Daenerys watched Mero bleed profusely, showing no intention of calling for a healer.
He had provoked her one too many times, and she had long wanted to order Jorah to take him down. But she knew she couldn't. The burning of the Good Masters in Astapor had been a desperate measure.
If she acted this way again, no one would ever trust her again, seeing her as a dishonorable Queen who relied only on brute force.
Facing Drogon's calm gaze, Daario and the others drew their weapons but dared not move. They were certain that if they raised their blades, Mero's fate would be sealed—or worse.
Mero had long lost his earlier arrogance. He tore a strip from the hem of his tunic and wrapped it around his neck. Drogon hadn't severed his throat, merely scraped his Adam's apple with his claws.
"Captain Mero, how much did the Wise Masters of Yunkai pay you? I'll double it. You can still speak, can't you?" Daenerys asked, smiling at Mero, whose chest was stained with blood.
"I... we... *cough*... You... you said!" Mero tried to speak, but the pain in his throat made his words garbled. He pointed at Prendahl beside him.
"The Second Sons have endured for so long because of our reputation. Without it, we would have disbanded long ago. Besides, you can't offer more than the Wise Masters of Yunkai," Prendahl refused.
"I can offer you lands and titles that he cannot. And when we formally attack Yunkai, do you really think you'll still have a chance at the money?" Daenerys said, her gaze sweeping across the three captains of the Second Sons.
"Mother of Dragons, if I may be so bold, 8,000 Unsullied are not enough to make you the Queen of Westeros," Daario interjected politely.
"You are right. My little dragons are growing, and my army will grow with them. It's not too late for you to join us now."
After Daenerys finished speaking, Daario remained silent, nodding with a smile as he turned to Mero.
"Don't... don't you..." Mero tried to speak, but the words caught in his throat, forcing him to let Prendahl speak for him.
"We have cavalry, infantry, and veterans of countless battles. We are not so easily defeated," Prendahl said, ignoring Daenerys's invitation.
"You should know the power of my 8,000 Unsullied. Do you truly believe 2,000 can defeat 8,000? Or have you already prepared to take the Wise Masters' gold and flee when the fighting turns against you?"
"You stinking..." Mero started to curse, but then he noticed Drogon and said with a hint of caution, "We'll meet on the battlefield!"
After the three had left, Daenerys frowned slightly, considering her next move. The failure of negotiations with the Wise Masters and the Second Sons left only one option: a direct assault, a result she had hoped to avoid.
Just then, an Unsullied soldier entered and handed Grey Worm a rolled-up scroll.
Grey Worm asked the soldier a few questions, then gave the scroll to Barristan. "They saw a young boy trying to approach the tents during their patrol outside the camp. When they chased after him, he fled into the distance, leaving only this scroll behind."
Barristan took the scroll and examined it. It was unsealed, simply tied with a hemp cord. Finding nothing amiss, he handed it to Daenerys.
She unrolled it and glanced at the contents, her expression a mixture of relief and concern. She then passed it to Jorah and the other two, noting that the message was written in Valyrian, a language Grey Worm could understand.
"It's one of Varys's Little Birds," Barristan said, recognizing a secret mark they had agreed upon with Varys.
"With so many guards on the walls and the Second Sons outside, how did that boy get through?" Jorah asked, voicing the question on everyone's mind.
"The boy didn't come from Yunkai's direction. He came from somewhere outside the city," Grey Worm replied, having learned of Jorah's question from Missandei. His Common Tongue was still somewhat clumsy.
After Grey Worm finished speaking, the group realized the young boy might have left Yunkai before the city's defenses were tightened, or he might have found another way out.
They had already read the contents of the letter. It mentioned a small gate in Yunkai, specifically designed for those needing to enter or leave after the main gates closed at night, but it was now heavily guarded.
"Even with the small gate, the guards are more numerous than before. It might be difficult for a small group to get through," Jorah said after reading the letter.
"The gate can only accommodate a few people at a time. We should send our strongest fighters through," Barristan analyzed.
After hearing their plans, Daenerys said reluctantly, "We'll use the small gate after we destroy the Second Sons. It will be difficult, but it's better than the losses we'd suffer in a full assault."
Though the battle with the Second Sons was unavoidable, reducing the cost of the siege was still welcome news.
The group discussed the plan and decided to attack the Second Sons the following night. After finalizing the details, they returned to their tents.
Eli had prepared a delicate meal for Daenerys: a small bowl of beet soup, a plate of plums, and two bottles of red wine.
Drogon, having already eaten his fill in the grasslands, only took a few plums as a snack. Daenerys rarely drank wine, but with the battle looming, she wanted a glass to ease her worries.
Red wine simply isn't suitable for devouring a hearty meal. Drogon still preferred mare's milk and a fiery spirit brewed from some unknown ingredients, its burn tickling his throat and making him feel as if his dragon fire had intensified.
Since the Dragon Mother rarely drank red wine, Drogon naturally joined her for a few cups. However, before she had finished her first glass, he had already downed two.
Accustomed to the nomadic life of the steppes, where one eats and drinks heartily, he found it impossible to sip slowly. A bottle would vanish in just a few gulps.
Worried about the impending battle, Daenerys drank more than usual. Her tolerance was low, and after half a bottle, she felt slightly tipsy, her head leaning against Drogon's shoulder as she lay in bed.
In her hazy state, she remembered her mother, whose face she had never truly seen, her brother Rhaegar, whom she had never met, and her brother Viserys, who used to climb into her bed as a child to tell her stories of the Seven Kingdoms. She even found herself missing her father, Aerys, whom others called the Mad King.
As she thought of them, she suddenly felt utterly alone. The House of the Dragon, once a dynasty that spanned four continents, now consisted of only her.
She felt like that little girl again, the one who had always wanted to go home but didn't know where home was.
She was hailed as the Mother of Dragons, the Queen of the Seven Kingdoms, and she had to reclaim the Iron Throne, to reclaim the Seven Kingdoms. Perhaps only then would she truly have a home, a place to call her own.
But could she truly return to Westeros and claim the Iron Throne?
Though she had been steeling herself and making the recovery of the Iron Throne her sacred duty, now, facing Yunkai, she found herself hesitating, fearing failure. She worried that a costly attack on Yunkai might cripple her Unsullied, leaving them too weak to continue to Westeros. She even regretted not heeding Jorah's advice to abandon Yunkai.
*Hiss!*
*You still have me.* Drogon, sensing the Dragon Mother's loneliness and perhaps relating to it himself, nudged the back of her hand with his snout.
Hearing Drogon's silent words and feeling the unusual warmth of his body, Daenerys wiped the corner of her eye. She felt a surge of renewed strength.
She was not alone. She had Drogon, Rhaegal, and Viserion, Jorah, her father's Kingsguard Barristan, Missandei, Grey Worm, and the entire Khalasar.
Yunkai was merely her first formal battle. She still had to take Meereen, liberate all the slaves in Slaver's Bay, and cross the Narrow Sea to confront King's Landing and the nobles of the Seven Kingdoms. If she could be intimidated by a mere Yunkai, what courage would she have to claim the Iron Throne?
Daenerys felt herself transforming once more into the Queen that Jorah and the others served.
"Thank you, Drogon," Daenerys said sincerely, hugging him. Without him, she would have lost her greatest support and reliance in Qarth long ago. Without him, there would be no Barristan, no Unsullied, no Iron Throne!
Watching Daenerys regain her confidence, Drogon secretly vowed in his heart that he would never let history repeat itself. He would sweep away every obstacle and help the Dragon Mother claim the Iron Throne!
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(End of Chapter)