On the other side of the battlefield, in the red and black tent.
Rhaegar looked at the map before him with a solemn expression. Even though he had twice as many soldiers as Robert, he showed no smile or excitement. It wasn't once or twice that a smaller army had defeated a larger one.
Underestimating the enemy and thinking the battle is already won is something only a novice commander would do. In almost twenty years of civil war, Rhaegar had learned never to underestimate a person's will to survive.
People only have one life and usually valued it greatly. No one wanted to die, and Robert certainly didn't want to die.
"My king, the entire Kingswood has been burned, all checkpoints and ambushes have been destroyed, the number of dead cannot be calculated." Arthur Dayne, the member of the Kingsguard, reported the message that had just arrived.
Rhaegar frowned. The ambush he had prepared for Robert had obviously already failed when Robert arrived at the Trident, but he hadn't expected the entire forest to have been burned. It was a season of strong winds, especially in the Stormlands. It was almost impossible for a massive fire to truly burn the forest without getting out of control.
But, seeing the Baratheon army completely intact, Rhaegar knew that Robert had suffered no casualties, which was truly strange.
"Do we know what miracle Robert performed to escape the fire with the army unharmed?" Rhaegar asked with a deep tone. He missed Jon at that moment; his Master of Whisperers should know what was happening.
"Along with the Golden Company, the Blackfyre brought a red priestess. They call her the Red Witch, they say she likes to sacrifice people's lives by burning them at the stake." Surprisingly, Arthur reported what he knew, as the information came along with the news that the Kingswood had been burned.
"The reason we know she exists is because the woman likes to preach her faith wherever she goes, so the information had already reached us." Arthur said with a calm tone. With the Faith of the Seven as an enemy, Rhaegar had already made preparations for any rebellion in the villages; there were spies in at least one city or village in all the Crownlands.
Although it was impossible to do this in all the Seven Kingdoms, it was still possible in the Crownlands. Especially since Rhaegar controlled his territory like no other Targaryen King.
"Red Priestess..." Rhaegar looked thoughtful and glanced at the three women dressed in red sitting at the table where the battlefield map was.
"Your Grace, there are tens of thousands of us spread across Essos." One of the priestesses spoke with a calm, yet respectful tone. She and the other two women were with the king as representatives and helpers.
"Aren't you a cohesive religion?" Rhaegar asked with a slightly unpleasant tone. Because of the Red Priestess, Robert arrived at the Trident earlier than expected. Rhaegar wanted to completely block the entrance to the Vale, but found himself powerless with an army of over sixty thousand soldiers.
"We believe in the Red God; he graces us with visions in the flames, but these visions depend entirely on the interpretation of the Red Priestess. As we are human, we are often mistaken about the desires of our Father and Master." The woman replied respectfully. She made no excuses or omitted anything, she spoke sincerely.
"What a problem." Rhaegar said with a helpless tone. He didn't know what went on in the mind of a god, much less a god as powerful as R'hllor. Couldn't he just say what to do instead of sending prophetic visions in the flames?
"Should I be concerned about any strange divine magic?" Rhaegar asked with a calm tone, his eyes deep and calm.
"We are daughters of fire and life; there is no dark magic within the walls of the Great Red Temple or any holy place." said the red priestess. There was a touch of pride in her voice.
Although they burned people alive for R'hllor, they were only enemies of the Red Church or criminals. It was foolish to burn civilians and believers themselves. It would not only create a bad image among the population but also destroy the church's reputation, just as was happening in Westeros.
People on this continent thought the Red Faith burned people alive daily, which is why they had great resistance and fear of the Red Faith.
"However, the Red Priestess Sir Arthur mentioned is probably Melisandre of Asshai." The woman continued speaking: "She came from Asshai, a city full of filth and dirt, a band of heretical sorcerers who even dare to research the gods."
"It's very likely that she has dark magic or shadow magic, perhaps even necromancy."
Rhaegar's face became solemn at the woman's words; this was a big problem, especially with this woman by Robert's side. If there was one thing he admired about Robert, it was his determination to die for what he believed in.
The man didn't care about his own reputation or any other trivial thing like morality or honor. He would do anything to kill him, the man who stole his beloved.
Honestly, having an enemy who cared about nothing was, at the very least, worrying, especially with such a dangerous woman by his side.
"No need to worry, my king. I will protect you from any magic."
Suddenly, a calm and slightly excited voice sounded, and a figure entered the tent. It was a very handsome young man, with black hair and green eyes.
A smile appeared on Rhaegar's lips. Although he had magical artifacts that protected him from physical and magical attacks, having his court wizard made him feel even safer.
"My good brother." Rhaegar looked at Cadmus with a laugh. It could be said that he seemed more excited to see Cadmus than his own brother, Viserys. If the Prince of Roses saw this, he would certainly snort coldly.
Cadmus laughed and looked at the War Council before him; Jon, the Master of Whisperers, was missing, as was the Master of Coin, Petyr Baelish. One was in the Riverlands, the other was in King's Landing. Which was a concern in Cadmus's eyes. That arrogant little lord was somewhat dangerous.
The court wizard began to speak of the events in the Riverlands and also Viserys's message, who would remain in Riverrun to prevent the Lannister Army from reaching the Trident.
Rhaegar let out a loud, joyful laugh upon hearing that Hoster and Brynden had indeed died at the hands of their own son and nephew. It was extremely ironic, knowing the motto of House Tully.
"Good death, good death!" Rhaegar said with a wide smile on his lips. Since he had learned that his brothers and sisters had died at the hands of the Faith of the Seven and the Order of Maesters, he had never felt so happy.
If there was anyone he deeply hated, it was Hoster Tully; he had wanted to kill that old fish for a long time. Although he now didn't have the chance to do so, knowing that Hoster died at the hands of his own son was better than any torture he could think of.
After all, Hoster Tully valued his own family more than anything, so dying at the hands of his son was the greatest torture he could suffer.
"However, Viserys remaining in Riverrun is a bit problematic." Rhaegar said with a helpless tone. Fighting on two fronts was terrible; logistics had to be divided in two, which was not only time-consuming but also cost much more.
especially in a siege war, which could last months or years.
"Hoster Tully stored supplies for two years; although it wasn't much to supply the twenty thousand soldiers of House Targaryen, it's enough to last three months." Cadmus commented as he sat in one of the chairs.
Rhaegar's expression softened at Cadmus's words; three months was a good amount of time, he didn't need to worry about Riverrun for three months, not to mention Harrenhal. If Tywin wanted to reach the Trident, he had to pass through Harrenhal.
Remembering something, Rhaegar took a letter from his doublet and handed it to Cadmus, who simply opened the letter and read its contents.
Reading the contents, Cadmus couldn't help but raise an eyebrow. It was a letter from Tywin Lannister himself; it had only one word.
Marriage.
Remembering that Tywin hadn't orchestrated the deaths of Rhaenys, Aegon, and Elia, he understood that there was still a way for Tywin to bend the knee before Rhaegar. After all, Rhaegar had forgiven Robert, much less Tywin.
Along with the marriage, House Lannister could once again be under the crown.
Cadmus's eyes gleamed, thinking of something; a mischievous smile appeared on his lips. Looking at Rhaegar and seeing the same mischievous smile on his lips, both laughed.
He understood the king's thoughts; allowing Tywin to join Robert was more advantageous than preventing the Lannister Army from remaining idle somewhere.
"Is Gaemon betrothed to Sansa or Arya? Do you plan to marry Rhaenys to Joffrey or Tommen?" Cadmus asked with a smile.
"Yes, Aegon will marry Margaery, Gaemon will marry Sansa Stark, Rhaenys will marry Tommen." Rhaegar didn't deny it; these two marriages could completely solidify the alliance with these three houses.
Cadmus wasn't surprised by the choice of Tommen instead of Joffrey; everyone knew that Edmure and Cersei's son was a monster. Compared to Joffrey, Tommen was a sweet little angel and easily manipulated.
The poor boy was manipulated by Margaery in another universe and would be manipulated by Rhaenys in this universe.
"Let's feign defeat, let the Lannister army reach the Trident, and at the right moment, we'll stab the Baratheon army in the back at the most crucial moment." Cadmus said with a cold, malicious laugh.
It might seem unreal, but Viserys being a complete novice was completely normal for losing to the cunning, powerful, and cold Tywin Lannister, one of the most powerful men on the continent of Westeros.
Rhaegar looked at Cadmus with a smile. His good brother guessed his thoughts without much surprise. Honestly, Cadmus seemed more like his brother than Viserys.
"Let's start by sending a letter to Tywin and Viserys; let them put on a great show for all to see." Rhaegar said with a laugh.
Raymun Darry, the Hand of the King, seeing the two laughing, couldn't help but think he was working for two villains.
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