章 58: -Chapter 55-
-Chapter 55-
-POV Aemon Targaryen-
After my meeting with the king, I decided to take some time to relax.
Moments of calm are very rare in my life, as I am practically occupied every day of the year, from the first to the last hour.
I usually take advantage of these rare moments to perform some acrobatic moves with Urrax in the air.
I was tempted to do so, but after leaving that meeting with the king, I decided to have some fun and change the cowardly and weak reputation of "not knowing how to wield a sword" that I had been carrying for a while.
I had deliberately misled everyone to have cards to play in case of trouble.
I made sure to spread the rumor that I didn't know how to fight and was afraid of blood, to gain an advantage over my enemies.
But now that this moment has passed and everyone knows it was all false, I will do the exact opposite.
'I will strike hard to leave a lasting impression on everyone and build a reputation as solid as possible with a sparring,' I thought as I observed the knights sworn to my uncle fighting in the training yard.
"Are you sure you want to do this?" Gunthor asked me, looking at the dozen knights gathered in the yard.
"Don't worry, I know how to hold back when necessary," I said, grabbing a bastard sword from the rack.
I had chosen this time of day because I knew perfectly well that at this hour, all the knights present in the training yard were the best.
And that was for the simple reason that many young ladies, either alone or accompanied by their brothers or even their parents, were there to evaluate these knights who were unknown to the public.
'They all hope to be noticed, to become master-at-arms, captain of a guard, or simply a bed-warmer for the nobility.'
The knights here were all unknown fighters, but contrary to what I expected, they all seemed very well trained.
'Some of them could even rival the elite of my bronze shields,' I thought while observing the fights.
'It's probably because they're trained by the Kingsguards,' I thought, watching the Cargyll twins give instructions to the knights.
"Ser, are your trainees looking for a challenge?" I said, making sure to speak loudly to attract attention.
'Not that I really need to.'
"It's just training, my prince," said one of the twins.
'I have trouble telling them apart when they're together.'
"Same here," I said, not at all discouraged by the excuse he had just given me.
The two looked at each other, hesitant, probably wondering how to refuse me without hurting my pride.
'They're afraid of offending me, but they're also afraid I'll get beaten,' I thought, smiling slightly at the twins' cautiousness.
Although I had shown everyone my mastery of Westerosi swordsmanship, I had not yet defeated a truly skilled opponent.
'I hadn't had much to do to defeat Leowyn Corbray. The fool had no advantage over me, whether in terms of physical ability or skill, not to mention that he was exhausted from his previous fights.'
I smiled and confidently said to the knights, who had stopped training to listen:
"I will offer Lady Forlorn to anyone who defeats me."
Everyone's eyes widened, even the two twins from my uncle Viserys' guard, and they both shrugged as my first opponent stepped forward to face me.
"What is your name?" I asked the knight.
"My name is Martyn, my prince," he replied.
"From which house?" I asked, as most knights sworn to House Targaryen came from noble families.
'Second or third sons of minor nobility in search of glory, as well as bastards.'
"None for now," he said, confident at the thought of founding one in the future.
"I wish you success in founding one," I said, lightly tapping my sword against the ground in provocation.
Very calmly, my opponent did not take my slight jab to heart and simply observed me, waiting to spot a weakness in my guard.
'This is getting boring,' I thought as long seconds passed without any action, the fight reduced to a staring contest.
I deliberately opened my guard slightly to invite him to attack, which he did without delay.
I pretended to retreat suddenly to block his strike, surprised by the speed of his attack, and he thought he had me.
I gently pushed his sword aside while spinning around much too quickly for him to react.
Martyn didn't dare move as he felt the steel at the back of his neck.
I smiled, knowing I had won…
'No surprise there.'
…before raising my sword and saying, "You did well."
The knight bowed his head in silence before leaving the training yard directly.
'Oops, I may have destroyed his confidence,' I thought before signaling to all the remaining knights to advance, turning slowly on myself.
'Let's get this done quickly.'
---
-POV Corlys Velaryon-
I watched Aemon gesture to about twenty knights to step forward, and it irritated me as few things had in my life, for he reminded me of his damned father.
'The same rotten seed.'
Seeing him smile and act with such arrogance also deeply annoyed me, as I hadn't forgotten how he had ordered me to be silent in front of all the nobility.
'Gathered for my triumph, and he had the audacity to address me as if I were a mere worm.'
"Look at him," I couldn't help but say, teeth clenched with rage.
"He made everyone believe he couldn't wield a sword, and now here he is, playing with damn knights who are all twice his age," I said, gripping the railing of the terrace from which I watched Aemon gracefully deflect his opponents' attacks.
"He's not fighting with a traditional style," Rhaenys observed, pretending not to hear me.
'And what could she say? She defends that boy more than our own son when we argue.'
Seeing that she wanted to ignore me, I said, trying to provoke her:
"It makes me sick to see him having fun while Laenor is in his room, mourning his friend's death. He should be ashamed…"
"Don't finish that sentence, for the love of the gods," Rhaenys said, turning to me, a fire burning in her eyes, clearly at the end of her patience with my comments.
'She overprotects this child too much, and he's not even hers,' I thought, snorting.
"Do you think this is normal?" I said, gesturing towards Aemon, who was still standing, surrounded by a dozen knights.
'The other dozen already defeated,' I thought, looking at the knights clutching their throats, groins, or ribs.
Rhaenys nodded and then said, "I find it normal, considering you refused to let him grow up with his cousins over an old grudge. To him, we're no different from strangers. The boy isn't afraid of his father or Viserys, and you think you'll be the one to scare him?"
"I don't want to scare him; I want to teach him the respect he owes me, as the Lord of the Great House of Valyria. Even Viserys owes me that respect," I said softly, but emphasizing each word to convey my frustration with his attitude.
Rhaenys turned away from me, almost disappointed, and said:
"He will respect you once Laena becomes his wife, to have peace in his household. So unless you don't want peace in yours, stop complaining."
I rolled my eyes but chose to remain silent, as Aemon was a frequent source of conflict between us.
'I was naive to believe that Laena could control this walking disaster. I'll have to find another way to teach him respect,' I thought, watching Aemon defeat the remaining knights more and more easily, not at all out of breath from the effort.
'Why not start with his finances? I've learned that the wool market in Runestone is booming thanks to the partnership signed with the Purple Cloud Trading Company from the Reyaan family.'
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