Chapter 518: The Second Conquest War

Year 294 of Aegon's calendar, the second year of the new era.

From the day Viserys was crowned on the Iron Throne, the chronology shifted from the Aegon calendar to the first year of the new era.

Now, in the second year of the new era, the Targaryen forces, after less than half a year of recuperation, have shed their fatigue and energetically embarked on their journey.

However, representing the traditional noble power of the Seven Kingdoms—the Westerlands, the Vale, the Riverlands, and the Stormlands—the nobles would not surrender easily. They wouldn't willingly relinquish their power.

They rallied their subjects to join the army, publicizing Viserys' so-called "atrocities", painting him as the next Mad King, which left the common folk in these regions in a state of unease.

Indeed, in the eyes of these nobles, Viserys' madness surpassed even that of his father.

After all, the Mad King merely burned a few individuals for amusement, while Viserys aimed to burn down the rules and systems that had held Westeros together for thousands of years.

How could such a man not be labeled a "tyrant"?

Thus, the moniker "Tyrant Viserys I" spread everywhere, except in the Riverlands and King's Landing.

People in King's Landing and the Riverlands might have heard this title, but they scoffed at it.

While they weren't sure if their king was indeed a tyrant, many of the soldiers who surrendered after the Battle of Riverrun later received lands of their own—a fact evident to all.

Instead of just renting lands from lords, they even had some soldiers knighted. With their own plots of land, they jokingly referred to themselves as "Lords of Two Acres".

Such unprecedented changes were witnessed by their fellow countrymen.

Therefore, although they hadn't met Viserys and didn't know if he was a tyrant, he at least gave them hope. To the common folk, land represented hope.

Yet, in regions other than the Riverlands and King's Landing, any praise of Viserys was strictly forbidden. Rumors circulated, including that Viserys consumed a maiden daily, and that his dragon, blacker and larger than the others, feasted on human flesh.

However, the disparate views across Westeros would eventually merge. The age-old saying holds true: "What has been divided must come together, and what has come together must divide." There's no room for reconciliation between the two factions.

The leader presented by the conservative noble faction, or the rebels, was Stannis Baratheon. As King Robert's older brother and the Duke of Dragonstone, he was the Iron Throne's heir in name. But as long as his elder brother imprisoned in King's Landing still lived, Stannis would never be crowned.

...

As the bells of the new year rang in King's Landing, within half a month's time,

A decree for the Second Conquest War emanated from the Red Keep. The shadow of all-out war loomed over the continent.

The Iron Throne issued one final warning: all resisting nobles must surrender or die.

They had no third option; there was no room for negotiation. They must either bend the knee or, holding onto the honor of the old nobility, be reduced to ashes alongside their castles.

The throne's warning spread swiftly throughout the Seven Kingdoms. Everyone knew the final war was imminent, leading to a flurry of public debate. The reactions ranged from indifference to concern, excitement to fear.

Commoners were mostly desensitized, having endured many wars. Merchants fretted about the instability in the Seven Kingdoms. War brought both opportunities and risks.

The foot soldiers of the Targaryen army, however, were excited about the upcoming war.

Under the current promotion system, only war—and specifically, victory in war—could promise them a better life.

Many commanders of the Golden Company eagerly anticipated the stubborn resistance of the Westerosi nobles.

After all, how could they replace the nobility without first defeating them, especially when their ancestral homes had been occupied by others?

The only ones filled with dread on the eve of this great war were the traditional nobles preparing for a final stand.

...

Whoo—

At dawn, the horn atop King's Landing sounded.

Swoosh~ A vast silhouette skimmed the sky, emitting a deep roar. With flapping wings stirring the winds, it flew into the distance.

The gates of King's Landing opened wide. The Targaryen forces, fully armed and ready, marched out.

Swoosh swoosh swoosh—

Their armor gleamed, and their weapons were sharp. They marched out of King's Landing in neat formations, then, raising the banners bearing the Targaryen three-headed dragon, they charged into the distance.

Boom boom boom—

The Dothraki's heavy hooves pounded the earth. The mounted warriors emitted excited cries.

Although King's Landing was a grand city, the Dothraki, a people of the plains, yearned for their old way of life. They, however, could not defy the orders of their dragon-riding Khal.

The Dothraki, wild and unrestrained, obeyed their Khal's command to the letter. Their primary targets in this war were Highgarden and Oldtown.

The Second Conquest War had three main armies. The first, led by Prince Oberyn of Dorne, had already set out and was now deeply involved in the warfare in the Westerlands.

In recent months, with the assistance of dragon riders, Oberyn's niece, Rhaenys, riding Rhaegal, had set fires throughout the Westerlands' mountains.

This inflicted massive damage on the Lannister forces. Numerous towns and castles in the Westerlands were burned, with countless civilians displaced and suffering.

However, Lord Tywin Lannister, always the strategic thinker, was not one to surrender easily.

He painted Viserys as a demon in rumors, and combined with the Targaryen forces' acts of invasion, the dragons soaring in the sky, and Oberyn's burning of 20,000 Westerlands men at Red Lake, these actions ignited the spirit of the Westerlands' nobles, soldiers, and citizens.

Tywin, leading a united Westerlands army and utilizing the region's complex mountainous terrain, fiercely resisted the Targaryen invasion, causing much trouble for Oberyn.

Thus, both sides were in a stalemate, like two skilled hunters each waiting for the opportunity to deliver the killing blow.

The second army was led personally by Viserys with the Golden Company.

They were the core strength of House Targaryen.

They faced the remnants of the Baratheon dynasty, the conservative noble faction, led in name by Stannis Baratheon.

As a renowned commander in the Seven Kingdoms, upon hearing of the Targaryen army's approach to Storm's End, Stannis didn't choose to wait for the siege. Instead, he proactively dispatched vanguard forces.

Having participated in the Battle of Riverrun, Stannis knew that defending a castle against dragons was a losing strategy.

Thus, an intense battle erupted near the Wendwater River between the advance forces of both sides.