Janos Slynt was panicking.
As the former commander of the city watch, this short and capable man had lived a very comfortable life over the years.
Ever since the late hand of the king, Jon Arryn, promoted him to commander of the city watch, this fellow's originally honest and simple image had undergone an earth-shattering transformation.
Extortion, bribery, the sale of offices—as long as it could make money, there was nothing Janos didn't dare to do!
Even on the eve of Arthas taking over his post, most of the officers among the Gold Cloaks had to pay him a tribute from their own salaries!
Originally, after Jon Arryn discovered the true face of this Commander of the Gold Cloaks, he had long ago suggested to Robert to replace him, but he was met with Robert's stern refusal... because most of the Gold Dragons he obtained illegally almost all went into the royal family's pockets.
This was also the source of his confidence to blatantly amass wealth—the one standing behind him was the King!
Janos originally thought he could sit in the position of Commander of the Gold Cloaks until he died, or until Robert died.
But who could have imagined that a young lad from House Lannister would actually win a duel against seven members of the Kingsguard, forcibly snatching this lucrative position from him!
To this, Janos only wanted to say:
"You Lannisters aren't short of money, why are you fighting me for these scraps!"
But it didn't matter. Although he could no longer rake in money openly, the wealth he had accumulated over the years was enough for him to live the rest of his life quite comfortably.
But then again, who could have imagined that only a few days after Robert left, this new blonde kid would actually lead the Gold Cloaks to drag him out of bed!
"A... Lord Arthas..."
Knowing that the young man before him far surpassed him in terms of family background, personal strength, and current status, Janos could only try to squeeze out a fawning smile, hoping the other would be merciful and let him off:
"Look at what you're saying, Your Excellency. I've been the commander of the city watch for so many years, always diligent and devoted to my duties; everyone has seen it."
"If you ask me, there must be some small-minded person with ulterior motives sowing discord before you."
"Your eyes are as bright as the sun; I believe you will surely see through the schemes of these sewer rats, right?"
As Janos spoke, his hands kept rubbing together. Clearly, although he appeared steady on the surface, he was panicking inside. After all, the things he had done could not withstand any investigation.
No... he didn't even need an investigation. As long as Arthas gave the word, plenty of people would want him dead.
"Of course, Lord Janos."
Looking at this ugly fellow with a balding, frog-like face, the smile on Arthas's face was very gentle, but the frostmourne in his hand continuously emitted a piercing chill.
"Of course I believe you are a good, self-disciplined commander."
Seeing that Arthas's tone seemed to imply he would let him go, Janos first breathed a sigh of relief, but then felt a cold Aura rush straight to his head.
"However, in the days since I took over as Commander of the Gold Cloaks, anonymous letters reporting you have been coming in an endless stream; they're almost piling up out of my office."
"Sigh..."
"Originally, I wanted to suppress these anonymous reports."
Shaking his head with apparent regret, Arthas gripped his shoulder tightly. The immense force squeezed Janos so hard he almost cried out in pain.
"But Lord Janos ."
"Do you know that in the few days since I took office—just these few days."
"Over one thousand three hundred Gold Cloak colleagues have jointly reported your filthy deeds to me!"
Hearing this, Janos was almost in despair, constantly casting pleading looks at Arthas.
But Arthas clearly didn't intend to let him off so easily. With a forceful push, he sent him kneeling to the ground. Seeing this, Lancel nearby stepped forward to grab Janos's hands and hauled him up again.
"Let's go, Your Excellency."
Deciding not to linger any longer, Arthas shouldered frostmourne and gave him a final ultimatum in a cold voice:
"Take us to your mansion and let's see your mountain of Gold Dragons!"
...At the same time, with almost the entire force mobilized, the Gold Cloaks scattered in all directions, like blood flowing from a heart, gradually filling all the veins of King's Landing.
A massive purge operation was unfolding.
Wherever the Gold Cloaks went, whether it was robbery, theft, or human trafficking, they arrested everyone they saw, showing no mercy!
For a time, King's Landing was in a state of panic. No one knew what had gotten into these Gold Cloaks, who usually only oppressed the people. Almost everyone hid in their homes, afraid to come out, fearing they would be next.
Inside the Flea Bottom arena.
The audience members were screaming and cheering wildly with bloodshot eyes.
In the center of the arena, a burly man with bulging muscles was facing off against a Direwolf from the North.
The Direwolf was massive and moved swiftly. Even though the man held a longsword, he couldn't avoid the ferocious beast adding many shocking scars to his body.
This bloody scene made the audience outside even more excited, as they roared at the top of their lungs. Some even threw wine bottles into the arena, as if the struggle between man and beast stimulated every cell in their bodies.
The owner of the arena, Eno Or, sat in the room that had originally belonged to Yarn, eyes closed as he enjoyed the cheers from outside.
Since Yarn's disappearance, he, as Yarn's deputy, had naturally become the owner of this place.
Swallowing the fruit fed to him by the maid beside him while his large hand squeezed her rounded buttocks, Eno experienced the beautiful life he had never felt before.
"Bang!"
While everyone was immersed in excitement or joy, the doors of the arena were forced open, and Gold Cloaks in standard armor filed in, breaking the "harmonious" atmosphere.
"Oh, dear Lord Gold Cloak."
Hearing the commotion, Eno rushed out and enthusiastically greeted the leader.
Although this blonde fellow was a new face he had never seen before, Eno could guess with his backside what these insatiable Gold Cloaks were here for.
With a warm smile in his eyes, Eno pulled Rhaenys toward the room.
As the captain of this squad, Rhaenys Lannister was not as tall as his distant cousin Lancel, but with his superb swordsmanship, he was worthy of being called an elite knight of House Lannister.
Among the ten knights who challenged Arthas, he was lucky enough to last until the third round before falling.
As soon as he entered, Rhaenys's gaze was drawn to the burly man fighting the Direwolf in the arena. However, since he was on official business, he had the others wait outside and allowed Eno to pull him into the small room.
"Dear Lord, looking at your hair color, you must be from House Lannister?"
Once inside, the socially adept Eno pushed Rhaenys into a chair and patted the maid's buttocks, signaling her to perform.
"Rhaenys Lannister. You can also call me Rhaenys."
Sitting spread-eagled in the chair, Rhaenys unceremoniously enjoyed the special service provided by the hot-bodied maid.
Since Yarn's death, the Gold Cloaks hadn't come to collect money yet. Eno knew very well that if he didn't feed these guys, he could forget about keeping his arena open.
Concealed by the maid's body, he turned to a corner and pulled out a box full of Gold Dragons, taking out sixty-five Gold Dragons with a pained expression.
Eno had counted clearly; there were sixty Gold Cloaks outside... Reluctantly handing the bag of Gold Dragons to the enjoying Rhaenys, Eno pressed his old face forward fawningly:
"Dear Lord Rhaenys, according to the usual custom, it was originally one Gold Dragon shared between two people."
"But to celebrate your first appointment, I've decided to take out sixty Gold Dragons to treat the Gold Cloak brothers to a good drink."
Then he patted the money bag and gave Rhaenys an ambiguous look:
"In addition, I'm personally offering you an extra five Gold Dragons as a congratulatory gift!"
His words were seamless, and the process was beyond reproach. If it were the previous Gold Cloak guards, they probably would have happily taken the money and left.
However, he had forgotten that the person in front of him was a Lannister.
Looking at his stingy appearance, Rhaenys first shuddered and pushed the maid's head aside.
Then, under Eno's hopeful gaze, he directly slammed the bag of Gold Dragons into his face:
"You fool, you actually want to use money to bribe a Lannister?"
After his release, Rhaenys pulled up his pants, his voice full of disdain for Eno.
He pulled a piece of parchment from his robe. Under Eno's uncertain gaze, he grabbed the man's hand, sliced a small cut, and pressed it firmly onto the paper.
Ignoring Eno's struggling from the pain, Rhaenys spoke loudly to himself:
"Eno Or."
"I, Rhaenys Lannister, Captain of the Third Squad of the City Watch, now officially notify you."
"From this day forward, any rules set for you by Janos or anyone else are completely void."
"From now on, you only need to follow the rules of the commander, Lord Arthas Lannister."
"You can continue to run the arena, and you can continue the gambling rings."
"But seventy percent of the monthly profits will be handed over to the City Watch as necessary expenses for protecting your business."
"Also, theft, human trafficking, and the private sale of Poppy or other illegal acts are not allowed here. You are not allowed to set up rigged games to swindle the poor."
"Otherwise, we will punish you according to the laws of the kingdom."
Having said it all in one breath, Rhaenys bared his teeth and stared fiercely at the trembling Eno, issuing a final warning:
"Trust me, you don't want to know the details of the punishment."
He briskly tucked the parchment away, flicked his smooth blonde hair, and walked straight out of the small room.
When he reached the hall, he realized that at some point, the burly man who had been fighting the Direwolf was now sitting by the arena, gasping for breath as he rested.
And in the center of the arena, only a dead wolf with its belly sliced open remained.
"Hey, kid, what's your name?"
Walking over to crouch beside him, Rhaenys greeted him quite kindly.
"Don't call me kid! I'm already fifteen!"
The man, his face covered in blood, opened his eyes and replied with some dissatisfaction:
"Gendry."
"My name is Gendry!"
Looking at this fellow who was as strong as a bull, Rhaenys smiled and reached out a hand to him:
"Well then, Gendry."
"Are you willing to become a member of the City Watch?"
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