"Dragon Prince" Aemon

"What difference would that make? Are we supposed to credit Daemon with Aemon's achievements?"

Viserys spoke in anger.

Alicent's frown deepened as she said sternly, "Aemon is Aemon, and Daemon is Daemon. They cannot be lumped together."

No one could steal Little One's achievements.

Seeing the seriousness on his wife's face, Viserys explained, "The ones who started this war were two arrogant fools. They were dissatisfied with my decisions."

"If I send reinforcements to Daemon and Sea Snake Corlys now, what will everyone think of me as King?"

They had ignored his orders and openly defied his rule.

Now that they were about to lose, they wanted him to clean up their mess?

Heh.

Alicent set down the letter and advised him kindly, "Perhaps people will say the King is broad-minded and loves his younger brother."

"Hardly. They'll only laugh at me for being weak."

Viserys gave a mocking smile.

Alicent asked, "Then what do you believe is more important?"

The question stunned Viserys. His head ached fiercely, and he snapped, "I think I'm just an unlucky bastard who can never please everyone!"

He was kind and amiable to everyone, always wearing a smile.

Yet no one respected his decisions. Every last one of them harbored their own schemes.

Alicent watched quietly. Only after her husband had calmed down somewhat did she say, "Put it another way: which choice is more beneficial to the stability of the realm?"

"Allow the Crabfeeder to grow stronger, or uproot him completely?"

She still remembered that kidnapped noblewoman.

Avoidance was no solution. Only struggle could solve it.

Hearing this, Viserys fell silent.

He had his own considerations.

With Daemon and Sea Snake Corlys bogged down in the Stepstones, the Iron Throne was spared a threat.

He had entertained that thought the first time Sea Snake Corlys proposed conquering the Stepstones.

The Velaryon Family had risen through maritime trade.

With the Three Daughters Pirates causing trouble, Driftmark was the first to suffer.

Otherwise, why would Sea Snake Corlys rather wage war without authorization than leave the Stepstones alone?

But Laena's arrival seemed to carry the hidden instructions of his cousin Rhaenys.

From what the letter revealed, it was not Sea Snake Corlys who was truly in trouble, but his younger brother Daemon.

Driftmark possessed vast wealth and power. Even if it lost men and suffered casualties, its foundations remained untouched.

Daemon, however, had no lands of his own and was like duckweed without roots.

The army under his command consisted entirely of mercenaries hired with coin.

Now that the mercenaries had seen the situation turn unfavorable and withdrawn, Daemon was completely isolated and helpless, no longer qualified to stand on equal footing with Sea Snake Corlys.

This plea for aid from Vaemond had most likely been instructed by Sea Snake Corlys.

The purpose was to isolate Daemon and drag the royal family behind him into the war.

Once the war was won, the royal family would gain the glory while the Velaryon Family reaped the benefits.

Daemon would get nothing.

"Brat, this situation doesn't look good."

Viserys knitted his brows, already having made up his mind.

He admitted that he did not possess his cousin Rhaenys's breadth of spirit and courage, but that did not mean he was narrow-minded enough to sit by and watch his own brother suffer setbacks.

Daemon needed him to lend a hand.

Alicent did not press the matter further and suddenly asked, "What reward do you intend to give Aemon?"

That was the key issue.

"What do you think?"

Viserys came back to himself and wanted to hear his wife's advice.

Alicent said evenly, "You are the King. Any reward you grant carries great weight, as long as others cannot accuse you of being stingy."

"Heh, you're quite the advocate."

Viserys pointed at her and laughed.

It was no secret at Court that his wife had a good relationship with his nephew.

During the period before Grandfather Jaehaerys passed away, he had specifically instructed Viserys to take good care of the two of them.

That had also been one of the considerations behind his marriage to Alicent.

Grandfather's judgment had to be better than his own.

Alicent merely smiled without speaking, making no attempt to deny it.

Viserys considered it carefully and said in a negotiating tone, "That boy wants a title, but he has no lands, and he is still too young."

"Yes. The royal family does not seem to have a precedent for that."

Alicent was in no hurry.

Viserys glanced at her, wondering whether she had discussed this with Aemon beforehand. Then he gritted his teeth. "Then I'll grant him a princely title. He may choose a piece of unclaimed land as his fief, or, once he inherits Runestone in the future, add it as his prefix."

Since he was rewarding him anyway, he might as well do it properly in one go.

A princely title was certainly honorable, but it was not unprecedented.

For example, the Iron Throne's heir bore the title Prince of Dragonstone, a princely title prefixed by his fief.

Aemon was to inherit Runestone, establish himself in the Vale, and build his own branch of the family.

A princely title suited his status.

"Really?"

Alicent was surprised. She had not expected her ever-hesitant husband to be so decisive.

"Of course."

Viserys laughed heartily and said mischievously, "My son has been made a prince. When Daemon returns victorious, it will be the perfect chance to take down his arrogance a notch."

His younger brother Daemon was called the "Capital Prince," but he did not actually hold a princely title.

He would give him a good teasing. Who told him to have such a clever and sensible son?

Alicent smiled in satisfaction, a great weight lifting from her heart.

The next day.

Early in the morning, the Throne Hall was packed to capacity.

Ser Harrold, Lord Commander of the Kingsguard, stood below the Iron Throne and announced in a loud voice:

"In the name of Viserys I of House Targaryen, King of the Andals, the Rhoynar, and the First Men, Lord of the Seven Kingdoms, and Warden of the Realm."

"It is hereby formally decreed that Aemon Targaryen shall be Dragon Prince and heir to Runestone."

Upon the Iron Throne.

Viserys wore his crown and held the Family Sword, Blackfyre, as he looked down at his young nephew.

Aemon wore formal black attire, with a badge carved in the shape of the Three-Headed Red Dragon pinned to his chest. Smiling brightly, he turned around.

Noble lords from across the realm stood along both sides of the hall.

They had all come for the Kingswood Hunt, never expecting to witness the appointment of a prince.

Clap! Clap! Clap!

As the proclamation ended, thunderous applause erupted.

Aemon's smiling face was adorable as he bowed to everyone in thanks.

The badge on his chest swayed, its Three-Headed Red Dragon seeming ready to spread its wings and take flight.

A Dragon Prince—a princely title without lands. The first of its kind since the founding of the realm.

Aemon grumbled inwardly, but he was already more than satisfied.

The beginning was always the hardest part.

As long as he had a legitimate pretext, he had taken the first step.

His somewhat inflated achievement of "Saving people from the deer's mouth" naturally did not merit a princely title.

But Alicent was backing him.

And Uncle Viserys felt guilty, so he had gone all the way and given him ample compensation in one stroke.

At that moment, Lady Rhea stepped out from the crowd.

With a respectful attitude, she said that she wished to take her son back to Runestone to familiarize him with the lands.

Aemon stood beside her and nodded in agreement.

Favors had to be reciprocated.

His uncle had made him a prince, so he had to know better than to remain in King's Landing.

He could not leave bitterness in either side's heart.

Sure enough, Viserys feigned reluctance but still agreed that his nephew would depart in the coming days.

The ceremony then came to an end.

Red Keep, Godswood.

"Yoo, yoo."

The White Hart lay beneath the Weirwood, its belly resting on vivid red leaves.

Aemon had changed into a Dragon Riding Suit. With his left foot on the stirrup, he struggled to climb onto the deer's back.

The White Hart stood two meters at the shoulder. Even lying down, it was taller than an eight-year-old boy.

Once Aemon had climbed up, he amused himself with a laugh. "It's this hard just climbing onto a deer. Climbing onto a dragon must be like scaling a mountain."

Not to mention Dreamfyre in the Dragonpit.

Just imagining Vhagar's mountain-like body made him feel that, even with saddle straps to climb, it would take several minutes.

If an enemy arrived too quickly, there would not even be time to mount a dragon and fight back.

"Aemon, so you're here."

The moment he thought of that terrifying old dragon, her rider arrived.

Aemon turned around.

Rhaenyra approached side by side with Laena, carrying a cage covered in black cloth.

Friends, does anyone have official, specific data on dragon sizes?

Zhou Zhou couldn't find any accurate figures online. Everything seems to be analysis based on the show.

Please, are there any experts out there?