"Onion Knight" Davos Seaworth

"Are you arresting a criminal?"

Lord Owen stepped forward.

He saw at a glance that Prince Daeren had been drawn over by the commotion, so naturally, he catered to his interests.

The two Gold Cloaks stopped fighting and answered.

"My lord, he is a smuggler. The goods on his boat are contraband."

"A smuggler?"

Lord Owen sized Davos up, then inspected the cargo aboard the small black-sailed boat.

Several sacks of onions and beef shanks.

Davos hurriedly said, "My lord, these are supplies I bought for my family. They are absolutely not... contraband."

At the word "contraband," his plain face tightened, as though he had truly suffered a grave injustice.

"Still lying!"

One of the Gold Cloaks raised a hand as if to strike him.

Lord Owen waved him off and spoke with perfect logic. "Several hundred pounds of onions and over fifty kilograms of beef. How many people are in your family? Can you possibly eat all that?"

"Or are you saying that an honest fisherman like you can afford to buy that much beef in one go?"

People might treat him like a fool, but that did not mean he really was one.

"My lord..."

Davos tried to argue further, but a Gold Cloak roughly covered his mouth.

If not for the lord standing there, they would have beaten him flat with a few clubs already.

Seeing the man fail to defend himself, Daeren gave it some thought and stepped forward.

Lord Owen said as though claiming credit, "Prince, he is a smuggler full of lies. We caught him red-handed."

Daeren nodded lightly.

A small sailboat hauling that much cargo was obviously smuggling to anyone with eyes.

Ordinary people could not afford beef.

"Mmph, mmph, mmph~~"

Seeing the young prince before him, Davos whimpered in agitation, wanting to save himself.

He truly had rotten luck.

His smuggling runs had never gone wrong before.

He had not even meant to smuggle anything today. He had merely returned by sea and brought back some goods to resell along the way.

Who would have thought that the Gold Cloaks would catch him red-handed?

Daeren said, "Uncover his mouth."

He still needed to confirm whether this was the man he thought it was.

"Thank you very much, my lord."

The moment Davos was freed, he worked hard to catch his breath and put on his best demeanor.

Daeren looked him over and said, "It is Your Highness, if we are observing proper etiquette."

"My apologies, Your Highness."

Davos corrected himself at once.

Daeren asked, "What is your name?"

"Uh..."

Davos had not expected the prince to ask his name. Then he hurriedly answered, "Davos. Davos Seaworth, Your Highness."

Just then, a Gold Cloak rummaged through the black-sailed boat and found a wooden box.

"Your Highness, that box contains a gift for my children."

The instant he saw the box, Davos panicked.

The Gold Cloak ignored him, opened the box, and revealed a white yam with a blue tinge.

"A Special wild plant!"

The Gold Cloak's expression changed. He immediately presented it to the prince.

The yam, shaped like a small water radish, was tiny and gave off a faint chill. It was actually a Special Crop.

Daeren said in surprise, "Snow Yam."

Stardew Valley had Gatherables suited to specific weather conditions throughout the year, and Snow Yams were winter Gatherables.

This yam containing Life Force looked very much like the Snow Yam he remembered.

"It's over."

Davos's vision went dark, and despair filled his heart.

How could someone be this unlucky?

Daeren accepted the box, untied the coin pouch at his waist, and tossed it to the two Gold Cloaks for them to split.

As for Davos Seaworth...

"Your name is good. It brought me luck."

After praising him, Daeren added, "Lock him up. I will interrogate him personally after some time."

"Yes, Prince!"

The two Gold Cloaks shouted loudly, full of vigor as they escorted the prisoner away.

Davos was shoved along as he was taken away.

When someone had bad luck, even drinking cold water could crack a tooth.

After King's Landing had just gone through its cleansing plan, the Gold Cloaks' activities had been confined to Cobbler's Square and Silk Street. They simply had no time to spare for Mud Gate.

Lord Owen had brought Daeren to inspect the ships, and the latter had only brought two Gold Cloaks as Retainers.

By sheer coincidence, they caught Davos.

"Onion Knight, what a coincidence!"

Daeren's lips curled upward.

"Onion Knight" Davos Seaworth.

Looking across the show, he was one of its most popular characters.

Fair-minded, wise, unyielding, loyal without blindly flattering his ruler...

This man was a great talent!

To make sure nothing went wrong, Daeren specifically instructed, "My lord, that smuggler looks like an experienced sailor. He can be useful when we repair the ships."

"No problem."

Though he did not understand why, Lord Owen expressed his respect.

Holding the wooden box containing the Snow Yam, Daeren slowly departed.

The little hops tune he hummed showed that his mood had improved.

The King's bedchamber.

"Hahaha, well done!"

Aerys sat at the bedside in unkempt sleepwear, his hair hanging loose as he laughed smugly.

He had already learned what his second son had done.

Daeren had killed those bloodsuckers from the City Guard clinging to the Iron Throne, then directed the City Guard to clear criminals from two major districts of King's Landing, rescuing a great many innocent children.

It had been brilliantly done!

Lord Qarlton Chelsted, who had reported the intelligence, had already left. Only two figures remained in the room.

Ser Gerold was responsible for guarding the King.

At that moment, the loyal White Knight wore a complicated expression and stood silently in place.

Prince Daeren's intentions had been good.

But allowing his Gold Cloaks to crack down on criminals so aggressively would cause an enormous stir, whether among the people of King's Landing or the noble lords.

To say nothing else, the Red Keep's dungeons were nearly packed full of prisoners.

It was truly a dangerous sign.

Varys frowned as he stood watch on the other side of the bed.

He had been summoned by the King to provide intelligence.

Seeing Aerys's wild delight, he was deeply disappointed and unwilling to waste another word.

This kingdom could not be destroyed yet.

In the end, I still have to choose one among the heirs to the throne.

Varys sighed inwardly.

Aerys did not care about anyone else. He said happily, "Summon Daeren. His King wishes to see him."

Varys withdrew as though granted a pardon.

12:30 p.m.

Daeren walked out of the King's bedchamber and let out a long breath.

Successfully fooling a King for a father was not easy.

Successfully fooling a King for a father who had mental problems was even harder.

"Prince, His Majesty has fallen asleep."

Ser Gerold came out and casually pulled the door shut behind him.

Daeren said considerately, "You have worked hard, Ser."

"It is my duty."

After hesitating for a moment, Ser Gerold took out a sealed letter. "Prince, Prince Rhaegar asked me to deliver this letter to you."

"My elder brother?"

Daeren was startled and opened the envelope to read it.

This time, it was not his sister-in-law Elia's handwriting. Its style was extremely concise.

The contents were roughly as follows:

Rhaegar had just returned to Dragonstone from across the sea. He had not received Daeren's earlier letter, and his wife Elia had worried it might affect the brothers' relationship, so she had written a reply on his behalf.

Now that Rhaegar had returned, he had written a personal reply inviting Daeren to Dragonstone for a meeting.

"Just as I guessed."

The familiar feeling had returned.

Daeren was curious why Rhaegar had gone overseas. He had never heard of the man having such an experience before.

But the Red Comet had arrived early, so nothing was surprising anymore.

On the other hand, Daeren gave Ser Gerold a strange look.

Well, well, well. The thick-browed, big-eyed "White Bull," Gerold Hightower.

He looked honest and dutiful on the surface, but behind the scenes, he had apparently been in league with Rhaegar for a long time.

No wonder, during the grand spectacle of the War of the Usurper, the captain of the Kingsguard had followed Rhaegar's orders and gone to the Tower of Joy to protect Lyanna, the "She-Wolf."