"How did this happen, and who killed Prince Aegon?" Daenerys raised her head, her usually captivating eyes blazing with fury as they swept over the Golden Company generals present, finally stopping on the leader of the surrender delegation. "I need an explanation, Commander Strickland!"
Damn it, after doing the dirty work, I still have to act?
This is like trying to play the saint after acting like a whore!
Storm's End really was not easy to take.
Secretly cursing Daenerys, Harry Strickland nevertheless trembled and sweated profusely, his face full of shame and difficulty as he began to recount the events.
As an old hand who had lived for decades, Harry had long expected that things might not be so simple. To avoid unnecessary complications and falling into the hands of others, he had already prepared all the necessary witnesses, physical evidence, and confessions on the way there. According to the script, he had been sleeping when the incident occurred. The point of "not being at the scene" was enough to reasonably explain why he did not know any details. As the unrest grew larger, his attendant woke him, and he hastily donned his armor and rushed to the prince's residence with trusted soldiers... Unfortunately, it was too late. He only had time to retrieve the prince's body to prevent it from being desecrated, corner the culprits at the scene, and finally execute them on the spot during the confrontation when they resisted capture.
This was a complete and self-consistent timeline. No one within the Golden Company had the standing or reason to expose his lie. And even if Daenerys wanted the culprits, he could indeed produce the bodies of the "killers." In the chaos that night, the sellswords, to prevent Mace Tyrell from rescuing Aegon, clashed with the Highgarden guards loyal to him, resulting in casualties. These fallen brothers were dead anyway, and their earthly remains could be used as scapegoats to take the blame for regicide, serving their purpose. Even in the afterlife, they would only feel comforted... and would not have any objections.
Well, regarding the last point, whether others believed it or not, Harry Strickland believed it anyway.
The Unsullied soldiers felt satisfied with the traitor prince's fate but also regretted Daenerys's loss of a blood relative.
Daenerys aggressively questioned every detail of the tragedy. She was filled with grief and indignation and suspected the truth.
Harry Strickland appeared flustered but was actually confident, answering fluently. The events were, of course, fake, but he had arranged them to seem real. In this wave, he was on the third level.
The Golden Company officers and Mace Tyrell, on the other hand, watched the performance expressionlessly, sneering inwardly. They had already guessed that everything was just a formality. Even if Strickland killing Aegon was not ordered by Daenerys, it was at least tacitly approved by Aegor. They were on the fourth level.
Behind Daenerys, Aegor, floating outside the atmosphere, coldly looked down at the people on the scene, whose joys and sorrows were not connected. While finding them noisy, he coldly and mercilessly pondered ways to ignite conflict.
The plan of using a borrowed knife to kill had succeeded, but the follow-up work of burning the bridges and silencing witnesses still had no solution.
Seeing Harry Strickland's confident and composed demeanor, it was unlikely that he would reveal any flaws that would make Daenerys see that the tragedy had been planned by him... Daenerys currently had the role of the "legitimate ruler of the Seven Kingdoms" to play and could not act arbitrarily like a tyrant. This meant that as long as the sellswords insisted it was an accident, no matter how angry or suspicious she was, she would ultimately have to grit her teeth and fulfill the terms of the peace agreement, accepting the Golden Company's surrender and allowing them to safely leave Westeros.
And by then, Harry Strickland, feeling that he had done the dirty work for Daenerys but received no reward, would inevitably spread word of his secret meeting with "Aegor" everywhere and show off that fake pardon to everyone he met. Not only would that damage Daenerys's reputation and legitimacy, it would also create a rift and suspicion between him and Daenerys.
And such an outcome was absolutely unacceptable to him.
This matter had to end today, right here. And the best outcome would be for Daenerys herself to silence the witnesses. To achieve this goal, he had to somehow make the Golden Company commander admit that he had orchestrated the tragedy.
Harry Strickland was certainly not foolish. He was even more shrewd than ninety-nine percent of people.
And to make such a clever person do something as foolish as seeking his own death, the difficulty was imaginable.
Fortunately, Aegor was no longer an ordinary person.
He held great power in court and was deeply trusted by Daenerys.
Although he had not thought of any brilliant move, he still had one last clumsy method: using power, relying on brute force to overcome skill, and forcefully disrupting the situation.
...
He left his original position with a somber face, walking toward the carriage, Daenerys, and the Golden Company commander.
As the only person moving at the scene, he naturally attracted everyone's attention. Even Harry Strickland, who was explaining to Daenerys, subconsciously turned his eyes toward him, and then his body stiffened almost imperceptibly.
Harry felt as if a fierce tiger was slowly approaching him, and goosebumps instantly rose all over his body. No, that was not right. This metaphor still could not accurately describe how he felt at this moment. As a well-traveled sellsword lord, Harry Strickland would not have such a strong reaction even if he encountered a real tiger.
This black-clothed Hand before him seemed a little different from the one he had seen that day?
No, very different!
"As Essos's most powerful and renowned sellsword company, is this all the loyalty and discipline the Golden Company has?" Aegor stopped only when he reached Daenerys's side. He did not even look at the young man's body in the carriage. "Prince Aegon, as the object of your allegiance, should have been protected by you to the death, yet he ultimately perished at your hands. As the commander, you bear undeniable responsibility for this matter! Someone, seize this man and escort him back to the dungeons of King's Landing for strict interrogation and investigation!"
As Hand, Aegor could naturally command the Unsullied, but the problem was that Daenerys herself was present.
No soldier moved without orders. In an instant, everyone's gazes, whether questioning, doubtful, or confused, focused on Daenerys.
"Your Grace... this..." Harry Strickland was completely caught off guard. He froze for a moment, instantly forgetting all his prepared words, and could only look at Daenerys with uncontrollable panic. "I cannot shirk responsibility for my inadequate leadership and poor management. But on account of the fact that I have already executed the culprits and brought back the prince's body intact... Your Grace, spare my life!"
Daenerys was also a bit confused. Her first reaction was that Aegor was overreacting and being redundant. After questioning him, she had not heard any obvious flaws or loopholes in Harry's answers. Aegon seemed to have simply died inexplicably in a foolish sellsword riot. The whole world was watching her every move, and she absolutely could not and should not arbitrarily imprison a surrendered enemy general without sufficient reason.
However, years of leadership experience also made her clearly understand that communicating and arguing in private was fine, but publicly rejecting her Hand's command... was an utterly foolish act.
"There are still many doubts about this matter, Commander Strickland, so I must trouble you... to submit to an investigation and questioning." Daenerys said coldly, her face showing no emotion, and nodded toward the Unsullied commander who was looking at her, signifying her approval of Aegor's order.
So more than a dozen Unsullied soldiers approached Harry in unison, like a tightening encirclement, about to confiscate his weapon.
Strickland's reaction was surprisingly intense. With an agility completely unsuited to his portly figure, he leapt backward into the group of his sellsword generals, drawing his sword with a clang. Nearly two-thirds of the sellswords also drew their weapons along with him.
Hundreds of Unsullied uniformly raised their spears and surged toward Daenerys's side. Mace Tyrell hastily retreated a few steps with his guards to distance himself, and the scene instantly became tense and volatile.
"Your Grace, please think twice!" Strickland completely did not understand what was happening but decided to give Daenerys one last chance. "I came to accept your agreement and surrender to you!"
(To be continued.)
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