Mermaid Harbor

Three coins lay on Gryn Crabb's desk: a Gold Dragon, a Silver Stag, and a Copper Star.

One Gold Dragon was worth 10 Silver Stags, and one Silver Stag was worth 100 Copper Stars.

Gryn had roughly converted them into the currency of his previous life: one Gold Dragon was worth about 1,000 yuan, one Silver Stag about 100 yuan, and one Copper Star about 1 yuan.

[The currency system, its value, and conversions are just settings for convenience while writing.]

[Here are a few more examples for easier reading: a full suit of plate armor costs at least 10 Gold Dragons, a suit of chain mail at least 3 Gold Dragons, a fine warhorse 16 Gold Dragons, and one Unsullied 100 Gold Dragons (shipping not included). A meal with meat and a mug of beer costs 20–30 Copper Stars, and a farmer earns about 1 Gold Dragon a year.]

The coins currently in House Crabb's treasury were worth a little over 2,000 Gold Dragons in total. That meant cash; goods in the lord's storehouses were not included.

However, they owed 5,000 Gold Dragons, and the interest paid last year had been 500 Gold Dragons.

After the Usurper's War, at the direction of Hand of the King Jon Arryn, the nobles and merchants of the Vale had forced loans on the noble lords of Crackclaw Point to help them "get back on their feet."

This was also one of the peace treaties imposed on Crackclaw Point after the war.

You'd never see a single Gold Dragon of that money. The nobles and merchants of the Vale had treated the lands that were rightfully yours as the principal on the loan.

That was how ruthless they were.

You could refuse, of course. In that case, Baratheon's soldiers and armor hadn't even been put away yet, and Robert hadn't had his fill of fighting.

Crabb Territory had been valued at 5,000 Gold Dragons. The interest paid by House Crabb each year had already added up to 7,500 Gold Dragons.

According to the contract, they would have to pay another five years' worth—2,500 Gold Dragons in total—and in the final year, repay the 5,000-Gold Dragon principal as well.

This was the Red Keep's way of keeping down the nobles of Crackclaw Point, whom it regarded with suspicion.

The interest was supposedly for postwar reconstruction. The amount had been set just right: enough to let them barely scrape by, without driving them to desperation, while still curbing their growth.

A weak and obedient lord of Crackclaw Point was a good lord.

Crabb Territory had a population of just over 2,000. Since they needed to keep the Mountain Wildlings from harassing their lands year-round, they maintained 200 household troops—full-time soldiers in all but name.

Under normal circumstances, that was already their limit.

Because they fought so often, the population of the territory skewed heavily female.

The women here were sturdily built. Most had to plow fields and hunt like men, and there were plenty of spearwives.

As long as they had enough weapons, the spearwives could also be called up to fight—to plunder money and men.

In theory, if they left the craftsmen, elderly, and weak behind and mobilized everyone else, they could raise a maximum force of 1,500.

The Wildling lords in the surrounding valleys had forces ranging from a few dozen to a few hundred, and they were scattered and disorganized... They could sweep them all aside!

Why bother farming? As mentioned earlier, the Crabb family motto had temporarily been changed to "Strong Taking Over Bitter Tilling."

First, they would deal with those Mountain Wildling tribes who had banded together, hoping to take advantage of their young heir, Gryn, and plunder them.

It would start with this battle.

The next day, heavy clouds hung overhead.

The crescent-shaped castle of Whispers was built in a rough style, without much refinement.

But it was large enough to shelter all of the territory's more than 1,000 residents in wartime.

Gryn stood on the castle wall, over twenty meters high, looking down. His steward Herschel and Ser Pell stood behind him.

The wars after King Robert's death had lasted seven years. Whispers should have been planned much earlier.

Gryn looked south.

The terrain to the south was level. They could plan for a population of ten thousand, build the first ring, then the second... Gryn chuckled. No, they wouldn't call it the first ring. They'd call it the inner city.

"Herschel, take this down."

"Fishing Village will henceforth be renamed Mermaid Harbor."

Steward Herschel dutifully recorded it.

"Mermaids have the upper bodies of maidens and the tails of fish. The Seven themselves would praise their beauty."

Herschel hesitated, then asked, "My lord, could that description be a little offensive? Some septons aren't very friendly toward us."

As an atheist, Gryn had originally wanted to say the Seven would be utterly enraptured by them. This version was already toned down.

"Thank you for your advice, Herschel."

Gryn paused. "Minstrels. Find some reliable minstrels and get the idea across. Let them decide how to phrase the rest. They're the professionals."

"Herschel, keep writing. Mermaids love to sing the enchanting songs passed down through the generations. They're extremely shy, and only rise from the sea to sing when no one is around, late at night. Their beautiful voices seem to have been... well, like heavenly music."

Gryn had almost said their voices had been kissed by the Seven. He kept that part toned down, too.

"Mermaids are carefree, kind, and optimistic. Only when their hearts are utterly broken and filled with grief do they weep. Their tears turn into the most lustrous pearls in the world, one pearl for every tear."

"A mermaid can fall in love only once in her life. When one gives her heart to someone, she makes a vow of love."

"A vow of love... Make sure you write this down. It's important."

"I vow to be [someone's] beloved, to love what he loves and think what he thinks, to bear his pain and endure his hardships. Whether in poverty or riches, whether lowborn or highborn, whether in times of turmoil or forsaken by the gods, I will live for him and die for him. I will never leave him, until the end of time!"

Steward Herschel and Ser Pell's mouths fell open at the same time, their expressions full of emotion.

Gryn thought they'd been moved. They believed it already.

Could Fishing Village really be a legendary place in disguise?

Seeing this, Gryn changed his original plan.

A secret shared with others wasn't a real secret. They might as well all fool people together.

So Gryn believed in the mermaid legend, too.

And don't forget one important thing: mermaids were the shyest people in the world. It was only natural that no one could find them.

Come to Mermaid Harbor, and go mad for the mermaids!

"This is a secret passed down orally only among the Crabb clan chiefs, from one generation to the next. I'm telling you now because you're the two people I trust most."

Herschel and Pell puffed out their chests.

That was right. There was no one in the world more dependable than them!

"First, we need to mobilize all the villagers of Fishing Village to build a simple dock nearby. We'll have to find a suitable location. It can be a little farther away, as long as it's convenient for large ships to moor."

"Second, build a lighthouse to guide ships in the area here."

"At the same time, we'll need taverns, inns, and shops. We don't need much at first, but we need to have all the essentials. We have to earn every Copper Star we can."

"All the strong villagers must be armed. We can find suitable positions in the shops for the elderly and weak. We must keep our friendly guests safe."

"Mermaid Harbor must grow more and more beautiful and comfortable. We can't disappoint the guests who come here because of its fame."

"All of this is very important."

The steward seemed to understand. "My lord, the longer the mermaid legend lasts and the farther it spreads, the more people it will attract to Fishing... Mermaid Harbor. We'll be able to sell our leather directly to buyers, instead of having traveling merchants drive down the price. And not just leather... Mermaid Harbor will become a trading hub."

"So that's why you're willing to spread the mermaid legend..."

"Yes. Rules are rules, but for the sake of the territory's development, some sacrifices are unavoidable for a lord like me."

"It has to spread in secret, naturally. I'll leave that to you."

With that, Gryn turned around, clasped his hands behind his back, and let out a long sigh.

The hem of his robe fluttered in the wind.

Herschel bowed with utmost solemnity.

Ser Pell, clad in plate armor, gripped his sword hilt so tightly that the veins stood out on the back of his hand. He bowed slightly alongside Herschel.