Hearing Viserys's proposal, Malaqo's eyes immediately lit up.
That actually made perfect sense!
If he couldn't beat the Targaryens, couldn't he at least beat Benerro? Especially now that House Targaryen was standing on his side.
"However, Your Majesty, half of our army consists of followers of the Lord of Light. If you could perhaps—"
"Send troops, you mean? Of course."
Viserys answered without hesitation.
"I will dispatch three thousand Dragon Riders to assist you in destroying the temples of the Lord of Light."
His tone was unwavering.
Malaqo could tell that Viserys truly despised those red-robed priests.
With Targaryen military support guaranteed, all of Viserys's demands for compensation would likely arrive much faster as well.
After all, once Benerro and his temple were eliminated, there would be enormous wealth to divide.
The Temple of the Lord of Light was extraordinarily rich.
Even if a sizable share was handed over to Viserys, Volantis would still gain a tremendous amount.
And beyond the gold, there were the temple's lands and properties.
Those were the real prizes.
Naturally, Viserys knew that as well, which was why he took the opportunity to make another request.
"By the way," he continued, "when I first visited Volantis, the suffering of the slaves there deeply troubled me."
"Therefore, I intend to send officials to care for them on my behalf. Do you have any objections?"
"This... Your Majesty?"
Malaqo was an experienced politician. How could he fail to understand what Viserys was really doing?
This was obviously an excuse to plant Targaryen agents throughout Volantis.
"What?" Viserys asked calmly. "You disagree?"
"I... I will do my best to negotiate the matter."
Viserys said nothing.
He simply stared at him.
"Soon, Your Majesty. Very soon I will provide an answer."
Still, Viserys remained silent.
Growing increasingly uneasy, Malaqo hurriedly added, "Your Majesty, this truly isn't a decision I can make alone. Volantis has three Triarchs. Surely you understand that."
"Then why are you still standing here?" Viserys grinned mischievously. "Were you expecting me to hold a farewell banquet for you?"
Malaqo's face turned several shades of green and white.
After offering a respectful bow, he quickly departed the throne hall.
'Damn. Having dragons really is wonderful.'
Dying once had changed Viserys's mindset.
He was no longer the young king desperately struggling to keep his family alive after inheriting a shattered throne.
The people standing before him now were almost all seasoned schemers and statesmen.
There was no need to obsess over endless formalities.
Offer enough benefits. Present enough leverage. That was all that mattered.
Turning to Arthur, Viserys said, "Send for Freygo."
At this moment, Freygo and Quairo had already been waiting for quite some time.
Ever since Viserys's resurrection at the funeral, Freygo had been eager for a meeting.
Yet Viserys had repeatedly brushed him off.
He needed to spend time with family. He needed to comfort his subjects. He needed to bond with the hatchling dragons.
He needed rest.
One excuse after another.
In short, he simply refused to see him.
Nearly ten years ago, when Viserys had first arrived in Braavos, Freygo had deliberately kept him and Arthur waiting for a long time.
Back then, House Targaryen had been in desperate circumstances. They desperately needed a place to survive.
But times had changed.
Now it was Viserys's turn to make Freygo wait.
"How interesting," Freygo said with a bitter smile as he and Quairo finally made their way toward the throne hall.
"Ten years ago, I never would have imagined House Targaryen would reach this point."
Freygo was old and plagued by illness.
The current Targaryen royal family, on the other hand, was filled with young people.
Even Rhaella remained relatively healthy.
Among Viserys's ministers there were no particularly elderly men either.
As a result, a rule had been established within the palace: No one was permitted to be carried in a litter.
Freygo was no exception.
The journey was difficult.
Without Quairo's support, he doubted he could have reached Viserys at all.
Stepping onto polished stone floors so clean they almost reflected light, Freygo looked around the throne hall.
Armored guards stood in ranks along both sides.
Each held a massive battle axe.
Even through their helmets, he could feel their cold, watchful eyes.
"Viserys, great Dragon King," Freygo called out.
"I am Freygo, Sea Lord of Braavos."
Though the two had not met face-to-face in nearly a decade, they had spent those years constantly maneuvering against one another.
They rarely met.
Yet they never stopped thinking about each other.
In a strange way, it almost resembled a long-distance relationship.
"Sea Lord Freygo, my old friend."
Viserys descended from his throne with a broad smile.
The gesture only made Freygo more uncomfortable.
"Your Majesty," Viserys said warmly, "House Targaryen owes much of its success today to your assistance all those years ago."
The corner of Freygo's mouth twitched.
"Your Majesty flatters me. I merely did a few insignificant things. House Targaryen's achievements are entirely the result of your own efforts."
"Heh. I have a small proposal. Are you interested?"
"Please speak, Your Majesty."
"I know Braavos prides itself on tolerating every faith. One could even say it embraces all beliefs."
Viserys paused.
"But sometimes believing in everything is not a good thing."
Freygo had expected Viserys to demand territory or concessions. Instead, the Dragon King was talking about religion.
He could not understand where this conversation was headed.
"Which order of priests has offended Your Majesty?" Freygo asked carefully.
"The Lord of Light. The Red God. R'hllor."
Viserys's expression hardened.
"When you return to Braavos, I want you to outlaw the worship of R'hllor."
"I want every effort at preaching that faith prohibited. And I want all followers of R'hllor expelled from Braavos."
"The Lord of Light?"
Beside him, Quairo looked puzzled as well.
During the period after Freygo had dismissed him from service, he had encountered all kinds of strange priests and holy men.
As far as he knew, the followers of the Lord of Light had not done anything particularly outrageous.
What exactly had angered the Dragon King so much?
Naturally, Viserys had no intention of revealing the real reason.
Based on his understanding of Freygo, if the Sea Lord learned how powerful R'hllor truly was, he might end up cooperating with the Red Priests against House Targaryen.
"The pyromancers deceived House Targaryen for nearly a century," Viserys declared. "They brought countless disasters upon my family."
"Now that I have personally hatched dragons, it is only natural that I take my revenge."
After House Targaryen lost its dragons, nearly every king had attempted to hatch the remaining dragon eggs.
Every attempt had ended in failure.
The people responsible for misleading those kings would not be spared. And as an excuse, it sounded perfectly reasonable.
Sure enough, after hearing Viserys's explanation, Freygo's suspicions vanished.
In fact, for a Dragon King who possessed living dragons, such a request barely qualified as a demand.
But Viserys's next condition revealed the true extent of his dominance.
"Robert hired your Faceless Men to assassinate me, didn't he?"
Viserys smiled.
"Hand that payment over to me."
___________
Upto 20 chapters ahead on patreon :-
patreon.com/BloodAncestor