Ding-ding~~
A similar sound of knocking came from somewhere in the inn. A young man, dressed decently, stood up. His cuffs were tight and neat, and his high, straight nose gave him an air of authority.
"Everyone, I know a little about this Beggar King, Lord Sinbad," he said, raising his cup to Viserys before looking around the room to begin his story. "The Beggar King, whose real name is Viserys Targaryen, is a descendant of the fallen royalty of Westeros. Many know this, and he is called the Beggar King because, almost a year ago, he sold his mother's crown and invited a group of sellswords to a banquet, hoping they would help him restore his kingdom."
The young man paused for a moment, a hint of pride flashing in his eyes. "The banquet was called the Banquet of the Crown, and I was lucky enough to be there. You see, sellswords are businessmen, and they didn't think that the poor Beggar King could fulfill his promise, so they laughed at him mercilessly. I remember the leader of the Fist Sellsword laughing at him, calling him a 'child looking for milk everywhere.'"
He smiled at Viserys, who forced a polite smile in return. Viserys thought to himself, 'This is what it means to be a 'bully.' Most people didn't know the details of that banquet, but now they do.'
Viserys chose to hold himself down accept this unpleasant matter, but soon the sound of clinking glasses was heard again.
A short, stocky man stood up. Due to his height, some spectators in the distance didn't even see him at first. His neck was so thick that it was almost the same size as his head.
"Ahem, Lord, what you said is all history. In fact, this Beggar King is actually quite capable," the short, stocky man said, standing on his tiptoes and waving at Viserys before beginning his tale. "I don't know if you remember the Fierce Fish Company, but this Beggar King almost single-handedly wiped out the entire group."
"It was a few months ago, and the Beggar King had no money, so he used his sister as collateral. His sister was very beautiful, so the creditor agreed. But when the time came and he couldn't pay, the creditor sent someone to collect the debt and wanted to take his sister away by force. After that, the Beggar King killed them all. It was said that the situation was very tragic, and the blood that flowed out overflowed the alley!"
"My goodness!" someone exclaimed.
"How many people did he kill?" another asked.
"Why wasn't he arrested?" yet another wondered.
Compared to the initial ridicule, the public's opinion of Viserys had changed somewhat. They were shocked by his "brutality" and disgusted by his behavior of not paying his debts. Most of those disgusted were locals. However, the two Dothraki were quite excited, thinking that such a person was a true warrior.
"And that is why the Beggar King has earned the name 'Fish-Eater of the Fierce.'"
The burly man continued, then told the crowd about how Viserys had worked in the workshop as a laborer. This burly guy seemed to like using exaggerated expressions. He said that the gutter had turned red.
Although it was exaggerated, the voices that despised Viserys for not paying his debts disappeared, replaced by amazement that Braavos had produced another fierce man. The two Dothraki were even more excited. They pounded their chests and let out strange roars, attracting the attention of the others.
The first two people had already said everything they could say, and Viserys thanked everyone and then got up to leave. In fact, while the short man was telling the story, Viserys had been observing the others out of the corner of his eye. He had noticed that because the two men were talking so vividly, he hadn't noticed anything unusual.
He decided to hang around outside for a while. If the assassin was in the inn, he would probably follow him. If not, he would go to the next place. If the assassin understood the essence of "reimbursement," he might have to go to the Cattery.
Viserys slowed down and walked down a small road with few people. After walking for half an hour without seeing anyone following him, he decided to go somewhere else.
Just as Viserys was about to leave, an old woman wrapped in a grayish-blue shawl and hunched over appeared. At first glance, she looked like a giant prawn. As the old woman passed him, Viserys felt something was wrong but couldn't put his finger on it.
Watching her disappear around the corner, Viserys finally realized what it was. It was the smell! An old woman shouldn't smell so strongly of the sea. He thought back to the dream he had had, in which the assassin seemed to have been caught in a storm and had been adrift at sea for days.
He hurried after her, only to find that the old woman had disappeared. She really was up to something.
Just as Viserys was scanning the surroundings, he suddenly felt a gust of wind. His body instinctively dodged, and a sharp dagger slashed past him, leaving a bright afterimage.
It was the old woman from before! Now, she stood tall and straight, her disguise shed like a snake's skin.
"Who are you? Why are you following me?" Viserys demanded, his voice steady, though he was on high alert.
The assassin's features were obscured by shadows, and she spoke in a deliberately altered, hoarse voice. "What makes you think I'm following you?"
"Did Robert send you?" Viserys asked, his eyes narrowing. "It must have been hard to be at sea for so many days, right?"
The old woman's eyes widened in shock. How did he know about the storm? And the Zalyne House ship? How did he track me here?
This sudden insight into her recent struggles unnerved her, making her feel exposed and vulnerable. The assassin, sensing the danger of the situation, turned and fled with the agility of a black cat.
Viserys, remaining calm, drew his crossbow and fired in the direction she fled.
Whoosh—
Thud—
A sound confirmed his hit. He approached cautiously and found the assassin lying motionless on the ground, as if paralyzed.
The poison from the sea fish couldn't have worked this quickly! Viserys thought, flipping the assassin over just as she gulped something down.
Realizing it was a poison pill, he swiftly punched her in the stomach, causing her to convulse and spit out a black, foul-smelling liquid.
Seeing her suicide attempt thwarted, she tried to bite her tongue off, but the poison had already taken effect, weakening her jaw.
Once assured she was no longer a threat, Viserys began to search her, his eyes widening in surprise.
"A female assassin!" he exclaimed.