Chapter 2: Patrol

According to the law, desertion from the Night's Watch is a public crime. All lords of the Seven Kingdoms are obligated to capture and execute deserters, especially in the North, where the relationship between the Night's Watch and the noble houses, especially the Starks and their vassals, is close. Except that, unless one joins the northern wildlings, escaping directly faces predictable consequences. But how could Aeg want to rid himself of his Night's Watch identity only to end up running north?

Heading south... If he truly wanted to escape, then he must be prepared. First, he needed a good horse, adequate provisions, change his dark attire, and choose the right moment to quickly escape the Night's Watch's reach, avoiding all villages and inhabited areas along the way... Once he could cross the Neck and leave the North, half of the escape plan would have succeeded. Then, he would just need to head directly towards the warm and safe south, where the interest of lords and nobles in the Night's Watch was minimal. He would only need to reach the fertile lands of the Riverlands and find a place that would accept him without questioning his identity, and he could start a new life in another world.

The plan was clear and simple, but the problem was: how could he succeed in his escape in a feudal era with limited transportation and minimal human mobility, being obviously a foreigner and without legal identity?

It was too difficult.

Shaking his head, Aeg pushed his thoughts aside. This was not the time for reflection. With the muffled sound of the horses' hooves in the snow and the trees and branches quickly hiding the sun, they truly entered the vast and cold northern forest.

"Damn wildlings," cursed Garry. "The weather gets colder, and they only get more active."

"If they stopped, they wouldn't be wildlings anymore," replied Aeg, brushing off some snowflakes that had fallen on his sleeve. Due to personnel and supply shortages, and to prevent the wildlings from understanding the Night's Watch's activity patterns, they had abandoned regular patrols in favor of a more random but more focused schedule. The night before, a brother on watch at the Wall had reported lights north of the Wall, which had led the Lord Commander and the first rider to organize this patrol. If it weren't for that, by now they would have finished their morning exercises and would be comfortably warming themselves by the fire in their homes.

"No time for chatter, let's advance dispersedly and thoroughly check any suspicious tracks," ordered Wyman without looking back, interrupting the conversation that hadn't even started yet among the three Night's Watch soldiers. He spoke coldly and gave orders.

Upon hearing the leader's request, Will and Garry shrugged, exchanging a grimace behind his back. The four, ordered by age from oldest to youngest, were Garry, Will, Aeg, and then Wyman. But it turned out the youngest was the leader. It was impossible for the other three not to have opinions about it. This young noble from the Vale had been the third son of the Count of Runestone, but seeing few chances of inheriting the title, he chose to join the Night's Watch. He was personally escorted by his father to the Wall, with a cart full of luggage. This fact was often ridiculed by other members of the Night's Watch during late-night conversations with beer. The great Sir Wyman Royce seemed more like he was on vacation than serving.

Despite the doubts, discipline was present. The three followed orders and dispersed in a line formation to begin their patrol and exploration.

Soon, they found signs of human activity near the area where the sentinels had seen the light. Since it hadn't snowed the day before, the wildlings' footprints and the ashes of fires were clearly preserved.

"They're gone," said Garry, looking at Wyman with a hesitant expression.

---

The Night's Watch was born after the Long Night, when the Others descended into the Realms of Men during a long winter that lasted a generation, almost exterminating humanity... After this catastrophe, the Wall and the Night's Watch were erected, with the mission to protect humanity from the Others.

It is understood that joining this armed force, which is committed to defending all of humanity, was at one time the highest honor on this continent, even if the entry requirement was extremely high, volunteers were still abundant. But with the retreat of the Others to the Lands of Always Winter in the far north and their subsequent disappearance, and after the generation that had lived during the Long Night died, the importance and treatment towards this military force were destined to decline.

Although it is said so, the Wall continued to be a relevant presence for a long time, preventing the northern wildlings from invading the Seven Kingdoms. However, a major event in history finally dealt a mortal blow to the Night's Watch: the arrival of Aegon the Conqueror and the establishment of the Targaryen dynasty.

The dynasty of the True Dragon did not bother the Night's Watch, but its founder brought dragons from Valyria. After these dragons were used to repel a major wildling attack, burning the invaders while their king rode one, though this quickly drove off the invaders, it also considerably accelerated the decline of the Night's Watch. With the advent of a powerful weapon capable of defeating the enemy, the importance and influence of the Night's Watch decreased drastically. After all, if the vulgar wildlings were to attack again, wouldn't it be more effective to report directly to the Dragon King with a dragon rider?

Nobles and knights were no longer willing to dedicate their entire lives to a senseless guard. The Night's Watch gradually lost recruitment sources, and had to repeatedly lower its entry standards... After a hundred years of changes, the Night's Watch finally became what it is today.

"When the Long Night comes, I will start watching and will not rest until I die. I will not take a wife, or lands, or father children. I will not wear any crown, or fight for glory or favor. I will be loyal to my duty until death. I am the sword in the darkness, the watcher on the Wall. I am the fire that burns against the cold, the light that brings the dawn, the horn that wakes the sleepers, the shield that guards the realms. I pledge my life and honor to the Night's Watch, tonight and all nights."

When people were moved by this Night's Watch oath, filled with promises and titles, how many could guess that it had not always been so? And behind each revision of the oath, how much bitterness and resignation lay?

The dragons and dragon knights of House Targaryen had disappeared with the wind, but the decline of the Night's Watch was irreversible. At present, the Night's Watch Corps, instead of being the front line of defense against the wildlings, was more like the security guard who watched over and maintained the Wall. The members, numbering no more than a thousand, could be divided into three main categories:

The first category was that of convicts and condemned individuals who joined the Night's Watch to avoid punishment: thieves, poachers, rapists... These individuals, who were previously not even worthy of cleaning the shoes of the "Night's Watch," were now the main force and were destined to live and die in the Night's Watch, with no other fate than desertion;

The second category was that of

 those who joined out of necessity: nobles and officials fallen into disgrace, peasants who had lost their lands, ruined merchants, and illegitimate children... Theoretically, these were encouraged to join the Night's Watch, and were allowed to resign at any time before taking the oath, but in reality they had nowhere else to go. Most of the "craftsmen" and "administrative officers" of the Night's Watch were made up of these types of people.

The third category was the rarest and least numerous, like Wyman Royce: those who joined out of true honor and sense of duty, or who self-exiled to avoid family internal struggles and make way for their brothers or sons. They had other options, but they left the power stage of the Seven Kingdoms to go to the Wall. Over time, this category became increasingly rare, and Lord Commander Jeor Mormont, First Rider Benjen Stark, and even Archmaester Aemon Targaryen, who had renounced governance of the Seven Kingdoms, belonged to this category. They were usually directly promoted to officers and leaders. This apparent unfair rule was actually easy to understand: in the far north of this kingdom, if a band of criminals, lawbreakers, or peasants ruled the Night's Watch army, who knows what kind of madness the defense of the Wall would become?

There was no pious filial at a deathbed, nor heroes before the icy Wall, no matter how noble the dream that drove young nobles to join, once they discovered that the Night's Watch was far from what they expected and that the environment was so harsh, their hot blood quickly cooled.

Wyman Royce was no exception; at this moment, he deeply regretted his decision. No one had forced him to come to the Wall, but he was inspired by the Night's Watch oath, and he also chose to come here to show his beloved elder brother that he had no intentions of competing for the family inheritance. Now, the words had been spoken and the oath made; even if he had the shamelessness to return home with his tail between his legs, his family would never openly receive him.

The only option now was to quickly earn merits and, at the right moment, request permission to return home. No one would question his ability to endure hardships and flee.

The young squad leader of the riders patrolled the area that was once a wildling camp, briefly reflecting before making a decision: "They're gone, follow me along the tracks."