Chapter 146: The Green Party's Proposal, Viserys's Choice
Princess Rhaenyra and Daemon walked out of the Godswood, where they met Harwin Strong and Ser Criston Cole.
Since Rhaenyra had already agreed to marry Daemon's son, Aegon, Daemon couldn't allow people like Harwin Strong and Ser Criston Cole to stay by Princess Rhaenyra's side, in order to protect her purity.
To guard a princess who might be prone to indulgence, the Unsullied were the most suitable guards.
Daemon needed to act quickly to get rid of Ser Criston Cole and Harwin Strong.
Harwin Strong and Ser Criston Cole nodded to Daemon, who immediately strode away.
Harwin Strong looked at Daemon's retreating figure and asked curiously, "Princess, what did Prince Daemon tell you?"
Ser Criston Cole of the Kingsguard, standing nearby, also looked at Rhaenyra with curiosity.
Princess Rhaenyra, enjoying the pursuit of Ser Criston Cole and Harwin Strong every day, felt there was no need to hide anything from these two knights beside her; after all, the news of her engagement would soon be known to everyone.
Rhaenyra said with a touch of melancholy, "Uncle Daemon told me that he has settled the engagement with my father.
I will soon be engaged to Uncle Daemon's eldest son, Aegon."
A hint of disappointment flashed in Ser Criston Cole's light green eyes, and Harwin Strong's face immediately darkened.
Harwin Strong sneered, "Prince Aegon is just a little brat; how could he be worthy of the Realm's Delight?"
Princess Rhaenyra was a little angry; Harwin Strong had always been a blunt and reckless man.
She chided, "Don't talk nonsense, be careful if my Uncle Daemon hears you; he is the Rogue Prince."
Ser Criston Cole sighed, "Princess, are you really planning to marry Prince Aegon? You are the future Queen of Westeros, and Aegon will be the King of the Three Daughters in the future.
If you marry Prince Aegon, will you go to the Three Daughters in the future, or stay in King's Landing?
You can't rule two great kingdoms separately, across the Narrow Sea, can you?"
Princess Rhaenyra touched her forehead with her fingers; the sudden engagement was a bit difficult for Rhaenyra to accept, and she felt overwhelmed.
"There might still be a few years until Prince Aegon and I marry, and my father is still young.
Commoners and nobles call my father the Young King; he can still sit on the Iron Throne and rule Westeros for many years.
I don't want to worry about things many years from now."
"I want to go to the Royal Sept to pray; perhaps the Gods will show me the way."
Harwin Strong and Ser Criston Cole escorted Rhaenyra to the Royal Sept.
Harwin Strong, serving in the City Watch of King's Landing, had his duty time arrive and turned to leave.
Before the statues of the Gods in the Royal Sept, only Princess Rhaenyra and Ser Criston Cole remained.
Rhaenyra knelt before the statues of the Seven Gods.
In the past, Rhaenyra's mother, Queen Aemma, often brought Rhaenyra to the Royal Sept to pray.
Her mother always prayed for the Gods to bless her with a safe birth of a son, but in the end, Queen Aemma still died on the birthing bed.
Thinking of this, Rhaenyra immediately lost the mood to pray.
She stood up and said to Ser Criston Cole, who was beside her, "My White Knight, let's go!"
Ser Criston Cole said softly, "Princess, you seem troubled, are you worried about your future marriage?"
Rhaenyra said with distress, "Yes! I have so many suitors, but I haven't truly been in love, and now I'm getting engaged.
When I come of age, I will marry my cousin and enter the halls of marriage.
It all happened too suddenly.
My impression of Aegon is still from when he was little; back then, Aegon, like his brothers, liked to run around playing after me.
Aegon might be a good match for marriage, but I don't know him, let alone like him."
Ser Criston Cole placed his hand on Rhaenyra's shoulder, "My Princess, you don't have to marry someone you don't like.
If you just ask, I am willing to help you escape this marriage."
Rhaenyra showed a playful smile, "My White Knight, how will you help me?
My father has already agreed to Uncle Daemon's proposal of marriage."
In King Viserys's hall, King Viserys was busy with a hammer, carving stone.
In recent years, King Viserys had spent all his leisure time on carving.
He began to carve the Valyrian Freehold and scenes from his Green Dream of the Prophet Prince conquering the Great Grass Sea.
King Viserys had already carved a prince sitting in a carriage.
Queen Alicent, in a pale green velvet gown that draped over her graceful waist, smiled, "Your Grace, who is this prince sitting in the carriage?
Let me guess, it must be Aegon, right?"
King Viserys smiled, "Yes, in the future, Aegon will make the cheesemongers and Dothraki Khals across the Narrow Sea submit.
He will ride in a carriage, accompanied by tens of thousands of Dothraki horse warriors and their people."
Ser Otto Hightower, in a black and gold silk overcoat, said, "Your Grace, since you are convinced that Aegon will conquer the Great Grass Sea, you should appoint Aegon as the Governor of the Three Daughters.
This way, in the future, Aegon can launch campaigns from the Three Daughters, conquer Essos, and expand the Iron Throne's territory."
King Viserys put down his hammer, blew away the limestone dust from the carving, and said casually, "Ser Otto Hightower, you are bringing up these far-fetched matters again.
My brother Daemon is the King of the Three Daughters; the Three Daughters was conquered by Daemon with his dragons and army.
Those Myrmen, Tyroshi, and Lyseni, who speak foreign tongues, are only willing to follow a strong leader like Daemon.
How could Aegon possibly go to a strange land to be a governor?"
Otto Hightower was somewhat disheartened, "Your Grace, Daemon conquered the Three Daughters relying on funds, soldiers, and dragons provided by the Iron Throne.
The Three Daughters, nominally a vassal state of the Iron Throne, has in reality become a Dragon Kingdom forged by Daemon, completely an independent kingdom.
Those Ironborn, Sistermen, Winter Wolves, Kingsguard of the Three Daughters, and Dragon's Servants Army only obey Daemon's commands; they may not obey Your Grace's orders."
King Viserys put his hammer back into the toolbox.
He said calmly, "Daemon is my right-hand man, my brother.
He conquered the Three Daughters; ruling that land is his due.
My brother will obey my commands, so the Three Daughters belongs to the Iron Throne, and Daemon's army also belongs to the Iron Throne.
Most importantly, the Three Daughters, like Westeros, belongs to House Targaryen."
"Daemon, like me, is concerned that the Three Daughters and Westeros might split in the future.
Therefore, he proposed a marriage alliance to me.
I intend to marry Rhaenyra to Daemon's eldest son, Prince Aegon."
This news shocked Queen Alicent and Otto Hightower.
The two exchanged glances.
Queen Alicent clutched her chest, "Your Grace, are you really going to marry Princess Rhaenyra off to the Three Daughters across the Narrow Sea?"
Otto Hightower seized the opportunity to say, "Let Princess Rhaenyra marry far away with peace of mind!
Aegon can become an excellent king and fulfill the great conquest in Your Grace's Green Dream."
King Viserys sneered, "Rhaenyra is the Princess of Dragonstone, the heir to the Iron Throne; the engagement will not change that.
On the contrary, after becoming engaged to Daemon's son, Daemon will surely defend Rhaenyra's rights, just like me.
After Rhaenyra marries in the future, she and Aegon will live in King's Landing.
They can certainly vacation in the Three Daughters, but they will primarily live in the Red Keep."
Otto Hightower and Queen Alicent were deeply disappointed; it was as if a basin of cold water had been poured over their heads.
Alicent grabbed King Viserys's wrist, "Your Grace, Prince Aegon and Princess Rhaenyra are not suitable."
King Viserys said, "What's not suitable about it?
It is the tradition of House Targaryen to marry within the family.
Only in this way can the purity of the true dragon bloodline be ensured."
Queen Alicent nodded slightly, "I fully support intermarriage within the family.
Why not let Aegon marry Rhaenyra?
They are both your children.
Since Aegon is the prince in the Green Dream prophecy, let Rhaenyra become the queen by his side.
Rhaenyra and Aegon's married life will surely be happy and fulfilling."
Once Aegon married Rhaenyra, the Iron Throne would eventually pass into the hands of Aegon and Rhaenyra's descendants.
King Viserys remembered the woman beside the Prophet Prince in his Green Dream; that woman had silver hair and purple eyes, possessing a stunning beauty.
Could that woman truly be the future Rhaenyra?
Even though the young Rhaenyra of today was known as the Realm's Delight, King Viserys believed that Rhaenyra and the woman in his dream were still very different in appearance.
Facing Queen Alicent's suggestion, King Viserys shook his head, "Rhaenyra and Aegon have never gotten along since childhood; they often quarrel.
Putting aside dreams and prophecies, they are simply not suitable."
Otto Hightower said excitedly, "Your Grace, precisely because they, as siblings, do not get along, they should be married, as this will be conducive to family harmony."
King Viserys, of course, knew that Queen Alicent and Otto Hightower's underlying motive for suggesting Aegon marry Rhaenyra was the Iron Throne.
They valued not Rhaenyra herself, but the Iron Throne.
Otto Hightower's lips tightened into a line, and he said dejectedly, "Your Grace, can you not see Daemon's ambition?
If you marry Princess Rhaenyra to Daemon's son, then in the future, the Iron Throne will fall into the hands of Daemon's descendants."
King Viserys was unconcerned, "Rhaenyra's descendants are also my descendants."
Otto Hightower's jaw was clenched, "Your Grace, back then, Aegon the Conqueror's Hand of the King, Orys Baratheon, married Argella, the daughter of the last Storm King.
Orys Baratheon inherited House Durrandon's sigil and words, their stronghold Storm's End, and all their lands.
How many of House Baratheon's descendants still remember their ancestor Argella and House Durrandon?"
"Everything Daemon has done is to obtain the Iron Throne.
When Lord Corlys and Princess Rhaenys wanted to obtain dragons, Prince Daemon, in the Small Council, strongly advocated suppressing House Velaryon, weakening the strong and strengthening the weak.
As a result, a few years later, he has a massive army in the Three Daughters, and he possesses more dragons than Your Grace's household.
He has become the most unruly collateral noble.
Does Your Grace not see the risk behind this?
Daemon will one day take your place."
King Viserys said coldly, "Ser Otto Hightower, I am tired of your conspiracy theories.
Daemon is my own brother; how has he become a collateral noble?
You speak as if my brother is some distant relative.
My brother strikes fear into our enemies; he has given everything for the kingdom.
This marriage alliance will make House Targaryen even more united and crush those discordant voices."
Seeing that King Viserys's mind was made up, Ser Otto Hightower could only give a stiff bow and turn to leave.
Queen Alicent awkwardly remained in place, "Your Grace, I think..."
"Enough!" King Viserys interrupted her roughly, "Alicent, this matter is closed.
Go tend to the children!"
Queen Alicent turned and left.
King Viserys was gentle, always smiling, easygoing, valued family, and did not lack political wisdom.
Otto Hightower often, in the Small Council and court, promoted the succession rights of his grandson Aegon, and more and more nobles agreed with Otto Hightower, believing that women were not suitable to rule.
This greatly annoyed King Viserys.
After Daemon returned from across the Narrow Sea, King Viserys could use the marriage alliance with Daemon to put Otto Hightower in his place and defend Rhaenyra's rights.
At the Dragonpit on Rhaenys' Hill, the bronze oak gate slowly opened, and the dragon Syrax crawled out.
Syrax was covered in yellow scales, gleaming like gold in the sunlight.
Princess Rhaenyra, in a dark red hunting outfit, stroked Syrax.
Syrax exhaled a breath of dragonfire, sending out waves of heat.
Prince Aegon looked at Syrax, "That's a beautiful dragon, Princess Rhaenyra.
We can finally soar together."
Rhaenyra smiled, "Brother, your dragon will definitely not fly faster than Syrax.
I often ride dragons to soar, and I believe my mount, Syrax, is the fastest dragon among the younger generation."
Aegon said, "That's not necessarily true.
My dragon, Black Dread, is Balerion reborn."
Daemon said, "Aegon, Princess Rhaenyra is ready.
Where is your Black Dread?"
Aegon whistled, and after a while, Black Dread flew over from the clearing behind the trees.
Black Dread was slightly larger than Syrax.
This was because Syrax lived in the Dragonpit year-round, while Black Dread in the Three Daughters always spent the night under the stars, in a free-ranging state.
Daemon firmly believed that confined spaces restrict a dragon's growth, so in the Three Daughters, dragons lived on Dragonmount, not in man-made Dragonpits.
Aegon mounted Black Dread, and with Princess Rhaenyra, who was on Syrax's back, they flew into the sky.
Ser Criston Cole, Harwin Strong, and others could only look up at Princess Rhaenyra and her fiancé, Prince Aegon, soaring in the skies above King's Landing, their eyes filled with loneliness and jealousy.
Daemon laughed, "The Princess is soaring in the blue sky; she doesn't need protection anymore.
You can rest."
Ser Criston Cole said dejectedly, "Dragons make Targaryen closer to Gods than to men.
Prince Daemon, it is a tragedy for us knights to live in the Age of Dragons; steel armor and fists have become dust beneath a dragon's feet."
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