An hour later, at the North Gate of Castle Black.
An expedition of one hundred and fifty men had assembled.
One hundred grim-faced Stark Guards stood silently in formation, like a silent forest of steel.
There were also fifty Night's Watch Rangers, clad in light leather armor.
Although their faces still showed some lingering shock, the contempt in their eyes when they looked at Lynn had vanished.
No one wanted to entrust their life and death to a greenhorn.
But Lynn had demonstrated his strength, which gave them a little more confidence.
Arya was also among them.
Lynn took everyone with him; he would never leave Arya at Castle Black, fearing she might encounter danger.
Behind them, the sleds were piled high with weapons, dry rations, and a large amount of wildfire prepared for the wights.
Jeor Mormont stood by the city gate.
He looked at this renewed team, a trace of relief on his face.
Lynn had taken control of this team in the most direct and effective way.
It seemed there shouldn't be any major internal problems with this operation.
"Lord Commander," Lynn said to Mormont from horseback.
"We are departing."
Mormont nodded.
"Stay safe, Lynn."
He looked at Lynn and added, "Come back alive."
Lynn smiled without speaking.
He flicked the reins, and the warhorse beneath him neighed, charging first into the dark tunnel that led beyond the Wall.
The team followed closely.
When they saw light again, an endless, vast snowfield stretched before their eyes.
Just like last time, the biting cold wind howled from the Land of Always Winter to the north.
But this time, the atmosphere within the team was completely different from before.
Aside from the newly joined Night's Watch, the Stark Guards were no longer bewildered or afraid.
Every soldier trusted their commander.
"My Lord," Toren rode up to Lynn, handing him a rolled parchment.
"The map."
Lynn took the map and unrolled it.
It was the most detailed map of the area beyond the Wall available at Castle Black.
"We are here now."
Lynn's finger tapped the edge of the Haunted Forest on the map.
Then, his finger slowly moved towards the center of the map.
There was a blank area marked "Unknown."
Lynn pulled out his human skin map.
Comparing them, the human skin map clearly recorded everything within that area.
The blood-red eye symbol was right in the center of this blank region.
"The scouts reported that the terrain in this area is very complex," a Ranger squad leader named Jason interjected.
He was the most experienced of the fifty Rangers Mormont had selected for Lynn.
"There are steep cliffs and bottomless ravines everywhere; it's very difficult for our main force to pass through."
"That's why we gave up on reconnoitering it before."
Lynn looked at the map, deep in thought.
"The harder a place is to enter, the more likely it is to hide secrets."
Lynn placed the human skin map and the parchment map together, carefully comparing them.
The direction of the mountains, the source of the glaciers... one by one, seemingly unrelated details gradually connected into a clear clue in his mind.
"Here."
Lynn's finger stopped at a seemingly inconspicuous point on both maps.
It was a narrow river valley sandwiched between two mountain ranges.
"Why here, My Lord?" Toren asked, puzzled.
"It looks no different from anywhere else."
"No, it's different." Lynn shook his head.
"Look, this frozen river is the only one in the Haunted Forest that flows from north to south."
"According to the ancient legends of the North, the direction of water flow often represents the flow of vitality."
"Maester Aemon told me that the eye symbol, in the faith of First Men, should represent 'peering' and 'insight'."
Lynn looked at the crowd and continued to guide them.
"What kind of place is good for peering?"
"A place that can overlook the land, a place that can peer into the flow of life."
Jason's eyes lit up.
"The source of the river! The highest point of the valley!"
"Exactly." Lynn nodded in agreement.
"And, look at the mountains on both sides."
Lynn's finger traced across the map.
"Don't they look like a pair of open wings?"
"And this river valley is like the shadow beneath the wings."
"In the faith of the Old Gods, winged creatures are usually associated with the sky and deities."
Lynn's analysis left everyone present stunned.
They had never imagined that such a simple map could hide so much information.
The awe in their eyes as they looked at Lynn was now mixed with a hint of fanaticism.
This Lord Commander was not only an excellent swordsman, but his wisdom was also as unfathomable as an abyss.
Lynn smiled and shook his head; he didn't take the credit for himself.
"I don't have that ability."
"Maester Aemon, through my words and his fingers, painstakingly discovered this from the map."
"Jason," Lynn commanded.
"Here, My Lord!"
"Take ten of your most agile Rangers as the vanguard."
"Follow this route to scout that river valley."
Lynn drew an extremely concealed route on the map.
The route avoided all open ground, traversing almost entirely in the shadow of the mountains.
"Remember, do not engage in conflict with any wildlings."
"Your mission is only reconnaissance."
"If you find anything unusual, report back immediately."
"Yes, My Lord!" Jason accepted the order.
He immediately gathered his men and disappeared into the wind and snow.
"The rest of you, rest here and stay alert."
Lynn dismounted.
"We will wait for their news."
The team set up a simple camp on the spot.
The soldiers sat around the bonfire, roasting dry rations, and talking in low voices.
Lynn did not participate in their discussion.
He simply sat alone on a rock, wiping longclaw in his hand.
The valyrian steel blade was clear and smooth.
The weirwood carved wolf's head seemed to be silently watching him.
"Is it related to the gods?"
"Green seers?"
"Essentially, they are also human; there's nothing to fear."
"It's probably related to those blessed objects."
Time slowly passed in waiting.
The sky gradually darkened.
The expedition had been waiting for almost half a day in this temporary camp.
Just as everyone began to feel a little restless.
A rapid sound of hooves came from afar.
It was Jason!
He returned with his scout team.
Every face bore an undisguised mix of excitement and tension.
"My Lord!" Jason dismounted in front of Lynn, his movements even a little unsteady.
"We... we found it!"
His voice trembled slightly.
"At the end of that river valley, we discovered something."
"Some... very strange stone carvings."
"The symbols on them are exactly the same as those on your human skin map!"
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