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

Chapter 154: Chapter 153 – Before the Great Council of King’s Landing (X)

Jaehaerys’s face went pale. His hands trembled as he glared furiously at Maekar. He rose from his chair as he faced his grandson.

“YOU FOOLISH, ARROGANT BOY!!!! HOW DARE YOU ACCUSE ME OF NOT LOVING MY FAMILY?” Jaehaerys’s furious voice could probably be heard through half the castle.

“EVERYTHING I HAVE DONE WAS FOR MY FAMILY. I FOUGHT, I SHED TEARS, I BLED, AND I FOUGHT EVEN MORE. I HAVE DONE SO SINCE I WAS YOUR AGE!!”

To say Jaehaerys was furious would be an understatement. The king’s chest rose and fell rapidly, his breathing ragged.

Maekar showed no fear and stood up, facing Jaehaerys. Looking into the king’s eyes, he simply spoke in a calm tone, “Then let me kill the murderer who killed your grandson.”

Maekar’s words made all the curses, fury, and rage Jaehaerys had been feeling catch in his throat. It was such an uncomfortable, unsettling feeling that the king found himself short of breath.

“But I also don’t think you’re wrong, Jaehaerys,” Maekar said, making Jaehaerys’s eyes widen, utterly disbelieving what he had just heard.

“A good king must control his anger, must not let his fury turn into an act that will pile up mountains of corpses.” Maekar went on speaking calmly. “Still, there are things in this world we must not ignore. And that is our family.”

“If I sit on that throne, I will not hesitate to declare war on the Faith of the Seven. There isn’t even the possibility of reconciliation.”

Taking a deep breath, Maekar spoke in a determined tone. “I know this decision will bring me regrets in my life, but every time I rest my head on the pillow and look at your daughter, I won’t feel that I failed her. I will have the courage to look at my sons and daughters and say I did not fail to avenge my son, who never even had the privilege of drawing breath.”

“You may keep your reign of peace, being remembered as one of the finest kings ever to walk this continent, but I will rule my reign however I see fit, even if they call me a tyrant, cruel, or even a monster.”

After saying these words, Maekar did not look at Jaehaerys or Alysanne and walked out of the room. He had completely lost his appetite.

Jaehaerys, still standing, felt a sharp pain in his chest and sank powerlessly into his chair. He looked up at the ceiling, lost in thought, and could not even manage to speak a word. Maekar’s words kept echoing in his mind.

“Alysanne.” A hoarse voice escaped Jaehaerys’s lips. “Am I a good king?”

“Yes, you are.” Alysanne did not hesitate to answer, but her words cut into his heart like a blade.

Yes, he was a good king, just as Maekar had said. And yet, Jaehaerys could not feel any happiness at that statement. He was so good a king that he could overlook even his own grandson’s murder and watch the killer parade under a red carpet and do nothing.

All for the sake of not plunging the entire continent into flames.

Jaehaerys shut his eyes tightly, his entire reign flashing through his mind. From the war against the Faith Militant, which had carried on from Aenys and Maegor and finally ended with him. To avoid a war against the Stormlands, he had let Rogar Baratheon live, even after the man tried to seize power.

He had overlooked the attempt on his own wife’s life and, as a consequence, the loss of his firstborn son, so as not to further worsen matters with the Faith of the Seven. His entire reign had been spent in pursuit of balance and in avoiding another civil war.

In the end, he truly was a good king.

(Note: Jaehaerys and Alysanne’s first son was named Aegon, but he was born premature and died not long after birth. At least, according to Alysanne’s own words, the child would not have died had the assassination attempt on her at Maidenpool never happened.)

“I’m tired, Alysanne…” Jaehaerys’s hoarse voice sounded again. “I want to see our sons and daughters again.”

“I’m tired too, Jaehaerys.” Alysanne only stayed by her husband’s side as she held his thin, frail hand.

Jaehaerys remained silent, his mind still replaying Maekar’s words. In the end, a bitter laugh, full of sorrow, escaped his lips.

The worst part was knowing Maekar was right.

He did not regret his choices.

Small Council Chamber.

Gael could be seen seated in the head chair while the ministers of the small council assisted her in running the realm. The number of nobles in the city only kept growing enormously. Along with the servants, knights, and relatives these nobles brought with them, the city was even running short of lodging.

At the same time, conflict among the nobles had also grown enormously. A single word could offend a noble and spark an argument that usually ended in a duel. Though these duels rarely ended in death, some unlucky ones still died, especially during the horse-racing competitions.

When these nobles died, it was their relatives who would start accusing the challenger of cheating and other such things. In the end, the problem always landed in her lap. Gael now understood why her father hated the schemes her mother, Alysanne, used to pull at court.

The nobility was petty and arrogant, capable of turning a molehill into a mountain. It was simply irritating. Interestingly, the feasts her nephew was holding helped ease these occurrences somewhat, even if only a little.

Gael merely scoffed at Viserys’s attempts to win people over with banquets and feasts. As for the fiefs and titles he was promising, it took only a few orders from her to spread rumors, steadily eroding the trust these nobles placed in Viserys.

After a while longer, Gael was relieved there was nothing left to settle and dismissed the entire Small Council.

Just as Gael was about to leave as well, she stopped, seeing Maekar arrive. The princess quickly frowned, noticing her husband’s cold, indifferent expression. Her husband’s anger was different from other men’s; it was a quiet, cold anger, like a snowstorm.

“Who was the fool who made my handsome husband angry? Tell me, and I’ll cut out his tongue.” Gael embraced Maekar and spoke in a tone full of tenderness and love.

“You’d have to cut out your own father’s tongue.” Maekar said with a touch of sarcasm, remembering Jaehaerys’s contemptible face. Being asked to sit in silence and watch his son’s murderer was something he never thought he would hear in his life.

Gael frowned. Though she did not know what her father had said to make Maekar so angry, she was already on her husband’s side in this dispute.

“What happened?” Gael asked in a worried tone.

Maekar took a deep breath, then told her about the heated argument that had taken place between him and Jaehaerys.

Gael trembled as she clenched her fists. Learning that her son’s murderer was coming and that her own father had dared ask her to stay quiet made her blood boil like never before.

So what if Jaehaerys burned a septo to avenge her son? What was a mere septo compared to the murderer himself? At the same time, Gael felt an overwhelming sorrow at learning her own father did not wish to help avenge his own grandson.

“I promise you, Gael.” Holding his wife’s face between his hands, Maekar spoke in a cold, chilling tone. “He thinks he can walk away alive because of his status, but it will be the last act of his arrogance.”

“He will not leave this city alive. His body will be found inside a pig pen.”

Gael did not doubt Maekar’s words for a moment. If there was one thing she believed in him, it was the equally fierce thirst for vengeance they both shared.

——–

My energy is back!!!!

I did not miss a single day of posting on the NovelPhoenix, and now my consecutive writing day count has been reset to zero. Saying I am furious is an understatement. I want to destroy the storm that left me without electricity for two days.

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