Chapter 129: Khal Drogo's Feast (Part 1)
A palace sits on the bay, its nine towering buildings covered in pale ivy—a gift from the magisters of Pentos to Khal Drogo.
Today, the undefeated Khal Drogo is hosting a feast here, attended by Pentos's elite and countless nobles who have come to pay him homage.
The air is filled with the sweet aromas of pepper, lemon, and cinnamon.
The great hall is adorned with colored glass depicting ancient Valyria. Before Ian can even examine the story of Valyria's fall, he hears a eunuch's shrill voice.
"Viserys of the House Targaryen, the Third of His Name, King of the Andals, the Rhoynar, and the First Men, Lord of the Seven Kingdoms and Protector of the Realm.
His sister, Daenerys of the House Targaryen, Princess of Dragonstone. His benefactor, Illyrio Mopatis, Magister of the Free City of Pentos, have arrived!"
Ian's gaze turned towards the entrance, just in time to see a group of people walking into the hall. Leading the way was a young man with a full head of silver-gold hair, his violet eyes fixed straight ahead, his gaunt yet striking face bearing a somewhat affected seriousness.
He was trying his best to look more like a king, Ian couldn't help but think.
Behind Viserys were the richly dressed Magister Illyrio and the petite Daenerys. Daenerys wore a deep purple silk gown, a jeweled tokar, and golden bracelets inlaid with amethysts on her pale arms. The heavy golden collar around her neck, engraved with ancient Valyrian glyphs, seemed to weigh her down.
At this moment, she looked less like a princess and more like a prize—or rather, she truly was a prize today.
Her brother, Viserys, intended to trade her to the undefeated Dothraki Khal Drogo in exchange for ten thousand screamers to reclaim their homeland.
Daenerys followed timidly behind her brother, looking around nervously. The area beneath the stone pillars and the ivy-covered courtyard were teeming with people: towering Dothraki bloodriders, sellswords and bravos from various city-states, red priests who worshiped R'hllor rather than the Seven, and even a dark-skinned merchant prince from the Summer Isles.
Illyrio whispered to them, "The three standing over there are Drogo's bloodriders. By the pillar are Moro and his son Rhogoro. The man with the green beard is Lord Tyrell's brother. And those others are loyal bannermen who have come all the way from Westeros to serve you.
The tall knight by the window on the left is Jorah Mormont, formerly Lord of Bear Island.
The one speaking with several captains is Ser Darren Grafton. He comes from Gulltown. As I told you before, it was because of their loyalty to House Targaryen that House Grafton suffered destruction two months ago.
The usurper's loyal dogs seized Gulltown, executed Lord Gerold Grafton, and forced his eldest son to take the black. Darren is the lord's second son." With that, Illyrio turned to the other side.
"And the knight on the right, surrounded by several ladies, is Ian Rivers. He comes from House Darry, which, like House Grafton, was destroyed two months ago by the usurper's men under the pretext of treason."
"House Darry?" A flicker of surprise crossed Viserys's violet eyes. He ignored the first two unfamiliar surnames and looked at Ian.
"As I said, the Seven Kingdoms are filled with your loyal subjects, and they await your return to rule them." Illyrio bowed slightly.
"Bring them to me. I want to reward the loyal," Viserys said excitedly. This was the first time in his life he had heard anyone pledging allegiance to him.
He looked at Illyrio with a questioning gaze. "I should do this, shouldn't I? I should reward my followers?"
"Of course, you are a true dragon, a true king, and generosity and mercy are qualities a king should possess."
"But my mercy will not be for those traitors!" Viserys suddenly roared in fury. "I will personally kill the usurper! And those Lannisters, I will make them know that stealing from a dragon comes at a price! They will pay the iron price."
"Indeed they will," Illyrio's tone was respectful, but carried a hint of indulgence that left Viserys slightly deflated. Illyrio then turned to Daenerys, patting her bare shoulder. "Sweet princess, look, that's Khal Drogo himself."
Daenerys didn't want to see Khal Drogo at all; she just wanted to escape, hide, and go home.
After Illyrio finished speaking, he went to explain his purpose to Khal Drogo, while Viserys took the opportunity to pull Daenerys aside.
"Did you see how long his braid is?" Viserys asked.
Khal Drogo was a head taller than everyone else present, his oiled braid reaching well past his waist to his hips, the end brushing against his thighs.
"When the Dothraki are defeated in battle, they cut off their braids in disgrace. Look at his braid! Khal Drogo has never been defeated! And you will be his khaleesi," Viserys said to Daenerys.
Daenerys looked at Khal Drogo not far away; his face was hard and cruel, his eyes as black and cold as chips of obsidian.
"I don't want to be his khaleesi, Viserys, please, please, I don't want to, I really want to go home." Daenerys was afraid of Drogo, afraid of his eyes; she was terrified and pleaded in a low voice.
"Home?" Viserys lowered his voice, but Daenerys could still hear the anger in it. "Sweet sister, tell me, which home do we want to go back to? Our home has been stolen from us!"
He pulled her into the shadows, away from everyone's sight, his nails digging into her skin. "Which home are we going back to?" he repeated.
Daenerys took a half step back, her heart filled with fear. The home she meant was Illyrio's manse, but she also knew that the home her brother meant was King's Landing, Dragonstone, and the entire lost kingdom.
Viserys's fingers tightened their grip, forcing Daenerys to answer. Daenerys simply lowered her head, tears welling in her eyes.
"Your Grace, please allow me, on behalf of House Darry of the Riverlands, to express our blessings and highest respects to you." Ian, who had spotted Viserys's moment of madness in the distance, quickly extracted himself from two ladies who had been flirting with him and came to Viserys's side.
Ian's words relieved Daenerys's predicament, because Viserys immediately released his grip on Daenerys, straightened the collar of his silk doublet, trying to appear more regal, and then turned to Ian.
"You didn't mention loyalty," Viserys said, his face showing displeasure.
(End of Chapter)
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