468 Chapter 468: Just a Joke

"Too fast?"

"I don't think it's fast at all."

Viserys paused slightly at Jon Connington's words, a mix of excitement and concern, then slowly began to speak.

"Families, lands, self-rule; this system has persisted in Westeros for thousands, even tens of thousands of years."

"This system has given birth to endless wars. Great lords fight great lords, lesser lords fight lesser lords. Production lags, the people suffer, and it seriously hinders social development and the progress of civilization."

"Aegon united the Seven Kingdoms, but it was merely a nominal consolidation, ending the constant chaos."

Before Aegon's unification, this land had been ravaged by endless wars, the seven great kingdoms constantly warring, the people suffering.

But the Seven Kingdoms had been established for so long, and there had been opposition when they were first united.

There were even repeated assassination attempts, but as time went on, people gradually realized the benefits of unity.

However, Aegon's unification was only superficial. It looked like a united kingdom, but in reality, there were deep divisions, each region still acting on its own.

What Viserys wanted to do now was to truly unify Westeros.

So the first step he had to take was to violently tear down every 'high wall' they had built.

"The city-states of Essos began to change earlier than Westeros."

"Jon, you've lived here for many years, I believe you can feel it."

Jon Connington nodded slightly at Viserys's words. The atmosphere in Essos was more liberal, and each city-state had its own system, almost a hundred schools of thought contending.

This had led to each independent city-state having an average economic and military level surpassing the cities of Westeros.

In contrast, Westeros seemed stubborn, conservative, and unenlightened, with families that had been handed down for thousands of years, and even some for tens of thousands of years.

"And now is the best opportunity."

"With the chaos that already exists, we can completely smash the old order."

"After all, one window is already broken; why not smash it completely?"

These words were not spoken by Viserys, but by Jon Connington.

He seemed thoughtful, as if he had begun to understand what Viserys wanted to do.

After all, Westeros was already in chaos due to the invasion of the Others and the conquest. Why not take this opportunity to solve all the problems at once? If they waited until everything had settled down, unresolved issues would become troublesome.

Although Jon Connington was persuaded by Viserys and felt a surge of excitement, for this was a major event destined to go down in the history of Westeros, he still had one question and couldn't help but ask.

"Your Grace, what do you really want?"

"What do I want?"

Viserys's eyebrows raised slightly at Jon Connington's question.

"What else is there to want in this world besides power, status, and wealth?"

The Hand of the King opened his mouth but was at a loss for words. He wanted to say women, but considering the young and handsome king seemed not to lack female attention, he swallowed his words.

"At first, I only wanted to protect Rhaenys and Dany, and to survive."

"Later, when I had the ability to protect them, I wanted to take back the Iron Throne."

"A man's ambition grows without limit."

Viserys spoke jokingly.

"If I said I wanted to rebuild the Valyrian Empire and proclaim myself the Holy Valyrian Emperor, would you believe me?"

Under the morning sun, the man with ash-red hair's Hand of the King badge reflected a faint glow. Jon Connington's face froze, and then his mouth slowly opened wide.

"Just a joke."

However, the silver-haired youth shook his head, plucking a beautiful flower from the garden.

The spring breeze stirred, flowers blooming everywhere.

An old black cat, chasing a butterfly, ran past, then, seeing Viserys, hid far away as if seeing some great demon.

"What lies to the west of Westeros?"

Jon Connington slowly recovered from his shock, then, hearing Viserys's question, thought carefully and replied.

"It seems to be an endless sea, just as Sothoryos is an endless land, Your Grace."

No one had explored the end of Sothoryos, and likewise, no one knew what lay beyond the Sunset Sea.

Was it the Drowned God's watery halls?

Or the place where the Red God took the sunset and brought the dawn?

"No one knows."

Jon Connington shook his head slightly.

"That's where all maps end."

"Perhaps one day, when I have some leisure, I'll ride a dragon to the end of the world."

Viserys quietly watched the old black cat's fleeing figure for a long time.

Then he handed the plucked flower to a pretty little maid who happened to be passing by, causing her to blush.

Viserys's stay in Pentos was brief, and he didn't rest for more than a few days before mounting his dragon and flying to King's Landing.

The world imposes many restrictions on everyone.

After all, humans are social animals, and human society is structured like a pyramid. Even the whimsical king had to return to King's Landing to deal with many things he had briefly escaped.

The shadow of the black dragon, vast as it blocked the sun, appeared over Blackwater Bay, causing a stir among the nobles in the Red Keep.

In the Fishmonger's Square by the Mud Gate, a frightened beast even knocked over a basket of fish, fresh big fish flopping all over the ground, then quickly snatched up, leaving only the fishmonger sitting on the ground, almost in tears.

"This black dragon is much larger than the Princess's bronze one."

A bald eunuch, dressed in a long robe, hands crossed and hidden in his sleeves, looked up at the sky and spoke.

"Rhaegal. Is that its name?"

"Every time I hear that name, I think of that much-anticipated Silver Prince, but alas, he disappointed everyone's expectations."

"Rhaegal is like a 'little darling' in front of the Black Dread."

Varys, leaning against the railing, spoke in a teasing tone, as if talking to himself.

"Indeed."

A response came from below the railing of the Red Keep's high tower.

The 'Imp,' Tyrion Lannister, was too short, so he had to spread his hands below the railing and speak.

"How else could His Grace have repelled those terrifying Others?"

"Why did tens of thousands of allied forces flee from the Twins to Riverrun without even a chance to resist?"

Tyrion, although without a specific position, was known to all that after being recommended by Princess Rhaenys, he was destined for greatness.

As for Varys, the Master of Whisperers, he retained his original position.

Rhaenys had not made sweeping changes to the Small Council, but Grand Maester Pycelle had recently resigned, wanting to leave King's Landing and return to the Citadel, only to be detained.

The reason was that someone had exposed his past deeds, any one of which could have condemned him to death.