Game of Thrones: Viserys the Three-Headed Dragon.

Chapter 112 The King is Fearless

Behind the Red Keep's royal sept, a long slate-roofed fortress, is a keep tower called the Maiden's Residence, where the previous king, Baelor the Blessed, imprisoned his sisters, believing that out of sight he would be less tempted into carnal pleasures.

Lord Mace Tyrell of Highgarden and his court entourage now live here.

Ser Loras Tyrell comes to visit his grandmother, who is said to be having trouble adjusting to King's Landing and is in poor health.

His brother Garlan Tyrell took half of the Tyrell family's military forces from King's Landing back to the Riverlands to take over Brightwater and asked him to visit his elderly grandmother.

When he arrived, his sister, Margaery Tyrell, came running down the short steps to greet him.

"Brother," Margery called, "Grandma will be very happy that you have come to see her." She greeted him with a brotherly kiss and led the way. "Come on, Grandma is waiting for you."

The fire was crackling in the fireplace. It was not too cold in King's Landing in the early autumn, but the chill after nightfall still made many people light the fireplace.

Margery led him to the wizened old woman with white hair in the room: "Grandma."

"Ah, Loras, child," said the old woman, leaning back in her cushioned chair. She looked small and withered, but Loras knew that his grandmother had always been like that. She was not ill at all. "Since you put on that white gown, I have had a hard time seeing you. You and your father have been so busy. What have you been doing? Knocking people off their horses with sticks? Yes, women don't understand war. What do old women know? Foolish hens only chirp all day. Stay at home and have balls, listen to songs, and have babies."

"Grandmother!" Loras Tyrell was a little resistant after having a meal for nothing. "I came to see you. Are you feeling well?"

"Oh, your poor, half-deaf grandmother is all right," the old woman asked him to sit down. "Talk to me, child."

"Yes." In front of Lady Olenna, the grandmother known as the "Queen of Thorns", Loras did not dare to disobey, "Grandma."

"Are those rumors true? Have they been confirmed? I hope you tell the truth," said Lady Olenna. "I mean the one about Dragonstone, about the flying thing in the sky, dragon. It is unreasonable that someone would be caught by a lioness if he said the word dragon in a banquet held by the people and nobles of King's Landing.

"Grandmother, I am now a member of the Kingsguard, and I have sworn to obey the king's orders and keep the king's secrets."

"Oh, my child," said Olena sourly, "I sometimes wish I were a country woman, that I could hit him and you with a big wooden spoon, and pour all kinds of thoughts into your heads."

"Grandma, please don't!" Loras didn't say what he didn't want.

"Well, my son is a fool, and the prospect of seeing his grandson sitting on the Iron Throne has inflated his ego, like a... well, no wonder they call my son one of those weird fish from the Summer Isles that expands tenfold when you poke it, the Inflatable Fish, is that what it's called?"

"..."

"I warned him, I warned him before when you fought for Renly's ugly iron chair. Robert has two sons, and Renly has a brother. How can he ask to be king? Tsk-tsk, Master Inflatable Fish, tell me, don't you want your sweetheart to be queen? Yes, among the great lords of the Seven Kingdoms, as the annoying Florents often lament, our family's right to Highgarden is a bit shaky. In fact, what does it matter? Of course it doesn't matter, unless it happens to my son... I have to say that we are being led by the nose, and we should keep our distance from this damn folly. The Tyrells became lords of the Riverland from the position of stewards after the dragon king Aegon burned the orthodox King of the River in the battle of 'Wrath of Fire'. Now with the Targaryens, shouldn't the Tyrells know better than anyone what 'dragon' is?"

"..."

"Oh, well, well. You wear white robes, and an old woman of little sense should not force you to abandon your vows. Then you shall answer me with silence. Are there really dragons on Dragonstone?"

"..." The Kingsguard remained silent.

"So those rumors, those stories, are also true?"

"..." The Kingsguard said nothing.

"I have thought it through a long time ago, and now it is confirmed." The old woman turned back to Margaery, "Oh, Margaery, my poor child. The foolish men rode on lions instead of horses. It is easy to ride a lion but difficult to get off. And your father, my son, can only smile foolishly. He treats me as a 'nagging mother' and refuses to listen to me. He can't bear to give up what he has. He thinks he can see the current situation clearly. His father, your grandfather, did you know? He fell off a cliff while hunting eagles. They said that Duke Ross was staring at the sky and didn't pay any attention to the horse. My idiot son is doing something stupid. He put Garlan and Willas in Highgarden and left you, Loras and him here. How many fools have done the same thing as him? Did they succeed?"

"Grandmother, Brother Garlan is going back to the Reach to take over Brightwater," Margaery said. "That is the castle the king gave him, and he is going to take back what belongs to him."

"Oh, the king, that little devil king..." Lady Olenna said suddenly, "We have only been in King's Landing for a short time, and we have heard many disturbing rumors. Is there any truth to these rumors? Are they as illusory as the 'dragon' in King's Landing? Damn it."

-

The king is training his hunting party.

This is a garden with a deep pond, where migratory birds often pass by and rest.

And the king is training hunting here today.

The crossbow loaded with a fishing net was fired, and the huge fishing net caught the swans in the pond before they could escape.

The king drew the long sword "Heart-eater" from his waist and ordered his hunting team to charge into the water.

A swan boat used by a nobleman for recreation was pushed into the pond by his hunting team, its oars flying as it rushed towards a swan caught in a fishing net.

"ignition."

Joffrey gave an order, and a white-robed guard lit a rocket and shot it with a longbow in the direction of the swan boat. As the rocket fell into the water, a cluster of green flames rose from the pond.

This was a situation that had not been announced in advance. The hunting team on the swan boat were frightened by the sudden wildfire in front of them and jumped into the water one after another. The swan boat rushed into the wildfire and was soon attacked by the terrifying flames and burned violently.

"No!" Joffrey screamed. "You will not abandon ship without the king's order! Swim over! How can you hunt dragons for me if you are afraid of a little fire? Swim over! Balon, Osmund, whoever dares to come ashore and desert will be chopped off and his head will be stuck on the wall!"

Baron Swann and Osmund Kettleblack are the white knights who now guard the king.

They followed orders and blocked the pond's shore, where the king's hunting party was caught in a dilemma in the water.

“Every man, listen to my command,” Joffrey roared, addressing the swan caught in the net. “Go and get me that—that thing!”

There was not much wildfire in the pond and it gradually died out. Caught in a dilemma, someone finally took the risk of diving and swam towards the fishing net.

Someone crossed the flaming water, arrived at the destination, and lifted the fishing net high.

"Good!" the king shouted excitedly, "Bring it here and let me kill it with my own hands!" When Ser Boros Blount brought the summons of the Hand of the King, the king was setting up a barbecue in the garden and asking his jester to roast swan meat as a reward for the member of his hunting team who caught the "dragon" for him.

The king was upset and asked, "What is it that Lord Tywin can't decide? Why does he need the king to be there in person?"

Boros replied, "The Hand asks you to come and do your duty as King, Your Grace." Ser Boros was previously removed from the King's Guard by Cersei when Tyrion was in power because he gave his protégé, Prince Tommen, to Tyrion. Tywin restored Ser Boros' seat in the Kingsguard after returning to the capital to serve as Hand of the King, to fill the vacancy left by Sandor Clegane.

"King's duty," Joffrey said excitedly. "Of course. I am the king."

The king wanted to enter the Prime Minister's study with his three white-robed guards, but the three white-robed guards were stopped outside the door.

The king just shrugged and walked in alone. His mother Cersei, grandpa Ser Kevan, Master Pycelle, grandpa Lord Tywin and monster Tyrion were all there. When he came in, except for grandpa Tywin who sat solemnly, everyone including monster Tyrion stood up and saluted.

The king's mother, in particular, had a smug smile on her face.

All his thoughts were thrown out of his mind. Joffrey was excited and agitated: "What's going on?"

His mother handed him a letter from a raven. The paper was deliberately flattened, and it was obvious that many people had turned it over. But the king did not notice this. The letter was the death of the false king Balon Greyjoy. The sender said that he fell off the bridge during a storm and his body was found two days later. When he was found, his body was swollen and his eyes were eaten by crabs. The situation on Pyke Island is now in chaos.

"He's dead!" Joffrey cried, with a look of joy and pride, as though he had pushed Balon the Great over with his own hands.

"What an accident," said Tyrion, the king's most hated monster. "It seems that we have one less ally, a false king, vying for the throne. Congratulations, congratulations."

"These false kings all deserve to die, Tyrion," Cersei said sweetly and venomously. "They are all usurpers. Even the gods cannot tolerate their usurpation and punish them severely."

"Oh, a god pushed an old man into the sea," said the monster dwarf, who annoyed the king. "You are not talking about the same god as I was thinking."

"This is a start. Although Balon Greyjoy wants to form an alliance with us, the false king's identity cannot be questioned," Lord Tywin took over the topic, "It's not over yet."

"I think the northern rebel will soon be here," the queen said with a smile. "There is news that he has indeed married the Westerling girl in Riverrun, abandoning the engagement with the Frey family."

"She is a girl of sixteen named Jeyne," Kevan said. "My son was offered her in marriage by Lord Gawain, but I refused. Gawain was a good man, but he married Sybelle Spicer, and who was she? Lady Sybelle's grandfather was a saffron and pepper dealer, lower in birth than Stannis's smuggler. I met Jeyne once. She was a sweet, good child. As for her bloodline..."

"That's surprising," Tyrion admitted. "I thought the Young Wolf was a man of plans."

For a long moment, Lord Tywin looked like he wanted to laugh, though in the end he did not. "The foolishest men are often wiser than those who laugh at them," he concluded, before adding, "You must marry Sansa Stark, Tyrion, and quickly." This happened later than it should have, because of Viserys's presence, but it happened all the same.

"Sansa, marry Tyrion?" Joffrey joined the conversation. "Excellent idea, Grandpa. They are indeed a perfect match." The king then turned to Master Pycelle and said, "Write a letter to the traitor Robb Stark and ask him to come to King's Landing to attend the wedding. Say that this is the king's order! Robb Stark is a traitor, Sansa is the traitor's sister, and my uncle is the traitor's sister's husband. Great. When Uncle Tyrion and Sansa get married, I will personally officiate at their wedding and have the singers sing about the bear and the beautiful girl."

The Bear and the Fairy is a ballad that is popular among both nobles and commoners. It tells the story of a hairy bear, three boys and a goat who go to rescue a fair girl who is waiting for a knight. The king obviously has bad intentions.

"Don't even think about it." Tyrion had been told this before, and it was no surprise. "Leave me alone, remember that, monster!"

Joffrey sneered, "You are the monster, uncle."

"Is that so?" Tyrion raised his head. "If so, you should be more polite to me. Monsters are dangerous. They see kings and flies as the same."

"I will pull out your tongue," cried the king, blushing. "I am the king!"

The Queen placed her hand protectively on the King's shoulder. "Let this dwarf be a threat, Joffrey, so that your grandfather and great uncle can see his actions clearly."

But Lord Tywin ignored Tyrion and turned to Joffrey. "In front of me, only Aerys would deliberately declare "I am the king", and he also has a habit of pulling out people's tongues. You can ask Ser Ilyn Payne, although he cannot answer."

The king was displeased by these words. He did not flinch, but stood up bravely and said loudly: "You just mentioned Aerys, Grandfather. I know you are afraid of him. Just like you are afraid of the false Targaryen king on Dragonstone."

Lord Tywin looked back at the king in silence, his pale green eyes gleaming with gold.

"Joffrey, apologize to Grandpa!" the king's mother said nervously.

The king broke free from his mother's hand: "Why should I apologize? I am telling the truth! My father was a great hero, invincible, and he killed Rhaegar with his own hands and won the crown. But at this time, your father is hiding in Casterly Rock and dares not come out! Now there is Rhaegar's brother on Dragonstone. If my father were here, he would never have allowed him to survive until now." The king stared at his grandfather challengingly, "The king is fearless. If you are afraid, give me a fleet and I will lead the army myself. I will kill him with my own hands just like my father killed Rhaegar on the Trident, and bring back his dragon's skull with my own hands and throw it into the cellar of the Red Castle together with his dragon. And my uncle Stannis, he will be next! I will kill him with my own sword and let him know who is my father's true heir!"

The chill in Lord Tywin's tone could almost freeze the ears of everyone present: "Ser Kevan, the king is tired, escort him back to his room. Pycelle, can you give him some medicine to help his majesty fall asleep?"

"Will sleeping wine do me any good, my Lord?"

"I don't want any sleeping wine," the king shouted.

Lord Tywin ignored him. "Very well, I'll use sleeping wine. Cersei, Tyrion, you stay."

Ser Kevan grasped the king's hand firmly and pulled him out of the study.

Outside the door, the king's royal guards had no reaction and just followed silently.

Grand Maester Pycelle swung his shaking old legs and tried to keep up.

The king was indignant: "I am the king, I am braver than you..."

Sir Kevan could not bear to hear it any longer and asked him to be quiet: "Your Majesty, please be quiet. The Prime Minister will pacify the country for you, restore the king's laws and dignity, and unify the country. In the meantime, please be quiet."

The general situation, the dotted line represents things that will happen but have not happened, or may not happen.

Being inland, in the area most severely damaged by the war, Young Wolf Robb was incredibly cut off from news, especially since he was on the march. Even if there was news reaching Riverrun, messengers would need to ride on horseback to chase his location.

(End of this chapter)