Being mercilessly mocked by a stupid dragon, Tyrion's stern face remained frozen.
The nobles, thinking he was angry about their rout on the battlefield, dared not provoke him and quietly licked their wounds in solitude.
However, while licking the enemy's wounds, these people still could not hide their excitement.
Everyone had seen Robert's display of divine power outside Lannisport before, and of course, they knew what a dragon capable of annihilating an army meant.
So, while gloating over those Westmarch nobles who still hadn't pledged allegiance to the respected and great King Karl Baratheon, they also began to fantasize about their wonderful future lives.
Was it that easy to gain merit from a dragon?
What? You said I was useless? The only battle I fought, I almost lost and deserted.
What nonsense are you spouting?
I have rendered service to the kingdom! I have shed blood for His Majesty! I want to see His Majesty! I want to see His Majesty!
Tyrion, with a sour face, looked at the harbor of Lannisport, where warships were sailing in from the sea and docking.
It was evident that House Redwyne had put all their strength into this attack on Lannisport.
Because they had just finished inventorying the captured Redwyne fleet, and there were a staggering one hundred and eighty ships.
Although the Redwyne fleet was the largest in Westeros, and it was said that Lord Paxter Redwyne owned as many as two hundred warships.
Yet, to attack Lannisport, which had lost its own fleet, House Redwyne had used over ninety percent of its strength.
This showed that House Redwyne was determined to win this battle against Lannisport, or against Karl. "Lord Tyrion—"
Just as Tyrion was pondering these fleets, a voice came.
Putting away his thoughts, Tyrion turned his head and saw that it was Hall, who should have been defending Casterly Rock, and Kesi was also with him.
"I saw King Karl's dragon at Casterly Rock—it was truly astonishing."
Seeing Tyrion look over, Hall's face still showed lingering shock.
Standing high and seeing far, from the super VIP golden position of Casterly Rock, he could overlook the entire Lannisport and could be said to have witnessed the entire war unfold.
They had seen that lazy dragon Robert many times when Karl was around, and after seeing it so often, they had grown accustomed to it and were no longer surprised.
However, they never expected that after Karl left and the little fellow also disappeared for a while, the first thing it did upon returning wasn't to wreck the house, but instead to do such a big thing at the most critical moment.
Not to mention the victory of the war.
Just looking at the Redwyne fleet's warships, which now filled the entire Lannisport harbor, Hall couldn't even calculate how much these ships were worth.
Perhaps their current problem shouldn't be poverty, but rather how to learn to spend money after suddenly becoming rich.
"Robert has rendered great service. To be honest, I never expected it could do so much."
Tyrion deeply agreed with Hall's words.
No matter what, Karl's fat dragon deserved the credit for this war.
Without it, not only might Lannisport not still be in their hands, but he might not even be standing here whole and sound.
Moreover, along the entire coast of Lannisport, the sea was still covered with countless shattered boat fragments and dead bodies, a truly shocking sight.
And it wasn't just these urgent issues; there were also House Redwyne soldiers who had been lucky enough to survive after Robert drove them into the sea.
Each of these matters required manpower to handle.
A heavy rain and a war had directly turned the commercially prosperous Lannisport into a chaotic scene.
Regarding the disposal of these captives and ships, Tyrion left his own people to guard the captives and supplies, assigning them relatively light tasks.
As for the nobles and their armies who had contributed nothing to the war, he assigned them all to do the dirty and arduous work.
Anyway, anything involving moving bodies, clearing debris, digging pits, and burning was their responsibility.
This also included fishermen, civilians, and sailors who were forcibly conscripted after the war ended, all working together to barely manage the current situation.
The Redwyne fleet had a total of one hundred and eighty warships. Even if each ship only had one hundred men, that would still be eighteen thousand people.
Moreover, Tyrion knew very well that House Redwyne had brought far more than just that many people to attack them.
Although the rain curtain had obscured his view of the enemy's numbers before, he had seen the dense, close-to-shore landing boats with his own eyes; otherwise, Robert's dragonfire wouldn't have caused such a massive stir.
And as for why they had to exert so much effort just to attack Lannisport, which had no defensive capabilities, the intelligent Tyrion naturally understood the underlying reason.
Because the fundamental purpose of the Redwyne's actions was not merely Lannisport, but Karl El behind it, and even the territories of the Westmarch thereafter.
This was also why Tyrion's face was so grim after counting the warships floating on the sea and realizing how many people House Redwyne had brought.
He wouldn't get angry just because a stupid dragon mocked him.
But seeing one part, he understood the whole. With House Redwyne making such a grand display, it was not difficult for Tyrion to understand what they truly intended.
Hall did not know that the Dwarf before him had already considered so many things.
He was still astonished that this war could be fought in such a way, and end in such a manner.
This made him profoundly understand what a dragon was, and why the Targaryen Family was once able to unify the Seven Kingdoms and rule for over two hundred years.
So, after exclaiming, he looked around but did not see what he wanted to see.
"Where's Robert? Is he not here?"
Hall asked subconsciously.
"He left just now. I don't know where he went." Tyrion shrugged casually, giving a perfunctory answer, and turned to look at Kesi, the Castellan of Casterly Rock, who was also looking around with a bitter expression behind Hall.
"Kesi, has the maester arrived?"
Kesi, who was currently troubled by how much work would be needed after this war's victory, heard Tyrion's question and nodded, "The maester will certainly come. He needs to record this war. He was already eager to bring his apprentices over when he was at Casterly Rock."
Tyrion hadn't seen the maester. Lannisport was already a chaotic mess, and they still lacked manpower.
Coupled with his suspicions, this made him feel somewhat annoyed, "Someone go find Maester Kleren and tell him I need to speak with him."
Watching a guard leave, Kesi stepped forward, "Is it something important?
5
"House Redwyne's movements this time are very strange; I'm a little worried," Tyrion said, glancing at the busy soldiers from various families, then sighed deeply.
"I'm somewhat concerned there might be another reason behind this, so we must report what happened here to King Karl as soon as possible."
Hearing his words, Kesi and Hall's expressions turned serious. Both were intelligent men and immediately understood Tyrion's meaning.
However, before they could say anything, Tyrion understood what they were about to say from their expressions.
He immediately interrupted them and lowered his voice, saying gravely, "Perhaps it's unrelated to them, but even if it is, it no longer matters now. We don't need to concern ourselves with this issue anymore."
"Because Robert's dragonfire can awaken more than just House Redwyne."
Hearing this, Kesi and Hall instinctively exchanged glances and then quietly breathed a sigh of relief.
They both clearly understood that even if this matter was truly as Tyrion suspected, at this point, they could neither pursue it nor investigate it.
But at least for now, this crisis seemed to have passed silently.
"Indeed, regardless, at least we have the good news of acquiring warships to tell His Majesty, even if we don't have enough people to crew these ships right now."
Hall gave a bitter laugh, looking at the warships filling the harbor with a slight headache.
Hall, who was responsible for the Casterly Rock guard and part of the army's command, could only see these things. However, his small troubles were insignificant to Kesi.
Hall's words reminded him.
So, looking at the warships before him, Kesi couldn't help but clutch his hair.
"Should we recruit sailors?"
"If we prepare now, we could have a usable fleet in just two or three months."
"It's just that I have some bad news to tell you: we don't have much money left."
Despite his miserable expression, Kesi remained dutiful, speaking his mind.
Their recent victories certainly looked glorious and splendid.
But only they knew that to make these assets productive instead of letting them rot, they had to find a way to revitalize them.
However, those nobles were absolutely unusable.
As for the House Redwyne prisoners, they were out of the question.
So, if they truly wanted to expand their army and build a fleet for King Karl Baratheon, the only option was to recruit people themselves and train them into sailors.
But this process would take more than just a year or two.
Even if they only needed to operate these warships, recruiting skilled fishermen or sailors from the convenience of the port city would still take at least three months to barely form a fighting force.
Otherwise, the fleet would self-destruct due to various accidents immediately after leaving the harbor.
But then new problems arose.
Putting aside whether they had enough time, their empty treasury, which jingled with every gust of wind, was enough to drive them to despair.
Although the Westerlands were wealthy, that was after the Lannister Family had developed for centuries.
Now, the original Lannister Family had absconded with the funds, leaving behind an empty shell and a mess, and the entire Westerlands had not yet recovered from the previous war.
Moreover, there were still significant problems with tax collection in the Westerlands.
The few existing gold mines still needed to be mined first, and other gold mines were located elsewhere.
Just thinking about these things was enough to give one a headache.
As soon as Kesi spoke, the small group in Casterly Rock fell silent.
Looking at the victory before them, not a single person could smile.
This, of course, included Tyrion Lannister, who, with his back to the others, was on the verge of tears.
Fortunately, this silence did not last long, because just then, Timett and Qira came over, escorting a person.
Before the three of them even got close, Tyrion recognized the person being brought in.
This man, with his hands bound, shoulders drooping, a slender build, only a few clumps of orange-yellow hair on his bald head, and a wet body with dull eyes and pale blue-purple lips.
It was none other than the Earl of Arbor and Lord of House Redwyne, Paxter Redwyne.
Tyrion was very familiar with this distinct-looking Earl of Arbor, as his uncle, Ser Stafford Lannister, had once discussed the marriage of his son, Davos Lannister, to Desmera Redwyne.
However, at that time, the two sides did not reach an agreement for a marriage alliance, and the matter was left unresolved.
During The War of the Usurper, he remained loyal to the Targaryen Family.
Later, during the Siege of Storms End, his fleet completely blockaded Storms End from the sea, besieging it along with his liege, Lord Mace Tyrell.
It wasn't until the fall of the Targaryen Family and Eddard Stark's arrival with troops to relieve the Siege of Storms End that Duke Mace Tyrell and Paxter pledged allegiance to Robert Baratheon.
"Earl Paxter Redwyne, it's a pleasure to meet you in this manner."
Seeing the arrival and thinking of what he had done, Tyrion immediately shed the miserable expression he had just worn.
Instead, he looked at the Earl of Arbor with a sneer.
This bastard had come to trouble him, almost costing him his life, and now left him with such a mess; Tyrion felt like hitting someone.
Paxter Redwyne, who had been dragged along, still looked distraught and showed no extra emotion, but upon hearing the mocking words, his eyes gradually regained their light and he looked at the Dwarf before him.
With just one glance, he also recognized who the short man in front of him was.
"I also didn't expect to see a Lannister in Lannisport," he chuckled, "I thought all the Lannisters had been sent to Black Castle."
Facing the Dwarf's mockery, Paxter Redwyne retorted stiffly.
Then he glanced at the few people present, and an expression of disdain appeared on his face.
"So, I'm also very happy to see you here, but it would be even better if the circumstances were different."
The two of them were at loggerheads the moment they met.
As for his retort, Tyrion merely said lightly, "It's a pity, Earl Paxter Redwyne, the gods did not hear your prayers."
"Because the gods are on my side—no, they are on King Karl Baratheon's side, not Renly Baratheon. This is worth pondering."
Tyrion profoundly understood that the purpose of an argument was not to win against one's opponent, but to infuriate or exasperate them with words.
To Tyrion's words, Earl Paxter Redwyne could only glare in anger, unable to retort.
So he could only struggle to curse this disgrace of the Lannister Family.
"Damn Dwarf, if it weren't for the dragons, I'd hang you from the mast of the arbor queen! I swear it!"
Seeing that this old fellow dared to be insolent even at a time like this, Timett, who had brought him, punched him hard in the stomach.
This caused the noble Earl's eyes to bulge slightly, clear saliva uncontrollably flowed from his mouth, and he curled up on the ground, unable to utter a single word.
Watching the Earl get beaten, Tyrion shrugged and said indifferently.
"But unfortunately, the dragons belong to King Karl, and the victory is mine."
"Speaking of which, did they only catch you? I don't believe you would lead a fleet to attack us alone."
Tyrion suddenly thought of this question and turned to look at Timett and Qira, who had brought Paxter Redwyne.
To this question, Qira raised an eyebrow.
"A sailor, whose leg was broken by Robert and fell into the sea but fortunately survived, told me that this person's two twin sons have been burned to ashes by dragonfire."
"Hmm, I heard it happened right before his eyes."
Hearing Qira's words, Tyrion paused slightly, and the playful expression on his face disappeared.
Tyrion also knew that Paxter Redwyne had a pair of twin sons, and he even knew them.
Thinking of Paxter Redwyne's own sons dying before his eyes, Tyrion lost the desire to mock him.
"Take him away and lock him up. Don't let him die; we might still need him later."
The fact that Paxter Redwyne was not dead and had been captured alive was good news for Tyrion, because no matter what, this person's usefulness alive was greater than his usefulness dead.
Furthermore, Tyrion was preparing to sound out Paxter Redwyne for his previous suspicions, to confirm his conjectures and eliminate certain unfavorable factors in the Westerlands.
After roughly dealing with these matters, Tyrion immediately shifted his attention back to the endless government affairs before him.
Then, when a beautiful woman suddenly came with Hall to report to him, he couldn't help but frown, lifting his head from the desk, his eyes filled with confusion as he looked at the two of them.
"Margaery Tyrell?"
"And you just told me that Robert brought a House Redwyne army from the Coastal Road?"
"And it's an army of at least five thousand men?"
Margaery Tyrell, who had been brought alone to see Tyrion, didn't have time to speak.
However, to Tyrion's expression of 'you must be joking with me,' Hall also looked bewildered, staring blankly at Tyrion and honestly saying,
"Yes, Lord Tyrion Lannister, Robert drove a group of House Redwyne soldiers like sheep, they are outside the city right now."
Advance Chapters avilable on patreon (Obito_uchiha)