novelhk Chapter 57: Naval Review
Chapter 57: Naval Review
"Viserys, you promised me you'd take me to inspect the royal fleet today!"
When Viserys handed the last envelope to the new court eunuch, Daenerys immediately stepped forward, grabbed his arm, and spoke with a hint of urgency in her voice.
It was so stuffy inside the palace.
That's how people are. When the brother and sister were living under someone else's roof, the princess thought, "If only we could live here forever." Now that they have everything, the princess finds the palace incredibly boring and meaningless.
Viserys did not refuse. He took a sip of the wine offered by the smiling "Nine Thousand Years Old," and after catching his breath, His Majesty rose and ordered the "royal fleet to be dispatched."
Since Commander Panbel switched allegiance, he has been working diligently every day, fearing that the king above him might find a pretext to replace him one day. Especially after the other side installed a deputy commander, this feeling of unease has caused him to suffer from insomnia at night.
Therefore, in order to please the king, express his loyalty, and demonstrate his abilities, Commander Panbel proposed that His Majesty inspect the royal naval fleet that he had trained.
When the emperor goes out, the earth naturally resounds with great noise.
The Immaculate led the way, surrounded by white-robed guards, escorting the king and princess in their double-decker carriage as they made their way to the port of Pentos.
The newly established royal navy fleet, along with three armed merchant ships recently incorporated into the combat formation, now comprised a total of twenty-three warships, lined up in battle formation with their bows facing the port, so that His Majesty could admire the fleet's grandeur.
Although the fleet suffered heavy losses of sailors in the Pentos Incident, there were plenty of sailors available near the port, as long as the price was right.
In this era, sailors were basically just sons of fishermen who could be recruited to be sailors; it wasn't a very prestigious job. All they needed was the strength to row, the courage to fight and charge, and the ability to swim.
The requirements are that the candidate must be capable and have substantial skills; at the very least, they must be at the level of a second mate.
ta ta ta
Twenty white-robed warriors on white horses, their steps light and deliberate, led the way in two columns alongside the Immaculate infantry, with a double-decker carriage flanking them. Behind them, banners fluttered, and a large group of white-robed warriors stood majestically.
Lieutenant Commander Groley immediately spotted Ser Jorah Mormont, the honorary commander-in-chief in white robes, riding alongside the carriage.
And Roland, the commander of the Royal Guard, who was also dressed in white robes and was in fact the White-Robed Commander-in-Chief.
The deputy commander thought to himself, "One day, I will be as mighty as those two."
Grole glanced discreetly at Panbel, who was standing a step in front of him, and thought to himself, "Incompetent fool. Sooner or later, the position of Minister of the Navy at the Imperial Council will be mine."
"His Majesty King Viserys III, the rightful ruler of the Seven Kingdoms and Protector of the Realm, King of Pentos and Andas, rightful heir to the Targaryen dynasty, descendant of the true dragons, King of the Andals, the Rhoynar, and the First Men, has arrived!"
The palace eunuch, known as the "Nine Thousand Years Old," standing behind the coachman, shouted in a shrill voice.
After he finished speaking, he was about to add "all the ministers knelt in obeisance" when he suddenly remembered that this was not allowed, so he quickly stopped himself.
"Greetings, Your Majesty! May the gods forever bless you!"
Upon seeing His Majesty the King leading Princess Daenerys down from the carriage, the two naval commanders immediately stepped forward and bowed respectfully.
"May the gods bless you both forever."
Encouraged by Viserys, Daenerys greeted the two commanders.
"Thank you, Your Highness, the embodiment of kindness and beauty!" the two commanders returned the greeting simultaneously.
"Alright, gentlemen, please let me see the naval officers and soldiers loyal to the royal family and the invincible fleet."
Although the small fleet of twenty-three ships was really nothing to brag about, at least some polite words had to be said. Otherwise, if the fleet was already so dilapidated and small, and the king himself had to say something discouraging, then his royal fleet would truly be rendered useless.
Therefore, Viserys had made up his mind that as long as the fleet's performance today was passable, even if he were later told that the navy had hidden people in the target ship in advance, he would pretend not to know.
With the king present, the fleet's morale was quite good. After shouting "Long live the king!" three times, the fleet began its exercises.
A series of skillful formation changes and the fleet turning around drew frequent nods of approval from the relatively inexperienced Viserys.
It's clear that Fleet Commander Panbell put his heart into it, and Deputy Commander Grole is truly capable.
Daenerys sat to the side, beaming. This was quite a grand occasion for her. Overjoyed, she kept pulling on her brother and asking him all sorts of questions, somewhat undignifiedly.
Seeing that the king showed no impatience, Doria, the maid standing behind the princess, secretly breathed a sigh of relief for her.
Before she came, she had heard from the merchant who bought her that this king was ambitious in ability and very handsome in character.
At this point, it seems that the rumors contained some slander and defamation.
He was clearly a very gentle, handsome, and wealthy king.
As the target ship slowly appeared on the horizon, Viserys knew the main event was about to begin.
Soon, just as he expected, whether there were people hiding in the target ship or the fleet was truly well-trained, the target ship, riddled with damage, slowly sank after a round of catapult stone attacks.
With that, the naval performance came to an end. Fleet Commander Panbel glanced at the King's expression and, seeing that the King seemed quite satisfied, breathed a sigh of relief.
This should count as passing the test, right?
Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.
"Ah, sometimes I really wish I could get rid of all these burdens and just the two of us roam the world with our swords!"
King Robert and his soon-to-be Prime Minister, the Duke of Eddard, rode off from the Kingsway until they came to a stop above a gentle hillside.
The feeling of riding a horse against the wind filled Robert with a profound sense of emotion.
Eddard glanced at Ser Marin and Ser Berloth behind the King, and Robert turned around as well.
Everything was understood without words; he knew what his friend meant.
Stop thinking about it, you still have a kingdom.
"Fuck!" The king still had the right to express his dissatisfaction; he looked at his friend:
"Do you remember Sir Jorah Mormont?"
Ed was used to the king's erratic speech, and he quickly steered the conversation to a long-forgotten name.
"I will never forget that guy. He shouldn't have the name Mormont," Eddard blurted out. Even if Commander Mormont of the Night's Watch were standing in front of him, he would not hesitate to launch into a long tirade about Jorah's crimes.
For him, one is always one, and two is always two.
King Robert was not as ruthless as he seemed.
The king pulled a rolled-up piece of paper from his belt and handed it to the prime minister:
"Okay, you need to start getting familiar with your job."
"Jora is currently in Pentos. He should be waiting for a royal pardon so he can cross the sea back home," the King said.
"So a human trafficker transformed into a spy?" Ed made no attempt to hide his disgust in front of the king.
"No, the human traffickers have transformed themselves into the Kingsguard of House Targaryen!"