The chaos of heroes vying for the throne appears; clad in golden armor, he heads to the front lines.
King's Landing, Main Gate.
In the faint light of dawn, a tall figure stood amidst the pervasive morning mist.
He wore golden armor and a red cloak, with the gold helm with stag antlers of House Baratheon upon his head; his entire being shimmered in the dim light.
Joffrey Baratheon's expression was solemn and calm, his gaze like torches. He raised his warhammer high, looking at the dejected and panicked soldiers below the platform, and shouted loudly:
"I am the King of the andals, the rhoynar, and the first men, Lord of the Seven Kingdoms, and Protector of the Realm, Joffrey Baratheon I!"
"Today, my uncle, Stannis Baratheon, Prince of Dragonstone, ungrateful for the late king's kindness, has taken advantage of the late king's accidental passing and the instability of the court to raise an army and declare himself king, intending to commit treason and usurp power! In the name of the iron throne, I command: he be executed with the utmost severity, put to death on the spot!"
"Soldiers! Today, Stannis's army is at our gates. He has threatened to purge King's Landing. If we surrender, we die; if we resist, we die. Since that is the case, why not rise up and fight back to carve out a brilliant future! Know this: there is still a chance for victory in a desperate situation, and a fight to the death may yet break the enemy!"
Seeing the dull eyes of the crowd begin to sparkle with a hint of spirit, Joffrey Baratheon struck while the iron was hot, raising his arms and shouting, announcing his rewards.
"This very day, right here, in the name of Joffrey Baratheon I, King of the andals, the rhoynar, and the first men, Lord of the Seven Kingdoms, and Protector of the Realm, I solemnly promise: those who fight bravely and slay the enemy shall be made lords and generals!"
"Remember my words! I will take half of every inch of land you conquer and grant it all to you as rewards! You will transform from homeless hedge knights into the King's vassals. From now on, you will no longer need to pay taxes to any other lord or live a life of danger; you will only pay taxes to me, be responsible to me, and fight for me!"
Decisive and direct, he distributed land. Joffrey now understood that the feudal system was too fragile and would inevitably lead to local vassals becoming too powerful, thereby threatening the royal authority.
In times of peace when the royal family was strong, it was fine; the vassals would live their small lives contentedly. But once the royal family began to weaken, the vassals could launch an assault in the time it took to send a letter.
It would be better to directly unify the Seven Kingdoms and initiate a unified, centralized system of government.
His Majesty the King's rewards completely solidified the resolve of this ragtag group of soldiers. If the city fell, they would die; if they rebelled, they would die. They might as well go all out!
Since death was certain anyway, why not fight to the end! If luck was on their side, they might even be knighted and rise in social status.
Hearing the sound of approaching hooves outside the city, Joffrey Baratheon knew the time for battle had arrived. This war was truly coming.
"We shall charge out from the front! We will not return until the enemy is broken! I will be at the very front of your charge; follow me closely!"
As he spoke, he stepped down from the high platform, passing through the crowd of burning gazes, and mounted his tall white horse. Raising his warhammer, he looked at the soldiers whose morale had soared and shouted:
"All troops, heed my command! Charge with me!"
"Charge!"
"Charge!"
"..."
The soldiers looked at His Majesty King Joffrey at the front, all raising their longswords, filled with murderous intent and ready to strike.
With that, the city gates swung open. Joffrey Baratheon squeezed his horse's flanks and charged out first, warhammer held high. Leading by example, he rushed toward Stannis's approaching cavalry vanguard.
His cloak billowed behind him, and his armor gleamed. Behind him were over a thousand loyal and brave soldiers, including Duncan, and in his hand was an incomparable warhammer.
At this moment, Ser Barristan Selmy, Lord Commander of the Kingsguard following behind him, even thought that His Majesty King Robert Baratheon, whom he had once served, had returned. He couldn't help but be moved by the scene, tears welling in his eyes.
...
King's Landing, East Gate.
"Fall in!"
"All of you..."
"All of you..."
Tyrion Lannister shouted several times, trying to organize the soldiers at the East Gate for defense, but no one was willing to listen to him. With Stannis's army at the gates, they could die at any moment.
The soldiers sighed dejectedly, their faces ashen as if they truly were about to die in the next moment.
Seeing this, Tyrion Lannister's temper flared, and he rebuked the crowd:
"You all call me a Half-man, a dwarf, but where are you whole men any better than me?"
Tyrion Lannister stood on the high platform, loudly boosting morale. He shouted:
"Today you are not fighting for some king, nor for the honor of some knight, and certainly not for wealth. You are fighting to protect your own homes!"
"Stannis's army is right outside. If they truly break in, it's your houses that will be burned, your women who will be raped, and your gold that will be plundered. So, men! Draw your swords! Fight for your own homes!"
These blunt words made everyone realize their situation; they truly had no way out this time.
But to ignite their morale, one last spark was needed.
With the help of his squire, Podrick Payne, Tyrion Lannister struggled onto his specially made saddle. He then continued to taunt the men with a smile:
"I will be at the very front of the charge. If any of you admit you're not as good as me, this Half-man, then feel free to stay behind and eat my dust!"
Tyrion could already hear the sounds of slaughter from the Main Gate; he knew his nephew Joffrey Baratheon had already gone out to engage the enemy.
So, he let out a roar with a serious expression:
"Open the gates! Take up your weapons and charge with me!"
"Charge!"
"Charge!"
"..."
How could these soldiers endure being taunted by the Half-man dwarf they so despised?
Thus, as Tyrion Lannister charged out first, they followed closely behind and rushed out as well.
...
As the cavalry of the two armies were about to clash, Joffrey Baratheon suddenly laughed toward the sky and said to the soldiers behind him:
"Men, watch me slay a general for you first!"
No sooner had the words left his mouth than the warhammer in Joffrey's hand swung out fiercely, smashing into the chest of a charging knight from House Florent.
The blow sent him coughing up blood and flying off his horse. The red-gold fox sigil on his chest armor was shattered to pieces; it was clear he wouldn't survive.
"Hahaha! Who dares to face me in battle!"
Hearing King Joffrey Baratheon's heroic and confident battle cry, the morale of the soldiers under his command instantly soared, and they actively followed by his side.
The hideous warhammer was fierce and brutal, slaughtering at will on the battlefield. Anyone struck by it would immediately cough up blood and die on the spot.
Furthermore, Joffrey Baratheon possessed a natural Herculean strength that few could match; no one was his equal.
He was invincible in close combat, and for a time, no one dared to approach him. Some, upon seeing that blood-stained gold helm with stag antlers from afar, even lost heart and actively avoided him.
It could truly be said: within his reach, he was invincible.
On the surface, Joffrey Baratheon dominated the battlefield with disdain for all, but beneath his glorious exterior, Joffrey was desperately suppressing a boiling malice and bloodthirsty temperament.
According to R'hllor, this was a trace of the Night Lion's will within him. The Night Lion represented death and despair, the antithesis of the the woman of light who represented life and hope.
If he entered a bloodthirsty state on the battlefield, he might very well launch indiscriminate attacks on friend and foe alike. If left unchecked, he would lose even faster.
"R'hllor! Help me suppress the Night Lion's will inside me!" Joffrey had no choice but to ask R'hllor for help; otherwise, he would be too restrained to fight properly.
"Fine, fine, consider it paying rent," R'hllor replied lazily.
"Thanks," Joffrey smiled with satisfaction.
...
East Gate.
Tyrion Lannister, accompanied by Bronn and Podrick Payne, charged back and forth through several of the enemy's cavalry squares.
But in less than two hours, their horses were nearly all killed by the enemy. Although the enemy had also suffered significant losses, they had the advantage of full supplies and superior equipment.
It was also at this time that Tyrion discovered they were short on horses. Due to their lack of strategic resources, the horses and soldiers had been cobbled together; they had even nearly brought out the cargo donkeys from King's Landing's taverns to make up the numbers on the battlefield.
In the next moment, the legs of Tyrion Lannister's horse were cut out from under him, and he himself fell directly from the saddle.
Seeing this, the enemy cavalry captain quickly commanded his troops to concentrate their forces and charge at Tyrion, intending to slay the commander on the spot.
In the moment of crisis, Tyrion's nephew Joffrey Baratheon immediately led a squad and charged over, cutting off the enemy's relentless offensive.
After smashing a knight to death, Joffrey Baratheon looked from his horse at his blood-soaked uncle, Tyrion Lannister, and said:
"I've got things here; we can hold for now. Stannis's vanguard ships are approaching. Go back and see if our lovely little jars and pots are ready."
"Right!" With that, Tyrion Lannister immediately took several of his guards and hurried back to King's Landing.
This step would be their trump card that decided victory or defeat.
...
Near Blackwater Bay.
Alyn Sewell was the third son of Davos Seaworth, the Onion Knight. When Borin Storm requested Stannis Baratheon to lead the vanguard infantry into battle first...
Alyn Sewell would not be outdone and also requested to lead the vanguard fleet into battle, as he considered it a very honorable position.
However, his father, Davos Seaworth, considered it a dangerous position, and even Davos's other sons looked at Allard with concern.
To this, His Majesty King Stannis Baratheon I quickly agreed, even praising the vigorous young man for having the spirit of his father, the Onion Knight.
Looking at the faint light in the thin morning mist, Alyn Sewell broke into a smile, believing this to be the dawn of his career.
He had risen from a shady smuggling ship captain to the commander of His Majesty's vanguard fleet; this massive leap filled him with pride.
"Heed my command! Pursue them!"
When Alyn Sewell saw the King's Landing fleet showing signs of weakness and retreating, he immediately ordered the entire fleet to pursue quickly, vowing to completely annihilate the enemy navy and achieve a great feat!
He even began to fantasize about His Majesty Stannis Baratheon personally knighting him and granting him a large castle. His father, Davos Seaworth, and his other brothers would all be clapping for him with pride and envy.
He looked at the enemy warships, which were no longer far away, feeling exuberant, and immediately ordered an attack. But as he drew closer again, he noticed something was wrong.
The last few enemy warships were exceptionally small and of poor quality, and there wasn't a single person left on them, as if they were intentionally luring others in.
Previously, the darkness and morning mist had obscured his view, causing Alyn Sewell to advance rashly without seeing the deployment of the King's Landing fleet. Now that he could see clearly, he couldn't help but gasp and immediately shouted orders in a panic:
"All ships, turn around! Turn around now!!!"
His desperate shouting caused the fleet to begin stopping and turning their rudders to retreat, but the warships were large, and turning around would take some time.
However, Alyn Sewell no longer had the time or the opportunity. This act of underestimating the enemy and advancing rashly would cost him an incredibly heavy price; hopefully, he would remember this lesson in his next life.
...
King's Landing.
Having returned to King's Landing, Tyrion Lannister immediately ordered the master of ships, Ser Paxter Redwyne, to execute the planned strategy: using the cover of night and heavy mist to fight and retreat, luring the enemy fleet into the Blackwater Rush within Blackwater Bay.
Tyrion Lannister leaned over the city wall, waiting anxiously. He felt uncertain, not knowing if the commander of the enemy fleet would take the bait. If the other side saw through his plan, his own naval forces would be in grave danger.
After an unknown amount of waiting, a neatly organized fleet suddenly charged out from the misty Blackwater Bay, heading straight for King's Landing.
Sure enough, led by the lure of the King's Landing fleet, Alyn Sewell, the third son of Davos Seaworth the Onion Knight, brought the vanguard fleet straight into the inner reaches of Blackwater Bay.
"They're here!!" Seeing the plan succeed, Tyrion Lannister laughed instinctively.
At his command, a signal was given. A sturdy river-blocking iron chain immediately rose from the towers on both sides of Blackwater Bay, trapping the entire vanguard fleet inside, making escape nearly impossible.
With Joffrey's strong support, Tyrion had exceeded his objective, forging a total of two river-blocking iron chains.
This current one was located in the inner part of Blackwater Bay; to prevent their own warships from being destroyed, they had to use it first.
The other, even sturdier chain was located in the central area of Blackwater Bay; Tyrion Lannister decided to save it for Stannis Baratheon himself.
"Fire!!!"
Seeing that the time had come, Tyrion Lannister shouted excitedly.
In the next moment, jar after jar of green wildfire was hurled from the walls of King's Landing, aimed straight at Stannis's vanguard warships. The strike was successful, quickly yielding massive results.
With a thunderous boom, the entire fleet was heavily damaged. These beautiful, round jars exploded as soon as they hit the ground, igniting fierce deep-green flames, and the splashing sparks then set fire to all the vessels near the fleet.
"Hahaha, well done!"
On the battlefield, Joffrey Baratheon saw their plan succeed and let out an excited laugh.
This batch of wildfire had also been made with a special process, making it highly flammable and extremely adhesive; once it touched the body, it was like a bone-clinging poison that could not be extinguished until the person was completely burned to ash.
More than half of the soldiers were killed by the instantaneous explosions of the wildfire as it landed; the lucky survivors could only jump desperately into the water.
But even in the water, the flames on their bodies continued to burn. The soldiers were either burned to death by the fire or drowned in the water.
The entire naval fleet was completely paralyzed, unable to regroup.
However, this only paralyzed a few of Stannis's vanguard fleets; Joffrey had not forgotten that the vanguard Stannis Baratheon sent out also included several thousand infantry.
Furthermore, the main force and rear guard led by Stannis Baratheon himself—a large number of naval, cavalry, and infantry units—were still approaching from behind.
Just to deal with this vanguard fleet, their side had already used nearly half of their wildfire. The remaining wildfire had to be saved for Stannis's main force later.
He would have to lead his troops personally to face the vanguard infantry who had already reached the battlefield.
Moreover, the commander-in-chief of this approaching infantry unit was very likely his own teacher: Borin Storm.