Green Eyes

At his family's urging, Viserys took a sleeping pill and lay in bed, enduring his discomfort.

As his breathing gradually evened out, Alicent gave the siblings a gentle smile.

She said softly, "It's late. You should both go back and get some rest."

"Thank you for all your effort, Your Grace."

Rhaegar smiled at Alicent, then followed Rhaenyra out of the cabin.

The siblings chatted casually as they walked down the corridor, then went their separate ways to their cabins.

In the dim candlelight, Rhaegar stripped off his clothes.

He stood before a full-length mirror and looked at his back.

The old skin had peeled away, leaving tender, pale new skin. He could just make out the extent of the burns.

"I healed so quickly. The [Blood of the Dragon] really is something."

Rhaegar murmured, bringing up the System panel.

[Rhaegar Targaryen]

Talent: Dreamer (Gold), Long Life (Green)

Bloodline: Valyrian Dragonlord (14%)

Skills: Fluent in Valyrian...

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

Evaluation: "Your bloodline has been refined once more. It seems you've discovered a rather remarkable secret."

Rhaegar stared at the bloodline entry. Its purity had risen from 12% to 14%.

He had noticed the change the day his wound began to peel.

His bloodline purity had increased by two whole percentage points.

The only thing he could think of that might explain the change was being burned by dragonflame.

"Maybe dragonflame carries a dragon's essence, awakening my bloodline."

Before Dreamfyre attacked him, Rhaegar had rarely been near dragons.

He had pored over the Daelgarien family's ancient texts, which mentioned, in passing, the bond that could form between humans and dragons.

"A Dragonrider must not treat a dragon as a tool. A dragon is a Dragonrider's companion."

"The deeper the bond between a Dragonrider and their dragon, the greater the power they can unleash!"

These were theories drawn from the ancient texts.

Rhaegar wasn't entirely convinced, but one thing was certain.

Spending more time around dragons couldn't hurt.

"The ship will reach Dragonstone tomorrow. Soon, I'll have a dragon of my own."

Sleepiness washed over him. Rhaegar flopped onto the bed naked and pulled the blankets over himself.

He needed to rest up for tomorrow's dragon-taming journey.

Before long, Rhaegar drifted off.

A dark sky, rolling waves, a storm of thunder and lightning...

After half a month, the dream returned.

This time, Rhaegar stayed lucid.

The cold rain pelted his body, and he could clearly feel its chill.

Water streamed from his hair, running over his naked body.

Dark clouds churned on the horizon as the wind howled and rain poured down.

"Rrgh... gaa..."

The roar of an enraged dragon came from afar, reverberating across the world alongside the thunder.

Rhaegar raised his head, ignoring the rain washing over his face as he gazed up at the sky.

Rumble—

Amid the rolling thunder, the shadow of a colossal creature burst through the clouds, dancing with the lightning.

Having suffered two terrifying nightmares, Rhaegar clenched his fists and fixed his gaze on the shadow.

His unwavering determination seemed to draw its attention.

The shadow changed direction and plunged toward Rhaegar.

Rhaegar stood tall, keeping his eyes fixed on it.

The shadow moved swiftly, closing the distance between them.

"Rrgh—gaa!"

With a thunderous roar, the shadow swooped right before him, revealing a pair of claws as black as coal.

The shock left Rhaegar deafened and dazed, and his consciousness began to slip away from the dream.

In that final moment, he saw something he would never forget.

What kind of eyes were those?

They were filled with evil, cunning, and arrogance.

Their deep green gaze was like an abyss, fixed on Rhaegar just as he was now staring at them.

"Ah!!!"

Rhaegar jolted awake, murmuring, "Eyes... a pair of green eyes..."

He had glimpsed part of the shadow's appearance.

It was a dragon.

A colossal black dragon with green eyes!

Just thinking about the scene from his dream made Rhaegar shudder.

He couldn't tell whether it was fear or excitement.

His chest heaved, his breaths came in gasps, and a sheen of sweat covered his forehead.

It took him a long while to recover.

"Give it to me!"

"Give it to me now..."

Rhaegar sat dazed against the headboard. Faintly, he heard a commotion in the corridor outside the cabin.

"Who's out there?"

Puzzled, Rhaegar got up and dressed. He planned to step outside for some air and see what was going on.

He opened the cabin door. The corridor was empty.

"Idiot, can't you understand what I'm saying..."

"..."

The voice sounded again, and Rhaegar frowned, finding it vaguely familiar.

"From the left-hand corner."

Rhaegar pinpointed the direction and walked over quietly.

At the corner, he found a dead end.

He stood at the edge of the corridor and located the source of the voices.

There were two children.

The older one was about Rhaegar's age, a sturdy boy.

The younger was a little girl with chubby cheeks.

Rhaegar knew the two of them all too well.

They were his half-siblings, Aegon and Helaena.

Helaena was crouched in the corner against the wall, her hands clasped over her head.

The older Aegon stood beside her, shouting at her as he tugged on a lock of her silver hair.

It was plain to see: a brother bullying his sister.

Rhaegar took a step forward, about to tell Aegon to stop.

Then he reconsidered and stepped back.

Helaena was his sister, sure, but she and Aegon were full siblings.

They'd come from the same womb. It wasn't his place to meddle.

Rhaegar turned around, planning to find Alicent and talk to her about Aegon's upbringing.

"Take it off, or I'll break your fingers."

Just then, Aegon's threatening voice rang out.

Rhaegar stopped in his tracks, wondering whether he should step in on Alicent's behalf.

Then Helaena began to cry behind him.

Rhaegar turned back.

He saw Aegon straddling Helaena, gripping one of her arms and bending two of her fingers in different directions.

"That's what you get for not listening! That's what you get for not giving me your bracelet..."

As he abused his own sister, Aegon threatened her viciously.

"Give me the bracelet, or I'll make you pay every night."

Helaena refused to give in. She shook her little head hard, her eyes blurred with tears.

Only then did Rhaegar notice the bracelet on the arm Aegon was gripping.

Rhaegar raised his hand. He wore an identical bracelet on his own wrist.

The difference was that Helaena's was a decorative bracelet made by a blacksmith.

His was a real space bracelet.

A flicker crossed Rhaegar's eyes as his gaze on Aegon grew dangerous.

Without a word, he quietly made his way deeper into the corner.

Aegon stopped trying to bend Helaena's fingers and began forcibly tugging at her bracelet instead.

"You want it?"

Suddenly, Rhaegar's voice sounded from behind him.

Aegon jumped. When he turned, he saw Rhaegar standing behind him, though he hadn't noticed when he'd arrived.

He had to admit he was a little afraid of his older brother, who had been frail since childhood but hit especially hard.

Swallowing, Aegon put on a menacing expression and snapped, "What's it to you?"

Rhaegar didn't answer. He just stared at him.

His gaze was as still as water, without the slightest ripple.

When Rhaegar said nothing, Aegon's courage returned, and his expression grew increasingly brazen.

He glanced at the bracelet on Rhaegar's wrist, then at Helaena's, and seemed to realize something.

"Why do you two have matching bracelets, but I don't have one?!"

At his shout, Helaena lifted her head like a timid little lamb and finally noticed Rhaegar was there.

You've been guessing for so long. Have you figured out which dragon it is?