iron throne of ice and fire

Chapter 417: Harron Cathedral

"Archbishop? Me?"

Archbishop Zari's fat face was filled with joy at first, but then his expression turned worried. "If it were in the past, I might still have a chance, but those friends who would support me now... the High Sparrow has made them lose their prestige in the Church of the Seven. Their votes... well... and... according to tradition, the Archbishop cannot be re-elected while he is still alive. Unless..."

He secretly observed Green's expression out of the corner of his eye: "Unless... unless... an accident like the one that happened to the previous archbishop happens..."

Green tapped his fingers on the armrest of his chair, seeming to consider carefully the implications of Archbishop Zari's words.

After a moment of silence, Green shook his head slightly under Zari's expectant gaze. "It's not difficult to kill the High Sparrow accidentally, but it will be disadvantageous to you. As a beneficiary, it is easy to be questioned. After all, the Church of the Seven Gods is not a court. Even if there is no evidence, extreme believers are likely to incite people and directly judge you with an axe."

He looked at Zari beside him: "From what I understand, the Sparrows are made up of very pious people."

Can we kill them all? Archbishop Zari thought so in his heart, but he did not show it. He continued to play the half-true and half-false role of a poor old monk.

After a long while in the solemn atmosphere, seeing Green frowning and remaining silent, Archbishop Zari finally couldn't help but ask, "Lord Green, may I ask...what did you mean just now?"

Green's brown eyes moved slightly. Zari's voice seemed to make him stop his thoughts. He gently raised his eyebrows, paused, and said, "Sorry, your reminder made me think of another way, perhaps a more comprehensive way."

What did he remind you of? Archbishop Zari suppressed his doubts and asked, "What is the method?"

Green took a sip of wine and said, "Archbishop, find a good place and become the archbishop of another cathedral. I will support you."

Archbishop Zari opened his eyes wide and paused, then said, "Another cathedral? Where is it... The Cathedral of the Stars?"

The Starry Sept is located in Oldtown. It was once the faith center of the Seven Gods and the residence of the High Septon. It was later replaced by the Great Sept of Baelor in King's Landing.

Green shook his head slightly: "House Hightower will not easily join the chaos in King's Landing."

Putting down his wine glass, Green took out a rough map of the Riverlands and spread it on the small wooden table between them: "Please take a look."

As Archbishop Zari looked at the map in confusion, Green pointed to one of the locations and said, "Do you think this is a good place?"

Zari was stunned: "Harrenhal? What do you think..."

Green interrupted Zari and said, "You chose it. As a pioneer of the new history of the Church of the Seven, I have to admire your eyes as bright as fire."

Archbishop Zari's Adam's apple rolled: "I heard that there are ghosts and spirits haunting there at night. I also heard that the place is cursed..."

Green nodded: "Yes, but you have nothing to fear. Demons, ghosts, or spirits cannot harm those who believe in the Seven Gods. The monks use faith as armor. Praise you, devout Brother Zari."

After a pause, he continued, "What are the High Sparrow and his sparrows doing in the Great Sept of Baelor now? Their opponents are waiting for your salvation in agony, and... the nobles of King's Landing or the Seven Kingdoms will surely become increasingly dissatisfied with the High Sparrow turning the Seven Kingdoms' center of faith into his personal place of prayer. These people will surely support you in providing a new place for the suffering Seven Gods monks and nuns to rest."

Archbishop Zari was very excited. He asked tentatively, "Lord Green, Harrenhal is the fief of Kevan Lannister..."

As he spoke, he paused. Kevan was stabbed to death some time ago. Could this be a curse from Harrenhal? ! Thinking of this, Zari's body couldn't help but tremble.

"Without Lord Kevan, the Lannisters will no longer be able to control the Three Rivers by ruling Harrenhal." Green took a sip of wine, curled the corners of his lips slightly, and continued: "Now, that place is just a pile of stones for the Lannister family. Although the Queen Regent does not like Kevan's son, she will not rush to 'exile' Lancel 'Sister' or William (Kevan's second son)."

Archbishop Zari looked hesitant: "After all, that is the Lannister's fiefdom..."

"Archbishop, the reason I am willing to support you is because your choice is very wise."

Green leaned back in his chair and continued slowly, "Among the many archbishops in King's Landing, you are the only one who came to the Riverlands in person to appease the people. You already have great prestige here. If you also gather refugees in Harrenhal... then, at least for a period of time, the High Sparrow will not be able to find a suitable reason to expel you from the Church of the Seven."

He continued, "The people are the water, and you are the boat. The more water there is, the freer you will sail. Remember, the nobles of the Seven Kingdoms preferred the Church of the Seven before the High Sparrow. This is also your future opportunity."

After a pause, Green continued, "Archbishop Zari, have you made your final decision? Where will the new cathedral you are planning be located?"

At this point, Archbishop Zari exhaled slowly and gritted his teeth and said, "Harrenhal, the future Great Sept of Harren."

Compared with the rumored curse, his own safety at the moment is more important. Then he comforted himself that he was just a servant of the Seven Gods. If the Cathedral was built, the real masters there would be the Seven Gods in heaven, so it should not be his turn to be cursed... Oh - the hateful High Sparrow, that villain was the one who should be cursed the most!

Green had similar ideas. Since Harrenhal would curse every new master, he would send the loyal servants of the Seven Gods there. Then, Crab's army would "temporarily" be stationed in Harrenhal in the name of protecting the temple.

As for whether the Curse of Harrenhal will give the Seven Gods some face...we will know the result when the time comes.

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Three days later, across the waxy lake, the tower that Blackheart Harren had built with all the might of the nation loomed. Five twisted black fingers stretched into the air, and the stones were oddly deformed.

Duke Green and Archbishop Zari stood up together and looked at the outline of Harrenhal for a while. He made a gesture, and soon a servant brought an exquisite wooden box.

Seeing the amiable Zari showing a puzzled look, Green smiled and said, "This is a gift I prepared for you."

After he finished speaking, the servant slowly opened the lid, and inside... ...in the sunlight, there was a sparkling of colorful light.

Zari was stunned at first, then said in disbelief: "This... this is..."

Green nodded. "It was the High Septon's crystal crown. The High Sparrow sold it to raise food for the refugees in King's Landing."

Archbishop Zari solemnly picked up the gorgeous crystal crown, looked at it for a while before putting it back into the wooden box. He then bowed deeply to Green and said, "May the gods bless you, merciful Lord Green."

Green reached out and patted Zari's arm, smiled, and said, "I look forward to you opening a new chapter for the Church of the Seven Gods, the future Archbishop Zari."

Archbishop Zari once again looked at Harrenhal from afar and said devoutly: "When the time is right, I will pray for seven days and seven nights, asking the old woman to raise the golden lamp to guide the believers on their way forward..."

After that, he paused, took out a small parchment scroll from his sleeve and handed it over: "Lord Green, if these people... can come to Harrenhal to help, I can assure you on their behalf that they will always remember your kindness." Green unfolded the parchment scroll and took a quick look at it, then said: "I will have someone try their best to bring the 'rowsmen' above to you. Very good, I am looking forward to the grand occasion here more and more."

"May the Seven Gods bless the best Duke in the Seven Kingdoms."

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After leaving more than a thousand "Paladins" and "Holy Warriors" for Archbishop Zari, Green led his army along the River Road towards Riverrun.

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"Your Highness, let's read the history of Old Town first..."

"According to some ancient runes, humans may have lived in ..." since the Dawn Age

"Ancient races traded there..."

"After King Gyles I of the River Reach conquered Oldtown, he sold three quarters of the population into slavery..."

"The last High Tower King, Lemon Hightower, married the daughter of Garland II Gardener and married his daughter to Garland II Gardener. Since then, Oldtown has been incorporated into the Kingdom of the River Reach."

"The most famous buildings in Old Town are the Citadel, the Towering Tower, and the Starry Cathedral..."

"Aegon Targaryen was crowned King of the Seven Kingdoms by the High Septon in the Starry Sept of Oldtown. The Conqueror's Reign began that day..."

"…The Hightower family has always been an important sponsor and protector of the Citadel and its scholars…"

Reading the history of the Citadel, Daenerys frowned slightly, flipped through a few pages in the book, and asked in confusion: "Maester Ar, has the Citadel ever studied the Targaryen dragons?"

Maester Al's cloudy eyes moved slightly, and he smiled and said, "The Huiquan of the Targaryen family loves you. Yes, you found something strange in the books I asked you to read, right? Please tell me, Your Highness."

Daenerys flipped through a few more pages in the book, paused, and said, "Compared to the books I read before, this book is missing a lot of records about dragons?"

Maester Al coughed a few times and said, "Yes, this change began sixteen years ago, or perhaps even earlier. I have been away from the Citadel for too long... Most of the information there is based on letters exchanged between old friends, or my own speculation."

Daenerys Targaryen first signaled the maid to pour wine for them. After a moment of silence, she asked, "Does the Citadel not welcome...dragons?"

Maester Al took a sip of summer red, shook his head, and replied: "In the ideal world constructed by the Citadel, there should be no witchcraft, prophecy, or glass candles... let alone dragons, my Lord."

He sighed and said, "An old friend of mine once complained to me in a letter that Maester Aemon should have been promoted to a Master long ago, but because his bloodline was not trusted, he was forced to waste the rest of his life at the Wall."

If a bachelor is considered a "master" in a certain field, he will be awarded a ring, scepter and mask corresponding to this field, as well as the title of doctor to recognize his expertise.

Doctors are senior members of the Bachelor's Organization and are given the right to attend the Citadel's confidential meetings - the Cardinal Council.

Each doctor holds an ancient key made of black iron, which can open every door in the city.

…………

Daenerys took a sip of her wine. She enjoyed discussing things with Maester Ar because it helped her to ease the fatigue of her studies.

She gently put down the wine glass and said, "What bloodline? Isn't knowledge the most important thing for a bachelor?"

Maester Ar nodded, then shook his head and said, "Maester Aemon is the third son of King Maekar Targary I and Queen Daena Dayne. His name before he became a maester was Aemon Targaryen. He wore a necklace and swore an oath when he was very young, and later joined the Night's Watch. He served there for so long that many people have forgotten his Targaryen blood."

"But the cardinal of the Citadel will surely not forget, will he? To be honest, the more I learn about the history of Westeros, the less I believe the wonderful stories told in poetry."

Daenerys couldn't help but shrug slightly, and added: "Thank you very much for your honesty, Maester Ar."

Maester Al said kindly, "A ruler needs to know more clearly who his friends, enemies, or potential enemies are than anyone else. As a maester of the Kleber family, I have the responsibility and obligation to help you get to know them as soon as possible."

Daenerys blinked. "I will keep it a secret."

Maester Al spread his hands, seemingly indifferent: "I am wearing the maester's necklace to serve Lord Green. Obedience is a virtue, and loyalty is the highest honor."

As soon as Daenerys' afternoon classes were over, she immediately convened the "Order of the Heart (an advisory group selected from the maesters serving Crabbe, Chapter 280)" to begin discussing how the valley should accommodate the refugees from the riverlands.

According to Green's orders, most of these people will be placed in areas that have experienced war.

Although it was not necessary to arrange tens of thousands of people at once (send them in batches), Daenerys did not dare to relax at all, because this was the biggest political affair she had encountered since Daeglin ruled the Valley.

Moreover, the people who migrated here were all poor people who were displaced by the war. Daenerys hoped to do her best to take care of them and let them start their new life peacefully in a strange place.

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Arya Stark moved lightly. Today, she took the initiative to propose to Syrio Forel a swordsman test that she had thought of. That was to avoid the eyes of the guards and sneak into the study of the Lord of Winterfell.

However, Syrio reminded Arya of her mother's punishment with the brush, and... his refusal... Yes, the "cowardly" Syrio rejected the little wolf girl's adventurous idea.

(End of this chapter)