Dragonstone is located at the mouth of Blackwater Bay, and its castle is carved in the shape of a dragon. It was originally the fief of House Targaryen in Westeros, but it became the territory of House Baratheon after Robert's Rebellion.
After King Robert secured the throne, he granted it to his younger brother, Stannis Baratheon, while granting the wealthier Storms End to Renly Baratheon. This decision eventually led to the falling out between the brothers, Stannis and Renly.
Stannis Baratheon raised his army from Dragonstone. Although his forces numbered only a few thousand, he had a major advantage: Melisandre, the red woman.
After raising his army at Dragonstone, Stannis did not enter Blackwater Bay directly to attack King's Landing. Instead, he headed south from Massey's Hook, bypassed Tarth, entered through Shipbreaker Bay, and directly besieged Storms End.
This was because Stannis Baratheon realized that taking King's Landing with only a few thousand men was too much of a stretch. Furthermore, even if he did take it, he would be absolutely unable to hold it against the great armies of either Renly to the south or Tywin Lannister to the west.
Thus, he intended to first take over his younger brother Renly Baratheon's army of one hundred thousand men.
And just as Stannis had expected, Renly Baratheon returned with his troops.
The two sides camped and faced off near the Rose Road. Looking at his older brother Stannis Baratheon approaching him, Renly took the initiative to mock him:
"Oh, it's been a long time, brother. Is the water quality bad at that miserable place, Dragonstone? You're getting balder and balder now."
Stannis snorted and turned his head away, refusing to look at him. However, Melisandre, who was beside him, spoke up. Looking at everyone present, she immediately began her promotion of the red god.
"The ancient books of Asshai prophesy that after the long summer, when the stars bleed, Azor Ahai shall be reborn in the place of smoke and salt and wake dragons out of stone. His Majesty Stannis Baratheon before you is the reincarnation of Azor Ahai!"
"the place of smoke and salt? Is he a smoked ham?" Renly scoffed at this and let out a laugh.
"Renly, I am the rightful heir to the iron throne. I have come this time to take command of your army. Hand over your troops to me at once; I must go and expel the false king." Stannis's face was solemn, his words resolute and self-righteous.
"What? You say he's a false king, so he's a false king? Don't be ridiculous. I've always known that you and I are the same kind of person. Isn't it all for the iron throne?"
Renly Baratheon continued:
"It's quite simple: the winner becomes king, and the loser a rebel. Whoever wins is the king, isn't that right?"
Renly didn't believe the claim that the children of his eldest brother Robert and Queen Cersei Lannister were bastards of House Lannister for a second. He had always assumed his second brother Stannis had raised an army simply to seize the throne, so why bother acting so righteous.
"What do you know, you brat! The iron throne of House Baratheon must never be occupied by outsiders!" Stannis Baratheon flared up upon hearing this, not expecting Renly to be so stubborn.
"Enough, brother. It's too late for lectures." Renly yawned, looking at his fuming second brother and laughing instinctively. In his eyes, his second brother was the same as always—just as rigid and just as boring.
Just then, Catelyn Tully, who was beside Renly Baratheon, suddenly interjected:
"Your Majesty Stannis, in this situation, why not cooperate with us in the North? Our two armies working together will surely wipe out the Lannisters more smoothly."
However, Stannis Baratheon was not at all accommodating. Even though he had only two thousand troops under his command, he firmly believed he was the only legitimate king.
So he spoke: "Lady Stark, your son Robb Stark dared to crown himself king in the North without my permission and is occupying territory with his own army. I am telling you now, he is also my enemy! If he does not surrender to me of his own accord, I will defeat him all the same in the future."
Catelyn Tully was instantly silenced. She felt that she shouldn't have tried to discuss cooperation with a man as rigid as Stannis Baratheon from the start.
"Want a peach, brother? They're from Highgarden, and they really are exceptionally sweet."
Renly Baratheon smiled at the sight, shaking the bright red peach in his hand as he spoke.
In truth, Renly always felt a strange sort of longing for his second brother Stannis. Perhaps due to the influence of the Siege of Storm's End during their childhood, he still loved his brother in his heart.
But he also very much hoped that his brother would join him and help him win the throne.
"What do you mean by this!"
"Don't be so serious, brother. Life is meant to be enjoyed. You always have such a sour face; it's quite unsightly."
As Renly spoke, he finished gnawing on the peach. The peach was indeed fresh and juicy, and seeing it, Stannis instinctively licked his dry, cracked lips.
Renly ate heartily, and Stannis watched him until he finished without interrupting. Standing behind him, Davos Seaworth, the Onion Knight, sighed involuntarily at the familiar scene.
How did it ever come to this...
This scene also reminded Renly Baratheon of their childhood, when their eldest brother Robert went to be a ward at Old Jon Arryn's home, leaving only his second brother Stannis at home to accompany him.
His second brother Stannis had a particular habit: no talking while eating and no talking while sleeping.
That is, one could not speak while eating, and one could not eat while others were speaking so as not to affect them. Because his second brother led by example, the entire household had developed this habit.
Except for him, who was young at the time and very fond of peaches. Sometimes when his brother spoke to him, he would keep on eating.
If anyone else had done that, his brother would have surely given them a harsh scolding. But he was very indulgent toward Renly; whenever Renly ate a peach, his brother would patiently watch him finish before speaking.
"Brother, you should go back and think it over carefully. If you join me, I will name you Lord of Storms End once I take the throne. What do you say? I remember you always quite liked Storms End, brother."
"Hmph, we shall see."
Both sides led their troops back to their respective camps. Renly remained as nonchalant as ever, believing his brother Stannis was just as he had always been.
However, Renly Baratheon did not notice the faint, lingering shadow in the depths of his brother Stannis Baratheon's eyes.
...
["Melisandre, use Shadow Assassin on Renly Baratheon!"
Melisandre has used Shadow Assassin!
It's super effective!]
Night fell, and the candles were lit.
Stannis used Melisandre's ritual (the method of the shadow's creation is omitted here by ten thousand words). Melisandre, wrapped in her red robe, rolled off the bed. Before long, she gave birth to a shadow as black as ink in the room.
With shrill screams and the presence of an indescribable black thing, even Stannis Baratheon was startled by the eerie sight.
"What on earth is this thing!"
"Your Majesty, this is a method from Asshai of the Shadow Lands. This Shadow Assassin will grant you your heart's desire."
As she spoke, Melisandre's slender fingers moved slightly, and the shadow slipped out through a corner of the tent.
...
Inside the tent that night.
"Your Majesty, my son Robb is currently attacking the Westerlands. If you can move your army quickly to King's Landing, then together we will surely wipe out all the Lannisters."
Catelyn Tully was doing her best to persuade Renly Baratheon. Because Renly had the largest force, as long as she could get him to join them, Robb Stark would basically be guaranteed to win.
But since raising his army, Renly Baratheon had marched slowly, moving only once every few days. Along the way, he held tourneys and various feasts, as if he didn't care about King's Landing at all.
This was because Renly wanted the North and the Westerlands to wear each other down first. Since he had the most troops anyway, he would win no matter how he fought.
He was calm and composed, but Catelyn Tully couldn't wait. Her side was still contending with the Lannister army in the Westerlands.
Furthermore, with the Westerlands about to conscript tens of thousands more troops, the situation in the North was becoming increasingly dire.
"Lady Stark, why the hurry? Let them make a fuss for a while longer. The ones who should be worried now are the Lannisters."
As he spoke, Renly Baratheon ignored the brooding Catelyn Tully.
He took off his heavy armor, handed it to the guard beside him, Brienne of Tarth, and smiled:
"Thank you, Brienne."
"My honor, Your Majesty."
However, just as Brienne of Tarth turned to place the armor on the rack, she felt a bone-chilling wind blow from behind.
When she turned around, her eyes couldn't help but widen in shock.
She saw a flat, ink-black shadow slip rapidly through a gap in the green tent. The blade in its hand thrust out directly, piercing Renly Baratheon through the heart from behind.
Renly Baratheon's mouth continuously sprayed fresh, thick blood. Knowing there was no hope left, he looked back in disbelief.
He looked at that ink-black shadow and softly called out: "Brother..."
His tone was so helpless and desperate, much like the scenes during the Siege of Storm's End years ago when Renly would nestle against his brother Stannis's shoulder and say he was hungry.
Hearing that helpless cry, the shadow seemed to suddenly realize something. It froze on the spot, and the blade in its hand instinctively fell to the ground with a faint "clink."
It looked at its blood-stained hands, the holes where its eyes should be trembling and widening. The next moment, it clutched its head and let out a shrill, desolate, and crazed howl. Then the entire shadow shattered, slowly merging into the night outside.
"No!" Brienne's desperate roar rang out. The entire process had taken less than five seconds, and she hadn't had time to react at all.
With a thud, Renly Baratheon's corpse fell to the ground, staining the dry earth red. He was gone.
Brienne of Tarth stumbled to Renly Baratheon's side and took his body into her arms. Feeling the rapid loss of Renly's body heat, she knew that her beloved King Renly had left her forever...
"This is bad!" Seeing this scene, Catelyn Tully knew that she and Brienne of Tarth would be the primary suspects, and Renly's guards wouldn't necessarily listen to her explanation.
So, she decisively took Brienne of Tarth and fled the tent under the cover of night, heading toward Riverrun.
Brienne didn't speak the whole way because she had seen the appalling truth:
Stannis Baratheon's shadow had slipped into Renly Baratheon's tent in the dead of night and assassinated his own brother, Renly Baratheon, right in front of the guard Brienne of Tarth and the northern envoy Catelyn Tully.
Although the shadow's edges were blurred and the space around it seemed warped, Brienne of Tarth had clearly seen the face of that black shadow.
She recognized it; it was the face of Stannis Baratheon.
...
The next morning, Davos Seaworth, the Onion Knight, tried to wake his Majesty Stannis for a long time without success. In his urgency, he burst directly into the room.
He saw Stannis trembling and twitching on the bed, drenched in sweat and muttering incoherently in his sleep. Startled, the Onion Knight rushed to the bedside and called out to Stannis, trying to wake him.
In Stannis's dream, he seemed caught in a maze. Mists emerged from the darkness, and scenes shifted like a revolving lantern, repeatedly showing him the process of killing Renly Baratheon.
He first heard a sharp, desperate cry of "No!", then a dull groan of pain and the sound of a heavy object hitting the ground, followed by a splash of thick, hot liquid onto himself.
He looked down at the sticky dark red on his hands and realized it was blood. It was the blood of his brother, Renly Baratheon; he had killed him with his own hands.
After an unknown amount of time, cries rang out, and he recognized someone calling his name.
"Your Majesty Stannis! Wake up!"
"Wake up!"
More and more voices joined in, and a beam of light seemed to appear before his eyes, which he tried to grasp tightly with his right hand. Then, the light slowly expanded, shining so brightly that he had to squeeze his eyes shut.
Stannis sat up abruptly on the bed, slowly opening his eyes and panting heavily.
He hurriedly looked at his hands, his pupils contracting instinctively and his heart racing, because in his eyes, those hands were covered in thick blood.
Just as he was filled with terror, a pair of strong hands turned his head, and the two men's eyes met.
"Look at me, Your Majesty! Look at me! Don't let your mind wander! Renly is dead! He is dead!"
Stannis Baratheon looked at the Onion Knight's aging face and took a deep breath. When he looked at his hands again, everything was normal. No longer seeing them drenched in blood, he slowly began to relax.
But when he turned his head and saw a bright red peach sitting on the table, he remembered the face of his brother Renly Baratheon. He couldn't help but feel a sense of loneliness, and he muttered to himself:
"My brother Renly's peach troubles me... In truth, I did love him. It's a pity that the world is so fickle. *Sigh*."
...
It wasn't until the next morning that the southern soldiers discovered their King Renly was dead.
With Renly's death, the twenty thousand cavalry he led fell into chaos on the spot. Seeing that the situation was hopeless, the leaders of House Florent, Fossoway family, and other noble houses collectively defected to Stannis Baratheon.
Regardless, they were originally sworn to House Baratheon, so it didn't matter much whom they served.
Meanwhile, Lord Randyll Tarly and Mathis Rowan took advantage of the chaos to escape, racing from Storms End all the way back to Bitterbridge to stabilize the infantry stationed there.
But what then? They were also somewhat panicked and lost their confidence. To put it bluntly, they had pledged their loyalty to Renly because they wanted to rely on him to sit on the iron throne; they hoped that by the merit of being a kingmaker, they could pull down the nobles above them and raise their own status.
Power is like a pyramid, extending downward from the apex; the further down you are, the lower your status and the more you are exploited. They could only change their situation by displacing or pulling down the layer above them.
To some extent, this was the great crime of usurpation and treason. Gambling by raising an army with Renly was a risk, but it was better than remaining stagnant.
However, beyond seeking profit, they also genuinely loved and respected Renly Baratheon.
One must remember that Stannis raised his army because he was certain Joffrey and the others were bastards of House Lannister, whereas Renly had raised his army without a legitimate cause from the very beginning. That these nobles were willing to follow him of their own accord shows that Renly's personal charisma was extraordinary.
Because Loras Tyrell, the Knight of Flowers, was imprisoned in King's Landing by Joffrey, he did not secretly transport Renly Baratheon's body out as he did in the original story.
So, while the army under Renly was in total disarray, Ragu, the Kings Hand and messenger of rhllor, led several members of the Brotherhood Without Banners to slip into the tent and steal away the body of Renly Baratheon.
This decision also laid the groundwork for Stannis Baratheon's later downfall.
Compared to the Lannisters, whether it was Lord Randyll Tarly and Mathis Rowan or some lords of the Reach, they hated Stannis, the murderer of Renly, even more.