-Chapter 79-
-POV Aemon Targaryen-
I quickly removed my helmet once I realized that I had finally killed Criston Cole, and I spat on him in rage.
'That damn dog broke something,' I thought, frowning in pain because, in the heat of the moment, I had struck wildly with my injured arm.
'The adrenaline helped mask the pain, but now the backlash is kicking in.'
I stood up and left that cursed arena, furious. I wasn't angry at anyone in particular, except myself, because I had been too arrogant.
'And I paid dearly for it,' I thought.
'I wanted to flaunt my exceptional abilities by humiliating him, but I ended up humiliating myself, injuring myself like an idiot by using the same tricks twice in a row.'
I quickly found my way back to my chambers, and shortly after, Gunthor entered, followed by Grand Maester Mellos, Laena, and my mother.
"How are you?" my mother asked.
"I'm fine," I replied, though inwardly I was doing everything I could to suppress a scream of pain.
"Is it serious?" Laena asked the maester, who had begun to examine me.
He didn't speak at first, then simply said, "You have a fracture. With a splint, you'll be healed in one or two moons. I can give you some milk of the poppy for—"
"No, I'll be fine," I said.
'I'll need to find animals to kill to acquire attribute points,' I thought, knowing that even though my constitution stat, which also regulated how quickly I could heal, was nearly three times higher than a normal human's, it wasn't fast enough.
"If you'd like, I can—"
"Thank you for your diagnosis, but we'll be leaving in a few hours. The maester at Runestone will tend to my injury," I said, feeling slightly uneasy and repelled by the maesters.
With all the conspiracy theories surrounding them, it was better to stay away from those gray rats, as Archmaester Marwyn called them.
"Thank you for your help, Maester Mellos. My son needs to rest," my mother said.
The Grand Maester finally complied with my mother's tacit order for me to 'rest' and left quietly.
'He doesn't seem malicious, but I don't want to give him the chance to harm me,' I thought as I watched him close the door.
"You were reckless, Aemon," my mother said once the Grand Maester had left.
"I know," I replied, fully agreeing with her.
"You should have taken a shield," she added, furious.
"I know that too," I said, without adding anything further.
"Rhea," Gunthor interjected to calm my mother, who rarely got this angry. But I had gambled with my life when I could have killed him at any moment.
'And she feels guilty because she pushed me to accept the fight,' I told myself, understanding perfectly why she was reacting so strongly.
"You wanted to give them a spectacle they wouldn't soon forget, and you succeeded. But I hope this spectacle will also serve as a lesson to you, and that like them, you won't forget it. You're not invincible, you bleed like everyone else, you're mortal like everyone else," she said, taking a deep breath.
"Yes, mother," I said without adding anything further.
"Fortunately, you weren't foolish enough to fight without armor," she finally said, looking at my armor.
'I would have done better without it. I would have been free to move,' I thought silently, not daring to say it.
'Mother would tear out my tongue with her bare hands if I dared say such a thing.'
Mother looked at me for a few seconds before shaking her head, disappointed, and left, accompanied by Gunthor.
I sighed as I heard the door close behind her, and Laena stood in front of me and said:
"Thank you."
I didn't respond to my wife immediately. I just watched her quietly for a moment before finally saying:
"This is the last time I'll defend the interests of House Velaryon, Laena. I did it mostly for you, but let this be clear: if your brother, your father, or anyone else gets into trouble or stands in my way, your familial ties will mean nothing to me. I made an exception for you, and it will be the only one. You are my wife, Princess, and Lady of Runestone."
Laena said nothing, still grateful to me, but her mind was tangled and tormented by what I had just told her.
'Better that she hears it now, from my mouth, than later and continues to have illusions about what it truly means to be my wife.'
I observed my wife briefly, and just as she was about to respond, someone knocked at the door.
"The Queen," Arnold Arryn announced from behind the door.
I frowned and then said, "We'll continue this conversation later. Go celebrate with your family over Criston Cole's death, and prepare yourself, because we're leaving today. I've had enough of this city rotten to its core."
Laena nodded and obeyed without argument for once, and as she opened the door, she found herself face to face with the queen. They exchanged a long, tense look before finally stepping aside from each other.
Once Alicent Hightower had entered and the door closed behind her, she immediately began to verbally attack me:
"How dare you kill my champion? I ordered Ser Criston to spare Laenor's life. This act will not go unpunished."
"Alicent."
The queen instantly fell silent, shocked that I had called her by her first name. I stared at her for a second before saying, "Do you really think you have the power to command me?"