19

288 AC

Finding out I had a sister, a half-sister, actually didn't change much, at least not emotionally, I didn't know if I had changed or become more numb to that fact, I could actually remember being more concerned about smallfolk and people alike at the start, and not just numbers and crises I needed to aver like a possible plague from human shit's, or working hard towards a good PR...

I still stayed true to myself, at least I think I did, I still wanted to live a long, long and prosperous, and happy life, and I knew that if I wanted to be happy, I needed to make my people happy, or fear every night that someone will off me, look at Tywin, he was feared and yet he was killed while taking a shit, and nobody cried or avenged him, look at Roose, he was killed before his lords by his own bastard son, and yet again, nobody moved or avenged him...

Fear, fear was a good tool, but it was still a tool, and just like any tool, if used too much, it could break or lose its sharpness, what I wanted was loyalty, I wanted people to defend me even when I didn't look at them, I wanted tavern's drunk folk fight when someone trash talks me, I wanted to not fear of my own subjects, and for that, I needed to make sure to make them happy, but that is all...

Did I actually care for them?

I don't know, I knew that at the start I was, even smallfolk word was repulsive to me...

But now?

Now...

I don't know, just like I don't know what I should do with the fact that I had a half-sister serving me as a maid...

Do I want to tell her?

I know she knows about her status, just like her mother Liv, who probably told her, yet both of them do not seem to want or dare to breach that truth to me, and I'm very willing to let it stay like that, at least for now...

I will not even mention the fact that after that wake-up call, I did look or secretly investigated if more children inside the castle were my half-siblings and found another two, again both girls, Ysra and Thyra, auburn-haired, fifteen-year-old twins, whose mother died on their birth...

Both who serve in the kitchen...

How I knew about them...

Simply, once I knew there were possibly more siblings, I started to look at their faces, noting the similarities they had with Bolton's sharp face angles...

Something still made me envied, as any of Inga, Ysra, nor Thyra actually inherited the Evil smile, as I call it, a fact that made me almost punch the stone wall, if not for knowing I could break my hand, and in these times, injuries were a serious inconvenience...

I looked even outside of the castle, not that I could be too blatant about it, but after gathering names of women my father slept with, which...

Were there quite a lot, as father seemed to like use his first-night privilege at least once a month, at least he stopped once I was born, just using it on the Milla Stone girl as his clear desire to fuck foreign bastard seemed to be too much to control...

That said, looking into my father's bastard was a secondary project, just like looking where exactly Ramsay is, I could let him kill a few women before finding him, but, women were a precious resource that I hated to lose, men, men easily made children, but women, no, it was same reason why exactly I made it my duty to somehow give women the safer jobs, as Soup kitchen cooks, or Red Cross house nurses, speaking of Red Cross house, my plan of having a hospital, albeit primitive one that couldn't treat the truly serious injuries, at least for now worked, as already there were fifty nurses who knew how to take care of more simple injuries, sicknesses, and similar liabilities, something Wolkan helped once he found out how much time it freed him as he needed to teach just a few nurses who then taught the others...

It was, again, a good PR as I had simple banners with Bolton sigil and paintings of myself and my father on the walls there, always showing the people who made this free health care possible...

It was losing in profits, but I looked at it from another side, as the ones who were injured couldn't work, but with Red Cross house, they could heal much faster and thus go again back into work...

"Milord." Wolkan? Why was he in there, wait, he holds a message in his hands...

"Yes, Maester?" Wolkan walked to me as Astrid went back, standing behind me, from her previous position of massaging my head, well, massaging, I had her just play with my hair and head, finding her touches quite enjoyable...

"The raven came back." Oh... OH!

Quickly I held my hand as Wolkan gave me the paper, making me look at it and frown...

Well, I could expect that...

Still, this wrote Oberyn and not Doran, right, it was too blunt for Doran's writing, not like I ever read Doran's messages, it just this didn't scream a schemer...

The reason I was going outside of contacting Martell's, was quite risky, still, there wasn't war, and just contacting fellow noble didn't mean I wanted to rebel or anything, and it was the truth, well, most of it...

I quite enjoyed the idea of gaining the iron throne until the realization I would need to fight any treason and rebellion, or outright betrayal made me rethink that idea, again, I wanted to live a long and happy life, and that was something the iron throne would rob me of...

And at the same time, my knowledge of impending war between the multiple warden houses, or how it was called the war of five kings, made me think of how exactly I could profit from it, right now, I was on a good way to worm my way to Stark's family, and with Arya born, I'm sure I will probably marry her before the cannon start's, all I needed was to make sure that Red wedding happens differently if it even happens...

The sole reason Frey's even dared to make such a move was Bolton's assistance, and I really didn't want to dirty Bolton's name as oath breaker, something the Red wedding made them into, such a reputation would make any future interaction with other houses very difficult and nobody would believe in my words, after all, this world loved following the logic of Father's sins as his son's sin too...

So no, if the other house doesn't take Bolton's role of betrayal, which I don't think someone from North will, the Red wedding will not happen, well, as long as Frey's arent utter imbeciles in thinking they could take on the entire North...

Still, if something I knew for sure, it was that Stark's had a tendency to die stupid deads because of their decisions, and as long as any male Stark died, even the bastard ones, I would be close to inheriting the role of Warden of North, without even making it too obvious it was my plan, after all, I was a good boy, a good man, and loving husband of Arya, well, at least I hope Arya will make it easy for me to like her, which with me not caring if she behaved as a lady or not, could help in Arya coming to like me...

But back to my reason for writing to Martell's, I wanted to make them a business proposition, one where I will tell them how to make even better glass than Myrish glass, it was a simple tactic, really, at least for me, I would gain glass for my future glass gardens where I could farm better and rare spices without needing to buy them, and not risk of being constantly in danger of assassination from the Myrish glass spinners guild, who had a monopoly on glass and was know to kill anybody who meddles into their business...

And at the same time, I would make Dorne wealthier, and wealthier Dorne meant stronger Dorne, and stronger Dorne meant that most of South would look on Dorne and more likely ignore North, as where North is by most view land of barbarians, Dorne is a kingdom that has a clear enmity with rest of Seven kingdoms, thus bigger reason to start problems, especially when they are much more powerful than previously...

That said, I didn't let the pretty rude message stop me, not when I knew what Oberyn and Doran wanted, something both of them knew could become more possible if they gained the secret of better glass making...

"Thank you, Wolkan, you can go back, I will send someone to you with my return message," I answered Wolkan.

"I-Is it wise to deal with them, milord? They, Dorne, Martell's do not see North in good light..." Wolkan somehow uneasily said, it was clear why he was afraid, I told him, no, ordered him not to tell father anything about this...

"North? No, they do not care about North, who they don't like are Stark's, and I'm not a Stark, I'm a Bolton, and my family even was not mostly present in the rebellion, as we sent just bare minimum of our soldiers." I answered, already looking at what amount of soldiers Roose sent, and it was not big, not big at all, it was clear Roose, my father, didn't want to lose men in Stark's war...

Not when he had nothing to gain from it...

"Do not worry about this, it is my decision, you just need to do as you are told, and if father asks, you just speak the truth that I ordered you to silence." Wolkan just nodded, some of his fears relieved...

"Ah, and milord." Hm? Anything else?

"Yes?" This time Wolkan looked like his normal self, so this wasn't so important news.

"The man you asked for, one of my colleagues in Citadel, was able to contact him." Hm? Who...

Wait...

"You found Qyburn?" I asked with a raised eyebrow, as Wolkan nodded his head, his faith in Citadel no longer so strong, not after my show of somehow superior knowledge in some areas, as such, Wolkan didn't care so much that Qyburn was dishonorably exiled from the Citadel and Maester order...

"Is this contact a man named Marwyn?" I watched how Wolkan's eyes widened.

"Ho-how... No, of course, you know..." Wolkan shooks his head, and I could hear a giggle behind me until I heard a quick sound as Astrid probably placed her hand on her mouth in apology...

Maybe I was letting her become too much familiar with myself? But then, I really had a lot of people to call respect me, having a few people who see me more friendly will make me feel more comfortable, well, as long as Astrid will stay professional in the presence of others, this just shows that Wolkan is truly being seen as someone close to me...

"Well, thank Maester Marvyn for me, and tell him he is always welcomed there, I'm sure that some notes you made from our little talks would make him really interested, so why don't you send a small amount of tip bit to him, not much, as I wish he visit us himself to see for his own eyes..." I spoke with a smile...

Having both Maester Marwyn and Qybrun in there would help me a lot, both of them are experts in their own fields, all I needed was to show them respect, finance them, and give them access to my knowledge, and I'm sure they would be more than happy to stay in there, Qyburn maybe for life, Marwyn but is said to be more free-spirited...

Well, see...

Right now, I need to find a way to make Martell's join me in this business partnership...