"Find some time to secretly pack these things up. We won't be staying here for long. When we leave, we don't want these things to hold us back."
Are we leaving?
"Uncertain. But soon. Just today, a mercenary group of four hundred men entered Qarth. In fact, in the past few days, nearly a thousand mercenary groups have entered the city. The balance is still there, but it's extremely precarious. There will always be those who can't suppress their ambitions. The royal family, the thirteen great leaders, the Ancient Spice Guild, the Tourmaline Brotherhood—the unchanging balance has been stagnant for too long. For many, all they need is an excuse."
------------
Chapter 242 Turning Hands to Create Clouds (Please Subscribe)
Qarth once belonged to royalty. However, later, the Thirteen Tycoons, wealthy merchants, rose to power. As a commercial city, Qarth quickly fell under the control of these powerful merchants.
The royal family still controlled the camel cavalry regiments in the city, as well as some armed groups maintaining order. But it was all for naught. Mercenaries were common on this continent; wealthy merchants could easily hire thousands or even tens of thousands of mercenaries, and they had no fear of the royal family.
If it weren't for their mutual distrust, the merchant guilds would have already broken ties with the royal family. They were all rulers; how could they tolerate the royal family remaining nominally superior?
Little did they know, the royal family thought the same way. The royal family of Qarth also longed to exterminate all these insubordinates and restore the supreme authority of the royal family.
This state of opposition, yet restraint, persisted for centuries. It was only with the arrival of Daenerys that it was finally broken. She possessed three dragons, and whoever married her would gain control of three ultimate war machines. No ruler would allow anyone other than themselves to wield such power. Conflict arose, and the situation became increasingly chaotic.
The royal family, the merchant guilds, and the sorcerers all wanted to use this opportunity to truly control the city. Of course, the sorcerers' desires weren't actually that great. What they wanted more was magic. So, their goal was to imprison Daenerys and their dragons in the Hall of Immortality.
Zarro also sensed that something was amiss. To be honest, while he was ambitious, he never intended to resort to brute force. His plan was to marry Daenerys, legally possess three dragons, then win over a few allies, stabilize the situation, and proceed cautiously. He would make further plans once the dragons had grown up.
But just because he didn't want to resort to force didn't mean others did. He had long noticed that the city's guards and the camel riders had been making unusually frequent moves lately. This indicated that even the royal family was starting to feel restless.
The royal family is the common enemy of the thirteen leaders. Whenever the royal family is involved, the thirteen leaders have always stood on their side. This time was no exception. They immediately convened a meeting to discuss countermeasures.
Meanwhile, the Ancient Spice Society and the Tourmaline Brotherhood also held similar meetings.
Lu Xuan was sometimes surprised. Although the city was quite large, with hundreds of thousands of people, it was still just one city. It was truly remarkable that so many large ruling groups had managed to coexist peacefully until now.
"The situation is now very clear: the royal family is preparing to attack us. I've seen camel cavalry convoys pass by my house three times. The city's defensive fleet has also been lingering near the coast, never setting sail. The royal family is waiting for an opportunity. We need to respond."
"How should we respond? Should we hire a mercenary group and engage in direct combat? That would destroy the city. This is our city, and we cannot allow it to be harmed under any circumstances."
"The Regretters in the city (Quarth's assassin organization that whispers 'I regret it' in their ear before their target dies) can help. To be honest, I've wanted to do this for a long time."
“Regretful guest, how do you know if they are loyal to us or to the royal family?”
"They will not be loyal to us, nor to the royal family; they are only loyal to the Radiant Coin (the unique currency of Qarth, half the size of the golden dragons of Westeros, with a purchasing power of slightly more than half). Who in the city is richer than us? We can even hire Faceless Men if we want."
The thirteen leaders were in a frenzy. This made Zarro feel uneasy. The entire situation showed no signs of following his script. He could even sense that the Tourmaline Brotherhood and the Ancient Spice Society were probably holding similar meetings as well. Somehow, the balance that had existed in the city for centuries had been inexplicably broken. Even now, no one had obtained Daenerys, let alone his dragons.
“Perhaps we should calm down. Daenerys is ultimately an outsider, and we don’t need to break the balance of Qarth that has lasted for centuries for her sake.” Zarro tried to ease the situation, but was immediately rebuffed.
"Really? Zarro, I seem to recall you were the first person to propose to Daenerys," another Grand Master sneered. Zarro was speechless. He realized that because of his actions, he had become the person with the least say in the meeting. At that moment, another Grand Master spoke up.
"It's actually quite simple to quell this chaos: just kill Daenerys. This city was very stable before. It started to become unstable after Daenerys arrived. That woman and her dragons have disrupted the balance here. I believe no one here wants to see anyone other than themselves gain control of her and her dragons. So, the best solution is to kill her and her dragons. After all, they're just three young dragons. As long as none of us want them, the conflict will naturally disappear, and the balance will be restored. We can continue to enjoy our lives, and nothing will change."
There are still some sensible people. The reason the situation is so tense is because of Dani and her dragons. Once they're dead, everything will naturally end.
The entire council chamber fell silent. Yes, it was a very simple question. This way, although they wouldn't get the dragon themselves, no one else would either, which was within acceptable limits.
But while they think this way, there is one person who doesn't: the male witch Haiya.
Others might forgo dragons, but how could he possibly give them up? Dragons are the source of their sorcerer power. The sorcerer lineage has declined to the point of near extinction; they have finally seen a glimmer of hope for resurgence, how could they possibly let it slip away?
Thinking this, a fierce glint began to flash in Paiya's eyes. No one could stop the rise of the male wizard.
………………
Daenerys's estate.
"Sir Lu, are you so confident that the wizard will make a move?"
"Hehe, of course I'm not entirely sure. But I'm at least 70 to 80 percent certain."
One of the Thirteen Giants has reached an agreement with me. He will propose a plan during the meeting to kill you and your dragon to restore balance. If this plan is approved, Paiya will absolutely not accept it.
You don't understand what the return of lost power means to those wizards. They will stop at nothing to preserve their power.
In reality, even if the male sorcerer didn't make a move, the royal family would have done so tonight. They had already reached an agreement with the Tourmaline Brotherhood and the Ancient Spice Society to divide the wealth and market of the Thirteen Giants.
The location of the thirteen leaders' secret meeting tonight, as well as the guard deployment, has been 'accidentally' leaked. So, all we can do now is sit down, have a glass of wine, and wait for news.
------------
Chapter 243 Turning the Tide to Make Rain
Chaos and slaughter erupted suddenly. The royal camel knights were the first to strike, launching a surprise attack on the secret meeting place of the thirteen leaders. The thirteen leaders' security was naturally thorough, but they couldn't withstand a well-intentioned but unprepared attack. The location was leaked, and the guards at key positions had been bribed beforehand.
Within just a dozen minutes, the situation began to turn against them. The guards were forced into retreat, and the royal army stormed directly into the hall where the secret meeting was to take place.
Meanwhile, at Dani's manor.
Lu Xuan stood by the window, gazing at the city lights in the distance. He could faintly hear the sounds of chaotic fighting. Dani and the others stood beside him, watching the chaotic city.
"I wonder which side has gained the upper hand," Dani asked with some concern.
But Lu Xuan chuckled and said...
"It doesn't matter which side wins. All we want is chaos. The game has begun, Dani. Listen up, we're about to receive an invitation."
Because of the chaos in the city, the sorcerer faction will offer us refuge. Let us go to the Temple of Immortality to escape this turmoil.
“You said before that male witches are unreliable,” Jorah quickly objected. The male witch's appearance alone made him seem untrustworthy.