Theon's Funeral

boom-

The waves crashed relentlessly against the cliff face, shattering it into pieces, the white spray resembling splashed blood.

On the sea cliffs of Pyke, the House Greyjoy's black sea monster flag was blown folded up by the wind, and the sea monster on the flag looked as if it were trembling while clinging to the flagpole.

Just two days ago, Theon Greyjoy, the son of King Balon, fell off the rope bridge. If he were an ordinary person, he would have already perished at this moment. But because of his status, he was salvaged and given a funeral in the Ironborn tradition.

Many prominent nobles from the Iron Islands attended the funeral, including House Goodbrother, House Harlaw, House Botley, House Volmark, House Drumm.

They stood a little further away, watching the Greyjoy surround Theon's body.

Balon and his daughter Asha stood aside as his brother Aeron presided over Theon's funeral ceremony and delivered the eulogy.

Balon's face was gloomy, while Asha's expression was indifferent. She didn't have much affection for her younger brother, who had been taken hostage since childhood.

Some even thought that he was a complete waste, being so young to fall off a bridge.

Regardless of what his relatives thought, Theon's funeral was still quite grand, not only because he was Balon's son, but also because of Balon's choice of the next heir.

Theon is dead, but his sister Asha is alive, and his father has two younger brothers, Aeron and Victarion.

If Asha were just an ordinary girl, then the heir would undoubtedly be either Aeron or Victarion.

They were not only adults, but Aeron was a drowned priest of the Iron Islands, and Victarion was fierce and powerful.

But Asha is a true Ironborn; setting aside her identity as a girl, Asha is the child most like Balon.

She started plundering merchant ships at a very young age. She slept with both men and women, and from a very young age, she liked to run around naked on the shore.

She was even tall and slender; with a little disguise, it was almost impossible to tell her gender.

Therefore, Asha also had some supporters, and more importantly, King Balon would certainly prefer his own bloodline as his successor.

Theon's funeral service was still ongoing, but some people in the crowd were discussing other things, after all, they "couldn't really show any grief" for the prince.

"I heard about Euron a few days ago." The speaker was the leader of the House Goodbrother. The House Goodbrother could be considered an anomaly on the Iron Islands. They ordered people to mine iron ore to make money and frequently communicated with the outside world economically, so they were well-informed.

"Euron?"

"Euron Greyjoy, the King's brother."

"Oh, so he slept with Victarion's woman? What did he do?" The speaker was Sawane Botley. The Potterley family was extremely loyal to Greyjoy, especially Balon, almost as loyal as the Stark to Karstark.

The difference lies in the fact that the latter has a deep blood relationship, while the former is more of a worship of Balon himself.

Euron stole Mace's wife.

"Mace? Which Mace?"

"Mace Tyrell, Lord of Highgarden!"

"Ah!?"

Portley's outburst drew the attention of those around him, and several people who were relatively close were clearly very interested in this gossip.

"Euron stole the Duke's wife? Is that true?" a nobleman with a large face due to his wide jawline asked.

It's true.

Where is he now?

"I don't know, but I heard someone kidnapped Mace's wife again." Gode looked at the burly leader, who was probably from the House Drumm. "It's said that Euron had already taken Mace's wife onto the ship, but they were caught up with."

"Oh, that's because his ship wasn't fast enough. What a pity. If we could have really seized it, maybe His Majesty Balon would have allowed him to return."

Because Euron slept with his brother Victarion's Salt Wife, which was intolerable among the Ironborn, Balon banished Euron, declaring that he was not to return to the Iron Islands unless he died.

The Ironborn have a fanatical worship of plunder, and despite what Balon said, they still believe that if Euron can plunder something remarkable, then bringing him back wouldn't be out of the question.

Especially since the Seven Kingdoms were in chaos, with Renly, Joffrey, Robb, Stannis, and Balon taking the opportunity to re-crowned himself king.

But now that Renly is dead, Joffrey is killed, Robb has abdicated the throne, only Stannis remains in the Green Lands, making the Iron Islands seem somewhat out of place.

They will eventually face pressure from the Iron Throne, Balon will likely not refuse Euron's return to the Iron Islands, especially given the recent death of his son.

Just as everyone was discussing and deliberating, Theon's funeral came to an end.

Aeron, always with Damphair, spread her arms wide and shouted towards the sea, "Go! Go to the palace of the Drowned God, go to the warships of the Grey King, go! Theon! Go!"

A mournful horn sounded, like the wailing of slaves, and Theon's body was carried away from the shore in a small boat.

Just then, the group noticed a ship that looked like a merchant vessel approaching.

The grey sails were painted with images of sea monsters, but the designs were rather rough, as if they had just been painted recently.

Without Balon's order, Victarion led several longships to intercept them, while a group of Iron Islands leaders, captains, and nobles watched from afar.

The longship intercepted the merchant ship, and a man quickly jumped off. He was taken ashore by Victarion in the longship, while Theon's ship was temporarily forgotten.

When everyone saw the person being carried back to shore, they were all curious and wondered who this person was.

He wore an eye patch and had a raven perched on his shoulder; the man looked sinister and intimidating, making people reluctant to approach him.

They then looked at Victarion, who was following behind the stranger. Victarion's face was gloomy and not very pleasant.

"Why did he go directly to see His Majesty?"

"Balon isn't someone just anyone can see," said Sawane Botley in surprise.

However, they soon found out why. The blindfolded man respectfully curtsied before Balon and said, "I'm back, my brother."

Asha had no recollection of this uncle, so she looked at her father. She saw that Balon's expression grew increasingly grim after seeing Euron, and concluded that this must be the uncle who had been banished.

"Didn't I say you could only return to the Iron Islands when I'm dead? Are you coming back now because you've had enough of wandering outside and want me to give you a funeral too?" Balon's voice was mingled with the crashing waves and the sea breeze.

"My beloved brother, since leaving the Iron Islands, my sails have reached almost every corner of the world. When I returned to the Sunset Sea, I heard the news that you had become king again. I am happy for you, and even happier for the Iron Islands. You are the strongest sea monster, and you deserve this title, to reclaim your Seastone Chair." Euron's voice was calm and unhurried, as if he did not take Balon's threat to heart at all.

"Don't think I won't kill you just because of this. Your crimes against Victarion are unforgivable!"

Hearing Balon's words, Victarion's expression softened slightly; at least someone was standing up for him.

As for Aeron, his expression was somewhat unstable. He looked at Euron through the gap in his hair as if he were hiding behind a door and looking at a terrifying shadow through the crack in the door.

Meanwhile, the Iron Islands nobles, who were further away, were also whispering among themselves, all wanting to see how Balon planned to deal with his brother who had returned.

"My dear brother, I've taken a liking to Mace's wife. I almost succeeded, but unfortunately, I failed in the end. Now Mace is furious. If you want to kill me, you might as well hand me over to Mace; perhaps that will save you some trouble." Euron used a provocation tactic.

"Your Majesty holds the Seastone Chair, Ironborn will never submit to the people of the Green Lands!" Victarion declared.

Asha's eyes darted back and forth between her two uncles; Asha had already heard about the conflict between them.

After all, stealing someone else's woman is unacceptable anywhere, especially stealing your own brother's woman.

But if it were the Lord Mace's woman, that would be a different story. Asha had heard of Euron's exploits and even expressed some admiration.

Only Aeron kept repeating in her heart that she hoped Euron would leave the Iron Islands as soon as possible, because she really didn't want to see him again in this lifetime.

He had already been submerged four times! That fear still lingered.

Neither Balon nor Euron spoke; instead, they silently looked into each other's eyes.

Seeing Balon gazing at the sea, seemingly lost in thought, Euron continued, "I am your brother, and also Ironborn. As your brother, I hope to receive your protection, but as Ironborn of the Iron Islands, I do not wish to bring trouble upon us by provoking a powerful enemy. If my return confuses you, then hand me over."

"Hmph!" Balon suddenly snorted coldly, looking at Euron's ship in the distance and saying, "That's not your ship, is it? Newly stolen?"

"Yes, brother."

"Useless trash, you even managed to lose your own ship," Balon said bluntly.

Euron didn't say anything, but since Balon had cursed him, it meant he was ready to accept him.

"Three hundred years ago, if it weren't for the Targaryen dragons, the Ironborn would have been the masters of the Green Lands, and we could have enjoyed the women, fields, and castles of the Green Lands."

"Thirteen years ago, if Robert hadn't led almost the entire Seven Kingdoms to attack the Iron Islands, we would at least be in control of our own destiny and wouldn't have to kneel before anyone."

"He's just Stannis now. Do you think I'm afraid of him? Stay here for now. Even if I'm going to kick you out, I'll make sure you get your ship back."