"False Holy Dragon, false emissary of justice, false High Protector of the Faith of the Seven—that's a demonic dragon! It does not represent the Seven! The Mother of Dragons is going to destroy the Citadel!" Theobald roared furiously, his face twisted with rage.
"She is not the ruler of the Seven Kingdoms. She has no right to judge us."
"She swore an oath atop the Wall—not to attack those marching north to support the Wall. We were wrong. Whether the White Walkers are real or not, we should have joined the 'United Front Against the Dead.' The Mother of Dragons didn't even kill Stannis; she surely wouldn't strike against the Citadel.
Sigh, we shouldn't have provoked her. We shouldn't have spread raven messages claiming she violated guest rights. We shouldn't have—"
"No. We can't be so cowardly. If the demonic dragon says the Citadel should be dissolved, do we just comply? We have the support of noble houses across the Seven Kingdoms—Oldtown's Hightowers, Highgarden's Tyrells, and the Iron Throne itself. They will all stand with the Citadel."
"Yes, let the 'Anti-Walker Front' face the White Walkers. We'll join King Euron's 'Tri-Alliance' and resist the demonic dragon to the end!"
Inside the Grand Maester's council chamber, the gathered maesters were visibly panicked, speaking all at once. Then, the Great Black Dragon of Holy Light spoke again.
"I am the Dragon of Judgment. I now announce the judgment of the following Citadel archmaesters and maesters: Archmaester Pycelle, Grand Maester Theobald, Doctor of Economics Norren, and 'Acid' Weylin."
"What? My name? How does the demonic dragon know me?"
Weylin's sunken, meatless face filled with disbelief and terror.
Suddenly, as if realizing something, he screamed, "Perestan! That bastard—damn his mother! He not only betrayed our ideals but sold us all out! The names the dragon read—aside from Pycelle—were all involved in that day's conspiracy to—"
"Silence! Lies, all lies!" Theobald interrupted furiously. "Perestan is a fake! The Holy Dragon is fake—that's a demonic dragon! Even its voice is fake. Dragons can't talk. Everyone knows that!
The Mother of Dragons is a sorceress. She's secretly casting magic, making us hallucinate."
"Grand Maester, look outside at the maesters and apprentices—they all heard it." Weylin's face twisted in fear as he pointed at the window, his voice trembling. "The glass is shaking."
Creak— Theobald suddenly froze, his enraged expression curdling on his face like spoiled milk.
The chamber fell silent, and the dragon's voice declared the final verdict: "Those named have only two choices. One: take your own life and cleanse your sins with blood. Two: don the black and join the Night's Watch, absolving all sin."
"The North is so cold... I don't want to guard the Wall!" Acid Weylin howled in despair.
"The demonic dragon doesn't get the final say! Archmaester Pycelle surely won't go to the Wall. The Iron Throne won't let the Mother of Dragons do as she pleases."
Dr. Norren's face turned corpse-like pale as he stammered to console himself.
"She's not Queen of the Seven Kingdoms. She has no authority to judge the Citadel. We don't need to listen to her. Let's continue the meeting," Theobald said stiffly as he forced himself to sit down and feign calm.
Roar— The Holy Light dragon seemed to hear his shameless declaration and bellowed, its voice thunderous: "I am the Dragon Queen's and the High Septon's appointed Grand Protector of the Seven's Light. My judgment is the holy decree of the Seven. Any follower of the Seven across the realm may supervise the conduct of these sinners.
If, within one week, the condemned do not atone with death or present themselves at the Wall, they shall be deemed escaped Night's Watch deserters.
Any follower of the Seven may come to the Citadel, arrest the sinners, and imprison them in the Great Sept of Baelor.
For every sinner captured, the reward is 1,000 gold dragons and a blessing of the Seven."
"One thousand gold dragons? By the Seven! I'm a devout follower! I know Acid Weylin, I know Theobald—I know... oh, Father above, I know all the sinners! I'm going to be rich—no, for the Seven's blessing, I'll do everything in my power to catch every one of them!" a local shouted excitedly near the Citadel.
"For the Seven! Dozens of sinners! I'll serve the gods!" a drunken hedge knight slurred.
"Isn't this illegal? They're maesters!" his companion asked nervously.
"What's there to fear? The holy dragon represents the Seven," the hedge knight said with a glint in his eyes. "The Faith even arrests queens and dowagers—why not a few little maesters?
Brother, can't you see what's happening? In today's Westeros, the High Septon is the true king without a crown!"
"What? The demonic dragon's title as High Protector of the Seven is even acknowledged by the High Sparrow? How can that be?" Weylin was both shocked and furious.
"Damn it. Daenerys has allied with the High Sparrow," Theobald's expression changed drastically as he cursed. "We overlooked one thing. The High Sparrow may act boldly, but he is not a fool.
He knew forcing Cersei into a walk of atonement angered the Iron Throne, angered the Lannisters... No, the High Sparrow even imprisoned Queen Margaery and is planning a public trial. The Tyrells are enemies of the Church as well.
And yet, Daenerys believes in the Seven. She even established a Faith of the Seven in Slaver's Bay. She and the High Sparrow are natural allies—at least when it doesn't involve the conflict between crown and faith, they are capable of cooperation."
Theobald only guessed half correctly.
Even though he offended both the Tyrells and Lannisters, the High Sparrow never intended to ally with Daenerys.
Overthrowing the weakened Lannisters only to invite the powerful Dragon Queen—who could stand against the world—back to King's Landing would end his reign as king without a crown.
However, the identity of the Great Black Light Dragon as a Grand Protector was indeed recognized by the High Sparrow.
That traces back to the day of Cersei's walk of atonement.
When Daenerys witnessed Cersei's miserable state, she didn't feel joy. Instead, she realized one thing: the Iron Throne had lost its value.
In fact, it had been devaluing for a long time.
When the Targaryens had dragons, all bent the knee and the great lords harbored no dissent. The Targaryens were deified.
At that time, the Iron Throne was at its peak—worth 10,000 gold dragons.
When the dragons went extinct, the Targaryens lost their divine status, and the seven great dukes began to crave a place in the game of power. The throne lost 80% of its value—down to 2,000 gold dragons.
With the Blackfyre Rebellion, the Targaryens fell from grace entirely.
Everyone in Westeros then understood: the Targaryens were just human—no different from anyone else.
The Iron Throne lost half its remaining value—now only 1,000 gold dragons.
When the Targaryen dynasty ended and Baratheon took the throne, all the nobles suddenly realized: they too could sit upon the Iron Throne.
Another drop—down to 500 gold dragons.
Robert at least won the throne with force. He ruled through strength.
But the Lannisters gained it entirely through political deals and manipulation—turning a puppet king into a real one.
Who would submit to that?
In other words, we have no dragons, no unmatched strength like Robert's, but the game of power? Everyone knows how to play.
Thus began the War of the Five Kings, as five independent kings rose across the Seven Kingdoms.
The throne lost another 80% of its worth—only 100 gold dragons now.
When Tywin died, Queen Margaery was arrested, and Cersei was paraded through the streets—the throne devalued by another 90%.
So how much is it worth now?
Ten gold dragons!
From 10,000 gold dragons to just ten.
Worse yet, while the throne's real value keeps shrinking, the cost of seizing it continues to soar.
Back when Aegon conquered the Seven Kingdoms, there were no dragon-killing ballistae. So he could burn Harrenhal and blaze across the land with impunity.
Try setting fire to the Red Keep now—before a single burst of dragonfire escapes, the dragon will be riddled with arrows like a beehive.
Back in the day, people were more sincere. When Aegon conquered the Seven Kingdoms, even the most cunning Lannister surrendered with genuine intent. There was real chivalry.
But now, even if someone dares to surrender, would you dare to accept it?
Take Walder Frey, Cersei, the Queen of Thorns, Littlefinger, or Sybell (Robb's mother-in-law) for example—if they surrendered to you and swore allegiance, would you truly and gladly accept, placing full trust in them?
If Aegon and his sisters came back today and used their old methods, they'd probably be eliminated in the very first round.
Truly, rites have collapsed, morals have decayed, and people's hearts are no longer what they used to be.
This world is just too hard.
If the Iron Throne were a stock, its profits would've dropped a thousandfold, and its risks multiplied dozens of times. Would you still buy it?
Better sell it now!
After seeing the tragic state of Cersei, Daenerys finally made up her mind: she no longer wanted the Iron Throne.
If she were to take Cersei's place and become the next queen, how would people who witnessed the spectacle of the Queen Regent and her walk of shame view the new Queen on the Iron Throne?
Would the commoners of King's Landing and the nobility of the Seven Kingdoms look at Queen Daenerys with respect and admiration—or with lewd, filthy thoughts, secretly comparing her to her predecessor?
Comparing size, shape, and lift...
The High Sparrow was ruthless—he threw the title of "queen" and "king" into the latrine and dumped a hundred buckets of manure on it.
It stinks. And it's rotten.
Today in Westeros, the titles of "queen" and "consort" have become the equivalent of "professor" or "sugar daddy" in modern society—completely ruined.
Of course, Daenerys is not Cersei. She has the power to make the "Iron Throne" stock rise again, to restore the sanctity of royal authority.
But to do that, she'd have to fight against the Seven Great Houses, the nobles of the Seven Kingdoms, the unruly commoners of King's Landing, and the ever-growing power of the Faith.
If she really had that much time and energy, Daenerys would be better off fighting weaklings like Qarth or Volantis.
[If the Night King turns out to be too powerful in the future, and Arya can't sneak up on him like in Game of Thrones, she should at least help by chopping off his limbs and handing him over to Arya for the final blow.]
With that mindset, Daenerys approached the High Sparrow.
Well, actually, it was the High Sparrow who contacted Dragonstone first.
Once news spread that the Dragon Queen had taken Dragonstone, the High Sparrow immediately wrote a letter and sent it to the island.
He had no choice—Dragonstone controls the mouth of Blackwater Bay, and the High Sparrow was busy shipping grain and weapons like mad from across the Narrow Sea.
Daenerys personally replied, promising the High Sparrow that not only would Dragonstone and Tarth not block ships heading to and from King's Landing, but they would even offer free services to vessels flying the Seven-Pointed Star.
["I am Layla Waters, the High Priestess of the Faith of the Seven in Slaver's Bay!"She warmly said to the High Sparrow.]
Who knows what he thought when he read that?
Two days later, seeing that Dragonstone had indeed kept its word, the High Sparrow sent another letter to Daenerys, inviting her for further talks.
But by then, Daenerys had already returned to Astapor and couldn't meet him in person. So Barristan wrote a reply on her behalf, explaining the Dragon Queen's plans.
On the day of Cersei's walk of atonement, Daenerys hadn't originally intended to meet the High Sparrow.
But after witnessing it, she suddenly lost all interest in the Iron Throne.
The problem was that while she no longer wanted it, she also didn't want anyone else to sit comfortably on it either.
She decided to dig a massive trap for the future King of the Seven Kingdoms.
Devaluing the Iron Throne to ten gold dragons wasn't enough—she wanted to turn it into a negative asset, like those disastrous oil investments.
Daenerys would recognize the legitimacy of the Faith Militant, acknowledge that the High Septon's authority surpassed that of the King, grant the High Septon the right to judge both the King and Queen, and recognize him as the true ruler of the Seven Kingdoms.
She was determined—whatever the High Sparrow wanted, she would grant.
Even if he didn't want it, she'd shove it down his throat.
In short, Daenerys was going to short-sell the Iron Throne like mad, devaluing it from ten gold dragons to negative one hundred thousand.
After all, she was the High Septon too.
Even if future kings and dukes of the Seven Kingdoms had to lick the High Sparrow's feet every time they saw him, Daenerys wouldn't care.
Within the Faith, she and the High Sparrow were equals—fellow believers.
As for Westeros… well, she had no plans to go there anymore.
In the future, if any of her grandchildren ever displeased Grandma Daenerys, she'd punish them by making them a duke—or king—of Westeros.
(End of chapter)
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