Game of Thrones racked up quite the body count in its eighth and final season — but the show’s writers nearly subtracted one death from the eventual tally.

Ser Jorah Mormont, who perished in the gruesome Battle of Winterfell during Season 8, was originally going to survive the series, writer Dave Hill told EW.com. Per Hill, Jorah was supposed to end up at The Wall with Jon Snow, who was banished back to the Night’s Watch in the series finale as punishment for killing Daenerys.

“For a long time, we wanted Ser Jorah to be there at The Wall in the end,” Hill revealed. “The three coming out of the tunnel would be Jon and Jorah and Tormund.”

But as Thrones‘ writers continued planning the final season, “the amount [of] logic we’d have to bend to get Jorah up to The Wall and get him to leave Dany’s side right before [the finale]… there’s no way to do that blithely,” he shared. “And Jorah should have the noble death he craves defending the woman he loves.”

Indeed, Jorah was ultimately stabbed by a wight during Winterfell’s biggest battle, though he died protecting Daenerys from the undead — which means he never had to witness her descent into power-hungry madness.

“There’s a sweetness in that because Jorah will never know what she did,” shared Iain Glen, who portrayed Jorah. “That’s probably best. It’s a blessing for him that he never found out what happened to her.”