The return journey after the war was easy. Robert's flagship was filled with his drinking buddies. The weather was good, and everyone gathered on deck every day to drink and eat meat, discussing the heroic deeds of various people during the campaign. Even Ned Stark, a man of strict rules, had relaxed.
The "Red Priest," Thoros, wasn't originally qualified to be on the flagship as a mercenary, but he had earned merit this time and was preparing to be knighted. The guards, knowing he was one of Robert's drinking buddies, didn't stop him. As he went up to the deck, he saw Renly holding the Stark family's Ice greatsword, studying it. Vitt was explaining to everyone:
"Valyrian Steel has a very high affinity for magic."
Everyone present only knew that Valyrian Steel weapons were incredibly tough and lighter than ordinary steel. The only downsides were that they were rare and expensive; they knew nothing about its other properties. Now, hearing Vitt say it was related to magic, they all stopped drinking and listened carefully.
Vitt asked a guard for an ordinary steel sword and said to Renly:
"Let's use the Flame Cloak together! Watch your step, don't burn the deck."
The Flame Cloak was originally a defensive magic, attaching destructive magic to the body and clothing. When an enemy touched it, they would automatically be attacked by the magic. He had used the Lightning Cloak before when he dueled Jaime at the Red Keep. In the world of Westeros, not only could magic be attached to the body, but it could also be attached to the weapons.
Vitt and Renly walked to the middle of the deck, flames erupting from their bodies, instantly raising the surrounding temperature. The flames also ignited on their respective swords.
Thoros, remembering that he could only ignite his weapon with wildfire, watched as the two began casting magic, their entire bodies enveloped in flames. He couldn't help but admire them – these were true magic swordsmen.
The temperature of magical flames was far higher than that of ordinary fire. Before long, the steel sword in Vitt's hand had turned red-hot, slowly softening and bending.
The two stopped their magic. Vitt used Ice Spray to cool the steel sword. With a few "crack" sounds, the distorted sword couldn't withstand the magic and broke into several pieces, falling to the ground.
However, when the Ice on Renly's greatsword was ignited by magic, the temperature didn't rise to the point of turning red. When Renly used Ice Spray to cool it, it only hissed and evaporated, emitting a large amount of white steam. Finally, a layer of hard white ice formed on the sword. Renly thrust the greatsword into the deck, shaking off the ice, and the greatsword was back to its original form.
Renly returned the Ice greatsword to Eddard. Valyrian Steel weapons were a perfect match for mages, but Renly wasn't greedy. He and Vitt had been purchasing Valyrian Steel fragments for several years. Vitt had also said that with the deepening of his magical abilities, he would be able to forge Valyrian Steel in the future.
With the victory in this war, Vitt's display of magic in Pyke had been dazzling. The reputations of him and Renly, the two mages, would soon spread across the entire continent. As long as nothing unexpected happened, the two of them would undoubtedly become a new force to be reckoned with when they grew up.
Some nobles had already considered buying Valyrian Steel weapons to give to Vitt or Renly. But after thinking about their wallets, they couldn't bear to do it. The price was already high, and today's events would spread, causing prices to rise even further. Besides, even if they had the money, they wouldn't be able to find any to buy.
After the magic demonstration, everyone resumed drinking. Thoros found Vitt and respectfully bowed.
"Sir Vitt, I wonder if you could teach me magic?"
"Haha, of course, no problem. But it's not teaching, let's exchange ideas."
Vitt also wanted to learn about the Lord of Light's magic from him. He was very interested in their fire magic and magic related to life.
Although Thoros was outstanding in martial arts, his magical talent was average, and his willpower was weak. He first studied the Lord of Light's magic, but he couldn't master it and was assigned a difficult task: to preach on the continent of Westeros. However, he couldn't let go of money and women and became a mercenary. Only a leader like Robert could subdue such people. According to the original historical development, he founded the Brotherhood Without Banners after Robert's death, continuing to resist the Lannisters in Robert's name.
Vitt asked Robert:
"Brother, is that book I gave you, The Essence of Magic, From Understanding to Entry, still on the ship?"
This book was written by Vitt. It introduced the form, substance, and attributes of magic. It was at most a popular science book, allowing those who didn't know magic to roughly distinguish what was magic and what were other natural phenomena. People with magical power could control the flow of magic in their bodies after reading it. There was no deeper content. It wasn't a rare item. The truly profound books were locked in Renly's secret room at Storm's End.
Robert told Jaime Lannister to get it from the ship's cabin. After Vitt gave the book's inner pages to Robert, he had the court scholars make a luxurious cover from the finest materials. He started reading it seriously, but before he even got halfway through, he tossed it aside to drink. It wasn't a secret book; most people in the Red Keep had read it with Vitt's permission. This time, Robert brought it on the ship simply because the clerks would record what the king liked, as part of the king's entourage.
Thoros took the book, flipped open the gorgeous cover, and only glanced at it a few times, but he acted like he was looking at a treasure. His previous studies were mixed with a lot of the Lord of Light's religious content, and magic didn't even account for one-tenth of it.
"Don't hide it. It's fine to let others see it too, but remember to return it to the king after you're done."
Vitt had him return the book to Robert to give him a reason to deepen his relationship with Robert and keep him by Robert's side. Otherwise, without Vitt and Renly, Robert wouldn't even have anyone around him who knew magic.
Furthermore, he wanted Thoros to abandon his faith in the Lord of Light and his missionary work, and instead focus on learning magic from Vitt. Vitt didn't believe he could resist a set of real-world direct sales brainwashing techniques. From then on, there would be no more "Red Priest" Thoros, only Mage Thoros.
Lannisport was the most important port in the Westerlands. The wreckage blocking the harbor was quickly salvaged and cleared under Tywin's organization. He didn't feel bad about spending the money at all; he deeply understood the principle of money making money. With the port, he could earn the money back into his pocket. By the time the returning fleet arrived at the port, Tywin had already prepared for the welcoming.
Watching Robert, Tywin, and Stannis whispering to each other, Vitt knew they were discussing how to make a profit at the upcoming tournament again. Vitt had been very uncomfortable these past few days because of his back injury, and he understood that a man's back was the key. Crippling the back was like crippling the whole person, and even healing magic didn't have much effect. He had been studying the cause for the past few days.
Ordinary soldiers had already begun returning to their territories. Only nobles and soldiers who had earned merit remained in Lannisport to participate in the upcoming tournament. The inns in the port were immediately packed, while the nobles took up residence in the Lannister's Casterly Rock, where Tywin Lannister, recognized as the wealthiest man on the continent, was hosting them generously.
At the banquet, Tywin gave a generous speech about the upcoming tournament, flanked by two fully armored knights.
"The Mountain" Gregor Clegane and "The Hound" Sandor Clegane. Their family were staunch Lannister loyalists, landed knights who had risen in the Westerlands since their grandfather's generation. Their sigil was three hunting dogs on a yellow field, but they were known for their cruel behavior, which even many nobles in the Westerlands disapproved of. Consequently, many members of their family were nicknamed after dogs.
Vitt looked at the towering figure of the Mountain and thought:
I need to figure out a way to sell the Mountain to my father-in-law, Oberyn. Should I exchange him for benefits with Tywin, or just tie him up under the cover of darkness? The Red Priest could handle the Mountain alone, but moving that big brute silently within the castle would be a major problem.
Over the past few years, secret rumors of the Lannisters' assault on the Red Keep to assassinate the Targaryen royal family had gradually emerged. These rumors included the Mountain personally raping and killing the Dornish princess and then throwing her two children to their deaths.
Prince Oberyn had been making a name for himself as a mercenary in the Eastern Continent for the past few years. Upon learning of this, he dared not write to King Robert in the Red Keep, fearing a leak. Instead, he sent a letter to Renly at Storm's End. The Baratheon family owed Dorne a debt, and after the brothers discussed it, they agreed to find an opportunity to "send" the Mountain to Dorne.
....
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