Viserys did not speak, but simply held her tighter. He looked down at Rhaenys in his arms, and she looked up at him, meeting Viserys's aggressive gaze directly, yet Rhaenys did not look away.
Then, she stood on her tiptoes, gave Viserys a heavy kiss on the lips, broke free from his embrace, and turned to run out. She left Viserys alone, a helpless yet indulgent smile on his face.
Viserys shook his head, temporarily putting these romantic sentiments to the back of his mind as his gaze sharpened once more. Although King's Landing was now under his control, this was only the beginning.
The unification of the Seven Kingdoms, the impending threat of the Others, the forces seeking to prevent the rise of the Valyrian Empire, and the enemies hidden in the shadows—the so-called 'gods'—all required him to face them one by one.
Viserys organized his thoughts and then pulled himself together, preparing to arrange the day's affairs. After all, an important 'battle' awaited him tonight, and he needed to prepare early.
Meanwhile, in Storm's End in the Stormlands, Renly Baratheon was facing the most difficult moment of his life.
Renly stood atop the tallest tower of Storm's End, looking south toward Dorne. His face no longer held its former composure and arrogance, replaced instead by a deep weariness and anxiety.
Ever since Renly retreated from Bitterbridge to Storm's End, his days had grown harder by the day. He had originally dispatched Lord Tarth of Evenfall Hall and Lord Estermont of Greenstone, each leading ten thousand Stormlands troops, to reinforce Blackhaven and Songoate respectively.
He himself took the remaining thirty thousand troops, prepared to defend Storm's End to the death. This castle was the symbol of House Baratheon and the strongest fortress in the Stormlands.
During the War of the Usurper, Lord Mace Tyrell of Highgarden and Lord Mathis Rowan had led fifty thousand Reachmen to besiege the two thousand defenders under Stannis at Storm's End.
Stannis had managed to hold out for a year despite a lack of supplies and food, eventually waiting for Robert's reinforcements. Thus, Renly believed that with his men and ample supplies, he could certainly wait here for a favorable turning point.
But now, that opportunity seemed increasingly slim. Just a moment ago, a raven arrived from Lord Tarth. Before they could even reach Blackhaven, the castle had already fallen.
The Red Viper, Oberyn Martell, had led the Dornish army to breach the walls, and Lord Dondarrion of Blackhaven had fallen in battle. Blackhaven was an important port and pass in the Stormlands; its loss meant the Dornish had a stable foothold from which to continuously push into the heart of the Stormlands.
Lord Tarth's army had also suffered heavy losses in a Dornish ambush on their way back to Storm's End, and Lord Estermont's army was trapped near Songoate, unable to move.
This was because the Queen of Thorns, Lady Olenna, had publicly declared to the Seven Kingdoms that The Reach supported Viserys.Targaryen. Willas Tyrell had also been officially appointed by Viserys as the new Lord of Highgarden.
As for our 'Lord Oaf,' Mace Tyrell, and the 'Knight of Flowers,' Loras Tyrell, they had been labeled traitors by House Tyrell of Highgarden.
Consequently, the ten thousand troops led by Lord Yronwood, which the Dornish had originally used to threaten The Reach, were now free. They split into two paths.
One path helped Lord Fowler besiege the reinforcing Lord Estermont of the Stormlands, while the other lay in ambush on Lord Tarth's inevitable route, coordinating with Prince Oberyn to catch them off guard as they retreated.
Although there were still thirty thousand defenders in Storm's End, because the current Lord Mace had been declared a traitor by Highgarden, the loyalty of the ten thousand troops under him was precarious; they could defect to Viserys's side at any moment to save their lives.
Most of the soldiers in this army came from various small houses under House Tyrell of Highgarden; their loyalty was first to their own houses, not to Mace himself.
Now that Highgarden had changed hands and the new Lord Willas was fully supported by the Queen of Thorns, Olenna, and they had explicitly declared fealty to the Targaryens, the scales in these soldiers' hearts had begun to tip.
After all, Lord Mace himself possessed no true authority or qualities that would make people want to follow him voluntarily. The only reason he could command this army before was his title, but now his title had been unilaterally stripped by Viserys.
Renly could even clearly perceive the strange looks some low-ranking officers from The Reach were giving him, and their private whispers never ceased.
He knew that once the allied forces of Dorne and The Reach arrived at the gates, this already unsettled army would likely collapse without a fight or even defect directly. This was a ticking time bomb, but because of Loras, he was hesitant and found it difficult to speak up.
What made Renly feel even more desperate was that the many messengers he had sent—whether to the Westerlands to contact Robb Stark, to the The Riverlands to try and win over Lord Tywin Lannister, even to Cersei in King's Landing, or to the Free Cities to seek mercenaries—had all vanished like stones dropped into the ocean, with no word back.
He knew exactly what this meant. Viserys's influence and deterrent power were growing larger and larger; it seemed all of Westeros and Essos were bowing down to this Dragon King.
Time was running out for Renly, and this was while he was still unaware that King's Landing had been taken by Viserys. The last news he had received was of Viserys departing from the Crackclaw Point.
In his mind, even if King's Landing wasn't as sturdy as Storm's End, as a capital built by the Targaryens, it should have been able to hold out for a while—he wouldn't dare say much, but one or two months should have been no problem.
After all, he had lived in King's Landing for many years himself, and at the time, to deal with Cersei, he had reached out to some officers of the City Watch and understood some of the city's defense issues.
Unfortunately, their thinking was narrow because they had not witnessed the power of dragons with their own eyes. They could not imagine that Viserys could take the entire city of King's Landing in less than half a day.
Renly took a deep breath of the damp sea air. The winds of Storm's End were as strong as ever, even making his cloak snap loudly and blowing his newly gathered confidence into a state of instability.
He turned to look behind him, where several loyal Rainbow Guard stood silently, their eyes filled with respect for him as their King, and in the eyes of a few, there was adoration.
Renly couldn't help but give a bitter smile; his title as 'King of the Seven Kingdoms' now felt more like being a prisoner trapped in a lonely castle.
If only he had agreed to Stannis's suggestion back then, Renly thought to himself. If Stannis were here, all of this would be his headache to deal with.
As for himself, he should have been able to spend his days drinking and feasting with Loras just as he did in King's Landing, enjoying life. If Stannis defeated Viserys, then in the future, he could easily inherit the Iron Throne; if not, then things would be no different than they were now.
And he had to admit that Stannis was indeed better at commanding armies than he was. With him there, the Baratheon chances of victory would undoubtedly have been much higher. Unfortunately, Stannis was now buried at the bottom of the sea.
Ãdvåñçé çhàptêr àvàilàble óñ pàtreøn luffy1898