Mouse

At that moment, the maid's eyes lit up.

It worked! The prince had noticed her!

She suppressed the ecstasy surging in her heart, lowered her gaze, and put on a shy yet respectful expression.

"My name is Elise Hightower, Your Highness."

She deliberately stressed the word "Hightower" just a little.

"My father is Ser Rodrik Hightower, Lord Hand Otto's younger brother. He currently serves as the harbor garrison commander in Oldtown."

"My mother is Daisy Florent, of House Florent from Brightwater Keep..."

But a cold voice cut her off.

"I asked what your name was."

"Not your parents'."

"Are you reciting a menu for me?"

"Or do you think this is amusing?"

Faced with those indifferent words, she was somewhat startled. According to the script she had envisioned, the prince should have shown interest next, asking about her lineage, allowing her to smoothly mention how she had grown up listening to tales of House Targaryen and held them in deep reverence.

Aemond looked at his mother, Alicent.

Alicent shook her head.

These collateral branches of the family...

"Enough." Aemond didn't want to talk to this presumptuous girl any longer.

"Put down the pudding, then get out."

The smile froze on Elise's face. She opened her mouth, and the watery light in her blue eyes this time was genuine shock and mortification.

She couldn't believe that her carefully crafted encounter had ended in such dismissive neglect.

Finally, Elise bit her lower lip, set the dessert plate carefully in the center of the dining table, curtsied in a flawlessly standard bow, and silently withdrew from the room.

After the door closed, Alicent let out a long sigh and rubbed her temples.

"Rodrik's daughter... arrived in King's Landing half a month ago with the family's trade caravan."

"Lord Hightower said the girl was clever and sharp, worth cultivating, and hoped she could come to the Red Keep to see the world."

"I intended to arrange for her to be an ordinary handmaiden by my side and observe her for a few days."

She lamented the scheming girl from their house.

With Alicent's success in becoming Queen, it was only natural that the collateral branches of House Hightower saw a chance to rise.

But Alicent had never expressed any fondness for the King; rather, Viserys had proposed the match to her family.

She had opposed it too, but her father, Lord Hand Otto, had made the arrangements.

And Elise clearly wanted to replicate the path Alicent had walked—becoming a handmaiden close to a royal, using beauty and cunning to gain favor, and ultimately climbing into...

"Fool." Aemond judged.

"But she really is quite pretty," Helaena said softly.

Aemond looked at Helaena. There was no trace of jealousy in her voice when she said that.

This stirred a complex emotion in Aemond's heart, along with an indescribable sense of loss.

Just then, a rustling sound came from the corner of the room.

Helaena heard it first. She turned her head, her violet eyes fixed on the source of the noise—the gap between the sideboard and the wall.

"What's that sound?"

The noise came again, clearer this time: a frantic scratching, like sharp nails scraping against wood, accompanied by a faint, squeaking sound.

Helaena's eyes widened. She gripped her spoon tightly and leaned forward slightly.

The next second, a fat gray rat shot out from the shadows!

It was as big as a palm, its fur greasy, its tail long and thin, its beady eyes glinting in the light.

It scurried across the floor so fast it was just a gray blur, darting straight under the tablecloth beside Helaena's chair and vanishing.

"Ah!" Helaena let out a short shriek, quickly pulling her feet up onto the chair.

In her haste, her elbow knocked over a crystal water glass on the table's edge.

"Clatter!"

The cup rolled to the floor and shattered. Clear water splashed everywhere.

Alicent was startled too, but she quickly steadied herself, rising to wrap her arms around her daughter's trembling shoulders.

The girl had been afraid of mice and spiders ever since she was little.

"It's all right, Helaena, just a rat, it's already gone." Alicent soothed softly, patting her daughter's back.

Then the Queen's brow furrowed, and her voice turned icy as she turned toward the door. "Guards!"

The door was pushed open at once. Elin entered first, with two other handmaidens hurrying close behind.

"Your Grace?" Elin's voice was still sweet as honey, her gaze sweeping quickly across the dining table, lingering on Aemond for a moment before darting away.

"A rat in the dining hall?" Alicent said coldly.

"This is the Queen's residence! Where House Targaryen takes its meals!"

"How have you been cleaning? How have you been keeping watch?"

The noble handmaidens' faces all soured. They dropped to their knees in unison. The eldest among them spoke, trembling:

"Forgive us, Your Grace! We scrub the floors with lavender and mint water every day, and scatter wormwood to repel rodents in the corners..."

"We... we don't know how that rat got in..."

"You don't know?" Alicent cut her off, suppressing her fury. "And that's the explanation you give me? You don't know?"

"What if it had been a viper that scurried out today?"

"What if it had bitten Princess Helaena? Can a simple 'I don't know' shirk responsibility?"

The handmaidens lay prostrate on the floor, not daring to lift their heads.

Aemond watched the scene in silence. His expression had shifted subtly the moment he heard the word "rat."

His violet eyes narrowed slightly, a dark current churning within them.

Rats...

Filthy things that live in the shadows...

But sometimes, the filthiest things are best suited for the filthiest deeds.

In his memory, two names surfaced, reeking of blood and rot:

"Blood and Cheese."

That brilliant bit of "a son for a son."

Aemond's gaze turned to Helaena.

Because he had struck first with kinslaying, she—innocent—had been dragged into the abyss of blood vengeance.

Watching her own child tortured to death before her eyes, her mind shattered completely, and in the end, she leaped from the tower of Maegor's Holdfast...

Her life should not have been like this.

"Aemond?" Alicent noticed her son's unusual silence.

She released Helaena and looked at her second son with concern.

"What's wrong? You look terrible... Are you unwell?"

Aemond snapped back to the present. He took a deep breath, pulling himself away from that dark future.

"It's nothing," he said.

"I just think... the Red Keep's sanitation needs a thorough overhaul."

"If a rat can get into the dining hall of Maegor's Holdfast, it can get anywhere."

"Father's study, Your Grace's chambers, Helaena's bedroom..."

He paused.

"This is no small matter."

Just then, the dining hall door opened.

This time, a middle-aged man entered, about fifty years old, slightly stout but sturdy, dressed in a dark brown fine-wool uniform with the three-headed dragon sigil of House Targaryen on his chest.

His face was kind, his gray hair combed immaculately, and his chin bore a neatly trimmed short beard.

"Your Grace, Your Highness, Your Highness." The man bowed, his posture respectful but not servile—the ease of years spent serving the royal household.

"I am Gyles Rosby. I heard a commotion and came to check. What has happened?"

"Lord Gyles." Alicent nodded at the steward, her tone softening slightly.

Gyles Rosby.

A second son of House Rosby of the Crownlands, appointed Master of the Royal Household after Viserys I ascended the throne, serving the royal family for many years.

He was known for his loyalty, efficiency, and meticulousness, keeping the daily affairs of the Red Keep in perfect order, earning the King's deep trust.

"A rat appeared in the dining hall and frightened Helaena," Alicent said.

Gyles Rosby's brow immediately furrowed tightly.

He crouched down, carefully examining the shadowy corner by the wall, then walked over to inspect the drapery.

When he straightened up, his expression was quite grave.

"Your Grace, this is truly an unforgivable oversight."

He said in a low voice, turning to the maids kneeling on the floor.

"You will go immediately to inform the Kitchen Steward and the Head Servant. I want to see them within the hour."

"Before dawn tomorrow, every corner of Maegor's Hold—and I mean every single corner—"

"must be thoroughly cleaned. Double-layered anti-rat iron mesh must be installed at all food storage areas, and fresh powdered medicine must be sprinkled in the corners of the walls."

He added, "Also, go summon the rat catchers."

"Find the best rat catchers in King's Landing. I want them to thoroughly inspect the sewers and secret passages of the Red Keep for any rat nests."

"Secret passages?" Aemond suddenly spoke, cutting off the steward's words.

Everyone turned to look at him.

Aemond stood up.

"Lord Gales," Aemond asked.

"You have overseen the affairs of the Red Keep for many years. Surely you are familiar with its secret passages?"

Seeing the prince address him, Gales explained.

"Your Highness, I am not all that familiar with those secret passages. They are winding and twisting."

"These rat catchers have served the Red Keep for generations. They know the secret passages well."

Aemond understood. These were the secret passages of the Red Keep built by Maegor the Cruel, but after their completion, all the craftsmen were executed by Maegor.

Yet ever since King Maegor's death, no one had bothered to learn about these passages except for these specialized rat catchers.

The Targaryen royal family truly had a big heart, turning a blind eye to such a major hidden danger.

Aemond asked, "I would like to ask, among those rat catchers, are there two with the nicknames Blood and Cheese?"

Gales was taken aback, sinking into recollection.

The dining hall fell silent. Alicent looked at her son in confusion.

After a moment, Gales spoke hesitantly:

"Blood and Cheese... I do have some impression of those nicknames."

"That's right, about four or five years ago, there were indeed two men responsible for rat-catching work in the dungeons and sewer areas of the Red Keep."

"Their skills were said to be good—no rat, no matter how cunning, could escape their traps."

He thought for a moment, then continued, "But their reputation... was somewhat poor. Some guards said that besides catching rats, they occasionally stole royal supplies."

"At the time, I thought these two had sticky fingers, but without evidence, I found an excuse to send them away."

"Later, I heard they were scraping by in the Flea Bottom area."

Gales looked at Aemond, a question in his eyes: "Why does Your Highness suddenly ask about these two?"

"They are both lowborn rabble with filthy reputations, unworthy of your attention."

Aemond did not answer directly. He turned and walked back to the dining table, and as he passed Helaena, he gently patted his sister's shoulder.

This simple gesture made Helaena tremble slightly—not from fear, but from an indescribable emotion.

She lifted her eyes to meet her brother's gaze. In the depths of those violet irises, she seemed to see his thoughts...

Worry for her?

"I've only heard from some people that their skills are the best," Aemond said as he sat back down.

"Since the Red Keep needs a thorough cleanup of its rat problem, it's only natural to seek the best. What do you think, Lord Gales?"

Gales's face showed difficulty.

"Your Highness, those two live in the most chaotic district of Flea Bottom, a mix of all sorts. Finding them will likely take some effort."

"And even if they are found, allowing them into the Red Keep... is that appropriate? Their background is unclear and unsavory..."

"I will have Ser Cole accompany you to handle it," Aemond said, brooking no argument.

"He is familiar with it and knows how to deal with... this kind of person."

Steward Gales hesitated for a moment but ultimately bowed in acceptance: "As you command, Your Highness. I will make the arrangements immediately."

He withdrew from the dining hall, casting a glance at the maids still kneeling on the floor before signaling them to leave as well.