Chapter 41: The Power of House Fregar

"Haha, very good!" Andersen smiled as he responded to Viserys. To Helbo and the others, his smile felt colder than the harshest winter wind. The underlying message seemed clear: 'Okay, fine. Just wait until it's your turn to die.'

Andersen stood and said, "What a pleasant banquet. I wish Prince Dany a happy birthday." He casually dropped the fork with the lamb chop and began to leave.

"No need to see him off." Viserys called out, stopping Andersen in his tracks briefly before he continued walking. His fists were clenched, barely containing his anger.

Morel and Helbo turned to Viserys in horror. They wanted to get up and see Andersen off, but their legs were weak and they were drenched in sweat. They struggled to stand but quickly sat back down.

Just then, Dany descended the stairs, having removed her hair ornaments with the help of her maid. Her hair was braided into thick braids, making her head look like a gourd. Seeing Jill fainted, she hurried over to check on her. "Brother, what's wrong with Jill?"

"She's probably not feeling well. Let her go home and rest for a few days," Viserys said, giving Dany's maid a wink. The maid quickly helped Jill up and carried her away.

"Prince, what should we do now?" Helbo asked. Morel and his son looked at him, hoping for a reliable answer. But Viserys didn't answer them. Instead, he looked at Dany and said, "Dany, a very powerful person is trying to hurt us. Are you afraid?"

Their two pairs of purple eyes met, and Dany replied, "Is he stronger than Robert?"

"Not even close."

"Then I'm not afraid. I'm not afraid of anyone as long as I have my brother."

"Good for you."

Only then did Helbo realize that the siblings were accustomed to such threats.

"You must be hungry. Come and eat," Viserys said, moving his chair to make room for Dany. As Viserys leaned over to Helbo, the man instinctively leaned to the side. Viserys wiped the blood from his hand and placed it on Helbo's shoulder, then said in a joking tone, "It's truly a dragon swimming in shallow water being teased by shrimp."

Helbo didn't know what to say. When he heard Viserys translate this into Valyrian, he thought it made sense... 'Bullshit! You're about to die, and you call that being wronged?'

"That's enough. You guys go back first. I'll figure this out," Viserys said, realizing that his plan to use Dany's birthday party to consolidate his connections had failed. Morel and Helbo now wanted nothing to do with him, and those who had hoped to use his connections to reach Falia would likely scatter after hearing the news.

As Andersen had said, the siblings were like dogs without a home. Although their residence was palatial compared to the homes of ordinary people, it wasn't truly theirs. It was unlikely that the Sealord would help them, and the three houses had no reason to fight for a lost Prince who had been exiled.

Now, Viserys had three options:

First, run. Leave Braavos with nothing but the soap recipe. But that would be even more dangerous. If Robert didn't kill him, the Fregars would send someone after him. Especially if they went to another Free City, where they would be treated like pariahs, their situation would only get worse.

Second, hand over the recipe and beg for forgiveness. If Viserys handed over the recipe, he would be begging for mercy. He would also have to hand over his sister. If that were the case, he might as well take his chances and feed himself to the dogs.

If neither of the first two options were possible, then there was only one last option left: show enough value to make the three families tear each other apart. And Viserys just happened to have that value.

That night, Viserys took Dany and Kyla to the town of Wind Lake, where the pregnant noblewoman Zalyne had told him to go. The town was named Wind Lake because it was home to Braavos' largest lake. Even though it was night, Viserys could see the shadow of the largest building in the town. It stood among the other buildings like the peak of a mountain, like the flagship of a fleet—very conspicuous.

As they approached, Viserys saw the full picture of the fortress-like building. The walls were carved with ship patterns. This was the home of the House Zalyne.

Before they got too close, they saw lights flashing on the wall. After a while, a person squeezed out of a half-man-high doorway next to the gate. The man was about the size of a child, barely reaching Viserys' navel, and not as tall as Dany. Upon closer inspection, they saw he was a bald little man.

"Who are you, and what do you want?" the little man asked in a shrill voice.

Viserys handed Dany's bracelet to him and said, "A lady gave us this bracelet and said that if we showed it, we would be able to see her."

The dwarf took the bracelet and examined it, his impatience disappearing. "But why are you visiting at this time? The Lady is already asleep."

Hearing this, Viserys let out a sigh of relief. This dwarf looked like an ordinary servant of the Zalyne family, but he recognized the noblewoman's bracelet. It seemed the lady was someone of status, not just a kept woman.

"It doesn't matter. Please introduce us to her tomorrow morning. We'll be waiting under that tree. Is that okay?"

The dwarf looked at Viserys and then peered into the carriage on tiptoe. Seeing a little girl and a woman inside, he lowered his guard slightly. "Okay, you can wait there." He carefully tucked the bracelet into his bosom as if it were made of fragile glass rather than gold and precious stones. "Is there anything else?"

"Yes," said Viserys, taking a letter from his bosom and handing it to him. "Give this to the Lady when she wakes up."

The dwarf glanced at the letter and then tucked it into his bosom as well. "Thank you for your hard work," Viserys said, indicating he had no further business. The dwarf nodded and then slipped through the small door.

"Brother, what's in the letter?" Dany asked.

Viserys smiled and said, "It's a secret for now. I'll tell you the whole story later."

After that, Viserys instructed the driver to stop the carriage under the big tree, and the three of them waited quietly inside.