Duskendale Town was the first major castle Viserys encountered after entering the Crownlands that was prepared to resist.
Its walls were not tall, but they were thick, built from the brown stone unique to the Crownlands. The local lord's castle was Duskendale, which was why it was also called Brownfort.
Now, the outer walls of Duskendale Town flew the banners of two houses. One of them bore the sigil of House Rykker, a blue field with a white saltire and two crossed black warhammers.
The other was House Rosby, a sigil of ermine with three red chevrons.
It seemed these two houses had joined forces.
After all, although House Rosby was a wealthy family in the Crownlands, their castle, Rosby Castle, was just an ordinary castle and not as sturdy as Duskendale.
Originally, Duskendale Town was the territory of House Darklyn, but after the Defiance of Duskendale, House Darklyn had been completely wiped out by the original body's father, "The Mad King" Aerys II.
Although there were still many people in Duskendale Town today with names like Dark, Darkwood, or Darkgood, these were just minor branches of House Darklyn with no real power and could not inherit Duskendale.
Duskendale Town was therefore granted by Aerys II to House Rykker, and they had contributed greatly to Aerys in the War of the Usurper, though unfortunately, the power of an Earl's house could not change anything.
In the end, the heir of House Rykker, Ser Jeremy Rykker, had been sent by Robert to The Wall to become part of the Nights Watch. Now, the head of House Rykker, Earl Rifrey, had once been a supporter of Robert.
Based on Viserys's abilities and Targaryen intelligence, there were about eight thousand defenders inside Duskendale Town.
Originally, there were two thousand personal soldiers of House Rykker in the city, four thousand farmers conscripted from nearby, and an additional two thousand reinforcements from House Rosby.
Under normal circumstances, this force would be enough to defend such a city. But for Viserys's Imperial Army, this was just a village with more people, and it posed no difficulty at all.
When the Imperial Army appeared in their view, alarm bells rang on The Walls. Before long, it was packed with soldiers.
When the army actually reached the foot of the city, the real soldiers saw the scene before them; although their faces went pale and they were afraid, they managed to maintain their formation.
Archers nocked arrows, spearmen stood in formation, and several scorpion crossbows were aimed at the sky.
But the farmers, who made up the majority, were trembling with fear. They looked in terror at the numerous, high-spirited army below and the dragon getting closer in the sky; their legs went weak, and they had no heart left to resist.
Some even threw down their weapons and turned to run. It wasn't until a group of those fleeing were brutally killed by the overseers behind them that the unrest gradually subsided.
Earl Rifrey climbed The Wall himself, and he saw with his own eyes the legendary dragon, the well-equipped army, and the fleet in the distance blockading the port of Duskendale Town.
The original thought of putting up a stubborn resistance resurfaced, making him wonder if he should kneel and surrender.
"My Lord Earl, let us surrender," his adjutant, Ser Rufus Leek, whispered. "Targaryen's army is too large, and there are those dragons. We have no way to deal with them; we definitely cannot hold. We should not be loyal to Joffrey, this controversial king."
"Shut up," Earl Rifrey snapped, his inner thoughts exposed. "House Rykker has always been loyal to the iron throne, and the king on the iron throne now is Joffrey Baratheon. We will never kneel to Viserys, this false king."
However, after the adjutant's outburst, he had completely sobered up. Joffrey's claim to inheritance was controversial, and wasn't his own the same?
He had been loyal to Robert during the War of the Usurper and had even participated in the Battle of the The Trident, witnessing the death of Rhaegar Targaryen with his own eyes; everyone knew this.
If Viserys became King of the Seven Kingdoms, could he continue to be the head of House Rykker? One had to remember, Jeremy was still alive at The Wall.
Even if he couldn't return personally because of the Nights Watch vows, he could secretly produce a legitimate heir to inherit Duskendale.
Ser Rufus wanted to say more, but Earl Rifrey had already turned and left; he didn't want to stay in such a dangerous place.
Viserys rode Ghidorah, circling above Duskendale Town, looking down at the town below.
"Finally, I've encountered a tough nut to crack," he muttered.
At this moment, Rhaenys flew to his side riding Meraxes and looked at Viserys, saying, "Brother, Duke Connington asked me to ask, are we going to attack the city directly?"
Viserys shook his head and said, "Let's talk first." After all, trash-talking before a war was a tradition.
"Defenders of the city, listen." Viserys's voice, enhanced by magic, echoed throughout the city.
"I am Viserys Targaryen, the Dragon King of Valyria, the rightful heir to the iron throne. I give you one night to consider. Open the gates, lay down your weapons, and I guarantee your safety. Tomorrow morning, if the gates are not yet opened, I will burn this city with Dragonfire."
After finishing, he rode Ghidorah back to the camp. As for why he gave them a night to consider, it was because even if he directly destroyed the castle, he would still need an army to clean up afterwards. And his army, having traveled a long distance, needed to rest.
That night, sounds of arguing came from Duskendale. Earl Rifrey gathered all the nobles in the city for a meeting, debating for the whole night. Some advocated surrender, some advocated resistance, and others advocated fleeing.
He himself was a war hawk, but surprisingly, the commander of the reinforcements from Rosby Castle was a dove. He had originally thought that since they could come to Duskendale Town to help him resist Viserys, they must have some connection with the Targaryen.
In fact, House Rosby had considered things thoroughly. They just didn't want to make Rosby Castle the battlefield, which was why they sent troops to Duskendale Town.
If Duskendale Town could hold, they could continue to provide support. If it couldn't hold, they would surrender directly afterwards, which would preserve the family's foundation.
Moreover, the commander leading the reinforcements from Rosby Castle this time was Ser Roland Rosby, the adopted son of Earl Gyles Rosby. Earl Gyles had no heir, so Roland, as an adopted son, had a certain legitimate right of inheritance.
However, his position in the line of succession was not even as high as Lady Tanda of House Stokeworth, Tanda Stokeworth. This was because Lady Tanda was not only the aunt of Gyles's second wife but also a distant cousin of Gyles himself.
He had chosen to lead the troops this time to add to his resume, not to die. After seeing the strength displayed by Viserys's side, he knew how he should choose; perhaps because of his proactive kneeling, Viserys might even let him inherit Rosby Castle directly.
But in the end, they argued until the end without reaching any result.
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