The Onion Knight was not an indecisive man.
On the contrary, the fact that he had sailed the seas and accomplished the feat of relieving Storm's End during its food shortage showed that he lacked neither courage nor an accurate grasp of timing.
Thud!
Davos dropped to one knee. Though his heart hammered so hard it seemed ready to beat a drum against his chest, his resolve remained unmistakable:
"Prince, I may not be qualified in other matters."
"But when it comes to sailing and dealing with people, I have traveled as far as The Wall and Pentos across the Narrow Sea. I am confident I am inferior to no one."
"I, Davos Seaworth of Flea Bottom, a smuggler who found his way back from a wrong path, beg you for a chance. Let me steer your course forward and trade my loyalty for honor."
Every word was sincere, carrying the determination of a commoner seizing an opportunity to rise.
Yet he did not receive an answer immediately.
Daeren studied him and saw, from the straight back he maintained even while kneeling, a pride no less than that of a true knight.
His humble birth had merely buried his talent.
Like a piece of gold hidden in the mud, waiting for someone destined to find it.
Now, it was time to make that gold shine.
Daeren's expression turned solemn. "Davos Seaworth, do you desire honor?"
"Yes, Prince."
Davos drew a deep breath and answered honestly.
Daeren questioned him, "If I had someone knight you, would you be willing to cast aside your past sins and embrace a new life?"
"Nothing could please me more!"
Davos raised his head, his eyes filled with earnestness.
"Very well."
Daeren bent down and personally helped him to his feet.
Then he informed him.
He would find a true knight to confer knighthood upon him and guide him toward righteousness.
What a rare sight.
Lord Owen felt a sourness welling up inside him, as though he had bitten into a lemon raw.
The Small Council.
"Prince, please show mercy. The Red Keep dungeons cannot hold so many prisoners."
Lord Symon, the Minister of Justice, pleaded bitterly, abandoning even his dignity.
Several days had passed since the King's Landing cleansing operation.
Even after the Gold Cloaks picked through their arrests, more than eight hundred and seventy criminals were still imprisoned.
Nearly nine hundred people!
Setting aside whether the Red Keep dungeons could contain them all, merely providing each prisoner enough food to keep from starving every day was no small expense.
"Lord Symon, it is not that I do not understand your difficulties. I simply have other plans."
Daeren had unexpectedly appeared at the Small Council, seated in the Lord Hand's chair.
Neither his status as prince nor his position as Deputy Commander of the City Watch should have qualified him to attend the Small Council.
But he was deeply favored by his father and controlled the only armed force in King's Landing.
Having just returned from Mud Gate, he was surrounded by several Grand Ministers and brought into the Small Council.
The King and Lord Hand were absent once more.
Lord Symon was so angry that his beard quivered. "Prince, what exactly are you trying to do?"
"Yes, Prince."
Lord Chester, the "great ship of finance," echoed him from the side.
This Small Council still had four ministers, with two of them leading the persuasion.
Daeren had nothing to hide and stated plainly, "I have ordered the acting maester to send ravens to The Wall, informing the Lord Commander of the Night's Watch to send men to collect the prisoners."
White Walkers still existed north of The Wall.
The Night's Watch was the foremost force defending the Seven Kingdoms.
The Night's Watch happened to be short on manpower, while he had captured a large number of criminals.
Surely the Lord Commander of the Night's Watch would be more than willing to replenish his ranks.
"The Night's Watch?"
Varys's eyes shifted.
The other three ministers exchanged looks as well, unable to find fault with the proposal.
Every criminal spared execution during the cleansing operation had been promised that they would don black robes and head for The Wall.
For King's Landing, it simply meant one fewer batch of unstable elements.
But for the Night's Watch on The Wall, they were the best possible recruits.
Lusris, the Master of Ships, silently nodded. "This method is feasible."
Born into the Valeryon family, serving the Royal Family had been the duty of every generation of family heads.
Having already offended Prince Rhaegar, he was more inclined toward Prince Daeren, who was greatly favored by the King.
Especially now that Prince Daeren had taken control of the City Guard.
From the forceful methods and decisive temperament he had displayed, Daeren was no weaker than Prince Rhaegar, who acted with stubborn single-mindedness.
With the prisoners' destination settled, the meeting ended without further discussion.
After everyone dispersed, Daeren did not leave.
He remained behind with Ser Gerold, the White Bull and Lord Commander of the Kingsguard, who had appeared as the King's representative.
"Prince, I'll keep watch."
Ser Jon gave him a greeting and went to stand watch at the door.
Daeren understood.
Then he looked toward Ser Gerold.
Now that he knew Solar Essence could help hatch Dragon Eggs, he could not let the Hightower Family's Dragon Egg slip away.
He had to obtain it.
"Ser..."
The moment he spoke.
Ser Gerold sighed helplessly and said before him, "Prince, I am willing to write a letter and send it back to Highgarden as a family letter."
"Really?"
Daeren's expression became serious.
Ser Gerold said, "I cannot say more than that. If my nephew, Lord Leyton, is interested, he will give you a reply."
"That is enough!"
Daeren pressed, "What does Lord Leyton require? Even a seat on the Small Council—I can make one available for him."
As he recalled, the Hightower Family of Oldtown had always been a renowned great noble house of the Seven Kingdoms.
During the Dance of the Dragons, they had even been the leading party of the Greens.
Only afterward had they gradually become more low-key and rarely involved themselves with power.
The current Small Council was full of mediocrities, skilled only at flattering his father Aerys and slandering his elder brother Rhaegar.
With his influence, bringing down one of them would not be a problem.
If necessary, he could even give away the Lord Hand's position held by his teacher Tywin.
"Prince, absolutely not."
Ser Gerold was startled and hurriedly stopped him. "Lord Leyton is not keen on power. If you wish to offer a gift of introduction, some Special Crops or unusual items will suffice."
His nephew, Leyton Hightower, had been studying mysticism in Highgarden until he was nearly obsessed with it.
After listening to Ser Jon's advice these past few days, he had indirectly learned that Prince Daeren possessed many Special Crops and unusual items.
And their quality was exceptionally high.
They would certainly satisfy his nephew Leyton's interests.
"No problem."
Daeren immediately promised.
So long as they returned the Dragon Egg to him, forget a few Special Crops and items.
He could even buy a living Special Cow that steadily produced milk containing Life Force as a gift in return.
This kind of Special Cow that produced livestock products.
At present, only Lord Owen's Cider Hall possessed one in the entire Seven Kingdoms.
Its value could not be exchanged for ten thousand gold.
That night.
Daeren stayed at the farm.
It was the last day of spring, and summer would begin tomorrow.
Before the season changed, he needed to sell the crops and nonessential items in advance.
Such as two harvests of strawberries, Gatherables, two Amethysts, an Emerald, and a large egg.
Once he collected the money tomorrow, he could begin his summer development.
2:00 a.m.
The System Panel settlement appeared on schedule;
[Farming: 5760g] [Foraging: 380g] [Fishing: 0g] [Mining: 520g] [Other: 95g] [Total: 6595g]
Daybreak came.
Spring gave way to summer, and the climate changed.
Cluck-cluck-cluck!
At the first rooster crow of the morning, Daeren opened his eyes and got up.
The first thing he did was check the System Panel.
The first day of summer, Monday, windy, 6:00 a.m.
[Gold: 8489g]
"Sure enough, a year on Dragon Tongue Farm only has four months, with twenty-eight days in each month."
Daeren had long been mentally prepared.
It was merely a change of seasons.
Time at the farm and in the outside world passed together.
It was not as though a year passed on the farm and Daeren aged by a year.
On the first day of summer, he turned on the television as scheduled.
[Weather Forecast]: "Tomorrow... clear and sunny... suitable for foraging..." [Fortune Teller]: "The spirits are very happy today. You will be lucky." [Living Off the Ground]: "Summer has arrived, and all kinds of new crops can now be planted!"
"Take hops, for example."
"They need some time for their vines to grow, but once mature, they bear abundant fruit every day."
"So, good luck!"
Daeren held the red Dragon Egg, still warm from the fireplace, and smiled. "In the first summer of the first year, it is time to go to Dragonstone."
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