This matter was naturally left to the Hand of the King to handle.
Tywin proposed holding the funeral in the Dragonpit.
As soon as the words were spoken, they were sternly rejected by Aerys.
The Dragonpit is for the Targaryens; how could it be used by outsiders?
Furthermore, except for the Targaryens, cremation was not popular among the nobility of the Seven Kingdoms.
In the end, Tywin hastily organized a farewell ceremony, and the remains were left at the Great Sept of Baelor, waiting for members of House Grandison to take them back for burial.
Time flew by, and the Tourney at Harrenhal arrived as scheduled.
By the shores of the Gods Eye.
The tournament grounds were set up, and Lord Haran had specially built spectator stands.
Today, guests arrived in great numbers.
Daeron watched as the banners of the Crescent Falcon, Direwolf, Stag, and Golden Rose appeared one by one.
"Prince Rhaegar has also arrived."
Barristan, guarding by his side, reminded him in a low voice.
Daeron turned his head and saw a carriage flying both the three-headed red dragon banner and the Sun-and-Spear banner.
Rhaegar did not show his face, and his whereabouts were unknown.
However, Oberyn and Prince Lewyn appeared beside the carriage, guarding Elia inside.
"Prince Rhaegar's convoy!"
"It's Prince Rhaegar—"
As soon as the convoy, mixed with Dornish faces, appeared, it immediately drew the attention of the noble lords; many women's eyes lit up, and they cheered loudly.
Crown Prince Rhaegar's prestige was the result of years of accumulation.
Davos hurried over, his expression solemn: "Prince, I've looked around, and many noble lords are discussing Prince Rhaegar."
""
Daeron gestured for him to rest first.
He had expected Rhaegar's influence, but he had still underestimated him.
The nobles of the Seven Kingdoms had heard that Daeron hatched dragons, but having never seen them, they didn't take it seriously.
But Rhaegar's outstanding performance was plain for them to see.
Ever since Elia entered King's Landing, some of the Crownlands nobility had been acting like they were on stimulants, frantically flocking to Rhaegar and subtly or overtly crowding out the City Watch.
They wanted to disarm Daeron to prepare for Rhaegar's eventual entry into King's Landing.
"Ser, is there any news lately?"
Daeron asked.
Barristan thought for a moment and mentioned: "Before we set out, a band of outlaws appeared in the Crownlands, calling themselves the Brotherhood Without Banners, specializing in kidnapping nobles and extortion."
They hadn't been active for long before they were driven out by the Dragon Guards.
The Prince's Territory lay between King's Landing and The Kingswood, and could not tolerate a band of wandering bandits running rampant.
After this group was driven away, they vanished without a trace.
"Vanished?"
Daeron was curious.
He remembered that the Brotherhood Without Banners had a Smiling Knight, who seemed quite famous.
Barristan shook his head: "I heard that an archer in the Brotherhood Without Banners tried to steal Princess Elia's gold and silver jewelry, which caught Prince Oberyn's attention. He took Ser Arthur Dayne and hunted them for a long time."
Daeron realized that this was partly his fault.
The Brotherhood Without Banners was rampant because they relied on the common folk in The Kingswood to provide cover, making it difficult to find and eliminate them.
After he developed the Prince's Territory, the Hall of Abundance was nearly completed, and all the people in his fief gathered to settle in the prepared city.
The common folk in The Kingswood benefited from this, being able to buy cheap and affordable supplies nearby.
Naturally, they would not harbor a group of outlaws.
Before the Brotherhood Without Banners could make a name for itself, it was nipped in the bud.
As for the rest, there was no particularly special news.
It was nothing more than some minor noble discovering a special plant, showing it off at a banquet, and selling it for a high price.
Or perhaps a knight painstakingly trained by a major noble suddenly mastered Life Force.
It was truly a scene of peace and tranquility.
Daeron: "Ser, tell Lord Haran to cooperate with Rhaegar as much as possible."
"Prince, where are you going?"
Barristan asked quickly.
Daeron looked toward the Gods Eye and said, "To feed the dragons."
#*
Harrenhal.
Rhaegar stood on the balcony, looking down at the courtyard where the crowd had gathered.
"Prince, Lord Robert and Lord Mace have arrived. Lord Rickard and Lord Jon Arryn are not present, but have sent their heirs."
Ser Arthur Dayne said.
Rhaegar's gaze didn't shift as he asked, "What about Lord Hoster?"
"He didn't come."
Ser Arthur was calm but slightly puzzled: "Not only did Lord Hoster not come due to illness, but even his children didn't come. He only sent his brother, 'Blackfish' Brynden, to represent him."
Rhaegar was not surprised and said, "That is Lord Hoster's usual style."
"At the first sign of risk, the trout is the first to hide underwater."
Thinking of his wife's failure to conceive a second time, Rhaegar frowned, obsessed with the prophecy that 'the dragon has three heads'.
The House Targaryen had always had a secret passed down orally from monarch to monarch.
The'Song of Ice and Fire' left by the Conqueror.
When The Long Night comes, and winter swallows all life, the White Walkers will reappear, crossing The Wall to kill every living person.
This secret was hidden in the valyrian steel dagger his father carried.
And the way to save humanity and dispel The Long Night lay in the prophecy that the dragon has three heads.
Rhaegar had the gift of dragon dreams, and in his visions, he foresaw that none of his siblings, including himself, was The Prince That Was Promised.
They were not the three heads of the dragon.
Therefore, he wanted to have three children to fulfill this prophecy.
So that The Prince That Was Promised would appear among his descendants.
"Daeron, you brought back three dragons, but I did not foresee you as The Prince That Was Promised."
Rhaegar's eyes were melancholy, and a hint of apology arose in his heart.
If Daeron was not The Prince That Was Promised, he would be an obstacle on his own path to success.
His dragons were still too young; they couldn't defeat him, nor could they defeat The Long Night.
"Prince, Prince?"
Ser Arthur spoke, bringing the distracted prince back.
Rhaegar rubbed his aching temples and asked, "Ser, is there anything else?"
Ser Arthur said, "Should we ask Lord Haran to release Oswell?"
Oswell had been detained for a long time.
During this time, Prince Lewyn had often made things difficult for Prince Rhaegar, urging him to take action at the Tourney at Harrenhal and convene a Great Council, asking the lords of the Seven Kingdoms to elect the prince as Regent, thereby stripping the king of his power.
Prince Doran had sent a request for a marriage alliance, hoping for Princess Arianne Martell to be betrothed to one of the princes.
At the very least, he wanted to ask for a Dragon Egg for his niece, Rhaenys.
It could be a Dragon Egg that Prince Daeron might still have on hand, or one from the first clutch of eggs laid by the three young dragons when they grew up.
In any case, the House Targaryen had a tradition of placing a Dragon Egg in a newborn's cradle.
Rhaegar understood and said, "I will speak with Lord Haran later; he will not refuse."
When he appeared at Harrenhal, Lord Haran was secretly intimidated.
Being a fence-sitter is easy, but being a steadfast supporter is difficult.
Internal struggles within the royal family are often accompanied by bloodshed and slaughter.
Whereas nobles with different stances might instead escape disaster in defeat.
By kneeling and submitting, one's life could be spared.
Therefore, Lord Haran did not dare to offend Rhaegar to the death.
Ser Arthur nodded, took a map from his pocket, and said, "This is what I found in Simon Toyne's coat pocket after I killed him. It looks like a treasure map."
This fellow was the leader of the Brotherhood Without Banners; when he was found, he was about to hire a ship, intending to flee to the Essos.
Ser Arthur easily beheaded him and also captured several key criminals.
Unfortunately, that Smiling Knight escaped.
Rhaegar carefully examined the old map, which showed the location of scattered islands between the two continents.
The Stepstones.
And among the islands, one was specifically circled with a red cross.
Rhaegar analyzed the various symbols on the island, such as mountains, root plants, birds, and monkeys—
It was common pirate code.
It meant there was a volcano on the island, and the land had taro, seabirds, and monkeys; the cross meant the island was dangerous.
And that skull represented a pirate lair.
"Are there volcanoes in the Stepstones?"
There seemed to be, but he couldn't remember clearly.
Hearing Rhaegar's analysis, Ser Arthur said disdainfully, "So these fellows wanted to flee to the Stepstones to join the pirates there."
It was actually quite suitable for a bunch of outlaws like them.
Pirates on the Narrow Sea were usually composed of Lyseni, Tyroshi, and Myrish; the Three Daughters in history was the peak of piracy.
The Ironborn of the Iron Islands believed that 'we do not sow', and if they couldn't make it in the barren Iron Islands, they would flee to various parts of the world to become pirates.
As long as one had the skill, one could do very well at sea.
"Ignore it; the Iron Throne has no tradition of going to war with the Free Cities."
These pirates were all closely linked to the Free Cities; the various Free Cities supported pirates to raid each other's merchant ships, and examples were everywhere.
Once you hunt pirates, you have to face the Free Cities behind them.
Rhaegar was about to return the map when his gaze was suddenly caught by a figure.
"Yah! Yah!"
A black-haired girl rode into the courtyard; her face was beautiful and her temperament cold. As the brown warhorse beneath her galloped, her smooth long hair rose and fell, creating a beautiful sight.
Her horsemanship was excellent; she controlled the warhorse to circle and stop at will.
Among the women Rhaegar had seen, she was the one with the best horsemanship.
She even surpassed most men.
"A Stark girl."
Ser Arthur noticed Rhaegar was distracted and, following his gaze, saw the cool girl under the Direwolf banner.
Rhaegar was startled and saw the three brothers behind the girl.
They were the heir of Winterfell, 'Wild Wolf' Brandon, Lord Arryn's ward Ned Stark, and Lord Rickard's youngest son.
"Prince, I shall take my leave."
Ser Arthur sighed inwardly, thinking that the prince's spirits had been worsening lately, and he was often distracted.
They were top-tier knights who had mastered Life Force.
This state of mental dissipation only showed that he was under immense internal pressure, exceeding the limits of his body's ability to recover.
"I hope that when the Tourney at Harrenhal is over and everything has settled, the prince will be able to recover."
Ser Arthur was only a Kingsguard and could not share his burden.
However, that Stark girl actually managed to catch Prince Rhaegar's attention.
His sister Ashara was ten times more beautiful than that girl, yet Prince Rhaegar never spared her a glance.
But she had a fiancé; the prince shouldn't be interested.
On the day of the tournament.
Half the nobility of the Seven Kingdoms were present, crowding into the tourney grounds.
At the head of the spectator stands, Aerys sat in the seat of honor, dressed in fine robes.
Hand of the King Tywin and a host of ministers sat around the king.
This was the king's first public appearance since the Defiance of Duskendale, and it immediately drew countless gazes.
"Looking at me, they're all looking at me—"
Aerys's eyes darted about, his body was incredibly tense, and he kept muttering under his breath, "I have dragons, I am the king!"
Anyone could see that the king was indeed in poor spirits.
Fortunately, he could still maintain his sanity, without any crazed crying or shouting, and his appearance was still imposing.
Lord Haran stood on the dais, his eyes occasionally glancing toward the spectator stands, sweat breaking out on his forehead from nervousness.
The tournament was about to begin, yet neither of the two princes had appeared.
"Damn it, one is loved by the nobles and the other has dragons, and I'm caught in the middle like a red thread."
Lord Haran secretly prayed that Daeron would live up to expectations, so that his own all-in bet wouldn't end in failure.
Clang, clang, clang!
Suddenly, a crisp sound of gongs rang out, and musicians played cheerful music.
A group of people entered the arena in a grand procession.
Leading them was Daeron, wearing black steel armor and a red cloak. He was incredibly handsome and had a tall, lean build, immediately attracting the gazes of countless noble ladies and girls.
What was most striking, however, was his mount.
It was not a warhorse, but a snow-white Unicorn, two and a half meters tall at the shoulder, shaped like a horse but also like a goat, with smooth fur like satin and a two-foot-long spiral horn rising from its head.
"Ooh-hoo-hoo!!"
Behind Daeron followed a group of tall barbarians, clad in long fur, each no shorter than seven feet (213 cm).
"It's a Unicorn!"
"Where did this group of savages come from?"
"They seem to be Cragmen, a race from Skagos, so they're considered Northmen."
Riding the Unicorn, Daeron was the center of attention. His handsome figure combined with the Unicorn's elegance captivated countless noblewomen.
Moreover, Unicorns were legendary creatures that few had actually seen.
This white Unicorn was immediately hailed as an auspicious beast.
"A Unicorn!?"
Tywin's expression froze.
He had heard news of Daeron going to Braavos, but he hadn't expected him to turn toward a desolate place like Skagos, capture a Unicorn, and even win over a group of Cragmen as guards.
"So beautiful!"
In the spectator stands, Viserys's eyes widened; he also wanted a Unicorn to ride.
Jaehaerys curled his lip: "Tch, no ambition."
What was a Unicorn? The Dragonpit had several dragons.
Among the noble lords of the Seven Kingdoms, most views fell into these two camps.
Some valued Daeron, viewing even the Unicorn as a good omen.
Those who remembered the Targaryens once again had dragons turned their eyes toward the king at the head of the stands, wanting to see a dragon's true form.
Just then, a roar came from the sky, and the clouds in the azure sky suddenly swirled and dispersed.
"Screee—!"
A sharp, ear-piercing screech, like an air-raid siren, erupted and echoed across the entire shores of the Gods Eye.
"What's that sound!?"
"Oh no, look at the sky—"
The noble lords craned their necks and saw a sight they would never forget.
A massive, crimson creature, shaped like a serpent, appeared. It spread a pair of wide leathery wings and cut through the thin mist like a bolt of hot red lightning.
"Drakarys!"
Vaguely, a shout came from the sky.
Since it was in High Valyrian, only a few could understand it.
As Caraxes dove, a blast of crimson Dragonfire erupted, mixed with billowing black smoke, leaving a sea of fire in mid-air.
The noble lords were pale with fright, finally recognizing the beast as a dragon, and they screamed as they tried to flee the spectator stands.
Upon truly seeing a dragon, no one could remain unchanged.
Even Rhaegar hurriedly looked up, staring intently at the crimson dragon, his indigo eyes gradually widening.
Ser Arthur, by his side, heard a faint word: "Dragon!"