Half a day later.
Tyrion pointed at the ground ahead with a long bamboo pole and said to Jaime beside him, "Right here. About a finger's depth down, there's a buried line that runs all the way to the wall. It might trigger some device in the ceiling. Most likely something like wildfire jars."
Jaime walked to the spot indicated by the dwarf, crouched down, and gently scraped away the top layer of soil with a small shovel. After brushing aside the loose dirt, he uncovered a taut, three-stranded hemp rope.
At the bottom of the rope, Jaime also dug out a shallow trench about the depth of a palm. If someone stepped on it, it would definitely leave a deep footprint and trigger the mechanism.
"I need to rest for a bit. I'm exhausted." Tyrion waved his hand and found a lump of stone by the tunnel wall to sit on.
Jaime stared blankly as two "worms" burrowed out of the ground, wriggling their way toward Tyrion. They climbed onto his fingers, and like kneading clay, his missing index and middle fingers were reshaped and restored.
"This kind of sorcery looks really evil," he said.
"There is no evil sorcery, only evil sorcerers."
"How many of those worms are in your body?" Jaime asked curiously.
"Not a single one," Tyrion shook his head. "Those aren't real dragon-worms. It's my fingers transforming into dragon-worms."
After understanding what "dragon-worm transformation" meant, Jaime's gaze unconsciously dropped lower. He eventually stared at the dwarf's crotch and asked, "Can other parts of your body turn into dragon-worms?"
"You've seen it before. It's big enough already. No need to turn it into a dragon-worm." Tyrion lowered his head as well and glanced down.
"What man would complain about that being too big? Then why modify your index and middle fingers? Wasn't it to assist your second brother?" Jaime sneered.
"That just proves your life has lacked a lot of fun, being with only Cersei. You've never even experienced group activities."
"Fun?" Jaime scoffed. "If group activities can bring you pleasure without guilt, it only proves how pitiful you are."
"Jealousy is jealousy. Don't call the grapes sour just because you can't have them," the dwarf laughed.
"When you truly love a woman, only being with her can give you bliss beyond the flesh. When you truly love a woman, putting your second brother into another woman will bring you no pleasure, only shame and regret," Jaime said calmly.
The dwarf's expression changed. He looked at his brother gloomily and said, "Have you forgotten? My true love was ruined by you."
Jaime gave a bitter smile and fell silent.
Whether Tysha was truly his brother's true love aside, he had indeed taken part in her downfall. He had helped Tywin deceive his brother, claiming she was a prostitute who chased wealthy men.
After a while, Jaime asked in confusion, "Is this dragon-worm transformation magic only used for fooling around with women?"
Hearing this, the dwarf pulled out a dagger from his waist. Under Jaime's horrified gaze, he sliced off his right index and middle fingers as casually as cutting carrots.
With a soft thud, blood splattered, and the severed fingers fell to the ground.
"Have you gone mad?" Jaime shouted in terror.
The dwarf gave him a strange smile. The two severed fingers began to wriggle and elongate into two dragon-worms. Even the nearby blood was absorbed into their bodies.
Meanwhile, Tyrion's right hand showed no wound, aside from the missing fingers.
Then, just like before, the dragon-worms crawled back onto his palm and transformed once again into two fingers.
"This…" Jaime was dumbfounded.
"When every part of my body—muscles, bones, organs—can transform into dragon-worms, no weapon in the mortal world will be able to harm me," the dwarf said proudly.
"Your whole body turning into dragon-worms?" A horrifying image immediately flashed through Jaime's mind: the Imp with a human upper body, while from the waist down hung a dense mass of writhing, slick dragon-worms. A row of women lay beside him as the dwarf threw his head back in laughter.
He shuddered violently and exclaimed, "That's terrifying. This is dark magic!"
Tyrion said indignantly, "If you ask me, the swordsmanship you've practiced since childhood is far more evil than my magic. Swordsmanship only kills people, while my magic is mainly for improving bloodlines, increasing magical power, and granting immunity to harm.
"The number of living people killed by swords far exceeds all sorcery in the world combined. Even forbidden spells can't compare. Why don't you call swordsmanship evil?"
Jaime hesitated. "You can't put it that way. Swordsmanship is upright and honorable. Your magic is eerie and sinister. Just now, even a child would have been scared to death. Have you forgotten?"
The dwarf went expressionless. "If that's how you see it, then there's no point continuing this conversation. In any case, the benefits of dragon-worm transformation won't change because of your opinion. For example, I will never become a cripple like you."
Jaime's face darkened.
But a moment later, something stirred in his mind. He hesitated before asking, "If I learned your dragon-worm transformation magic, could I regrow my right hand?"
"Yes."
Jaime's face lit up with joy, but the dwarf immediately shook his head again. "Unfortunately, you don't have high Valyrian blood. You can't learn my magic."
At that moment, a light suddenly shone from the stone tunnel behind them. Then they heard the eunuch's high-pitched voice shouting, "Incredible, incredible! Stannis has broken through the city gate!"
"King's Landing has fallen? That was too fast." Jaime was startled.
Varys hung the lantern on the wall and handed the food box in his other hand to Tyrion, sighing as he said, "It's my first time seeing dragons. I never imagined they would be this powerful.
"You didn't see it. Using dragons to attack a city is unbelievably convenient.
"First, a group of wyverns carried fire-oil bombs and cleared out the scorpion emplacements near the gate, setting the entire section of the wall ablaze.
"Then Stannis appeared riding a two-headed demon dragon. With a blast of dragonfire, the gate lasted barely a minute before collapsing.
"After that, twenty thousand Vale troops, one thousand northern cavalry, and three thousand mercenaries—a total of twenty-four thousand men—poured through the Iron Gate. Like a flood, they rushed into the streets and alleys, hunting down the city's defenders, looting civilians, assaulting women, and setting houses on fire. They committed every kind of atrocity."
"What about the kraken?" Tyrion quickly asked.
"It didn't appear. Stannis attacked from the Dragon Gate in the north, seven or eight kilometers from the sea," Varys shook his head.
"Euron is a priest of the Storm God. Doesn't he have a trump card?" Tyrion asked again.
"The city is in chaos. I didn't see Euron. But I heard from the septons that last time, Saint Matthew used a move called 'First Light of the Holy Radiance' to break Euron's sorcery," Varys said.
"That only crippled his warlock magic. But Euron isn't just a warlock; he's also the chosen son of the Storm God." Tyrion shook his head, puzzled. "Since he dared to defend King's Landing, he must have a way to deal with the two-headed demon dragon. Strange."
Jaime asked anxiously, "Did Stannis bombard the Red Keep?"
"Only someone uninterested in the Iron Throne would want to destroy the Red Keep. Why do you think Stannis is attacking King's Landing?" Varys sneered.
Jaime said restlessly, "How many more days can Euron hold out? We need at least one more day to fully clear this tunnel. What if Stannis gets there first—"
"Calm down! I've already said Stannis won't harm Cersei," Tyrion reassured him.
"You trust Stannis?" the eunuch asked in surprise.
"It's written in black and white. The Dragon Queen is the witness," Tyrion said.
Varys fell silent.
"I'm afraid Euron won't spare her," Jaime said worriedly.
"Worrying won't help. Eat your lunch quickly. After that, continue checking for traps. I'll gather information from inside the city for you," Varys said.
The two brothers exchanged a glance and helplessly found two stones to sit on.
Opening the food box, the dwarf showed neither delight nor disappointment. The main food was white bread and barley turnip soup. The side dishes were two slices of pan-fried salted cod and a plate of bright green shredded seaweed.
Tyrion dumped half the seaweed into the soup and casually asked, "Does Stannis allow his soldiers to rape and loot?"
"The soldiers have been pent up outside the city for months…" Varys shook his head.
"The Faith didn't intervene?" Jaime followed his brother's example, pouring the remaining seaweed into his soup and dipping bread into it.
"Behind the Dragon Gate is Rhaenys Hill. It's still several kilometers from Visenya Hill, where the Faith is," Varys replied.
A glint flashed in the dwarf's eyes as he stared intently at the eunuch. "You've spent so much effort digging this tunnel. Is it also for my sister?"
"What are you trying to say?" Varys narrowed his eyes.
"That depends on what you intend to do," the dwarf smiled.
Varys smiled as well. "Then tell me, what can I do?"
The dwarf chuckled. "Do you know how your nephew failed?"
The smile vanished from Varys's face. He said calmly, "Because you misjudged the Red Priestess. She can accurately foresee her own misfortune within a day.
"Your plan against her was meticulous, but she had already foreseen it."
"Truly worthy of the Eight-Clawed Spider," Tyrion said, raising a thumb in praise.
But upon hearing this, Varys showed a smile uglier than crying.
"Smack! Smack!" He raised his hands and slapped himself hard on both cheeks. His plump face turned red instantly.
"Serves the damned Eight-Clawed Spider right!" he cursed in pain.
"I've studied Melisandre for nearly ten years!" He stretched out both hands, fingers spread, waving them before the dwarf. "Ten years! From the very first day she set foot on Dragonstone, I knew of her existence and gave her the highest level of attention, because she represents the type of person I fear and hate the most: red-robed sorcerers!"
The last sentence was spoken through gritted teeth.
"Did a red priest cut off your second brother?" Tyrion asked in surprise.
Varys nodded painfully. "I was only ten at the time. A red priest forced me to drink a potion. I couldn't move or speak, but my senses were clearer than ever. Then, without expression, he cut off my manhood and threw it into the fire.
"I saw shadows and strange visions in the flames. Then he burst into laughter, saying the wheel of fate had begun to turn."
"What fate?" Tyrion asked, startled.
"I'd like to know as well."
Varys fell silent for a moment before continuing, "I kept watch on Melisandre and planted little birds on Dragonstone. Long ago, I already knew she had used prophecy to avoid Maester Cressen's poisoned wine."
He pounded his forehead hard, wailing like a mother wolf that had lost her cubs. "I was so foolish, truly foolish. I only knew that she might have used prophecy that time. I didn't know she could use it once every day."
"You can't blame yourself. After all, you're just a muggle who knows nothing about the supernatural," Tyrion comforted him.
But Varys grew even more distressed. "I was so foolish, truly foolish. I only knew to fear and hate magic. I didn't realize that the more you fear it, the more you should understand it and master it."
"You can't blame yourself. Rejecting magic is the tradition of Westeros," Tyrion said.
Varys left dejectedly.
He was responsible for monitoring the battle in the city, while the two brothers continued checking for traps.
But after only half an hour, the eunuch came running back again, panting, his face twisted in terror as he cried, "The Lannisters of Casterly Rock… the entire house has been wiped out."
(End of Chapter)
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