"Who are you?!"
Rhaenyra cried out under her breath and hurriedly backed away.
Illyric grabbed her, hastily draped a black cloak over her, and forcibly dragged her out through the back door.
"Who are you, really, and where are you taking me?"
Rhaenyra struggled with all her might, glaring at Illyric, whose face she couldn't make out.
Illyric had no choice but to reveal his face. "Someone saw you sneaking out of the Red Keep with Prince Daemon. Prince Rhaegar sent me to bring you back."
"Rhaegar sent you?"
Rhaenyra froze at his words, her expression easing.
"The situation is urgent," Illyric said. "You'd better keep quiet so no one recognizes you."
Rhaenyra nodded repeatedly and followed him.
Outside the back door, a beggar boy was leaning feebly against the wall.
Illyric stepped in front of Rhaenyra, grabbed the beggar boy by the hair, hauled him up, and slammed him hard against the wall.
Blood sprayed. The beggar boy crumpled to the ground, unconscious.
"He's only a little beggar?" Rhaenyra said blankly.
"Everyone in the city knows that ninety-nine percent of the beggars near brothels and gambling dens are informants."
Illyric glanced back. "He's not dead, just unconscious."
Rhaenyra breathed a sigh of relief and stopped worrying about the boy.
"Fire! Hurry, put it out..."
"There's a fire in the back courtyard! Someone, come quickly..."
"..."
They hadn't gone far when a raging fire erupted, centered on the brothel.
The night wind fanned the flames, and the fire grew fiercer, soon spreading to the surrounding streets and setting homes alight.
As panicked shouts rang out, the sleeping townsfolk barely had time to dress before grabbing buckets and joining the effort to fight the fire.
The scene descended into chaos. Illyric let out a long breath of relief, then led Rhaenyra away from the people fighting the fire and crept through a narrow alley.
Elsewhere, Arryk tossed a torch through a second-floor window of the brothel, then disappeared into the night.
Arson was his mission for the evening.
Though it went against a knight's honor, his elder brother had brought him Prince Rhaegar's orders. He had no reason to refuse.
He admired the young king's eldest son.
Both the law and his own instincts made him more than willing to serve him.
And Prince Aegon?
He was only someone the king had assigned him to protect, not someone worthy of his loyalty.
The winds had shifted.
Illyric and Rhaenyra ran at full speed, only to run into a group of Gold Cloaks hurrying to fight the fire.
"Avoid them," Illyric whispered, turning into another narrow alley.
As soon as he looked up, he saw a lone Gold Cloak walking toward them.
"Who's there? What are you skulking around for?"
At the familiar voice, Rhaenyra looked over and saw Harwin's face.
Illyric instinctively shielded Rhaenyra behind him. "Stand aside. This is none of your business."
Harwin drew his sword and sneered. "You've got a lot of nerve, picking a fight with the City Watch."
As a dashing knight, Harwin was highly skilled and feared no challenge.
Illyric naturally recognized him, but keeping their movements secret was essential to the mission. He couldn't reveal who he was.
Under his cloak, Illyric's hand found the hilt of his sword. He was ready to strike at any moment.
"Don't do this—we're friends!"
As the tension mounted, Rhaenyra ignored Illyric's attempts to stop her and ran between the two men.
The moment she spoke, Harwin froze. "Princess, you again? What happened?"
Rhaenyra pulled back her hood, looking awkward. "There's no time to explain. I got separated from Daemon, and luckily one of the Kingsguard who came with me found me."
She wasn't entirely foolish. She knew to conceal the truth.
Harwin studied Illyric carefully, then smiled at Rhaenyra. "In that case, you should be on your way, Princess. I still have to help fight the fire."
"Thank you, Ser Harwin."
Rhaenyra had no mind for catching up. She took off with Illyric, whose face had turned livid.
Watching them disappear, Harwin furrowed his brow in confusion. He glanced at the fire in the distance and fell into thought.
The fire on Silk Street spread, rousing the City Watch.
Gold Cloaks from across the city rushed to the scene and joined the effort to fight the blaze.
They worked until midnight before finally bringing the raging fire under control.
The brothel where the fire had started was completely burned down, leaving only a charred stone shell.
A dozen nearby homes had also been swallowed by the flames.
Fortunately, the area was densely populated, and the fire was spotted as soon as it broke out. No one was injured.
By then, Arryk, the arsonist, had already reunited with his brother at the Red Keep.
The two exchanged a smile. No words were needed.
They parted and went their separate ways.
Illyric, meanwhile, took Rhaenyra back to her room through the Secret Passage.
Rhaegar forced himself to the edge of the floor-to-ceiling window and looked out over the fires blazing across King's Landing.
He knew the two brothers, Illyric and Arryk, had started the fire.
He was the mastermind behind the blaze.
Rhaenyra had fallen into Daemon's trap, while others were secretly watching the two of them.
Under normal circumstances, no matter how Rhaegar searched for Rhaenyra, he would leave himself open to suspicion.
Because wherever Rhaenyra was, informants would be watching.
Especially at that brothel.
There was no concealing the fact that Rhaenyra had sneaked out. Too many people had seen where she went.
All Rhaegar had to do was erase the traces leading to and from the brothel that connected Rhaenyra and Daemon.
A fire that consumed everything would swallow up every last clue.
Even if someone testified that Rhaenyra had been to the brothel, who could tell what was true or false among the ruins?
Rhaegar's role was to get to Rhaenyra's room ahead of time and establish an alibi for her.
Then, if anyone dared accuse Rhaenyra without evidence, their father, Viserys, would make that person keep quiet.
Creak—
The wall concealing the Secret Passage swung open. Rhaegar hurriedly turned around.
Illyric and Rhaenyra appeared before him, just as he'd been hoping.
"Rhaenyra, you're finally back."
At the sight of his sister, Rhaegar smiled. The weight in his heart finally lifted.
He had been afraid that Daemon would sway Rhaenyra and she wouldn't want to return with Illyric.
It seemed Rhaenyra hadn't let him down.
"Rhaegar, how did you know I'd sneaked out?"
Rhaenyra stared at her younger brother in surprise as she pulled off her black cloak and asked him, puzzled.
Rhaegar looked toward Illyric, who was closing the Secret Passage.
"Too many people around. I didn't have a chance to explain it to the Princess," Illyric said curtly.
Rhaegar nodded. "Did the plan go smoothly, Ser?"
"More or less. But we ran into Harwin Strong on patrol, and the Princess's identity was exposed."
Illyric sounded remorseful.
Rhaegar lowered his head without a word, wondering whether Harwin might talk and whether he should warn him.
The man was the eldest son of Prime Minister Lyonel and heir to Harrenhal.
Whatever the case, given his father's accomplishments and his own status, Rhaegar couldn't even consider having him killed.
Watching the two of them speak in riddles, Rhaenyra said quietly, "Harwin is Lyonel's son, and he respects me. He probably won't say anything."
"That's for the best," Rhaegar said with a faint smile.
Lyonel was indeed someone worth trusting, and his son ought to be clever too.
Rhaenyra moved closer to Rhaegar, her bright eyes blinking as she put on the air of an elder sister. "Who told you about this? And was the fire your doing too?"
On the way back, Rhaenyra had kept thinking about it.
Illyric had appeared out of nowhere, and the fire had broken out at just the right moment.
Now, seeing Rhaegar in her room, she realized he had to be involved in all of it.
"I have my own plans for the informant. I can't tell you yet."
Rhaegar kept the truth about Syrax to himself. His identity was strange, and it would be unwise to alert him too soon.
Then he put on a stern little face. "I started the fire. I was protecting you!"
The first chapter of the day.
Thanks to Dragon Emperor Nidhogg for the 500 site coins.
Thanks to Clownfish10086 and What Do We Fight For for 100 site coins each.
Before you continue