Game of Thrones: Viserys the Three-Headed Dragon.

Chapter 106 The Dragon King's Finance Minister

Illyrio sat in a huge leather chair in a large, luxurious cabin in the middle of the ship, with thick carpets and stained glass windows. Fresh fruit and grilled chicken wings dipped in honey were placed on the side of the table, along with a glass of steaming red wine.

But he had no appetite at all.

As the ship got closer to Dragonstone, he felt more and more uncomfortable.

There was a storm on the sea when he left the port of Pentos. He hoped that it was the beginning of the autumn storm sweeping the narrow sea, so that he could turn back to Pentos and wait for the right time.

However, Grole, who was once the most experienced captain under him, was very experienced and went out to sea in the storm.

And just as the experienced captain said, it was just a small storm. They were only at sea for half a day before the weather cleared up.

After returning to Pentos a few days ago and respectfully handing a thin piece of parchment to Illyrio, Grol, the commander of the first fleet of Dragonstone Dragon King, was eager to report back and got everything done in a hurry.

He asked Magister Illyrio to guarantee his ship, which had carried the Dragon King Viserys across half the world, and bought the highest level of insurance, which was then stored in the shipyard of his old manor. He then quickly sold off most of his property in Pentos and bought a finished hundred-gallant and four Myrish galleys, and brought his eldest son to be the captain of the new hundred-gallant.

Grole originally wanted to borrow money from Illyrio to buy a longship, but Illyrio waved his hand and simply funded him with two longships.

Now he really looked like a fleet commander. This time, when they set out from Pentos, a galley of three hundred oars, a galley of a hundred oars, two longships, four Myrish galleys, and two merchant ships loaded with cargo from Magister Illyrio, they headed towards Dragonstone in a mighty force.

Although the fleet was moving slowly because they had not hired all the sailors in Pentos before setting sail, no pirate dared to approach such a team.

They flew the True Dragon flag on their bow.

Every time Grole gave Illyrio his blessings and talked to him about how great the dragon king Viserys was and how excellent the vision of Magister Illyrio was, he felt very heavy.

Out of some kind of agreement, Grolai and the sailors on the ship, including the sailors who would not be on the ship after returning to Pentos but would go back to their hometown, kept silent about their itinerary after leaving Lys. Even if they did, they would only talk about a few parts, such as the weather was always good, there were no waves, and no pirates. As for where they went, what they did, and what happened during the time they disappeared at sea, they kept silent about it.

Only the part about the Battle of Dragonstone was talked about over and over again, saying how a patrol boat was destroyed that morning, and then how they landed on Dragonstone with the Dragon King, and how they ran to the mountainside. Many said that the battle was over before they even reached the mountainside.

And there are dragons. Everyone is sure that the Dragon King rode a three-headed dragon to fight and recaptured Dragonstone in less than a quarter of an hour.

As for where the dragon came from and when it appeared, everyone is keeping it a secret.

Illyrio tried to ask Grole and several stewards who had treated them well, but they all said that only Captain Grole might know. However, Grole only asked Illyrio to ask himself and he was not sure.

Illyrio pulled out the thin piece of parchment from his arms, on which was a letter of commission written in beautiful words in the Common Language of Westeros.

It bears the autograph of Dragonlord Viserys Targaryen and the king's seal. Viserys fulfilled his promise and appointed Illyrio Mopatis as his first finance minister, even though his borders now only include Dragonstone and a few castles of the Narrow Sea lords, and his army is said to have less than a thousand people.

But, he has dragons, and he is a Targaryen.

Woo——woo——

Two trumpet blasts meant Dragonstone was approaching.

Illyrio raised his head, took a deep breath, and struggled to stand up from the huge leather chair with his fat body.

He was the only one in the room now, without a maid's help, and standing up did not take as much effort as usual when he was in front of others.

But even so, when he walked to the dressing mirror in the luxurious room, thought about his past self, and then looked at his present self, he couldn't help but want to cry.

When Illyrio was young, he was a strong and handsome mercenary and assassin, making a living in the shadows of swords and sabers. But now...
Illyrio washed his hands, dried them with a towel, then thrust his right hand into his left sleeve and pulled out a silver box. Inside was a lifelike image of a woman with large blue eyes and light golden hair.

He found her in a Lysian brothel and took her home to warm his bed, but he became more and more concerned about her, eventually falling in love with her and marrying her.

Magister Illyrio gave her a long look and closed the box.

Then he came to the bed in the room, where there was a box containing his important item: her hand.

Once a Braavosi merchant ship landed in Pentos and brought the plague. Although every sailor who tried to leave the ship was killed, rats that escaped from the ship still brought the plague to the shore. A total of two thousand people died from the plague, and Shilla was one of them. After her death, Illyrio was heartbroken and kept her hand in his bedroom. This time he brought her with him, hoping that this would make him no longer hesitate.

woo-

woo-

There were trumpet calls echoing on the sea, meaning Dragonstone was about to arrive.

There was a knock on the door. Illyrio calmed himself down, sat back in his chair and said, "Come in." He took a sip of wine and tore into the cold chicken wings.

Grolai came in with a big smile on his face, accompanied by his Unsullied guards. He said enthusiastically, "Governor, we are almost at Dragonstone. Would you like to go to the bow to take a look? His Majesty the Dragon King told me to keep it a secret until now. His Majesty will personally pick you up at the dock."

Illyrio was shocked. "What?" His expression changed, and he immediately said, "How can this be possible? I am just a businessman."

Grolai rubbed his hands excitedly and said, "Governor, you will know if you go to the bow. You know His Majesty better than I do."

Illyrio quickly called for someone to help him up, straightened his appearance, and then walked onto the deck excitedly.

At this time, Dragonstone was already visible in the distance. A huge dragon mountain could be seen stretching across the sea level, with gray smoke indicating its location.

Boom--boom--.

The sound of drums was heard on the boat. As the drums sounded like trumpets, the rhythm of the wooden oars hitting the sea gradually became uniform, like the heartbeat of a giant.

Although the wind direction was not right, Grolai still ordered the crew to unfold the sails of each ship from half sail to full sail, and fully display the real dragon mark on the canvas before entering the port.

Gradually, more and more people with nothing to do were on the deck. An old man with a white beard appeared at a corner of the deck. He was wearing an undyed wool travel cloak with the hood lifted, revealing long white hair that fell to his shoulders and a silky silver beard covering the lower half of his face. He stood in a corner of the deck that no one paid attention to, leaning his body weight on a hardwood cane as tall as him, and staring intently in the direction of Dragonstone.

Illyrio looked back and saw the old man. The fat governor smiled at him, and then stood at the bow of the ship facing the wind with his big belly as if nothing had happened.

Dragonstone Island grew larger and larger on the sea horizon. Gradually, the huge Blackstone Castle with a dragon-shaped tower could be seen, as well as the coastal town with the Castle Mountain Road stretching down.

Finally, the dock gradually became clearly visible. A quarter of the entire port was cleared, and a huge space was also cleared around the platform on the dock. Countless onlookers could be seen being stopped outside that space.

At the front of the cleared dock, two rows of soldiers were waiting in formation to welcome the important guests.

Grolet did not order the fleet to retract the sails until they reached the maximum distance, and to move forward only by rowing.

The drums on the ships gradually slowed down, and the sound of the oars hitting the water gradually slowed down. The fleet finally arrived at the harbor, and the ship carrying Illyrio was deliberately driven to the middle dock.

Illyrio saw him, at the dock, right there, the down-and-out prince who was wearing dirty and tattered clothes when he first met him, with messy hair, gloomy eyes, haggard face, tall and thin figure, a slightly hunched posture, and a little nervous. When he talked to people, his hands would be uneasy and tremble slightly but he tried hard to restrain them, and his voice would become high-pitched when he was excited.

The king who was full of nonsense and deep-minded in his courtyard, who obviously didn't trust anyone but was using him, doing stupid and crazy things openly and doing secret and adventurous things secretly, actually used some kind of magic to hatch a dragon.

The king's appearance had become more angular than when Illyrio had seen him off at the port of Pentos, more calm, more confident, as if he was sure of victory.

And this time, Illyrio would no longer wonder where his confidence came from.

The ship's ladder slowly descended.

Illyrio was accompanied by Grole and the guards to the gangway.

"You are finally here," the man who now calls himself the Dragon King of Dragonstone opened his arms to welcome Illyrio, "My finance minister!" Illyrio was flattered and hurried down, responding with emotion: "My king!"

"Ah, it's good to see you, my finance minister, especially to see your reassuring heavy body." They met under the ship, and the Dragon King of Dragonstone hugged the fat governor tightly. He laughed loudly and said, "I haven't seen you for a few months. You really haven't changed at all."

If only these words were sincere.

Viserys was Illyrio's liege now, after all, so he said only, "Your Lord Chancellor is at your service, my Lord."

At this time, everyone else got off the ship. Viserys nodded to Grolet, indicating that he and the receptionist should arrange the crew themselves. Then he took Illyrio's chubby hand and said, "Come, I will take you to my castle. You led me into your courtyard before, and I want to lead you into my castle in person in the future. Dany is organizing a banquet in the castle to welcome you."

Illyrio paused, then called to the Dragon King. "Please wait a moment, my lord. I must give you a gift at this moment."

Viserys looked back at him and asked curiously, "What gift?"

"Please allow me to call for it." Illyrio saluted the dragon king and then turned back to signal his followers.

Soon, a cedar chest was brought up, and Illyrio bent over to open it and show it to the Dragon King.

The box was filled with the finest velvet and brocade produced in the Free Cities... and on top of it lay a large egg: "Your Majesty, I failed to live up to your request to borrow money from the Iron Bank and wealthy merchants from all over the country before Pentos sailed away, but I found a dragon egg for you. This is something you have always asked me to do, and I dare not forget it."

This is a dark green dragon egg with bronze spots.

Viserys looked at Illyrio deeply, and then said in a loud voice: "Well, this is exactly what I need. I will treasure it forever, just as I always remember our agreement. Let's go back to the castle and have a banquet!"

"Yes." Illyrio took his hand and walked towards the town.

Countless onlookers who were blocked outside by the guards cheered, "Your Majesty the Dragon King!"

The king waved to the crowd and continued walking forward solemnly and steadily.

The red carpet was laid all the way to the entrance of the town's hiking trail.

Illyrio was already out of breath when he reached this point. "Your Majesty, I am sorry to have embarrassed you. I am not fit for mountain climbing."

"It's alright, Illyrio. This is your first time here, so we'll have to be more formal. Just come here for now. Next time, I can ask my followers to get you a sedan chair and carry you up."

When they reached the castle on the hill and entered it, Illyrio's breath was labored and his ears were red in the evening light.

Although the banquet was not very large, and the vassals near Dragonstone were not invited, all the king's close ministers were present. Including the regent princess, who was dressed in her best clothes and personally toasted. Illyrio felt flattered again. Looking at Daenerys, she was no longer timid, pitiful, or shy. He had rarely seen a royal noble like her now, with a noble demeanor and awe-inspiring majesty that made people intimidated.

The acting city lord was needless to say. Although the Minister of the Navy was only six years old, he also rushed to the scene from Chaotou Fort accompanied by his castle coach. Although the seats of other important officials were vacant, relevant persons in charge were present. In particular, several high-level officials related to finance were called to meet and introduce themselves to the Minister of Finance, who had been away for a long time but was still famous. Although there were not many knights in the castle, they were all there. Fleet Grolai and his relatives also arrived, as well as the guards who took turns to take their seats.
Although it was not the beginning of a huge celebration for the entire Dragonstone, for Illyrio, who was not born a noble, this banquet hosted by the king himself and prepared by the regent princess was still a great honor.

The welcome dinner lasted for a full three hours before it ended. Because Dragonstone Castle was still under military control and there were no singers or dancers to entertain the guests, it ended early.

The next day, Illyrio formally asked to see the Dragon King of Dragonstone as the Dragon King's finance minister, saying that he wanted to give him advice and suggestions. He first asked: "Your Majesty, why can't I see your dragon since yesterday?"

Viserys met him in the map table hall. As it was a confidential conversation, no recorder was allowed to sit in and record: "The dragon prefers to stay in Dragon Mountain rather than castles. He likes hot environments where his body grows faster. Unlike this little thing." He waved his hand, and a black shadow larger than a falcon flew out from the room behind the partition of the map table hall and landed directly on the map table in front of Viserys.

Illyrio was startled.

He looked closely and saw that it was a little dragon that was almost as tall as a ten-year-old human child. It had black scales with a hint of red, a long crocodile-like snout, and a snake-like neck that stretched and retracted. As if it could sense Illyrio's gaze, it was looking at Illyrio with its huge, piercing, golden eyes with vertical pupils.

It seemed to dislike Illyrio, and after a few glances it opened its wings to him. Each wing was a piece of delicate skin, colorful, tightly stretched between its skeletons.

When the bat's wings spread, its body instantly seemed to have grown several times larger.

It hissed and breathed at Illyrio, hot air coming out of its nose, and there was a faint red flame accumulating in its dragon's mouth.

Illyrio felt cold all over, as if he was being stared at by a ferocious beast. His breathing even stopped for a moment. Some instinct in his blood drove him to retreat unconsciously with caution. He almost wanted to run away.

Snapped.

Viserys gently patted the dragon's back. Under Illyrio's shocked gaze, the dragon immediately retracted its wings, swallowed the flames in its throat, straightened its body, and squatted quietly on the map table with its neck still. It seemed to have turned into a half-human-high black and red dragon sculpture in an instant. Only its golden eyes, which blinked from time to time, showed that it was indeed a giant dragon that had not yet grown up.

"This..." Illyrio was still in shock and couldn't help swallowing his saliva. "This..."

Viserys just said casually: "If this little fellow is willing to stay in the Dragon Mountain Crater, he might grow faster."

"." Illyrio was speechless.

"The three-headed dragon's name is Guli Ok. When he comes back I'll ask you to come and see him?"

"Gurion." Illyrio opened his mouth, but when he saw the dragon still staring at him, he felt uncomfortable all over and felt a chill on the back of his neck. After a long pause, he said, "Your Majesty, I came to offer you some advice."

"What do you think?" Viserys asked.

"." Illyrio wanted to look away, but his instinctive fear made it impossible for him to ignore the dragon's gaze on him. He knew that hunters who would quietly watch their prey were always the most terrifying beasts. He gritted his teeth and persisted, looking at Viserys and said, "Your Majesty, now that you have a dragon and have occupied Dragonstone, you can continue to advance into the interior of Westeros. With the title of the legitimate Targaryen King, the false kings of the Seven Kingdoms are no match for you. When the princes of the Seven Kingdoms see the real dragon, how can they not come to serve you? Why do you stay in this narrow area of ​​Dragonstone?"

"There is Dragon Mountain on Dragonstone," Viserys said. "My dragons are not strong enough. They are more than enough to attack Dragonstone, but not enough to attack the inland." He reached out and touched the little dragon's head. "Look, apart from the three dragons, this little guy is only this big. My strength is not enough to wipe out the false kings everywhere. I need Dragon Mountain to raise dragons." He narrated calmly, "As long as we defend this place, it will be the same for the Seven Kingdoms and Westeros. It doesn't matter when we take it back."

Having been deceived many times, Illyrio tried to see whether the king's words were true or false: "If so, your majesty, you summoned me here to manage Dragonstone's finances for you?"

Viserys stroked the dragon and looked at Illyrio. "Tell me your strategy first. I want to hear it."

"Your Majesty, why not hire mercenaries to fight for you? That way, you can just hold the dragon and devour Westeros."

"You are new here, and you have not heard the letter I sent to the lords of the Seven Kingdoms," Viserys said calmly. "I called on the lords of the Seven Kingdoms to live in peace and prepare food for the winter." He said to Illyrio seriously, "Perhaps you do not know me well enough, Illyrio. I do not like war. I like peace."

"." Illyrio was speechless for a long while.

Viserys did not listen to his words any more, and directly stated the purpose of asking him to come to Dragonstone: "Although I do not adopt your strategy, I did not ask you to come here, Illyrio, not to let you, the Governor of Pentos, be the treasurer of Dragonstone. This is a waste of your talent. I always remember that I promised you the position of the treasurer of a country. I hope you can talk to the Iron Bank, banks and wealthy merchants for me. I will send you some of my most capable financial affairs officers to assist you in raising funds for me. Whether it is building an army, building ships, preparing supplies, or the mercenaries you mentioned, it will take a lot of money."

Don't you like peace? Illyrio thought. But he replied, "It is an honor for me that your majesty is willing to entrust me with such an important task." He couldn't help but think about the purpose behind the dragon king's request for him to do this.

"I am very satisfied that you have agreed to this. I will call together the financial affairs officer assigned to you to discuss the details of going to various places to raise funds. We must also plan the bottom line and declared purpose to the outside world."

"Yes, Your Majesty." Illyrio nodded in response. He always believed that things were not simple.

"Illyrio, my Chancellor of the Exchequer." Suddenly, Illyrio heard Viserys call out his name, the intimate name they had agreed upon as a monarch and subject. Illyrio couldn't help but hold his breath and listen carefully. He heard the dragon king with dragons say to him solemnly and seriously, "Dragonstone has been the ancestral home of the Targaryen family for more than 400 years. Here, countless Targaryen kings, crown princes and their loyal ministers discussed state affairs and planned the country. Countless people came and went, becoming names sung in history and ballads, and the surging waters of Blackwater Bay into the Narrow Sea witnessed their lives. Have you ever thought about it, Illyrio, the beginning and end of the monarch-subject agreement between you and me, what kind of historical story will it become in the future?"

Illyrio saw the king staring at him, silent, as if waiting for a response. He held his breath for a moment, and an urge to respond to the king came over him. He knelt on one knee and bowed his head. "Your Majesty, I..."

Illyrio felt that he should say something at this moment, but he found that the questions that he could answer easily in the past made him at a loss for how to respond today.

There was a brief silence in the drawing room.

"Ah," finally, at some point, the king let out a long sigh and broke the silence, "Let's go downstairs and call the officers for a meeting."

At this time, Illyrio looked up and saw the Dragon King of Dragonstone waved his hand, and the little dragon sitting quietly on the map table took off from the table, and its flapping wings raised a strong wind in the map table hall. It flew out of the gap in the map table hall, out of the Blackstone Fortress, the main castle of Dragonstone Island, and headed straight for the vast sky outside.

(End of this chapter)