In the year 282, Anna Stark, Robert's fiancée, was kidnapped by Prince Rhaegar. Anna's furious brother, Brandon Stark, stormed into the Red Keep in King's Landing to confront the king, demanding that Rhaegar come out and face him.
Before the situation could be sorted out, and despite the fact that killing a prince was a grave offense, the king ordered Brandon and his Northern companions arrested. Being nobles, the king demanded that their fathers travel to King's Landing to resolve the issue, which was, at that point, a normal course of action.
However, once the fathers arrived in King's Landing, the king went mad, and without trial, executed several father-son pairs. Among those killed were: the Duke of Winterfell and his heir, the Earl of Deepwood Motte and his heir, the heir to the Duke of the Vale, the Earl of Runestone and his heir, and the Earl of Seagard from the Riverlands.
The news shocked the Seven Kingdoms. Dukes, second only to the king in power, were executed, and even the Earls didn't get a chance to speak before being beheaded.
Jon Arryn arrived late and escaped the massacre. The king then demanded that he hand over Robert and Eddard. The North, the Vale, and the Riverlands had always been friendly, with intermarriage between them. Jon Arryn, the Duke of the Vale, was also Robert and Eddard's foster father, so he immediately raised his banner in rebellion against the king. The vassals of the three northern regions responded immediately and gathered their armies. Highgarden and Dorne supported the royal family. The Westerlands and the Iron Islands had not yet declared their stance. A war that would engulf the entire continent was now inevitable.
The Vale began to split between those loyal to the king and the rebels. Jon and Eddard led the rebels to defeat the loyalists in Seagull Town, and Eddard returned to The North to gather his vassals.
Robert also returned to Storm's End in the Stormlands overnight, responding to the rebellion and summoning all his vassals. Now, soldiers' tents filled the area outside Storm's End, and inside the castle, generals and soldiers in armor moved about. The sound of blacksmiths repairing weapons and armor was constant.
Late at night, after Robert, Stannis, and the vassals from various regions had finished discussing military affairs and adjourned the meeting, Witte led a sleepy Renly into the room.
Witte signaled that he had something to discuss with his two older brothers. After the others left, the four Baratheon brothers sat together.
"What's on your mind, Witte?" Robert looked tired. He usually loved participating in tournaments, but this time he was leading an army. He didn't usually like dealing with politics, but now, as the lord, he had no choice. He just wanted to be a general charging at the front, not a strategist coordinating the whole thing. He'd been overworking his brain.
Stannis usually handled political affairs, but this was also the first time he'd faced war. Suddenly having to deploy so many people and supplies had him overwhelmed as well.
"Do you two brothers know about magic?" Witte asked seriously, looking at the two of them.
Robert thought for a moment. "I've heard that magic is needed to forge Valyrian Steel, and Storm's End was also built with magic, but we haven't found anything different about it."
"Magic was lost long ago. I've seen some magical items, but they're just tricks to fool people, just a flash of light and a bang," Stannis added.
Witte looked at Robert and said seriously,
"Ordinary people can learn the techniques to melt down and recast Valyrian Steel products. There are blacksmiths in Qohor on the eastern continent who have mastered that technology. But Valyrian Steel isn't an ore; casting ordinary steel into Valyrian Steel requires a magic forge and enchanting the item."
Turning to Stannis, he said, "Magic comes from magical energy. The entire world was in a low-energy period, which is why magic disappeared. But now the energy has revived, and more and more people will genuinely wield magic. Magical artifacts are not indestructible. Powerful magical items can be destroyed in war by another magical item, leaving only decorative magical items."
"Are you so sure?" Both men looked skeptical. If someone else had been talking about magic like this, Robert would have kicked him out, and Stannis would have ordered the guards to hold the person underwater until they were sober. But for their brother, they were patient.
Witte stood up, realizing he wasn't tall enough to reach the table. He climbed onto a chair, stood on it, and drew a small knife from his waist. He slashed his left palm, and blood immediately flowed.
"Are you crazy!" Robert reacted quickly, reaching out to grab Witte's hand. But Witte raised his right hand, stopping him, and shouted, "Renly!"
Renly, who had been struggling to stay awake while listening to the discussion about magic, knew it was his time to shine when he saw his brother cut his left hand.
Renly held his hands out in front of Witte, cupped as if holding something. He channeled his magical energy, and a ball of orange light appeared between his palms. He pushed the ball of light toward Witte, and the light gathered on Witte's bleeding left hand. The wound closed at a visible rate until it disappeared. He wiped the blood away with his sleeve, and his left hand was as good as new.
Robert and Stannis immediately rushed over to examine Witte's left hand and check his sleeve. The two still didn't quite believe it, thinking their two younger brothers had learned some trick somewhere. They even checked Renly's hand, but couldn't find anything.
"It's really magic?" Stannis asked his two younger brothers, frowning.
"Of course it's magic. This magic is called Healing Hand." Renly puffed out his chest, looking like he expected praise.
Witte patted Renly's shoulder in praise. "Renly's magic was taught by me. He's very talented in healing and transmutation magic."
Renly was an apprentice-level user of Healing Hand, able to slowly heal others' wounds. Although it was called slow healing, that was compared to other magic. For small cuts like this, it would heal within a few breaths. For broken bones or missing flesh, it would probably take some time.
Before, Witte had discovered that Renly had magic in his body. He thought it must be because of their shared twin bond that he had passed on his magic bloodline to him. He wrote out a few beginner magic books from memory. Renly didn't even know many words at the time, so Witte could only teach him to read the illustrations in the magic books, and how to study the magic flow diagrams. Renly finally managed to cast a Light Spell after two months. He was so excited that he didn't sleep for three days.
Later, after careful study, it was confirmed that Renly's primary magical talent was in healing, followed by transmutation. Now, Renly's healing magic had reached the apprentice level. His transmutation magic was still at the beginner level. He didn't dare to teach him destruction magic for now, in case he burned down the house. However, the magic reserves in Renly's body were less than a tenth of Witte's. After all, Renly didn't have a system to add magic points, nor did he have skill points to add to his magic skill tree. He had learned and practiced everything the hard way.
Robert still didn't quite believe it, and asked Witte, "You taught Renly? Do you know any other magic?"
Witte turned around, one hand conjuring a white orb of light that he sent to the ceiling. With his other hand, he created a blue orb that exploded, the blue aura flowing over his body and forming a humanoid shield around him.
Then, he jumped onto the table, extending both hands forward. A furious wind mixed with shards of ice erupted from his hands, blasting towards the wall. The candle holders in the room were extinguished, leaving only the light orb on the ceiling, which shone brighter than the candles ever had.
The biting cold ice wind blew, quickly freezing the walls and furniture. Witte turned and adjusted the direction of his attack, then froze the other wall and the armor of Robert, which was on the wooden dummy, solid.
Because the wind could only swirl within the enclosed room, the Ice Spray appeared even more violent than it would have been outdoors. Ice shards flew everywhere, stinging their faces like knives. Renly climbed onto a chair, shielding Robert and Stannis with a healing magic barrier to block the icy wind.
The ice wind stopped. The two walls and furniture in the room were completely frozen. The rest of the room was covered in ice shards, transforming the entire space into a white world. Witte turned around and raised his hands, a red flame appearing in his left palm while a blue current of electricity sparked in his right.
"This is my magic."
Robert and Stannis looked at the ice crystals filling the room in astonishment. This time, they completely accepted the reality that their two younger brothers could use magic.
"So, can Stannis and I use magic too?" Robert cautiously asked Witte.
Seeing the anticipation on their faces, Witte could only tell them with a helpless expression, since magic either existed or it didn't.
"I'm sorry, but Renly and I are still exploring our magic. And according to historical records, every mage is born with an affinity for magic, and then they become mages through learning. Even their descendants may have a break in the lineage. Neither my eldest brother nor my second brother have any magic."
"Magic is a skill, and magic power is the source of using magic. Magic power is like a tree. As long as you are smart enough, you can turn the tree into firewood to provide warmth. Magic is the same. When the magic power starts to fill the world, as long as you can feel the magic power, and with intelligence, you can find ways to use magic power to cast spells."
Witte couldn't explain that magic came from his travels. But since magic power really existed in this world, he could only fabricate a somewhat plausible reason.
The two were disappointed, but such things couldn't be forced. However, Robert suddenly burst out laughing.
"Two mages in our generation out of four proves that our House Baratheon has a mage bloodline. Even if Stannis and I don't have magical talent, it doesn't mean our descendants won't. As long as we have enough descendants, we can always produce one or two!"
Witte was surprised: Could this be the reason for Robert's countless bastards in the future?