Chapter 33: Impulse is a bad habit.

The personal bed maid cannot be arranged anywhere else, so at night, Illyrio sent someone to move a small bed into the corner next to the washroom in Viserys's second large guest room, and then asked the servants to roughly set up a transparent partition curtain, which would be the place where the king's new personal bed maid would live in the future.

That's what it means to be an attendant.

In reality, being the king's maid was a pleasant title, but her true status was that of a slave to the Beggar King. The maids by the side of the king across the sea, those of noble birth, were the true king's maids.

When Illyrio agreed to Viserys's request, Aanie was nominally already Viserys's personal property, subject to his whims, including punishment and reprimand.

This was the true nature of the free trade cities, where slavery was half-hidden and half-revealed.

Of course, Viserys would not forget the maid's other identity as Illyrio's spy.

He had to be more cautious, knowing that watchful eyes were both in the light and possibly in the dark as well.

But regardless of the private reality, having this maid openly showed that the cooperation between them was in a honeymoon phase, allowing Viserys to ask Illyrio for more things more straightforwardly in the future.

Viserys was not very worried about secrets being discovered.

He believed that without the necessary information, people often found it hard to piece together the truth.

The secrets he held required imagination, and people who hadn't seen real magic for a hundred years wouldn't know how to imagine or believe in these things before seeing them with their own eyes.

They would place their guesses on more practical matters.

Like Dorne.

Illyrio's continuous probing, while closing in on him, also exposed information to Viserys.

They suspected that Viserys's actions were backed by the people of Dorne.

Naturally, it made sense.

Let them play mind games with the Dornish in the air.

Viserys sat at the desk in his room, thinking.

At this moment, he looked like a university student working on a graduation thesis, meticulously examining the dragon bones under the oil lamp with a researcher's posture, pretending to be scholarly.

Maid Annie, seeing that her new master had not issued any orders since she entered, carefully and respectfully tried to approach him.

"If you have nothing to do, just stay put," Viserys finally spoke his first words of the night to her. "Do not come near me while I am studying the dragon bones."

"Yes, master." Maid Annie respectfully retreated to her corner and quietly began arranging her belongings.

The large guest room fell silent, Viserys's shadow cast a huge silhouette in the room under the oil lamp.

His hands, working close to the lamp's flame, cast a shadow on the wall that looked like a monstrous creature with outstretched claws.

When Viserys, seemingly struggling with his dragon bone research, switched to the third dragon bone, there came a knocking at the door.

Viserys turned to look at the door and saw Maid Annie looking at him, seemingly awaiting his reaction.

Viserys naturally ordered her, "Go open the door."

To his surprise, it was Daenerys at the door.

Daenerys, seeing the maid open the door, greeted her blankly, "...Annie."

Viserys spoke, "Is there something you need, Daenerys?"

Daenerys taking the initiative to seek out her brother was a first.

"I...I was practicing my stance with the bow in my room," she began hesitantly, but soon her speech flowed more smoothly. "I don't know if I did it wrong, but my shoulder hurts a bit."

She had enthusiastically practiced all afternoon, and it was no wonder her unused muscles were sore from the exertion.

But anyone could see that this was just an excuse.

To be honest, Viserys had anticipated that this day would come eventually.

He just hadn't expected it to come so soon after the original Viserys had treated her so cruelly.

By merely treating her a little more like a normal brother, by making several efforts to win her over and psychologically suggest that they were united, perhaps the suspension bridge effect had indeed worked.

It had made Daenerys trust him more, a trust mixed with a bond that surpassed ordinary sibling affection, enabling her to brave the shadow of years of cruelty and come to him on her own.

What had prompted her? Was it the sudden emotional leap today?

Was it the maid sent by Illyrio?

Whatever it was, the progress with Daenerys was a bit too fast, exceeding Viserys's expectations.

Adolescents experiencing their first love are always prone to being swept away by their emotions.

Viserys should have anticipated this.

Daenerys was smart, but she was still very young.

But wasn't this exactly what he had intended all along?

Viserys collected his thoughts and motioned for her, "Come here, let me take a look."

Daenerys obediently walked through the door, silently passing by her brother's maid and coming to stand in front of him.

Viserys reached out to squeeze her shoulder. "Is it here that hurts?" This intimate gesture came naturally to him when it came to Daenerys. There was nothing awkward or bashful about it, and even Daenerys herself did not find it odd.

The soreness in her shoulder made Daenerys wince slightly. "Yes, what is it?"

Viserys answered earnestly, "It's normal. It means you're doing it right, the force is being applied correctly. Your shoulder is sore because you haven't trained before. You should prepare yourself mentally; this kind of pain will stay with you for quite some time until your muscles become firm and strong. When I was learning archery in the Red Keep, I was even younger than you are now. The master-at-arms, Ser Willem, had the King's support and pushed me to train every day. After each session, my shoulders hurt so much that I couldn't even lift a fork. Anyway, I'm saying the pain is normal. When you bathe, remember to pour hot water over the sore spots."

Daenerys asked again, "Ser Willem taught you archery?"

She recalled that Ser Willem had tried to teach Viserys swordsmanship, but he never took it seriously, much to Ser Willem's private disappointment.

"Yes," Viserys replied.

He sensed that Daenerys did not want to return to her room and pulled her to sit beside him, chatting casually.

"You probably remember how he taught me swordsmanship. To be honest, I often regret not taking it seriously just because I had vivid memories of the hardship he put me through during archery lessons in the Red Keep. Looking back, sigh."

Hearing Viserys sigh, Daenerys was unsure how to respond. "...um"

Viserys did not mind her reaction. After chatting for a bit, he casually picked up the dragonbone on the table and resumed his detailed examination under the lamp, becoming deeply absorbed.

It was the first time Daenerys had seen Viserys meticulously studying the dragonbone in his room.

She sat beside him for a while, observing his seemingly fruitless efforts. She mentally revised her question several times before finally speaking.

"Brother, what are you doing?" She felt it best to ask casually, as she usually would.

"There's magic hidden in dragonbone," Viserys responded to her in High Valyrian. "I'm studying how to extract it."

His answer was given as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

The fervor in his eyes was genuine, making Daenerys pause. If this was a "secret," why did he not attempt to hide it from her at all?

Daenerys's thoughts wandered for a long while, but ultimately, she said nothing and continued to sit silently beside him.

After some time, Viserys sighed, putting down the dragonbone. He covered his face with his hands, his expression revealing his frustration. He rubbed his face and then poured himself a drink, downing it in one go.

Just as Daenerys was considering how to speak, Viserys seemed to have regained his composure. He looked at her and said, "It's time for my training. If you're bored, you can read one of the storybooks on the desk. If you get tired, go take a bath and go to bed."

Without waiting for Daenerys to reply, Viserys stood up under her gaze.

He pulled out a dagger and stood poised in an open space in the room before beginning to swing the blade.

Again and again.

The dagger slashed through the air in Viserys's hand, unremarkable and mundane.

Daenerys sat at the desk, momentarily at a loss for what to do.

Her gaze followed Viserys's solitary movements, and then she glanced at the maid Annie, who had been quietly sitting in the corner the entire time.

Initially, Daenerys wondered what allowed her brother Viserys to ignore others and focus so completely on his tasks.

What was going through his mind at this moment?

But a minute passed, a quarter of an hour passed, an hour passed.

She watched Viserys, drenched in sweat, still thrusting the dagger forward. Her confusion gradually turned to shock and astonishment, and finally, to numbness.

When Viserys finally stopped swinging the dagger, Daenerys realized that she had thought about many things, but her mind couldn't string them together coherently.

She had a newfound understanding of her brother.

Viserys was quite matter-of-fact. He ordered, "Annie, go get some hot water ready. I need a bath."

"Yes, master," Annie responded promptly and left to carry out his orders.

Viserys looked at the obviously shaken Daenerys. "It's late, Daenerys. You should go rest as well. Remember to take a hot bath. Have a good night."

Daenerys had many thoughts running through her mind, but when she spoke, it was just a simple response: "Then, I'll go back."

She was realizing that to become what Visenya and Rhaenys were might require more than she had imagined.

Viserys watched her leave, feeling that she had probably sobered up from her impulsive emotions. Whatever had stirred her, acting on impulse was not a habit worth encouraging.

As for secretly working hard in his training, Viserys knew well that everyone in the courtyard probably knew about it except for Daenerys.

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