-Chapter 159-
-3rd day of the 3rd moon of the year 300 AC-
-POV MC-
Since I had returned to King's Landing, I hadn't taken a moment to organize a hunt, so with all the young lords and proud heirs still present in the capital, I found that the moment to organize a little hunt was perfectly chosen.
The people invited to the hunt were not numerous, but they represented the greatest houses of the Empire, namely Monford Velaryon, Harrold Arryn, Robar Royce, Willas Tyrell, Garlan Tyrell, Jalabhar Xho.
We hunted in the woods for a few hours before we set up a camp in a clearing and all sat around to share some wine.
Although the mood of this hunt was lukewarm, I didn't care because I wasn't interested in the conversations. What interested me was what I could gain from all the men present here.
"Prince Jalabhar, I have thought about what you asked me and I agree, I will help you regain your homeland and your position," I said suddenly.
His eyes widened and he said, "Really, Your Majesty?"
"Yes, I have thought long and hard, and I think having a nation as courageous as the Summer Isles as a vassal of the Empire would be a good thing."
"I don't understand," he said in a cooler tone, realizing that I was not helping him out of pure charity.
'Come on, you must have suspected that I would want something in return, right?' I thought as I saw him become more reserved, waiting for me to explain what would happen once we regained his prince's throne.
"The Summer Isles contain incredible resources that are necessary for the Empire. For now, they are fractured and disunited, leaving room for the slave trade, but I will help you conquer them in exchange for your allegiance to me. Once you become the sovereign of the Summer Isles, your status as king will be only below mine on the Summer Isles. You will be the king of the Summer Isles, the Chief Jalabhar of the Royal House Xho."
The glow of ambition and impatience I saw in his eyes could not be hidden, and he said:
"If this can bring peace to my people, I am ready to become a vassal of the Empire."
I nodded and said, "I am happy that you have made the right choice for your people and for yourself."
I then turned to those listening and said, "If you want to participate in this conquest, I have no problem letting you participate. This will allow, for example, the Houses Arryn and Royce, which are practically ruined at the moment, to get back on their feet."
The two frowned because they knew very well that it was I who had caused the downfall of their two houses because I tolerated very little the men of the Vale.
I had organized with the men belonging to the mountain clans targeted attacks on their farms, their herds, and their mines. In short, all the places that could bring gold to these two houses had been targeted.
It was perhaps disproportionate, but I did not trust people who followed their honor. It was a double-edged sword since I was not an honorable person myself.
Just look at all the nonsense from my uncle to realize that honor is a tool used by smarter and more cunning people to manipulate dumber people.
There are many examples, Petyr Baelish manipulated practically everyone using their honor.
"What would that bring to our houses?" Garlan asked.
"I don't know, it will depend on the size of your army and the number of ships you are willing to invest in my conquest of the Summer Isles. What I can tell you for now is that I will send 5 legions of 10,000 legionnaires each and 3 fleets of 100 warships and 10,000 sailors per fleet."
"300 ships and 80,000 men, don't you find that a bit excessive, Your Majesty?" he asked, frowning.
"No, it's the bare minimum. Do I need to remind you that we are going to conquer a nation? We must in no way underestimate it, in no way," I said, frowning in turn to underline my seriousness.
"When will the conquest begin?" Willas asked to divert the subject.
"In 7 moons," I said calmly.
"House Tyrell will send 30,000 trained soldiers and House Redwyne will send 100 warships and 10,000 sailors to help you in the war effort, Your Majesty," said Willas Tyrell seriously, to the great surprise of his brother who looked at him as if he had lost his mind.
I smiled and nodded: "Finally, someone intelligent, but can you speak for House Redwyne?"
He nodded to my great surprise, so I did not pursue the subject further.
'It seems that the old rose is handling the consequences of the breaking of vassal chains quite well,' I thought.
"We cannot send many men, but we will strive to gather as many as possible," said Harrold Arryn, speaking for House Arryn and House Royce.
"At least 5,000 men per House," added Robar Royce.
I smiled at the two and then turned to Monford Velaryon who said:
"We will follow you as always, Your Majesty, the entire Velaryon fleet is at your orders."
"Thank you, my friend," I said, looking at Monford Velaryon who seemed flattered by this appellation.
I had thought a lot lately and it occurred to me that I should strengthen the alliance between me and the Velaryons because I would need a house from which I could choose women for my descendants without too much tainting the Valyrian lineage in them while sparing them the fate of having to marry their sisters, which was, in my humble opinion... really disgusting.
'Maybe I should do the same with House Celtigar, I don't understand why no Targaryen king tried to do it before me,' I thought.
"Since you are all so loyal, I will share something with you, I will tell you a secret that could make you rich. I decided at the beginning of my reign to make the Riverlands the granary of the Imperial Domain. Wheat, barley, beets, apples, carrots, cabbage, cauliflower... Everything grows there and with the brutal fall of the Noble Houses in the Riverlands, no one can hinder my plans."
I stopped for a few seconds before saying:
"Unfortunately, recently, I encountered several problems, namely the roads, irrigation, and navigation routes. All this greatly slows down the transformation of the Riverlands into a granary for the Imperial Domain. None of these problems is really complicated but since the war, many have come to the capital and its surroundings to live more safely. I cannot force them to return to the Riverlands, but I still need labor. So if you have common people who want to earn an honest salary, send them to the Riverlands to work. In exchange, for each worker you sponsor, I will pay your houses 5 silver moons per moon."
"And the workers?" Willas Tyrell asked, the most enthusiastic given the number of people living in the Reach.
"The same," I said.
"I will talk to my father, but I don't see why he would be against it," said Willas.
I smiled and then said:
"If you manage to solve all my problems with such ease, you will end up becoming my Hand one day."
Willas burst out laughing and said: "I only ask for that, Your Majesty."
Although it was a joke and everyone laughed, the glimmers in each one's eyes indicated to me that they all had ambition and that they were all ready to do anything to elevate their positions and their Houses in the new hierarchy within the Empire.
---
-2 weeks later-
-19th day of the 3rd moon of the year 300 AC-
-POV MC-
'Is this a joke?' I thought, seeing Joffrey with a foot on Mycah's throat.
"How did this good-for-nothing become so strong in such a short time?" I said, really surprised by Joffrey's performance.
"You forget who his father is, Your Majesty," said Sandor, throwing a small jab at Jaime, who merely grumbled discontentedly.
I smiled just like Gerold, Loras, and Thoros before saying: "Don't mock him, I'm really serious. How did he progress so much? I did everything necessary for Mycah to grow as a great warrior, didn't I?"
"Apart from teaching him yourself?" asked Ser Barristan with a sly smile.
"Yes, apart from that, I did everything necessary," I said, slightly annoyed because the burden of instructing Mycah was something that would not benefit the Empire and took too much of my time for me to do it.
'Initially, I only took him as a squire to protect him from Cersei's wrath; I didn't imagine having to become his Master Shi-Fu,' I thought.
"It's talent. Either you are born with it or you are not, and it seems that this is one of the few things he inherited from me," said Jaime, beaming with pride.
I raised my eyebrows and then said: "You trained him?"
He did not deny it, nodding, and even added:
"I also asked Bronn to teach him a few tricks."
"I thought he had something dirty in his fighting style that I knew well," said Sandor, who still hadn't gotten over a sparring session he had with Bronn where he nearly lost his balls.
"Very well, he caught my eye," I said, gesturing for Joffrey to come up.
After a few moments, he arrived running and instantly knelt, eyes lowered to the ground, which surprised me even more, and I said:
"Are you sure you are Joffrey?"
Sandor let out a grunt that I took for a laugh, but faced with this lack of respect from his former 'dog,' Joffrey simply said:
"I grew up and learned, Your Majesty."
"You fight quite well. Is it to face me one day that you train?"
"No, I do it to serve you."
I raised my eyebrows, surprised, and then an idea struck my mind and I said: "You really want to serve me?"
"Yes," he said without trembling.
"Very well, then I will give you the opportunity to prove it. I send you to the battlefield," I said after thinking for a few seconds.
Even with his head lowered, I could still see his shocked expression. Jaime tried to intervene, but I raised my hand and then said:
"You will serve as a squire to my uncle, the Imperial Prince of Riverrun, Viserys Targaryen. If you serve him well and I hear good things about you, I will consider trusting you more in the future."
He raised his head and what I saw in his eyes was that he was still the mad Joffrey but in a different way, and I did not yet know which one.
A small smile appeared on his face and then he said:
"Your Majesty, you will certainly not be disappointed in me."
I gestured for him to leave, which he did, and I said to Jaime: "Don't worry, he won't die. I will send dragon guards to escort him."
'Something about him makes me uneasy. Once on the battlefield, he will no longer be able to hide his true nature. Let's hope everything goes well,' I thought as I watched him walk away.