Leo set sail once more, this time aboard the ship Illyrio had generously lent him. The vessel joined a larger merchant convoy heading south along the coast.
Their next stop was Myr, the Free City just south of Pentos.
The ship wasn't empty. It carried a full cargo of trade goods bound for other ports, along with a complete crew of sailors and hired swords. That saved Leo a lot of hassle.
Of course, he knew exactly why Illyrio had offered the ship. The fat magister wanted to keep tabs on him. After all, Leo's official mission from King Robert was to hunt down Viserys and Daenerys. Illyrio would definitely want to know every move he made.
Leo didn't mind. He treated the whole voyage like a vacation.
One quick note: back in King's Landing, Leo had given Illyrio tens of thousands of gold dragons. When they reached Pentos, Illyrio exchanged them at the going rate into the local currencies used across the Nine Free Cities.
It gave Leo the perfect cover story for suddenly having large amounts of local coin on hand.
Westerosi gold dragons weren't legal tender here. Each Free City minted its own money. Pentos used round gold coins stamped with their signature square brick towers. Myr used flat, oval iron coins marked with a ship.
Thanks to Illyrio acting as a cross-border banker, Leo didn't have to haul thousands of heavy gold dragons across the Narrow Sea. It was a smooth, convenient arrangement.
It also made Leo think about the Iron Bank of Braavos, one of the most powerful financial institutions in the known world. The Iron Bank lent money to kings and lords across the realm—including Robert, who owed them millions.
Considering Littlefinger was the one handling most of those loans, Leo couldn't help but smirk. Letting a greedy rat guard the oil tank? No way Littlefinger wasn't skimming a fortune for himself.
Leo made a mental note: once this trip was over, he should pay the Iron Bank a visit and borrow as much gold as they'd let him have.
He had zero intention of paying it back.
Later, once he and Onyxia were on better terms, he could have her burn the Iron Bank to the ground. Problem solved—no debt, no creditors.
After five or six days of rolling seas, Leo's group finally reached Myr.
Myr was one of the Nine Free Cities, famous for its intricate handicrafts. The city exported carpets, fine lace, and the best glasswork in the world—lenses, telescopes, mirrors, you name it.
Local agriculture was solid too, and they produced some well-known wines.
The convoy docked for a few days of trade business, so Leo took his men ashore. He hired a local translator and set out to explore the city.
Now that they had left Pentos, Brienne no longer hid her face or disguised herself. She could finally walk the streets of Myr openly at Leo's side.
(Back in Pentos she had stayed low-key among the crew to avoid Illyrio noticing her. No point risking word getting back to Westeros.)
They wandered the bustling streets, picking up all kinds of interesting goods along the way.
Leo wasn't just sightseeing. He was studying the market.
He noticed that Myr, like Pentos, produced its own wines, but the golden wines from Arbor in the Reach were still the clear favorite among nobles and wealthy merchants.
That gave Leo an idea. The wines sold by the NPC vendors on his mounts—especially the cheapest one, Eversong wine—tasted better than common Arbor vintages and cost almost nothing to produce. Fifty copper coins per small barrel? That was pure profit.
He also witnessed the slave trade firsthand in Myr.
Pentos had outlawed slavery after losing multiple wars to Braavos. Myr had no such restrictions. In fact, it was a major slave-trading hub. The ratio of free people to slaves here was one to three. Most of the famous Myrish crafts were made by slave labor.
On the streets, Leo and his group saw slaves everywhere—collars and chains around their necks and ankles, or led along like cattle on ropes. The slightest sign of displeasure from their masters earned them curses and savage whippings. No freedom. No dignity.
At the slave markets, traders paraded their goods on raised platforms. Buyers inspected them like livestock—prying open mouths to check teeth, sometimes stripping them naked to examine the body (especially the women).
Most slaves wore the same numb, empty expression, like soulless corpses being herded, beaten, and put on display.
"These slavers deserve to die," Brienne muttered, voice thick with disgust.
In Westeros, slavery was hated and strictly forbidden, largely because of the teachings of the Faith of the Seven.
Jorah Mormont, the "Big Bear," had been sentenced to death by Eddard Stark for selling slaves. He fled to Essos just ahead of Ned's men and became a wandering knight.
Seeing the brutal reality up close, Brienne looked ready to charge in and start swinging.
Leo, raised in a modern world, felt sick to his stomach too.
He remembered how Daenerys had seen the same horror and made it her mission to free every slave she could.
"Don't worry," Leo said quietly. "One day, slavery like this will disappear from the world."
To Brienne and the others—especially their local translator—it sounded like nothing more than a pretty, impossible dream.
Slavery had existed in Essos for countless centuries. How could something so deeply rooted ever vanish?
They had no idea that in just a few years, a young girl with three dragons would fight to change everything… and nearly succeed.
Leo's arrival might make that happen even sooner.
He had already made up his mind.
After seeing the misery of the slave trade, Leo lost all interest in sightseeing. He led everyone back to the inn.
The moment they reached the entrance, a dirty street kid ran up and shoved a folded piece of parchment into Leo's hand.
Leo's eyes narrowed. He broke the wax seal, read the message, and a small smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.
"News about those two siblings already?"