Chapter 403: The Strange Uncle Who Lures Little Girls
Chapter 403: The Strange Uncle Who Lures Little Girls
Chapter 403: The Strange Uncle Who Lures Little Girls
Godswood Forest, Backyard Garden.
Lush grass grew, towering pines and cypresses lined up in rows, dotted with giant dragon statues and fountains. An adjoining awning was built over the large open space. Noble men who had not yet met their match congregated in groups of three or two, discussing interesting facts.
Under the largest awning, Viserys looked around and asked, "Where did Helaena go?"
"The princess is probably still getting ready," Corlys replied curtly, gathered around a tub of ice.
Viserys frowned in displeasure, "Being late is not a good habit."
Corlys scooped up a handful of ice and crushed it with his hands, feeling the coldness fully, and said sincerely, "Your Grace, if I had let you choose a treasure from a pile of scrap, you would have come even later."
With that, he rubbed some of the ice shavings into the wine and took small sips, immersing himself in the moment.
He didn't have the Targaryen bloodline to be fearless in the searing heat. The coolness rushed to his head and Corlys took a cool breath, "There's nothing like a sip of chilled Summer Red in the height of summer!"
Viserys took a couple more looks and was rather fleshed out, "With the Dornish War on, Summer Red is really hard to buy."
"Relax, the dragons will clear the way for you," Corlys said confidently. His eldest son ran to the Stormlands battlefield, and the two dragons and the entire Stormlands force were more than enough to deal with the invading Dornish army.
The reason for the Dornish tenacity was the scorching desert environment. Within the Vulture Mountains and Dornish territory, the soldiers of several other realms in Westeros might not be able to exert their strength.
Once Dorne lost the familiar living environment since childhood, it would be like a shark coming ashore, and it would be difficult to hurt people with a just bad mouth again.
Viserys shook his head and lost his smile, "Haven't you always been cautious and valued war above all else?"
"It's the unknown war that's scary, the war that predicts the outcome is as simple as reading the weather for sailing," Corlys said with an expression of deservedness. The thought of the Triarchy's Kingdom breaking up greatly reassured Viserys, and a wave of bravado rose from his heart.
Looking around, he called his attendant and commanded, "Go get Helaena and bring her here, don't make the adults wait."
Corlys glanced away and continued to grind the ice. Seeing his lack of response, Viserys grumbled bitterly, "If only there was a time when I didn't have to worry about my children."
"His Grace Jaehaerys spent his life worrying about his children, and that is probably a Targaryen tradition as well," Corlys teased, saying meaningfully, "and the more you worry, the less likely you are to see a good outcome."
Viserys froze at his words, not knowing how to respond. As Corlys pointed out, he thought coldly of the aunts who had died. None of them seemed to have ended well.
Viserys thought in his heart and couldn't help but shout, "Get Helaena and tell her to come to her father."
He hadn't approved of holding the so-called Maiden's Day Festival in the first place. Aegon was a man, and it was sufficient to pick a great noble family to marry. Helaena was a girl and too young, so why worry so much about her marriage?
...
Not far away, by a fountain in the forest, Helaena sat on the stone steps, cupping a purple flower in her hand and picking off petals.
As she moved, she chanted softly, "The mirror shines on the opposite side..."
Tap... tap...
The sound of footsteps broke the tranquil atmosphere. Helaena snapped back to her senses, turning her head to see who had disturbed her. Layla and Jasmine, her two companions, stood protectively in front of a dark-haired man.
With an embarrassed look on his face, Unwin carefully explained, "I'm here to see the Princess, no offense intended."
"Two castles?" Helaena said, surprised. She hadn't expected him to be so generous.
Unwin nodded eagerly, "As long as you agree to marry me, the two castles will be yours."
Pretty words spoken beautifully. If there were heirs, he could take back the castles with his family name, just as his ancestors had done.
And he would have married a true Targaryen princess. Not to mention the benefits of being a royal son-in-law and the potential of having children with Targaryen blood, who might have the talent to become dragon riders. This was something the Sea Snake Corlys had long set as a good example.
Just as Unwin was feeling smug, envisioning his scheming success, Helaena simply refused, "The castle is indeed very generous, but you do not have a dragon."
"If you marry me, Princess, our descendants will have dragons!" Unwin blurted out, not paying attention.
Helaena cocked her head and said directly, "So, your plan is to obtain dragons through me?"
Caught off guard by her bluntness, Unwin became infuriated and stood up abruptly, "Princess, the Queen needs allies. No one in all of Westeros dares to ally with you. Marrying me is the right choice."
"Why does my mother need allies?" Helaena's eyes gleamed with curiosity.
Unwin said bluntly, "Of course, it's to fight against Prince Rhaegar. Otherwise, when the king passes away, what kind of life will you have?"
"My brother," Helaena whispered to herself, slightly out of her mind. "So you all have such ridiculous ideas."
Through their conversation, she had already surmised that Unwin was acquainted with her mother. Considering Ormund Hightower's cousin Selene for Aegon, she couldn't help but suspect that Unwin was the one her mother had chosen for her own hand in marriage.
"Because of these unfounded hypotheses?" Helaena's fine eyebrows furrowed slightly.
Unwin, still trying to persuade her, said, "I work for the Queen, and she promised to give me a chance to marry you."
"I don't believe it!" Helaena screamed loudly, retorting, "Mother's vision can't be that bad."
With her chest and belly heaving up and down, Helaena set her jaw and said coldly, "You wait here. I'll be back soon."
Leaving behind her two worried female companions, she walked away with big strides.
Unwin was taken aback and tried to follow, but was stopped by Layla and Jasmine, who were glaring at him.
...
Helaena's steps were fast and furious as she returned to Maegor's Holdfast and headed straight for her bedroom.
For some reason, her mind was unusually clear. Certain that Lord Peake was up to no good and was lying about his intentions.
So...
Bang!
As soon as she pushed open the door to her room, Helaena walked straight to the balcony and took down the longsword, Long Summer, hanging on the wall.
With a swift motion, she unsheathed the sword, revealing an awe-inspiring cold light.
Helaena's expression was serious as she muttered, "If I can't call Dreamfyre, then I'll just cut him down!"
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