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

Chapter 175: Chapter 174 – The King’s Landing Tournament (II)

The feast ended.

Curiously, the Lord of Pyke and Lord of the Iron Islands was carried out by his sons, while the Lord of Winterfell and Lord of the North left the feast on his own, laughing like never before. It was obvious Ellard was full of pride for winning the drinking competition, especially against Varon, one of House Stark’s enemies.

“Varon, you drink like a woman who can’t hold her liquor!” Ellard’s arrogant voice carried, and everyone could hear the scorn and glory in it.

Boremund and Corlys were in no better shape; both had also drunk beyond their own capacity. While drunk, the Lord of Storm’s End sang in a far-from-pleasant voice, like an off-key bard.

Judging by the pained expressions of the guests, Boremund’s talent as a bard was clearly bad, not to say nonexistent.

As for the king and queen, both had retired early in the feast and let the star of the banquet shine as he should. And Maekar made the feast, a true celebration party. Not only did he liven up the banquet, but he also talked and made friends with everyone, including those nobles who hadn’t voted for him.

That made the lords who had already witnessed Maekar’s magnanimity even more at ease, and they even joked with Maekar, getting him to drink more and more. Fortunately, Maekar’s loyal knight, Clarisse, always stayed behind her lord and helped when he could no longer drink.

In the end, when everyone had left, Maekar, accompanied by Clarisse and Gael, returned to his room, where the prince collapsed onto the sofa.

While Gael took off Maekar’s boots, she couldn’t help but remark in an irritated and amused tone. “Look at you, you drank more wine than a man would in an entire month.”

Maekar, whose head was somewhat fuzzy, seemed quite relaxed and pulled Gael into his arms while kissing her repeatedly. “My wife is so beautiful… looks like a goddess… I’m going to make a statue of you and put it in the middle of the square so every man in the world can be jealous of me for having such a beautiful wife.”

Gael was exasperated and amused. She had never seen Maekar truly drunk before, and she found it adorable. For every ten words he spoke, eight were to praise her and two were to curse her father.

“Yes, yes, now be a good boy and go to sleep.” Gael, along with Clarisse, put Maekar into bed and arranged him to be comfortable and not feel cold.

“He’s heavy.” Clarisse said in a relieved tone, seeing that Maekar was in bed. She hadn’t expected Maekar to be so heavy; he didn’t look heavy. However, she soon discovered she was quite wrong, and the prince seemed to be made of nothing but muscle.

“I like it.” Gael said in an ambiguous tone, recalling how much she liked Maekar’s body pressing against her. She liked the feeling of closeness and the sensation of the pressure on her.

Clarisse looked at the princess with a laugh and understood perfectly what she meant by that. Guarding Maekar’s room every day, she knew that this seemingly sweet princess was an avid pleasure seeker. There wasn’t a single day when she and the prince didn’t share the bed.

“Speaking of which, we’ve never really had the chance to talk much, Lady Clarisse.” Gael sat down on the sofa and let out a relieved sigh.

Clarisse approached her and knelt before the princess. She helped the princess take off her shoes, making Gael let out a comfortable moan as the shoe came off her foot.

“These things are beautiful, but the pain isn’t small.” Gael remarked, massaging her own feet.

“The princess flies to many places and is hard to keep up with. Besides, I’m no longer Lady; I passed the title to my uncle. I’m just a knight, though I still haven’t been formally recognized by the king or any lord in the Seven Kingdoms since the unification with Dorne,” Clarisse answered in a calm tone.

“Maekar said you’ll be Lady Commander of the Kingsguard; you won’t be able to marry, and you won’t be able to inherit titles or a fief. Are you sure you want a life like that?” As a woman who enjoyed the pleasures of being a woman, Clarisse’s future life was quite hard.

“The princess may find it hard to understand, but I have different ambitions.” Clarisse was still kneeling before Gael and continued speaking in a solemn, calm tone. “I’ve already tried sex, but I didn’t find it as extraordinary as other women say. On the contrary, I found it boring and dull, but, when I fought for the title of Sword of the Morning, I felt a rush of euphoria that no man could ever make me feel.”

Gael truly found it hard to understand Clarisse’s words, but she respected the woman’s choice before her.

“Protect him well; he’s quite reckless at certain times. Not to mention he’s never felt fear since he managed to ride Bahamut.” Gael said, looking tenderly at Maekar in bed.

“I will protect him with my life.” Clarisse promised in a solemn tone.

As the first woman to join the Kingsguard and also the first woman to become Lady Commander of the Kingsguard, she planned to spend her entire life showing that other women could also become legendary figures like Ser Ryam Redwyne or Symeon Star-Eyes.

“Be careful; the men of the Kingsguard may be honorable, but they won’t accept a woman commanding them, especially Ser Ryam. That man is a noble knight, but he won’t like being replaced by a woman either.” Gael said in a calm tone, remembering her father’s Kingsguard. They were the most formidable men in the Seven Kingdoms, but that didn’t mean they were easy to convince of anything.

Clarisse wasn’t surprised by the princess’s words. She was already not well regarded in Dorne, where women could be ladies of castles or even princesses of all Dorne, let alone on this side of Westeros.

Touching Dawn at her waist, Clarisse smiled and spoke in a cold tone. “I’ll make them kneel before this sword, just as many men already have before me.”

Gael smiled; unlike her, who needed Maekar to start growing strong, Clarisse had grown strong over the years, gaining confidence and defeating countless men until finally earning the greatest title of House Dayne, the Sword of the Morning.

“I believe in you.” Gael said with a smile, She trusted her husband’s sharp eyes. He would never accept someone unworthy for one of the most important positions in Westeros.

“I’ll begin my watch, Princess. Call me if you need anything.” Clarisse rose from the floor and spoke in a solemn tone.

When Clarisse was about to close the door, the princess’s voice sounded again, but tinged with a mystery and coldness that surprised her. “Rest well, Clarisse; the coming days will be turbulent.”

“Yes, my princess.” Clarisse answered as she gently closed the door, afraid of disturbing Maekar in bed. At the same time, the princess’s words kept echoing in her mind. Though confused, she knew many would die.

Now alone in the room, Gael took off her clothes, stood naked, and walked over to the bed. She climbed onto the bed and undressed Maekar. When he was completely naked, she showed a satisfied expression, lay down in his arms, and pulled the blanket to cover both their naked bodies.

She had come to quite enjoy sleeping naked with Maekar. Now she couldn’t sleep well without the warmth of her husband’s arms.

Rubbing her cheek against his chest and feeling the warmth of his skin, Gael showed a pleasured look and snuggled even closer to him, practically using her husband as a pillow. She loved that feeling; sharing a bed with someone you love was incredibly good. That’s why she couldn’t understand how Clarisse could give all of that up.

Touching her own belly, Gael murmured in a tone full of tenderness and a surprising cruelty. “In the coming days, there will be many deaths… Your father will make sure to build a safe nest for you, my son or daughter.”

———–

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