No matter how hard he racked his brain, Davos still couldn't figure out how Viserys had discovered his identity.
When he realized that the silver-haired boy before him was the new king of House Targaryen, the Onion Knight felt his heart pounding in his chest.
"Ser Onion Knight, come now, introduce yourself to me."
'He even knows my nickname.'
Davos looked at Viserys as if he were staring at a monster.
Despite his shock, he said nothing for a long while. He had already sworn his loyalty to Stannis. Viserys would not get a word of information from his mouth.
But his silence only confirmed his identity in Viserys' mind.
"What, just because Stannis granted you a knighthood, you've pledged yourself to him with such unwavering loyalty? Have you forgotten that not long ago, you were a subject of King Aerys?"
Viserys spoke with a hint of mockery in his voice as he looked at the Onion Knight before him.
When he saw the trait listed among the captured—'missing four finger joints on the left hand'—he had been stunned.
He never imagined he'd run into such a "celebrity" here, one who even had a POV in the original story.
Realizing his identity had been fully exposed, Davos figured there was no longer any need to hide it. He simply turned his head to the side.
"His Grace asked you a question! Are you mute?"
A nearby guard couldn't bear the silence and barked in anger.
"Davos Seaworth, I admire you. Stay here and serve me. I'll send men to bring your family here," Viserys said, raising a hand to silence the guard.
"Your Grace… why?"
"What do you mean, why? You're my prisoner now. Swear loyalty to me, and I'll give you food, gold—even a title.
Refuse me, and I'll have your entire family killed. There's no need for so many questions. Don't forget—you're still a smuggler in my eyes, and a particularly vile one at that!"
With that, Viserys stood and left.
He had prepared a long speech beforehand, but after thinking it through, Davos was just a nobody at this point.
Spending so many words on him would be beneath him.
The real reason Viserys sought out Davos was precisely because of his identity as a smuggler and his knowledge of the eastern continent.
Though there was still plenty of gold on Dragonstone, the island itself had no productive land or industry. Such a small island couldn't possibly sustain a fleet of this scale.
Food, weapons, clothing—all had to be bought from the Free Cities. He couldn't keep living off stored wealth. But for now, he had no choice.
If Davos could serve him, it would save a lot of money.
If Robert could win over Barristan Selmy, and Viserys couldn't even secure the Onion Knight, then he might as well forget about cutting off Robert's head and sending it to Elia and the others.
He should just flee as far and fast as possible.
.......
After the naval battle at the Gullet, the Dragonstone fleet had become one of the most formidable forces in the Narrow Sea.
Having captured part of the Redwyne fleet, their numbers had grown to two hundred ships.
It was an easy task to snatch Davos's family and bring them to the island.
That victory also bought Viserys a valuable period of strategic development. The noble prisoners were ransomed under the supervision of Oswell, yielding 150,000 gold dragons.
But when it came to dealing with the common soldiers, things became tricky.
There were about fifteen hundred prisoners in total. Accepting ransom for them wouldn't be worth it.
The two sides were still at war, and these were Robert's elite veterans. If released, they might return in short order, blades drawn once again against Dragonstone.
Viserys considered executing all of them, but Arthur and the others objected, calling it needlessly brutal.
Then Viserys proposed cutting off their thumbs and big toes so they couldn't wield weapons or run swiftly. Again, they stopped him, saying it was far too cruel.
After venting his frustration, Viserys relented once more and decided to organize the captives into a labor force.
He had Davos take them to Pentos and sign a twenty-year contract.
They would earn him foreign currency.
The result? Another 150,000 gold dragons. To the Kingsguard, this made Viserys appear merciful and willing to listen to advice.
A good king.
In truth, Viserys had never intended to kill the prisoners. He simply understood that the Kingsguard's loyalty came from the respect he showed them.
As young as he was, he couldn't control the army without them.
With the prisoners dealt with, the Battle of the Gullet truly came to an end.
Now, aside from Elia, who still harbored doubts, Viserys, Rhaella, and Lyanna were all convinced of one thing-- Dragonstone could not be held. The future of House Targaryen lay in the east.
Viserys stared at the map of Essos. Territories that were unclaimed yet valuable were few and far between.
One was the "Disputed Lands." Among the Free Cities, Tyrosh, Lys, and Myr had fought over that land for centuries.
It was overrun with mercenaries and bandits. Even if conquered, it would require constant vigilance against the ambitions of those three cities.
The other was the ancestral homeland of the Andals—Andalos.
This land saw far fewer wars. The Upper Rhoyne to the north and the Velvet Mountains to the south created natural borders.
Its area rivaled any of the Seven Kingdoms, except the North.
But the problem was that Andalos was a buffer zone between Pentos and Braavos. The Free Cities' influence extended far beyond their immediate surroundings.
Each one controlled tens of thousands—sometimes hundreds of thousands—of square kilometers of land.
Braavos was widely considered the most powerful of all the Free Cities. Its ruler called himself the "Sealord."
They were said to be the "bastard daughter of Valyria."
The city had been founded by slaves who fled the Valyrian Empire.
Braavos possessed a formidable navy, and it was said that if their shipyards operated at full capacity, they could launch a warship every day.
Their wealth didn't stop at ships—Braavos was also home to the infamous Iron Bank.
And the mysterious Faceless Men.
Once, when King Jaehaerys demanded the return of dragon eggs unlawfully taken by Braavos—at a time when House Targaryen still had dragons—the Sealord threatened him with the Faceless Men.
Jaehaerys had no choice but to let the matter drop. Even after the Targaryens lost their dragons, they stored funds in the Iron Bank to manage their wealth.
Even Pentos, which had lost battle after battle against Braavos, was not a power Viserys could afford to antagonize.
The plains of Andalos were, in reality, their domain.
And there was one more thing to consider.
Would the Targaryens' eastward migration provoke the vigilance of the Free Cities? What if they banded together and swallowed House Targaryen whole?
Just as Viserys was still fretting over where to settle in the East, an unexpected visitor arrived on Dragonstone—
Oberyn Martell.
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