"I understand your predicament, and your anger, my lord."
In the dimly lit room.
A man's voice rang out, his tone elegant, clearly distinct from the accents of the commoners in the slums. He spoke in the most standard Valyrian.
"You've been betrayed, blatantly. It's the complete opposite of the deal you once made."
"After decades of roundabouts, you're back to square one."
The dim light of the room cast two shadows on the wall. The man with the elegant tone picked up a teapot and poured a bit of tea into his and his companion's cups.
Although his words sounded like mockery, ridiculing the man sitting across from him for wasting half his life, struggling in the mud, only to end up with the same fate as before.
Decades ago, he could have had the same treatment he has now with just a nod of his head, but he didn't do it then.
Was he really just afraid of death?
No.
"Many people say that you fled out of fear of death back then."
"But that's not the case."
"You're not afraid of death, you just wanted more."
The man raised his teacup and toasted the man across from him. He didn't like strong liquor, preferring this kind of light drink, because it kept his mind clear.
"You're right."
The man sitting across from him drank the tea in his cup as if it were a strong drink, then slammed it heavily on the table. His voice was hoarse and carried a hint of resentment.
"But I'm not satisfied."
He was not satisfied that he had paid such a high price, spent half his life, only to end up with such an outcome.
When he made the deal back then, he thought the other party was just a young man who hadn't grown up.
The other party dared to seize the city with only two hundred men. What kind of arrogance and courage was that?
Perhaps only such a young man, fearless of heaven and earth, would dare to do such a thing.
Back then, he even had the idea of double-crossing, but he didn't expect that the final result would shatter his plans step by step.
The other party forced him to take action against the traditional forces of Pentos, forced him to break with Pentos. From then on, it would be extremely difficult for him to gain a foothold here.
"Yes, you're not satisfied."
"And now is your best opportunity."
Hearing the resentment in the other man's tone, the man naturally understood that his words had hit the nail on the head, and continued to press his advantage.
"The Mad King's son has left Pentos, as you know."
"His whereabouts are unknown, but he took his black dragon with him, leaving..."
Whispers filled the room.
Outside the room, a man dressed as a servant was crouched under the window, quietly eavesdropping on the conversation inside.
His name was Hunter, one of the slaves bought by the Beggar Prince's steward three months ago.
But that was just his outward identity. His real identity was not a slave, but a 'hound' secretly trained by Lord Ramsay Snow.
Hounds have a keen sense of smell, making them ideal for surveillance work. His task, assigned by Ramsay, was to monitor the Beggar Prince.
And he didn't expect to overhear such important information today.
The Beggar Prince had secretly invited a man of unknown identity to the palace through the back door, and then closed the door for a private conversation.
And the content of the conversation was even more terrifying. It turns out that the Beggar Prince has long been dissatisfied with Viserys, believing that
he was deceived in the deal they made.
Although he did indeed get Pentos and became its prince, and Viserys did not break his word, this was not what the Beggar Prince had in mind.
He had no real power in his hands. He had a little at first, but as time went on, his power diminished more and more. Now, he was truly a commander without an army.
Even the men of the Windblown, who were once under his command, have all defected. Now, even if the Beggar Prince wanted to leave Pentos and gather a new force, he couldn't.
Therefore, persuaded by the mysterious man, the Beggar Prince seemed to want to seize the opportunity of the king's absence from Pentos to stage a coup.
"The Golden Company won't do?"
"They're just a bunch of mercenaries who value money over their lives. As long as you give them money, they'd even sell their own fathers."
"Jon Connington."
Although Jon Connington's power is somewhat pitiful now, with Oberyn looming over him.
But after all, he still has three thousand men under his command, naturally entering the Beggar Prince's vision.
"Jon Connington won't do, he's too upright and stubborn."
"My lord, the biggest problem for your coup is actually the Unsullied."
The existence of the Unsullied is like a huge obstacle. They have the Nine Towers Palace, where Regent Princess Rhaenys is staying, locked down tight. They have no chance to directly attack the Nine Towers Palace and end the war.
"The only chance now is to use other means."
"Find an opportunity to kidnap the girl when she leaves the palace, and force her to hand over the command staff of the Unsullied."
The Unsullied only recognize the staff, not the person. And Oberyn can't just sit by and watch his niece get killed, he'll have to surrender. By then...
While the room was buzzing with discussion, a noise suddenly came from outside.
Crack—
The voices in the room abruptly stopped.
"Damn it!"
Outside the room, Hunter, who had been eavesdropping, suddenly turned his head to look up.
The noise wasn't made by him.
As a professional intelligence agent trained by Lord Ramsay, how could he make such a rookie mistake?
It turned out to be a stray cat that had accidentally knocked over a loose brick while running by.
The cat seemed completely unaware of its mistake, just glanced at the man crouching in the bushes below.
Then it meowed and jumped off the wall to escape.
"Run!"
Hunter felt his scalp tingle and was about to flee, but was caught red-handed by the Beggar Prince and the man who had been talking with him, who rushed out of the room.
"It's you!"
The Beggar Prince was both shocked and angry when he saw Hunter.
He was shocked because if such a big thing leaked out, he would surely be doomed. He was angry because the other party had betrayed him.
"I'll kill you!"
The Beggar Prince immediately drew his sword and stabbed Hunter, his blood staining the ground.
"He's dead, that man named Ramsay will surely come to investigate."
The man who had been talking secretly with the Beggar Prince wore a pair of single-lens gold-rimmed glasses.
This was a high-end product made by Myr, its value could even hire a small mercenary group.
It seemed that this man was very wealthy, his attire was also extraordinary. He frowned slightly and said.
"It seems we need to take a long-term view of this matter, my lord."