After the battle

Essos, the Dothraki Sea

"Caw!" "Caw!" "Caw!"

The cawing of crows rang out across the vast Dothraki grasslands, and the plains returned to their original silence.

The soldiers of Eren's army began cleaning up the battlefield, collecting bodies and recovering equipment that could still be used, along with warhorses whose owners were gone.

The soldiers butchered the horses killed in battle and dried their meat into jerky to keep as emergency rations for future campaigns.

After all, there were too many mouths to feed now, and anything edible had to be collected.

The Dothraki who had surrendered were lined up and brought together in groups, waiting to be incorporated into Eren's army once he had taken in the elderly, women, and children of Drogo's Khalasar.

Modun opened his giant hand and looked at the pulp that was Drogo's body, crushed to death in his grip. Only a long braid could still be faintly made out in that mass of flesh, proof that Drogo had once existed in this world.

Khal Drogo, a character who had appeared only briefly in the original story, had also lost his life to Eren on these grasslands.

Still, compared to his miserable death in the original story, dying in battle might have let him rest easier.

After killing Drogo, Modun came before the surrendered soldiers and asked them directly:

"Who is your Khal?"

When the captive soldiers below heard the giant's question, someone in the crowd said quietly:

"Khal Drogo, the man you just crushed to death."

When Modun heard that their Khal was named Drogo, and that he was the man he had just crushed to death, he thought that the king had indeed guessed correctly. That astonishingly powerful fighter really had been their Khal.

Modun ordered his men to keep the surrendered soldiers under guard and count them, then had his subordinates tally his own troops' casualties before returning to report to Eren.

Modun ran swiftly in his giant body to a spot about ten meters in front of Eren, then made the giant kneel on one knee.

A hiss rang out.

Then Modun ended his giant transformation. With several bloody strands clinging to his face, he slowly emerged from the nape of the giant's neck, broke the strands, and jumped down from the giant's body.

He came before Eren, saluted him, and said:

"Your Majesty, the enemy Khal has been slain. His name was Drogo. Apart from those who stubbornly resisted and were wiped out, all the remaining enemies have surrendered and are now under guard by our men. Our army suffered 5,123 dead and 295 severely wounded."

Eren was genuinely surprised to hear that this was Drogo's Khalasar. After all, Drogo was Daenerys's future first husband in the original story.

He was said to have never lost a battle since he first began fighting, and he wore a long braid down his back. His father had been a Khal, and when he grew up, he inherited the position from him. He could certainly be considered one of fortune's favorites.

Unfortunately, he had been short-lived in the original story. In the end, a witch's Blood Magic had left him in a vegetative state, after which Daenerys Targaryen smothered him in bed. A hero all his life, yet he had died such a miserable death.

Eren merely reflected for a moment on this character from the original story. Since he was dead now, there was no need to dwell on him.

Eren told Modun to keep the surrendered soldiers under guard and find a few cooperative men among them to lead the way to Drogo's Khalasar. Modun accepted the order and went to select guides from among the prisoners.

Before long, Modun brought three men before Eren. He had picked them at random from among the prisoners. After all, there were plenty of cooperative men. Those who surrendered generally valued their lives and were all desperate to make their presence known.

After Modun brought the three men before Eren, Eren had him stay behind and lead the troops escorting the prisoners back to his camp. These prisoners, however, would not have to be crammed in with the people from Slaver's Bay. Once Eren bestowed holy water upon these Dothraki,

they would be incorporated into his army. Fighting and annexation between Khalasars were common among the Dothraki. Taking the people of a defeated Khalasar into one's own was perfectly normal to them, and they would obey the stronger men who had defeated them.

Thus, these Dothraki prisoners naturally received different treatment from the prisoners from Slaver's Bay.

Eren also specifically instructed Modun to detach a force of one thousand men to escort the severely wounded safely to the church, where they would wait for Eren to bestow his blessing upon them.

Eren himself led his troops toward Drogo's Khalasar. He gave each of the three guides a horse and had them lead the way.

He and Link followed behind with the thirty thousand men who had been overseeing the battle. He had already questioned the three guides, and ten thousand guards remained at Drogo's Khalasar. If he went without bringing some men, incorporating them would be troublesome, and he would have to transform into a giant himself. Bringing the army was also meant to make the process easier.

Following the guides, Eren arrived outside Drogo's Khalasar camp. There appeared to be quite a few elderly people, women, and children inside.

The soldiers left to guard it also matched what the three guides had said: there were indeed ten thousand of them. Eren immediately ordered Link to lead the army in surrounding the entire Khalasar and let no one escape, not even a dog.

When the people inside the Khalasar saw someone leading an army to surround the entire camp, they all panicked, because Drogo had taken most of their main force away to intercept the enemy.

Now the Khalasar was surrounded, yet Drogo was nowhere to be seen. Things had probably gone badly for him.

The Ko left with the ten-thousand-strong garrison was gathering his subordinates to discuss whether they should surrender or resist.

"At this point, we might as well surrender. Changing Khalasars is common enough among us Dothraki anyway."

"No, it's too early to surrender now. Perhaps if we hold out for a while, the Khal will bring the army to rescue us."

"You're still waiting for the Khal? They've already had guides bring them here. The Khal has probably died in battle. Surely all of us can't die with him."

"What are you saying? You haven't seen the Khal's body. How do you know he's dead? Perhaps the guides are just a few captured scouts who led the enemy around the Khal's army and brought them here."

"Yes, yes, perhaps the enemy just took a detour to get here. As long as we hold out for a while, the Khal will save us."

"Don't be stupid. How could a force that large get around them so easily? How long would that take? If the enemy really had taken a detour, wouldn't the Khal have noticed?"

Listening to the arguments below him, the Ko seated at the head also began to wonder whether the Khal was alive or dead. By rights, if the enemy really had taken a detour, Khal Drogo should have noticed after so much time.

Had Drogo really been defeated by the enemy? But if he had truly lost, why had not even a single man escaped to bring word back?

The Ko could not make sense of the current situation either. If the Khal really was dead, he certainly would not fight to the bitter end. After all, the Dothraki had only submitted to the Khal because he was strong enough. If the Khal died, none of the other Dothraki apart from his Bloodriders would continue risking their lives for him.

After all, their lives were their own. Just as the discussion reached a stalemate, a soldier's voice came from outside the tent:

"Ko Rolo, the enemy has sent someone to negotiate with us. Our men saw that it was Ko Moro."