Chapter 37: Ship and People

"My master of Coin, how is the preparation of the ship coming along?"

The next evening, as soon as Illyrio returned to the courtyard, Viserys eagerly sought him out.

Magister Illyrio chuckled softly, shaking his whiskers. "Your Grace, the preparations are not that fast. Since it's a long voyage and with such a purpose, we need to cover it up. I'm gathering some goods and arranging trustworthy crew members, so the ship you will be on can pose as a merchant vessel. This way, it will be easier for you to act discreetly, right?"

Viserys didn't even move his lips. "You are right." He didn't seem very pleased. "But the opportunity is rare, and we should set off as soon as possible. The people in the Seven Kingdoms might be waiting for us to act in concert."

Illyrio flattered him, "My king, you have already waited for most of your life. A few more days, or even months, what difference does it make?"

'He knows that the people of Dorne across the sea haven't made any moves at all.'

Viserys pursed his lips. "Has anyone inquired about the dragonbone pendants that are for sale today?"

Illyrio replied, "Not yet, Your Grace. Speaking of dragonbone, you asked me to get you a new batch; it will arrive tomorrow."

"Finally, some good news, my Master of Coin."

By now, Viserys had given up on plotting to obtain dragon eggs from Illyrio. He wasn't willing to risk exposing Daenerys to dragon eggs until he was strong enough.

The lingering souls in dragonbones are indeed thin, but the risk is low. Although dragonbones containing dragon souls are rare—with Illyrio changing several batches, often yielding none out of twenty pieces—there is still a reliable way to continue using dragonbones.

If anyone knew what Viserys was thinking, they might consider him to be like a timid mouse, always shrinking and hiding.

But he didn't care.

Unrealistic bravery often leads to heroic deaths, and he believed that even smarter and braver people than him, if they had his advantages, might already be seated on the Iron Throne, transforming into dragons, and chatting with gods. These were his talents, and he accepted them.

Eddard Stark taught his wolf pups: Only through fear can one be brave.

Viserys's courage would only be gradually released as his power grew. The more magic he accumulated, the braver he would become.

Now that he had gathered some self-protection abilities, he became bolder in his demands from Illyrio.

The fat Magister always agreed generously, as if he had no doubts. But even with Illyrio's cooperation, Viserys still felt things were moving too slowly.

Heading south was just an excuse; the real purpose was to explore the luxury shops in the major Free Cities for dragonbone.

Viserys had considered publicly announcing his search, but after careful thought, he deemed it a foolish act that only an idiot would do.

It seemed only one unknown entity had discovered his secret and was watching him. If he made a public spectacle, it would be like dancing under the watchful eyes of all the mysterious forces.

If he thought the pressure from a suspected "god" wasn't enough, he could certainly go ahead and do so.

Since that dream of the ancient king's ghost, Daenerys no longer had similar dreams when touching dragonbones containing dragon souls. Instead, she felt her body gradually ignited by sparks in the darkness, her blood growing increasingly hot.

Her physical condition visibly improved, recovering quickly from even the most strenuous exercise. Viserys dared not let her exert herself too much, fearing others might notice something unusual.

The purple dust Viserys absorbed through his dreams grew less and less, almost disappearing, but the medium that triggered his magic projections when he dreamed remained unchanged.

The unknown presence fell silent. As much as he wanted to think positively, Viserys didn't dare to.

He urgently needed power to fill the anxiety within his heart.

The tasks given to Illyrio were a way to give him an explanation.

The fat Magister had been putting on a performance with him for so long; Viserys couldn't let him walk away empty-handed. And if Illyrio did get it into his head to actually follow through with Viserys's plans, then good luck to him, and may the gods bless him.

But clearly, Illyrio wasn't foolish. He was obviously trying to buy time, subtly suggesting that there was no movement across the sea, giving the seemingly rash Viserys time to cool down.

The fat Magister was waiting for some signal from the Seven Kingdoms.

He could wait his whole life and never get one.

Viserys knew what his fabricated story was all about. The silence from Dorne might make people speculate, but even if Viserys said there were no Dornish involved, the fat Magister wouldn't believe him. Illyrio would find reasons to convince himself otherwise.

Viserys had made up his mind to leave. He knew that the fat Magister was never a resolute man; eventually, he would grow tired of Viserys's foolish decisions and let him go. Just like in the original story, where Viserys insisted on following Drogo to traverse the Dothraki Sea until Drogo fulfilled his promise of giving him a crown, Illyrio tried to persuade him a few times before finally letting him leave.

Illyrio, like Varys, was always willing to let foolish people do foolish things.

Finally, on the third time Viserys went to question Illyrio, the fat Magister blinked and said that everything was ready.

"My king, the ship I arranged for you is ready," Illyrio told Viserys. "However, the seas have not been peaceful lately. One ship alone might not be sufficient to deal with rampant pirates and storms. I took the liberty of arranging a convoy for you—three ships, loaded with goods and properly disguised. If it pleases Your Grace, you can depart tomorrow. Captain Grorlay, my most capable captain, will lead the convoy. Would you like to meet him before setting off?"

This arrangement was reasonable. During his wanderings through the Free Cities, Viserys had gained considerable experience with sea travel. He knew that relying on a single, unarmed merchant ship was not a wise decision for a sea voyage.

"You have thought of everything," Viserys agreed gladly. "Plugging the gaps for the king—this is the mark of a loyal and upright minister. I must thank you, my master of coin. Is the captain here? I would like to meet him."

"It is my duty, Your Grace," Illyrio replied. "Captain Grorlay is at a nearby inn. Shall I have him come to see you tonight?"

"Very well."

"Your Grace, a king cannot travel without protection," Illyrio continued. "The exiled knight, Jorah Mormont—should we recruit or hire him to guard you on this journey?"

Viserys had been wondering when he would bring this up.

His entourage was already filled with Illyrio's people, and adding one more wouldn't make a difference.

Though Jorah had his own agendas, he could still be useful. Just as the spy Annie could serve as a taster for poison, having a guard dressed as a Westerosi knight could avoid many troubles.

During this time, Viserys had accumulated enough magic to have over ten dragon scales' worth.

He estimated that if he faced Jorah Mormont directly, this amount of magic would be enough to kill the armored knight with a dragonfire beam.

Jorah and Illyrio might not be of one mind. If King Robert gave the order, Jorah might attempt to assassinate Viserys. But any orders from Robert would pass through Varys and Illyrio first. As long as Viserys did nothing reckless, Varys and Illyrio would not let him die.

However, this didn't mean he shouldn't worry about assassination. Assassination was merely a means to an end. Just like in the original story when Daenerys faced her first assassination attempt, Jorah even saved her. What they needed was Drogo to go to war, not Daenerys' corpse.

If the day ever came when King Robert ordered Viserys's death, Varys and Illyrio would be quite happy to have Ser Jorah carry it out. They could use Jorah to teach Viserys a lesson, to make him behave, stay put, and learn to communicate and coordinate with his allies instead of recklessly acting on impulse.

"I was thinking the same," Viserys agreed. "What test did you give him before?"

"I had him guard my estate outside the city, which is often troubled by bandits," Illyrio said. "The servants there told me that this mercenary is different from others. He is highly skilled in combat, seldom speaks, is diligent, and shows no mercy to bandits. Yet, he voluntarily protects women and children. Sometimes, during idle chats, when people talk to him about his homeland and mention King Robert or Eddard Stark, Lord of the North, he spits on the ground and then falls silent."

"Then arrange for him to meet me," Viserys said. "I want to talk to him."

"Yes, Your Grace," Illyrio agreed. Then he added, "Considering you will have women with you, I think having only one knight might be inconvenient. The eunuch guards in the courtyard were arranged to protect you. Do you want to take them on this journey?"

'Will those pointed-hat eunuchs who never look me in the eye listen to me?'

"Taking too many guards would defeat the purpose of our disguise," Viserys thought that Illyrio had already placed enough people around him.

If there were more, he doubted he could manage them all on his own.

"How about this: one eunuch guard for the women will be enough. I noticed an older one at the gate, with thick eyebrows and a black and red face. He looks reliable. What's his name?"

"Butchi, Your Grace. His companions call him the Black-Faced Butcher," Illyrio answered earnestly.

". . ." Viserys pondered the nickname, "He'll do."

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