iron throne of ice and fire

Chapter 382 Backstab 5
The Hand's primary task is to assist the King in ruling the kingdom, and while Stannis is nominally the King of the Seven Kingdoms, he only controls Dragonstone and Storm's End.

Davos felt deeply exhausted when he thought of the two forces divided by faith in this small kingdom - the royal party that always adhered to the Seven Gods and the queen party that converted to the King of Light.

He said gloomily, "The Prime Minister should be a lord of noble birth, wise and knowledgeable, commanding, and full of chivalry..."

"Ser Rhian Redwyne was the greatest knight of his age, but one of the worst Hands ever. Septon Murmison's prayers could work miracles, but once he became Hand he soon had the Seven Kingdoms praying for his death. Lord Butterwell was known for his wisdom, Myles Smallwood for his courage, Ser Otto Hightower for his erudition, but as Hands they all failed miserably."

Maester Pylos smiled and continued, "As for origin, it doesn't matter. The Targaryen dragonlords are used to choosing their prime ministers from within their own clan, so their bloodline should be very noble, right? As a result, there were Baelor the Spearbreaker and Maegor the Cruel. On the other hand, there was Septon Bath, the son of a blacksmith who was promoted from the Red Keep library by the Centenarian King Jaehaerys. He brought forty years of peace and prosperity to the Seven Kingdoms."

He picked up a book and held it in his arms. "Prime Minister Davos, if you read history, you will realize that your suspicions are unfounded."

Davos shrugged slightly. "How can I study history if I can't read?"

"Anyone can read, my good lord. It does not require magic or noble birth."

Maester Palos stepped forward and said, "Come, I am teaching your son according to the king's order. You should come and join me."

It was a friendly offer, and one Davos could not refuse, so he followed Maester Pylos up the stairs.

Entering the room at the top of the stairs, Davos saw three children sitting at a long wooden table. Princess Shireen Baratheon sat between two boys.

He couldn't help but smile with relief. Even now... he still felt very proud to see his own flesh and blood accompanying the princess and the king's illegitimate son.

"Good day, father." Seeing Davos' figure, Davon Seaworth (Stannis's squire and Davos' fifth son) spoke with joy.

Davan was dressed in the gorgeous attire of a king's attendant. His son had the same square face and brown eyes as his father, and the same sparse, flowing brown hair.

A stubble of golden hair covered Devan's cheeks and chin, not much more than peach fuzz, but Davos knew that his son was extremely proud of his beard.

"Good day, my lord." Edric Storm was much taller than Devan, with a broader chest and shoulders, black hair, deep blue eyes, and the shape of his mouth, chin and cheekbones... This boy was indeed Robert I's son, and his ears reminded others that his mother was from the Florent family.

The boy asked again, "Are you from my uncle's place? How is His Majesty?"

Edric might have been as hot-tempered and proud as his father, but he had been raised by maesters, castellans, and instructors who had taught him to be humble.

"Your Majesty is well."

Davos glanced at the children kindly: "I hope I am not disturbing you."

Maester Pylos sat across from the three children. "Please feel free to sit anywhere, Prime Minister."

After taking a quick look around, Davos found a "remote" spot and sat down. He was the only one in the room who couldn't read... To be honest, the Onion Knight was a little nervous.

As he sat down, Princess Shireen's childish voice came over: "Prime Minister Davos, we are reading the story of King Daeron I."

Princess Shireen was a lovely, gentle and sweet child, but unfortunately her face was not pretty. Stannis gave her a square chin, Selyse gave her the protruding ears of the Florent family, and the cruel gods who were good at playing tricks on the world infected her with grayscale in her cradle. Although the disease did not take away her life or eyesight, it made the skin on one side of her cheek and half of her neck stiff and necrotic, with a dry and cracked surface and mixed with black and gray spots. This was her greatest misfortune.

Davos smiled. "The king once spoke of him. He was said to be a great fighter."

Maester Pylos said slowly, "He started a war, conquered Dorne, and was honored as the 'Young Dragon Lord' by everyone."

"He worships false gods..."

Davan's face was troubled for a moment, and then he continued, "But other than that, he was a great king, brave and fearless in battle."

"Yes."

Edric first echoed Davon's words, then proudly announced: "But my father was braver. The Young Dragon never won three battles in one day."

Princess Shireen couldn't help but widen her eyes. "Uncle Robert won three battles in one day?"

Edric nodded and said, "That was when he went home to gather his vassal lords. Earl Granderson, Earl Cavron, and Earl Fell planned to meet at Summerhall and then march towards Storm's End, but my father got wind of the news, so he immediately took all his knights and squires and set out at full speed. He attacked the enemy army separately before they arrived at Summerhall and defeated them one by one."

After a pause, he said excitedly: "My father killed Earl Fell single-handedly and captured his son 'Silver Axe'."

Davon was a little skeptical: "Maester Pylos, is that so?"

"I'm not done yet!"

Before Pylos could answer, Edric said, "He defeated all three enemies and conquered Earl Granderson, Earl Cavron, and Silver Axe with his bravery in battle."

Finally, he raised his chin and said, "No one has ever defeated my father."

Maester Pylos warned him, “You should not boast so much, Edric. King Robert has been defeated like any other. Lord Tyrell defeated him at Ashford, and he has lost jousting many times.”

Davan looked puzzled and asked, "Maester Pylos, I remember that the one who defeated King Robert at Ashfort was the famous general Randyll, right?"

Edric looked a little angry: "Lord Randyll must have used some unfair means to attack my father."

Dai Feng immediately denied it, "That's not true. The famous general Lan Dao launched the attack openly. This is a fact known to many people."

Seeing that the two children were about to quarrel again, Maester Pylos cleverly changed the subject: "In the Seven Kingdoms today, there is a new rising general... Duke Green Crabbe."

Princess Shireen had been sitting quietly by the side, but her eyes suddenly lit up when she heard what Pylos said. She finally had the opportunity to join the conversation: "Patchface (Dragonstone's court jester) told me the story of Duke Crabbe, who recaptured Crabclaw Peninsula with only a thousand men, and... conquered the vast valley with only three thousand men."

Edric nodded in agreement. "Yes, Duke Crab is also very powerful. He defeated the King Slayer and won the championship in the King's Landing Tournament held by my father for Duke Edric."

Davon was silent for a while, then suddenly said, "Duke Kleber is a good friend of my father, and he once personally invited my brothers to serve in his fleet!"

As his son's boastful voice fell, Davos found that the children's curious eyes all turned to him.

He paused for a moment and said, "Indeed, there was such an invitation, but... at that time, the entire kingdom was about to fall into chaos, so I had to... let down Duke Green's kindness."

Glancing at his son's eager eyes, he added, "I have come into contact with Duke Green several times because of the king's affairs. In the process, we have developed some friendship..."

Maester Pylos tapped the table. "We can now begin our study of The Dornish Conquest."

When Maester Pylos led the children to read about how King Daeron I invaded and conquered Dorne, Davos frowned at the books and scrolls on the table, trying to figure out a few words, trying to make his headache and make himself look less stupid. They read for more than two hours, and it was the first time that Davos felt that time could be so long.

After Princess Shireen and the two boys said goodbye politely and left, Maester Pylos approached Davos and pushed a thin leather book across the table. "Prime Minister, would you like to read The Conquest of Dorne as well? King Daeron's writing is simple and elegant, and his history is full of blood, war, and courage. Your son is quite fascinated by it."

Davos enjoys a good story as much as most people, but he knows that his first duty is to assist King Stannis in government, and to do that he must understand the words brought by the raven.

"Maester Pylos, I'd better learn how to read a letter from you."

"Yes, practice is one of the fastest ways to learn... I'll look for it..."

Maester Pylos rummaged around on the table, unrolling rolls of parchment and then throwing them aside.

"No new letters, but perhaps an old one..."

He finally stopped searching and handed a letter to Davos: "This may be suitable for us."

Davos smoothed the wrinkled parchment and squinted to read the tiny, scribbled handwriting. He knew that reading letters was hard on the eyes.

He read: "... King of... Righteousness, oh, in front is... Horse racing?"

Maester Pylos corrected him: "Beyond the Wall, that is, north of the Wall."

Davos showed a pained expression. "The King-Beyond-the-Wall... goes... south? Leading... a... a... huge... army of... wildlings?"

"Correct."

With the patient assistance of Maester Pylos, Davos finally read to the end: "Mor... Lord Commander Mormont..."

Davos turned the letter over and saw the black wax seal. He frowned and said, "Maester, this letter is from the Night's Watch. Has King Stannis seen it?"

Maester Pylos sighed slightly. "More than two months ago, Lord Alister was the first to see this letter. He told me not to be stupid. Your Majesty doesn't even have enough manpower to fight his own war, so how could he waste energy on the wildlings?"

Davos thought for a moment, then said, "Are you sure King Stannis hasn't seen this letter? Or Melisandre?"

Maester Pylos nodded and replied, "Neither of them have seen it. Should I bring it to them?"

Davos immediately said, "No need. You have done your duty by letting Lord Alister see this letter."

If Melisandre knew this letter...she would definitely say that the ancient gods are gathering strength, the cold wind is already blowing, and soon the endless night will come.

Seeing that Davos remained silent, Maester Pylos asked in a worried tone, "Prime Minister, are you feeling unwell?"

"I was just thinking, Maester Pylos. My apologies."

Davos suddenly remembered a story just now. Azor Ahai stabbed it into his wife's heart to temper the "Lightbringer". He killed his beloved to fight against the darkness. If... Stannis is really the reincarnation of Azor Ahai, does it mean that Edric Storm has to play the role of Nissa Nissa?

"Please give me another letter. This one is really... really..."

"Difficult?" Maester Pylos prompted him.

Davos shook his head. "It is disturbing."

He regained his spirits and struggled to read the two letters with the help of the bachelor. Then his second son came to him and said, "Father, His Majesty the King wants you to come over."

Not the Table Hall, but a remote beach? Leaving Dragonstone, Davos rode for more than half an hour.

As he approached, King Stannis, who was standing with the red woman, looked over. "The Onion Knight."

Davos finished his greeting, glanced at Melisandre, who was smiling, and said, "King Stannis, the Onion Knight is at your service."

"Let me show you what destroyed our fleet." Stannis, gaunt and haggard, raised his hand from a distance.

Several guards operated small catapults and threw the filled jars toward the sea.

Seeing this, Davos' pupils suddenly shrank, and a scene like the seven levels of hell emerged in his mind. He murmured: "This... this is..."

Melisandre chuckled, "It seems you have guessed what it is, dear Davos."

She nodded toward Stannis, turned toward the sea, and held out her hand in a gesture of mysterious grace.

With a loud bang, an emerald flame suddenly rose up, soaring, rolling and burning above the sea like a giant dragon.

"It is because of the guidance of the Lord of Light that the 'gift' of Duke Green appears before you (Chapters 305, 335), Your Majesty."

“…Duke Green?”

…………

…………

The Red Fort in the middle of the night seemed to be tightly shrouded by a thick layer of darkness.

Green was wearing black chain mail and a golden robe. He had a calm expression on his face, holding his pointed helmet in one hand, and walked up the steps of the Iron Throne with steady steps.

Joffrey sat on the Iron Throne, his brows furrowed, his tone clearly unhappy: "Lord Greene, are you afraid of Tywin too?"

Green walked unhurriedly to the front of the Iron Throne, then turned around and looked around. He then said with emotion: "Did Sir James kill the once-invincible Aerys II here?"

Seeing that Green had completely ignored him, Joffrey was immediately furious. He raised his voice and shouted angrily: "I'm talking to you!"

Green turned his head slightly, glanced at Joffrey, and said, "Your Majesty, do you know how much risk I took in meeting you privately tonight?"

(End of this chapter)