Chapter 131 Dragon King vs. Horse King
Daemon landed Caraxes at Myr Castle, where Captain Delaine and a squad of Dragon Guards immediately came to greet him.
Daemon slid off the saddle, landing lightly on the ground, and Lord Corlys Velaryon, the Sea Snake, Tomb Wolf, and Mysaria immediately surrounded him.
Mysaria wore a crystal-colored brocade gown, her figure becoming even more enchanting.
Mysaria had always served as Gael's handmaiden, and along with Alys Rivers and Terra Uller, she cared for Daemon's children.
Intelligent and fluent in multiple languages, she excelled at gathering intelligence, and Daemon intended to train Mysaria to be his spymaster.
Lord Corlys Velaryon asked, "Your Majesty, is Khal Lamiqiao willing to withdraw his troops?"
Daemon replied coldly, "Khal Lamiqiao refused my goodwill; he chose death and destruction.
Myr will be Khal Lamiqiao's burial ground."
Tomb Wolf and Lord Corlys Velaryon knew the negotiations had broken down.
Tomb Wolf looked worried. "Myr's defenses are strong, and its forces are ample.
If Khal Lamiqiao chooses to directly attack Myr Castle, they will suffer heavy casualties.
But what if Khal Lamiqiao divides his forces and marches directly into the Disputed Lands?
Our Border Wall is not yet complete, and Khal Lamiqiao's cavalry could easily bypass it in a few hours."
Tomb Wolf was an excellent strategist in battle, and he precisely articulated Daemon's concerns.
Daemon pondered for a moment. "Even if the Dothraki cavalry bypass Myr, the winding Myr River to the southwest will impede their progress."
Lord Corlys Velaryon tugged at his beard. "We can dispatch the Ironborn Fleet and the Sistermen Fleet.
Their longships can effectively control the river.
The Dothraki don't even have boats; they're no match for a longship fleet on the Myr River."
Mysaria softly said, "Your Majesty, I received intelligence from smugglers at the port.
Our northern neighbor, Pentos, has assembled a fleet on the northern shore of the Myr Sea, seemingly intending to cross the Myr Sea and attack Tyrosh or the Disputed Lands while the Dothraki are besieging the city."
This was another piece of bad news.
Daemon frowned. "The Pentosi actually want to take advantage of the chaos?
I thought they were busy dealing with Vhagar."
Vhagar, now a wild dragon, had previously ravaged the Pentos Plain and the Velvet Hills, burning many estates.
Many believed Daemon was controlling Vhagar with sorcery.
Mysaria showed a sweet smile. "Your Majesty, it is said that the Pentosi used shepherds to drive thousands of sheep slowly eastward, attracting Vhagar in the sky.
Vhagar burned several shepherds and hundreds of sheep, but was eventually lured to the Great Grass Sea.
Now Vhagar is soaring over the Great Grass Sea, feeding on horses and sheep."
"Regardless, the Pentosi have escaped Vhagar's restraint, and they intend to cooperate with the Dothraki to attack the Three Daughters."
Tomb Wolf's eyes widened. "Your Majesty, you should immediately dispatch dragons to destroy the Pentosi fleet.
Otherwise, once the Pentosi and Dothraki rendezvous on the eastern coast of the Myr Sea, and the Dothraki board the Pentosi ships, the Dothraki cavalry will bypass Myr and land on the northern shore of the Disputed Lands.
Then the Dothraki cavalry will be like a sharp blade, piercing the heart of the kingdom.
It will be very difficult for us to defeat the enemy."
Lord Corlys Velaryon let out a hearty laugh. "Tomb Wolf, the Dothraki believe the sea is poisoned water; they consider saltwater to be corrupting.
The Dothraki are terrified of the sea.
I have never seen a Dothraki who doesn't get seasick.
The Myr Sea is now controlled by the Velaryon Fleet, the Sistermen Fleet, and the Ironborn Fleet.
If Khal Lamiqiao truly sends Dothraki cavalry by ship, then our fleet, combined with the dragons, can easily destroy them on the Myr Sea.
This way, the Pentosi and Dothraki cavalry, along with their warhorses and warships, will all be buried in the bellies of fish."
Tomb Wolf did not seem convinced.
He said, "However, this fleet is still a huge threat.
If the Pentosi fleet is allowed to launch an attack on the Myr Sea, Tyrosh and the entire northern coast of the Disputed Lands will be exposed to enemy attack."
Daemon agreed deeply.
Daemon was more concerned about the Sea Lord's Fleet.
Haegon Saan, Sea Lord of Braavos, had been as silent as the Secret City recently, and Daemon could not obtain any intelligence about the Braavosi Sea Lord's Fleet.
However, the Sea Lord's Fleet was likely hidden in some secluded bay in Pentos, ready to act with the Pentosi fleet.
"Princess Rhaenys and I will ride the dragons and take the initiative.
Gael and Dreamfyre will remain in Myr to assist in defending the city."
Daemon announced, just as Princess Rhaenys Targaryen, riding Meleys, flew over the castle.
Meleys was once the fastest dragon of House Targaryen, but in recent years, due to her increasing age, she had gradually been surpassed by Daemon's Caraxes.
Even so, Meleys remained one of the fastest dragons of House Targaryen.
In contrast, Dreamfyre was older and much slower than Caraxes and Meleys.
Dreamfyre was originally the mount of Princess Rhaena Targaryen, sister of King Jaehaerys I, and was almost eighty years old.
Princess Rhaenys rode Meleys, and Daemon rode Caraxes.
These two dragons were like two bolts of lightning in the sky, flying over the Myr Sea with astonishing speed.
To prevent Khal Lamiqiao from attacking Myr while two Targaryen dragons were out, Rhaenys and Daemon decided to strike first.
They soared north over the Myr Sea, flying for dozens of miles along the coastline, then suddenly turned northeast, flying behind the main Dothraki cavalry force to attack the enemy's supply train.
The Dothraki cavalry responsible for escorting the supply train instantly lost their courage when they saw the dragons attacking.
They urged their warhorses, the bells on their braids jingling, and scattered in all directions.
Warhorses easily fled, but the wagons were unfortunate.
The dragons, Meleys and Caraxes, roared and sprayed dragonfire.
Flames dozens of feet high instantly engulfed the ground, creating a wall of fire.
Grain wagons, siege engines, and tents all caught fire.
Some drivers who couldn't escape screamed as they were swallowed by the flames, struggling until they became charred flesh on the ground.
After burning hundreds of wagons and inflicting heavy losses on Khal Lamiqiao's supply train, Daemon and Rhaenys turned back to the Myr Sea, heading north toward the Pentos Plain coast.
The smugglers had previously provided the location of the bay where the Pentosi fleet was hidden.
Lord Corlys Velaryon, who knew everything about the Myr Sea as well as his own fingers, personally led the fleet to cooperate with the dragons and sent experienced captains as scouts.
Raven Greyjoy, Son of the Wind, also brought thirty Ironborn longships to participate in the operation.
Daemon and Rhaenys's dragons flew over the vast Myr Sea for three days, finally arriving at the hidden bay where the Pentosi fleet was anchored late at night.
The Pentosi were completely unprepared for this surprise attack.
When the deck soldiers on night patrol spotted the dragons and blew their horns, it was already too late.
Many sleepy sailors and soldiers scrambled out of their beds and onto the decks, only to see the orange-yellow flames sprayed by the dragons lighting up the night sky and instantly engulfing their ships.
The screams of sailors, the wails of soldiers, and the curses of captains echoed across the deep sea in the dead of night.
Some sailors and soldiers, in despair, jumped into the sea, trying to swim to shore, but their retreat was cut off by Lord Corlys Velaryon's fleet and Wind's Son's Ironborn Fleet.
The Velaryon Fleet's deck soldiers used crossbows and arbalests to attack, and many enemies were shot dead in the water, their blood staining the sea red.
After destroying the Pentosi fleet, Lord Corlys Velaryon and Wind's Son still felt unsatisfied.
After dawn the next day, Lord Corlys Velaryon led the fleet to plunder the Pentosi coast.
They attacked coastal villages and towns, killing slave masters and capturing slaves.
Some slaves voluntarily surrendered to Daemon's fleet soldiers, as Daemon's dragons soared in the sky, and Daemon was a liberator.
Slaves who pledged allegiance to Daemon were automatically freed from their shackles and gained their freedom.
Ultimately, Daemon's fleet brought back over three thousand slaves, many of whom were women and children.
Daemon settled all of them in the dragon workshops or estates in Myr Castle, and the R'hllor Temple in Myr also received a batch of children.
Daemon's dragons and fleet destroyed the Pentosi fleet, and the threat from the north of the Myr Sea was temporarily lifted.
Daemon could finally focus on dealing with Khal Lamiqiao.
The supply train's encounter with the dragons caused problems with Khal Lamiqiao's provisions.
Khal Lamiqiao dispatched six thousand Dothraki cavalry, bypassing Myr and the Border Wall under construction, attempting to plunder the villages south of Myr Castle.
However, they despairingly discovered that Daemon had already carried out a scorched-earth policy.
The residents had long since evacuated, and they had even thoughtfully burned the wild grass, causing problems for the warhorses' fodder.
The Dothraki tried to cross the Myr River, but found that the longship fleet was already patrolling the Myr River.
Some Dothraki tried to camp by the river, but their camp was attacked by the Ironborn and Sistermen at night.
The Dothraki left behind a pile of corpses and retreated dejectedly to the foot of Myr Castle.
A few days later, the Volantene mercenary group delivered provisions and supplies, and subsequent Dothraki supply convoys gradually caught up.
Khal Lamiqiao received the provisions, which finally stabilized his army's morale.
Among the items brought by the Volantenes were disassembled siege engine parts.
Khal Lamiqiao immediately ordered slave artisans to assemble the siege engines.
As the siege engines were gradually completed, one night, a thick fog descended upon Myr.
The dense fog from the sea, like ghostly fingers, caressed the fertile plains.
Daemon, Tomb Wolf, Lord Corlys Velaryon, Princess Rhaenys, and others stood on the city wall.
The thick fog, like a shroud, enveloped the city.
Princess Rhaenys frowned. "This is still a long way from the Rhoyne River.
Is it a curse from the Lord of the Shrouds of the Sorrowful Men?"
Daemon laughed. "If this were a curse from the Lord of the Shrouds, then the Dothraki would probably all be infected with greyscale.
However, that's impossible; this place is too far from the Rhoyne River.
This fog has nothing to do with the Lord of the Shrouds."
Tomb Wolf rubbed his sword belt. "Dense fog is a good opportunity for a sneak attack.
We must be vigilant; the enemy will try to assault the city."
Khal Lamiqiao seemed to believe that the dense fog and night were excellent opportunities for a siege.
The Dothraki drove their slaves, pushing siege towers, carrying ladders, and battering rams, approaching the walls of Myr Castle.
Myr was a city of shattered chains, the city of Daemon the Liberator.
Slaves who ran to the foot of Myr Castle had a chance to gain the protection of the Myr defenders.
To prevent slaves from escaping, the Dothraki had them wear heavy leg irons, making their progress very slow.
However, the Dothraki did not know that their movements had already been spotted by Daemon and Princess Rhaenys, who were scouting from the air on dragons.
The huge siege engines stirred the dense fog, still making them very conspicuous targets in the dark of night.
Caraxes and Dreamfyre roared in unison, swooping down and spraying dragonfire.
The dense fog instantly dispersed upon encountering the dragonfire.
Orange-yellow flames violently struck the siege towers, battering rams, and ladders on the ground.
Dothraki cavalry, slaves, and their siege engines were all consumed by the dragonfire.
Khal Lamiqiao's fog attack suffered a crushing defeat.
When he led his army back to camp in disarray, he found that the Dothraki camp was on fire within the dense fog.
It turned out that Gael, riding Dreamfyre, had launched a surprise attack on the camp.
To defend against dragon attacks and the resulting chain of fires, the Dothraki camps were somewhat dispersed, but their losses were still very heavy.
Hundreds of Dothraki were burned alive, and even worse, Dreamfyre's attack accidentally burned down a stable, causing the burning warhorses to scatter.
Amidst the chaos brought by the dense fog, flames, warhorses, and dragons, many slaves seized the opportunity to kill their guards.
They snatched blacksmiths' hammers, smashed their shackles and chains, and fled in groups towards Myr.
In the mist, some slaves were trampled to death by Dothraki warhorses, and others were cut down by cavalry, but over eight hundred Dothraki slaves still reached Myr in the morning as the dense fog gradually dispersed.
Khal Lamiqiao's sneak attack failed, and he was instead ambushed by dragons, with so many slaves escaping.
Khal Lamiqiao was extremely vexed.
This grassland hero had never suffered such a humiliating defeat.
He had a sudden idea and called for Zheke, his bloodrider.
Bloodriders were a Khal's personal guards.
The Khal called his bloodriders "my blood of my blood."
They drank, feasted, and watched fights with the Khal.
If the Khal died, the bloodriders would be buried with him.
If the Khal died in battle, the bloodriders would take his widow to Vaes Dothrak to join the Dosh Khaleen, and then the bloodriders would seek revenge, gladly dying once revenge was complete.
Khal Lamiqiao naturally trusted Zheke completely.
He said to Zheke, "Daemon the Liberator likes to take in slaves.
You take three hundred warriors, disguise yourselves as slaves, and surrender to Myr Castle.
After gaining their trust, launch a surprise attack on the guards at night and open the city gates.
Then we can capture Myr and use the dragon princess to warm our beds."
Zheke immediately selected three hundred Dothraki warriors and came to Myr Castle to surrender.
Constantine, the acting Lord of Myr, did not suspect anything and allowed these men into the city.
Mysaria and Laena Velaryon were at the city gate treating the slaves' injuries.
Laena noticed that these slaves were tall and strong, vastly different from the sickly, malnourished slaves, and immediately grew suspicious.
"Why do these slaves look so strange?"
Mysaria also noticed it.
"We can ask a few Dothraki slaves."
Mysaria questioned many Dothraki slaves.
One girl, upon seeing Zheke from a distance, immediately trembled with fear.
She lowered her voice. "That man is Khal Lamiqiao's bloodrider.
He personally killed my father; there's no mistake."
Mysaria immediately informed Daemon.
Daemon frowned. "Is this true, Mysaria?
You are truly a good girl.
I will certainly reward you."
Daemon ordered Qidan Massey and Constantine to prepare a thousand crossbowmen.
Daemon, fully armored, approached Zheke.
Daemon said in the Common Tongue, "Are you slaves, or are you Khal Lamiqiao's men?
I suspect you are Khal Lamiqiao's bloodrider."
By this time, the crossbowmen on the city wall had already aimed at the group of Dothraki warriors.
Zheke, realizing his plot was exposed, pulled out the dagger hidden at his waist and lunged at Daemon.
Daemon had been waiting for the other party to act foolishly.
Daemon swiftly drew Dark Sister, instantly severing Zheke's wrist.
Zheke let out a scream, blood splattered, and as he fell, his head was sliced off by Dark Sister, his brains splattering out.
Daemon scalped Zheke.
The other Dothraki warriors tried to resist, but a volley of arrows from the crossbowmen on the city wall turned the enemies into pincushions, and they all screamed and fell dead.
The next day, Daemon hung the bodies of the three hundred Dothraki warriors who had infiltrated the city on the city walls.
Crows feasted on the corpses, pecking at the flesh and savoring the brains and eyeballs.
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