Chapter 172: Pentos Rhapsody (Part 5)
"I will take fifty men with me to escort these two decoys out. I will take them to the Red Temple in the west of the city." Ian and his knights found the Unsullied commander, Blue Maggot, in the front courtyard of the manse.
"After that," he pointed to the Targaryen siblings, who were heavily wrapped up and mixed among the servants, "you must tighten the manse's defenses and lead all the Unsullied to protect my king and princess as they retreat to the keep in the back hills. Remember, ensure the safety of the king and princess."
"What about the manse below?" Blue Maggot looked puzzled.
"Nothing is more important than the safety of the king and princess! Obey my orders, or if anything goes wrong, Magister Illyrio will hold you responsible." Ian shrugged and showed Blue Maggot the Harpy's Whip from Steward Mills's person.
"Excuse me, where is Steward Mills? Lord Illyrio has handed over command to Steward Mills. I think we need to discuss this further." Blue Maggot hesitated regarding the order.
"There's been a new development. The steward has gone to the Grand Council to see the Magister, and he handed me the whip before he left. In short, given that today's civil conflict will be exceptionally fierce, my opinion is to gather all forces to ensure the safety of my king and his sister. What's your opinion?"
"I..." Blue Maggot paused. "I understand. The Magister and Steward Mills trust you, and I am willing to obey your command."
The Unsullied commander ultimately chose to follow Ian's advice. After all, Astapor had only taught these eunuchs how to fight and obey, not how to think. Blue Maggot then immediately selected fifty Unsullied for Ian.
After seeing Celia and the false Targaryen siblings in their red robes onto the carriage, Ian, along with Darren, Keith, and Yada, rode behind the carriage, accompanied by the fifty Unsullied, leaving Illyrio's manse.
Ian had originally intended to take these Unsullied with him, since he had obtained the whip.
However, judging from the fact that Blue Maggot still questioned his orders after he had just shown the whip, it was clear that Illyrio's Unsullied no longer regarded the whip as the highest object of obedience, so he had to abandon this plan.
The Unsullied only recognized the whip, not the person, when they were first sold by Astapor. Once bought, as long as their new master gave them an order that placed the person above the whip, they would become loyal to people first, then the whip.
An ironic example is when Daenerys liberated the Unsullied, saying she was granting them freedom so they could fight for her as free men. Then she threw away the whip, yet the Unsullied still fought for her.
She thought the Unsullied fought for her because of freedom, but that wasn't the case. The Unsullied didn't even know what the word "freedom" meant—they fought for Daenerys purely because she had given them orders while wielding the whip.
Daenerys's words, translated into the Unsullied's comprehension, meant: 'This whip is useless; from now on, you will fight only for me.' Thus, the Unsullied would only recognize her.
As for freedom? I'm not well-educated; don't give me those obscure words I don't understand.
"Go and inform the guards everywhere to assemble at the keep on the back hill," Blue Maggot ordered his lieutenant after watching Ian and the others leave, then looked at another lieutenant.
"You take some men and evacuate these servants to the keep on the hill." Blue Maggot said, pointing to the group of servants with the Targaryen siblings, who were wrapped up tightly.
This was Lord Darryl's suggestion—to avoid any spies among the laborers and servants discovering that the real king and princess hadn't left the manse, he had mixed them in with the servants.
Lord Darryl was truly wise.
Shortly after Blue Maggot and his men retreated to the hilltop, Rol and his companions, still hiding in the manse, emerged from their concealment and headed toward Illyrio's vault.
He clearly remembered Ian's instructions: prioritize jewels and small works of art, followed by gold.
Indeed, Ian couldn't take the Unsullied away when their loyalty to Illyrio himself outweighed their loyalty to the Harpy's Whip.
But from Illyrio's perspective, giving them orders to retreat their defenses back to the hilltop, thus creating an opportunity for Rol to loot Illyrio's manse, was something Ian could do.
"What does this mean?" Magister Groiro Tetrus was bewildered, immediately turning to Prince Trigg with a questioning look. "What do you mean by this?"
"Isn't the meaning obvious? Magister Tetrus, you've broken the law!" Braavosi faction member Bidassini Sevasi, after witnessing the friendly interaction between Magister Illyrio and His Highness the Prince, immediately saw through the truth.
His Highness the Prince had indeed allied with Magister Illyrio, just as rumored! And today's council meeting was to try Magister Tetrus for illegally amassing troops and threatening to incite civil war!
Legal expert Bidassini had long suspected this possibility. House Tetrus had gathered more troops in the North City than they had previously purchased for the 'City Guard' quota.
According to Pentoshi law, in this situation, the council could declare a state of emergency and accuse the magister of treason!
Although this law had never been used in the entire history of Pentos, what did it matter? As long as the Braavosi faction and the Illyrio faction united, there was no vote they couldn't win in the Grand Council!
"Groiro Tetrus! Your current forces in Pentos far exceed your legally owned City Guard quota, seriously jeopardizing the freedom and security of Pentos. Here, I propose to the Grand Council that Magister Groiro be immediately detained and put on trial!" After Bidassini Sevasi finished speaking, he looked at Prince Trigg with a self-satisfied air.
He clenched his fist slightly, silently chanting in his heart: Notice me! I guessed your plan! I'm working for you! I deserve your trust!
Unexpectedly, Prince Trigg's face paled.
Trigg himself possessed no real talent—his greatest achievements in life were a stroke of good luck and a stroke of bad luck.
The former was that his good looks caught the eye of Marianne Frega, the daughter of the richest keyholders of the Iron Bank, resulting in their capable son, Hazan. The latter was his unfortunate selection by lot as Prince of Pentos.
This entire plan was orchestrated by his son, Hazan, while his own task today was merely to stall for time.
Therefore, Trigg was somewhat at a loss, as no new information had come from his son, and the situation in the council had completely spiraled out of control.
Almost all the Braavosi and Illyrio faction members of the council stood up, denouncing Magister Tetrus, while the other neutrals and fence-sitters, seeing the tide turning, began to join in, adding insult to injury.
Trigg understood why this was happening. After all, only a handful of people knew about their secret alliance with House Tetrus against Illyrio. Even he himself had only been informed today.
Neither Hazan nor Magister Tetrus had informed their allies in the council, knowing that these allies would naturally vote for them after their successful attack on the western district.
But now, these Braavosi faction members, influenced by the rumors of an alliance between Magister Illyrio and the Prince, and after hearing Magister Tetrus's angry speech, naturally took Illyrio's statement as the Prince's instruction.
Furthermore, with their master of ceremonies bribed by Illyrio, their alliance with Illyrio was, in their eyes, confirmed.
Trigg realized all this, but he was helpless—he had never been a resourceful person. He could only anxiously wipe the cold sweat from his brow in his seat.
Gradually, the arguments in the hall coalesced into a unified shout.
"Trial! Trial!" the magisters chanted.
(End of Chapter)
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