That day in the Wolfswood, after Stannis reached an agreement with Tycho, the representative of the Iron Bank, he immediately arranged for Ser Justin Massey to escort Tycho away and cross the Narrow Sea to hire no fewer than twenty thousand sellswords.
He also told Ser Justin that even if he were to hear news of his death, he must still lead the army to proclaim Princess Shireen as queen.
In that sense, Ser Justin was practically a regent entrusted with the realm.
Therefore, if the allied forces wished to make contact with the Second Stag alliance, the best choice was to have a Braavosi intermediary sound out Ser Justin first.
Ser Justin had been busy recruiting sellswords.
The first batch of three thousand cavalry helped the Second Stag stabilize the situation and take Winterfell. When the Second Stag later decided to march south, he prepared a second batch of five thousand sellswords.
Naturally, the fleet transporting the sellswords, along with provisions, weapons, armor, and other military supplies to sustain them, were all purchased in Braavos and shipped together.
When the Second Stag left White Harbor, he publicly announced that he was returning to Storm's End, but his true target was actually the Vale.
Because of this, Old Jon, who was escorting Meji back to Westeros, searched at sea for nearly a week without finding any trace of the massive fleet.
Old Jon had gone the wrong way.
The Second Stag had gone to the Fingers of the Vale, and the second batch of sellswords recruited by Ser Justin, along with the second shipment of supplies, were also steadily delivered to the Fingers.
The Fingers lie very close to Braavos, separated only by a Narrow Sea some five hundred kilometers wide.
The Second Stag planned to land from the Fingers and then bring the Vale under his control.
Since ancient times, no army had ever managed to invade the Vale through the Bloody Gate, but the eastern side of the Vale has a long and geographically complex coastline.
When the Andals invaded Westeros long ago, their first target of conquest was the Vale. As long as they crossed the narrow sea and successfully established a foothold on the Vale's coast, the First Men were never able to drive them out.
The Second Stag adopted almost the same strategy. He first concealed his true objective, making everyone believe he was returning to Storm's End, only to turn midway toward the Fingers and, with lightning speed, land at the coastal stronghold of Snakewood.
Snakewood was very special. It lay at the edge of the Vale's great plain and was only five hundred kilometers from the Eyrie.
If the Eyrie were likened to Suzhou, then Snakewood would be Shanghai.
It also faced Braavos directly, making it extremely convenient for Ser Justin to transport troops and supplies.
Finally, Lord Lynderly of Snakewood happened to be leading his house troops in response to King Aegon's call, passing through the Bloody Gate and marching south to attack King's Landing.
Snakewood was therefore left with its defenses empty.
In fact, no fighting was needed at all. The army was arrayed beneath the city walls, King Aegon was brought forward to make an appearance, and oaths were sworn to guarantee Lord Lynderly's rights. The gates of Snakewood were opened at once.
At Snakewood, the Second Stag received the allied representative brought by Ser Justin: the captain of the Windblown, the Ragged Prince.
Yes, the idea of kidnapping Aegon was the Ragged Prince's suggestion to Jeni.
Jeni agreed, and the operation was handed over to him.
He had thought that with the Iron Throne's cooperation, the Five Wyverns could easily ambush Aegon. Who could have known that, alas, the chaos of Westeros and the shamelessness of the kings of the Seven Kingdoms would once again shatter the Ragged Prince's limits?
Now he only wanted to complete the task as quickly as possible and then flee forever from Westeros, this world-class cesspit.
In the bay outside Snakewood, aboard a massive five-hundred-ton cargo ship, accompanied by Aunt Mae and Ser Justin, and with Tycho of the Iron Bank acting as intermediary, the Second Stag secretly met with the Ragged Prince.
"I know you. You are nothing more than a sellsword," the Second Stag said bluntly, coldly staring at the tall, gray-haired old man opposite him. "What right do you have to represent the alliance in negotiations with the king of the Seven Kingdoms?"
The Ragged Prince's enormous eye bags twitched upward, and a sharp light flashed in his blue eyes.
"First, my sellsword company numbers twenty thousand men, twice your current strength. In a head-on fight, the Windblown could take on four of you as you are now."
The Second Stag clenched his jaw and began grinding his teeth.
The tall old man spoke softly and continued, "Second, I am also the leader of the Allied Sellsword League.
Right now, beneath the walls of Meereen, nearly a hundred thousand sellswords are under my command.
My time is short and my mission is heavy. You need not worry that I am here to waste time chatting with you."
The Second Stag bit down hard and said in a low voice, "What do you want? Let me state this in advance: no matter what, neither I nor the Seven Kingdoms will take part in the war in Slaver's Bay."
The Ragged Prince grinned. "If the alliance needed Westeros to win its war, then it would have no reason to exist in the first place."
Then the tall old man's expression turned solemn as he said gravely, "But you do indeed hold the key factor that will decide the outcome of the war in Slaver's Bay: Aegon Targaryen."
"You want Aegon?"
The Second Stag's tightly clenched jaws loosened in surprise, revealing a rare glimpse of his worn but white teeth.
"You want to use Aegon to threaten Daenerys? Have you lost your mind?" he said with disdain.
The Ragged Prince glanced warily at the red-robed woman beside them and said, "Daenerys values family. Aegon is her only remaining close kin. Her affection for him is something you may not be able to understand."
"Not able to understand?" The Second Stag's teeth ground audibly.
He thought of the dwarf who had once said the same thing.
Why, why, why did even foreigners mistakenly believe that he had killed Renly?
"We once hired the Sorrowful Men of Qarth to assassinate Aegon. Do you know how Daenerys responded?
That very night, she rode her dragon thousands of miles and wiped out the Sorrowful Men entirely, an organization with a thousand years of history. An entire street was turned into a sea of fire.
The Qartheen royal palace groaned beneath dragonflame. The merchants' docks, warehouses, and mansions were all burned to a blank wasteland.
That was only the beginning. After that, she…"
Seeing the indifferent expression on the Second Stag's face, the Ragged Prince sighed and fell silent. "Forget it. We only want Aegon. Whether it succeeds or not has nothing to do with you."
"Aegon is my prisoner. I cannot hand him over to you," Stannis shook his head and refused.
Tai Chu stroked the slender goat beard that hung down to his lower abdomen and said with a smile, "Your Majesty Stannis, the only reason you are keeping Aegon is that he still has some residual value.
"Perhaps the Ragged Prince can offer a higher price."
As he spoke, he turned his gaze to the tall old man. "Isn't that right?"
The Ragged Prince looked at Stannis and said, "The ransom you set for Aegon is command authority over the True Dragon Alliance. Setting aside whether you can actually get what you want, before your people even take over those two armies, the Iron Throne will have already crippled them.
"Aegon's ransom, apart from removing him from the race for the throne of the Seven Kingdoms, is of little real value to you.
"You might as well return the ransom and sell Aegon to me. I will give you something more practical in return."
"You even know Aegon's ransom?" Stannis asked with a frown.
"The wyvern squad hired by the Iron Throne is mine, so I know about the tacit understanding between you and the Iron Throne regarding Aegon."
"Theomore Lannister!" Stannis growled through clenched teeth.
"You should have understood long ago that the Iron Throne's tacit understanding with you would vanish the moment Aegon was captured," the Ragged Prince said calmly.
"I cannot hand Aegon over to you."
"Why?"
"That would violate the laws of the Seven Kingdoms and break my promise. As a prisoner of war, Aegon has always cooperated in the payment of his ransom. I must guarantee his safety and the treatment due to a noble."
Stannis looked resolute, without the slightest hesitation.
With heavy eye bags drooping, the Ragged Prince said softly, "A fleet of one hundred ships, and an army of twenty thousand men."
Stannis frowned. "I will not hand Aegon over."
Thinking of the unlimited financial backing the Iron Bank had given the man, the Ragged Prince smiled faintly, gave up the idea of buying him off with money alone, and said, "Do you know the price Cersei paid to hire my wyvern squad?"
"What does that have to do with me?" Stannis replied coldly.
He deeply disliked the other man's breezy, unhurried manner, as if everything were already under his control.
It was like a wealthy old lecher, full of interest, watching a defiant courtesan who insisted on selling her art but not her body, confident from experience that by constantly raising the grooming fee he could make her willingly spread her legs for him.
He was the lawful heir to the Iron Throne, the King of the Seven Kingdoms.
All his life he had been unbending and proud, like flawless white jade. He would never allow his glory to be sullied for the sake of any利益.
"The Dragon Horn, and a dragon egg!" The old lecher looked at Stannis with relish and explained, "You are familiar with dragon eggs. The key is that Dragon Horn, called 'Dragonbinder.' It is a magical horn forged by the families of the Fourteen Flames to control dragons. Dealing with wyverns is even easier."
Stannis's eyes widened in disbelief. "Is there really such a powerful horn?"
"One hand over the man, the other hand over the goods. We inspect it on the spot," the old lecher said, his smile growing broader.
"Has Euron lost his mind? If he has the Dragon Horn, why not control Daenerys's dragons, or control Aegon's and Tyrion's wyverns?
"With a Dragon Horn, why bother hiring a wyvern squad at all?" Ser Justin asked, his face full of doubt.
"You think Euron doesn't want to? He has always dreamed of stealing Daenerys's dragons!
"Unfortunately, the horn was already broken. But we can repair it, and it has already been repaired," the old lecher said with a cheerful smile.
"Then why didn't you use Dragonbinder to seize Daenerys's dragons?" Stannis asked in confusion.
"Why do you think the horn broke?" The Ragged Prince shook his head with a bitter smile. "That woman possesses true dragon blood, with a talent rare throughout history. Otherwise, why would we have to pay such a huge price to deal with her?"
"So Dragonbinder can't control dragons," Stannis said, his gaunt face showing obvious disappointment.
"It's not that it can't control dragons. It just can't control Daenerys's dragons."
What's the difference? Aren't hers the only dragons in the world?
Stannis's thin skin, stretched tight over his skull, wrinkled into a knot. He thought for a long while, then stubbornly shook his head and said, "Law is law, and rules are rules. I cannot hand Aegon over to you. Sigh."
By the end, he could not help but close his eyes and let out a long sigh, filled with regret.
The Ragged Prince remained unhurried and spoke gently, "After obtaining the horn, I returned to Slaver's Bay that very day and asked High Priestess Jenny to finish repairing it. On the third day, I went to the rainforests of Sothoryos."
As he spoke, he raised three fingers and waved them in front of Stannis. "Each Dragon Horn can only control a limited number of wyverns. Originally, we had just over fifty wyverns.
"Now, with Dragonbinder added, we have gained thirty more wyverns. They are currently on the far side of the Narrow Sea. They were originally intended for… forget it.
"They are only a little over eight hundred kilometers from you. Complete the deal, and by tomorrow you will have thirty more wyvern riders!"
"Gods!" Ser Justin's eyes went wide.
"Hiss!"
Even Mel, who had always been so composed, could not help but draw in a sharp breath.
"Uh… uh…" Stannis's gaunt face flushed red, his throat dry, meaningless sounds escaping his mouth.
"Heh heh, well?" the old lecher asked with a smug smile.
(End of chapter)
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