His answer took Daemon by surprise; he had expected his words to shame Rayder into abandoning the idea of fleeing, but Rayder was unexpectedly brazen.
Rhaenys stared nervously at the fierce Gryphon King, which was about to pounce, a bitter feeling rising in her heart.
She knew that if this ferocious beast got close, she would likely be unable to fend it off.
So, she made a snap decision, unhesitatingly ordering her dragon, the Red Queen Meleys, to quickly ascend and prepare for battle.
After all, on the ground, her skills would be greatly limited, making her an easy target, like a living bullseye.
In the air, she and the Red Queen Meleys's mobility would be fully utilized, which would undoubtedly increase their chances of victory.
Rhaenys knew perfectly well that Rayder, from the continent of Essos, had no attachment to the continent of Westeros.
Once the situation turned unfavorable, he would undoubtedly make a quick escape.
However, as a member of the Targaryen royal family, as owners of this land, they bore the heavy responsibility of fighting the Others and protecting this land.
Just then, Daemon glimpsed Rhaenys already soaring into the sky on her dragon, the Red Queen Meleys.
His face instantly turned extremely grim, and he glared angrily at Rayder, then unhesitatingly mounted his Bloodworm Caraxes and followed her like an arrow shot from a bow.
At this moment, Rayder was completely unconcerned by Daemon's angry stare.
In fact, he was quite satisfied with the current situation.
He decided to bide his time and observe the development of the situation.
If a suitable opportunity arose, he would absolutely not show mercy to this Gryphon King and the Cold God, and would strike to kill.
But if the situation turned against him, he would not hesitate for a moment, and would immediately turn and flee.
Anyway, he had not been in Westeros for long, and even that insignificant territory could be abandoned at any time.
At first, Rayder might not have fully understood King Jaehaerys's intentions, but as time passed and events unfolded, he finally realized.
It turned out that the King's arrangement of his territory in Nüquan City was not accidental, but carefully considered.
Its purpose was simply to place Rayder under his direct jurisdiction, keeping him under his watchful eye to better monitor and control him.
However, what King Jaehaerys had not anticipated was that Rayder was completely indifferent to the so-called territorial noble title.
In Nüquan City, Rayder easily suppressed the local forces simply by relying on the dragon's formidable power,
Then he unhesitatingly took the dragon north, heading straight for the North.
Even more unexpectedly, when leaving Nüquan City, Rayder had swept up all the meat in the entire city,
This rendered many of the King's intended methods to restrict Rayder completely useless.
The Red Queen Meleys, a dragon renowned for her speed, indeed lived up to her reputation.
Her takeoff speed was incredibly fast, like lightning; in just a few breaths, she shot up a hundred meters into the sky like an arrow from a bow.
At the same time, the Gryphon King, diving down from the sky, also showed no weakness, and the two instantly engaged in a thrilling battle in the air.
In this fierce battle, the Red Queen Meleys launched the first attack,
She opened her massive mouth and spewed out blazing Dragon Flame, like a torrent of scorching heat, directly at the Gryphon King.
Facing such fierce Dragon Flame, the Gryphon King had no means of long-range attack, but the Cold God on his back displayed astonishing power.
The Cold God quickly cast ice magic, covering the Gryphon King's body with a thick layer of profound ice armor,
This armor, like an unbreakable shield, effectively resisted the scorching of the Dragon Flame.
With the Dragon Flame not achieving its expected effect, the Gryphon King displayed astonishing speed and agility,
Instantly closing in on the Red Queen Meleys, and engaging in a thrilling close-quarters combat.
The Gryphon King's massive talons were as hard as steel, each swing delivering immense destructive power, no less than a dragon's claws.
Even more surprisingly, the Gryphon King's body was encased in a layer of profound ice armor, which meant that when the Red Queen Meleys's claws scratched his body,
Not only did it fail to cause substantial damage, but it also sparked a dazzling shower of sparks.
The moment the Gryphon King closed in, the Red Queen Meleys immediately fell into a distinct disadvantage,
Completely suppressed by the Gryphon King's ferocious attacks, she could only passively endure his onslaught.
The Gryphon King's talons, like sharp blades, easily tore through the Red Queen Meleys's hard scales, leaving large and hideous wounds on her body.
Blood gushed from the wounds like a spring, and hot dragon blood scattered in the air, like a storm of blood.
This high-temperature dragon blood, falling on the snow-covered ground, instantly melted the snow with the heat it carried, forming a large amount of water vapor.
The water vapor rapidly evaporated and sublimated, forming wisps of smoke that enveloped the entire battlefield in a haze.
However, this sudden rain of dragon blood brought disaster to some unlucky rangers and craftsmen.
Unable to dodge in time, they were drenched in the scalding dragon blood, instantly appearing as if they had been severely burned by raging fire, a truly gruesome sight.
Rayder's eyes widened as he watched the rangers before him, their flesh and blood having been burned beyond recognition by the dragon blood, a terrible sight.
In some places, exposed bones were visible, and these bones had already been charred black, as if seared by hellfire.
Facing these tragic scenes, a hint of pity arose in Rayder's heart, but he also knew that in such a brutal battle, death and injury were unavoidable.
So, he silently mourned for these unfortunate people for half a second, a small gesture to soothe the reproaches of his insignificant conscience.
Just then, Daemon noticed that the Red Queen Meleys was gradually falling behind in her battle with the Gryphon King, and the situation was extremely critical.
He unhesitatingly commanded Bloodworm Caraxes to quickly join the battle and support the Red Queen.
Upon receiving the command, Bloodworm Caraxes instantly charged into the battlefield like a red lightning bolt.
He opened his massive dragon mouth and spewed out a blazing Dragon Flame, directly at the Gryphon King.
However, the profound ice armor on the Gryphon King's body seemed to possess some powerful defensive capability, as it easily blocked this Dragon Flame.
Seeing this, Bloodworm Caraxes roared and attacked again.
His massive dragon mouth bit fiercely at the Gryphon King; this time he clearly used all his strength, and even the defense of the profound ice armor was forcibly broken by his bite.
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