"Welcome, Onstein!" Illyrio, who had been informed by his subordinates, stood early at the entrance of his manor. Upon seeing Lynd, he immediately stepped forward and bowed, saying.
The surrounding servants were somewhat surprised by Illyrio's attitude. After all, Illyrio was one of the Governors of Pentos, holding a high and powerful position. Even when meeting other Governors, he would not appear so humble. The last person who made Illyrio act so humbly was Drogo, who visited Pentos.
After Lynd dismounted, he walked up to Illyrio and said, "Lord Illyrio, you should know why I have come."
"Of course, I know," Illyrio's hand trembled slightly upon hearing Lynd's words. Then, he forced a smile and said, "Please believe me, that matter was absolutely not something I intended to mess up."
Lynd reached out and patted his shoulder, saying, "Don't worry, if I thought you deliberately caused trouble, I wouldn't be standing here talking to you now." As he spoke, he looked at the servants around them, who were bowing their heads, busy with their tasks, and occasionally peeking curiously in their direction, and said, "Are you sure this is a suitable place to discuss matters?"
"Yes, this is not suitable, not suitable!" Illyrio quickly responded. Then, he instructed his servants to take Lynd's horse to the stables for good care, and then had someone carry Lynd's luggage and other belongings. Afterward, he personally led Lynd to a exquisite small house located on the cliffside overlooking the sea within the manor.
"Everyone here is my trusted confidant, Lord. Please rest assured, they will not reveal your affairs," Illyrio said, pointing to the servants inside and outside the small house.
Lynd nodded, removed his armor, and handed it to Illyrio's servants, asking them to wipe off the dirt from the armor. Then he went to the bathroom inside the house to wash up, changed into a Pentos-style outfit, and came to the observation deck on the cliffside of the small building.
By this time, Illyrio had already prepared food, and according to Lynd's habits, he had prepared warm water that had been boiled and cooled, placing it in crystal bottles, ready for use at any time.
Lynd sat down casually, as if he were in his own home, picked up the food on the table, poured himself a glass of water, and while eating, he asked, "Tell me! What exactly happened? Varys's letter was very brief, and I had other matters to attend to at the time, so I didn't ask much. Now that I'm in Pentos, it's more accurate to hear the whole story from you, Lord Illyrio, as the person involved."
Although Illyrio knew Lynd would eventually ask about this matter, he was still somewhat flustered. After a brief recollection, he slowly recounted the entire process.
In fact, from the very beginning, when Varys gave him Valyrian steel and asked him to help find a master craftsman in Kohor to forge a magical armor, he took this matter very seriously.
Because he knew very well how much his friend hated magic, yet despite this, Varys still entrusted him with a matter related to magic, so he already knew how important this matter was to Varys.
So from the outset, he specifically assigned a team of men in Kohor to oversee the forging of this armor.
Later, as he learned that the person who commissioned Varys to forge the armor was the legendary figure from Westeros, Divine Chosen One Linde Terra, and after meeting Lynd in King's Landing, he paid even more attention to this matter. For this, he additionally dispatched two more teams to handle the armor's forging affairs.
Although there were some troubles during the armor's forging process, fortunately, the result was quite good, and the armor was finally forged.
To avoid accidents on the road, he specially dispatched three more teams of two hundred men each, in addition to those previously stationed in Kohor, bringing the total escort team to eight hundred men to transport the armor.
However, when the armor was halfway to its destination, near Ge Dohe, it was attacked by Dothraki. Everyone was killed, and the armor was stolen.
Afterward, Illyrio sent people to investigate, hoping to find out which Khal did this, to see if it could be redeemed. Even if it couldn't be redeemed, he would have something to answer when Lynd inquired, so as not to be completely clueless.
But what surprised him was that he investigated almost all the Khal active in the nearby area, but found nothing. None of them seemed to admit that they had robbed Illyrio's caravan in Ge Dohe.
"Could it be that someone disguised themselves as Dothraki to rob it?" Lynd picked up a piece of bread, dipped it in the soup, and then asked.
Illyrio nodded and said, "That's what I thought too. I'm currently sending people to Kohor to investigate, because if the other party was after the armor, they would definitely leave clues in Kohor."
"And what about the magical armor from Braavos?" Lynd slowly chewed, then asked again with doubt.
Illyrio explained, "While investigating the whereabouts of the magical armor, I found that shortly after the magical armor was stolen, a team of Dothraki had contact with House Soyid of Kohor."
Perhaps, concerned that Lynd might not be familiar with House Soyid, he paused and gave a brief introduction to this great noble family of Kohor.
Just like Myr, the power in Kohor is also composed of three forces: the Craftsmen's Association, a union of blacksmiths, weavers, and carpenters; the ancient Black Goat Church; and the Mages Association, comprising Warlocks, Blood Witches, diviners, Pyromancers, and others who seek various mystical powers, collectively controlling the power of Kohor.
Most of the powerful figures in Kohor hold positions within their respective factions and rarely interact with other factions. Only a few ancient families simultaneously involve themselves in all three forces, and House Soyid is one such ancient Kohor family.
This family existed before Valyria conquered Kohor. According to the family's own claims, they were one of the original builders of Kohor, possessing absolute ownership of Kohor.
However, many people did not take this claim seriously, because all early records of Kohor were burned during the Valyrian invasion. There is no consensus on who built Kohor. The only certainty is that the earliest builders should be related to the Black Goat Church.
Because among all the buildings in Kohor, the Black Goat Church's temple is the oldest, its antiquity comparable to the Great Labyrinth of Lorath, likely built around the same period. The entire city of Kohor was built around the Black Goat Temple as its center.
Although House Soyid used some despicable means to forcibly elevate their family's status, the people of Kohor had to admit that House Soyid was indeed very powerful. This family not only held seats among the priests of the Black Goat Church, but also had several diviners, Blood Witches, Alchemists, Witches, and Dark Warlocks in the Mages Association, giving them great influence within the Mages Association.
However, the core foundation of House Soyid was the Craftsmen's Association. Half of all blacksmiths in Kohor came from this family, and several of the best master blacksmiths were members of this family.
"My magical armor was forged by blacksmiths from this family?" Lynd asked in a deep voice after hearing Illyrio's introduction.
Illyrio nodded and said, "While forging this magical armor, House Soyid contacted me several times, wanting to buy this armor. Even after it was successfully forged, they still wanted to keep this armor and not deliver it. It was only after I leveraged my connections in Kohor and applied pressure that they handed over the forged armor. So, when the transport team had an accident, my first suspect was House Soyid. I immediately sent people to monitor this family, and that's when I discovered their contact with the Dothraki."
"What happened next?" Lynd pressed, "What happened after the contact?"
Illyrio continued, "House Soyid dispatched a team to transport a batch of custom weapons to Braavos. However, House Soyid was very peculiar; they did not take the Valyrian Road like a normal caravan, come to Pentos to take a ship to Braavos. Instead, they went directly to Lorath Bay, took a ship from Lorath Bay, and traveled through the more dangerous Shivering Sea to Braavos. And shortly after House Soyid's transport team arrived in Braavos, the Sealord of Braavos announced that he had obtained a magical armor."
"Could it be that House Soyid replicated a similar magical armor based on mine?" Lynd asked in a deep voice.
Illyrio shook his head and said, "I think that possibility is very low, because the cost of forging such a magical armor is simply too high. Moreover, the armor's successful forging was more due to luck; replicating one is very difficult, and certainly not something that can be replicated in a short time. And the only clue we can find now is the magical armor in the Sealord of Braavos's possession."
"So, no matter what, I have to make a trip to Braavos," Lynd took a sip of water, swallowed the food in his mouth, and let out a long sigh, saying.
"Yes, for now, that's the case," Illyrio also nodded.
"What if the armor in the Sealord's hand isn't mine?" Lynd asked.
Illyrio thought for a moment and said, "Then we can only go to Kohor and find House Soyid."
Lynd sighed heavily, complaining with dissatisfaction, "If I had known this, I should have stayed in Kohor after the armor was forged, and then picked it up myself. Then I wouldn't have this trouble now."
Illyrio gave an awkward smile and offered no response, knowing that.
Lynd stood up and walked to the edge of the observation deck, leaning on the stone railing, looking out at the sea ahead.
The location of this observation deck was excellent; not only could one see the scenery of the sea ahead, but also overlook the cityscape of Pentos not far away. From the port docks to the city's temples, shops, and so on, everything could be seen clearly.
"Is that the palace you are building for Drogo?" Lynd pointed to a large building still under construction in the distance and asked Illyrio, who had walked over.
"Yes," Illyrio nodded and said, "News came yesterday that Drogo has defeated two Khal of ten thousand men, incorporating their forces. His Dothraki warriors now number over thirty thousand. He has become the strongest Khal in the Disputed Lands, and it won't be long before the Dothraki skirmishes in the Disputed Lands should conclude."
"It seems your palace was not built in vain," Lynd said with a smile.
At this moment, Lynd's gaze shifted to a dome-shaped red brick building located in a remote corner of the city. On its roof were a pair of miniature Sphinx statues. From their design, it was clear they were likely modeled after the Sphinx statues at the entrance of the Citadel.
However, since they were merely imitations, the essence of the statues naturally could not compare to that pair of statues. It should be known that Lynd had felt a strong threat from that pair of statues back then.
Although at that time, Lynd had only recently acquired the Lost Country Knight's memories, and the power of the Dragon Rune had not yet accumulated to a qualitative change, and he was still very weak overall, he had, after all, obtained the Lost Country Knight's complete memories. Especially the combat experience within those memories had elevated his mental faculties far beyond normal human levels. Yet, even so, he still felt a threat and a hint of fear in his heart, which shows that the power contained within that pair of Sphinx statues should absolutely not be underestimated.
"How is the Sphinx Academy doing in Pentos?" Lynd asked somewhat abruptly.
Illyrio was stunned, not understanding why Lynd's topic suddenly shifted to the Sphinx Academy, but he still truthfully told Lynd what he knew.
Compared to the other academy in Pentos, the Academy of Songs and Arts, the Sphinx Academy, which specializes in various academic research and ancient text compilation, was clearly not as valued by the Governors of Pentos. It could now only barely maintain normal operations, and the academy's students even needed to work at the docks or various workshops to supplement the academy's daily expenses.
Although some merchants would donate money to the Sphinx Academy, and some accomplished scholars who had taken up positions elsewhere would send money back to support the Sphinx Academy's normal operations, overall, the Sphinx Academy's recent situation was very bad. Many people speculated that it would cease to exist in at most ten years.
Because the Sphinx Academy faced its biggest problem: a lack of new students.
Starting five years ago, the Sphinx Academy had no new students. People in Pentos preferred to attend the Academy of Songs and Arts, where, upon graduation, they could become bards, singers, or artists and quickly become honored guests in the homes of the powerful, receiving financial support and living a life of ease.
However, after graduating from the Sphinx Academy, it was impossible to find work. Students either had to go to other lands or find low-status jobs in the city. Therefore, the Sphinx Academy had stopped recruiting students in Pentos a long time ago.
Now, the majority of the students, scholars, and academics at the Sphinx Academy are from other Free Trade City States. They naturally have no loyalty to Pentos and are not well-received. Furthermore, the Sphinx Academy occupies a large plot of land in the city center, and this land is extremely valuable, coveted by many. Some have already proposed at the Governor's meeting to close the Sphinx Academy, reclaim that land, and redevelop it into profitable facilities such as theaters and shops.
Hearing this, Lynd nodded slightly and said, "Lord Illyrio, could you do me a favor?"
Illyrio asked, "What favor?"
Lynd said in a deep voice, "Help me close down the Sphinx Academy, expel all the scholars, academics, and students from the Sphinx Academy, and then send them all onto ships bound for Summerhall."
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