Chapter Summaries

Daeren prepared to challenge Rhaegar’s claim to the Iron Throne at the Great Council of Harrenhal while considering how to correct his unusual Life Seed. News that Rhaegar had remarried Lyanna Stark in Lys enraged Aerys and sharpened the political conflict, leaving the Small Council divided over whether to support Daeren.

• Melisandre told Daeren she had located a Desert Oasis resembling Ginger Island, and Daeren asked her to investigate it further and seek Witch Potions and amulets.
• Daeren concluded that his Life Seed may have skipped necessary growth stages and planned to try condensing it again with Starfruit or a Sweet Gem Berry.
• Varys reported that Rhaegar had married Lyanna Stark in Lys and given his bastard son the Targaryen name, prompting Aerys to denounce him and storm out.
• Daeren announced that he would seek to strip Rhaegar of his heirship at the Great Council of Harrenhal in a hundred days, declaring Rhaegar unfit to rule.
• Count Lucerys and several council members declared support for Daeren, while Tywin and other ministers avoided committing themselves to the coming power struggle.

Daeren and his supporters decided to force Aerys to remove Rhaegar as heir, then launched a coup to control the Red Keep. Daeren’s forces seized the castle while Queen Rhaella and Tywin were confined, and the chapter ended with Jaime guarding his father as Tywin realized what was happening.

• Daeren told his followers he wanted Aerys to agree that day to strip Rhaegar of his status as heir, and they pledged their support while limiting the forces involved to their most loyal men.
• Varys informed Aerys that Daeren had summoned the lords to a Great Council, then learned from a Little Bird that Daeren was staging a coup.
• Daeren entered the Red Keep as the Palace Guard opened its gates, while Elisha sealed the City Gates and Daeren’s forces took control of the castle’s defenses.
• Daeren ordered his men to kill the Dorne soldiers who blocked their way, and Barristan and Ser Jon led the attack that killed them.
• Davos and Ser Owen kept Queen Rhaella confined to her chambers, while Jaime stopped Tywin from leaving the Tower of the Hand and Tywin realized a coup was underway.

Daeren’s forces seized the Red Keep, and the Dragon Guard defeated the Kingsguard protecting Aerys. Daeren confronted his father and demanded that he abdicate so Daeren could become heir and take charge of the Seven Kingdoms, then left the gathered nobles and ministers under guard as the Great Council approached.

• Barristan and Ser Jon led the Dragon Guard against Ser Gerold, Prince Lewyn, and Oswell, defeating and binding the three White Knights.
• Daeren entered the Throne Room alone and showed Aerys Rosart the Wise’s severed head, revealing that his father’s Wildfire plot had failed.
• Daeren demanded that Aerys abdicate and name him heir before the Great Council; Aerys yielded after Daeren struck him.
• Daeren ordered the injured Aerys escorted back to his bedchamber and declared that he would one day melt down the Iron Throne.
• Daeren passed through the detained ministers and nobles, while Lady Olenna watched him and the approaching Great Council remained in doubt.

Daeren confronted Queen Rhaella about her favoritism, reassured the women of the family, and then summoned Tywin, Lady Olenna, and Varys to the council hall. He questioned House Tyrell’s support for the Great Council and gave Lady Olenna a chance to cooperate.

• Daeren told Queen Rhaella that he had beaten Aerys and challenged her for favoring Rhaegar despite Daeren’s years of protecting the family.
• Daeren promised to become king, said he would let his parents live wherever they wished if they did not interfere, and reassured Elia that Lewyn was safe.
• Daeren visited Daenerys, kissed Shayani, and left to deal with the outsiders.
• Daeren took the king’s seat in the council hall as Tywin and Lady Olenna stood before him, and Davos reported that Varys had been found in a brothel.
• Daeren questioned Varys about opposition to the Great Council, then sent Jeyne away after her nervousness suggested House Tyrell was involved in a conspiracy.
• Daeren asked Lady Olenna whether House Tyrell would support the Great Council and warned her that he expected their cooperation.

Daeren forced Lady Olenna to demonstrate House Tyrell’s loyalty by keeping Mace and Jeyne in King’s Landing and placing Willas in his service, then discussed the Great Council with her and Tywin. Later, Daeren tested Tywin’s loyalty by suggesting Jaime could leave the Kingsguard and return to the Westerlands, but Tywin insisted Jaime had chosen his vows.

• Lady Olenna declared House Tyrell’s support for Daeren’s Great Council, but Daeren challenged her sincerity and Barristan and Ser Jon killed her guards Arryk and Erryk.
• Daeren required Mace to remain Grand Minister, Jeyne to stay in King’s Landing, and Willas to serve as his retainer; Lady Olenna accepted his terms.
• Lady Olenna advised Daeren that he could treat Westeros’s nobles as sheep and offer them benefits if he wished, while Daeren told Tywin the price he had in mind was classified.
• Daeren visited Tywin that evening and questioned whether he would remarry or leave Casterly Rock to Tyrion, provoking Tywin’s anger.
• Daeren suggested restoring Jaime’s freedom so he could return to the Westerlands, but Tywin said Jaime had chosen the Kingsguard and must stay.

Tywin tried to keep Cersei in King's Landing while weighing House Lannister’s ties to Daeren, but Cersei’s attempt to seduce the Prince failed when she found him away. The next day, Daeren assigned Petyr Baelish to cultivate Purple Conches and ordered the Small Council to build five towns across three regions.

• Tywin refused Daeren’s offer to release Jaime from the Kingsguard, affirmed House Lannister’s support for the Royal Family, and left with Jaime.
• Tywin ordered Cersei to return to Casterly Rock, but she persuaded him to let her stay and secretly resolved to pursue Daeren.
• Cersei’s night raid on Daeren’s bedchamber failed because Daeren had gone to the Farmhouse to rest.
• At the Small Council meeting, Daeren revealed a Purple Conch and said Petyr Baelish would oversee its cultivation.
• Daeren gave the ministers task lists and ordered them to build five towns across the Crownlands, the Riverlands, and The Reach.

Daeren ordered the construction and development of five towns to resettle King's Landing's excess population, while explaining how the plan would strengthen the Iron Throne and improve commoners' lives. Several days later, Oberyn visited Elia in King's Landing, where he revealed Rhaegar's plans to settle in Lys and offered to take her back to Dorne.

• Daeren assigned Count Colton, Count Staunton, and Mace to develop five towns and relocate about 170,000 people from King's Landing.
• Daeren defended the costly plan as a way to protect King's Landing, win the people's support, and make the Iron Throne less dependent on nobles.
• The ministers saw the Wildfire Daeren revealed and rushed to flatter him, fearing the consequences of the King's actions.
• Oberyn arrived in King's Landing to attend the Great Council on House Martell's behalf and visited his sister Elia.
• Oberyn gave Rhaenys a wooden sailing-ship model, then learned from Elia that the King was under house arrest and Lewyn and two White Knights were in the dungeons.
• Oberyn told Elia that Rhaegar had married in Lys and planned to move his family there, and offered to take her back to Dorne.

Daeren tested the new Life Force Projection technique as Barristan became the first High-Ranking Knight and defeated the Kingsguard in a sparring match. Daeren planned to announce the Life Knight cultivation path under strict Royal Family control, anticipating that rising magic would transform Westeros.

• Barristan used Life Force Projection to overpower Ser Gerold, damaging the Valyrian Steel sword Dawn, and Daeren promised to have a Qohor smith repair it.
• Daeren explained that Barristan's Life Seed had sprouted into a Life Sprout, making him the world's first High-Ranking Knight, and defined ranks for the Life Knight path.
• Daeren planned to teach the first three Life Knight levels only to nobles' direct descendants who joined the Constabulary Knightly Order, binding their training to the Royal Family.
• Barristan fought six Kingsguard members at once, defeated them all in under eight minutes, and knocked Jaime unconscious with an elbow.
• Daeren concluded that High-Ranking Knights could easily suppress Regular Knights and predicted that their cultivation path and the rising Magic Tide would change Westeros.

Daeren received Rhaegar’s belated letter and rejected Oberyn’s request to take Elia and Rhaenys to Dorne, promising that the royal family would care for them. As the Great Council approached, Melisandre arrived seeking gems for an amulet and noticed Jaeherys’s magical potential.

• Oberyn told Prince Lewyn he had come to the Great Council in Doran’s place and wanted to visit Elia, then joined Scholar Aemon and Jaeherys to meet Daeren.
• Scholar Aemon told Daeren he had informed the Citadel and the High Septon about the Great Council, while Jaeherys came to learn about its proceedings.
• Oberyn gave Daeren Rhaegar’s crumpled letter, and Daeren decided he would make it public at the Great Council and consider Rhaegar’s request as appropriate.
• Oberyn asked to take Elia and Rhaenys back to Dorne, but Scholar Aemon insisted Rhaenys should remain in King’s Landing, and Daeren assured Oberyn the Targaryens would care for them.
• Daeren told Jaeherys to learn from Oberyn’s visit, and later Melisandre collected gems from Daeren for an amulet.
• Melisandre noticed Jaeherys’s strong dragonblood and told him he had the talent to become a Wizard, while warning that certain people might oppose it.

Daeron convened the Great Council at Harrenhal to replace the absent Rhaegar as heir, and the nobles voted overwhelmingly in Daeron’s favor. He then presented Rhaegar’s letter voluntarily renouncing the succession in exchange for marrying Lyanna Stark and founding a new Targaryen branch.

• Daeron asked Scholar Aemon to refine the Great Council procedures and told him to consult Varys, who would also watch Melisandre.
• Jaeherys considered learning wizardry from the Yi Ti Alchemist after hearing Melisandre’s suggestion that he had talent.
• Nobles and their entourages arrived at Harrenhal as Daeron, Shayani, Elia, and Aerys assembled for the Great Council.
• Aerys announced that Rhaegar would be removed as heir and Daeron appointed in his place, prompting nobles to demand Rhaegar’s presence before Count Leyton Hightower proposed a vote.
• The nobles voted 131 in favor of Daeron, 22 in favor of Rhaegar, with the rest abstaining.
• Daeron presented Rhaegar’s letter, which said he voluntarily renounced the succession in exchange for marrying Lyanna Stark in Lys, taking two wives, and establishing a new Targaryen branch.

Daeren presented Rhaegar’s letter relinquishing his claim to the throne, and Oberyn Martell and Aemon Targaryen confirmed it was genuine. He proposed granting Rhaegar the title of Prince of Summerhall and appointing Aemon Prince of the Dragonkin to oversee the royal family’s branches and genealogy.

• Count Mathis Rowan questioned the letter’s authenticity, and Oberyn confirmed that Rhaegar had personally given it to him for Daeren.
• Aemon verified Rhaegar’s handwriting, revealed his identity as Aemon Targaryen, and attested that the letter was genuine.
• The nobles learned that Rhaegar had renounced his inheritance, moved to Lys, and married Lyanna Stark under the Valyrian tradition of polygamy.
• Count Peake challenged Rhaegar’s rejection of Andal tradition, and Daeren replied that he could not compel his absent brother to return.
• Daeren proposed granting Rhaegar the title of Prince of Summerhall and preserving his holdings in Westeros.
• Daeren proposed adding Aemon to the Small Council as Prince of the Dragonkin, responsible for royal family branches, kinship ties, and genealogies.

Daeren secured his position as heir to the Iron Throne and Prince Regent, while defending Rhaegar’s status and multiple marriages before the nobles. He then warned that a Special Gem Vein in the Stepstones had drawn Essosi forces into conflict and left Westeros facing a growing threat.

• Daeren explained Rhaegar’s proposed royal titles, family branches, and inheritance rules, then argued that Rhaegar’s Lyseni status placed his marriages outside Andal custom.
• Scholar Aemon announced Daeren’s selection as heir, and Aerys formally invested him as Prince of Dragonstone and Prince Regent.
• Daeren warned the nobles that Tyroshi pirates had attacked Tarth Island, Estermont, and other Stormlands coasts, and that fighting over the Stepstones had spread across the Narrow Sea.
• Count Selwyn described Daeren’s victories against pirates and portrayed the Stepstones as a source of valuable gems that could draw Essos into invading Westeros.
• The nobles questioned Daeren about Essos’s Gemstone Sequence warriors, and Daeren confirmed that there were many as the lords anxiously assessed their defenses.

Daeren introduced the Life Seeds cultivation method and secured noble support by offering access through the Constabulary Knightly Order. After the Great Council confirmed him as heir, he won the agreement of representatives from the Riverlands and Stormlands to merge their realms with the Crownlands, leaving the formal announcement for after his investiture as Prince of Dragonstone.

• Daeren demonstrated the strength of Life Seeds, and Ser Gerold explained how knights could condense one to unleash far greater power.
• Daeren offered to teach the method to knights who joined the Constabulary Knightly Order, and Edmure Tully and Willas Tyrell applied to join.
• Rhaegar renounced the throne, making Daeren the new heir, while the nobles accepted the cultivation method as a political concession.
• Daeren summoned the realm’s leading lords and proposed merging the Riverlands and Stormlands with the Crownlands.
• Count Harren, Lady Shireen, and the other representatives supported the merger, and Daeren promised to announce it after becoming Prince of Dragonstone.

Daeren completed his Heir Ceremony and announced plans to merge the Crownlands, the Reach, and the Stormlands while preparing to rebuild Summerhall. He then negotiated with Oberyn over Rhaegar’s plans to conquer the Stepstones, offering financial support while keeping the Iron Throne out of the campaign.

• Daeren brought Drogon into Dragon Mountain, where the young dragon ate lava mushrooms before Corax emerged from the cavern and greeted Daeren.
• Daeren returned to King's Landing and told the council that the merger of the three realms could be announced, while assigning Aemon and Mace roles in rebuilding Summerhall for Rhaegar.
• Daeren ordered Count Colton to prepare resources for the Five-Year Plan but delay its implementation until potential opposition to the merger was dealt with.
• Oberyn asked how Daeren would treat Rhaegar and said Rhaegar intended to conquer the Stepstones; Daeren ruled that Westerosi lords and nobles who joined him would have to give up their holdings or never return.
• Oberyn claimed he could secure the Second Sons, the Windblown, and possibly the Golden Company for Rhaegar, while Daeren questioned whether the Golden Company would join him.
• Daeren offered Rhaegar two hundred thousand Gold Dragons and permission for eligible followers to leave, but refused to share in the Stepstones campaign.

Daeren considered supporting Rhaegar’s attack on the Stepstones and ordered Varys to report on noble opposition to the three-region merger. After learning that several Reach houses were conspiring against him, Daeren resolved to use them as a warning to other nobles.

• Daeren concluded that Rhaegar’s campaign in the Stepstones could pin down the Three Daughters while the Iron Throne recovered, with the crown providing logistical support.
• Daeren questioned Varys about noble attitudes toward his succession and the merger, and Varys named several Reach houses that were secretly meeting in opposition.
• At Bitterbridge, Caswell, Peake, Florent, Fossoway, Mett, and Rowan criticized Daeren and the merger; Fossoway made a crude insult about Daeren, while Rowan and Florent left the gathering.
• Daeren learned that Caswell, Peake, Fossoway, Florent, Rowan, and others had been meeting, and rejected Varys’s suggestion that he should simply explain matters to them.
• Daeren decided to target Bitterbridge and Cider Hall and planned to have Randyll Tarly send troops against the Reach conspirators, especially House Peake.

Daeren questioned Lady Olenna and Count Leyton about unrest among the Reach lords while pursuing information about lost Dragon Eggs and trying to recruit Leyton to the Small Council. Leyton fled back toward Oldtown, and Daeren prepared to crush the trouble in The Reach before his planned ascension to the throne.

• Daeren warned Lady Olenna that some vassals of House Tyrell were plotting, and she denied knowing anything while agreeing House Tyrell would not oppose his actions.
• Lady Olenna comforted Jeyne over Daeren’s lack of interest and told her she could choose another husband.
• Daeren asked Count Leyton about other lost Dragon Eggs in The Reach, but Leyton said he knew of none.
• Daeren reminded Count Leyton of his former wish for a Seat on the King's Council, but Leyton withdrew the request and hurried away.
• Daeren resolved to deal with unrest in The Reach and hoped Rhaegar would bring in the Martell Family to attack the Stepstones.

Daeron received Melisandre’s completed Dark Talisman and prepared to travel to Dorne for desert materials and a chance to meet its nobles. In Sunspear, Rhaegar learned that Prince Doran would support him after he took the Stepstones, while Ser Arthur left to return to King’s Landing.

• Melisandre gave Daeron a Fire-infused talisman that combined with his Skull Key to become the Dark Talisman, and explained that Magic Ink required fruit from the desert.
• Daeron decided to travel to the Desert Oasis and Dorne, while Varys’s reports indicated that the Reach lords’ plotting would take time to develop.
• Lys’s governors discovered that Rhaegar had left for Dorne with Marana Rojar, but reassured themselves that his wife and children remained in Lys and discussed defenses against dragons.
• Rhaegar told Mace Mooton, Rickard Morlon, and Ser Arthur that Prince Doran had refused immediate aid but would send troops to help take Lys after Rhaegar conquered the Stepstones.
• Ser Arthur said he had to return to King’s Landing as a Kingsguard, and Rhaegar let him leave before setting out with Mace and Rickard.

Rhaegar sailed from Dosu with the Second Sons and the Windblown to attack the Stepstones, while Doran secretly planned to support him with Dornish troops. Daeren flew south with Melisandre to search for the prophesied Desert Oasis, leaving Varys to investigate a treason case in King's Landing; Daeren headed for Yronwood to seek Count Anders's help.

• Rhaegar set sail from Dosu with the Second Sons, the Windblown, Rockseeds, and Westerosi riders after telling the Ragged Prince that House Martell would send troops once Bloodstone Island was taken.
• Doran watched Rhaegar depart and decided to send Oberyn with eight hundred men to support the attack under the banner of aiding the Second Sons.
• Arianne asked to meet Rhaegar, but Doran told her he had already left and promised to introduce her to a handsome prince when she grew up.
• Daeren tested Melisandre's familiarity with Corax, then rode the red dragon south with her chained behind him to search for the Desert Oasis.
• Varys watched Daeren fly toward Dorne and continued investigating which Reach lord House Tyrell might expose or protect in the treason case.
• Daeren dismissed Melisandre's map as useless and flew toward Yronwood, intending to ask Count Anders for help locating the oasis and assess his attitude toward House Martell.

Daeren visited House Yronwood, where Ser Arthur Dayne pledged to protect him and the Yronwoods helped locate a vast oasis. At the oasis, Daeren exchanged a Prismatic Shard for the Galaxy Sword, tested it against Red Rain, and paired it with Dark Sister.

• Daeren arrived at Yronwood on Corax and accepted Count Anders's hospitality while asking House Yronwood to find a suitable desert oasis.
• Ser Arthur Dayne came to Daeren, explained why he had left Rhaegar, and pledged to protect the new crown prince.
• Count Anders reported that House Yronwood had found a large oasis east of Yronwood, and Daeren set out to investigate it.
• Daeren used a Prismatic Shard at the oasis's three totem pillars and obtained the Galaxy Sword.
• Daeren tested the Galaxy Sword against Red Rain, damaging the Valyrian Steel blade, then chose to wield the Galaxy Sword alongside Dark Sister.

Daeron explored the Desert Oasis, stocked up on seeds and special foods, and survived a descent into Skull Cavern, where he gained a healing Fairy Box. Meanwhile, Tywin’s Small Council learned that Lord Caswell was plotting rebellion, and the chapter ended with Daeren returning to King’s Landing.

• Daeren found the Desert Trader’s Shipping Bin, bought seeds and Desert Warp Totems, and traded gems for Triple Shot Espresso and Spicy Eel.
• Daeren tested whether Corax could benefit from special food, then used the food himself before exploring Skull Cavern for Iridium Ore.
• Daeren fought monsters through the thirty-sixth floor of Skull Cavern and gained a Level 2 Fairy Box that healed his minor wounds.
• Tywin told the Small Council that Lord Caswell had mustered troops at Bitterbridge and was suspected of plotting rebellion with other Reach lords.
• Tywin ordered Ser Davos to lead ten Lionheart Knights against Bitterbridge and arrest Baron Caswell, while Varys suspected the accusation might be part of a larger scheme.
• Ser Gerold announced Daeren’s return to King’s Landing as the Red Dragon circled above the city.