Gohor was filled with celebration.
The victory over the Dothraki would become a defining milestone in the city's rise.
Ogo's submission pushed the people's admiration for their king to an entirely new height.
"Raise Jason's family to the rank of Landed Knights. The title will remain for three generations without reduction.
Publicize and honor their deeds. Then send Aemon and Aegon to offer condolences."
After reviewing the casualty reports, Viserys issued the order.
From the accounts of the surviving soldiers, he learned that the losses had occurred during Drogo's desperate breakout.
Jason's family had been unfortunate.
But the fact that such a minor officer had dared to stand in the path of the strongest khal of the Great Grass Sea—
That alone earned Viserys's respect.
By his estimation, Drogo now had, at most, ten thousand roaring warriors left.
Once Drogo was dealt with, he could begin preparing to hatch dragons.
But Drogo was not his only objective. Viserys intended to thoroughly cleanse the Great Grass Sea.
At the very least, before summer ended, no uncontrollable forces could remain.
This would be a massive undertaking.
And not only Gohor would benefit from it—other Free Cities would also enjoy the peace it brought.
Naturally, Viserys had no intention of letting them gain from his efforts for free.
Under the banner of a "Grand Expedition," he summoned several cities that had long suffered Dothraki raids.
Such as Volantis, Pentos, and Qohor.
In addition, to uncover how Viserys had defeated Drogo, Braavos and the Three Daughters also sent envoys.
The governor of Lys, a red priest from Myr, and the Archon of Tyrosh— Nobles and dignitaries from across Essos began converging on Gohor.
This gathering would surpass even Viserys's second coronation in scale.
But it would take time for everyone to arrive.
In the meantime, Viserys turned his attention to Westeros.
He directly issued orders to major regional capitals such as Sunspear, Highgarden, and Riverrun.
He demanded they submit reports on grain production and population data for the year.
He had not yet reclaimed the Iron Throne. But that did not stop him from acting like he already had.
This was, in essence, a method of undermining Robert's rule.
Just like his second coronation, this was another test.
A test of obedience.
Back then, it had tested the loyalty of Westerosi lords.
Now, empowered by his overwhelming victory over the Dothraki, Viserys issued direct commands.
The North, the Vale, the Riverlands, and the Westerlands— These staunch factions would never comply.
But smaller lords? Some of them might start considering playing both sides.
It was like training a dog.
Step by step.
No need to rush.
"Your Majesty, the Citadel has recently captured several people stealing books, but they have not traced it back to us," Davos reported.
Smuggling books was inevitable.
As the operation expanded, fools would inevitably get involved.
After several years, most of the Citadel's collection had already become incomplete.
For Viserys, that was more than enough.
"I understand. Do not stop the 'Bookworm Plan.' Give our little bookworms more incentives. Prioritize acquiring texts on magic, prophecy, dragon taming, and mysticism."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"And send a letter to the Citadel. Demand they hand over the mastermind behind the slander against the royal family."
"They may refuse."
"That doesn't matter. What matters is that we act.
Also, find a way to rescue those captured for stealing books. Only then can we further infiltrate the Citadel."
"Understood. Should we also spread the 'Citadel Conspiracy' narrative?"
"Not yet. Dragons have been gone for too long. For now, send them a collection of 'Citadel jokes.'"
The so-called Citadel conspiracy stemmed from Viserys's suspicion that during the reign of Aegon the Third, the extinction of dragons had been orchestrated by the Citadel.
But for now, he chose to suppress anything related to dragons.
Instead, he flooded Westeros with pamphlets exposing the supposed corruption of maesters.
Stories of exaggerating a lord's illness for profit.
Of deliberately withholding key knowledge when teaching commoners. Of manipulating information for personal gain.
Even illustrated satirical comics mocking maesters were shipped in bulk.
The Citadel claimed to serve all of Westeros. But in Viserys's eyes, they were nothing more than a shadow government.
And he intended to tear them down.
Davos could see it clearly.
Viserys was building an entirely new system of governance. One where maesters would no longer hold their traditional role.
What Davos did not realize— Was that Viserys never intended to destroy the Citadel completely.
The Citadel had existed for thousands of years.
It could not simply be erased.
And a bureaucratic system was not perfect either.
In the future, the maester system and the royal bureaucracy would compete. Each striving to prove its value.
And only through that competition—
Would the crown truly benefit.
For now, however, the Citadel was too deeply rooted. The bureaucracy was still just a sapling.
Suppressing the Citadel was merely a necessity of the present.
Of course, Viserys was not selectively targeting only them. That "fat stag" had not been spared either.
Robert Baratheon already had a terrible reputation.
With Viserys adding fuel to the fire, his infamy had only grown.
More importantly, in recent years, Viserys had frequently provoked Robert into attacking Gohor.
Whether Robert had the capability or not— He had to respond.
As a result, Westeros—once poised for a decade of peace—was now burdened by preparations for war.
Commoners could barely save any grain throughout the year.
In the Crownlands, the population of King's Landing had even dropped to four hundred thousand.
The Stormlands, Robert's homeland, bore the brunt of support. Even the nobility there had begun to cut back on spending.
Some had even returned to their wives.
The birth rate of bastards declined sharply.
"And send a letter to House Hightower. Demand they return the Targaryen dragon eggs."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
House Hightower had failed to merge their bloodline with the Targaryens.
But they still possessed dragon eggs.
Even if they refused to admit it.
Backed by the Citadel, House Hightower wielded influence far beyond its actual strength.
And that made them—
A prime target for Viserys.
___________
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