On the muddy road of the Velvet Hills, the wind howled, whipping up the black and red dragon banners flying from the cavalry's spear tips.
Forty cavalrymen escorted Viserys Targaryen, serving as his honor guard.
Behind the cavalry were the carriage train and infantry, many Andals following the King, and some cavalry acting as flank protection.
The soldiers of Andas were not splendid soldiers; it seemed they had not even washed off the smell of mud from their bodies before they would face a baptism of blood and fire.
Viserys, clad in black scale armor, was about to lead his new Andal vassals across the Upper Rhoyne River to Westeros Fort.
Westeros Fort had a dual structure of the Secret Council and the First Legion; the population would bring trade and prosperity, and it would also absorb a large number of people from the land of Andas.
More importantly, it was to deal with war, to prevent the Tyroshi from burning the accumulated wealth and grain of the Andal villages.
Recalling their forces was for a better frontal decisive battle. Fortunately, the Andal elders were all relatively smart and agreed to this defensive counterattack strategy.
The armor left by the Tyroshi was directly distributed to the outstanding soldiers, completely without waste.
Tyrosh's craftsmanship was still excellent, except for their fondness for oddly shaped helmets.
Tyroshi craftsmen designed gilded helmets and gold and silver armor; helmets could be made into the shapes of birds and animals, and edged with precious metals.
The strong wind blew through the banners of the procession, making a 'crackling' sound.
Because the continent of Essos did not yet have the custom of family crests, the most common banners among the Andals were those with the Seven-Pointed Star.
"What is your name, and how old are you?" Viserys asked. He kept the first bearded Andal cavalryman who swore allegiance to him by his side; the bearded warrior's face was still painted with the symbol of the Seven-Pointed Star.
"Agos Black Pine, Your Majesty, I am eighteen years old," the bearded warrior replied earnestly. "I was ready for a big fight, but I didn't expect Your Majesty to have already slaughtered these Tyroshi slave traders."
Viserys looked at Agos Black Pine's rugged face. This was eighteen years old?
Agos looked like a strong man of the same type as the Mountain, the Hound, and the Greatjon Umber and Smalljon Umber, he looked too mature.
Agos Black Pine was about two meters tall, covered in thick muscles, clearly very strong, and carried an astonishingly ugly greatsword.
Considering the current plight of the Andals, this was the first SSR warrior Viserys randomly drew.
Behind every successful great man, there always needs to be a few Hounds.
The more Viserys looked, the more satisfied he became. House Stark had the Greatjon Umber and Smalljon Umber, the old rogue Tywin had the Mountain, the Hound, and the Kingslayer, and Viserys had also drawn his first top-tier card.
"Agos, that name..." Viserys muttered to himself, recalling whose name it was.
"Argos the Seven Stars" was one of the many Andals who attempted to invade Westeros during the Andal invasion period.
He was defeated by the combined forces of Theon Stark, the King in the North, "the Hungry Wolf," and House Bolton in the Battle of the Weeping Water.
The Hungry Wolf led his fleet, hanging Agos's body from the prow of his flagship, and his army crossed the Narrow Sea to attack Andas.
It is said that the Hungry Wolf carried out a bloody retaliation there, burning more than twenty villages, occupying three towers, and executing hundreds of people.
Viserys felt that this name was not auspicious, but perhaps the Andals still considered Agos a brave warrior and continued to name their children as such.
"Would you be willing to serve as my guard?" Viserys asked Agos Black Pine.
If Agos were to face the Starks again in the future, he would truly be the second "Seven Stars"; Viserys found the image quite vivid.
"I am willing, Your Majesty," Agos Black Pine nodded. "I've long wanted to hack the Tyroshi to pieces and kick their heads around like balls. Before, the elders of our village wouldn't let me go out and fight, only letting me protect the village. I've been cooped up for too long."
"I want a fitted iron armor and enough food to eat," Agos then cautiously requested.
"At Westeros Fort, that's not a problem. Hahahaha," Viserys replied with a laugh. Agos's physique was a living, breathing mini-Mountain.
Even in the Seven Kingdoms, he was a first-rate warrior.
Viserys was very satisfied. Agos was an orphan in the village, raised by the Andal community, and his natural strength made him a protector of the village.
Now, the next wave of Tyroshi retaliation might come soon, and the traditional village warfare was about to be phased out. Warriors like Agos also needed to adapt to the new form of warfare.
The carriages in the middle of the procession made 'creaking' sounds as they traversed the muddy road of the Velvet Hills.
Most Andals had fled to Westeros before being colonized by the Dragon Kings, so the land of Andas had no traces of Valyrian roads, only dirt and mud paths.
These carriages carried gifts from the Andal villages to King Viserys, transported accumulated village supplies and grain, and many elderly and weak family members of Andal elders and warriors.
Viserys knew that the Andal gifts were mostly wood carvings and handicrafts, which he had not yet carefully examined.
The food supplies were varied: barley, wheat, oats, corn, apples, carrots, potatoes, chicory, and so on, as well as smoked meats like wild boar and venison, and smoked trout from the rivers.
However, because the Andals were hesitant to venture to the sea, there was basically no sea fish.
Some of the best apples and oats were not for human consumption, but mainly to feed the expensive and rare warhorses of Andas.
"What other major forces do the Andals have now?" Viserys asked Umu, the Bishop of Andallos.
"There are two other large families, whose prestige supports a loose family structure," Bishop Umu introduced. "One is the Greenvine Family, which started by selling wine, and the other is House Stone, which started by making ironware. They not only sell crude armor but, more importantly, iron farm tools. The Greenvine Family is to our south, and House Stone is to our north."
Andal civilization was now completely fragmented, with scattered villages everywhere.
The Andals had no king or currency of their own; besides using currencies from other free trade cities, they relied on wine and ironware as hard currency.
Because of this, House Stone and the Greenvine Family also wielded considerable influence.
"Greenvine, Stone," Viserys murmured the names of these two families. One controlled the wine of Andas, and the other possessed relevant blacksmithing technology.
Viserys needed to deal with these two families to complete the integration of the land of Andas.
Listening to the conduct and industries of the two families, the Greenvine Family naturally exuded a slippery and greedy nature.
House Stone, on the other hand, was more Andal, more chivalrous.
"Your Majesty, should we send people to investigate their movements?" Bishop Umu suggested in a low voice.
"No need," Viserys shook his head. "Clever people will choose to support our cause."
"Wait and see." This was the approach Viserys had set. He would feign being completely unprepared and see if the enemy would jump up on their own.
First, expand power in Andas, then extend it to the neighboring Rhoyne River basin.
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