Chereads / ASIOF: War of the Five Armies / Chapter 46 - A Dinner and Final Words

Chapter 46 - A Dinner and Final Words

The afternoon passed quickly, and soon Haldor was called for dinner. Dressed in ceremonial attire, he attended the dinner where Viserys was waiting with his family.

"You are here; take a seat; the dinner is about to begin." Viserys showed Haldor his seat and then said, "I hope you rested well from the journey. This is my daughter, Rhaenyra, who is your betrothed."

Haldor's eyes focused on the girl he had seen before, who now looked at him with an amused smile. "It is a pleasure to meet you."

"Did you have the chance to meet before?"

"We only exchanged a few words. It must have been my mistake not recognizing my betrothed when I saw her." Haldor sat down, seriously observing this girl, who seemed to have no limits regarding her behavior.

Viserys understood his daughter better, so he knew what the misunderstandings must have been. "We didn't have time to introduce you differently, but the important thing is that now you know each other."

"Well, we weren't given many options with our engagement," Rhaenyra said, still upset with her father about this forced commitment.

Haldor smiled slightly and drank a glass of water that was in front of him. He smelled the liquid beforehand and confirmed it contained no poison.

"So, Haldor, how was your connection with your ice dragon? Never in the history of the Targaryens has an ice dragon been discovered, not like yours."

"I don't remember those moments well. My group was being chased by wild men when I found the egg, and only thanks to it did I survive the attack. Azazel may be big now, but he is still a child," Haldor said, making it clear that the size of his dragon was small compared to what it could become.

He didn't like sharing information about his strength, but this message made it clear that his dragon grew stronger each day and that it was a wise decision to unite their houses through marriage.

"I heard the tournament is being held for the birth of your child. I must congratulate you in advance on having an heir," Haldor said, changing the subject.

Rhaenyra, who was beside him, muttered, "We don't know if it's a boy."

"It's a boy, I'm sure of it," Viserys said, a bit happier after receiving the compliments from such a well-mannered young man.

Haldor couldn't interfere with people's beliefs, especially those of a king, so he said, "You have good doctors, but we have mastered a technique using magic. If you have problems with the birth, don't forget you can count on our help."

"Is that possible?" Rhaenyra couldn't believe it.

Haldor extended his hand and said, "The northern climate is extremely demanding, and thus, the birth rate would be much lower unless we had special methods to guarantee the birth of every child."

"We have mastered a method that uses magic to ensure a safe, simple, and effective delivery. It's not common for births with the medicine we have to be extremely complicated and sometimes deadly, but with the magic we have, it's not a danger at all."

Haldor smiled slightly and then began to eat. He didn't show many manners, but he wasn't savage either.

Viserys nodded, feeling much more comfortable with these guests, whom many had warned him were silent enemies, similar to snakes waiting to bite their prey. "I appreciate your offer of support. Believe me, I will consider it when the time comes."

The dinner continued without much more conversation. In the end, Viserys left to join his wife, and Rhaenyra went to sleep.

Finally, left alone, Haldor smiled slightly and said, "It's not so bad."