WILOW-Ch.429: New Sworn Shield
Imperial Host
POV of Domeric Bolton
Two days later.
They were on their way to King's Landing when one of Domeric's messengers came to him and told him that he had an envoy from King's Landing.
A few minutes later, he was standing face to face with Hound, who had been captured by some Northern men on the account of being a 'Lannister spy'.
He had a good laugh at that before he told them to leave Hound to him and go back to do whatever they were doing before.
Hierarchically, these men were part of the Northern army under King Eddard Stark. But Domeric now held the title of Emperor of Westeros, a claim that grew stronger each day.
And the Northern army was now part of his Imperial Host. So, he was the boss of their bosses.
Therefore, the Northern men obeyed his orders without question.
But Domeric was certain that even without being an Emperor, these men would still fulfill his request without question.
After single-handedly defeating the armies of the Westerlands, conquering Golden Tooth and Casterly Rock, Domeric possessed such prestige.
He gestured Hound to follow him, and once they were near his own army, he gave the man a horse to tell him to ride beside him.
"So… if you've decided to come here, then I assume that you've already made up your mind about serving me." He said.
The Hound nodded and said. "The Lannisters treated me like a dog. In a way, I've grown used to it. As long as you pay me enough and don't fuck me over, we'll get along well enough… your majesty. I think this is how I should address you."
He nodded.
He didn't really trust the Hound at the moment, but Domeric was now someone who was confident enough to gain the trust of others.
Of course, before the Hound could join their ranks and become one of the knights, he had to sign many magical contracts and accept Domeric's magical tattoo.
Perhaps he could have used loyalty charms on him when he first arrived in this world. But since then, his damaged soul had healed, and Domeric refrained from using such magic now.
In his opinion, the magical contracts and the magical tattoo were sufficient to prevent someone from betraying him.
Thanks to these precautions, the Hound couldn't reveal Domeric's secrets to anyone else, and if he tried to betray him, he would automatically be punished for breaking the contracts.
But these precautions didn't take away the Hound's will, and Domeric had to make an effort to win his loyalty.
And if the Hound ever wanted to leave his side, he had to go to him and ask. Then Domeric could revise the contracts and release him from his duty.
In that situation, the Hound still wouldn't be able to share Domeric's secrets with anyone else, but whether his actions benefited or harmed Domeric wouldn't cause him any trouble.
And Domeric considered himself quite generous in this regard.
In this era, many lords expected those who pledged their loyalty to remain so for life, and those who sought to be relieved of this oath usually lost their heads.
Dismissal was a punishment reserved for nobles, and they usually confiscated the possessions of those dismissed.
Because, according to the lords, their subordinates had acquired these assets thanks to them.
But Domeric never thought things would get to this point with the Hound.
Plus, he had heard that despite his upbringing, Sandor Clegane had a decent moral code.
Maybe he hated his brother for burning his face and just didn't want to become like the Mountain.
And aside from what he'd heard, Domeric knew from what he'd seen of throughout this world's destiny line that the Hound wasn't a bad person.
Yes, he was crude and foul-mouthed, but at least he knew what loyalty was. In this respect, he compared him to Bronn.
"You don't need to worry about that." He said, "I would not have gained so many great subordinates if I didn't treat them right."
After that, roping Sandor into his entourage was easy.
He might not be as skilled in swordsmanship as Jamie Lannister, but he had the experience, the strength, and the sheer brutality to make up for the difference.
All in all, he was easily one of the top 10 deadliest warriors in Westeros.
And once the Hound and Ser Barristan were loyal to him, he would give them the necessary body enhancements as well. After that, they would then be able to match even Varko and Raksa and be able to hold back a weaker White Walker on their own.
After that talk, he and Sandor set up some contracts, and the Hound joined his entourage by the end of the day.
Now Domeric had his eye on another warrior: Brienne of Tarth.
Domeric knew she was with the Tyrell army. Normally, Brianne should have joined Renly Baratheon's Kingsguard and become his knight.
But because of Domeric, this civil war had accelerated far more than it should have, and Stannis had killed Renly before Brianne could reach him.
Despite this, Brianne had gone to King's Landing with the Tyrells. Most likely to avenge Renly.
Domeric planned to summon her and invite her to join his ranks once they arrived in King's Landing.
Bronn, Varko, Raksa, Barristan Selmy, Sandor Clegane, Brienne of Tarth. These were the best warriors in Westeros.
He had handed the Mountain over to Dorne, and even if he hadn't, he wasn't someone he wanted by his side.
And Oberyn Martell wasn't someone who would be someone else's sworn shield.
Therefore, Brianne was one of the last important warriors he could recruit into his ranks.
But Domeric had someone else in mind. However, he would need to use his newfound power, gained after contacting Tyene, to speak with him.
And even if he used his power to contact him, he wasn't sure he would accept his offer.
But it didn't matter whether he accepted.
Once Domeric recruited Brianne and performed a body-enhancement ritual on the new recruits, his Dark Knights would become an unstoppable force.
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Next Chapters' Name:
Ch.430: A Reckless and Desperate Plan
Ch.431: Incompetent Tyrells
Ch.432: The Gathering of All Armies