House of The Dragon:The Rise of the Emperor of the Seven Kingdoms

Seven days after Maekar’s arrival at Dragonstone.

The Stone Drum is the central keep of Dragonstone Castle; it is the residence of the members of House Targaryen. The Stone Drum got its name because of the rumble and noise its walls produce during storms.

Set atop the Stone Drum is the Chamber of the Painted Table, a large circular room with black stone walls. Its four windows, tall and narrow, offer views toward the cardinal points. Each window has wooden shutters and heavy velvet curtains, and the room also has a fireplace. The Painted Table of Aegon the Conqueror stands at the center of the chamber.

Maekar could be seen sitting in the main seat before the Painted Table. The very seat in which Aegon the Conqueror had once sat. Looking at his left hand and wrist, the prince frowned; the red, wrinkled skin, even after seven days of treatment, had only just begun to heal.

"Queen Visenya, they say you were a blood witch; why can I not find any of that in the library or anywhere else?" Maekar muttered in an irritated tone. He had spent days searching for this knowledge, but there was nothing beyond the mention that Visenya practiced blood magic.

After Cannibal’s attack, Maekar understood that it was Bahamut who was powerful, not him. Before dragons, no matter how strong he was, he was not even a match for them. So, he recalled that the Old Valyrians rode dragons while wielding fire and blood magic.

At present, Maekar wanted to learn magic, and even a little would already help. He did not wish to be Voldemort or even Dumbledore; he would be satisfied to have some power to protect himself from something like that again.

Unfortunately, no matter where he looked, there was nothing at Dragonstone recording that kind of knowledge. Maekar even considered that people had invented slander to demonize Visenya’s image in the eyes of the common people.

"My prince, I have something to report." As Maekar sat lost in thought, he heard a familiar male voice and looked up. It was the Maester of Dragonstone, Ollyr. He held a letter still sealed with dark blue wax.

"The letter came from Braavos." Ollyr said in a respectful tone.

Maekar’s face turned cold, and he said in a calm tone. "Open the letter and read it."

Ollyr did as Maekar ordered, broke the wax seal, and opened the letter. Looking at its contents for a moment, he paused and took a deep breath. He looked at Maekar for a moment and began reading aloud.

"To the kings, princes, lords, and councilors of the Seven Kingdoms,

Braavos’s merchant ships were attacked without provocation, without warning, and without just cause by forces tied to the Crown of the Seven Kingdoms. Such an offense will not be treated as a mere incident at sea, nor will it be smoothed over with coin, empty apologies, or promises cast to the wind.

Braavos does not bow to the gold of the so-called Dragon King. Braavos does not forget blood spilled in its waters. And Braavos does not allow its sons to be killed without the price being paid.

By the authority of my office as Sealord of Braavos, I demand that Rhaenys Targaryen, responsible for this crime, be handed over immediately to the justice of Braavos, to answer before our laws and before those who were unjustly killed by her order or by her hand.

Let there be no mistake; this is not a plea. It is not a request made out of fear, nor a word spoken in weakness. It is a demand.

If Rhaenys Targaryen is not handed over, we will regard her protection by the Crown as a confession of guilt and complicity. In that case, the swords of Braavos will be drawn, our ships will cross the sea, our lenders will close their coffers to our enemies, and every port that raises the banner of the dragon will know the weight of our wrath.

The Seven Kingdoms have chosen to light this flame. Let them be prepared to burn in it.

Bessaro Reyaan, Sealord of Braavos."

Ollyr finished speaking and fell silent.

Maekar tapped the finger of his uninjured right hand and showed a thoughtful look. He looked at Ollyr and asked with a strange expression. "Is Bessaro about to be deposed or something of the sort?"

The reason for Maekar’s question was that the Sealord of Braavos was mad. For there was no way the Crown could hand over a Targaryen princess, let alone a dragon rider. If she were given up, Maekar could see that Jaehaerys would be considered the weakest king in the continent’s history. Surpassing even Aenys.

This was no joke; Bassaro’s demands were far too high. And, even if this was an act of war, the Sealord should not be acting so emotionally. The only remaining possibility was that he was being pressured by the powerful houses of Braavos.

"Bassaro Reyaan is somewhat unpopular because of certain behaviors considered... immoral by Braavos’s standards," Ollyr answered in a calm tone. "Alleged slaves were found in his private mansion. This became a scandal of great proportions when the Sealord tried to bribe everyone into silence, which made him appear even guiltier than before."

Maekar understood what was happening. Bassaro, instead of denying the rumors, had simply bribed certain people to cover up the incident. This only confirmed that he truly did have slaves. With this weapon in hand, Bassaro’s enemies had naturally undermined the Sealord’s influence.

Of course, this was only Maekar’s speculation, but he felt it was not far from the truth.

"Does he want to raise his prestige through this war, or will he truly lose the Sealord’s Throne?" Maekar asked in a somewhat sarcastic tone.

A man who holds power would never let that power slip from his own hands; that would be worse than killing him. To avoid losing the post of Sealord of Braavos, Bassaro had even dared to declare war on the Seven Kingdoms.

Even if he lost the war, he would still be remembered in history, and his throne would be preserved.

"Ollyr, Jaehaerys will refuse the demand, and the war will begin," Maekar said in a somewhat thoughtful tone. He looked at Ollyr and said, "Send ravens to all the noble houses: Bar Emmon, Celtigar, Massey, Rosby, Darklyn, Stokeworth, and Sunglass. Have them prepare for war and wait to join Corlys Velaryon in the defense of Blackwater Bay."

"Yes, my prince." Ollyr wasted no time and left the chamber with hurried steps. Unlike the older maesters, he was still middle-aged and could run much faster than an old man.

With Ollyr gone, Maekar murmured, "Should I burn every ship along the coast of Braavos?"

That could make for a good surprise attack. Those ships would have no weapons and would be completely defenseless against Bahamut, but that would also worsen the war further.

Suddenly, Maekar shook his head and said with a laugh, "I am overthinking this; we are already at war, there is no reason to worry about the damage caused."

Maekar felt truly young in that moment; he was full of hesitation over something that was already determined to happen.

House Targaryen feared no one except the Faceless Men. Without that, Braavos was nothing more than a large, stationary target, ready to be burned.

However, even being mad, Bassaro would not dare go so far as to hire the Faceless Men, for Maekar could fight the Faceless Men. As long as he lived, Braavos could forget about having ships or even an economy.

Maekar could not burn the city, since that was somewhat risky, but he could wipe out the entire fleet of Braavos and burn any caravan that dared approach the city.

So, knowing this fact, neither side would begin a war of annihilation, for it was not advantageous to anyone.

"Still, I cannot underestimate the madness of people." Maekar said in a thoughtful tone.

His grandfather from his past life had once said a line that stayed with him for his entire life.

"Never test human nature, for it will always disappoint you."

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Note: For some reason, the two Chapters weren’t posted automatically. I checked it out and noticed that I had scheduled Chapter 87 to be posted on September 4.

Read the advanced Chapters on my Patreon!

/GOTSW

Read my other books:

House of The Dragon:The Rise of the Emperor of the Seven Kingdoms

Game Of Thrones: The God-Emperor of Planetos

Percy Jackson: Godwyn the Golden.

Game Of Thrones: The King’s Court Wizard