Standing on a stool, the boy leaned against the windowsill, the salty sea wind whipping into his face. He breathed in the faint scent of burning and blood that hung in the air, his silver-gold curls brushing against his pale forehead.
Tonight promised to be a sleepless one.
The distant bells had fallen silent, but the boy's inner turmoil remained.
He hated this feeling, of having his fate controlled by others, because this naval battle directly determined whether he lived or died.
If the Dragonstone Fleet was defeated, he, his mother and Rhaenys would have nowhere to run, no matter where they hid.
After all, Dragonstone was only so big.
The sea was like a cage, imprisoning them, leaving them with no space to escape.
Viserys decided that after this was over, if the Dragonstone Fleet could repel the enemy, he would do something to change his situation.
For example, persuading his mother to abandon Dragonstone and lead the fleet to the Eastern Continent.
However, Viserys knew that this was an incredibly difficult task. After all, Dragonstone held immense significance for House Targaryen.
Although he had been crowned Viserys Targaryen III, he was still young. Even as a so-called 'king', it was just a title, and not even the guards at the gate would take him seriously.
A 'king' who was only seven years old and had fled, losing his throne along the way, possessed no power whatsoever. He needed his mother's approval to even order a servant around.
And on the entire island of Dragonstone, it was Queen Rhaella's words that held the ultimate authority, aside from the fleet commander.
While Viserys was lost in thought, he suddenly seemed to have an idea.
Ever since the attack by House Lannister on their escape half a year ago, Rhaenys had developed the habit of having nightmares.
The little girl often woke up in the middle of the night, startled by nightmares, crying her eyes out, and running to Viserys's room for comfort.
The rooms of the two young children were close, with Rhaenys's bedroom next door to Viserys's. Only by holding her 'older brother', a little girl with brown hair, could she fall asleep peacefully again.
Both of them were actually unfortunate. Rhaenys had also lost her parents.
Tonight, because of many events, first the Old Maester passed away due to illness, breathing his last breath.
Then, a fleet of unknown origin attacked, and Viserys's mind was filled with all sorts of thoughts, so much so that he forgot about Rhaenys for a moment.
Usually, Rhaenys should have been awakened long ago when the bells outside had spread throughout Dragonstone.
However, there was no movement in Rhaenys's bedroom now.
Not awake?
Viserys tilted his head slightly, leaning on the windowsill and peering out of the castle, looking towards Rhaenys's bedroom next door.
Beneath him was a cliff tens of meters deep, with waves constantly surging forward, then crashing against the broken reefs below the castle.
Viserys's胆子 had grown considerably; he didn't worry about accidentally falling out as he leaned out.
However, after poking his head out and glancing at the window next door, Rhaenys's bedroom was pitch black, with no light whatsoever.
Looks like she really hasn't woken up.
How strange.
The boy's silver-gold hair swayed as he blinked, giving it some thought, and then pulled his head back in.
He picked up the short sword on the windowsill and held it in his hand. He hopped down from the small stool he was standing on and strode quickly toward the bedroom door.
Creak—
Viserys opened the door to his bedroom.
The two guards were indeed standing outside the door, fully armed. They wore mail shirts and had longswords at their waists.
Viserys wanted to go out, but the two guards stopped him.
"Your Grace."
The two guards looked at the young king with a wry smile. Although he had been crowned king, neither Viserys himself nor anyone else took it seriously.
The guards hadn't even changed their address, still calling Viserys "Your Grace." And now, they hadn't expected Ser William to be right. His Grace wasn't content to stay cooped up in his room; he would definitely find something to do.
However, this time, they were indeed wrong.
Viserys spread his hands slightly, a little helpless, and then pointed towards Rhaenys's room next door.
"I'm just going to find Rhaenys, of course I won't run around."
Viserys's reasoning was, of course, perfectly sound. After all, everyone in the castle knew the two children were close.
Rhaenys always clung to Viserys, even when he was practicing his swordplay. She would sit in the shade of a tree nearby, content to watch.
Furthermore, Rhaenys often 'misspoke,' calling Viserys 'brother.' After being corrected several times by Queen Rhaella, she reluctantly switched to 'uncle,' though her face still showed her displeasure.
Indeed, there was no more complex reason for a child. It wouldn't involve the thoughts of adults.
In her simple view, Viserys wasn't much older than her; they were peers.
Yet, he was inexplicably a generation older, which made her feel a little resentful. So, she deliberately called Viserys 'brother.' However, Viserys didn't mind.
"Since it's for the princess..."
The two guards exchanged glances, hesitated for a moment, and then nodded.
After all, Rhaenys's bedroom was right next door, and the young king hadn't run off anywhere. Refusing such a simple request would seem rather heartless.
"Very well."
Clang—
The sound of metal armor scraping against itself echoed.
Then, the two guards, hands on their sword hilts, nodded and stepped aside.
"Thank you."
Viserys also nodded, then paused as he walked past them, suddenly remembering something.
He stood for a moment in front of Rhaenys's door. From this corner, no one could directly see Viserys.
Then the boy looked up and asked casually.
"Are there guards protecting Mother too?"
After all, so much had happened tonight, and a naval battle was still underway outside. If the Dragonstone Fleet were defeated, none of them would escape.
However, Viserys thought of something else.
If the Dragonstone Fleet was fully deployed to fight the enemy, didn't that mean the coastline of Dragonstone would be completely undefended at this time?
Anyone could row a small boat and silently approach the shore under the cover of night, then land.
Dragonstone was barren, with only a small fishing village. As the lord of Dragonstone, he could hardly muster any soldiers for battle.
The only defensive force on the entire island was the few dozen guards inside the castle, but the castle was also exceptionally large, and these guards couldn't possibly cover everything.
Hearing the young king's words, the two guards were stunned. They hadn't thought as much as Viserys, but they still nodded in affirmation.
"Of course!"
"The Queen's Majesty also has guards protecting her."
However, while the three of them were speaking...
Thwack—
Suddenly, the sound of a bowstring snapping rang out, and a crossbow bolt shot from the darkness.
....
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