The Glory of the Seven Gods of Ice and Fire

Chapter 150 The Excited King

Westeros had prospered for many years since the Great Crusade, and the monarch who had accomplished so much reveled in the prosperity he had created.

Even the most severe moralists could not make any public accusations against the king's debauchery, because Robert Baratheon's achievements were enough for him to rest on his laurels. At most, he could make some moral criticisms, but who cared about that? The people of Westeros did not care about the personal morality of their rulers.

However, Robert Baratheon is Robert Baratheon after all. He is a unique man. If he were an ordinary monarch, he would surely rest on his laurels for the rest of his life. But not Robert. After enjoying a superior life for several years, the monarch of Westeros felt bored again and began to yearn for war.

Therefore, when Jon Arryn put a proposal to "test the loyalty of the Northern Lord" on Robert's desk, the monarch who had completely left government affairs to the prime minister showed a rare strong interest in it. The reason for his interest was simple. If the Northern Lord was not honest, he could use his warhammer.

Jon Arryn had never felt at ease with the two northern commanders and had always been wary.

After all, these two men were independent of King Robert's great conquests, and had close ties with the Lannisters of Upper Rhoynar - and these three together made up half of the new Seven Kingdoms.

However, the development of the matter still surprised the Iron Throne. The two commanders showed their loyalty and obedience to the Iron Throne, which was good, but the troubles in the process were really unexpected.

King Robert was unwilling to see these things, as Jon could handle them anyway. However, he was very interested in the centaur invasion.

After receiving the news of the centaur invasion, Robert immediately urged his army to cross the sea, eager to reach the other side of the Narrow Sea and have a decisive battle with the centaur khal.

The royal army had already been assembled to a certain extent under the king's orders, and now the king had ordered a full mobilization, and everyone responded to the call - everyone remembered what the victors of the last expedition had gained.

Soon, under the escort of the royal fleet, Robert entered the port of Myr with 30,000 soldiers, and the monarch who conquered the East once again set foot on eastern land.

"Jon, how big did you say this centaur invasion was?"

Standing at the port of Mill, watching the thousands of soldiers marching out of the ships in an orderly manner and gathering again at the port, Robert felt a strong sense of satisfaction in his heart. This scene of war and iron horses always made his heart surge.

"According to the news I received, every territory of the New Seven Kingdoms has been attacked. The army around the great khal is very large, roughly estimated to be 150,000 people; of course, according to Varys, their number will be even greater, it can be described as "an overwhelming army." There is no way, there are too many tribes on the Great Grass Sea, and Balb has conquered the entire Grass Sea."

Jon Arryn, the most powerful man on both sides of the Narrow Sea, was frowning with a material report in his hand. His annoyance came from the unexpected war, which increased his workload greatly - and more importantly, his adopted son, who was always eager to try, wanted to take risks again.

Many times, Prime Minister Arryn wondered whether the Iron Throne belonged to his Baratheon family or his Arryn family. However, this thought only lasted for a moment. Old politicians like old Arryn were well aware of these issues, and sometimes they were really upset. So, old Arryn continued to talk about the war in the east, "And it's not just the centaurs. The so-called Northern Confederation and Volantis have also taken action. They want to regain lost territory. The River Estuary Army is under great pressure now. They are facing attacks from both the centaurs and Volantis. I have ordered Randyll Tarly to lead troops to help, but I don't know how effective it will be."

The Estuary Army is the army stationed at the mouth of the River Rhoyne to suppress the power of Volantis.

This army is the largest standing army currently in the hands of the Iron Throne, led by the legendary knight and Kingsguard Ser Barristan.

"Don't worry, Barristan will hold on." Robert was nonchalant. "As for the North, let Hugo and Aenys deal with it. I want to focus all my energy on fighting that khal. When will my loyalists arrive?"

"Lord Eddard responded to your order immediately, but the North is too large and it takes time to assemble the army. Lord Hoster is a bit procrastinating and he seems to have some conflict with Frey. Lord Tywin sent out troops as early as the centaurs crossed the Rhoyne River, and they should be here soon."

Old Arryn first mentioned the members of the Alliance of Deer, Wolf, Fish, Eagle and Lion. These were the core members and staunch supporters of the Iron Throne. Robert frowned after hearing this. "Are Tully and Frey making trouble again? Tell them to stop. If they delay, I want them to come to me with their heads on their backs!"

"Yes, Your Majesty." Arryn's attendant immediately recorded it in his notebook. There were many such attendants around Duke Arryn, who were responsible for recording various information. "Next is the River Bay, Dorne and the Iron Islands. The Duke of Mace is preparing to cross the sea at the request of the Queen of Thorns, and the Prince of Dorne is also preparing to rescue his brother. As for the Iron Islands... you also know the situation there."

"It just takes a lot of time. Tsk, it's really annoying." Robert was a little unhappy, and when this expression appeared, old Arryn became nervous instead, because every time Robert showed such emotions, Robert would do something that made him terrified - literally terrified.

He still remembered Robert's almost life-threatening race on the racetrack - five drivers died that day and eight were disabled.

There were also group jousting in the arena—twelve disabled people were produced that day.

At the venue, the spectators indulged in the bloodthirsty excitement of the competition. Whenever the king appeared, their cheers became more intense - cheering for the great king who seemed to never lose on the battlefield and in the arena. But behind the crowd of people in the viewing platform, the old Hand of the King always had a worried heart: Robert had established an unprecedentedly powerful kingdom, but most people did not realize that the foundation of this powerful country was not solid, and its king was so keen on fighting and adventure; if Robert died prematurely due to war or accident, would his young heir have the ability to stabilize the situation? Old Jon was naturally willing to continue to perform the duties of the Hand of the King, but what if his life was over?

At the moment, what worries old man Jon Arryn is far more than just the political affairs of the sixteen kingdoms under the Iron Throne.

And just as old Arryn was looking at Robert, worried that he would reveal some adventurous intentions and plans the next moment, Robert did not speak, but looked at him with a smile.

"Ha, Jon, seeing your expression, I know what you are thinking. Don't worry, I know the priorities and will never take risks at this time. I will not lose the big picture for the small."

(End of this chapter)