NOVEL SIMPLE Chapter 164: Through Thick and Thin
Time flies, and less than ten days remain before the Alliance is set to deploy its troops. As a key participant in the war, Lys is under immense pressure. They've hastily recruited 20,000 slaves to defend the city, and martial law has been imposed across the entire region. Just a month ago, Lys purchased a new batch of Unsullied. Now, these Unsullied patrol the city streets like tight, unyielding ropes winding around the city.
Tensions are high, and some have begun using insider information to trigger price hikes. Before the war has even started, a small-scale famine has already taken hold. A suffocating atmosphere hangs over Lys, with the sound of weapons being forged in the Arsenal echoing through the night. Recently, a slave, driven to desperation by excessive labor, stabbed his master.
In stark contrast, the city's sex industry has seen an unexpected surge. But amidst this backdrop of tension and turmoil, Tregar and Qaga received shocking news: Rovi had defected. As the officer directly responsible for the Battle of Dragon's Flame Fortress, Rovi knew punishment was inevitable. He fled to Tyrosh, taking his servants and some of his family with him.
In fact, during Viserys's absence, the nobles of Lys had already begun to exclude Rovi, both openly and secretly. Some of his properties had been seized by force. Now, his only hope was to reach Tyrosh and identify Viserys, in the hope of securing a place for himself in the city.
"Lord, Viserys is still in Tyrosh. We have to do something!" Feles urged.
"What can we do? Rovi has been gone for two days! Even if he had wings, no one could catch up with him!" Tregar snapped, frustrated by Feles's plea. He never expected their own ranks would fall apart at such a critical moment. If Tyrosh learns of the alliance's details, it could split the coalition. The Tyroshi, skilled in bribery, would capitalize on the situation without hesitation.
Feles, too, felt helpless. After all, no one could catch up with a ship that had been at sea for two days. Their only hope now was that Rovi's ship might encounter a storm and sink—but the chances of that were slim. For a moment, the leadership in Lys was in despair.
"Wait, there's also that Lady!" Feles suddenly recalled. When he handed over the dragon's blood to Shiera, she had mentioned being able to contact Viserys. From what Viserys had described, this Lady had her own unique strengths, and perhaps they could ask her for help. With this in mind, Feles rushed to Shiera's residence without delay.
However, when Shiera saw him, she remained unusually calm.
"Don't worry, Viserys will take care of it," she assured him.
"You... you already notified him?" Feles stammered.
Shiera smiled but said nothing. She knew that Viserys had consulted the oracle that day. By now, Rovi's defection should have already been addressed.
...
And indeed, Shiera was right. Viserys had already activated Dragon Dreams and seen Rovi's ship in his visions.
"Rovi is coming to Tyrosh? What is this guy up to?" Viserys muttered, his mind racing. He had been away from Lys for nearly two months and had no idea what had transpired in his absence. But now, Rovi—a general from Lys—had chosen to come to Tyrosh just before the decisive battle. This was a clear act of treason. And if so, Viserys would be the first target.
Realizing the danger, Viserys knew he had to act fast. However, with the war looming, Toland had already blocked the surrounding seas. While it might not be impossible to get a ship out of the harbor, most long-distance vessels were beyond Tyrosh's control. And sending a warship to intercept Rovi was out of the question. Kambron would undoubtedly increase surveillance at this critical moment. Even if Viserys could evade suspicion, any attempt to intercept Rovi might expose them all.
With the surrounding seas heavily monitored, even a golden eagle's view of the area wouldn't help. Private ships were grounded, and the best he could do was take a small sampan to intercept Rovi—bringing at most five or six men with him. According to Dragon Dreams, Rovi had at least three ships, manned by Unsullied and sailors numbering no fewer than 500. That left Viserys with one option: infiltrate Rovi's ship and assassinate him.
Sinking the ship wasn’t realistic either. The strength required to pull it off, and the time it would take for the ship to actually sink, made this plan a headache to even consider.
"I'm the one making all the plans, decisions, through thick and thin!" Viserys grumbled to himself, but he knew there was no choice. He called on Jorah, Regis, and the others, and they prepared to board a sampan and intercept Rovi.
At dusk, the small sampan carrying six men came to a stop behind a small reef.
"Watch this seagull. When it circles overhead, follow it!" Viserys instructed them.
"My lord, are you going to swim across?" Regis asked as he slung his backpack over his shoulder.
"Yes, I have to swim across."
Jorah scratched his head, completely baffled by Viserys's plan. On the way, Viserys had explained what they had accomplished in the month they had disappeared, and Jorah felt like he was listening to a legend. He didn’t want to believe it, but Regis was adamant, and the presence of the Unsullied, Conwyra, made disbelief impossible. Considering that this was Viserys's plan, it seemed reasonable enough. But now, intercepting a ship alone? That sounded ridiculous! What Jorah didn’t know was that Viserys was targeting not one, but three ships.
"My lord, isn't there a safer way?" Jorah asked, his concern evident.
"Safe? If Rovi reaches Tyrosh, we're all dead! Just keep an eye on that seagull," Viserys replied sharply.
Jorah could only sigh in frustration. He was forced to follow blindly, knowing that if anything went wrong, he might never return to Bear Island. Viserys put on his pack and, without hesitation, jumped into the water with a splash.
Jorah stepped back to avoid the spray, but after a while, there was no sign of Viserys resurfacing. Anxiety grew among the men on the boat.
"Lord! Lord!" they called out anxiously, fearing he had struck a reef upon diving.
'This is too unlucky!' Jorah thought, dread gripping him. 'Was Viserys dead or alive?'
"Look! The Lord is there!" Conwyra exclaimed, pointing to Viserys surfacing in the distance.
"This... is too fast!" Jorah was stunned. In less than two minutes, Viserys had swum nearly 300 meters! Jorah, who had grown up on Bear Island, knew he could never match such a feat. This was beyond human capability.
Meanwhile, aboard Rovi's private fleet, his son Drakor spoke up, "Father, we should reach Tyrosh by tomorrow morning."
After three days at sea, Rovi's tension had begun to ease. Since Lys’s forces hadn’t caught up, he felt confident they would reach Tyrosh unless they encountered a storm. Yet, as the image of Viserys flashed through his mind, his expression turned bitter.
He could never understand how Viserys had trained that cavalry, which had so decisively interrupted his offensive! If it weren’t for him, Rovi wouldn’t be in this dire situation. Anger surged as he recalled those who had driven him out of the temple. Not only had they seized many of his properties under the guise of tax inspections, but even those who had once been respectful and obedient had begun to speak ill of him.
Fortunately, Feles had informed him that Viserys was in Tyrosh. If he couldn’t defeat Viserys on the battlefield, he would find another way to bring him down!
Rovi looked ahead and said to his son, "Go back to your ship and tell the Unsullied to stay vigilant."
"Understood," his son replied.
The sun had already dipped below the horizon, casting its golden rays on the sea, which reflected back onto Rovi's face. Lys would never suspect that he had left a double behind to cover his escape. The thought filled him with pride. After standing there for a moment, he returned to his cabin, his mind racing with plans. If he could break up the alliance Viserys had formed and then return to Lys as a guide, he might regain everything he had lost.
So close. But at that moment, a shadow was slicing through the waves, heading straight for his ship.
After swimming for nearly two hours, Viserys spotted Rovi's fleet in the distance—three dark silhouettes approaching. The night had fully settled in, giving him cover as he neared the ships. To conserve his strength, he chose to wait with only his head above water, watching as the three ships loomed closer like massive walls. He reached out and touched the slimy hull, feeling the seaweed and oysters clinging to it.
Viserys pulled out a jar of wildfire grease he had prepared, carefully adjusted the angle, and hurled it with all his strength, sticking it to the highest, driest part of the hull. He repeated this with the other two ships. As he stared at the grease-covered hull, he muttered a spell under his breath. Instantly, the grease ignited, and a bright yellow-green flame sprang to life on the dark hull.
The flames grew larger under his control, spreading like a luminous silk shroud over the ships. These vessels, though treated with fire-resistant materials, were no match for wildfire. In fact, Stannis's defeat at the Battle of the Blackwater Rush had been due to the ferocity of wildfire, which even his men hadn't anticipated.
Soon, the yellow-green flames engulfed the hulls of all three ships, catching the attention of some Unsullied on patrol.
"Fire!" Viserys faintly heard the cries from aboard.
One of the Unsullied stared in horror as the flames shot up from the hull, twisting into the shape of a giant python that coiled around the sail. The fire snake transformed into a blazing inferno, spreading rapidly across the ships. In no time, the three vessels had become floating braziers, burning fiercely.
Rovi, still asleep, was jolted awake by the commotion. He pushed the slave girl beside him aside and opened the door, only to be hit by a wave of searing heat.
'What's going on? Am I not at sea? How can there be a fire?' Rovi looked up and saw the yellow-green flames consuming the sail.
"Wildfire!" The realization hit him like a blow. His first thought was of sabotage, but he quickly dismissed it. If someone had set fire to the ship, wouldn't they die as well? Was someone trying to kill him in a desperate attempt to take him down with them?
"Father—ahh!" Rovi heard his son, Drakor, scream. He turned just in time to see Drakor engulfed in flames, a human torch, before he jumped overboard.
"No!" Rovi cried out in despair, knowing that jumping into the open sea was a death sentence.
"Watch out, my lord!" An Unsullied guard rushed to Rovi's side, pulling him back just as the mast came crashing down.
"How could this happen? How could this be?" Rovi felt as though he were in a nightmare, watching the wildfire reach the ship's alcohol stores, triggering a massive explosion. Unsullied and sailors alike jumped overboard, preferring the uncertain fate of the sea to the certain death of staying aboard the burning ships.
The fire was so intense that Jorah and his men didn’t even need to follow the seagulls to find their target. Meanwhile, Viserys hid in the darkness, ensuring that no one could escape, killing anyone who tried to grab onto floating debris. The ships burned for half the night, and by morning, only charred wreckage remained.
The next morning, Rovi groggily opened his eyes and found himself lying in a small boat, an Unsullied by his side. Realizing he must have been rescued, he asked with his eyes still closed, "What happened to our ship?"
"It burned down," Conwyra replied.
"What about the others?" Rovi inquired.
"They're all dead," Conwyra said.
Rovi paused, trying to muster the tears but failing. "It's okay. My own son is dead, but I still have my bastard. As long as we reach Tyrosh, it'll all be worth it."
"Keep going! We're heading to Tyrosh!" Rovi ordered.
"You're not going," Conwyra said firmly.
