Chapter 136 Full-Scale Preparations for War
Daenerys wasn't concerned about Eddard's two daughters; she was wondering if Cersei would send troops to attack them if the Eyrie didn't hand over its people, thus giving her another ally to choose from.
"Lord Tyrion?" Daenerys asked, not hearing a reply, before realizing Tyrion had drifted off into thought.
"Huh? What did you just say, Your Majesty?" Tyrion genuinely hadn't heard a thing.
Daenerys had no idea what Tyrion was thinking, so she could only repeat herself.
The last time Tyrion and Daenerys mentioned the Eyrie, they said that Catelyn's sister Lysa wouldn't send troops to rescue Riverrun.
Unexpectedly, Lysa died not long after, and Littlefinger also died in the Eyrie. Sansa and her sister Arya were in danger of being handed over.
He was unaware of what had happened at the Eyrie. With Lysa, the leader, dead, and the young Robin unable to fully control the affairs of the Eyrie, he couldn't say for sure whether the Sansa sisters would be handed over.
So he could only tell the truth: "Your Majesty, I don't know what has happened in Eagle's Nest, and I can't be sure whether Sansa and the others will be handed over."
Not getting an answer from Tyrion, Daenerys was slightly disappointed. She turned her eyes to her shoulder, but still didn't hear Drogon's words.
She could only ask again, "If the Eyrie doesn't hand over the people, will your sister Cersei march on the Vale?"
"If that's the case, Cersei will send troops, whether to avenge Joffrey or to save face for King's Landing." Tyrion had great confidence in his sister Cersei.
Daenerys nodded, quite satisfied with Tyrion's answer, and turned to Daario, saying, "My Lord of the Seas, how many warships are ready for battle?"
"Your Majesty, including Yara's ships, there are more than 720 in total," Dario said after thinking for a moment.
Daenerys smiled and nodded, then looked at her little advisor: "Missandra, how many soldiers are there?"
"With the addition of 28,000 new recruits, there are more than 54,200," Misandai said without hesitation.
"Good! Hitzdallah, do we have the financial resources to support this expedition? Do you believe that the former slave owners of Slaver's Bay have truly submitted to me?"
Daenerys then turned her questions to Chancellor of the Exchequer, Sidzidala.
Upon hearing the Queen's question, Hitzdala's expression turned serious as he replied, "With the tribute from Gis this time, we are fully capable of supporting this expedition."
After saying that, he glanced at Drogon, who was looking at him over Daenerys's shoulder, and said, "No one in Meereen dares to disobey your orders anymore. I believe Yunkai and Astapor, and even Geese, are no exception."
After Hitzdal finished speaking, Daenerys reached out and stroked Drogon's smooth back twice. She knew that the reason there were no dissenting voices was all thanks to Drogon.
"Then may I cross the Narrow Sea to Westeros?" Daenerys asked, turning to her Hand of the Queen, Tyrion.
Although Tyrion wanted to suggest waiting a little longer, he knew now was not the time to object, so he hesitated for a moment and said, "If we don't go to the Wall to fight the Wildlings and the White Walkers, we should be able to gain a foothold in Westeros."
Upon hearing Tyrion mention the wildling army and the White Walkers, Daenerys's burgeoning ambitions instantly extinguished by more than half.
Although more than 50,000 people seem like a lot, more than half of them are new recruits, judging from the last attack on the arena.
Two new recruits are no match for one veteran, let alone the Unsullied, who are rigorously trained and unafraid of injury. The number of over 50,000 has been reduced by more than half.
Upon hearing about the wildlings and the White Walkers, the others reacted in various ways, and Tyrion had previously told them about the situation of these two groups.
They knew that the wildlings were simply humans living in the harsh, far north beyond the Wall in Westeros.
As for the White Walkers... to be honest, they didn't quite believe it.
They've never heard of the dead being able to be resurrected, let alone in large numbers, and then become extremely difficult to kill. If that's really the case, then what hope is there for humanity?
This seems impossible!
Seeing the expressions on everyone's faces, Tyrion knew they didn't believe his stories about the White Walkers.
However, his understanding of the White Walkers was limited to what he heard the Night's Watch discuss at the Wall and the simple messages Varys sent him.
He couldn't provide more compelling evidence to explain how terrifying the White Walkers were, and in his heart, he also believed that the White Walkers weren't as terrifying as the rumors suggested; otherwise, would humanity still exist?
The White Walkers existed thousands of years before the Wall was built, and humans fought against them, but they disappeared after the Wall was completed.
Its sudden appearance now may be a resurgence of the remnants of that great war.
Having witnessed the grandeur of the Wall firsthand, Tyrion did not believe that any creature could possibly cross it on a large scale and invade Westeros.
"Full preparations for crossing the Narrow Sea!" Daenerys had waited too long and didn't want to wait any longer.
"Yes, Your Majesty!" The ministers below bowed in unison to acknowledge the order.
Barristan looked at the ambitious Daenerys and the ministers below who were working so hard for her, with a look of satisfaction on his face.
As Daenerys walked out of the council chamber toward her office, Drogon suddenly flew off her shoulder, grabbed her hand, and flew toward the next level of the pyramid.
"Drogon, where are you taking me?" Daenerys asked as she walked, being pulled along by Drogon.
Drogon did not respond to Daenerys with telepathy, but instead led her out of the Great Pyramid and into the plaza.
To keep Daenerys away, Drogon activated his transformation, instantly covering a large portion of the plaza.
Although people who frequented the pyramids and the plaza knew that Drogon could change size, very few had actually witnessed him doing so.
Those who witnessed it today were all astonished, their eyes wide with amazement. They never imagined that Drogon could grow from the size of a pigeon to the size of a mammoth in an instant; it was truly amazing.
They all stood at a distance, peering intently at Zhuo Geng, seemingly trying to find the pigeon-sized dragon from before the changes.
When Daenerys saw Drogon grow larger, she knew he was going to take her flying.
Stepping on Drogon's eerily dark red wings, it slowly climbed onto the broad dragon's back, sat on it, and gently patted the scales on its back.
Zhuogeng stood up, slowly spread his wide wings to keep the surrounding residents away from him, fluttered his dark red wings a few times, and took off from the spot, flying towards the northern Dothraki grasslands.
"Are you taking me to the Dothraki Sea?" Daenerys guessed their destination by looking at the direction Drogon was flying.
After Khal Drogo's death, Daenerys hatched three dragons from the flames and, along with a small Kharas consisting of nearly a hundred Dothraki willing to follow her, crossed the Red Wasteland, known as the Land of Death, and arrived at Qarth.