iron throne of ice and fire

Chapter 464: The Future of the Kingdom (End)
"The Sand Snakes are free. Uncle Oberyn taught them that, Father."

Prince Doran smiled weakly. "Leave us alone, Areo."

The captain of the prince's guard nodded slightly, slammed the handle of the long-handled axe in his hand on the ground, and turned and retreated.

When the father and daughter were left alone, Prince Doran looked at her for a long time before he slowly spoke: "Tell me, Arianne, why did you kill Kevan Lannister? Have you ever thought about the consequences of being exposed?"

Her father sounded very tired, which made Arianne angry. "It was for the honor of Martell! Father, your brother went to King's Landing instead of you, and they killed him!"

Prince Doran didn't seem to care about his daughter's accusations. He looked sad: "Every time I close my eyes, I can see Oberyn joking with me."

Arianne was furious: "You are the prince of Dorne, you should avenge your brother, not mourn cowardly here!"

After saying this, Arianne walked straight to the chess table and sat opposite her father.

Prince Doran looked at her: "I didn't give you permission to sit down."

Arianne glanced at the chessboard, then picked up the Heavy Cavalry, jumped a few squares and put it down. Her tone was still a little angry: "You can call the captain of the guard in and ask him to whip me to punish my arrogance. You are the Prince of Dorne, and this is your right."

Prince Doran moved his eyes to the chessboard, picked up the "elephant" and ate the "heavy cavalry" that Arianne had just jumped over.

"Who helped you?"

Arianne's anger dissipated as her father ignored her. Perhaps she had already become accustomed to this way of getting along between father and daughter.

Picking up the "dragon" and eating her father's "elephant", she raised the corners of her lips and said, "A new friend of the king's territory."

"You are the chess piece and he is the chess player."

After saying this, Prince Doran stretched out his hand and used his "catapult" to eat Arianne's "dragon".

On the chessboard, Arianne stared at Prince Doran's "Catapult", but she had no piece to capture it.

She flexed her fingers and said, "I am the chess player. I was the one who found him."

The "light cavalry" on the opposite side jumped over, and Arianne knew that this was her father's bait.

Prince Doran's voice then rang out: "Without friendship, he has no reason to help you unless he needs you to do so."

Arianne's anger flared up again. She gritted her teeth and said, "I climbed into his bed."

After waiting for a while, seeing that Arianne did not make any move, Prince Doran asked, "...will he marry you?"

Seeing her pursed her lips and said nothing, he added: "...it seems that your pleasure in bed with him is meaningless."

Arianne's breasts rose and fell slowly for a few times before she spoke, "He was engaged, and I rejected him."

Prince Doran's calm gaze passed over Arianne's face. "Is there anything that proves he was involved?"

Arianne exhaled, and after a long silence, she shook her head and said, "The plan went too smoothly. By the time I realized it, it was too late..."

As she spoke, she suddenly smiled: "He is better than any other man I have ever seen... Well, now that I think about it, from the moment I met him, I began to follow his tongue. He took advantage of my fire of revenge."

“It’s good to be able to figure it out.”

After a pause, Prince Doran continued: "Everyone in the Seven Kingdoms thought... including me, that he was just a chess piece chosen by the Lannisters for everyone to see, but it turns out that he is the chess master. Arianne, you are no match for him, this is not surprising."

His eyes narrowed slightly. "Now tell me, was it also because of his 'guidance' that Obaya and Nymeria did not come back with you?"

After a moment of silence, Arianne shook her head. "This is their own idea. I can't interfere."

Prince Daolang frowned slightly: "Love does not mean indulgence. You are my heir, and they should obey you."

Heir?
Arianne's eyes flashed with sarcasm. After a pause, Prince Doran asked: "So, what do they want to do? Tell me, Arianne."

Arianne turned her face away and said, "The Sand Snakes seek revenge for the Red Viper."

"Another impulsive assassination? There are many eyes in King's Landing. They are already on alert. They are in danger."

"They won't act impulsively. As long as they don't expose themselves, they won't be in danger."

"Why are you so sure that their actions will not be exposed? As the heir, you should be rational."

After hearing the last part, Arianne stood up suddenly and said angrily: "Reason, reason! Your weakness brings shame to the Martell family! Father, aunt (Rhaegar's wife) was killed, uncle was also killed, they all died in King's Landing!"

Her breathing was heavy, she slowed down, trying her best to suppress her anger, and then said, "Also, did you just find out that I am your legal heir?"

Prince Doran still ignored his daughter's anger and said calmly: "You always have been."

Arianne sneered. “If that were the case, you would not have allowed my good brother to be adopted by Lord Anders Yronwood, while you spared no effort to find a husband for your heir, an old man.”

Black eyes stared at each other for an unknown amount of time before Prince Doran said softly, "Sit down, my heir."

In fact, at this time Arianne already regretted her impulsiveness. She should show her father that she dared not disobey the lord of Dorne, and... shed a few more tears.

But at this moment, she didn't want to play the role of the poor daughter, so she sat down with a snort, and it seemed that only she could hear the sound.

The room was very quiet. Prince Doran was distracted for a while before he spoke slowly: "You must love your two brothers, Arianne. As your brothers, they must behave properly, have a sense of responsibility, and help you win the hearts of the people of Dorne. And you..."

He looked directly at his daughter: "As the heir, you must not only inherit my honor and rights, but also inherit the Matthew family's... indomitable spirit."

He continued, "Old man... it also means that they don't have much life left. After the war of usurpation, Dorne has been away from the Iron Throne for more than ten years. Baratheon and Lannister are alerting us. We can only use other methods to return to the center of the Seven Kingdoms. Arianne, you are my heir, this is the responsibility and obligation you must bear."

"Father, I..."

Prince Doran raised his hand to stop his daughter from speaking. "Dorne is the weakest of the Seven Kingdoms. When King Daeron I wrote The Conquest of Dorne, he was happy to make Dorne's army larger than it actually was in order to boast of its great achievements. We are also happy to follow suit so that others will be afraid."

The teacup was gently placed on the table. Prince Doran paused for a moment, then took a sip. Looking at his daughter who was drinking tea seriously, Prince Doran continued, "But the actual situation is... courage cannot replace numbers. Dorne cannot fight for the Iron Throne, at least I cannot avenge my sister and brother alone. I was labeled weak and incompetent, so I suppressed the fire of revenge in Dorne. Now... what should I do if someone suspects us? Or, what should I do with you, Arianne?"

Arianne's eyes were red, but she said indifferently: "Just pretend you don't know anything. Aren't we used to doing this a long time ago?"

For the first time since the conversation between father and daughter, Prince Doran's voice showed some emotion: "...You make it difficult for me to swallow my anger."

Arianne shrugged. "I will have the Sand Snakes back as soon as possible. I will know what to do next. Father."

She murmured with a slightly dissatisfied tone: "Why didn't you tell me clearly earlier..."

Prince Daolang sighed slightly: "Ears cannot replace personal experience. I am waiting for you to grow up."

Although Arianne was touched by her father's love for her, she had heard too many sweet words and could no longer let down her guard.

"Father, I am twenty-three years old and have been an adult for seven years."

Prince Doran glanced at the complaining Arianne and said, "I kept my arrangements secret to protect you. Arianne, it is your nature that a secret is nothing more than a wonderful story that you can whisper to all your Sand Snake sisters at night. I can imagine the scene of rumors everywhere."

Arianne’s cheeks flushed. “I…have grown up.”

Prince Daolang nodded his chin lightly: "Yes, it's time for you to grow up."

Arianne shrugged slightly. "You don't look well. Do you want me to take you to your dorm?"

"Leave this matter to the servants, they will do it better than you."

Prince Doran put down his teacup. "I need you to go to King's Landing on my behalf. Let's go tomorrow."

Arianne asked in surprise, “King’s Landing? Tomorrow?”

"I have received intelligence that the Lannister army was defeated at Riverrun. This result will directly affect the struggle between theocracy and royal power in King's Landing. This may be a good opportunity for us."

Prince Doran took the Spearman from the chessboard and put it into Arianne's hand. He said, "Watch your Sand Snakes, my heir."

…………

…………

Red Keep, Throne Room.

Ever since the news of the Lannister army's defeat, the Lannister forces in the Red Castle have been in a panic.

One of the representatives was Prime Minister Harys Swyft (Kevan's father-in-law), who controlled the Small Council in conjunction with Grand Maester Pycelle.

He had already taken the initiative to give up the main seat at the imperial conference table to Grand Maester Pycelle, who nominally held the six thousand gold robes of King's Landing.

At this time, Grand Maester Pycelle was sitting at the head of the long table, with Prime Minister Harris on his right, and the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Earl Giles Rosby, and Humphrey Waters, who was promoted by Pycelle to Commander-in-Chief of the Gold Cloaks, on his left.

The Lord High Lord of the Admiralty, Count Matus Rowan, was absent.

Grand Maester Pycelle, who always hunched over and looked old, leaned majestically in a high-backed chair. He glanced at the people present with a turbid vision and said, "The raven brought... a protest from the heir of the Marquis of the Twins against the invasion of their territory by the Cleaver army."

Prime Minister Harris curled his lips. "Didn't Duke Green tell us before that it was Frey who betrayed the Lannisters that led to the defeat at Riverrun? The Weasel Family is indeed shameless. They even have the nerve to ask for help from the Imperial Council."

cough cough cough.

After coughing a few times, Earl Giles reminded, "Prime Minister, Duke Green's letter said that someone had doubts, but he did not express it clearly."

Prime Minister Harris opened his mouth and responded, "Since Green has raised his suspicions to the Council, we cannot take it lightly. I think the Frey family cannot be trusted."

Lord Gyles coughed a few more times and turned his gaze towards the main seat. "Lord Pycelle, please tell me how to respond to the heir of the Twins' request for help."

As soon as he finished speaking, Prime Minister Harris turned to Grand Maester Pycelle.

Under their gaze, Pycelle cleared his throat and said, "This matter can be postponed for now. We need to make a more important decision now. This concerns the future of the kingdom."

Seeing them pretending to listen, the Grand Maester nodded with satisfaction, then sighed and said, "The Queen Regent is no longer able to take care of the kingdom due to the accusations of the church. We should elect a regent to rule the Seven Kingdoms on his behalf before His Majesty Tommen comes of age."

In Harris's mind, Lord Green was a great nobleman who was pro-Lannister. As the representative of Lannister in the Red Keep, Harris could not wait to speak after Pycelle's voice fell: "Lord Pycelle, I recommend the Duke of the Eyrie, Green Crabbe. He is capable of shouldering this glorious responsibility."

Grand Maester Pycelle looked at the finance minister who was thinking, "Lord Gales, who do you recommend?"

Gail covered his mouth and coughed a few times, saying, "Perhaps... Lord Highgarden, Mace Tyrell, is a good candidate. His daughter is the king's future wife, and he will do his best for the kingdom."

Prime Minister Harris snorted strangely. "Gyles Rosby, don't forget that Margaery Tyrell has also been accused by the church. If she fails to prove her innocence in the church's trial, she will not be qualified to continue to be the king's fiancée, and the honor of the royal family will be affected..."

Prime Minister Harris suddenly thought of Cersei, so he moved his lips and stopped talking.

"Humfrey, give me a drink, please."

Upon hearing Pycelle's order, the gold-cloaked commander immediately stood up, took the flagon and poured him a glass of wine, then returned to his seat and sat down.

After taking a sip of Summer Red, Grand Maester Pycelle put down his glass and said, "Whether it's the Duke of Mace or the Duke of Green, they are the only two most suitable candidates for the regent among the Seven Kingdoms."

His eyes swept across Prime Minister Harris and Earl Giles: "But no matter what the final decision is, before that... the church must first end their trial. We all agree on this, right?"

Due to his inner nervousness, Earl Giles even forgot to cough. He and Prime Minister Harris looked at each other secretly, and then nodded to Pycelle together.

Seeing this, a look of satisfaction flashed across Pycelle's old face. He paused and said, "The Imperial Council needs to send a minister to inform the Archbishop that we will invite a duke to serve as the regent of the kingdom..."

He looked to the right and said, "Prime Minister Harris, I am sorry to trouble you with this matter."

Harris was stunned for a moment, and said in a panic: "Lord Pycelle, I am not suitable... Those sparrows are hostile to the Lannisters..."

(End of this chapter)