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Chapter 329 The Winter Conference
The nine city-states were on edge again, because for more than half a year after the last great war, Slaver's Bay had been quiet, and their hearts had finally settled. But they hadn't even relaxed for a few days before Slaver's Bay began to make big moves again.
Without any attempt at concealment, Slaver's Bay openly dispatched hundreds of warships and nearly ten thousand troops. However, to everyone's relief, the fleet eventually sailed away, and their target was no longer the nine city-states.
Meanwhile, across the sea in Westeros, tensions rose. Since their decisive victory over the 300,000-strong coalition of the nine city-states at Slaver's Bay, the war in Westeros had seemingly vanished. Of course, this didn't mean they were ready to set aside their differences and join forces against Daenerys. Rather, they were all tacitly conserving their strength.
Almost every family is starting to consider how they should react if Daenerys were to return. Should they confront her head-on, or grovel before her? That is the question!
Of course, the outcome is obvious, because the entire Westeros army barely numbers 300,000, not to mention that even if you put a sword to the necks of those dukes, they would never be able to unite completely.
Unlike the various noble families trembling in fear within the Seven Kingdoms, life at the Wall had been truly prosperous this past year. Although occasional clashes with the Wildlings still occurred, both sides maintained a certain boundary. After all, they were now all on the same side. Although no one said it aloud, eating the ham and cured meat sent by Daenerys, both the Night's Watch and the Wildlings had come to consider themselves Daenerys's people.
As for the Night's Watch's rule of not participating in politics... what's the point? The powerful figures of the Seven Kingdoms wouldn't even bother to glance at the Night's Watch on the Wall. Why should they abide by their rules? For years, breaking oaths has been a tradition within the Seven Kingdoms. On one side are the Seven Kingdoms nobles who ignore them, and on the other is the Dragon Queen who showers them with care, weapons, and supplies.
Furthermore, the other side had just defeated nine federations in a single battle, establishing their dominance over two continents. Did they even have a choice in whom to side with?
The only thing that worried the Night's Watch was the increasing activity of the undead beyond the Wall. On several occasions, they even spotted their withered figures directly on the Wall.
However, they were now well-equipped and powerful. Daenerys had sent several thousand of her previous captives to the Wall, along with tens of thousands of Night's Watch members who had been relocated there. The Wall was now at full strength. They weren't particularly afraid. Until a dubious piece of news arrived, which Mansred felt compelled to report to the Dragon Queen.
"You mean the Night King has now most likely found the legendary Horn of Winter?"
"I'm not sure, but based on recent reports from our spies, they've most likely found it."
"I remember you once claimed to have mastered the Horn of Winter, didn't you?"
“Your Majesty, that was merely a bluff. I only found some clues; I didn't actually find it at all. Your Majesty, if the Horn of Winter truly possesses the legendary power, then the Great Wall…”
Mansray didn't finish his sentence, but Daenerys understood what he meant. If the Wall collapsed, even a full complement of the Night's Watch wouldn't be able to stand against the undead army head-on.
“I understand. There’s no need to worry for now. The temperature hasn’t really dropped to its lowest point yet, which means the Night King’s power hasn’t returned to its strongest. So, it shouldn’t attack at this time. You all take precautions, and I’ll start preparing support immediately.”
“Understood.” Mansred ended the call with a worried expression. Daenerys appeared calm, but she was actually somewhat uneasy.
"Teacher, do you think we can defeat the Night King?"
"Heh, think about it from another angle. We just experienced a crisis several times more dangerous than the Night King's. We witnessed the secrets of the Age of Gods. Compared to that, what is the Night King's affair?"
"Hehe, that's true. The development of dragon crystal weapons is already quite mature. I'll start distributing large quantities to the Night's Watch immediately. At the same time, I'll increase the resources allocated to the Wall."
"Dani, you seem to have forgotten something!"
"What?
"You are saving the world, but the world doesn't belong to you, not yet. So..."
"......I see."
A few days later, the nine city-states received an invitation from Daenerys to attend the Winter Council in Slaver's Bay.
The nine city-states would normally have ignored her, but they had no choice; they had recently been soundly defeated. After some discussion, in order not to give Daenerys an excuse to send troops, they decided to attend the so-called Winter Council.
It was unlikely that the person who came would be the city lord or a high-ranking official like the council speaker. However, he was still a powerful figure chosen by the crowd, given that Daenerys's message claimed there was a matter of life and death to be announced.
However, when the representatives arrived, they were greeted by a group of ragged skeletons! Skeletons??? Everyone was stunned. The nine city-states were not unaware of the legend of the Night King. But to them, winter and the Night King were legends from the other side of the continent. They had nothing to do with Essos. So for a moment, they couldn't recall what this was.
But just as they were terrified, a group of guards rushed forward and hacked the skeletons down like vegetables. Horrifyingly, even when cut in half, the skulls and arms continued to writhe on the ground, frantically attacking all the humans around them.
"Ah..." That was the only sound uttered by the group of pampered noble slave owners. Daenerys didn't really intend to kill them. As the severed limbs and broken bodies filled the crowd, a demonic flame appeared out of nowhere, turning all the wights to ashes.
"Alright everyone, now let's talk about the Winter."
“Dragon Queen, there is no winter in Essos,” one of them immediately retorted. He now understood what was going on. The Dragon Queen was clearly using something to scare them.
"It didn't exist before, but it does now."
These slave owners were all shrewd individuals. After calming down, they began to ponder Daenerys's intentions. They no longer doubted the existence of the wights and the Night King. The underlying meaning was clear: they wanted money.
"We need evidence to justify our involvement in a war that wasn't originally ours. We need a reason."
"A reason? That's easy." Without Daenerys making any move, four enormous shadows descended from the sky and landed on the open-air venue.
The slave owners: "..."
7017k
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I need to take leave; there's something important to do.
As the title suggests, I have an appointment with an insurance agent tonight to purchase insurance for my almost two-year-old son.
I had some prior knowledge of the various cancellation clauses, and there were countless of them. Today, I'm going to take a closer look before making a decision.
Meanwhile, I have something else to take care of tonight. I have an appointment with a teacher to discuss the adult college entrance examination.
Now that I'm over thirty, I'm increasingly feeling the hardships of life, which has ironically sparked a bit of ambition in me. I'm planning to get another bachelor's degree and see if it helps me get a promotion at my company. It's a small local state-owned enterprise, mostly staffed by senior employees or those who just coast along through connections. Not many people have degrees. I do have some connections, and with a degree, I'll give it a try…
Hey everyone, please bear with me. This volume is almost finished, and the new volume will be unlike anything I've ever seen before, I promise!!!
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Chapter 330 On the Eve of the Decisive Battle