Game of Thrones: The Red Dragon Lord.

Chapter 118 Recruiting Mercenaries and Expanding

In the city of Rees - inside the Governor's Palace
Gavin sat quietly behind the quaint desk, looking calmly at the big bear standing in front of him - Jorah Mormont.

At this time, Jorah Mormont was probably less than forty years old, a northern man in his prime. His dark skin seemed to have gone through countless hardships, and his thick hair grew in a messy manner. Although his head was slightly bald, his sturdy body still exuded a strong sense of power.

He looked quite disheveled now, his face was blackened and greyed by smoke, his already worn-out clothes were torn in many places and looked tattered. The long sword he carried with him was nowhere to be found, leaving only an empty scabbard hanging around his waist.

Not long ago, after Gawain completely captured the city of Lys, Hassan accidentally heard the name Jorah Mormont while inspecting the mercenary captives.

Thinking that he had previously arranged ships to send prisoners in the territory to the Wall under the orders of Lord Gawain, and that the Lord Commander of the Night's Watch there was also named Mormont, and that there were rumors that his son Jorah Mormont had come to the East Continent to serve as a mercenary in order to escape trial, Hassan did not dare to delay and hurriedly reported the matter to Gawain, thus leading to this unusual meeting.

Gavin slowly showed a gentle smile on his face, and slowly said: "Nice to meet you, Ser Jorah. I didn't expect that our first meeting would be under such circumstances."

Jorah looked at Gavin with doubts, and then said, "I am just a mercenary captive now, not a knight anymore. My lord, who are you? Why do you know me?"

Gavin nodded slightly and said solemnly: "Let me introduce myself. I am Gavin Belleris. I believe you have heard of my name recently."

Jorah smiled a helpless and bitter smile upon hearing this. He was also captive because of him. He responded, "Of course. Your reputation is well known in Lys recently. I'm sure it's spreading to places farther away in Essos."

Gawen stood up, poured Jorah a glass of mellow red wine, and motioned him to sit down. "Not long ago, I went to the Wall as a guest. Your father, Commander Mormont, received me. When I was in the North, I also heard about your past. I didn't expect you to be stranded in Lys now."

Hearing Gavin talking about his father, Jorah Mormont's face instantly showed a deep sadness, and he asked in a low voice: "Is my father okay?"

"He's doing fine. At least when I saw him, he was in good health. He is currently devoting himself to the affairs of the Night's Watch."

After hearing this, Jorah looked slightly relieved. He had not heard any news about his father for a long time since leaving the North, but he never expected to have such an unexpected gain here.

Thinking of his current difficult situation, Jorah felt uneasy and asked cautiously: "I wonder how Lord Gavin plans to deal with me?"

Gavin smiled and said calmly: "I have already inquired about the relevant situation. You were just passively involved in the turmoil of those mercenaries. You can leave at any time later."

After hearing this, Qiao La bowed with gratitude and said, "Thank you for your kindness."

Gavin waved his hand and then asked with a smile: "Since you make a living as a mercenary now, I wonder if you can accept my employment? I hope you can train and command the mercenaries I captured before. I believe you know them better than I do."

Gavin captured thousands of mercenaries this time. He had intended to recruit them, but most of his subordinates were captains and the naval soldiers he had commanded before were all specially customized Unsullied.

Gaben had intended to command these mercenaries himself, but since he happened to find Jorah stranded here, he decided to hand over the captives to him.

Jorah's military ability is not weak, and he has participated in wars. He has nowhere to go, so taming him now is like a timely help. We don't expect him to train the prisoners to be elite, but it would be good for him to serve as cannon fodder in subsequent wars.

Jorah Mormont hesitated for only a moment before decisively deciding to accept the offer. He then said firmly, "Thank you for your appreciation of me. I am willing to accept your offer. Please rest assured that I will not let you down."

Gavin nodded and said, "That's settled. Go find Hassan and he will arrange it for you."

"As you command, my lord." Jorah Mormont stepped back respectfully.

Gavin slowly walked to the window and looked solemnly at the still devastated city of Lys. Although the once blazing flames had been extinguished, the broken walls and ruins after the burning were still shocking. In this terrible turmoil, the number of buildings that were set on fire far exceeded the damage caused by his dragon-riding attack.

At this time, after a simple cleanup of the city of Rees, the piles of corpses in the city had been pulled out one after another. The city had barely restored basic order, and the civilians and prisoners were organized in an orderly manner, and were busy cleaning up the ruins of the buildings. According to Hassan's estimation, the cleanup work would be completed in about three days.

Gavin was thinking in his mind that he was going to start taking over the towns and villages previously controlled by Reese in the next two days, which had weak defenses but were numerous.

Most of these towns are located in the southwestern corner of Essos, occupying a part of the disputed land, bordering Tyrosh, Myr, and Volantis, and separated from the Isle of Lys by only a short strait.

But at this moment, Gavin was faced with a serious shortage of troops. Excluding the personnel necessary to operate the warships, the remaining soldiers that could be mobilized were less than 2,000, and they were all infantry.

And in order to ensure that there is no chaos in the city of Rees, one thousand people must be left here to garrison.

Gavin was not worried about relying on warships for naval battles, but once he landed, his army's combat power would plummet. In desperation, he could only use the captured mercenaries to make up for the lack of troops.

"It's still too short!" Gavin couldn't help but mutter to himself. If he could be given three months to digest the gains from taking over Rees City, he would be much more relaxed.

However, Tyrosh and Myr were watching closely from outside, and it was unknown whether they would join the battle. Volantis might also seize the disputed land, and it was also unknown whether the Iron Throne, which was further away, would take the opportunity to make a move.

Gavin knew he had to race against time and quickly take over those vital lands before they could react.

Two days later, a small storm arose at sea. Under the gloomy sky, the wind rolled up the dark clouds and roared. The waves rolled like a group of galloping wild horses, chasing and colliding with each other. The sea was turbulent, the waves splashed, and a misty water fog formed.

Gavin led an army of 3,000 people, mostly captives, boarded the warship with great momentum, and headed towards the continent of Essos.

The warships moved forward on the turbulent and raging strait, splitting the layers of white waves, and the hulls shook violently, as if they were fighting a fierce battle with the sea. Soon, the warships carrying soldiers passed through the short strait and approached the continent of Essos. However, the landing process was not smooth. The previous dock had been demolished due to the war, and only small boats could be used to transport soldiers. The ruthless waves continued to fiercely hit the side of the ship, making a deafening roar.

The soldiers struggled to climb down the ropes and board the swaying boat amidst the violent shaking. Jorah led the way and personally stood at the bow to command the mercenaries. He shouted at the top of his lungs, doing his best to maintain order and ensure that the personnel and supplies could land safely.

Finally, after half a day, they successfully landed. After landing, the army took a short rest and then headed non-stop towards the nearest town, Dock.

In the evening, the afterglow of the setting sun sprinkled on the earth, and finally the low walls of Doc Town were seen. Although Doc Town was small in size, its fortifications were quite strong. This town firmly controlled several nearby villages and the vital trade route connecting the sea and land, and its strategic position should not be underestimated.

When the guards in the town saw the huge dragon hovering in the air and the huge army gradually approaching, they instantly fell into extreme panic. Their faces turned pale, their hands and feet trembled, and they hurriedly stumbled to report.

The mayor and many slave owners who learned of this emergency situation were immediately panicked and quickly gathered together to discuss countermeasures.

The destruction of the city of Lys was like a heavy wake-up call. They were well aware of the dragon's unrivaled power and knew that resistance meant destruction. For a moment, everyone looked at each other in confusion, filled with worry.

The mayor looked around at everyone and said in a deep voice: "You all know the current situation. The Dragon King's army is almost outside the city. Do you have any suggestions?" As he finished speaking, the room fell into a brief silence.

Someone suggested escaping with their wealth in a trembling voice: "Let's pack up our things quickly. Maybe we can find a way out before they surround us."

Another slave owner retorted: "Escape? Where can we escape to? Don't you see there is a dragon in the sky? How far can we escape?"

Everyone was arguing, but no one dared to resist.

At this time, the mayor spoke again, his voice trembling and helpless: "Escape? We can't get far. The Dragon King's target is obviously not just our small Doc Town. Open the city and surrender, maybe you can save your life."

After he finished speaking, the rest of the people stopped talking and the room fell into silence for a while.

The mayor looked around at everyone. The slave owners all lowered their heads and did not dare to look him in the eye.

The mayor sighed and said, "Since no one objects, let's do it." Then he hurriedly stood up and led everyone to the city wall.

When Gavin finally approached the town, he found that the town gate was not closed. There were only a dozen people in gorgeous robes waiting quietly outside the city, and there were no defenders on the city wall.

Gavin, who understood what was going on, rode his horse forward towards those people, and the Blood Dragon Guards behind him quickly followed.

Before he could get close, the dozen or so people knelt down together.

The leader said with a trembling voice and deep fear: "Your Excellency Dragon King, welcome to Doc Town. I submit to you on behalf of Doc Town. We have no intention of resisting. We only ask that you treat the people in the town with kindness."

Gavin looked down at the people kneeling on the ground in front of him and said with dignity: "As long as you sincerely surrender, I will ensure the safety of everyone in the town, and I will also make Doc Town prosperous under my rule."

Hearing Gavin's reply, the mayor hurriedly thanked him: "Thank you for your kindness, we will be loyal to you."

Then, Gavin waved his hand, and Jorah Mormont led five hundred men into Dock Town quickly. In this way, the first town fell into Gavin's hands easily.

Unlike the prosperous city of Rees, the towns and villages under Rees' rule had many slaves, who were responsible for labor and production to supply the nobles in the free trade city-state. As Gavin rode into the town of Dok, he saw many slaves kneeling densely on both sides of the street. They were hunched over, with their heads buried deep in the ground, not daring to look directly at the new ruler.

The slaves were half-naked, with old and new scars all over their bodies, which were the marks left by long-term abuse and labor. Their eyes were full of fear and helplessness, as if they were waiting for the judgment of an unknown fate.

Gavin glanced at the slaves, and a complex emotion surged in his heart. Then he calmed down and stopped paying attention to the slaves.

He knew very well that he could not make rash reforms when he first came to power here, otherwise unrest would easily break out. However, once he had gradually established himself, he would no longer have the will of these slave owners.

His army marched neatly in the middle of the street, the sound of horse hooves and armor clashing echoed in the silent town. The slaves along the way trembled and dared not make a sound.

Gavin rode on and came to the central square of the town. Some small slave owners and civilians gathered in the square, looking at Gavin tremblingly, trying to figure out the mind of the new ruler.

Gavin glanced at them coldly and said, "From today on, everything here belongs to me. All of you must follow my orders. If you disobey, you will be executed immediately!" The slave owners nodded in agreement.

Gavin then ordered the army to temporarily station outside the city, and he took Jorah and several officers together to discuss arrangements for tomorrow's march.

In the next few days, Gavin captured five towns and countless villages in succession, basically taking control of all the land previously controlled by Reese, and also taking control of the garrisons of the previous towns. His army reached 5,000 people in one fell swoop, and every town basically surrendered without encountering any resistance.

At this time, Gavin had led his army to the outside of the last town. As expected, the slave owners and officials in the town had already been waiting outside the city.

Gavin rode on a tall warhorse, looking sternly at the respectful crowd in front of him. He knew in his heart that these people surrendered more out of fear of his powerful military force than true submission.

But at the moment, the key is to quickly take control of the situation. Without too much nonsense, Gavin's army quickly took control of the city defense.

(End of this chapter)