Light of the Kingdom

Chapter 3: Light of the Kingdom

[Rhaegar Targaryen]

Talent: Dreamer (Gold)

Bloodline: Valyrian Dragonlord (+8%)

Skills: Literature (Beginner), History (Beginner)

Relic: Blood of the Dragon (Fire Resistance +50%)

Evaluation: "The ancient bloodline shows signs of revival. If he happens upon a miracle, perhaps he can escape his predicament."

Rhaegar studied the panel, lost in thought.

His bloodline, relic, and evaluation had all changed.

"The ancient bloodline..."

Rhaegar murmured, "Did the Blood of the Dragon awaken the True Dragon Blood?"

"Forget it. There's no point racking my brains over things I can't figure out. I might as well keep searching for lost treasures."

Feeling much lighter, Rhaegar tried jumping down from the altar—and succeeded.

"Explorer, you'll surely cure my frailty."

His heart brimming with excitement, Rhaegar raised his brows, privately marveling at his good fortune.

But excitement didn't cloud his judgment.

The young prince had to get back to bed.

When he left the hall, dusk was already approaching. Servants lit the oil lamps on the walls, illuminating the Red Keep against the darkening sky.

No one paid him any attention along the way, and Rhaegar soon returned to his quarters.

Creak—

He pushed open the door. The room was dim, moonlight filtering through the glass windows and casting a hazy glow.

"Who's there? Who is it?"

Standing in the doorway, Rhaegar demanded sharply, his gaze fixed on the figure by the window.

Had someone really been lying in wait in his bedroom in the middle of the night? Were they planning to hurt him?

"It's me, Rhaegar."

The figure turned around. In the moonlight, he could make out a girl wearing a fitted leather skirt.

She had silver-gold hair, too.

The girl faced him and shrugged. "What, you didn't get a birthday celebration, so now you can't even recognize your own sister?"

"Rhaenyra, what are you doing in my room?"

Recognizing her face, Rhaegar relaxed, delight in his eyes.

She was his full sister.

The rightful heir to the Iron Throne.

The Light of the Kingdom—Princess Rhaenyra.

Leaning against the window, Rhaenyra stared at his pale face with a complicated expression, a flash of tenderness in her eyes.

Turning her head aside, Rhaenyra hesitated. "It's your birthday. As your sister, I should come see you."

Rhaegar smiled brightly. "Sister, I'm glad you came to see me."

"But I don't like celebrating my birthday. You know that."

Rhaenyra let out a breath. "I know. I visited Mother today, then came to see you this afternoon. I've been waiting until now."

"Have you eaten?"

Rhaenyra didn't immediately understand what he meant. "I had a piece of bread this morning. The rest of the time..."

"Then you haven't eaten."

Rhaegar cut her off and went to rummage through the bedside table.

"What are you looking for?" Rhaenyra asked, puzzled.

"Don't worry. I've got supplies."

As he spoke, Rhaegar took a packet of biscuits from the drawer.

He handed them to Rhaenyra, then took a pot of cold tea from the table and hung it over the fireplace, lighting the coals beneath it.

"The Red Keep is close to the coast. It's always so damp and cold, whether it's winter or summer."

Rhaegar sat casually beside the fireplace and patted the place across from him, inviting Rhaenyra to sit.

"How have you been? Are you still having nightmares?"

Rhaenyra accepted her brother's kindness, opened the biscuits, and helped herself to one as she sat with him by the fire.

"Give me one. I haven't eaten either."

Rhaegar snatched the second biscuit she took out and replied, "The nightmares never leave me. I'm used to them by now."

"Where have you been all this time, that you haven't even eaten?"

Rhaenyra was curious, but her eyes were full of concern. "The Grand Maester says you've been refusing your medicine lately. Father and I are both worried about you."

"I was just wandering around. I know my own body. The medicine won't solve the problem, but I believe I'll get better soon."

Rhaegar offered his explanation, then changed the subject. "Tell me, what's on your mind this time?"

Rhaenyra frowned. "We're talking about you."

"But whenever you come to see me, you're full of complaints."

Rhaegar munched on a biscuit. "My dear sister, I'm used to being the tree you pour your heart out to."

"Idiot."

Rhaenyra snorted. "It's those filthy games of power again. The lords think a woman shouldn't sit the Iron Throne. They want to push me aside and make Father choose Aegon instead."

"Father loves you, sister."

Rhaegar didn't believe King Viserys would hurt his own daughter just because of what the lords thought.

"He doesn't!"

Rhaenyra shouted back.

Rhaegar jumped and stared at her awkwardly.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to. I'm going mad from all the rumors."

Realizing she'd lost her temper, Rhaenyra ruffled her brother's hair, her voice much softer. "Father wants to marry me off to powerful people who can help him secure his rule. I feel like... like..."

"Like you're being sold off as goods?"

Rhaegar put her thoughts into words.

"Rhaegar, my little brother."

With her feelings laid bare, Rhaenyra's eyes reddened as she helplessly took his hand.

Since their mother died, their father had married her friend, and their uncle Daemon had been driven out of King's Landing.

She had no one to confide in.

Apart from riding her dragon across the sky, she felt like a lonely ghost in the vast Red Keep.

No one listened to her. No one truly helped her.

Rhaenyra clasped her brother's thin little hand. "Thank goodness the Stranger hasn't taken you. Otherwise, I truly wouldn't know who still cared about me."

Rhaegar shook his head. "Don't think like that, sister."

"Father hasn't taken away your place as his heir. That means he still loves you."

"The rumors aren't only battering you. They're also beating against the father who's sheltering you from the storm."

Rhaenyra lowered her head. "But I don't want to marry those ill-intentioned vultures. They only want to tear into my flesh."

"If you don't want to, perhaps I can talk to Father. Maybe seeing how close we are will make him forget about it for a while."

A sudden idea came to Rhaegar. His expression grew gentle as he did his best to comfort his sister.

"But..."

Rhaenyra hesitated, unable to finish what she wanted to say.

Rhaegar said bitterly, "I know. Whenever Father sees me, his son who could die at any moment, he thinks of Mother and is overwhelmed by guilt and regret."

"He doesn't want to grow close to me. He's even more afraid he won't be able to bear it if he loses me one day."

"But I'm Rhaegar Targaryen. I belong to the sky and the sea. I can't stay cooped up in the Red Keep forever."

Rhaegar's little face was resolute as he gazed at his sister hopefully.

Hearing the hopeful words from her brother, Rhaenyra understood how he felt.

Hadn't she too been kept at her father's side, bound by the chains of power?

Without giving it much thought, the girl agreed. "All right. I'll take you to see Father tomorrow. He needs to do his duty as a father."

A smile appeared on Rhaegar's young face. He nestled against Rhaenyra's meager bosom and rubbed his cheek against her. "Sister, this is the birthday present I wanted."

To hell with cake and birthday celebrations.

All he wanted was the love of his family.

That wasn't asking too much.

Rhaenyra held her brother, resting her chin on his bony shoulder, her eyes clouded with helplessness.

After a long silence, she said with regret, "I wish you had a healthy body."

"Then you could meet everyone's expectations, and you could protect me, too."

"I'll stay with you until the Stranger takes me, sister," Rhaegar answered in a muffled voice, breathing in the scent of her embrace.

He was still young. His world contained only his father, Viserys, and his sister, Rhaenyra.

He didn't want either of the two people he loved to be hurt.

There are some differences between the book and the show. The show's timeline spans a much longer period, condensing events into a series to make them easier to adapt.

In the book, the author follows the original timeline more closely.

The events are the same, but they're clearer, avoiding confusion about the characters' ages and other details.