The twentieth day of the voyage.
When Pyke's black tower finally appeared on the horizon, the sailors didn't cheer. They merely licked their cracked lips in silence, their eyes fixed on the fresh water barrels ashore and the smoke rising from roasting meat.
Yulon stood at the bow, watching Lysa wipe the Dragon Crystal Compass with a piece of black cloth embroidered with gold thread. It was the spoils Daggmo had secretly slipped him. The girl's fingers were slender and nimble. As she murmured in High Valyrian, a deep blue light shimmered along the compass's rim. "She says it's the 'Beacon of Blood and Fire.'" Daggmo's one eye glinted in the dusk. "Little prince, you've struck gold."
The waves gently caressed the hull, and the wound on Yulon's shoulder had already scabbed over. Looking at Pyke's outline gradually emerging into view, he knew the voyage had changed something forever—perhaps the future of the Iron Islands, perhaps his own fate. After twenty days at sea, the Pirate King System he had been longing for finally activated completely.
[ Pirate King System bound to host: Yulon Greyjoy ]
[ Synchronizing world laws... adapting to low-magic plane... loading complete ]
[ Spend a certain number of points to receive free attribute points. 100/200/400/800/1600/3000... ]
[ Free attribute points remaining: 0. ]
[ 0/100 ]
Basic reward: digitized character panel — numbers in parentheses are the standard values for an ordinary adult male in Westeros
Strength: 4 (10) Child's body; fists weaker than a stray dog
Agility: 6 (10) Balance honed by the sea wind
Stamina: 4 (10) Old rib injury impairs oxygen circulation
Spirit: 12 (10) Fusion with an alien soul exceeds the threshold
Command: 8 (10) Drowned God's aura beginning to take shape
Charm: 9 (10) Alluring power of heterochromia + legend of the Son of the Drowned God
Luck: C—A–F, with F extremely poor and A extremely good—special attribute, full of variables
System activation reward: Conqueror's Haki, lv1, passive. Cannot be actively controlled; releases unconsciously through the eyes or entire body only when emotions fluctuate violently (such as anger, fear, or mortal danger)—mental intimidation / weaklings flee—upgrade to lv2: 2000 points.
Yulon felt both surprised and disappointed.
He was surprised to have obtained the rarest ability in One Piece: Conqueror's Haki, a sign of one's potential to become a king.
He was disappointed that although Conqueror's Haki was said to be the most effective ability for clearing out grunts in the anime, it wasn't nearly as powerful in the world of A Song of Ice and Fire. It couldn't knock people unconscious with a simple aura of authority.
However, the lv1 that appeared afterward meant that this ability could be upgraded, giving it limitless possibilities. Perhaps at a higher level, it could do just that.
At present, lv1 Conqueror's Haki was a passive skill that spread outward from Yulon in a radius of about ten paces. It could make some people feel he had a kingly air and want to submit; make others remember him more vividly and grow wary of him; make it easier to recruit certain people by inspiring awe; terrify some weak-willed or physically frail people so they dared not resist; and reduce enemies' strength, agility, and spirit under its pressure, even causing them to see illusions and hallucinations.
Every 100 points could be exchanged for a reward from the Pirate King System, with rewards given at random. There were many ways to earn points: exploring new lands, such as Sothoryos; discovering new races, such as the Children of the Forest or White Walkers; trying a special food for the first time; defeating a notable person, with points awarded according to their strength; and so on. The reward might be a skill, a talent, or an item.
Thinking of all the different kinds of Haki, the amazing Devil Fruits, the Six Powers, and all kinds of miraculous foods in One Piece, Yulon suddenly felt that the unknown was full of hope.
The moment he gained Conqueror's Haki, Yulon, standing at the bow, seemed a little different to everyone else. In high spirits, he roared into the sea wind like a young dragon. Old Wick felt the hair on his body stand on end, and the dried cod in his hand slipped into the sea with a plop. Grenn, at the helm, felt his knees suddenly weaken and nearly crashed into the compass. Baron was swinging an axe on deck when splinters burst from its handle in his palm. In Daggmo's eyes, Yulon's shadow swelled—against the dusk, the outline of a five-year-old boy twisted into a giant wearing a coral crown, a trident pointing toward the Smoking Sea.
[Exploration: Discovered the West Blue of Westeros, earned 80 points.]
[Exploration: Discovered Pike Island, earned 80 points.]
In Pyke's black-stone hall, the smell of sea salt and blood had barely faded when a heavier chill settled over it.
The spoils from the Hao Yin—piles of silk, glittering gold coins, fragrant spices—were heaped in a corner of the hall. They should have been the spoils of victory, but now, in the wavering torchlight, they gleamed ominously. The sailors' drunken clamor had long since died away. Even Daggmo's split lips were pressed tightly together. Everyone stood with their hands at their sides, not daring to look at the figure looming like a reef at the far end of the hall.
King Kolen Greyjoy of the Iron Islands stood with his back to them, watching the flames dancing in the hearth, his broad shoulders taut as iron. The air was as still as the lull before a storm. Only the crackle of burning wood broke the silence, each snap striking at the heart.
"Returned with a full hold?" Kolen's voice wasn't loud, but it landed on the stone floor like a cold iron anchor, making the whole hall shudder. He slowly turned around, his hawk-sharp gaze passing over the mountain of treasure without a trace of warmth before fixing on his two sons at the front—Baron and Yulon.
"Spices from Tyrosh, silk from Myr, jewels from Lys... By the Drowned God, you've brought back a gold mine! Should I thank you on behalf of the Iron Islands?" Kolen's voice suddenly rose like thunder, shaking dust from the rafters. "But what did you trade for it? Your brains, or the future of Pike Island?!"
He strode forward, every step seeming to land on someone's heart, then stopped before Baron, their noses nearly touching. Baron could clearly see the fury burning in his father's eyes. It wasn't aimed at the spoils, but at something deeper and far more dangerous.
"Acting without permission!" Kolen spat, his saliva nearly hitting Baron's face. "Right under Governor Budala Buddha's nose! Did you think you were off to market?! You seized gold, but you also drew the enemy fleet's fury toward the Iron Islands! You seized silk, but you exposed the stupidity of the Old Way to the entire Narrow Sea!"
His roar echoed through the stone hall, every word like an icy whip lashing down:
"Who gave you the nerve?! Since when have two green boys been allowed to command House Greyjoy's ships?! Every piece of gold you brought back might have to be paid for with Ironborn blood! Every bolt of silk might become a shroud!"
His gaze swept over Yulon, cold as ice. "You used your cleverness in the wrong place! You thought prying open a few prisoners' mouths would solve everything? You thought the warning about 'ghost fire' was enough to avoid every risk? Foolish! The real risk is the fuse you lit!"
After he had finished berating them, Kolen took a deep breath. The silence he held back was more suffocating than his roar. The time for punishment had come.
"House arrest!" he declared sharply, his voice firm as a blade. "One month! Without my permission, you're not to set foot outside Pyke! Your ships and weapons will all be impounded! Use this month to think with those gold-dazzled heads of yours about what 'responsibility' means!"
The harsh punishment made some of the sailors shrink back. But Kolen's gaze, like a poisoned harpoon, locked once more on his eldest son, Baron.
"Baron!" Kolen's voice dropped, but carried the weight of a thousand tons. "You! As my eldest son! As my future heir! Not only did you fail to stop your younger brother's reckless idea, you led the charge! Your guilt is far greater than Yulon's! Your arrogance needs a harsher lesson to beat it out of you!"
Baron clenched his fists at his sides until his knuckles turned white. He could feel the complicated looks everyone was giving him. His father's words seared his dignity like a red-hot brand.
"When your house arrest is over," Kolen said, each word leaving no room for argument, "you'll clean the barnacles off Howling Cape! With your own hands and your own knife! In the sun! No rest, no touching a ship, until every last one is gone! You'll finish when the job is done!"
"Howling Cape!" A few stifled gasps rose from the crowd. It was the most treacherous stretch of reefs east of Pike Island, where the waves roared like ghosts all year round. The rocks were as sharp as razors, and the barnacles clinging to them were as hard as iron. Cleaning them was painfully slow and dangerous. The blazing sun, saltwater soaking into wounds, and the dull, repetitive work... For an Ironborn warrior who prized strength and freedom, especially a proud heir, it was a more cruel humiliation and torment than a whipping.
Kolen turned his gaze to Yulon. It was still cold, but lacked the profound disappointment and fury he had shown toward Baron. "You, Yulon. During your house arrest, copy the Drowned God Scrolls, Ironborn History, and Iron Islands Law three times each. Use your head and remember what the true rules of the Old Way are, and what House Greyjoy's responsibilities are! Lysa," he glanced at the blond girl standing quietly in the shadow of a corner, the maid Yulon had brought back, "you'll supervise his ink and make sure he writes every stroke properly, without cutting corners."
This punishment was harsh, too—house arrest and copying tedious legal texts—but compared to the physical and mental torment of Baron's hard labor, it was plainly much lighter. Through these vastly different punishments, Kolen coldly declared to everyone that the higher one's status, the greater one's responsibility, and the more painful the price of one's mistakes. Baron had to pay a far greater price than most for failing to lead and acting recklessly.
Baron's face instantly drained of color. He clenched his teeth to keep from growling, humiliation, anger, and resentment churning in his eyes. He felt his father's gaze pressing down on him like a reef, almost leaving him unable to breathe. Yulon lowered his eyes slightly, concealing the gleam that flashed through them, and accepted his punishment in silence. Lysa, in the corner, nodded gently.
King Kolen no longer looked at his two sons. He turned toward the piled-up spoils, his gaze as cold as the sea. "As for this... Daggmo, divide it according to the rules. Half of House Greyjoy's share goes into storage, and the other half..." He paused, his voice carrying a weighty resolve. "Exchange it for food and timber, to strengthen the defenses of Pyke and the nearby islands. You brought back gold, but you also brought back trouble. Now, get out!"
The sailors left the oppressive black-stone hall as if reprieved, almost holding their breath as they slipped along the walls. The heavy oak doors shut behind them with a dull thud, sealing off the hall's icy fury and the salty freedom of the air outside.
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