Dragonstone Castle, Painted Table Chamber.
"Crackclaw Point Earl, Gryn·Crabb, salute you."
There were several people standing under the raised platform in the hall. Lord Stannis was sitting on the high seat, and Gryn felt all kinds of looks and scrutiny.
Lord Stannis's eyes were obscured by the shadows of thick eyebrows, and his calm and indifferent voice echoed in the empty hall, "Lord Gryn, do you remember what I said here last time? (Chapter 98)"
Gryn straightened up and looked at the superior Lord Stannis: "I remember, you said you would clear up my doubts."
Lord Stannis's lips were tightly closed, and his jaw moved silently.
After a pause, he said, "Have you solved your doubts now?"
Gryn shook his head slightly. "Lord Stannis, please forgive my stupidity."
Gryn finished speaking, and a strange woman suddenly let out a cold snort. The woman had a thin figure, a pointed face, protruding ears, and a sharp nose.
Her eyes were light-colored, her mouth was stern, and her voice was as sharp as a whip. "What a cunning the Whispers Earl, is there anyone who doesn't know that the boy sitting on Iron Throne is Cersei's son? How dare you lie under the watchful eyes of Lord of Light? Do I deserve to be the favorite of that slut Cersei?"
Gryn was indifferent to the harsh rebuke. He turned his head and looked at Onion Knight standing beside him.
He whispered, "Sir Davos, who is this lady?"
Davos raised his eyebrows, showing a helpless expression. He glanced at Lord Stannis on the high seat, and whispered to Gryn, "Lord Gryn, you are making things difficult for me."
Gryn raised his eyebrows and looked at Davos without saying anything.
Davos sighed lightly. He first saluted in the direction of Lord Stannis and then said, "This is Lord Stannis's wife, Mrs. Selyse."
Davos's brief introduction was met with a dissatisfied hum.
A middle-aged man stood up and said loudly, "The Whispers Earl, standing in front of you is the wife of Duke Stannis·Baratheon, Mrs. Dragonstone, the descendant of Garth Greenhand, Mrs. Selyse of House Florent."
Garth Hightower, known as Garth Greenhand or Garth the Green, is a legendary First Men king, also considered the Reach is the ancestor of many families. His eldest son Garth Hightower Gardener established House Gardener and became the first the Reach king.
House Florent is one of the powerful and ancient nobles of the Reach. The bloodline can be traced back to one of the three sons of Florys, the daughter of Garth Hightower. They claim that their bloodline is closer to House Gardener than the lord House Tyrell.
The Florent family firmly believes that they have priority and have the right to inherit Highgarden over other families, so House Florent often questions House Tyrell's right to rule the Reach.
Davos shrugged his shoulders, Gryn turned to the direction of the high platform, his eyes swept across a red figure, and he stroked his chest and said, "I have met Mrs. Selyse, Gryn·Crabb wants to say hello to you."
Mrs. Selyse sneered and said, "Answer my question, the Whispers Earl."
Gryn glanced at Mrs. Selyse calmly, and his voice was calm and steady. "According to the laws of the kingdom, I reserve my own opinions on all those accused before going through a formal trial."
Mrs. Selyse's tone was sharp. "A small Half-Wildling family can also learn..."
"Selyse, be quiet." Lord Stannis's voice interrupted Mrs. Selyse's words.
Mrs. Selyse said sharply, "Your Majesty, you should not interrupt me. According to the law, the nobles Crackclaw Point are my vassals."
"Your Majesty?"
When Lord Stannis repeated it, there was resentment in his tone.
He continued, "It's such a sarcastic title... What kind of king am I? Dragonstone, and a few stones in the Narrow Sea, is this my kingdom?!"
Mrs. Selyse said quickly, "Your Majesty, according to Lord of Light's will, you are the only king of Iron Throne."
Stannis is not as fanatical about Lord of Light as his wife. He frowned and said, "Please make it clear to me, what I want is the army, not blessings."
Mrs. Selyse was about to speak, but was interrupted by the voice of Gryn.
He said leisurely and authentically, "Mrs. Selyse, please forgive me for being presumptuous. I have to correct you. Loyalty to Queen is Crackclaw Point's tradition, not legal principle."
After saying that, Gryn felt everyone's eyes focused on him again.
"You..."
Gryn shrugged calmly and added, "As far as I know, Lord Stannis has not yet declared himself the king, Mrs. Selyse."
"You..."
After a pause, he moved toward the high seat and put one hand on his chest and said, "I think it was the sound of the wind and waves outside that caused me to hallucinate."
Regardless of whether it is intentional or unintentional, the people present talking about the king... Gryn Lord will act as if he has not heard it.
"Lord of Light values chastity and punishes corruption." A red figure said while walking lightly towards Gryn.
She stood in front of Gryn and said, "Lord Crabb, I am the priest of Lord of Light R'hllor, Melisandre."
Melisandre has an elegant and slender figure, plump and slender. She is wearing a long silk dress that is as bright as a bright flame. The sleeves are very long and the top has cuts, revealing a darker blood-red shirt underneath.
"Good day, Mrs. Melisandre...?"
Gryn glanced at the red gold collar with a large ruby embedded in Melisandre's neck, and flexed his fingers.
"Don't worry about the title. To me, this is just a tool for me to walk in the world."
Melisandre's voice is low, with the unique pleasant accent of the Jade Sea region. She has dark red copper hair, a heart-shaped face, a pair of red eyes, and her skin is as white, smooth and flawless as fresh cream.
Melisandre suddenly stared at Gryn, and Gryn seemed to see a flash of fire in her eyes.
After a pause, her hand gently brushed Gryn's breastplate and murmured, "What a pure power..."
Gryn: "...", he doesn't like this word.
Melisandre retracted her hand, and she and Gryn took half a step back almost at the same time.
The moment the priestess's fingers touched him, Gryn felt as if his clothes were being stripped off. He was really worried that he would not be able to resist drawing his sword, so he backed away.
Where is Melisandre? Secret.
Both of them thought that their previous actions were hallucinations. After a moment of pause, Melisandre spoke softly, "Lord Gryn, Lord of Light's guidance made you appear here..."
She spread her hands and chanted. "We all have to make a choice, male or female, old or young, noble or mediocre, our choices are all the same. We choose light and darkness, justice and evil. We choose true God or false God."
After saying that, her eyes stayed on Gryn for a while, then turned back to the platform.
Melisandre gave a gentle salute to Stannis who was on the high seat and said, "We mortals are living alone and dying alone. We are confused and wandering in the valley. Fortunately, our compatriots gather together and travel together. Fortunately, we have the true God to praise me."
Lord Stannis nodded slightly. He stood up from the chair, walked down the steps, and stood in front of the map table. The map table was engraved with Aegon the Conqueror's Seven Kingdoms of that era, all the rivers and mountains, fortress cities, lakes and forests... all in detail, glowing with the luster of lacquer accumulated for nearly three hundred years.
Lord Stannis stood in front of the picture table and thought for a while, waving to Davos and Gryn to come over.
Gryn and Davos looked at each other, took steps forward, and stood on either side of Lord Stannis, one on the left and one on the right.
Lord Stannis frowned and said, "My brother only left me Celtigar, House Velaryon and House Bar Emmon, but they are not very capable people.
In addition, the Lys pirate Salado·Saan will bring the bills I owe recently, and the Myr man Morosh will talk about the tide and the autumn wind direction, in order to make me cautious.
House Sunglass of Sharp Point Earl will reverently chant and pray in the name of Seven, Celtigar of Claw Isle Earl will ask me to explain which Storm's End lords have decided to join, and Lord Velaryon of High Tide will threaten me to send troops immediately. What should I say to them?"
He swept his hand across the Blackwater Bay on the picture table and continued, "I have thirteen hundred soldiers in Dragonstone, and another three hundred soldiers garrisoning Storm's End. Besides, I have no money to hire soldiers, and there is no prospect of plunder or glory to attract Free Riders to defect. What should I do? I want to hear the advice of the two of you."
Davos sighed secretly, although Dragonstone has a long history and is impregnable, it only has a few small nobles under its control. The outer island territory under their jurisdiction is rocky, rugged and sparsely populated, which is simply not enough to provide the military strength Lord Stannis needs.
Gryn raised his eyes and looked at the roof. "..."
What he heard were probably the military secrets of the Stannis forces... He had never promised to work for Lord Stannis. Lord Gryn was speechless.
Davos glanced at Gryn who was distracted, and said in deep thought, "Lord Stannis, your real enemy is Lannister. They are the common enemies of you and Lord Renly. If you agree, I will recommend myself to Storm's End to form an alliance for you."
"Storm's End...Renly... Logically speaking, the vassals of Stormlands should be my vassals."
Lord Stannis snorted sarcastically and continued, "Davos, I never asked for Dragonstone. I don't want this damn place at all. I took this place because the remnants of Targaryen are entrenched here, and Robert ordered me to wipe out Dragonstone."
I built a new fleet for him, defeated the enemy, and fully fulfilled my duty as a younger brother. As my younger brother, Renly should treat me this way, but do you see how Robert thanked me later?
He appointed me the Duke of Dragonstone, but gave the territory and taxes of Storm's End to his youngest brother. For three hundred years, Storm's End has been the hereditary territory of House Baratheon! Logically speaking, when Robert ascends to Iron Throne, I should be the one to rule."
After a pause, Lord Stannis said coldly, "I will never compromise with Renly unless he promises to give up being king. Davos, we all know that kid's ambition. Although he is my brother, if he dares to become king, I will never show mercy... Renly!"
When Lord Stannis spat out the name Renly angrily, it was like poison on his tongue. Gryn, who pretended to be distracted, silently lit a candle for Lord Renly in his heart.
Davos did not give any words to persuade. Lord Stannis has a stubborn personality. Once he makes up his mind, there is no room for change.
Davos frowned and thought for a while, then said, "Lord Stannis, I heard that Winterfell's heir Robb·Stark wanted revenge Troops have been raised to go south, and a war is about to begin between Stark and Lannister. If we help, you can get the support of Winterfell and Riverrun at the same time."
"Do you support the story of the young boy avenging his father? For Eddard·Stark who died at the hands of the mob?"
Lord Stannis's angry voice echoed in the empty hall, "Why should I avenge Eddard·Stark? Robert loves him very much. He often says that they are brothers. I don't know how many times I have heard this sentence, but he is nothing to me."
"Robert's siblings are me, not Eddard·Stark, but you can never tell from his attitude towards me that I am his biological brother. In that war more than ten years ago, I stood by Storm's End for him and watched my loyal men starve to death one after another, and Mace·Tyrell and Paxter Redwyne·Redwyne were eating and drinking outside the city. Did he thank me? No! Robert was grateful to Stark for leading his troops to rescue us when we were left with only mice and wild vegetables."
"I was ordered by Robert to build a fleet for him and capture Dragonstone in his name. Did he hold my hand and say... My dear brother, well done. Without you, I would I really don't know what to do? No! Instead, he blamed me for letting William·Darry take Viserys and the little baby to escape, as if I had any way to stop them."
"In my position as Master of Ships, I tried my best to assist Jon·Arryn in governing the kingdom, so that Robert could eat, drink, and gamble every day. As a result, after Jon died, did my brother appoint me as Hand of the King? No! He completely ignored my self-recommendation and the recommendations of the nobles, and instead found Eddard·Stark who was far away from Winterfell to offer this honor with both hands. As a result, these two people were played by a mere Lannister slut... shameful!"
Davos looked worriedly at Lord Stannis, who had a tight face, and his voice was respectful. "Lord Stannis, I have to sincerely advise you that even though you have suffered various injustices in the past, but the deceased has passed away, if Stark can work together with you and be as great as you, he will definitely be the final winner, and the kingdom of chaos will be reborn in your hands."
Davos stroked his chest and nodded, and finally said, "For your kingdom, Lord Stannis."
Lord Stannis stared at Davos with a downcast face for a while, and said, "..., I will consider it."
Stannis frowned and thought for a while, then looked at Gryn, who was silent, with his sharp eyes.
Melisandre walked over slowly and put her hand on Gryn's arm. "Lord of Light will guide Master Stannis to the pinnacle of glory. Lord Gryn, it is Lord of Light's will to assist the king. Please listen to R'hllor's opinion."