Essos, Qarth.
Qarth is an extremely huge and wealthy city in the southeast of the continent of Essos; it is the city of warlocks and merchant princes.
The Qartheen claim to be the center of the world, the gateway between north and south, and the bridge connecting east and west.
Qarth is immensely wealthy, and the city's architectural style is magnificent and palatial.
The nominal rulers of Qarth are the Pureborn, but in fact, several powerful merchant guilds—the Thirteen, the Ancient Guild of Spicers, and the Tourmaline Brotherhood—hold the actual power of the city.
Likewise, Qarth is one of the largest ports in the known world.
Qarth reserves separate, massive docks for its own guilds, while the docks behind the harbor are for merchant ships from many countries, including the Free Cities, the Summer Isles, Yi Ti, and Westeros.
Close to the seaside shore is a huge, bustling, round-the-clock trading market. The economy here is developed and crowded with merchants from various countries; wine cellars, warehouses, brothels, and gambling dens are spread along both sides of the market roads, which is eye-catching.
Qarth has three layers of thick city walls. The outer wall is built of red sandstone, thirty feet high, carved with various exotic beasts—lions, elephants, shadowcats, zebras, manticores, and even dragons.
The middle wall is built of gray granite, forty feet high, carved with vivid battle scenes; the gladiator culture flourishes here.
The inner wall is built of black marble, fifty feet high, the highest of the three walls. The walls are covered with various obscene erotic carvings, which could be considered the bad taste of the Qartheen ruling class.
The outer gate is inlaid with copper, the middle gate with iron, and the inner gate is inlaid with many eyes made of gold.
Upon entering the city, there is another scene.
The buildings in the city present the dreamlike rose tones of Highgarden, the violet tones of Essos, and the brownish tones of Tyrosh, with decorative materials mostly being expensive, bright gems like emerald, obsidian, and lapis lazuli.
Further in are the squares of the city, large and small. Each of these squares has fountains in the shapes of legendary creatures like griffins, dragons, and manticores.
The entire city is traversed by a huge arcade street. The ancient heroes of this city are carved to look like they are standing on white and green marble pillars, and their size is more than three times that of a real person.
Qarth is ruled by the Pureborn, who manage city affairs and direct city defenses from the Hall of a Thousand Thrones, including the camel cavalry and the powerful fleet of warships.
Qarth is a typical capitalist economy built on slavery. Its aristocratic class is composed entirely of merchant groups, including the Thirteen, the Tourmaline Brotherhood, and the Ancient Guild of Spicers.
These people represent the interests of big capitalists and the big bourgeoisie, wantonly exploiting the people at the bottom.
...
"Xaro, I noticed you've been staring at the male dancers."
Daenerys Targaryen said to Xaro Xhoan Daxos beside her.
Xaro Xhoan Daxos is a merchant magnate of Qarth. He is also a member of the Thirteen and can be counted as an upper-class resident.
Moreover, including his personal yacht, he has as many as eighty-three ships, with strong capital.
Xaro Xhoan Daxos is bald, and his nose is studded with gorgeous, expensive jewelry.
His fingers are slender, and his manners are elegant. He is wearing a robe with a silk base, decorated with various jewels.
He has the standard appearance of a Qartheen; the Qartheen are tall with pale skin, which is why the Dothraki call them "milk men."
...
After the death of Khal Drogo, most of his khalasar left and established themselves as Khals.
Now, Daenerys Targaryen has only a hundred people left, and most of these hundred are old, weak, sick, or disabled; very few can fight.
So, truthfully speaking, Daenerys Targaryen now has only three Blood Riders, her Kingsguard Jorah Mormont, and three dragons—this is all her capital.
Consequently, in her confusion, Daenerys could only follow the guidance of the red comet in the sky, heading south all the way, crossing the Red Waste, and arriving at Qarth.
In the Red Waste, Daenerys Targaryen and her khalasar were temporarily stationed at Vaes Tolorro.
Vaes Tolorro is a ruined city that Daenerys Targaryen found in the Red Waste. Dany's people gave it this name, and in the Dothraki language, it means "City of Bones."
Because the tall white walls surrounding the city had become ruins, and the buildings inside were very narrow, there was no vitality or color, only a pale white.
At Vaes Tolorro, when Daenerys sent her Blood Riders to explore the surrounding area, the Blood Rider Jhogo arrived at Qarth and returned to Vaes Tolorro with three people.
These three people were the warlock Pyat Pree, the merchant Xaro Xhoan Daxos, and the shadowbinder from Asshai, Quaithe. These three had a strong interest in Daenerys Targaryen and the three dragons in her possession.
Among them, the warlock Pyat Pree had been trying to persuade Daenerys to stand on his side on the way to Qarth, and offered to take her to visit the House of the Undying.
Pyat Pree's skin was pale and covered in wrinkles. His lips were blue, which may have been because he drank too much of the warlocks' signature Shade of the Evening.
And Quaithe, the shadowbinder from Asshai, is a sexy woman wearing a lacquered wooden mask and tight-fitting robes.
She has been instilling some riddles in Daenerys Targaryen, such as: "To go north, you must go south. To reach the west, you must go east. To go forward, you must go back. To touch the light, you must pass beneath the shadow."
But compared to riddles, Daenerys Targaryen felt that what Quaithe wanted to express more was to let her take a trip to Asshai in the Shadow Lands.
This made Daenerys unconsciously think of her nephew Aegon Targaryen, who also hoped that she would take a trip to Asshai. Is Asshai really that important to her? Daenerys kept thinking.
Watching Quaithe's tall, receding back, Daenerys thought to herself: "Is she my enemy? Or a dangerous friend?"
Seeming to notice the khaleesi's worries, the Blood Rider Rakharo said to Daenerys:
"khaleesi, one would rather swallow a poisonous scorpion than trust this group of shadow children. They don't even dare to show their faces in the light; everyone knows that."
...
Pyat Pree and Quaithe said things that sounded nice, but in the end, only the merchant Xaro Xhoan Daxos expressed a willingness to accept Daenerys and the others, and provided housing and food.
However, after arriving in Qarth and living with the merchant Xaro Xhoan Daxos for a period of time, Daenerys discovered that this guy's motives did not seem simple either.
Xaro Xhoan Daxos hoped more than once that Daenerys would marry him, saying how much he loved her.
But Daenerys's Kingsguard Jorah Mormont investigated and found that the Qartheen have a peculiar marriage custom, which is that on the day of the wedding, the wife can ask the husband for a token of love.
No matter what she asks for in the world, the husband must agree. And the husband also has the right to make the same request to the wife; although he can only ask for one thing, no matter what it is, it cannot be refused. This gift is regarded as a testament to the strong bond between husband and wife.
Daenerys believed that Xaro Xhoan Daxos marrying her was very likely because he was plotting to get her three dragons, and Daenerys recently discovered that Xaro Xhoan Daxos was very likely a homosexual.
So Daenerys Targaryen tentatively asked this, wanting to see Xaro Xhoan Daxos's reaction.
"Perhaps we are staring at the same person; doesn't this mean that our minds are in tune?" Xaro Xhoan Daxos replied with a smile.
He heard Daenerys's probing intent immediately; he thought it was a simple matter to deal with such a little girl.
Hearing Xaro Xhoan Daxos's high-EQ response, Daenerys didn't know how to answer.
Fortunately, at this moment, the warlock Pyat Pree walked in, saying he wanted to take Daenerys to see the House of the Undying.
Daenerys agreed immediately, happy to go. 'I've managed to get past it for once,' Daenerys thought.
Because Daenerys knew that she had triggered Xaro Xhoan Daxos's 'talk-no-jutsu' combo, and from the next sentence, Xaro Xhoan Daxos would say a bunch of sweet nothings and propose to her.
So Daenerys decisively ran away to avoid it for a while, following the warlock Pyat Pree to see the House of the Undying.
The warlock Pyat Pree looked at the sullen Xaro Xhoan Daxos and the relieved Daenerys, feeling a bit confused. Although he didn't know what happened, he knew that he seemed to have come at the wrong time.
"I seem to have come at the wrong time."
Pyat Pree was just about to apologize and back out, but was caught up by Daenerys, who was trotting over with a smile on her face.
"No, you came at the perfect time!" Daenerys Targaryen smiled.
...
The House of the Undying is the center of power for the warlocks of Qarth; people usually call it the "Palace of Dust." Many people come here to seek revelation and power, but very few are able to get out.
Seen from the outside, the House of the Undying is an ancient gray ruin. It is long and low, without towers or windows, like a giant stone snake coiled in a grove of black-barked trees.
The trees in the forest grew dark blue leaves, and the magical beverage the people of Qarth called "shade of the evening" was made from them.
Black tiles covered the roof of the great hall; many had fallen or were broken, and the mortar between the stones was mostly dry and crumbling.
Those seeking an audience with the Undying Ones had to follow the rules.
Before entering the hall, one had to first drink the "shade of the evening," so as to perceive the "truth and wisdom" presented before them.
Drinking it often would turn one's lips blue, but a single cup would not.
Visitors had to enter the hall alone; the front door could be used to enter, but not to leave.
To find the Undying Ones, a visitor had to always go upward and always take the door on the right.
The doors inside the hall would sometimes stand open, revealing various strange sights within: some existing in the past, some yet to come, and some that would never happen at all.
Some were beautiful, some terrible, some astonishing, and some horrific.
Before reaching the chamber of the Undying Ones, a visitor must never enter any other room.
The same rule applied to leaving.
...
Persuaded by the warlock Pyat Pree, Daenerys Targaryen entered the House of the Undying alone to seek answers.
Although Jorah Mormont and her three Blood Riders disagreed, Daenerys insisted that her dragons would protect her.
Daenerys opened the door to the first room, where the scene depicted a beautiful woman lying naked on the ground, limbs spread, being violated by four small, servant-like figures of shade of the evening.
But the image changed immediately, and roaring flames suddenly erupted around the woman, scattering everything nearby.
At the same time, the woman was no longer naked; golden armor appeared upon her amidst the flames.
Daenerys Targaryen did not fully understand, but she found the scene quite cool.
Afterward, Daenerys went to the second room.
What met her eyes was a feast of corpses, the participants all bodies that had been brutally slaughtered.
The corpses were scattered and mangled, their severed hands clutching bloody cups, wooden spoons, roast ducks, and bread.
On the throne above sat a dead man with a wolf's head.
This incredibly bloody scene startled Daenerys, and just as she was about to leave, she noticed the scene had changed again.
The person sitting on the throne had become a man wearing a crown and a cloak with a Direwolf crest.
The corpses of the participants also gradually disappeared, turning into many soldiers feasting at the banquet.
In the very center of the banquet hall stood an old man with white hair, dressed in Yi Ti attire, his hands behind his back, chest puffed out, bathing in boundless flames, with a fire dragon circling and roaring around him.
The image gradually faded until only the old man in the center remained.
The old man's appearance also changed, gradually transforming from a white-haired elder into a golden-haired youth, and his clothing shifted from the ceremonial robes of Yi Ti to golden armor and a red cloak.
Daenerys went to the third room, and the image inside was actually a house with a red door, with a lemon tree swaying freely beside it.
Daenerys Targaryen recognized it; this was her former home in Braavos.
It represented her childhood memories, the only place where she had felt warmth during her childhood.
The image in the fourth room was in the throne room adorned with the skulls of dead dragons, where a crowned king sat upon the towering and spiked iron throne.
He shrieked: "Burn them! Burn them!"
Finally, a golden-haired man wearing golden armor and a white cloak stepped out, and as the king turned to flee, he thrust a sword into his heart and then slit his throat.
This sword was engraved with the lion crest of House Lannister, and the color of the hilt also looked very much like House Lannister, both being red and gold.
Daenerys believed this king was likely her father, "The Mad King" Aerys, because this was exactly the same cause of death described by her brother Viserys: killed by the Kingsguard of House Lannister, Jaime Lannister.
In the fifth and final room, a man with silver hair and purple eyes stood before a burning palace, holding a newborn child, who appeared to be his son.
He said: "Let us call him Aegon. He is the prince that was promised in the Targaryen prophecy, and his song is the song of ice and fire."
"The dragon has three heads; this is the second head, and one more is needed."
Immediately after, the man played his harp with focus, the music soft and sorrowful, tugging at the heartstrings.
After viewing the five rooms, Daenerys Targaryen opened the final door, where the long-awaited Pyat Pree and the exit were.
"Listen to me, Your Grace. The House of the Undying was not built for mortals. If you value your soul, heed my words and be extremely careful," said Pyat Pree.
Then, Pyat Pree waved his hand, guiding Daenerys toward the chamber of the Undying Ones.
...
The chamber of the Undying Ones was dark, filled by a long stone table above which floated a human heart, rotting and swollen, bruised in color, yet still beating.
With every beat, it emitted a deep, vibrating sound and radiated a wave of dark blue light.
The bodies of the Undying Ones were withered and shrunken, their skin a deep, saturated blue-violet.
They did not breathe, yet they could manifest visions and speak.
In the chamber of the Undying Ones, they made a prophecy to Daenerys Targaryen:
The first prophecy was of the three:
"The dragon has three heads! It is fated that you shall kindle three fires: one for life, one for death, and one for love; it is fated that you shall mount three steeds: one for bed, one for dread, and one for love; it is fated that you shall experience three treasons: one for blood, one for gold, and one for love."
The second prophecy was of three sets of visions: the daughter of death, the slayer of lies, and the bride of fire.
In the first set of visions, the daughter of death, Daenerys saw the scene of her second brother Viserys Targaryen's death, where molten gold melted his skull;
the scene of her eldest brother Rhaegar Targaryen's death at the Ruby Ford, where red rubies sprayed from his chest as he whispered a woman's name;
and a Khal with silver-gold hair and bronze skin riding a stallion; Daenerys believed this might be her dead son, Rhaego.
In the second set of visions, the slayer of lies, Daenerys saw a blue-eyed king who cast no shadow, holding a sword high, the light on the sword fading into darkness;
many people cheering around a cloth dragon flapping on a pole; judging by their clothing, they appeared to be a group of mummers;
a monstrous, terrifying stone beast flying from a stone tower, breathing black shadow fire from its mouth.
The appearance of this stone beast was very strange, something Daenerys Targaryen had never seen before.
In the third set of visions, the bride of fire, Daenerys saw her husband, Khal Drogo, marrying her beneath the stars and above the streams;
a dead man tied to the prow of a ship on the sea, his lips gray, his hair long, his eyes glowing, and a strange smile on his lips;
a blue rose growing from a crack in a wall of ice.
Daenerys looked at this rose and felt a sense of familiarity; it seemed to be a blue winter rose from the North.
These Undying Ones told Daenerys much, one could say they spoke of everything.
But then, for some unknown reason, they suddenly stood up, drew daggers and knives, and began to attack Daenerys, a group of them surrounding her with murderous intent in their eyes.
Just as Daenerys Targaryen was running out in a panic, not knowing what to do, the black dragon Drogon on her shoulder suddenly let out a roar and unleashed a blast of searing dragonfire from his mouth.
The dragonfire was blinding and scorching, setting the treacherous Undying Ones ablaze.
Taking advantage of this, Daenerys rushed out of the chamber of the Undying Ones, and as soon as she stepped out, she saw the fire blazing inside.
She ran through the long, dark, narrow, and winding passageways before her, searching for a long time but unable to find even a single door.
She continued to run, but the floor beneath her feet seemed to move constantly as she did.
Daenerys did not know how long she had run, but she suddenly saw a door appear before her, with warm light radiating from outside.
She rushed through this door and ran into the sunlight.
Immediately, Daenerys realized she had exited the House of the Undying, and seeing her sworn protector Jorah Mormont and her three Blood Riders, she could not help but breathe a sigh of relief.
However, Pyat Pree, standing not far from the exit, was babbling in some unknown language, hopping from one foot to the other, appearing very angry.
He shrieked and cursed at Daenerys Targaryen while pulling a dagger from his waist to lunge at her, but the Blood Riders Rakharo and Jhogo seized the moment and immediately stepped forward to subdue him.
In her confusion, Daenerys Targaryen glanced back inadvertently and discovered that smoke, blotting out the sky, was seeping from the cracks in the ancient stone walls and the black tiled roof of the House of the Undying, rising into the sky.