Chapter 112: Disputed Lands, Capture of Lys
Daemon rode upon the Blood Wyrm Caraxes, soaring over the Disputed Lands.
This was a fertile land, filled with palm trees and coconut trees, where corn kernels were plump, olive oil was fragrant, and pumpkins were larger and sweeter than those in the Reach and the Vale. Additionally, there were sweet fruits like star apples, dragon fruit, and pineapples.
After capturing Tyrosh, it was only a matter of time before Daemon conquered the Disputed Lands, provided he continued to capture Lys and Myr. This land was fertile and had a pleasant climate, but due to frequent historical wars, many towns were destroyed, leaving behind ruins, bones, and ashes. The population was mostly concentrated in manors, which were properties of wealthy merchants and city dwellers from Lys, Myr, and Tyrosh.
Lys, Myr, and Tyrosh were all wealthy and powerful Free Cities. If the Three Daughters united, they would become a serious threat to surrounding city-states and Westeros. The formation of the Triarchy, which once captured the Stepstones and attempted to monopolize its shipping lanes, was a good example of this. Fortunately, the historically discordant Three Daughters often fought each other, rising and falling in power, leaving the war-torn Disputed Lands ravaged.
It wasn't until 96 AC that Myr, Lys, and Tyrosh joined forces to expel the Volantis army that had invaded the Disputed Lands. The Three Daughters declared a permanent alliance, forming the Triarchy. From then on, wars in the Disputed Lands ceased, and manors and villages sprouted like mushrooms after rain across the land.
If Daemon had not attacked the Triarchy, allowing them to develop in the Disputed Lands, it would have become much harder for Westeros to defeat the Triarchy once the Disputed Lands prospered and rose.
The Disputed Lands and the three excellent ports of Myr, Lys, and Tyrosh were sufficient to serve as the base for Daemon's kingdom. Once he established his empire by relying on the Three Daughters and the Stepstones, Daemon could move west to ally with the Iron Throne and besiege Dorne, or north to threaten the militarily weak Pentos. If he moved east, he could contend for supremacy with Volantis, and if he advanced inland, the Khals of the Great Grass Sea and the fertile Rhoyne River basin would all become targets for Daemon's future conquests.
After Daemon captured the Triarchy's camp, he took over three thousand slaves and sellswords, as well as free citizens. Daemon freed the slaves, integrating them into the Dragon's Servants Army. As for the free citizens and sellswords, they were all reduced to forced laborers. Forced laborers were not slaves and could not be bought or sold, but their treatment was similar to that of slaves.
In the spacious tent left by the governors, Daemon, along with Lord Dustin, the Tomb Wolf, Ronald Florent, Ryan Stark, and others, enjoyed honey-glazed venison, roasted suckling pig, and roasted peacock, washing it all down with amber sweet wine.
Lord Dustin wiped the grease with a handkerchief. His squire, Tyland Lannister, refilled his cup. Lord Dustin said, "We should continue to hunt down the Archon of Tyrosh and those accursed governors."
Ryan Stark, tall and slender with gray hair and gray eyes, always looked troubled. He was the nephew of the Lord of Winterfell. He said, "In the forest, if it hadn't been for the Sellsword Company, we likely would have captured those fat, bloated governors."
Ronald Florent let out a burp. "The Sellsword Company is just a bunch of men who have abandoned the Faith of the Seven. I heard the commander of the Sellsword Company is an anointed knight from the west of Westeros, named Kraznys Lannister."
Daemon turned to his squire, Tyland Lannister. "Tyland, do you know this Kraznys Lannister?"
Daemon had originally ordered all his squires to remain in Tyrosh, but they all begged to follow the cavalry expedition. In the end, Tom Staunton and Matthew Tyrell stayed in Tyrosh, responsible for looking after Daemon's children. Only Tyland Lannister got the chance to join the expedition, and he was exceptionally excited about it.
Tyland Lannister revealed a mischievous smile. "I've known Kresan since I was very young, but he's a Lannister of Lannisport, not a Lannister of Casterly Rock. We Lannisters are a large family, and Kresan is just a distant relative. A few years ago, he served as my father's guard at Casterly Rock, and then he went to the Stepstones to become a sellsword."
In Westeros, many nobles bore noble surnames but had no lands or properties to inherit. The most unfortunate were the younger sons of noble families; simply because they were younger than their eldest brother, they lost their inheritance rights, watching helplessly as their elder brother inherited the castle and everything of the family. They could only pack their bags and seek a living far away.
Becoming sellswords was a reluctant choice for many noble younger sons. Before the formation of the Triarchy, Lys, Myr, and Tyrosh were constantly at war in the Disputed Lands. During these wars, Myr, Lys, and Tyrosh, valuing the lives of their city residents and distrusting war slaves, had no choice but to recruit sellswords for battle. More and more Westerosi, many of whom were noble younger sons, went to fight in the Disputed Lands. In this context, the Sellsword Company came into being.
Now, the commander of the Sellsword Company was a Lannister, and most of the Sellsword Company's sellswords came from Westeros. Daemon might be able to use this to incite the Sellsword Company to switch sides on the battlefield. Sellswords loved money and lacked a sense of honor; in the Disputed Lands, sellswords defecting was a common occurrence.
After two days of rest, the army broke camp and began marching toward Lys.
Daemon was about to mount Caraxes when Tyland Lannister walked over.
"Your Highness, there are many manors along the way. The enemy's governors and wounded may have fled into these manors. Why don't we attack them? Perhaps Vhagar is hidden in a manor."
This was overheard by the Tomb Wolf, who frowned and said, "Boy, if there truly was a manor that could hide Vhagar, it would have to be a giant's manor. We are going to attack Lys. What good would it do to attack these manors?"
Tyland Lannister said, "To attack Lys, we need ships to cross the sea. It will take several days for Lord Corlys Velaryon's fleet to reach Lys. Even if we reach the coast, we might still have to wait for ships before we can cross to attack Lys. Instead of waiting idly by the sea, why not attack and plunder these manors along the way?"
The Tomb Wolf snorted. "We don't have siege engines, and cavalry aren't good at sieges. Some of these slave masters' manors are already the size of small Westerosi castles."
Daemon smiled. "Tomb Wolf, who said we don't have siege engines? We have dragons."
Princess Rhaenys Targaryen had already ridden Meleys, the Red Queen, to the coast to rendezvous with the Westerosi fleet. Princess Rhaenys would command the dragon, helping the Velaryon Fleet, the Sistermen Fleet, and the Ironborn Fleet to deal with any potential Triarchy fleet they might encounter.
Currently, the Westerosi army only had Daemon's mount, Caraxes, one dragon, which was more than enough to deal with manors.
A large marble manor by the main road unfortunately became the first target of the Westerosi army. Westerosi cavalry, raising the three-headed dragon banner, appeared at the manor's gate.
The manor lord was a fat man from Tyrosh, his forked beard dyed crimson and deep purple. He stood on the wall with a group of sellswords and war slaves, drawing bows and aiming at the cavalry below.
The manor lord's accent was wet and coarse. He said angrily, "You Westerosi barbarians, you've already captured Tyrosh, and now you still want to plunder my manor! I will never surrender!"
The sound of leathery wings flapping echoed in the air. The shadow of Caraxes, the Blood Wyrm, enveloped the wall. Daemon, majestic, rode upon the dragon's back.
The war slaves and sellswords were gripped by fear, dropping their bows and fleeing. The manor lord instantly wet himself. Before he could even speak, a stream of dragonfire erupted, instantly engulfing him in flames. He screamed and tumbled from the wall.
When the dragon breathed fire, the bronze gate melted, and the walls began to collapse. Inside the manor, shouts of battle erupted as slaves killed the overseers and sellswords. In this manner, the Westerosi army easily captured the first manor. The knights plundered chests of gold coins and mountains of ham and dried fish.
Slaves gathered around Daemon. A moonsinger blessed Daemon in a language he did not understand; an old man knelt and kissed Daemon's war boots; a pregnant woman requested to name her unborn child after Daemon.
The Westerosi army liberated manors and villages along the way, freeing slaves. Manors that surrendered voluntarily were left untouched, while manor lords who attempted to resist were all executed, hanged along the roadsides, with crows feasting on their bodies.
When Daemon arrived at the Lys coast with his army, a Lys fleet was guarding the area. Daemon immediately commanded Caraxes to attack. The painted warships caught fire one after another and scattered.
The next day, the Ironborn Fleet, the Sistermen Fleet, and the Velaryon Fleet successively arrived at the Lys coast. Princess Rhaenys also arrived, riding Meleys.
In the cabin of the Sea Snake, Daemon met with Lord Corlys Velaryon and Princess Rhaenys. Lord Corlys, dressed in a robe of crystal silk, said, "Prince Daemon, the Sealord of Braavos's fleet has already reached Pentos. The Sealord, the Prince of Pentos, and the governors have issued us an ultimatum. They threaten that if the Westerosi army does not withdraw from Tyrosh, they will march on Tyrosh and the Stepstones at any time."
Out of fear of dragons, Braavos and Pentos could not allow dragons to annex Tyrosh. Braavos and Pentos were already on the verge of war with the Iron Throne, though the war would likely only unfold within the Triarchy's territory and would not currently spread to Braavos and Pentos.
Daemon sneered. "If their fleet dares to enter Tyrosh waters, Gael Targaryen and Laenor Velaryon will ride their dragons and give them a grand welcome."
In recent years, Braavos, Pentos, and the Iron Throne had good relations. Years ago, they even protested the Triarchy's hegemony in the Stepstones together. Now that Daemon had become the hegemon of the Stepstones and seemed poised to annex the Triarchy, Braavos and Pentos allied with the Triarchy to resist Daemon.
Daemon planned to conquer the Triarchy, and the militarily weak Pentos was his next target. As for Braavos, Daemon planned to attack the Secret City after spring arrived and the North recovered. Braavos was closer to White Harbor in the North and was a maritime overlord. Daemon needed the North's assistance to completely conquer powerful Braavos.
Rhaenys worried, "The Volantis fleet and army are advancing by land and sea toward Lys. If we besiege Lys and the Volantis fleet launches a surprise attack from behind, we will be caught between two fires."
Volantis was another threat. When the Valyrian Freehold defeated the Rhoynar city-state alliance, Volantis occupied the mouth of the Rhoyne River. Not only did Volantis accumulate vast wealth, but even its subordinate towns like Volon Therys, Valysar, and Selhorys prospered unprecedentedly. These towns even surpassed Oldtown, the largest city in Westeros, in size and population.
Volantis always considered itself the eldest daughter of Old Valyria. After Valyria's downfall, Volantis constantly dreamed of becoming a hegemon. They had always coveted the fertile Disputed Lands and had invaded them many times throughout history. Now, Daemon was attacking the Three Daughters, and Lys, Myr, and Tyrosh, unable to resist the dragons, could only seek help from their old enemy, Volantis.
Facing the threat of the Volantis army, Daemon calmly said, "We will capture Lys before the Volantene reinforcements arrive."
The Westerosi army and Dragon's Servants Army's warships landed on several islands in the Lys archipelago. The Triarchy's mercenaries crumbled before the dragons, fleeing back to Lys.
Trade Prince Manolas of Lys, the Archon of Tyrosh, and Governor Borathi of Myr stood on the walls of Lys, watching the mercenaries and war slaves pour into the city in disarray, with shouts, cries, and curses everywhere. The enemy fleet, dense and menacing, approached the city, and the dragons in the sky instantly plunged them into despair.
Manolas's Adam's apple bobbed in fear. "Why aren't the Braavosi and Volantene fleets here yet? We should escape quickly!"
The Archon of Tyrosh said dejectedly, "The Westerosi army has completely controlled the sea routes. We have no escape. I suggest immediately executing all the slaves in the city; otherwise, if the enemy reaches the city walls, these slaves will sooner or later revolt and respond to Daemon outside the city."
Manolas became agitated. "No! Those slaves are the slave owners' assets. If I order the massacre of slaves, the slave owners will be the first to lead the slaves in revolt. Tyrosh is a military fortress and was still captured by Daemon. Lys cannot possibly hold. If it really comes to it, we can consider surrendering. As long as I offer the Qartheen bed slaves, Braavosi courtesans, Summer Islander priestesses of love, and handsome men to please Daemon, he will surely accept our surrender."
The Archon of Tyrosh's expression changed. "Where is your courage? Daemon will take the beauties and then feed all of you to his dragons."
Governor Borathi of Myr pondered for a moment. "We cannot surrender, but we can pretend to surrender."
Manolas and the Archon immediately leaned in to listen. Borathi said grimly, "We'll pretend to surrender and lure Daemon and Rhaenys into the city. Once Daemon and Rhaenys enter, we will kill these two dragonriders and their dragons."
The Archon snorted. "If we could slay dragons, would we have fallen to this state?"
Borathi patiently explained, "The Lysene Alchemists' Guild has stored a large amount of wildfire. As long as we lure Daemon and Rhaenys to the place where the wildfire is stored, if their dragons breathe fire, it will ignite the wildfire, causing Daemon and Rhaenys to die with their dragons."
Manolas and the Archon suddenly understood, and both broke into triumphant smiles.
Soon, Lys raised the white flag. Trade Prince Manolas of Lys personally came as an envoy to Daemon's camp on the coastal hill.
Manolas humbly said, "Prince Daemon, the Triarchy has witnessed the power of the dragons. On behalf of the Triarchy, I surrender to you. From now on, the people of Lys, Myr, and Tyrosh will be your most loyal servants."
Daemon immediately grew suspicious, but he feigned a happy expression. "You finally have self-knowledge. As long as you are willing to surrender, everything can be discussed. What about those slaves?"
Manolas said earnestly, "Those slaves are at Prince Daemon's disposal. Please, Prince Daemon, enter the city quickly. I have selected dozens of beautiful women and prepared a grand feast at the House of Love to welcome you and the lords of Westeros!"
At this, Daemon confirmed it was a trick. Daemon smiled and said, "Open your city gates, and we will enter tomorrow."
After Manolas left, the Tomb Wolf let out a hearty laugh. "The people of Lys only open brothels; they are soft in their actions, far less resolute than the people of Tyrosh. We captured Tyrosh and brought our army to their walls, and the people of Lys indeed could only surrender."
Rhaenys's delicate brows furrowed slightly. "This is too easy. I originally thought there would be a siege, but I didn't expect the enemy to surrender so easily."
Daemon smiled and said, "It's simple, because the enemy is feigning surrender…"
Then Daemon called for the Lys handmaiden and Princess Saera Targaryen.
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