Aerys couldn't withstand the old woman's haggling and added the title of Protector of the Realm to the original land rewards.
Protector of the Realm is one of the three titles held by the ruler of the Seven Kingdoms.
The other two are "King of the andals, the Rhoynar, and the first men" and "Lord of the Seven Kingdoms."
This title carries military weight, signifying the King's supreme command over the armies of the Seven Kingdoms.
In the history of the Seven Kingdoms, if the King was young or incapable of ruling, the Regent could also hold this title.
The King can also voluntarily relinquish this title and bestow it upon his chosen candidate.
In other words, the title of Protector of the Realm is unique in nature.
After bestowing it upon Daeron, Aerys lost the title.
"You are truly a generous and benevolent monarch, and an impeccable father."
Lady Olenna was highly satisfied, and flattery poured out of her as if it were free.
Daeron: ————
Following the impression that the Fish counters the Lion, another radical impression was added: the Rose counters the Madman.
The Old Rose is still a rose.
"Protector of the Realm isn't bad either; it essentially turns the temporary post of Grand Marshal of the Seven Kingdoms into a permanent military leader."
At only thirteen, Daeron was promoted to Protector of the Realm.
Earl Qarlton and the others were overjoyed, nearly cheering aloud.
With the title of Protector of the Realm, the next step would be the regency.
They could all become meritorious officials following the dragon.
A few days later.
The various factions were gradually becoming restless, and a Small Council was convened at the Red Keep.
The Council Chamber.
With silver hair and dressed in black, Daeron sat alone opposite the King.
To his left, Lady Olenna held a bunch of poppies, admiring the vibrant red of the flowers.
They were a gift from Daeron, implying her tongue was as poisonous as the Poppy.
Lady Olenna didn't understand and actually quite liked this special gold-star quality flower, saying several times that she would keep it in her room to brighten the drab layout of the Red Keep's guest quarters.
"Prince, the meeting is about to begin."
Varys gave a light cough, wanting the Prince to remind Lady Olenna.
——
"Very well, Lord Varys."
Daeron responded to every word, but he didn't show the slightest intention of moving.
Varys sighed inwardly.
As the Protector of the Realm, the Prince was qualified to participate in the Small Council.
Lady Olenna, however, had stubbornly insisted on coming.
According to her, her son, Duke Mace, had strained his back early that morning and couldn't attend the Small Council, so she had to come and test the waters with her old bones.
Everyone understood that she was worried about Duke Mace's lack of capability and had come personally to negotiate terms.
"Your Majesty, it is time for business."
Tywin sat unfazed, reminding the King in the seat of honor.
Aerys ignored him, fiddling with his feet under the table and examining a pair of new shoes.
They were purple shoes with slightly upturned toes; the material was indistinguishable, but they were exceptionally comfortable to wear, as if his headaches had ceased and his body no longer felt weak.
This was a gift from his Second Son, who said it was a Dragon Lord's treasure acquired from the Essos.
Genie Shoes: 'Defense +1, Immunity +6.'
"They feel good to wear and look magnificent, but they always feel a bit tight."
Aerys looked them over and, overall, liked them quite a bit.
They were supposed to be tight.
In recent days, Daeron had been killing monsters and smashing crates in the mines; having dropped many shoes, he specifically chose a small pair to give to his father.
But it had to be said, the Genie Shoes were definitely one of the items with the highest immunity attributes in Stardew Valley.
Second only to the Mermaid Boots' Immunity +8.
They were perfect for his mentally traumatized father, Aerys.
Seeing that the King had ignored him, Tywin's brow furrowed, and he raised his voice: "Your Majesty, we must discuss the matter of Storms End!"
Aerys looked up and said displeasurably, "Then speak. Why are you shouting?"
?
Tywin was momentarily stunned, thinking to himself that the King was being utterly unreasonable.
Back to the point.
Aerys hid his beautiful new shoes and reclaimed his ambition to annex the Stormlands, stating his position: "House Baratheon has rebelled; Storms End shall belong to the crown, and the Stormlands should be incorporated into the Crownlands."
"There is no such precedent in the Seven Kingdoms."
Tywin flatly denied it, steadily presenting his arguments from the perspective of the noble class.
"The stormlords have owed their fealty to the Storm King House Durrandon since ancient times, and later to House Baratheon, which inherited the Durrandon sigil and banners. In essence, it remains an internal governance of the Stormlands nobility rather than being under the direct jurisdiction of the Iron Throne."
"Haphazardly expanding the Crownlands while disregarding the sentiments of the stormlords will likely backfire and create new dangers."
The Small Council Members, also being of the noble class, naturally sided with the Hand and nodded repeatedly.
"By your meaning, Storms End should be bestowed upon a meritorious official, and a new Governor of the Stormlands should be promoted."
Aerys was greatly dissatisfied and sneered, "If we are talking about who has the greatest merit, shouldn't Storms End be given to this boy?"
As he spoke, he pointed a large hand toward Daeron.
Daeron looked up silently.
There was such a good deal?
Tywin glanced at him and said calmly, "Prince Daeron already has a fief, and after two expansions of his rewards, he should not be granted Storms End."
It was the same point: he and Daeron were tied together by interest.
He valued Daeron's future and wanted to marry his daughter to him, allowing the blood of House Lannister to merge into the royal family to benefit his house in the future.
Daeron hadn't broken ties with him, naturally out of respect for the power of House Lannister.
With the support of the existing Crownlands nobility and the entire Reach, if Storms End were also given to Daeron, he could completely cast House Lannister aside and strike out on his own.
This was something Tywin absolutely could not accept.
The Small Council Members remained silent.
Some indeed did not want Daeron to become too powerful, while others simply sought stability and did not want to risk further chaos in the Stormlands.
Daeron's expression was placid as he watched to see what they would come up with.
Tywin followed convention and said, "A Lord of Storms End must be chosen soon to stabilize the stormlords and restore order as quickly as possible."
"Then let it be one of my sons!"
Aerys showed a bit of quick wit, saying, "I have two other sons. Let Jaehaerys serve as the Lord of Storms End and eventually become the Governor of the Stormlands."
As soon as he spoke, the room fell silent.
Would this proposal work?
Theoretically, it was feasible.
But granting Storms End to the third prince still wouldn't change the underlying issue of the Crownlands' expansion and the stormlords' unrest.
Furthermore, Jaehaerys was not much different in age from Daeron.
The King was in his prime, and by initial judgment, he had over a decade left to live.
After a few years, another prince sitting on the Stormlands would only make the struggle for the Iron Throne's succession more intense.
Maester Aemon, who had been silent, spoke for the first time: "No. Titles and authority are not things to be granted lightly to others. Prince Jaehaerys is not a good candidate for Lord of Storms End."
Aerys was completely enraged.
This won't do, that won't do—I see you are all making things difficult on purpose.
Tywin did not coddle him and began naming candidates from among the meritorious officials and stormlords, recommending people for the position of Lord of Storms End.
Enraged, Aerys cursed loudly, refusing to give Storms End to any outsider.
Both sides held their ground, arguing until they were red in the face.
"A group of vested interests, deciding the distribution of benefits without even asking the one who created them."
Daeron watched coldly, seeing the ugly faces of the Small Council quite clearly.
In essence, the Small Council was an organization for distributing benefits that had formed after Aegon the Conqueror unified the Seven Kingdoms.
Each region of Westeros was self-governing; they didn't really need this council to rule them.
"Prince, won't you say something?"
Lady Olenna took a sip of red wine to moisten her throat, signaling the Prince that the time had come.
She hadn't come to King's Landing just to drink wine and watch the show at the Small Council.
The House Tyrell's interests were also tied to Daeron.
She couldn't watch as the fruits of Daeron's victory were stripped away.
Tap, tap, tap!
Daeron's finger drummed on the table, drawing everyone's attention.
"Prince, what are your thoughts?"
Tywin asked pretentiously.
Daeron didn't answer, turning instead to look at his agitated father.
"Boy, if you have something to say, say it."
Aerys was breathless, exhausted from battling the council.
Daeron gave a soft sigh and said, "Father, My Lords. The rebellion is not yet suppressed. The Riverlands are in chaos, and The North and The Vale are eyeing us like predators."
"We have just pacified the Stormlands, and yet we argue back and forth in the Small Council. When will we ever pacify the other three regions?"
Tywin spoke first, using the tone of an elder: "To pacify a region, one must first appease it. If order is not restored, it will only become a tangled mess."
"My Lord, why don't we first hear what the Prince has to say?"
Maester Aemon was old and his voice soft, but it carried great weight.
Daeron did not defer, stating bluntly, "I have decided that the Lord of Storms End will not be elected for now; I will hold the position temporarily. Once the rebellion is initially settled, we shall hold a vote."
Aerys and Tywin both fell silent, pondering the deeper meaning.
A father and a mentor, neither wanted their son or student to grow too quickly and escape their control.
Daeron had long since made his plans; dismissing everything they had discussed, he spoke freely: "I shall establish new offices to restore order to the Stormlands."
"What offices?"
Tywin's brow furrowed, naturally repulsed by the unfamiliar.
Daeron stood up and pointed to the map hanging in the hall, saying, "I wish to establish the High Steward of the Kingswood, the Bronzegate Checkpoint, and the high waymaster of the kings road."
As for specific duties, each had its own division of labor.
The High Steward of the Kingswood would be held by a general, nominally guarding The Kingswood with military command, responsible for Red Keep patrols, breeding the royal warhorses,
cracking down on poachers, and so on.
The main focus would be Red Keep security and The Kingswood patrols.
The Bronzegate Checkpoint and the high waymaster of the kings road would be held by officials appointed by the crown.
The former would establish a checkpoint at Bronzegate, the mandatory path for the stormlords, responsible for oversight and tax collection.
The latter would oversee the entire Kingsroad, with jurisdiction over the Bronzegate Checkpoint; duties would include oversight and tax collection, with additional responsibility for road maintenance and security management.
"Tax collection?"
Lady Olenna and Tywin questioned in unison.
Taxes were absolutely the word nobles hated most to hear from a member of the royal family.
Daeron said calmly, "Rest assured, we won't tax the commoners, only the merchants. And that meager tax revenue will be allocated by the Iron Throne to the high waymaster of the kings road, to be used entirely for road maintenance."
"This is truly unheard of."
Lady Olenna shook her head repeatedly, taking a sip of wine to steady her nerves.
The merchants who could do business across Westeros were all backed by nobles.
Daeron's move was a disguised tax increase on the nobility.
And furthermore————
"Establishing the Bronzegate Checkpoint and the high waymaster of the kings road creates oversight agencies aimed entirely at the Stormlands nobility—and they are armed enforcement agencies at that."
Tywin's expression was exceptionally grim as he saw through his star student's soaring ambition.
Daeron never hid it, saying straightforwardly, "The rebellion in the four regions fully demonstrates the obsolescence of the Seven Kingdoms' old system. In introducing a new system, am I not simply following logic?"
Since the Stormlands couldn't be directly incorporated into the Crownlands, he would first change the method of governance.
The high waymaster of the kings road would oversee the Stormlands, with the Bronzegate Checkpoint providing assistance, forming an independent and systematic local oversight agency to advance the centralization of power.
The only flaw in this system was the intense clash between royal authority and the noble class.
To implement it successfully required an iron-fisted monarch.
It just so happened that House Baratheon had rebelled, and the stormlords were in a period of weakness.
Daeron was confident he could implement the Waymaster system.
In summary, it came down to one sentence: I shall command all the realm's armies!
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