The Dothraki seemed bewildered by numbers greater than ten and by the "complex" administrative system?
Daenerys frowned. Drogo's forty thousand roaring warriors operated in units of *khas*, the smallest organizational group under the *kalas*. Each *khas* was led by a *kaskos*, who only needed to manage a dozen or so *kos*.
In other words, the Dothraki had only three military ranks: *Khaos*, *Ko*, and *roaring warrior*. In truth, *Khaos* and *Ko* were of the same rank, and *Ko* was of the same rank as the *roaring warrior*.
The *Khaos* was the strongest *Ko*, and the *Ko* was the strongest warrior. The difference between any two of these ranks was at most one level.
The Horse People were primitive, so primitive they had nearly achieved true democracy.
But she didn't want this kind of democracy. If the Dothraki had been more feudal, the Khaleesi's fate might not have been so tragic.
*Hmm, at least I could have become a regent.*
Daenerys's true purpose in reorganizing the *kalas* was to establish a hierarchical system. With a hierarchy in place, they could quickly transition to a centralized feudal society. After all, feudalism had existed among other peoples for millennia; she only needed to adapt, not innovate.
In simple terms, this world possessed the productive capacity to develop feudalism.
Daenerys's minimum requirement for the Dothraki was to establish a Golden Family, centered around her own bloodline.
Before Genghis Khan, anyone could claim the title of "Khan" (the Horsemen's Khaos) on the Great Steppe, regardless of lineage—it all depended on personal prowess and power. At that time, even the Mongols lacked a structured system of hereditary succession tied to bloodlines and surnames.
This was almost identical to the Horse People of the time.
But after Genghis Khan unified Outer Mongolia and established the Mongol Empire, only the Borjigin clan could claim the title of Khan.
If you weren't a Borjigin, you had to marry a woman from the Borjigin clan, ensuring your sons carried the Borjigin bloodline.
These Borjigin clans became known by a resounding and glorious name: the Golden Family.
Whether she could conquer the world was a distant thought for Daenerys.
But with three dragons at her disposal, failing to establish her own Golden Family would be a criminal waste of such exceptional resources and opportunity.
The currently fragmented Dothraki were, to her, a divine gift—the foundation for an imperial legacy.
The Golden Family had only one chance, and only one.
The original Daenerys was a bit naive, or perhaps like Murong Fu, she had become obsessed with the idea of returning to Westeros and becoming its queen.
Heaven help her, Westeros was tens of thousands of kilometers away!
And the nobles there were all... well, their palace intrigue skills were maxed out, their combat skills were maxed out, their ambition and lust for power were maxed out, their ruthlessness was maxed out, and their loyalty was maxed out—uh, negatively, they were all backstabbing ingrates.
Oh, and the environmental harshness score was maxed out, and every so often, the White Walkers came out to end the world.
That wretched place? Even if she got it for free, Daenerys wouldn't want it.
So no matter how difficult it was, the Dothraki reforms couldn't stop.
"Aggo, what's five tens?" she asked her Bloodrider.
Aggo thought for a moment and replied, "Is it fifty?"
Daenerys nodded and asked, "What's five fifties?"
This time he took longer, grimacing as he counted on his fingers. Finally, he said uncertainly, "250?"
"You got it right!" Daenerys spread her hands to encourage him.
"But you said there's also a Captain and a Commander. If we remove them, how many knights are left?" he asked.
"Why remove them?" Daenerys asked. "If you're the commander, the other 249 are all your warriors."
"But..." Aggo looked conflicted. "Is the Captain also one of the commander's warriors? Isn't the Captain a Ko? The Ko serve Khaos, but they aren't..."
Aggo's words were clumsy, his thoughts too complex to articulate perfectly. He gesticulated wildly, unable to form a complete sentence.
Yet Daenerys understood his question.
It was the same old problem: the Horse People weren't accustomed to multi-tiered hierarchies.
"This is a new regulation," she said, relying on her authority to enforce compliance. "Everyone will gradually get used to it."
Jorah understood Daenerys's predicament and offered advice. "Khaleesi, avoid unfamiliar terms like 'squad' and 'company.' The Horse People have their own ways of dividing their forces."
"Company" and "squad" were Daenerys's Dothraki translations of Common Tongue military terms. Jorah recognized them, but Jhogo and the others had never heard them before.
"They do?" Daenerys looked puzzled. "Why didn't I know? What are they?"
"Do you know 'Nuru' and 'Gelekhu'?" Jorah asked, using two Dothraki words.
"Nuru is a hunting team, and Gelekhu is a banner," Daenerys read aloud, looking at the knight in confusion. "Is this how their teams are organized?"
*This sounds like the Manchus,* she thought, *with the Dothraki's braids and barbaric ways, it's like the wild Manchus of the early days, just waiting for a Nurhaci to reform their military system.*
In truth, George R.R. Martin had drawn inspiration from real-world events, terrain, geography, and cultures when writing *A Song of Ice and Fire*.
The Dothraki were a blend of Manchus and Mongols.
*If one day Daenerys unites the Dothraki, then rides a dragon to lead the Horsemen in slaughtering the world, it would essentially mean bringing a watered-down version of the Qing Empire to the foreign lands of Westeros.*
Jorah smiled. "Among the Horse People, hunting teams are typically ten members strong. Too few, and they can't handle beasts like lions; too many, and there isn't enough prey to share. Ten is just right."
"In Westeros, when our nobles go hunting, we gather in a large group before entering the woods. Once inside the hunting grounds, we split into smaller teams, usually around ten members each."
"I see," Daenerys said thoughtfully.
*I'm still not grounded enough,* she thought. *I need to understand the common people better.*
"As for the Gelekhu Khaleesi, you know how scouts are sent out in all directions before a Kalas travels, right?" Jorah asked.
Daenerys nodded. Her Khas warriors had also served as scouts for Drogo, and it seemed the Khas took turns performing this duty.
The scouts rode up to two days ahead of the Kalas, performing the most grueling and dangerous work. No one could sustain this task for long.
"The number of scouts dispatched varies with the size of the Kalas. They typically form groups of one hundred, with each group carrying the same banner.
When two Kalas meet, they don't immediately engage in battle. By observing the number of banners, they can roughly estimate the opponent's strength, thus avoiding a pyrrhic victory that would leave them depleted.
That's why Drogo's Kalas have so many different types of banners.
Similarly, a hundred-man scouting party is called a Gelekhu," Jorah explained carefully to Daenerys.
Daenerys suddenly asked, "Could someone deliberately use false banners to deceive the enemy? For instance, ten men carrying the same banner? Or perhaps, to put on a brave face and send out more scouts than they actually have, making the enemy believe they're more numerous?"
"Uh..." Jorah was stunned. "That's not how the Horse People do things!"
"No one would ever do that," Aggo and the others chimed in.
Jorah pondered for a moment, then said gravely, "Khaleesi, look at the camps around us. The signs of life are too obvious. Wherever your *Kalas* has moved, there are traces of people and livestock—most notably, the ashes from campfires. Since everyone needs to eat, the number of hearths can give you a rough estimate of your *Kalas*'s strength. You might be able to deceive them with scouts, but once they notice the discrepancy in the number of campfires, the enraged Khaos, feeling tricked, will likely turn back immediately. Then..."
"Then you clearly don't know that hearths can also be faked," Daenerys said with a smug air. "For example, if I have few people, I can deliberately build more campfires to scare them off. Or, if I have a large force, I can deliberately build fewer hearths. When the Khaos, thinking he's been tricked, comes chasing after me, I can leisurely set an ambush."
"Uh..." Not only were the simple Horsemen like Jhogo staring with wide, almond-shaped eyes, but even Sir Jorah, who considered himself a highly educated knight, stood gaping, dumbfounded.
*Seven Hells, can she really pull this off?* Jorah thought. *Yet, it seems theoretically sound.*
He looked at his "innocent" little princess with a strange expression. *Could she be a natural military genius?*
Still, it felt a bit... dirty, and utterly contrary to the spirit of knighthood.
*Sigh, it seems her lack of Westerosi noble education has corrupted her, thanks to those cunning merchants.*
(PS: Daenerys grew up in the Nine Free Cities, and Westerosi look down on city merchants who value profit over loyalty.
To be fair, while Westerosi are also obsessed with the game of power, they possess more integrity than the merchants across the Narrow Sea. Or rather, Westeros still has a few decent people, while the Nine Free Cities are mostly filled with scoundrels and ruffians.)
"Khaleesi," Quaithe reacted, "the Dothraki Sea is vast, but once you deceive the first Kalas, the others will soon learn of it."
*We still have plenty of the 36 Stratagems left. If we use them all, even the boundless Dothraki Sea won't have many Kalas left.*
"Alright," Daenerys said, waving her hand and speaking with finality. "A ten-man unit will be called a Decurion, and a hundred-man unit a Centurion. For now, we only have Centurions, but as the tribe grows, we can add Chieftains and Warlords. With ten-fold increases, you should be able to remember that, right?"
Decurion, Centurion, Chieftain—these terms were equally clear and logical in the Dothraki language. Anyone of normal intelligence could understand them.
Aggo held up his hands and nodded. "I have ten fingers. If I count slowly, I should be able to keep track."
"From now on, all flags will be replaced with the uniform Black Dragon Banner, representing the black dragon in my arms. From this day forward, I am not only your Khaleesi but also your Chieftain, temporarily leading a direct hundred-man unit."
Since the tribe now numbered over two hundred, she couldn't claim the title of Centurion herself, lest someone else already held that rank.
"Yes, my Bloodguard Alliance and Dragon Guard are both Centurions. There's also a militia Centurion specifically managing the tribe's herders. For now, your units are not at full strength, so the Decurions who hold the title of Centurion will serve as the framework. We'll build the structure first."
The group spent two or three hours deliberating in the tent. Once Daenerys finalized the new system, she immediately put it into effect.
First, she separated the soldiers from the civilians. All males between the ages of fifteen and fifty were designated as Roaring Warriors, each assigned to one of the five Centurions' units (including her own).
Next, the civilians were functionally grouped: horse handlers, cooks, healers, and artisans.
Just as Daenerys was reorganizing the households of the elderly, women, and children, the Horsemen in the open area erupted in commotion, some even drawing their curved blades.
Daenerys hurried over, ordering her personal Roaring Warriors to separate the instigators.
Riding her small white horse, she gazed down at the flushed, red-necked Dothraki warriors and asked, "What's going on?"
"Khaleesi, I'm stronger! Let me kill that bastard," one Horseman shouted.
The man he was pointing at with his curved blade retorted, "Kill me? Don't stop him! I'll skin him alive."
Both were veteran members of Daenerys's Khas, having guarded her for over a year. Their sudden shift from loyalty to hostility was quintessentially Dothraki.
Jorah explained, "They're challenging each other for the position of Decurion. With our dwindling numbers, we can't afford to lose any men."