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

Chapter 177: Chapter 176 – The King’s Landing Tournament (IV)

Jaehaerys frowned; he knew he couldn’t change the mind of a future monarch, especially one whose mind was already mature. Pushing further would only make things between him and Maekar worse than they already were.

“Changing the subject, what will you do about the Faith of the Seven?” Maekar asked with a smile. “They won’t accept me; after all, I’m just a mere bastard to them.”

“You were legitimized by me.” Jaehaerys replied in a calm tone. “They have no choice.”

“You know you’re just delaying the inevitable.” Maekar looked at Jaehaerys and remarked casually, as if facing the Faith of the Seven weren’t really that big a deal. “They’ll raise the banners of rebellion and use the cities as hostages to stop us from using dragons.”

As soon as Maekar spoke, Alysanne and Gael looked at Jaehaerys. This wasn’t a possibility; it was a fact bound to happen. The Faith of the Seven couldn’t fight against dragons, but they would use the common people as a shield against them.

If House Targaryen attacked the cities and burned them with dragons, it would shake the very foundations of House Targaryen across the continent. That was no small thing. They were the Protectors of the Realm, not the Destroyers of the Realm.

Jaehaerys fell silent for a moment; he knew Maekar was right, but the idea of starting a war against the Faith of the Seven was, at the very least, something he wanted to avoid. However, at this point, that was impossible.

The Faith of the Seven had killed his grandson, and the High Septon had dared to try to manipulate the Great Council. Honestly, those two things had already crossed the line Jaehaerys had drawn for the Faith of the Seven.

As if remembering something, Maekar looked at Jaehaerys and said calmly. “You know what’s funny? The Faith of the Seven created seven religious groups; one of those groups was in King’s Landing, but they fled during the Great Council.”

Jaehaerys’s hand, holding his cup of juice, tightened around the metal, so much so that his fingers turned white.

“They no longer care about the peace treaty; they’re regathering the Faith Militant under a nicer name, and they’ll use it to attack us,” Maekar said, biting into the bread in his hand with a cold look. He was telling Jaehaerys that there was no point in continuing to chase his obsession with balancing the powers across the continent.

That war was bound to happen, and even if Maekar didn’t start it, the Faith of the Seven itself would.

Jaehaerys’s face shifted through expressions rapidly. From anger to fury, from fury to coldness, and from coldness to calm.

“You said you want to kill the High Septon, correct?” Jaehaerys spoke, making everyone focus their eyes on him. “But you’re still young and don’t understand that him alive is more painful for the Faith of the Seven than him dead.”

Maekar couldn’t help but feel confused by Jaehaerys’s words. However, he didn’t need to think about it for long, as the king clarified his doubts.

“Instead of killing him, you could torture him and keep him alive for a while longer. The Faith of the Seven will be left without a leader, and when that happens, the church will have to choose a new High Septon. But, once that happens, the current High Septon’s allies will fight tooth and nail to defend their privileges. A schism will occur within the church. One side will stand with the current High Septon, and on the other side, the new High Septon.” Jaehaerys spoke in a calm tone.

The rule of a High Septon is just like the rule of a king; when it changes, the old allies of the former High Septon will be pushed out of the core of power to make room for the trusted allies of the new High Septon.

“Divide and conquer,” Maekar murmured, showing a thoughtful look. The more he thought about Jaehaerys’s words, the brighter his eyes became. At that moment, he felt he had been a bit too impulsive.

Hearing his murmur, a look of satisfaction appeared on Jaehaerys’s face. The boy was as stubborn as a bull, but he was smart and understood things very quickly. If it had been his other grandson, he might have had to draw it out for Viserys to understand anything.

“Husband, you’re friends with Gwayne Hightower; you could try to win him over by offering to put him in place of Lord Hightower. That way, we can plant a spy at the core of power of the Faith of the Seven.” Gael spoke at that moment, which made the king and queen look at their daughter with a surprised look.

However, both were pleased with Gael’s initiative to help and advise Maekar. A queen was essential for any king, not just for being the mother of the king’s children but also as one of the voices with the most influence over the king.

“However, if he refuses, you’ll have to kill your friend.” Alysanne added in a gentle tone. That was one of the flaws in the plan her daughter had presented to Maekar. If Gwayne refused, Maekar would have to kill his friend to cover up the fact that his plan had become known to others.

“It’s fine, he’s not my friend, just someone who has use.” Maekar replied in a calm tone. He had never really been friends with Gwayne, Boros, or even Harwin. Perhaps his only friends were Roderick’s sons and the son of the Lord of House Darry, Darnold.

Friendship in this world was rare, and he trusted only those who had grown up with him, especially when those friends’ interests were intrinsically tied to his own. Only by meeting those criteria could they be his friends.

Gwayne, Boros, or Harwin weren’t his friends, just people who had use.

Jaehaerys nodded and looked thoughtful. His grandson wasn’t as friendly as he outwardly appeared to be to outsiders. However, that was good. Betrayal always comes from someone close.

Staying not too far and not too close to allies was ideal for any monarch. Letting emotions get in the way of decisions was a terrible thing, especially at delicate moments like war or a decisive battle.

“I’ll speak with Gwayne, but let’s leave that for later; let’s focus on the High Septon. The Sept is already being watched, and the High Septon can’t escape,” Maekar said in a calm tone. The plans were already forming in his mind.

Jaehaerys nodded; he too felt the focus should be the High Septon. The matter of Gwayne could be dealt with another time.

“Speaking of which, why wasn’t I notified about the religious group created by the Faith of the Seven?” Jaehaerys spoke at that moment, looking at Gael in an inquisitive tone. He somewhat regretted making Gael regent while he recovered.

“I was busy with a lot of work.” Gael said in an innocent tone with a sweet smile on her lips.

Jaehaerys rolled his eyes. If it had been before, he might have believed his sweet and adorable daughter, but, after personally seeing Gael nearly kill Daemon and Caraxes, he no longer dared underestimate the daughter who had once been so harmless. The girl had learned to use his own assumptions about her to unconsciously manipulate him.

However, for some reason, Jaehaerys was pleased with Gael’s ability to do something like that. In this dangerous world, Gael’s personality was a fatal weakness, especially as the wife of someone like Maekar and future queen of Westeros.

To stop Jaehaerys from continuing on the subject and discovering that she had planned a coup, Gael changed the topic. “Father, the realm hasn’t had a Hand of the King for quite some time now. I’ve missed having someone so necessary to help me manage the kingdom.”

Jaehaerys looked at his daughter and showed a deep look. He wasn’t stupid and knew Gael was changing the subject, but he didn’t press the matter further. He simply thought Gael had made some mistakes and wanted to cover something up. Which was perfectly normal.

He too had made plenty of mistakes at the start of his reign and had either hidden them well or blamed the Hand of the King… After all, the king cannot be wrong; the vassals are always wrong.

“You’re right, but I already have someone in mind.” Jaehaerys replied, taking a sip of his juice.

Maekar looked at the king and already knew who had been chosen to replace Prince Aemon.

“Otto Hightower, the boy has a lot of talent.” Jaehaerys remarked, recalling the ambitious young man at his court. He liked Otto; the man knew how to advise and when to step back at the right moments and was well suited to be Hand of the King.

“That’s good; we can also use this to bribe Gwayne and promise that his father would get the position.” Gael said with a smile. Either way, Maekar wouldn’t be lying; Otto really would be the new Hand of the King.

Maekar wasn’t against Otto being Hand of the King. The man could be ambitious, but he could be controlled, not to mention he wasn’t like Viserys. With Blood Magic, he didn’t need to worry about running out of heirs or having to remarry if Gael died in childbirth.

Besides, even if Gael were to die, he would never marry Otto’s daughter, so the man wasn’t exactly dangerous.

“It’s good that you think that way, but don’t let Otto find out we’re trying to control his son. His son might accept becoming the new Lord of Hightower, but the same couldn’t be said of Otto himself.” Jaehaerys advised in a calm tone.

Maekar and Gael nodded.

“The tournament will begin in the early afternoon.” Jaehaerys looked at Maekar and added, “You can’t participate.”

Maekar rolled his eyes. Even without Jaehaerys’s words, he wouldn’t have taken part in a tournament. Now that he was going to be king and had such great prestige, taking part in a tournament was completely irrelevant to him.

———-

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