"I believe in the sincerity of Braavos, Your Excellency the Sealord," Prince Aegon replied with an equally bright smile. "After all, I believe Braavos would not allow a place like the Disputed Lands, which practices slavery, to continue to act with impunity."
"What? There are still those who keep slaves in the Disputed Lands?" The Sealord feigned great surprise.
Prince Aegon inwardly mocked the Sealord's skill at playing dumb. How could this fellow not know that the warlords and mercenary companies in the Disputed Lands all kept slaves? Some of the larger warlords even purchased entire slave legions from Slaver's Bay. The Dothraki also sold a portion of their plundered slaves to these warlords to train their private armies.
But where did the money come from?
The money naturally came from the Iron Bank.
Prince Aegon immediately employed his well-practiced acting skills: "Indeed, Your Excellency the Sealord. That is why our military expedition is also for the great cause of liberating slaves. You may not know, but the nobleman who sought our aid, his wife and children were captured by those damned maggots, those disgusting demons of the Disputed Lands, and sold into slavery. This is also the reason for His Majesty the King's fury. He is unwilling to waste time on meaningless matters, so our armies are already prepared."
The handsome Prince suddenly smiled. He picked up a wine glass from a nearby servant's tray, stood up, and toasted the Sealord. "His Majesty the King's request is simple. He wishes to know Braavos's stance. We hope to secure loans from Braavos, as well as naval support."
"Your Highness, you are also aware that Braavos is not my personal domain. His Majesty the King's request still requires discussion in the council," the Sealord said with a sigh. "Loans require the agreement of the Keyholders. As for the navy, although I have command authority, it also needs the council's approval."
"Prince Dragonzel has already agreed to dispatch the Silver Fleet in support of us," Prince Aegon decisively released a piece of information.
The Sealord's expression did indeed change.
Yet, the outcome remained unchanged. The fact that the Varezes family's Silver Fleet was willing to support the Targaryen dynasty's war spoke volumes. The Sealord could immediately guess that the naval power of Westeros would likely be deployed in full force for this war.
Although Braavos's navy was formidable, it was, after all, the navy of a single city-state. The Silver Fleet alone could tie it down, and with dragon support, it could even annihilate Braavos's Purple Fleet.
The Sealord sighed inwardly. "Prince Aegon, there is no need to inquire further of me. I have already told you, Braavos is not like Lys or Westeros. Major decisions in this city still require the council's deliberation. However, you can rest assured, personally speaking, I support the campaign against all those who dare to practice the sin of slavery."
Anyone could say nice words.
Aegon thought to himself.
Observing the change in Prince Aegon's eyes, the Sealord pondered. As the unfortunate figure pushed forward by the magistrates and Keyholders, the Sealord was either an incompetent fool or a man of extreme shrewdness.
This Sealord was the latter. He could tell what Aegon was thinking.
Hmph, the Sealord mentally retorted to Prince Aegon's silent criticism. A significant source of the Iron Bank's business was precisely these chaotic regions. They could hardly accept the loss of a long-term source of revenue. Therefore, before Prince Aegon's arrival, the Keyholders and bankers had pressured the Sealord to either stall for time or secure more benefits for them.
The Sealord just wanted to say,
"If you think you can do better, you come and do it."
Prince Aegon had dragons. Behind him were over thirty dragons. Just two adult dragons could annihilate the entire Purple Fleet, and adding one more adult dragon could turn the Secret City into a fiery hell.
Where did they get the confidence to think they could make the Targaryens soften and bow their heads?
But he could not defy these men who held the city's real power. The old men were always overconfident, and the young ones never knew their own limits. Perhaps only when dragonfire was upon their heads would they understand why the Secret City had hidden itself for so many years, and why the Dragonlords had looked down upon this "bastard daughter."
This unyielding Sealord ultimately failed to give Aegon the result he desired.
"Your Highness, I can only tell you this much," the Sealord said, holding up his wine glass and clinking it from a distance with Prince Aegon's. "I will convene an emergency council and strive to give you a reply in the shortest possible time. I have prepared a room for you in the Sealord's Palace. Please be patient and wait."
Aegon tilted his head indifferently. The Iron Throne had never truly expected Braavos to decisively support its war. Although Daeron's intelligence was incomplete, his instincts were not lacking in the slightest. He did not trust Braavos's bankers, nor did he fully trust the intelligence he possessed.
Braavos truly lived up to its reputation. Even the renovated King's Landing seemed like a small village in the countryside compared to Braavos. And the Sealord's Palace was something even the Black Palace in the outskirts of King's Landing could hardly rival.
The palace prepared by the Sealord for Prince Aegon was, in terms of scale within the Sealord's Palace complex, second only to the Sealord's own residence. Not only were the facilities complete, but there was even a pool of steaming hot spring water within the palace for Prince Aegon to bathe in.
Naturally, there were also beauties.
Aegon looked somewhat helplessly at the girls lying on the bed, soaking in the hot spring, and standing in attendance on either side of the palace.
As soon as he entered, two silver-haired, purple-eyed girls stepped forward to undress him, helping the Prince slowly into the hot spring.
The Prince watched the girls surrounding the room with interest. Without exception, they were all beautiful. Prince Aegon could even see the colors of the world on them: there were people from the Summer Isles with skin as deep as dark jade, olive-skinned Myrish, fair-skinned tall folk, Ghiscari, Dothraki with almond-shaped eyes, and even many silver-haired, purple-eyed Valyrians and Andals familiar to Aegon.
Unfortunately, having taken Moon Sugar, he couldn't muster any interest at the moment.
"Alright, everyone," Prince Aegon said, immersing his whole body in the hot spring, allowing the girls to touch him freely. However, these Braavosi girls, well-versed in the arts of the bedchamber, quickly realized something was amiss.
But they dared not say anything.
"Let's rest early, everyone," Prince Aegon said without any inhibition, pulling two girls from the pool into his arms, one in each arm. "Tell the one who sent you here that this is unnecessary. I came to Braavos only to understand Braavos's stance."
Although his hands were restless, roaming over the girls' smooth, alabaster-like bodies, Aegon's own body remained exceptionally well-behaved, showing not the slightest reaction.
The girls knew their mission might be impossible to complete. They could only silently finish bathing Aegon, attend to him as he walked to the bedroom, and then slowly disperse.
The girl warming his bed also noticed Prince Aegon's complete lack of interest, but she too dared not say anything.
She could only quietly leave the large bed after Prince Aegon fell asleep, departing the Prince's chambers with her sisters.
"The girls have confirmed it."
In reality, shortly after Prince Aegon's meeting with the Sealord concluded, the true power holders of Braavos—the Keyholders, bankers, wealthy merchants, the liaison from the House of Black and White, ship captains, and magistrates—immediately gathered. They continued discussing the issue of the Disputed Lands while awaiting the results from Aegon's palace.
It wasn't until the leader of the girls arrived to report the news
that the most senior Keyholder, an old man, said with some regret, "Prince Aegon may not match the intelligence reports."
He gently spun the rusty iron key on his desk, making it whirl rapidly on the smooth glass surface. "He is not as indiscriminately lustful as the reports suggested. On the contrary, he is very composed. If I'm not mistaken, he likely took a drug similar to Moon Sugar before arriving in Braavos."
"We should punish the intelligence officer," a silver-haired, blue-eyed magistrate said somewhat dejectedly. "Faulty intelligence has caused us to waste too many resources."
"Not many," the commander of the Sealord's Fleet said calmly. "At the very least, treating Prince Aegon well will let the Iron Throne know we do not wish to be overly entangled." He let out a long sigh. As a military man, he understood the might of dragons well. The Purple Fleet was strong, but before dragons, it was as fragile as thin paper. Without a navy, relying solely on land forces, Braavos would be nothing before the armored knights of Westeros.
Moreover, there were still the dragons.
"But... the Disputed Lands. The gold we obtain annually from the Disputed Lands is enough to back tens of millions of iron coins," a banker said somewhat unwillingly. "Even if we provide loans to the Iron Throne... You haven't forgotten the greed and short-sightedness of the Targaryens, have you? Apart from King Aegon II, not a single king has been able to repay on time. Have you forgotten the sophistry of that damned septon?"
"And the Rogares," another banker said, looking at the liaison from the House of Black and White. "When will the House of Black and White deal with that damned dictator? He has caused a quarter of our market to malfunction."
"Soon, do not be impatient," the liaison from the House of Black and White, now a pale, tall, and thin eunuch whose face seemed devoid of flesh, replied. "But everyone must not forget, behind the Rogare family stands the Targaryens. We can only prevail amidst chaos."
"As soon as possible," the old man said gravely, suddenly pressing down on the spinning key. "Lisandro has lived too long. If he appears before the public again, the prestige of the Iron Bank will suffer an unprecedented blow. As for the Rogare Bank..." The old man's expression darkened. "It is under the protection of Westeros. We need to proceed gradually and with caution."
The Iron Bank's largest partner in Westeros was the Varezes family. However, neither Dragonzel nor Rhaegor wished to fall out with the Targaryens, and their other, more hot-tempered children greatly revered their father and elder brothers. The envoys from Braavos had never been able to persuade this Dragonlord family to truly stand on Braavos's side.
Without the support of the Varezes, against the Rogare Bank, which was rooted in King's Landing and Oldtown and protected by the Dragonlords, purely financial means were not very effective. Especially since the long summer in Westeros brought bountiful harvests, ensuring the Rogare Bank was not short of cash.
"Then what about our people in the Disputed Lands?" the same banker asked again. "Abandon them? Leave them to their fate? Or allow the Dragonlord family to return to the East Continent? What if they go mad and want to restore Valyria?"
The banker stood up without reservation and spoke loudly. "I am a direct man. Let me ask everyone here, it was you and your fathers who secretly funded Prince Dragonzel and his kin to reach Westeros in the first place. You cannot be unaware of the consequences of the Dragonlords returning to Essos. Although the Disputed Lands are scarred, they are the most fertile land along the coast. You cannot be unaware of the consequences of letting the Targaryens possess it."
"Enough, enough, calm down," the old man waved his hand, signaling him to sit and not be so agitated. "No one said we are abandoning the Disputed Lands." A glint of cunning suddenly flashed in the old man's eyes. "I believe everyone also knows the story of Aegon's Conquest. Three dragons subjugating a continent, quite legendary, isn't it? And the result? Aegon could suppress the old nobles of Westeros while he lived. Once Aegon died, chaos reigned. Everyone, dragons can conquer, but dragons cannot govern. Do you all understand my meaning?"
The old man revealed a mysterious smile.
An equally mysterious smile appeared on the faces of the other councilors.
Only the Sealord wore a troubled expression, lost in thought.
"Your Excellency, you will still have to work hard to appease Prince Aegon. Tell him we are already discussing the Iron Throne's loan arrangements," the old man said with a smile.
The Sealord sighed inwardly and nodded. "I will follow the council's arrangements."
Daeron had never held Braavos in high regard from the start.
This was normal. After all, with dragons in hand, he viewed every power as weak. But he was not blindly arrogant. Seemingly born with keen perception and military instinct, his preliminary preparations were surprisingly thorough.
Grain mobilized from the Riverlands and the Reach began to be transported to several predetermined ports. Armies organized from various regions also started to gather at corresponding ports.
At the ports of Tide Stone, King's Landing, Gulltown, Silver Crown City, and Sunspear, stockpiled provisions were piled like mountains. Over several months, the various armies gathered, cleaned their armor, and sharpened their swords.
They were ready to head to distant lands.
Tide Stone.
It had been decades—or rather, since the Dance of the Dragons—since anyone had seen Tide Stone's harbor gather so many ships. The entire Royal Fleet, three hundred longships of the Iron Fleet, and an entire Redwyne Fleet raised their sails in Blackwater Bay, ready at any moment.
Dragons flew over High Tide Castle.
To protect the King, Lord Joffrey Velaryon decided to ride a dragon into battle. His Tyraxes became a new dragon in the army.
Actually, Daeron's initial plan was to depart from Silver Crown City, but Viserys dissuaded him. Although departing from Silver Crown City would save time, in Viserys's view, Silver Crown City was Varezes territory. For the King to lead a campaign personally, the departure point must be under the King's direct control or clearly a territory loyal to the King, so that the people would better understand the King's achievements.
Daeron did not understand Viserys. His military instincts told him his uncle was talking nonsense. However, for the sake of family honor, Daeron ultimately compromised, though not completely.
Jacaerys and Dan would lead the vanguard forces from the Borderlands, Dorne, the Reach, and the Stormlands, departing from Silver Crown City. They would rendezvous with Daeron at the Stepstones before jointly heading to the Disputed Lands.
This elite vanguard numbered only five thousand, but each man had fine armor and a swift warhorse. These younger sons and youngest sons of nobles thirsted for glory.
They craved blood.
2nd Moon, 169 AC.
The Great Expedition began with the long cries of Dreamfyre, Seasmoke, Vermax, Horn Tide, and Tyraxes.
And the people of the Disputed Lands had yet to unite.
As the first ship from the Disputed Lands was sunk,
the war began.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you like the story please give it some power stones and reviews. And if you want to read 40+ advance chapters or just want to support me please join my patreon at [email protected]/Translatingfanfics