The following day, the shocking news of the dragons' birth and the arrival of the Red Faith swept across the continent with extreme speed. Although the arrival of the Red Faith and the death of Archbishop Roland were significant, they were overshadowed by the news of the dragons.
However, the Faith of the Seven did not remain silent upon learning of the death of an important Archbishop, especially with a Holy Relic falling into the hands of House Targaryen. If there was one thing the church was professional at, it was manipulating events and information, using the populace as an undeniably sharp sword. And that is exactly what they did.
Ravens flew from Oldtown and spread across Westeros that same day. If Westeros had been on the brink of civil war before, it had now arrived in full force. Yet, everything remained hidden, waiting for the right moment to explode.
The Westerlands, Casterly Rock
An elderly man wearing golden robes with the sigil of a lion sat behind a desk. He had a pair of sharp, piercing, and oppressive green eyes. It was Tywin Lannister, the Lion of Casterly Rock.
Tossing the letter into the wastebasket, Tywin showed an expression of disdain. He had just received a raven from Oldtown written by the High Septon himself, Arthur Olsen.
The letter spoke of how cruel and cold Rhaegar was, how unfaithful and demonic, the second coming of Maegor, bringing a barbaric and cruel religion to Westeros. The letter even hinted that Tywin could become King of the Seven Kingdoms.
Tywin merely mocked the High Septon's accusations and his pathetic attempt to manipulate him into becoming king. Being king was all well and good, but he was certain that House Lannister could not control the Seven Kingdoms, just as no other Great House could.
Aegon I Targaryen had changed the rules of the game, and everyone remembered him; only House Targaryen could unite the realms under a single throne. Tywin was not so arrogant as to think he could change the continent's rules with the prestige he held.
A throne that could not be passed to the next generation was nothing more than a luxury chair. Tywin might sit on the Iron Throne, but his descendants could never keep the realms united under one crown.
For this reason, Tywin was indifferent to the High Septon's proposal. As for using the power of the Faith of the Seven to become king and maintain his reign, Tywin would rather die than be a puppet in the hands of the church. That was not a king, but a hostage and a subordinate to the clergy.
"You want to use me as your sword? You, a mere High Septon, are not worthy," Tywin murmured with a cold, indifferent gaze. "However, there are fools who can be used to stand on the front lines."
Tywin did not want to become the leader of this coalition and the true culprit of the rebellion. Only a fool would jump in and declare himself a rebel. Although he didn't care what the "sheep" thought, he also knew that prestige was a good thing and could keep vassals under control.
"Balon and Hoster..." A cold smile appeared on Tywin's lips, remembering the two arrogant fools. "One has already rebelled for the second time; the other is about to rebel as well. House Lannister will help you fight and wear down House Targaryen in this civil war."
"But dragons... that was unexpected." Tywin showed a deep look. He did not doubt the news was true; it was impossible to forge such a thing. Surprisingly, Tywin did not seem nervous or afraid.
"Dragons need time to grow, and they are not invincible..." A cold glint shone in Tywin's green eyes. He wasn't afraid, but he also knew he couldn't underestimate these creatures that had changed the rules of the entire world.
"The war must accelerate; the more time passes, the more time the King has to gain allies," Tywin murmured. "Dragons are a symbol, and a powerful one. Everyone will bend the knee to Rhaegar in due time."
"Hmm..." Tywin thought of something and showed a pensive look. "Could the King accept my loyalty? Although House Lannister has been quite insubordinate in these years, it hasn't reached the point of a mortal struggle like House Baratheon."
Tywin couldn't be more thankful that the Mountain's attack had failed and that the Queen and the King's children were safe. Otherwise, it would be impossible for House Lannister to ally with House Targaryen again.
"I can increase my stakes by acting as the King's ally on the enemy's side," Tywin murmured, looking at the portrait of his wife. As for the shame of such acts or how despicable they were, Tywin didn't give a damn. To him, House Lannister was more important than anything, even his own illusory reputation.
Tywin couldn't help but think that just four dragon hatchlings, still harmless, had changed the entire political landscape of Westeros.
"What enviable power..." Tywin's murmur echoed between the walls.
As Rhaegar and Rhaella had predicted, the balance in this war shifted toward House Targaryen once the news became common knowledge. The arrival of the dragons was a heavy blow to Great Houses like Baratheon, Tully, and Arryn.
The vassals of these Noble Houses began to waver; they were no longer as hostile to the Mad King's son as before. After all, Westeros had always been a continent where the continuity of the bloodline was the most important thing.
Small Noble Houses could last thousands of years with such politics, let alone the Great Houses. The nobles only cared about the continuity of their Houses and nothing else. Unless it was a blood feud like House Blackwood and House Bracken, other houses could accept allying again without any problem.
Of course, some noble houses could bend the knee even after rebelling, but Houses Tully, Baratheon, and Arryn were different. They couldn't back down, especially House Tully and House Baratheon. If there was a Noble House House Targaryen wanted to destroy, it was House Tully and Baratheon.
Rhaegar's hatred for Hoster Tully and Robert Baratheon was well known to everyone; it was an old matter that everyone knew. Rhaegar only hadn't killed Robert years ago because he didn't want to fight to the death against the Baratheon army, especially with other places urgently needing support. So, he let Robert return to Storm's End.
By doing this, he gained time, enough time to pacify other parts of the realm while not worrying about the Crownlands being invaded by House Baratheon. By doing only this, he managed to clean up the mess his father and he himself had made, and although he let a powerful enemy live, it was better than losing the entire kingdom.
In King's Landing, in Princess Naerys's Room
Cadmus looked at the little princess with a smile; she seemed quite shy, unlike Daenerys and Rhaenys, who were more extroverted and lively. Seeing her hold the small blue-green dragon as if it were the most precious thing in the world, Cadmus felt that if he had such an adorable daughter, he wouldn't complain at all.
"Hello, Princess." Cadmus approached the bed and showed his gentlest look. He didn't want to frighten the eight-year-old girl.
"Hello, Lord Peverell." Using one of Vhagar's wings to hide half her face, Naerys spoke in a shy tone.
"I am a mage," Cadmus said with a smile. He closed his hand, and under Naerys's surprised eyes, a bouquet of silver flowers appeared in her hand. "Your father asked me to take care of your health. Will you be a good girl and stay still?"
"Yes!" With eyes shining with admiration, Naerys nodded and remained completely motionless.
Cadmus smiled and began to perform a diagnosis using magic. A hologram resembling Naerys appeared above her body. The mage couldn't help but take a deep breath seeing large red areas on Naerys's body.
Heart, lungs, and gallbladder, not only that, but even the nervous system was severely compromised. It was a miracle the girl before him could speak or even move her head.
"Is it very serious?" Lyanna, who was accompanied by Rhaella and Elia, asked with a worried expression.
Smiling gently at Naerys, Cadmus stepped away from the bed and approached the three women. Before speaking, he cast a spell around them to prevent Naerys from hearing what he was about to say.
"It is very serious. Her heart is failing, her lungs are damaged, and her gallbladder is about to rupture completely," Cadmus said in a solemn tone. "At any moment, she could start feeling extremely sharp pain. The most terrible part is her nervous system; the nervous system is why you feel things, and it's also responsible for passing impulses from the brain to the rest of the body. Without it, a person cannot even walk."
Lyanna's face turned pale; she bit her lips and felt her eyes well up. Elia quickly supported her friend. Rhaella's expression was also somber. There was a trace of guilt in her expression. If it weren't for her, her descendants wouldn't have been poisoned.
"I have to perform surgery on the princess. I will replace her heart with a healthy one and heal her lungs. As for the gallbladder, it's the easiest problem to solve; the human body can live without it, so it's just a matter of removing it," Cadmus said in a calm but confident tone. Although heart surgery was extremely delicate, he was confident in transplanting a completely new heart for the princess.
"Will she be in danger?" After hearing that Cadmus wanted to open her daughter's body, Lyanna's expression became even more worried and sad.
"She will return to being a healthy, adorable little girl," Cadmus said in a gentle tone.
"If she doesn't do this, how many years can she live?" Rhaella asked in a solemn tone.
"She might live until she's twenty, but only if I force her body into a vegetative state. But that is not a life; she will be trapped in her mind without even being able to speak or express anything. She will live forever in this bed, unable to move," Cadmus said in an even gentler tone.
"Do it," Lyanna said in a trembling tone. The life Cadmus described was not a life, but a nightmare and a hell. She couldn't allow her daughter to face such an unhappy life. Compared to her worry, she preferred to give her daughter a small hope.
Cadmus nodded solemnly.
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Note: The chapters of Deus Imperador de Planetos and Godwyn, o Dourado returned to normal on Sunday. New chapters are now being posted again on Patreon.
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Read my other books:
Game Of Thrones: The God-Emperor of Planetos (500,000 words written).
Percy Jackson: Godwyn the Golden.
Game Of Thrones: The King's Court Wizard