Chapter 165

Qhorin looked disgruntled but didn't push his luck.

"So… you're coming with us this time?" he asked. Qhorin had his own mission the last time he and his men went up North and thus couldn't join him. This time, both Benjen and Qhorin had been informed in advance and were ready to support him.

He had a feeling that Lord Commander Jeor Mormont was preparing for something but he could not find what it was with the surface legilimency probe and he didn't want to bother with a deeper legilimency scan.

"Yes." Qhorin nodded "Me, Benjen, Lord Jeor Mormont himself and a thousand Night's Watch brothers." Qhorin said and he turned to look at the man incredulously.

Qhorin noted his expression and chuckled "Don't worry. We brothers of the Night's Watch will have our own supply lines. You don't need to wreck your head trying to feed more men."

"That's a relief." He said with a sigh. Because he did not want to make any more changes in his supply lines than he had already made. Feeding 3000 men up in the cold North was already going to be difficult. Adding 1000 more men to that would not have been pleasant. "When was the last time Night's Watch sent out so many men up North in an expedition of their own."

"Two decades ago." Qhorin replied. "It was a mess. Over 2000 members of Night's Watch went up North. Few returned. And the Nights Watch has been in decline ever since. Then again, I suppose the Watch has been in decline for a long time. But the failed expedition just added to that. There has been no further large scale excursion in the lands North of the Wall since then."

"Until I came along." He said with a chuckle and Qhorin chuckled with him.

"Yeah. Until you came along. I think you punctured the pride of many of the older brothers in the Watcher by going into the Wildling territory and coming back without a scratch. Looking as pretty as ever."

"Is that why Lord Mormont is joining us this time? To soothe punctured pride." He asked.

"That. And because he couldn't allow so many of the heirs dying in his watch." Qhorin said and shook his head "Gods knows what Lord Stark was thinking by sending his heir up North like this."

He shrugged at looked at where Robb Stark was being forced to drink another cup of wine by Smalljon Umber. He remembered when he was forced to do the same by Greatjon Umber in Last Hearth. Like father like son.

"The boys are unsettled about something." Qhorin said, brining him back to the present.

"Hmm…?"

"The boys you brought with you." Qhorin said as he pointed toward the place where all the heirs were sitting together in a large table which was two tables connected together to make space for everyone. "They're hiding it well enough but I can sniff these things from a distance. They're tense about something. And afraid. And it's not about the expedition either. If I didn't knew any better then I would say that they were spooked."

"Get to the point Qhorin." He said.

"Why are you going on this expedition?" Qhorin asked. "You have more than enough wargs in your army. You've the Children of the Forest. And you have the last tribe of the Giants. What more do you want? Why are you going to the North this time?"

"Because it's necessary." He said and Qhorin opened his mouth to say something but closed it back up as he gave something to the man.

Qhorin looked a the bundle of cloth in his hands and asked "What is it?"

"Open it." He replied. Qhorin did so and a Dragonglass dagger came out from beneath the cloth.

"If you want to come with us on this expedition, then you might want to keep that close." He said as he got up and took his ledger with him "Who knows. It might come in handy."

With that, he turned around and left, the men sitting around him doing the same. He had no doubt that Varko and Walton had put them up to guarding him. And even if he might not show it, he was grateful for that.

He might not be Allistar Moody but he did take his and the safety of his loved ones seriously.