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

Chapter 110: Chapter 109 – Pre-War Council (II)

“My queen, the plan is to attack Myr together with Prince Maekar, mounted on the dragon Bahamut.” Corlys spoke, looking at everyone present, especially the queen. He continued speaking in a solemn tone. “The fleet will be split in two; one will attack Myr with the prince, and the second will remain at the entrance to the Sea of Myrth to prevent any fleet from coming out of Tyrosh.”

“The queen will remain at Dragonstone with a handful of ships and will guard against any attack from Pentos and Braavos. The two lines of defense should be enough to destroy Myr and return in time to handle any problems.” Corlys finished in a calm tone.

Honestly, it was a simple plan, but the simpler a plan was, the lower the chance of making mistakes. Complex plans were too dangerous, since there could be no errors on the part of any of those involved in the war, including the enemy themselves.

Corlys was an experienced naval commander and knew he could not complicate things when it came to a sea battle. The sea was the embodiment of nature’s fury, and mother nature did not take orders and often changed the theater of war in a mere moment.

Thinking of the queen’s advanced age, Corlys added, “The queen will not need to leave Dragonstone until an enemy is actually sighted. Ravens are aboard the ships with messages ready for any attack from Pentos or Braavos.”

Alysanne nodded her head. Although she was not a fighter, she had read many books to help Jaehaerys in the first twenty years of her husband’s rule. A time when House Targaryen was still at war with the Faith of the Seven and the Faith Militant still existed.

“Thank you, Lord Corlys.” Alysanne thanked him and already had an idea of the war. This battle was meant to break the Kingdom of the Three Daughters, Myr, Tyrosh, and Lys. Once the Kingdom of the Three Daughters collapsed, the war could shift its focus to the Braavosian Coastland.

Without the Kingdom of the Three Daughters, the full pressure of the war would fall on Braavos, letting the free city see how they could destroy its entire economy, burning any warship or merchant ship that dared leave Braavos.

Of course, Alysanne knew it would not reach such a state of total war, since Braavos was not entirely defenseless, and if Braavos’s powerful houses united, they could pay the Faceless Men to kill every member of House Targaryen.

However, with Maekar alive and able to fight the Faceless Men, Braavos also knew they could not do this without it becoming mutual destruction. And if there was one thing everyone valued, it was their own lives. Although there were some fools who treated their own life as though it were nothing.

“When will the war begin?” Alysanne asked in a calm tone; she looked at Maekar beside her with a gentle gaze.

“It will take a day to mobilize the entire fleet and the necessary supplies, so the battle will begin tomorrow, at the start of the day,” Maekar answered in a helpless tone. The larger the army, the greater the logistics, not to mention that a fleet’s logistics were even more complicated than those of a normal army.

If it were not for the Velaryon Fleet, which was disciplined, and Corlys Velaryon, a legendary captain, the mobilization time could have even tripled.

“I will be at Dragonstone guarding your backs, but remember to come back alive to your wives, sons, and daughters.” Alysanne looked at everyone present and said in a gentle, yet solemn, tone.

These men, who had been baptized in the flames of war countless times, could not help but puff out their chests at the queen’s concern.

Seeing this, Maekar could not help but think the good cop, bad cop tactic truly worked in every world. Jaehaerys acted as the cold, bad cop, while Alysanne acted as the gentle, good cop.

Surprisingly, the people and even the lords felt honored by the queen’s concern. However, Maekar understood the reason for this. It was a common psychological effect among people. When you see and speak with someone you consider important, you unconsciously feel feelings of dependence and even trust.

The human mind truly was curious.

Corlys also felt grateful for the queen’s comforting words. It seemed as though Alysanne were the very reincarnation of the Mother, worried for her children going off to the battlefield.

“The pre-war council meeting is over. Eat, sleep, and be ready for war.” Maekar rose, looked at everyone present, and spoke in a confident tone. From his expression, this battle was already a certain victory.

To many, this might seem arrogant and even foolish, but, if a commander has no confidence in winning the battle, neither will the soldiers. The first lesson of a general, or even of a mere captain, was to control his own soldiers’ morale.

And, as Maekar expected, he saw the lords filled with confidence, as though victory were already won. Which was normal in his eyes. Prince Maekar was a great warrior and, at the same time, rode one of the three largest dragons of House Targaryen.

Although Bahamut was not as large as Balerion, the Black Dread, he was still extremely striking and monstrous. If they could not win with a beast of this size, then nothing could defeat a mere free city.

When the war council ended, Maekar and Alysanne could be seen in the prince’s own room. Surprisingly, there was a woman with long red hair and equally red eyes sitting beside Maekar.

Looking at the Red Witch, Alysanne brought to her lips the cup containing juice that had been served by Roland Tarly. She narrowed her eyes but said nothing without truly knowing the facts.

“I killed Duram Bar Emmon; I beheaded him for accusing me of being a traitor and conspiring with foreign forces to bring chaos to the Seven Kingdoms.” Maekar said calmly as he drank the cup of wine given to him by Roland. He swirled the purplish liquid in the cup and looked at Alysanne with a smiling gaze.

“Lords Stokeworth, Rosby, and Sunglass, unfortunately, fled tonight and sank at sea for desertion,” Maekar added indifferently.

Alysanne looked at her grandson and then at Melisandre. She understood immediately what was happening. Clearly, Maekar had accepted the loyalty of the Red Faith, and many lords who had ties to the Faith of the Seven had not liked that at all.

As for how the three lords died, Alysanne had no doubt that dragonfire had rained down on them.

The queen furrowed her brow and advised Maekar in a gentle tone, without a hint of reproach in her voice for her grandson having killed four lords. “Maekar, next time this happens, try to show a more generous image, one willing to accept others’ mistakes. Remember that a middle ground between cruelty and kindness is the best thing to do in a situation like this.”

Maekar showed a thoughtful look, and from his grandmother’s words, he truly felt he could have been more gentle and persuasive with the other lords without showing so much cruelty. This would show that he could be understanding.

“I will be more careful, Grandmother,” Maekar said in a soft tone. Although he felt he had been a bit too harsh, he felt things had worked out in a pleasant way, and he had managed to eliminate the lords extremely hostile to him, leaving behind the neutral ones and those who supported him.

Now, he only had to show that he could also be generous and kind, as Alysanne had said, in order to build a solid image in these lords’ minds.

Alysanne, seeing Maekar accept, reflect, and then discover his own mistakes, could not help but smile gently. Her grandson truly was someone who could learn from his own mistakes and accept advice. And this was a fairly rare trait for a king.

“So, you have accepted the Red Faith?” Alysanne looked at Melisandre and asked in a calm tone. How could she not understand what the Red Faith wanted? It was not the first time the Red Faith had come to Westeros, and it would not be the last.

“Yes.” Maekar did not hide it, since it would become common knowledge in the future anyway.

Looking at Melisandre, the queen did not speak to her; she merely looked at Maekar with a calm gaze. Seeing the solemnity in his eyes, the words of counsel that had been about to be spoken remained caught between her lips.

No matter what she said, Maekar would not back down from so drastic a choice.

Her grandson was intelligent and shrewd; of course he knew the consequences of this action.

A declaration of war against the Faith of the Seven.

However, looking at it from one angle, Alysanne realized the Faith of the Seven would never accept Maekar as king. In the end, her grandson was a bastard, the fruit of the sin the Faith of the Seven had preached for over six millennia.

Accepting Maekar was the same as accepting a demon on the Iron Throne.

It was then that Alysanne understood the reason Maekar had accepted the loyalty of the Red Faith.

Since they would be enemies regardless, it was better to find an equally great enemy to fight the Faith of the Seven.

“Just be careful; I know how treacherous and cunning these fanatics can be.” Remembering how she had nearly died at the hands of the Faith of the Seven while bathing, she reminded Maekar in a worried tone.

Maekar smiled and nodded his head.

——-

Note: I just finished reading *Goodnight Punpun*, my friends, I’ve never seen a more toxic relationship. The author must be completely crazy.

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