This group of Ironborn lords led the way to find the 1Lord's chambers in Pyke.
The door was half-ajar, and rainwater seeped through the floorboards.
"He is inside."
Lord Merlin pushed open the door, his words laced with irrepressible hatred.
It was hatred for the person inside the room.
Daeron entered the room indifferently.
"I am the King... the drowned god will not forsake me..."
Balon sat slumped on the floor, his back against the bedframe, muttering neurotically to himself.
King Caleon's corpse still lay sprawled on the floor, surrounded by wet puddles, frozen in a gruesome state with his eyes wide open.
"The Strangler?"
Daeron immediately recognized the poison that had killed King Caleon.
A deadly poison from Lys, colorless and odorless; when mixed with water and ingested, it constricts the windpipe, suffocating the victim to death.
"Joffrey the Great" died from The Strangler.
"Prince, he seems to have gone mad?"
Jaime observed Balon's mental state; he was even crazier than the King.
Daeron waved his hand and ordered him to be taken away.
"Don't touch me!!"
Balon suddenly screamed, falling completely into madness as he tried to break free from his restraints.
Brynden stepped forward and delivered an elbow strike, knocking him out cold.
"What exactly happened to the Iron Islands?"
Daeron turned to Lord Merlin.
He found this group of Ironborn lords to be quite cooperative, answering whatever was asked and following behind them obediently.
Truly humbled.
With a complex expression, Lord Merlin led them to Nagga's Hill on Old Wyk.
Nagga was a legendary sea dragon.
Legend has it that she was the most powerful creature born of the sea; krakens fed on sea beasts, but Nagga fed on both krakens and sea beasts, and in her rage, she could swallow an entire island.
After she was slain by The Grey King, her bones turned to stone.
To this day, Nagga's forty-four ribs remain on Old Wyk, protruding from the ground to form a unique and wondrous sight in the Iron Islands.
Whenever a new occupant for the seastone chair was chosen, the Ironborn would hold a ceremony on Nagga's Hill.
"Screech—!"
Caraxes flew in the air, his molten-gold vertical pupils overlooking the scene, paying special attention to Nagga's towering fossilized ribs.
"The size of a Nagga is no less than that of an adult dragon."
Daeron touched Nagga's fossilized ribs, his heart racing with excitement.
Dragonstone preserved the remains of every family dragon that had fallen, with the bones of Balerion and Vhagar being undoubtedly the largest.
But even Balerion's ribs were not as large as the fossilized ribs that spanned Nagga's Hill.
Perhaps marine creatures are simply larger than terrestrial ones.
If a dragon grew large enough to swallow an island, let alone whether it could still fly, hunting alone would be a difficult task.
No creature could satisfy its hunger.
"Prince, this way."
Lord Merlin led the way.
At this moment, a complex altar made of piled rubble sat atop Nagga's Hill, the stones stained with blood.
According to Lord Merlin.
There were originally a hundred Ironborn corpses there, but during the storm that devastated the entire Iron Islands, the bodies had vanished without a trace.
Lord Merlin gave a sarcastic smile: "Perhaps the drowned god really did take them away."
Daeron did not care for dark humor; he spotted a desiccated corpse crushed within the rubble.
It was a blind old man, wearing the robes of a Drowned Man similar to a priest's. He was completely bloodless, nothing but skin and bones, his mouth hanging open in agony.
"Backlash?"
Daeron took a step back, for fear of catching any bad luck.
As expected, the Ironborn had used a Blood Sacrifice to summon this storm.
But instead of stopping the enemy's offensive, they had killed a hundred enemies while losing three thousand two hundred of their own.
"Prince, there seems to be something here."
Jaime, bold as ever, pulled a parchment scroll from the Drowned Man's robes.
It recorded a certain process for a Blood Sacrifice.
Simply put, it involved using human lives as fodder to attempt to communicate with the drowned god (natural forces). When no miracles appeared, they added sacrifices of special gems and rare fish as auxiliary materials.
At the end of the writing, an extra sentence was inscribed.
"King's blood..."
Daeron frowned.
The final part was far too mystical.
One must use the blood of a King (ruler) to activate the Blood Sacrifice offerings and communicate with the sacrificed deity.
"This is simply alarmist nonsense."
Daeron spat in disgust, threw it into the air, and ordered Caraxes to breathe Dragonfire.
Crimson Dragonfire gushed out, incinerating the parchment scroll.
Blood Sacrifice!
It was a term he utterly loathed.
The dragonlords of Old Valyria had abused Blood Sacrifices, provoking divine wrath and human resentment.
In the new era of Westeros, Blood Sacrifices would never be allowed to appear again.
"Prince, we have brought Balon up."
Seeing that Daeron was in a bad mood, Paxton quickly changed the subject.
Daeron understood.
Having investigated the origin of the storm, it was time to deal with the Iron Islands.
They brought up not only Balon but also a long-haired boy of twelve or thirteen.
Randyll sent men to bring up the captured Victarion.
Under the gaze of the Ironborn lords and longships, Balon was forced down onto Nagga's Hill, with the seastone chair behind him.
Daeron did not waste words and announced loudly, "From this day forward, the Iron Islands return to the rule of the Iron Throne. Anyone who dares to defy this shall end up like this man."
With that, he drew Dark Sister.
With a swish, Balon's head fell to the ground.
"Good!!"
"That son of a bitch Balon..."
The Ironborn lords and captains cheered and shouted; someone picked up Balon's head and slammed it onto the ground on the spot, smashing it to pieces.
The fact that Balon had listened to the Drowned Men's delusions, leading to the disaster in the Iron Islands, had already spread privately.
The Ironborn were united in their hatred.
Daeron looked around, and his desire to conquer the Iron Islands faded.
After the double devastation of Caraxes and the storm, the Iron Islands were left with only a few survivors; the once-renowned Iron Fleet had been almost entirely wiped out in the storm.
It was already ruined.
Daeron walked up to Victarion, rested Dark Sister on his shoulder, and said calmly, "I appoint you as the Governor of the Iron Islands, to oversee the military and political affairs of the Iron Islands, and to shoulder the heavy responsibility of rebuilding the livelihoods of the Iron Islands and Iron Fleet."
Westeros is a land of bloodlines.
To rule the Iron Islands, House Greyjoy was indispensable.
King Caleon was dead, the eldest son Balon was beheaded, the Second Son Euron was missing, leaving only the captured third son Victarion and the youngest son Aeron.
But having a choice was better than just picking someone at random from the Ironborn lords.
Victarion fell to his knees, not daring to look at his elder brother Balon's headless corpse, his voice choking: "By the drowned god, Victarion of House Greyjoy swears that I shall be loyal to the House Targaryen. Should I break this oath, let me sink into the sea, my soul suffering and alone."
His pledge of loyalty carried little psychological burden.
Such was the way of the nobility.
If you are stronger than me and defeat me fairly, then I shall serve you.
In the original story, Robert killed Lord Wylde of Rain House in the Battle of Summerhall, yet his eldest son and heir still knelt to him in fealty and shared wine at the feast.
Daeron, riding Caraxes and leading two fleets no weaker than Iron Fleet, had fought his way from the Mander River all the way to the Iron Islands.
Who would dare to defy him?
Daeron accepted Victarion's oath and cautioned, "Appease the Ironborn and rebuild Iron Fleet as soon as possible. The Iron Throne faces challenges and requires the blood and sweat of House Greyjoy."
"Yes, Prince."
Victarion's emotions were complex; his most respected father and elder brother were dead, and the Euron he loathed the most had disappeared.
He had gone from a mere prisoner to the Governor of the Iron Islands sitting on the seastone chair.
Life is truly unpredictable.
Daeron explained the meaning of the Governor of the Iron Islands.
He would still rule the Iron Islands while also serving as the Commander of Iron Fleet, reporting directly to the Iron Throne.
The difference was the abolition of the title of King of the Iron Islands, and he would receive a generous salary from the national treasury.
It seemed like nothing had changed, and in truth, not much had.
But the nobility of Westeros placed great importance on titles; the Wardens of the North, South, East, and West were Warden titles, and House Tully's title of lord governor of the trident was a Governor title.
House Martell of Dorne had not submitted to the Iron Throne, and Prince Doran still retained his title of Prince.
Prince does not equal King, but their statuses are equal.
By accepting the title of Governor of the Iron Islands, the status of House Greyjoy and even the Iron Islands would naturally decline, being labeled as subjects of the Iron Throne.
In short, it was a subtle change.
Daeron thought to himself, "If the Riverlands and the Stormlands can be annexed, the title of Governor of the Iron Islands will naturally continue; otherwise, merely changing House Greyjoy's title won't cause a ripple."
But it was a good start.
The group returned to Pyke.
Daeron needed to tally the wealth of the Iron Islands and plan the reconstruction of Iron Fleet.
He couldn't just conquer the Iron Islands and then abandon them.
That would make the fight pointless.
Meanwhile, on the rocky beach of Pike Island.
Toothless sniffed around, looking for stranded sea fish to eat.
"Screech!"
Suddenly, Toothless jerked his head up, his green vertical pupils greedily staring at a hidden rocky cave; after hesitating for a long time, he went to find his two brothers.
During the time Daeron was conquering the Iron Islands.
The situation in the Seven Kingdoms was turbulent, and another major event occurred.
Lord Hoster Tully of Riverrun, responding to the rebellion of Lord Arryn, gathered the lords of the Riverlands and launched a night attack on The great Lannister army stationed outside the city.
The two armies clashed, and the casualties were unknown.
After The great Lannister army was attacked, Commander Kevan announced a retreat and stationed the army outside Casterly Rock.
For a time, the entire Riverlands was in shock.
House Blackwood was the first to act, attacking House Bracken, which supported their liege lord, sparking another "War of the Two Bracks."
The rest of the Riverlands lords began to take sides.
Some led their troops to Darry and Harrenhal, joining the Royalistss to support the Iron Throne.
Others gathered their forces and headed to Riverrun to join the rebels.
In a short time, the Riverlands was engulfed in the flames of war.
Dragonstone.
Rhaegar sat in the Greenhouse he had built for his wife Elia, his fingers brushing against the withered plants that had died from neglect; his indigo eyes were filled with melancholy.
Just now, he had received news of the Tully family's rebellion.
"Lord Hoster has also rebelled."
Rhaegar lowered his head, unwilling to face the consequences of his own selfishness.
He had thought that eloping with Lyanna would have repercussions.
...
But he never imagined the consequences would be so severe.
Not long ago, a maester's diagnosis confirmed that Lyanna was three months pregnant.
But he did not dare tell her of the fate of her father and brother—the Stark father and son.
No matter how strong Lyanna was, she would not be able to bear the news of her father and brother's deaths.
"How can I give you an explanation?"
Rhaegar sighed silently.
To be honest, he didn't understand how things had come to this.
He had also heard of the four kingdoms alliance.
Even before the Tourney at Harrenhal, Lord Hoster and Lord Jon Arryn had both shown him favor, subtly indicating their support for him to call a Great Council to replace his father Aerys's rule.
In his view, although The Alliance of the Four Regions showed some signs of dissent, it was not impossible to win them over or divide them.
In his father's hands, the four kingdoms alliance was directly labeled with the heavy accusation of intent to rebel.
Lord Rickard was a loyal and honest man; though he had the flaws of indecisiveness and overcaution, he was still a true man of the North.
Yet he had died in King's Landing, in a Trial by Combat against Daeron.
"It's wrong, all wrong."
Rhaegar gritted his teeth, feeling such helplessness for the first time in his life.
His plan was clearly to replace his father's rule, appease the lords of each region, give birth to the Prince That Was Promised, and together resist the future Long Night.
How had it come to this, forcing the four lords into rebellion and plunging all of Westeros into the fires of war?
Knock, knock, knock!
The door was knocked, and Arthur Dayne's voice came from outside.
"Prince, there is a letter for you from King's Landing."
Rhaegar told him to enter.
Creak!
Ser Arthur pushed open the door, first checking the changes in the Prince's expression before handing him the letter.
The sender was Prince Lewyn.
He questioned Rhaegar about his relationship with Lyanna and whether he still remembered Elia and her newborn daughter.
And he made it clear.
If Rhaegar did not show himself, Dorne would not provide any military support for the Iron Throne.
Rhaegar fell into a long silence after reading the letter.
Ser Arthur sighed and said, "Prince, Princess Rhaenys's first name day is approaching."
"I know, Ser."
Rhaegar said despondently.
He could tell that the other man was reminding him to return to King's Landing to reunite with his wife and daughter.
But he—
Rhaegar did not know how to face his wife Elia, or what kind of explanation to give her.
At the same time, he could not abandon Lyanna, nor could he give her an explanation.
Ser Arthur could not bear to watch this and sighed, "Prince, Lord Robert has raised a rebellion, and Prince Daeron has flown his dragon south to The Reach to consolidate The Reach's coalition forces to oppose the Stormlands rebels."
"You are the Prince of Dragonstone and the heir to the Iron Throne."
"In this time of crisis for the Seven Kingdoms, you should step forward, gather the Royalists army, reclaim the chaotic Riverlands, and confront the coalition of the North and the Vale."
As the heir to the Iron Throne, how could he go missing during a time of war?
There was a high probability that Prince Daeron, leading The Reach's coalition, would defeat the Stormlands rebels.
Once the war in the south ended, he would take over the theater of war in the Riverlands.
By then, Prince Rhaegar would truly be finished.
These words woke the dreamer.
Rhaegar realized his situation, stepped out of his guilt, regained his arrogant nature, and took a deep breath:
"Ser, notify Ser Oswell and tell him to take Myles and Lonmouth back to King's Landing."
He could not face his wife Elia now, so he would first send people to protect her and signal his followers.
He believed that even now, there would still be people who followed primogeniture and were willing to follow him unconditionally.
Ser Arthur smiled, finally seeing the Prince cheer up.
Rhaegar stood up and said, "Arrange two ships; I will personally go to Sunspear to meet Prince Doran."
The House Targaryen needed the full support of House Martell.
And when he met with Prince Doran, they would negotiate the issue of his wife Elia and Lyanna's status.
The Seven Kingdoms were already in chaos.
He believed that if he proposed to restore the Targaryen tradition of polygamy after the war, no noble lord would dare to be insolent.