Varys had already caught the flash of panic and unease in Leo's micro-expressions. No matter how well Leo tried to hide it, the Spider's experienced eyes saw everything.
He thought he had exactly what he needed.
Just as Varys opened his mouth to speak, Leo cut him off.
"Fine. I admit it—I lied."
Varys's prepared words died in his throat.
He had been ready to hint that he could help Leo cover up the lie… in exchange for a deeper, more binding alliance. In truth, he wanted to use this leverage to slowly bring Leo under his control while pretending they were friends.
He never expected Leo to confess so openly. It caught him completely off guard.
In reality, Leo had seen through Varys the moment he used the words "bad news." The knowing little smile Varys gave him earlier confirmed it—the Spider already knew the story was fake.
But the fact that Varys had pulled him aside privately instead of reporting it directly meant the eunuch wanted something—more leverage, more profit—before exposing him.
So Leo decided to flip the script. Since the other man already knew he was lying, pointless denial would only play into Varys's hands. Better to admit it boldly… and then drop an even bigger bombshell.
"What did you just say…?" Varys asked, stunned.
"I said I lied," Leo sighed. "My fleet didn't come from the east. We came from the west—across the Sunset Sea."
Varys's eyes widened. "Impossible! Beyond the Sunset Sea there is nothing but endless ocean. For thousands of years, countless adventurers have sailed west, and every single one has failed to return!"
"Even the famous 'Brandon the Shipwright' took a fleet west and was never seen again. The Citadel in Oldtown has countless records of this. In the Ironborn legends, the Sunset Sea ends at the edge of the world, where sea monsters dwell!"
Leo put on a pained, sorrowful expression. "I know. Before I saw that horror with my own eyes, I also thought they were just stories meant to scare children. But that creature was real—just as real as the dragons of old."
"Almost my entire fleet was destroyed by that monster. Only my most loyal men and I escaped on the fastest ship, fleeing that cursed sea."
"You're… still lying!" Varys protested, incredulous. "Your story contradicts itself! First you claim you're from an ancient empire in the east, now you say you came from the west. How many more lies are you going to tell? I want to help you, my friend! Why won't you be honest with me?"
Leo placed his right hand over his heart, looking sincere. "By the gods, everything I'm about to tell you is true. There's no contradiction."
"I set out from my homeland with a great fleet, sailing east to prove my courage and to explore the Endless Sea. I wanted to see if the edge of the world truly existed."
"After more than five months of sailing east, we encountered a legendary sea monster—a colossal beast with countless thick tentacles and a body so massive we could barely see its true form beneath the waves."
"After losing nearly all our ships and men, I and a handful of survivors continued east, then followed the currents north. Eventually we reached a place called the Stepstones."
"From the locals there, I learned about Westeros and the Seven Kingdoms. With the help of a lame old sailor who acted as our pilot, we navigated through the Stepstones, rounded the southern coast of Dorne, and finally made landfall at Massey's Hook."
"I didn't dare land at any proper port because my ship still carried dozens of chests filled with gold. With only a few men left, I couldn't risk being robbed. I wanted to reach King's Landing as quickly as possible and seek the king's protection with my wealth."
"But in the end, that old sailor betrayed us. He wasn't a simple pilot—he was a retired pirate. He deliberately led us to a deserted beach so he could team up with bandits hiding in the Kingswood to steal everything I had left."
"The rest you already know. I survived, hired sellswords with what little silver I had, set a trap, and wiped out the bandits to recover my treasure."
"The reason I didn't dare tell anyone I had crossed the Sunset Sea is because, while talking with that pirate, I heard a familiar name—Asshai."
"According to the ancient records of my homeland, our ancestors originally crossed from Asshai to settle the great lands in the east. There were also fragments of text mentioning legendary place names west of Asshai…"
"Countless brave souls who tried to follow our ancestors' path and explore westward either died at the hands of savage tribes or vanished into the vast mountains known as the Shadow Lands. They say that place is home to all kinds of mythical creatures—demons, dragons, stone gargoyles, lava hounds… It is forbidden to mankind."
"Since we couldn't explore further west, in my youthful arrogance I decided to sail east instead, to see if there truly was an edge to the world beyond the Endless Sea. That's how I ended up here in Westeros…"
"But Asshai is west of my homeland. I sailed east the entire way… yet when I arrived here, I heard that Asshai lies far to the east. So… a shocking thought occurred to me."
Varys stared at him, eyes wide, mouth hanging open in disbelief.
"You mean to say…?"
"I think you already understand, my friend," Leo shrugged helplessly. "If my guess is correct, the land we stand on… this entire world… may be a sphere."
"That's why I could sail east the entire time and still reach Westeros—the far western lands."
The world is a sphere?
How could that be?