"Dragons."
The Ragged Prince clenched his fist.
Watching the huge silhouette of the dragon flying around the palace in the distance, occasionally lowering its altitude to spew out large pillars of red flames.
The entire palace of Pentos was engulfed in flames, and then the huge black shadow once again flapped its wings towards the sky.
"It's terrifying."
The shock of witnessing a dragon in battle firsthand deeply imprinted in the Ragged Prince's heart. He had never thought war could be so simple.
At the same time, a vague concern lingered in his heart.
He didn't know how to deal with such a formidable foe?
He was glad that he didn't have the opportunity to face a dragon head-on at the moment, otherwise he was unsure of what kind of humiliating state he might reveal. Would he throw down his weapons and surrender, or soil his breeches in fear?
The grey-haired old man then took a deep breath, his beard trembling slightly, but his mouth uttered insincere words.
"The divine power of dragons is indeed irresistible to ordinary soldiers. No wonder everyone is so eager to have dragons."
"These magisters lost their lives because of their greed."
"Thank the Father for teaching us that greed is a sin."
The Ragged Prince gently tapped the railing he was gripping, then turned his head slightly to glance at the figure hidden in a cloak behind him.
He then continued.
"Congratulations, Your Grace, on acquiring this gem of the bay."
The Ragged Prince was born in Pentos, a city-state with multiple faiths, including the Moon Singers, the Red Priests, as well as those who worship the Black Goat, the Lady of Lys, and so on.
The Faith of the Seven was a minor group in Pentos, so the Ragged Prince was not particularly interested in it.
However, after making a 'deal' on the black ship, the Ragged Prince kneeled to Viserys.
Since then, the gray-haired old man spent his leisure time flipping through a couple of books on the doctrines of the Seven, hoping to have more common topics with Viserys.
What the Ragged Prince didn't know was that Viserys wasn't particularly devout to the gods, he just put on a good show.
The figure standing behind the Ragged Prince at this time raised his head.
The face revealed under the hood was Ramsay Snow's, full of gloom.
"Pentos is indeed a beautiful and rich place."
The young man with long black hair chuckled lowly, then continued.
"I also want to congratulate you, Prince, on returning to your homeland."
The Ragged Prince also showed a slight smile and nodded. His mood seemed good, after all, returning to Pentos had always been his lifelong wish.
"But..."
However, Ramsay hadn't finished speaking, his chilly voice paused here.
Then he brought up another matter.
"But although you have returned to Pentos, the great vengeance of the past has not been avenged."
"Hm?"
Upon hearing Ramsay's words, the Ragged Prince's face slightly changed. He had a bad premonition.
Ramsay didn't look at the Ragged Prince's changing expression and continued.
"Those magisters who forced you to leave Pentos all those years ago are long dead. The magisters in the palace may have been reduced to ashes by now..."
"But to root out the weed, their families are still struggling to survive."
"Ramsay's voice was calm, yet it sent a chill through the heart of the Beggar Prince.
The silver-haired elder, after all, had spent thirty years navigating the disputed territories, his mastery over concealing his emotions was impeccable. Despite the cold terror gripping his heart, he appeared entirely nonchalant.
"I have long forgotten the hatred of those years," he said.
"It's just hard to leave one's homeland..."
The Beggar Prince feigned a sigh before explaining.
However, upon hearing the Prince's words, Ramsay shook his head, dismissing his perspective.
"No."
"Prince, you have never forgotten that hatred."
Chaos still reigned in the city of Pentos. Fires blazed, cries of battle filled the air, and in the distance, dragons soared, spewing flames at the city below.
In a tower atop the walls of Pentos, all was silent.
"I..."
The Beggar Prince widened his eyes at the sight of the raven-haired youth before him, his mouth agape as if to insist he had forgotten.
But in the end, he swallowed his words.
He was merely courteous to the young man because he represented Viserys. The bastard before him surely wouldn't dare to make decisions for Viserys.
So, this must be Viserys' intention...
The Beggar Prince gazed wide-eyed at Ramsay, who returned his stare with a calm smile.
After a long silent standoff, the Beggar Prince finally conceded, his grey head nodding slightly. His voice, tinged with exhaustion, admitted:
"You're right, Lord Ramsay."
"I haven't forgotten that hatred."
...
Tonight would be a sleepless one for the people of Pentos.
The battle in the Prince's palace had already turned one-sided with the arrival of the dragons, and the Andals had broken through.
The princes of Pentos had been buried alive or killed, and a few, under the cover of smoke and flames, had fled to the strongholds under the protection of their guards.
The city of Pentos was still in the throes of a fierce battle, far from over, escalating instead.
Mercenaries and the city watch were still clashing. The streets were littered with fighting figures and bodies, still warm.
Meanwhile, countless ill-intentioned figures took advantage of the chaos.
Boom —
A door to a shop was kicked open.
A group of masked mercenaries rushed in, killing the shop owner with two swift strokes. They tossed the child into a water vat, then assaulted the woman of the house before the vat. In the end, they plundered the wealth of the place.
No sooner had these mercenaries exited the shop than they bumped into the bloodthirsty Windblown mercenaries.
The tall 'beauty', Meris, upon seeing the beasts' actions, roared in anger, drawing her greatsword and charging forward.
"Meris!"
The rest of the Windblown were startled and tried to stop their confessor, but they were too late.
With Meris already charging into the fray, they had no choice but to draw their swords and join her.
The Windblown were nosy, and these bandits weren't pushovers either.
Cling-clang —
And so the two groups of mercenaries started clashing on the street.
This was the current chaotic situation in Pentos. The city watch fought with mercenaries, mercenaries fought with mercenaries, and sometimes the city watch and mercenaries jointly looted, vandalized, and set fires.
In the end, if the city watch won tonight, they could pin the blame on the mercenaries.
And if the mercenaries lost, they would lose their lives and had nothing to fear.