon. Although His Grace said when we set out that your troops aren't under my jurisdiction... back then you had fewer than five hundred men. Now you directly command over three thousand. I want to hear your thoughts. Ideally, you could take on some combat missions."
Roose's reasoning was very sound.
After all, with so many men under him, Jon could hardly expect to just eat without working, right?
The addition of fresh troops was good, but increased consumption would inevitably pressure logistics and affect the supplies of other units to some extent.
Jon nodded in agreement.
"If Lord Bolton has any suggestions, please speak."
Seeing Jon agree, Martyn and Munda glanced at each other, took a deep breath, and listened intently.
Jon now commanded over three thousand men. If he were willing to help them retake Darry, it would be perfect.
Roose looked at Martyn and said:
"I hope you can use Darry as a base to form our forward defense line, further compressing the Westerlands army's range of activity."
Jon pondered:
"That means we have to retake Darry first. Lord Bolton, I believe the castle won't run away, only the enemy will. Retaking Darry now will only disperse our forces and give the enemy an opportunity."
Seeing Jon disagree, Roose leaned back in his chair and looked at Martyn and the others.
Martyn stood up and said, "Lord Bolton, we can retake Darry with the men we have left. We only hope you can provide us with some arrows and weapons."
Seeing Jon refuse to budge, Martyn lost patience.
Jon was a few years younger than him, and they were both bastards. Even if Jon had just brought back an army of two thousand wildlings, Martyn had no interest in begging him.
Looking at the young man about his age, Jon felt helpless.
House Darry were die-hard Targaryen loyalists.
In the Battle of the Trident, House Darry lost four men.
They died following Jon's biological father, Rhaegar Targaryen.
And there was Ser Willem Darry, who protected the young Daenerys and Viserys.
Although Jon had never met them, they were his blood relatives' loyalists.
He couldn't ignore this loyalty and bond.
Jon knew they could definitely retake Darry.
But immediately after, The Mountain would double back, bathe Darry in blood, and extinguish the male line of House Darry forever.
This was something Jon didn't want to see.
Moreover, he wanted to integrate the Darry soldiers, especially the knights with military education, into his own army. He didn't want them to die in vain.
So he proposed a compromise:
"Lord Bolton, Ser Martyn, although those tribal warriors aren't Northerners, they are our allies. I must be responsible for their lives. If you insist on retaking Darry, can you wait a little longer? Wait until I integrate these warriors with my original soldiers for a while, and then we can reclaim the lost territory?"
Jon's attitude surprised Roose Bolton.
His impression of Jon had always been someone who responded to kindness but not force.
Why was he so gentle with House Darry?
However, Martyn still rejected Jon's suggestion:
"Lord Jon, thank you for your kindness. But the people around Darry are still suffering under the Iron Hooves of the Lannisters. We cannot delay a moment longer."
Martyn used the word "delay," seemingly mocking Jon.
Jon slammed the table and retorted:
"Have you ever thought about what happens if the Westermen come back right after you drive them off? Do you want those commoners to suffer a second time?!"
Right, that's the Jon I know. Roose Bolton let out a breath, thinking Jon had changed his nature after his trip to the mountains.
"They are subjects of House Darry. It's not your place to worry about them."
"Fool!"
Jon unleashed his full aura, cursing back directly.
Martyn's knees went weak, realizing he had spoken too harshly.
Little Lyman was so scared he didn't dare breathe.
"Die if you want to."
Jon stood up, dropped that sentence, and left the camp.
Helping was one thing; groveling was another.
Even long after he left, Martyn hadn't fully recovered.
Roose Bolton watched Jon's retreating figure coldly.
Leaving aside Jon's current prestige, with his current strength alone, Roose couldn't force him to do anything.
So he looked at the Rivers brothers and proposed:
"Martyn, I will send you some archers. Perhaps they can help you."
"Thank you, my Lord."
Martyn and Munda bowed to Roose together.
Lyman also imitated his cousins and thanked him.
Roose Bolton naturally wouldn't do business at a loss.
Helping House Darry would help him "restore his prestige" and strengthen his control over the army.
Especially since Jon was putting too much pressure on him.
He needed to win over some "allies."