"The commander is dead?"
"The commander is dead!"
The Steel Gate on the western side of King's Landing had been shut, and the Gold Cloaks who had escaped back into the city quickly spread the news of the commander's death.
"The king is not here, and the commander is dead. What's the point in risking our lives for this pay?" The fleeing Gold Cloaks began to comfort themselves.
Officers who received the news gathered at the eastern barracks to discuss the aftermath.
First, they needed to contain the information, at least blocking the news of the failed capture from reaching the common people. As for explaining things to the king, they would place all the blame for the defeat on the now-dead commander. Even the dead could be used.
Two hours later, the Steel Gate reopened, and a small group set out to investigate the site of the battle. By then, the enemy had already disappeared. They signaled for others to come and collect the bodies of their comrades, while many took shovels to scoop up the blood-soaked soil and toss it into the sea.
The next morning, King's Landing seemed as though nothing had happened. Meanwhile, a raven from the Red Keep brought good news to the Gold Cloaks—it was time to capture an important criminal, a chance to regain face and make a contribution!
After returning from the Black Castle on the Wall, Maester Aemon took part in revising many historical books and left behind numerous manuscripts filled with his accumulated knowledge. After discussions at the Old Town Academy, the Historical Institute promoted the one-hundred-year-old Maester to the title of Archmaester of History, and gave him a red-bronze ring, scepter, and mask as symbols of his academic recognition.
However, due to his advanced age, the weight of these items became a burden. He kept them in the dormitory provided by the academy. Apart from the citadel people calling him Archmaester, he still preferred to be addressed as Maester by others, a title he had been called for over sixty years and wasn't easily able to change.
The king and his ministers went on a tour, and the Red Keep was sealed off with a military lockdown. Aside from the assistant Maesters handling the ravens, no one else was allowed to enter or leave. The mages at the school had gone to Tyrosh, and the area was now a large construction site.
Aside from his dormitory, Aemon only visited these two places, but now he couldn't enter either. After writing some manuscripts, he took a nap, and upon waking, an assistant Maester accompanied him to stroll around the city.
They passed an alley where laughter and cheers could be heard. Aemon tugged at the assistant Maester's hand, signaling him to take him inside for a look.
Inside the alley, there was a small open space. A traveling theater troupe had set up a fence, and on a temporary wooden stage, they were performing a popular play. For just one copper star, one could have a seat and watch the play for the whole afternoon, or throw a copper coin to the owner and stand from a distance.
Aemon had seen such performances as a child—each play was only ten minutes long but filled with joy. Seeing so many people gathered, he became interested and, after asking the price, sat with the assistant Maester on the benches at the back.
The actors had just finished a performance and were changing costumes. A few young boys ran up to the stage to set up props.
Aemon turned to ask a middle-aged commoner in plain clothes, "What's the next play?"
"Haha, you're in luck, old sir. The next play is their troupe's most popular—Lord Wright and His Lovers!"
Aemon was confused. "As far as I know, Lord Wright only has one publicly known lover—his wife's sister, Tyene Sand. What's so special about that?"
The middle-aged man replied mysteriously, "I've heard that Lord Wright has at least a dozen lovers! If you don't believe me, just look at the stage."
The stage props were simple, already set up, and now the actors were walking onto the stage.
"I am Wright, and I am a deer!" A man dressed in fine clothes, wearing a deer-head hat, and painted with white makeup, stepped onto the stage, arms wide, loudly proclaiming to the audience.
"Hahaha!" The audience began to clap at his appearance. They didn't dare speak his full name for fear of being accused of slander, but everyone knew who he was, and Wright remained quite popular.
"I've traveled from Asshai to find you. You are the love of my life!" A very overweight woman, dressed in a black robe and a red mask, followed him onto the stage.
"She's called Quaithe, one of Wright's lovers," the middle-aged man introduced seriously.
"I know. She's a Shadowbinder," Aemon said, watching the actors' dialogue and laughing. He understood that such plays were just for fun and shouldn't be taken seriously, much like the plays he watched as a child about his brothers.
"No! All the women of Lys love Wright!" Another female actor appeared on stage, wearing a white gown that hadn't been cleaned properly and had turned yellow, with a platinum-colored wig.
"And which of Wright's lovers is she?" Aemon asked.
"She's apparently a banker from Lys. I hear she's very close to Wright and often goes in and out of his castle in Tyrosh."
Aemon was skeptical. "Just going in and out of the castle makes her a lover? She could be there for work, too."
The middle-aged commoner didn't believe what Aemon said, firmly believing that all nobles treated beautiful women as if they could simply have one after another.
"You're not worthy of Wright, but I have noble blood. I'm already pregnant!" Another woman walked onto the stage.
With platinum-colored hair, her face coated in powder, and a dress embroidered with three-headed dragons, who else could this be but Daenerys? The actress was even sporting a large belly!
Aemon: "This is absurd!"
Middle-aged man: "She's most likely telling the truth. According to the royal announcement, Daenerys did stay in Meereen with Wright for a month."
Aemon, sticking to the facts: "Back in those days, Meereen still had over ten thousand residents!"
The middle-aged man continued the discussion: "But in the Great Pyramid's bedroom, only they were there. Surely something happened!"
"I will give birth to a dragon rider!" The actress playing Daenerys said her line and began rummaging underneath her dress.
"I've given birth! A dragon rider!" After a moment of searching, she shouted, and her belly deflated. The actress pulled out a plucked dead chicken from beneath her dress and held it up.
"Wright" carefully took the dead chicken, glanced around, and squeezed the chicken's head to show the audience: "This is a real dragon!"
"Ha ha ha!" The audience stood and applauded enthusiastically.
"Ugh!" Aemon stood up, preparing to leave. The older he got, the less interest he had in such plays. He couldn't bear watching anymore.
"He's here!"
A young man in golden armor arrived at the performance area, followed by dozens of others.
Aemon, shorter and unable to see well at his age, heard that golden-armored soldiers had arrived and asked his assistant Maester, "Are they here to arrest a criminal?"
"They probably are, quite a few have come!" The assistant Maester replied, helping Aemon off the path to avoid the rough crowd.
"Aemon Targaryen! You're under arrest!" Golden-armored soldiers recognized Aemon immediately and rushed toward him.
"What are you doing? This is Aemon, a Archmaester from the Citadel!" The assistant stepped forward to block them, but one of the golden-armored soldiers stabbed him in the stomach.
"Daenerys conspired to murder the king. The evidence is conclusive and has been judged at the Red Keep. And you, Aemon, were one of the masterminds behind it. The Citadel has revoked your title, and the king has sentenced you to hanging! This young man is also an accomplice!"
"What! Daenerys plotted against the king?" Aemon wasn't concerned about his lost doctorate and immediately asked about his only living relative.
"You'll find answers in the prison. Take him away!" Several golden-armored soldiers roughly grabbed Aemon and dragged him away.
Aemon's walking pace slowed as he struggled to keep up. The soldiers showed no leniency for those accused of killing the king, roughly dragging him by the arms. His feet dragged along the ground, and by the time they reached the military camp prison, his shoes were worn down, and his feet were covered in dirt mixed with blood.
The golden-armored soldiers worked quickly. The identification process, signing, and stamping all took less than an hour. Aemon, stripped of his Maester robe and dressed in rough burlap, was dragged to the gallows.
The gallows were already set up, ready to be raised in the city square with a few people lifting them. When Aemon arrived, other women from the entertainment industry had already been hanged on similar gallows.
His red-bronze ring, scepter, and mask—symbols of his tittle as Archmaester—were thrown into a brazier.
Aemon's cloudy eyes stared at the brazier, his wrinkled face filled with sorrow, until the rope was placed around his neck. As he was hoisted into the air, he kept muttering, "Daenerys! Daenerys!"
---
News of Aemon's death reached the Red Keep through Varys's network.
When Wright saw the news, he ordered the Kingsguard to deliver the message to the imprisoned Daenerys, making sure to add a note: "It was Daenerys who caused Aemon's death!"
At the meeting table, the king and the councilors were furious after reading the intelligence report from the golden cloak.
"Robert, the current city guard is mostly made up of officers who've bribed their way into position, and the lower-ranking soldiers lack training. They can bully unarmed civilians, but when they encounter regular soldiers, they flee faster than rats!" Wright said as he read the paper detailing the events, passing it to Lord Mace, the finance minister, sitting next to him.
The previous commander of the city guard, investigated and dealt with by Wright, had been involved in corruption and bribery. After his departure to the Wall, Iron Hand took over as commander, and Jon was promoted to vice commander. The mood in the ranks had improved somewhat.
Due to Robert's laxity, mainly because he was after making a little money, the previous commander of the city guard had been in office from Robert's ascension until last year, corrupting the City Guard over the past decade and more.
The City Guard's responsibility was to protect King's Landing and maintain order within the city. In all these years, they barely participated in any wars, even the suppression of Greyjoy's rebellion was merely a token effort.
The officers were mostly bought into their positions with money. When the former commander was investigated, those who accepted bribes were held accountable, but the bribe-givers were not. If those were investigated, the entire City Guard would be left without officers. There were only 2,000 positions, and when one had to pay to become an officer, it was only natural that the lower-ranking soldiers had their price as well. From top to bottom, everyone was focused on bribing their superiors. In such an atmosphere, daily training was naturally neglected, and it was a problem if the force had any combat effectiveness at all.
Cersei was saved, and Robert was furious: "Issue a warrant for the arrest of the fraudsters pretending to be the late queen and prince."
"It'll cost a lot for a quick capture now, with expenses for mourning as well as the bounty, though it's all coming from the treasury, which shouldn't be the case!" While legally fine, Wright didn't fully support it. If things kept going like this, the people would have even less motivation to do their jobs.
Robert: "Renly! By law, the City Guard falls under your jurisdiction as the Master of Law. What do you propose?"
Suddenly called out, Renly wanted to retort, but what did the gold-cloaks have to do with him?
After Robert ascended, he hadn't made drastic changes to the previous dynasty's laws and nearly kept all positions as they were. However, several key positions were left vacant for years, and by the time Renly became the Minister of Justice, the actual management of the City Guard was in the king's hands, and the prisons had been transformed into storage areas. The Minister of Justice became a figurehead.
Seeing the other ministers looking at him, Renly thought for a while and then offered his opinion: "We all know what happened, and the gold-cloaks only got a brief order of under a hundred words. I think, since Iron Hand is dead, we should treat him as having died in the line of duty. All officers who delayed the information should be dismissed and investigated!"
"After the investigation, who should take the position of Commander?" Lord Mace wondered, thinking he could use this opportunity to place someone from the Reach.
Wright: "Who else could it be? The vice commander of the gold-cloaks is still alive. The commander is dead, so he can just take over."
"Jon Snow? But he's only seventeen this year. He's too young to control these men." Robert recognized Jon's personal strength and background but doubted his ability to command a force of 2,000 men. The plan was to groom him, but with the sudden death of the commander, the position could be hastily filled, even if Jon wasn't quite ready.
"So what if he's seventeen? I was already dominating Braavos at that age!" Wright was determined to back Jon, stating that youth and strength were enough, and it would be better to train him now rather than replacing him later.
Varys: "Lord Wright, King's Landing gathers nobles from all Seven Kingdoms, but it also has its share of thugs, mercenaries, and fugitives. Jon is too young."
Wright leaned on the table and surveyed the group: "Let me ask you, what have I been doing these past few years?"
As Wright spoke, they began to recall his past actions—killing, waging war, sieging cities—and realized that, unbeknownst to them, Wright had become the most experienced military leader in all Seven Kingdoms.
Wright: "The Stonestep now have almost no serious crime, only drunken brawls and fights. That proves the management there works. Jon Snow has been on leave for half a year, and now he's in Tyrosh, just the right time for me to send someone to teach him."
That's because Tyrosh has few people, Mace thought but didn't say it aloud.
Robert looked at Wright: "I remember the Tyrosh City Guard commander is Ashara Dayne. Didn't she go to Dorne to fight? How will she teach Jon?"
Wright chuckled: "There's no city guard commander, but I'm still here! And there's also the Windblown mercenaries in Tyrosh. They've been working in trade city-states, moving between various factions, and they know how to handle all sorts of people."
"Ugh, this is troubling. Let's wait until Jon returns to King's Landing before deciding. We'll have to test him first." Robert sighed, covering his face.
"The troubles aren't over yet." Hand of the King, Mathis, took out another piece of paper and handed it to Robert: "The new Grand Maester to replace Pycelle will take some time to arrive, but the assistant maester brought this letter from the Night's Watch. It's about a clash with wildlings during their patrol north of the Wall, resulting in the deaths of several Night's Watch members."
"Clashing with wildlings and losing a few men? That's normal, doesn't Eddard send letters to the king for that?" Mace's question echoed what Varys, Barristan, and others were thinking.
Pycelle: "Normally, that would be the case, but according to the Night's Watch, someone should have been sent to retrieve the bodies of the fallen. However, in this case, not only were the bodies of the Night's Watchmen missing, but even the wildlings they killed had vanished without a trace. There were no signs of animals or beasts either, which is why they sent word to the king."