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

Dragonstone, Chamber of the Painted Table.

Maekar looked out the window at the fleet of ships, not far from the volcanic island, with a calm gaze. He turned his attention back to Ollyr, the Maester of Dragonstone. Then, he spoke in a thoughtful, somewhat distracted tone, "Maester Ollyr, send a letter to King’s Landing with the following words."

"I will begin implementing the naval blockade against all merchant ships coming from Essos to Westeros. Your Grace should begin speaking with your friends in Essos to pressure the Sealord of Braavos."

The message was short and direct, without any pomp or even a greeting between him and the king. As for the reason behind the message, it was quite simple.

It was the difference between monarchists and feudal capitalists.

Unlike Westeros, where the noble houses were used to earning money from land and held absolute power over their own fiefdoms, Essos was not accustomed to such a thing in the slightest.

Perhaps back when Valyria still existed, there was overland trade between the Free Cities, but after the Doom of Valyria, those trade routes ceased to exist. Without the Dragonlords, the Free Cities’ greatest problem was born.

The Dothraki.

Faced with one of the most brutal, strong, and merciless armies in the Known World, the free cities were no different from defenseless maidens. Of course, aside from Braavos, the other Free Cities were practically banks of wealth for the Dothraki Horselords.

So, the sea, the one place where the Dothraki did not exist, became the source of wealth for these city states. What would happen once the naval blockade took effect? What would the capitalists do upon seeing their path to wealth vanish?

Of course they would do anything to restore the sea routes, especially between Westeros and Essos, where Lys, Myr, Tyrosh, and Volantis earned vast amounts of money.

This war, which had begun because of the Sealord, would culminate in another kind of war, a war of trade and pressure.

The Sealord had to bear the pressure of the people who wanted the war to end while he fought against House Targaryen.

Perhaps Myr and Lys would help a little, since four of the six merchant ships had been theirs. But no one expected much from Myr and Lys, since they were weak. Braavos was different; the city had to protect its reputation as the strongest.

Maekar would do his part to pressure the Sealord; Jaehaerys had to do his part by pressuring the other free cities to pressure Braavos.

"Yes, my prince," Ollyr bowed and left the Chamber of the Painted Table.

Maekar looked at the fleet of ships drifting through Blackwater Bay and narrowed his eyes. With the mobilization of the noble houses of the Crownlands, he could be much freer.

Letting out a somewhat weary sigh, the prince also left the Chamber of the Painted Table.

-

About half an hour later, Maekar stood beside Bahamut as he stroked the dragon’s platinum scales.

Not far off, forty soldiers were watching the scene with a look of admiration and respect. A younger soldier said in a still awestruck tone. "Even though I have seen it a few times, it is still incredible to see such a huge beast be so friendly with humans. He truly is the Burned Hand."

"Boy, you have seen nothing. Go ask the old man what it was like to see the Conqueror and Balerion flying together. He was just a child when the Conqueror was alive." A soldier in his thirties said in a teasing tone.

The soldiers around them, who had Valyrian features, exclaimed loudly. If there was one man everyone else admired, it was Aegon, the pinnacle of manhood in this world. You might find a man who hated Aegon, but you would not find a man who looked down on him.

Even though he was fairly far off, the conversation among the Dragonstone guards still reached Maekar and made him roll his eyes. Being called the Burned Hand was exactly why he did not want to get personally involved in the kitchen or with laundry. People in this world handed out titles to one another as if they were eating bread.

Shaking his head, Maekar climbed into Bahamut’s saddle and settled in. He took the belt, tied it around his waist, and patted the dragon’s neck twice.

Bahamut opened his eyes and lifted his body off the rocky ground. The dragon turned his head, looking at the soldiers who stared at him with fear and admiration. He seemed genuinely pleased by what was happening and took flight with a beat of powerful wings that stirred up strong winds behind him.

"You narcissistic dragon," Maekar could not help but remark with a touch of helplessness. Sometimes he thought Bahamut was an atypical case, just like Caraxes. It was the first time he had seen a dragon so happy to be the center of attention.

Bahamut let out a long, guttural sound, as if his throat were trembling, answering his rider’s words.

Setting that aside, Maekar looked out at the boundless horizon of the sea and made Bahamut head toward the Coast of Braavos.

"Let us go burn some ships, Bahamut." Maekar said with a smile.

Bahamut let out a roar in response and, just like Caraxes, seemed pleased at the idea of burning people and ships. Perhaps it was the instinct of every dragon to do so; destroying something was strangely pleasurable, whether for men or dragons.

The gigantic platinum dragon surged forward, climbing quickly into the sky but still staying a bit below the clouds. Both Bahamut and Maekar had learned that staying in the clouds made for the perfect place to be ambushed.

Looking at the clouds, Maekar felt his hand itch and could not help but think that Cannibal was hiding within them. Even though it was unlikely that such a thing would happen.

Ever since the day he was ambushed by the black, green-eyed dragon, Bahamut and Maekar had hunted for that abominable dragon, but it seemed he knew he was being hunted and simply vanished.

As for entering the dozens of openings in the volcano, Maekar was not foolish enough to do such a thing. If Cannibal were in one of the caverns, it would be the perfect place for an ambush. He would not fall for the same trick twice.

"Cunning dragon," Maekar whispered, thinking of Cannibal. In his eyes, Cannibal was an experienced, cunning hunter. Most importantly, he was a complete coward who fed on eggs and hatchlings.

Bahamut was also far more watchful now; the dragon’s golden eyes scanned the surroundings with a predator’s gaze, almost as though expecting the enemy to strike again. Unfortunately, the farther they got from Dragonstone, there was no sign of the black dragon at all.

Letting out a disappointed sigh, Maekar focused on his objective.

Attacking the Braavosian Coastland.

The Braavosian Coastland is a mountainous, coastal territory claimed by Braavos on the northwestern coast of Essos, facing the Vale of Arryn, along the Narrow Sea. It was an important safe route for pirates, though the waters were somewhat stormy.

At this moment, the indifference between the upper echelons of Braavos and the common people ran endlessly deep. While they worried about the war, they still allowed merchant ships to come and go without caring about the danger this could pose to the sailors.

Bessaro Reyaan did not dare touch the interests of the powerful houses of Braavos. If he dared to stop these people from making money, he should expect to have to resign the post of Sealord because of the pressure.

However, this internal conflict proved to be a good thing for the Seven Kingdoms.

At this moment, dozens of merchant ships could be seen sailing across the somewhat calm waters. Different crests fluttered in the salty sea breeze.

Myr, Lys, Tyrosh, Lorath. Besides these, there were independent merchant ships as well.

At this moment, the monster that would come to be known as Pale Death emerged on the horizon.

The gigantic dragon, eighty-two meters in length and two hundred twenty meters in wingspan, beat his wings, making his enormous body glide through the air. His sharp golden eyes were full of tyranny.

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Rockstar made a trailer to announce a trailer. Not only that, but we have to pay to watch the trailer. The days ahead look bleak, my dear fellow gamers.

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