Chapter 38

Varys, the Master of Whisperers, was pushed forward by the soldiers and stood before Bahamut. The dragon had expected Varys to be a man unafraid of death, but he didn't anticipate the spymaster to face him so resolutely. Varys, it seemed, had no fear of the dragon, a creature born of magic.

Bahamut began by recounting Varys's history. "Born a slave and made part of a traveling group of actors that performed in various parts of Essos. In your early adolescence, as the group traveled through Myr, your master sold you to a sorcerer. This sorcerer gave you a potion that temporarily paralyzed you, followed by the gruesome castration. Your severed genitals were thrown into a fire, which turned blue, and you heard a voice answer the sorcerer's call. Why would this sorcerer pay a huge sum of gold when he could have bought dozens of kids your age? The only plausible answer is your bloodline. Are you descended from the female line of the Blackfyres?"

Varys, visibly sweating but resolute, finally spoke after a long silence. "I am."

His answer sent shockwaves through the crowd in the yard, and even Rhaena and Aegon were taken aback. They had heard of the Blackfyre rebellion from their mother.

Seeing his guess gone right Bahamut continued to question Varys, "You are not loyal to the Targaryens or any ruler who sits on the Iron Throne. Yet, you claim to serve the realm. What do you mean by serving the realm when you hold no loyalty to the protector of the realm?".

Varys responded calmly, "Lord, all I wish to do is restore peace and prosperity. I believe that serving the realm means ensuring the well-being of its people.".

Bahamut, however, was not easily convinced. He delved into Varys's past, recounting the spymaster's life from his early days as a beggar to his rise as a master of espionage. "For a person who was cast aside and left to die by a sorcerer, you showed great resilience. You resorted to begging, prostitution, and thievery, becoming one of the best thieves the known world had ever seen. It was only later that you realized the value of information and began training your own spy network. You even became the spymaster for King Aerys. I find it hard to believe that someone with your background suddenly wishes to serve the realm out of the goodness of their heart. What is the one thing missing in this puzzle? What have you heard in the flames?"

Varys remained silent, visibly shaken by Bahamut's words. He struggled to maintain his composure, feeling the weight of the dragon's intense scrutiny.