Alicent stood up suddenly, breathing a little unsteadily.
She understood that Redd and Rhaenyra would not compromise. What they asked for was the king's complete bow and commitment.
And she and House Hightower can either accept this condition and share power in the name of future queen and prince/princess (but the core power is in the hands of Rhaenyra),
Either we have to face a strong opposition united around Rhaenyra, who possesses dragons and eastern wealth, and may even trigger a civil war.
"... I understand." Alicent whispered, his voice trembling a little, "Thank you for your... frankness, Master Redd.
I will convey your message to His Majesty the King and my father."
She bowed hastily and left the room, almost as if fleeing.
Redd looked at her back as she left in a hurry, knowing that her words tonight would soon reach the ears of Viserys and Otto·Hai Tarth.
The pressure has been put on you, it just depends on the other party's choice.
He picked up the book about Gaugossus and the Red Death, but his mind was no longer entirely on it.
Basilisk Isles's radiation source, Vale's potential allies, Laena's fight for it, the sea Tarth family's tests... a complicated web was unfolding in front of him.
And every move he makes affects the final shape of this net.
The night is still very long, but some people may not be able to sleep all night long.
Although Rhaenyra tried his best to persuade her, she ultimately failed to change Laena's decision, and the latter firmly chose not to support her.
At the same time, Laenor also made it clear that he could do nothing to help with this matter.
Faced with such a situation, Rhaenyra set out on his way home full of loss and dejection.
All this was seen by Mesalia, who was observing silently from the side.
She was keenly aware that Laena was obviously dissatisfied with his current marital life, while Laenor showed strong resistance to family constraints.
However, due to restrictions from family and parental factors, they never dare to challenge authority easily and choose to submit.
On the way back, Mesalia arranged for personnel to conduct an in-depth investigation to understand the recent situation of Laena and Laenor.
With its extensive intelligence network, relevant information quickly surfaced:
It turned out that Lanna had tried to escape from Westeros and go to Free Federation city, but was blocked by Rhaenys;
As for Laenor, there were rumors that he preferred men. Fortunately, Corlys Earl intervened in time and successfully suppressed these rumors, and later ordered Laenor to be placed under house arrest.
After obtaining first-hand information, Mesalia conveyed the information to Rhaenyra without hesitation, and specifically reminded her to go home and discuss the next plan with Master Redd.
After all, the current situation is urgent and we must come up with a countermeasure as soon as possible.
Rhaenyra was helpless and felt that he had no other choice but to follow Mesalia's suggestions and hope that Redd could provide some effective solutions.
After the two came back, Redd rushed forward like a hungry tiger, and without hesitation held the two women tightly in his arms.
He thought to himself, "Without you two by my side, it would be really boring for me to be alone!"
Seeing this situation, Rhaenyra hurriedly said, "Redd, listen to me quickly, we have found important information today..."
As she spoke, she told Redd what happened in detail.
Mesalia, who was standing on the other side, timely intervened to add some key information.
Redd listened quietly to what they said. After listening, he gently patted the two women's shoulders to express comfort and encouragement.
Then, he pulled up a chair and asked the three of them to sit next to him.
After a moment of silence, Redd finally broke the deadlock and said slowly to Rhaenyra:
"Since Corlys and Rhaenys are so ungrateful and ungrateful, let's just eradicate them both.
I just don't know if you have the guts to implement this plan?"
Hearing this, Rhaenyra couldn't help being shocked.
She never expected that Redd would come up with such a vicious strategy - you know, the other party is the dignified Earl and his wife!
Executing them so easily would probably have disastrous consequences...
Rhaenyra's body tensed up instantly and he broke free from Redd's arms. His violet eyes were filled with shock and a hint of horror.
"Get rid of Corlys and Rhaenys? Are you crazy?!"
Her voice rose with excitement, "They are the lord and lady of House Velaryon, the masters of Driftmark, and the most powerful naval commander of Seven Kingdoms!"
Murdering them? Not to mention how difficult it is, once the matter is exposed, we will become the target of the entire Westeros!
The Hai Tarth family, the Lannister family, and even those who might otherwise sympathize with us, will use this as an excuse to unite against us!"
Her chest heaved, obviously shocked by this simple, rude and extremely dangerous proposal.
Although Mysaria was hugged by Redd, he was still holding his breath and concentrating, his eyes moving quickly between Redd and Rhaenyra, assessing the situation.
But Redd seemed to have anticipated her fierce reaction. He easily let go of Mysaria and motioned for her to stand aside first.
Then he stood up, walked to Rhaenyra, pressed her slightly trembling shoulders with both hands, and forced her to look at him calmly.
"Look at me, Rhaenyra." Redd's voice was not high, but extremely calm, with a kind of cruel rationality.
"I didn't say that you should go to Driftmark with your sword and kill them personally, nor did I say that you would publicly assassinate them on the streets of King's Landing. What I said was 'get rid of', and there are many ways to do it."
He took a step back slightly and began to pace, as if analyzing a chess game.
"Why can Corlys and Rhaenys stop Laena and Laenor?
Because they are parents and the authority of the family, they control resources and pressure.
What if they... suddenly disappeared due to some 'accident'? For example, an unfortunate shipwreck? A sudden illness?
Or, a seemingly external enemy attack targeting Driftmark?"
Rhaenyra's face was still pale, but thoughts began to surge in his eyes.
She is not an innocent girl and knows that the game of thrones is accompanied by blood.
"This... is too risky. Any 'accident' is likely to be investigated, especially involving such an important person.
House Velaryon is not monolithic inside, there will always be people who will suspect and investigate..."
"That's why we need Mysaria." Redd stopped and looked at Master of Whisperers, "Her specialty is making things look 'logical'.
Arranging a shipwreck in a storm requires precise weather intelligence, ship conditions, and crew selection; a serious illness requires knowledge of Driftmark's doctors, sources of medicine, and their daily habits;
An external attack requires careful planning and placing the blame on a suitable target - for example, a certain pirate force that has been in conflict with the Valerian family.
Or... other forces that have ambitions for the Targaryen throne."