After the initial sense of unfamiliarity dissipated, the boredom of the unchanging sea and the dizziness from the rocking of the waves both overwhelmed Clay.
Although he had already experienced seasickness once on the ship returning to Westeros, this time, Clay still felt unwell. The
once spacious cabin now seemed cramped and suffocating to Clay. A wave of nausea rose in his throat, and Clay pushed open the heavy cabin door and stepped outside, hoping the howling sea breeze would dispel some of his dizziness.
Stepping out of the cabin, the evening temperature of the sea in Bitten Bay sent a chill down Clay's spine. Seeing him appear, a quick-thinking guard immediately draped a cloak over him.
Nodding to the guard, Clay glanced at the calm deck and asked, "Where's Captain Ston?"
The guard, dressed in a thin shirt but seemingly oblivious to the cold from his busy work, pointed to a wooden platform at the stern:
"Captain Ston is up there. Would you like me to take you there, sir?"
He asked out of concern, looking at the slightly unsteady young master Clay.
Clay waved his hand; although still feeling unwell, the powerful physique of a witcher limited his discomfort, and he could manage. Clay
climbed the wooden stairs to the platform, and the captain of the guard and Captain Ston came into view.
The last rays of crimson sunlight were about to disappear behind the western sea of Biting Bay, leaving only the sound of the crashing waves.
Hearing footsteps, Captain Ston and the captain of the guard turned around. It seemed the two had just been talking; seeing Clay approaching, the captain of the guard quickly went to greet him.
"Young Master, why did you come aboard?"
The captain of the guard was worried. He was prone to seasickness, and the sea breeze could easily make him sick on this ship with its limited medical resources.
But his worries were unfounded. Clay's mutated body, a Witcher, granted him immunity to most diseases; he wouldn't fall ill from the sea breeze.
"It's nothing, just wanted some fresh air. It's too stuffy in the cabin,"
Clay said, changing the subject to avoid further pointless concern.
"Gentlemen, what were you talking about? May I hear?"
Although it was a request, Clay was undoubtedly the commander on this ship, and given his position, no one on board could refuse him.
"Of course, sir,"
Captain Ston, with his rather rugged demeanor, smiled and shared their conversation with Clay.
"We're talking about the ship beneath our feet, sir. Do you know anything about the White Harbor fleet?"
Clay honestly couldn't answer this question. Since returning to Westeros, he'd been busy with various matters and hadn't really been aware of family affairs.
He only vaguely knew that a small fleet existed at White Harbor, but he didn't know exactly how many there were or what their configuration was.
Seeing his young master shake his head, Captain Ston could only patiently explain the White Harbor fleet to his master. "My lord, our fleet at White Harbor was actually built entirely by Lord Stannis. It consists of 10 galleons, 12 longships, and 2 oars."
"Where does our fleet rank in Westeros?"
"It's hard to say, but at least Lord Stannis's royal fleet can easily crush us. They have three times the number of our ships. Oh, and the Lannisters and Tyrells also have fleets that are no less impressive than ours."
Clay nodded. This was basically in line with his guess, but he realized that Captain Ston had missed mentioning a very important point.
"What about the Iron Islands?"
Unexpectedly, Captain Ston shrugged, spread his hands, and said rather helplessly,
"Them? The ones I just mentioned combined are probably about the same as them. And those Ironborn don't know anything but shipbuilding. I believe that given some time, they could easily build two hundred ships."
Clay knew that the Iron Fleet was the best navy in Westeros, but he didn't expect such a big difference. In naval warfare, excluding all other factors, at this level of technology, naval battles are all about the number of warships.
"Moreover, our sailors aren't as skilled as those Ironborn on the Iron Fleet. There's nothing we can do about it; the land there is practically nonexistent, and many of them live and eat on the ship for one or two months at a time."
It was truly unavoidable, like pitting Westeros against Dothraki in a horsemanship contest—pure bullying.
Clay's newly risen ambition to conquer the Narrow Sea was instantly extinguished, but he wasn't giving up. He asked,
"If the Iron Fleet is so strong, how did King Robert quell the Greyjoy rebellion?"
"Heh, that's another story. Young master, you know Lord Stannis, the commander-in-chief of the Royal Fleet, right? He commanded the Battle of Fairy Isle, which nearly annihilated the Iron Fleet."
"There's a saying that if Lord Stannis hadn't destroyed the Iron Fleet, King Robert's army would have been stuck on the shore, unable to do anything, let alone breach the walls of Pyke."
Captain Ston, suddenly intrigued by the Battle of Fairy Isle, excitedly recounted the events of the war to Clay.
In short, Duke Stannis used bait to lure the Iron Fleet to the narrow strip of land between Fairy Isle and the mainland. He then used the terrain to his advantage, directing the royal fleet to block off all exits from the north and south.
After a chaotic battle, only a dozen or so Iron Fleet ships managed to break through the encirclement and escape; the rest were sunk on Fairy Isle by the heartless Duke Stannis.
By destroying the Iron Fleet, the Baratheon royal family gained control of the entire Westeros seas. From then on, Robert could fight however he wanted, as he could land anywhere in the Iron Islands at any time.
Captain Stannis himself probably didn't realize how vividly the importance of naval power was highlighted in his description of the war.
Take the North, for example. The Neck is indeed a formidable natural barrier, but that's in the context of traditional land warfare.
Against the navy, what natural barrier is there? The Neck is difficult to traverse? I can just go around it!
How did Theon Greyjoy even manage to capture Winterfell? He didn't just march north from the Neck; he landed directly on the almost undefended western coastline of the North, attacking the city when it was at its weakest.
If inland cities were like this, then his ancestral home, White Harbor, was right on the coast. If war broke out, the Mandalay family would have to leave sufficient troops to defend this fifth largest city in Westeros.
Without naval control, not having enough troops there would be tantamount to handing White Harbor over to the enemy. After all, a large part of the Mandalay family's strength was supported by the immense wealth of White Harbor.
It seems he'll have to suggest to his grandfather that he invest heavily in building a more powerful navy. Tsk, he really is a spendthrift…
.....
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(End of Chapter)