"My lord, please calm down!"
Seaworth stepped forward, holding a thick woolen cloak and draping it over the duke's shoulders. Through the window, he glanced at the distant offshore waters, where an eerie green fire still burned across a small patch of sea.
"We haven't lost yet!"
It seemed that some captains had finally reacted after the sea beasts' assault. However, judging from the situation on the sea, even igniting wildfire had achieved very little.
Seaworth himself was filled with doubt. Sea beasts ramming ships was one thing—but how could they attack from such a distance?
After all, this was the sea. Wildfire only worked if it was cast directly onto the sea beasts. If it had no effect now, that could only mean one thing: the sea beasts were not directly colliding with the warships.
None of them had even considered the possibility that Galedun's goal was to seize the ships, not destroy them.
From the tower, the distance to the nearshore waters—under the bright moonlight—was just enough for the three of them to see that a large stretch of sea, which should have been crowded with ship silhouettes, was now empty. Only a small area remained, where patches of wildfire were gradually dying out.
"Yes, Duke. Tarth only destroyed the Seagull Town fleet. Fortunately, your Dragonstone fleet hasn't suffered any losses!"
Barristan stepped forward to comfort him as well. For now, the three of them still didn't know that the ships they believed had sunk were actually dragged away by sea beasts using iron chains from over thirty meters away.
Stannis and his men had prepared long ago, and Galedun was never going to act according to their expectations.
Of course, he would exploit Tarth's combat advantages—breaking all conventions, arranging things in the most outrageous way possible.
"My lord," Barristan said to the Stannis who had finally regained his composure, "in the king's name, I have mustered three thousand knights from the lords near Harvest Hall. We should march north immediately to reinforce the Riverlands!"
Like Stannis, Barristan had always opposed the king's strategy of attacking and annihilating Tarth Island first.
Setting aside the Iron Islands' open rebellion, Tarth Island had maintained a stance of concealment and restraint. If Robert were to lose the support of the Riverlands' lords, then reclaiming the allegiance of those harboring resentment in the future would be nearly impossible.
More importantly, the Riverlands were one of King's Landing's grain baskets. The supply routes between them had to be protected.
"Ser Seaworth, send ravens to report everything to the king. At the same time, order the fleet to sail south!"
Stannis was no ordinary man. He quickly shook off the shock of defeat.
"Mm—wait. First, send out a signal. Have all surviving ships enter the harbor. Bring me every captain. I need to know exactly what happened, immediately."
If they wanted to deal with Tarth Island, they first needed to find a way to counter the sea beasts.
Perhaps the survivors of this fleeting naval battle could provide him with some crucial information.
"Yes, my lord!"
Seaworth nodded with a trusting smile and carried out the order.
At this moment, the three of them were plagued by too many questions. How could House Tarth possibly control sea beasts? Why had the wildfire failed? Had the naval battle ended far too quickly?
Most importantly, according to their expectations, if sea beasts attacked ships, then the heavy crossbows and wildfire aboard should have been able to kill at least one or two of them.
So why, from beginning to end, had they never heard the miserable cries of an injured sea beast?
—
Tarth Island, First Military Harbor.
Galedun stood on the yacht, facing the morning light with his eyes closed. The Canglong floated before the vessel.
In an instant, his consciousness manifested high above a vast ocean. Beneath his feet, an enormous whale gazed up at him, occasionally spraying joyful columns of water thicker than ordinary towers.
"Thank you for your hard work, Canglong!"
Galedun waved in gratitude. The water columns sprayed toward him melted away like spring snow.
"Galedun… I sense the crisis of death. The immortal and the ancient are returning. The natural enemies of the sea-beast race are about to awaken!"
The giant whale cried out across the ocean. In Galedun's ears, it became a hollow, ethereal voice.
With complete confidence, Galedun reassured it, "Don't worry. Dazhuang and the others are about to enter their growth phase. When that happens, even if a true god descends, I wouldn't mind fighting one!"
Canglong felt his fearless courage,
and joyfully swam several circles through the vast sea.
After a moment of contemplation, Galedun couldn't suppress the faint hope in his heart and asked, "Can you sense magic energy now?"
Canglong's body froze. The once-calm ocean instantly erupted into towering waves, furious tides surging.
"I can't feel it! Canglong can't feel it! Wuuuu—!"
Because of his shapeshifting bond, Galedun could clearly sense the sorrow and helplessness in Canglong's infant-like, pure crying.
For a thousand years, as Canglong's intelligence gradually grew, it had learned only one thing to remember: always avoid the dragons in the sky, the sea dragons and sea monsters in the ocean; never enter the seabed, and never rise above the surface.
Canglong had realized the truth. Their race was food. Just as they swallowed countless small fish in a single bite, they themselves were merely food for more powerful beings.
Canglong didn't want to be eaten. It was afraid of being eaten! It was already so old—it must taste terrible!
"It's alright, it's alright," Galedun said gently, offering comfort again and again. "I'll definitely find a way to help you."
"Believe me. Even if it means slaughtering gods, I will defy fate itself for you!"
"..."
As Galedun communicated with Canglong, the sun slowly rose.
Under the warm sunlight, the enormous whale pods roaming the nearshore waters looked even more terrifying. The sailors aboard nearly forty warships felt not the slightest warmth, and their will to resist crumbled further.
Under the leadership of Colin and Kaide, a thousand-strong allied force formed from the Twilight Hall castle guards and the city defense troops boarded the warships one by one, eliminating knights who attempted resistance and accepting the surrender of more than five thousand sailors, their courage utterly shattered.
When Colin and Kaide boarded the yacht again, Galedun's consciousness had already returned. The massive whale pods, led by Canglong, dove one after another beneath the sea's surface.
"What happened?" Galedun asked, noticing Colin hesitating to speak.
"Commander, ten of the ships flying the Dragonstone banner were converted from large merchant vessels. I interrogated the sailors—they're all members of Seagull Town's fleet."
Colin lowered his head as he reported, not daring to meet the commander's eyes.
"Only a small portion of Dragonstone's fleet sailed south with them. The rest are all docked at the harbor."
This was the first time he had ever seen the commander make a mistake. Until now, the commander had seemed omniscient and omnipotent—capable of anything.
"Oh."
Galedun replied calmly. Colin and Kaide both abruptly looked up, unmistakable surprise in their eyes.
He couldn't help but chuckle. "Heh—what? Did you really think I was all-powerful, incapable of making mistakes?"
"That's right, Commander!" Kaide said with an honest grin, bluntly voicing his thoughts.
Colin also smiled awkwardly and nodded in agreement.
"Alright then. Now you know—I'm just a man, not omnipotent. In the future, think more for yourselves. Don't blindly follow my orders, understood?"
Galedun shrugged and spoke to them sincerely.
"Always ready to serve you, Commander!"
The two replied in unison, then took up positions behind Galedun as his guards.
Galedun narrowed his eyes, gazing into the distance where Dazhuang and the others churned across the sea's surface, occasionally letting out fierce roars toward the prisoners lined up at the harbor, maintaining constant intimidation.
At the same time, he communicated with the Zhinao in his mind.
"Zhinao, just as you predicted. Truly worthy of Stannis."
[Decapitation strikes are the optimal solution]
"However, Stannis cannot die—certainly not at Harvest Hall!"
He refuted it. That so-called optimal solution was only the best way to absorb the combined fleet into Tarth's forces, not the optimal choice for the current situation.
"Although it exceeded expectations somewhat, the result is still acceptable."
This strategy had been personally planned by him, without Zhinao's direct assistance—though Zhinao had provided many superior alternatives.
Stannis's tactic of converting merchant ships into warships could only serve a defensive purpose. After all, whether warships or merchant ships, once brought back to Tarth, they would all need to undergo further modification and be equipped with better weapons.
Soon, a new doubt surfaced in Galedun's mind.
"What exactly is Braavos up to?"
When Tarth Island had risen, it had clashed with Braavos. He had even survived assassination attempts by five powerful Faceless Men.
Braavos's fleet was extremely strong. They had escaped pursuit by the Tarth fleet and clearly understood Tarth's naval strength. Yet Braavos had not coordinated with allies like the Citadel.
From this engagement, Galedun had seen no hidden trump cards aimed specifically at the Tarth fleet within the combined forces.
Summoning Canglong this time had been a deliberate smokescreen—meant to probe the alliance between Braavos and the Seven Kingdoms.
And when Stannis still dared to attack Tarth, what awaited him would not be carefully laid plans to counter sea beasts…
…but an invincible fleet.
That kind of despair—even just imagining it—made Galedun feel a trace of sorrow for the diligent and devoted Master of Ships.
...
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Here are a few fan-fic titles that I've recently uploaded on my Patreon:
"Game of Thrones: Dragon Prince"
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"Game of Thrones: Godzilla vs. Dragons"
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" Game of Thrones: From the Elden Lord to the Young Wolf"
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(End Chapter)