The next day.
After resting overnight on a nearby deserted island, Logar and Nettles flew back toward Lys once more.
On the way, Nettles kept glancing at him like she wanted to say something. After a long silence she finally spoke up. "Lord Logar… what if Prince Viserys really isn't in Lys at all?
And if the enemy refuses to hand him over, are we actually going to burn their islands one by one?"
She wasn't doubting his judgment. She just knew Lys was a major city-state with real power behind it. Yesterday they'd caught the enemy completely off guard and torched the harbor. Today the Lyseni wouldn't be stupid—they'd have their best troops ready and waiting. The danger would be twice as high.
Besides, as a girl who'd grown up with nothing, she still carried a soft spot in her heart and didn't want to hurt more innocents than necessary.
Logar glanced at her and answered in a steady voice. "The way the enemy acted yesterday makes me certain they're holding Prince Viserys. No doubt about it.
As for the threat I gave them yesterday, that was mostly to scare them. My real goal is to put heavy pressure on the city—force them to turn on each other so we can find the cracks we need."
From everything Logar knew, Lys ran on a council system. The great families pushed the richest man in the city forward to become Archon. On paper the Archon held the most power, but behind the scenes the noble houses constantly schemed and checked each other.
That meant even if Archon Bambarro Bazanne wanted to fight, someone in the shadows would definitely pull his strings—or trip him up.
Plus, Logar knew the man was already bankrupt. He could barely pay his own mercenaries anymore. How many people would actually stand with him now?
Nettles' eyes brightened the moment she heard Logar's breakdown. Her admiration for him grew even stronger. Not only was he handsome and brave—he was smart, too. He didn't just charge in blindly; he knew how to use politics as a weapon.
She suddenly felt embarrassed for worrying earlier and stayed quiet, flying beside him toward Lys with fresh determination.
Logar didn't rush straight over the city to unleash another round of dragonfire either.
He knew the enemy would be prepared this time. Instead he and Nettles flew the dragons in wide, lazy circles around the edges of Lys, deliberately making their presence known, then landed in a quiet spot nearby.
Sure enough, when Archon Bambarro Bazanne saw the dragons return but not attack the city like the day before, he was thrown completely off balance. He had already positioned a thousand Unsullied troops in perfect formation.
Where's the attack? Why aren't they following the script?
He wanted to curse out loud but suspected it might be a trick to make them drop their guard, so he stayed tense. He ordered scouts to watch the dragons constantly while his men remained locked in defensive positions.
Meanwhile, the Rogare and Vhyss families had also taken heavy losses when the harbor burned the night before. Their resentment toward Bambarro was already boiling over.
Now that the dragons had simply flown one slow circle and landed instead of attacking, they immediately smelled opportunity.
They had already learned the two Black dragonriders had come for Prince Viserys. Since the prince wasn't in their hands, the most likely person hiding him was Bambarro Bazanne—the man desperate to turn his fortunes around.
Considering the Archon's terrible financial situation and how he had stood up yesterday like a hero, refusing to negotiate and instead demanding everyone fight to the death…
The heads of these two ancient houses were no fools. They understood his plan instantly.
"Clever bastard," Lysandro Rogare muttered. "He wants to use our Unsullied as shields against the dragons while he sits back and reaps all the benefits!"
"Exactly. We almost fell for it!" the Vhyss patriarch agreed. "My men noticed extra guards around his estate recently, and they've been watching it like hawks. So the prince is with him after all!"
After a quick, sharp discussion with his old ally from House Vhyss, Lysandro Rogare's anger flared white-hot.
Every Unsullied under his command had cost a fortune. They were priceless elite troops. He wasn't about to let Bambarro use them as cannon fodder for his own ambition.
In his fury, he refused to let the Archon use the Unsullied and Strangler poison against the dragons. Instead he sent a trusted aide in secret toward where the dragons had landed, hoping to open negotiations with the two Black dragonriders.
At that moment, Logar and Nettles had settled down near Lys to rest. They let Sheepstealer and the Cannibal hunt fish in the nearby waters while staying on guard.
The two of them ate dried rations to recover their strength.
They had just finished eating when a Lyseni man wrapped head-to-toe in white cloth approached nervously. He swallowed hard while staring at the two dragons circling and hunting fish nearby, then dropped to his knees before Logar and Nettles.
"R-Respected dragonriders… I come on behalf of House Rogare of Lys to open negotiations with you!"
Logar smiled the moment he saw the fish had taken the bait.
Nettles looked surprised—she hadn't expected things to develop exactly as Lord Logar predicted.
"Oh? And how exactly do you want to negotiate?" Logar asked. He stood on a large rock, casually slicing strips of hard dried beef with the dagger Baela had given him and popping them into his mouth.
"Our patriarch, Lysandro Rogare, says you came for Prince Viserys and don't want to slaughter innocents. The prince is definitely not in our family's hands. It's very likely that Archon Bambarro Bazanne is the one hiding him…
He also wanted me to warn you that the Archon has prepared an army of Unsullied, along with the deadly poison called the Strangler produced by Lys's Alchemists' Guild. They're planning to use both against you…"
"Unsullied?!"
Logar raised an eyebrow at the familiar name.
He remembered Daenerys had used the Unsullied from Astapor to build her power in the original story. He hadn't expected them to already exist at this point in time.
When he was building up the Stepstones, he had actually considered buying some Unsullied to strengthen his forces—they were supposedly more disciplined than regular professional soldiers. He'd only given up the idea because he couldn't afford them.
"Looks like I've really pushed Bambarro into a corner," Logar thought with a cold smirk.
No matter how elite the Unsullied were, they were still ground troops. How could foot soldiers threaten dragons—the undisputed kings of the sky?
The real concern was Lys's unique poison—the Strangler. That one actually made him cautious.
"Yes," the envoy continued. "Our patriarch says he will keep a close eye on Archon Bambarro and secretly search for Prince Viserys's location.
In return, he asks that you and your dragons do not attack Rogare or Vhyss family properties in the city. He also hopes you will eliminate Archon Bambarro. If you do, you will earn the friendship of House Rogare."
"What a nice little knife they want me to use," Logar thought.
He hadn't expected the Rogare patriarch to be so calculating—actually reaching out to cooperate with him despite the political risks.
But this played perfectly into his hands. There was no harm in doing House Rogare a favor by getting rid of Bambarro.
Under the envoy's nervous gaze, Logar stood up straight on the rock, his violet eyes sharp.
"I accept House Rogare's conditions.
However, I want your family to find Prince Viserys as quickly as possible and give me the exact locations of Bambarro's troops and hiding places.
Tonight… I want them all turned to ash."