Chapter 54

Having avoided meeting Jon and Aenor, I quickly set out towards Volantis. A week since the start of my journey, I reached the first sphere of Volantis' influence. Selhorys—a small town located at the confluence of the Rhoyne and the Selhoru. Despite its city walls, it is governed from Volantis and is considered more of a large village. Situated on the eastern bank of the river, the settlement was vulnerable to Dothraki raids.

On the day I arrived, fortunately, no raid occurred, and I continued on without any issues—a welcome development given recent events. My next stop was a place I had seen in visions of the Rhoyne.

Valysar, a city still standing but now under the control of a triarch from Volantis, serves as a point where timber shipped from Qohor is traded.

"Hmm... Although it seems the city has been rebuilt... The original architecture I saw no longer remains visible."

Next, I was to head towards Sar Mell, but I saw something else... Something I had not seen in Garin's memories.

A Valyrian road leading from some city east of Volantis to the Volaena River basin. There are no ruins here, and it seems the Valyrians built a road to nowhere. Perhaps they planned a land-based trade route to the Rhoynish Chroyane as an alternative to trading along the Rhoyne, but something went awry.

"Tun, what do you think, did they stop construction after learning about Garin?"

"Could there be another reason?" my companion asked, quite surprised.

"It's quite possible that Valyrian pride in general was the cause."

"I have no idea what this pride of yours is..."

"..."

"..."

"Are you serious?"

Tun left my question unanswered, and the journey continued at the same pace as the previous week.

And after 14 days, I finally reached my destination—Volantis. Volantis—the southeasternmost of the Free Cities, lies to the east of the Disputed Lands at the delta of the great Rhoyne, where it flows into the Summer Sea.

Volantis lies closest to the ruins of the former metropolis and the Slaver's Bay. From Meereen to Volantis it's approximately 550 leagues as the crow flies. Volantis sprawls across hills and swamps on both sides of the river.

This city, one of the oldest of the Free Cities, if not the oldest, was once the center of commerce between the Valyrians and the Rhoynar. After the Doom of Valyria, Volantis—often referred to as "the eldest daughter of Valyria"—tried to subjugate the other Free Cities by force but was defeated.

Nonetheless, it still holds sway over vast territories along the Rhoyne and smaller cities like Volon Therys, Valysar, and Seloris. Although Volantis does not have dragons, its rulers pride themselves on the purity of Valyrian blood, and local customs are reminiscent of old Valyria.

The rule of triarchs, who serve as the highest elected office in Volantis, reflects its republican roots. The triarchs are responsible for the city's foreign policy and command its armed forces. Their duties also include sending provisions thrice yearly to the Greyscale victims in the Sorrows.

Three triarchs form a collegial body of governance, where decisions are made by majority vote. This is why, for the last several centuries, the city has been governed by the Elephant party, although their rivals, the Tigers, occasionally manage to get their representative elected.

Triarchs are elected for one-year terms. The same individual can be elected an unlimited number of times. Only those among Volantis' residents who belong to noble families and can prove their lineage directly from Valyria are eligible to run.

Women also have the right to stand for election, but it has been over three hundred years since a woman last became a triarch. All freeborn landowners in Volantis, regardless of gender, are eligible to vote.

In essence, a semblance of democracy and gender equality does exist in Volantis.

The excitement begins during election season, which lasts ten days. To sway public opinion in their favor, candidates conduct campaigning that includes speeches, parades, circus performances, fights, and even sending courtesan slaves to the voters.

Speaking of the political parties in Volantis, the Tigers and the Elephants... The Tigers represent an old aristocracy, viewing themselves as heirs to the imperial ambitions of Valyria and seeking to establish military dominance over the city and the region. To some extent, they are closely linked with my family.

The Tigers held power in Volantis for nearly a hundred years after the Doom of Valyria. During this time, they managed to capture Lys and Myr. Their attempt to seize Tyrosh led to a bloody war, supported by Pentos, the Storm King, and Aegon Targaryen ruling from Dragonstone. Myr and Lys rebelled and freed themselves from Volantene rule.

A combined fleet from Norvos and Qohor defeated the Volantene fleet at Dagger Lake. A century of continuous wars ended with Volantis' defeat and the rise of the Elephants to power. Since then, the Tigers occasionally manage to get their candidate into the triarchy, but never two at the same time.

The Elephants—a political party in Volantis. In contrast to the militarist Tigers, the Elephants support peaceful expansion of the Free City through trade and non-violent annexation of former Valyrian territories.

While many free but non-aristocratic traders support the Elephants, the actual candidates for the triarchy from this party are only those from ancient families tracing their lineage from Valyria.

"Nevertheless, it could not be otherwise... After all, who would want to give up their source of food and wealth with influence?"

Originally, Volantis—or rather, the fortress known as the Black Walls—was constructed as a border garrison to safeguard the western borders of Valyria. During those times, the Valyrians were expanding their territories westward and reached the Rhoyne, where the Rhoynar people resided; the military outpost marked the boundary of the Republic.

In its first century, it served merely as a typical border fortress, inhabited only by the warriors of the garrison. Occasionally, dragon lords would stop there to rest during long flights or to meet with Rhoynar ambassadors.

Nevertheless, the location proved advantageous for settlement, and over time, outside the Black Walls, taverns, brothels, and docks for trading ships sprang up. Later, a whole trading city grew on the eastern bank of the river—from the fortress to the hills.

The districts on the western bank of the Rhoyne emerged unplanned—there, a "shadow town" populated by foreigners, freedmen, mercenaries, and other riffraff thrived, and vice and crime flourished.

Sometimes, the triarchs sent slave soldiers there to enforce some semblance of order in western Volantis. Although the city filled both banks of the river, crossing it was inconvenient due to high tides and variable currents; only later did the authorities construct the Long Bridge, linking the two shores.

All freeborn landowners in Volantis have the right to vote, including women, if they own land. However, for every free citizen in Volantis, there are five slaves.

Glassblowing is what Volantis is renowned for. People here can create exquisitely beautiful glass items, ranging from teapots to interior figurines.

Another distinctive feature of Volantis is its structure. Behind the Black Walls, one of the city's landmarks, lies a "city within a city"—a vast labyrinth of ancient palaces, towers, temples, and galleries, bridges, and cellars.

Only those whose lineage can be traced back to Old Valyria are permitted beyond the Black Walls. Slaves, freedmen, and foreigners are forbidden to be there without a special invitation. This place embodies the class distinction among the citizens of this city.

Volantis houses the world's largest temple of R'hllor, a temple that, according to the works of an archmaester of the Citadel, is three times the size of the Great Sept of Baelor. Columns, steps, domes, and towers are precisely carved from a colossal rock no smaller than Aegon's Hill. The walls are painted in shades of red, orange, yellow, and gold, blending into each other like clouds at sunset. The slender towers, reaching into the sky, resemble tongues of flame.

On the temple steps, two enormous bonfires burn. A stone bridge connects the high priest's pedestal to a terrace where lower-ranking clergy—priests and priestesses in red, acolytes in pale yellow and orange robes—reside.

The temple purchases children and makes them priests, temple prostitutes, who primarily serve in the temple. And, like any self-respecting religion, it has its own military order called the Fiery Hand.

The Fiery Hand—guards of the Lord of Light's temple in Volantis. The guard consists exactly of one thousand individuals, made up of slaves purchased by the temple as children and trained for this service. The guards wear richly decorated armor and orange cloaks. The tips of their spears are shaped like flames. The guards' faces bear tattoos similar to those of all other temple servants.

Upon entering the city, I was met by guards with a peculiar tattoo on their faces. If I remember correctly, in the southern Free Cities, particularly in Volantis, it is customary to tattoo slaves. The facial tattoos indicate professional affiliation or the slave's owner.

On these slaves' faces was a specific emblem of a dragon-like creature. Therefore, it could be said that these slaves belong to some ancient house. After inspecting me, the guards merely nodded, allowing me entry into the city.

"Have you already contacted the others?"

"I was just about to do that."

Finding a rather quiet spot, settling comfortably, I decided to use the connection I had previously established.

"Guys, where are you now?"

After a short while, I heard a response to my question.

"Daeron, are you already in the city?" asked Diya.

"Yes, I just arrived."

"Daeron, why didn't you inform us that you were getting closer?" asked Avus.

"Hah, slightly forgot about that... A lot of interesting things happened on the way here. But it's a long story. It's better if I tell you in person."

"Alright, we also have quite a few stories that you need to hear..."

Having received the place where I needed to go, I quickly gathered myself and headed there. And then I was met by a rather small house located not too far from the aristocrats' walls.

Overall, my companions looked quite good, certainly better than me who hadn't even had the chance to take a bath yet.

Seeing the look from the girls that literally said, "Go take a bath," I realized that I indeed needed to make myself more presentable.

After taking a shower

Entering the room where the Arphenians and Tun were already resting, I once again confirmed my thoughts that Widow Mott was absent.

"So, who will tell first?" I asked as I sat down.

The Arphenians, after exchanging glances and deciding something, began their story.

"Well, where to start? I think we should start from the day we missed each other..."

30 minutes later

I silently listened to the story of how Avus and his family had no trouble reaching Volantis. And from there, visiting the goals of the Black Goat, they were able to proceed further to Braavos quite easily. Apparently, thanks to some favorable circumstances or the team's personal skills... In any case, they reached Braavos very quickly, leaving the future mother in the care of our people in the city Avus also quickly returned to Volantis.

"So, you've been here a week already?"

The Arphenians just nodded at my question, which, however, surprised me quite a bit.

"So, it's my turn to tell what happened to me?"

After which my story began about what happened in Chroyane and about the Shrouded Lord... It didn't go without mentioning what really happened with Garin the Great.

"...Overall, I'll have to kill him one day."

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Chapter 76 has already been published