Game of Thrones: The Red Dragon Lord.

Chapter 169 Dragon’s Deterrence
"Sir? What should we do? Should we go to the port?" Seeing that Commander Jaime was hesitant to speak, an old Lannister asked anxiously. His voice trembled slightly, and his eyes were full of worry and uneasiness, as if he was waiting for an answer that would decide his fate.

This voice awakened James who was in a state of confusion. His brows were furrowed, and his eyes flashed with complicated light.

Let's go and check out the situation first. After all, he also knows some information about Gavin.

The dragon was far smaller than the legendary Black Death. James, who had never faced a dragon, always believed in his heart that it was just a huge beast.

With a dragon-hunting crossbow, it may be possible to shoot it down, just like the Dornishmen did in history.

What he was really worried about was how many troops the other side had landed. The intelligence he had learned before was that although the Stone Steps Islands fleet was very powerful, it was only at sea.

Although they were capable of attacking any coastal town, the Stepstones' main combat power was the navy and warships. After landing, they would be no match for the knights of Westeros, which was Robert's reason for daring to start a war. As long as they could suppress the enemy's fleet in a naval battle, landing would be as easy as suppressing the rebellion in the Iron Islands.

Thinking of this, James said coldly: "You go and report the news to the Red Castle, and the rest of you, follow me to the port to take a look."

"But, Sir Jaime, is that a dragon?" said a golden-cloaked man who had escaped back with a worried look on his face.

His voice was filled with fear, as if the dragon was an invincible demon.

Hearing the gold-cloaked man's complaints, James's irritation seemed to have found a way to vent. With his eyes wide open, he whipped the gold-cloaked man in the face with a whip and shouted, "No matter what, it is your duty to protect King's Landing and the king. There are enough dragon-hunting crossbows on the city wall to fight back. Everyone, follow orders!"

The man in the golden robe who was whipped covered his face with his hands, a trace of fear flashed in his eyes, but he didn't dare to say anything more.

The other soldiers looked at each other. Although they were still afraid, they had no choice but to bite the bullet and prepare to carry out orders under James's majesty.

At the port, the Blazing Shadow spread its huge wings, blocking out the sky and the sun. Blazing flames continued to spew out of its mouth, and the blazing flames were like a torrent of destruction, sweeping away everything.

The ship burned in flames, making crackling sounds that sounded like a desperate wail.

The flames danced like a dance of death, shrouding the entire port in a terrifying atmosphere.

The Stepstone Islands fleet in the distance had already stopped shooting, because there was no intact warship left in King's Landing Port at this moment.

The Royal Fleet, which lost its command and was divided, never launched any counterattacks from beginning to end. The sailors who managed to escape hid under the city wall and trembled. Only the dragon hunting crossbows above their heads could give them some sense of security. However, they did not know that the golden robes on the city wall were also so nervous that their legs were shaking and they were sweating all over. They were not much better than them.

When James climbed up the city wall, he realized that he was wrong. In the dark night, the sea of ​​fire made the sky red as blood, as if it was the end of the world. In this doomsday scene, the figure of the dragon looked particularly hideous and terrifying.

Although he was still a long distance away from the dragon, the other party's huge body that covered the sky and the sun still caused a great impact on his heart.

That mountain-like body seemed to contain endless power, and every scale flashed a mysterious and dangerous light under the light of the fire.

The dragon's agile and flexible speed made him deeply doubt the effectiveness of the dragon hunting crossbow.

James imagined the slow firing speed of the dragon hunting crossbow, and a feeling of despair surged in his heart. Facing such a flexible dragon, could the dragon hunting crossbow really hit it? Even if it hit it, could it really cause fatal damage to it? The entire port was engulfed in flames, and the sky was reflected red, like a burning blood cloud. Thick smoke billowed up like black towers, blocking the light of the stars and the moon.

The light of the flame flickered on Jaime's face, and his hand holding the hilt of the sword trembled slightly. Fortunately, the troops of the Stepstones did not land, and he once again thought of taking Cersei and the child away from King's Landing.

After hesitating for a moment, James forced himself to suppress his fear. He knew that he could not retreat at this moment.

He chose to command here and sent a message to the Red Keep to let the king prepare to evacuate King's Landing at any time. If he left the city wall now, the garrison would collapse and King's Landing would be completely defenseless. Rather than trusting those golden cloaks to delay the enemy's attack, it is better to trust the chastity of prostitutes. He wants to buy time here.

Gavin in the air also noticed the movement on the city wall. After the chaos, it soon quieted down. The dragon hunter was still looking at the sky with vigilance. It was obvious that a big shot had just come to the city wall and stabilized the enemy's morale.

Gavin felt a little regretful when he saw the hedgehog-like walls. He would not mind taking King's Landing. He had been coveting the dragon bones in the Red Castle for a long time, but now that he could destroy the Royal Fleet, he was already satisfied. There was no need to risk attacking the city.

Gavin patted Chiying lightly: "Come on, my friend, we will come back here later."

When Chiying heard the command, he immediately flapped his huge wings and flew away.

The fleet below also began to retreat as if it had received a signal, leaving behind only a port engulfed in flames and people filled with fear.

As the Blazing Shadow and Stepstone Islands fleets sailed away, James's tense nerves did not relax. He looked at the destroyed port with a heavy heart.

Inside the captain's cabin of the Belleris, the lights were dim and quiet. Outside the window, the night was as dark as ink, so deep that it seemed to swallow everything.

Gavin stood in front of the window, gently turning an empty wine glass in his hand, his deep purple eyes looking through the porthole at the dark world outside.

Even though he possessed the physique of an incombustible being, he still felt thirsty after hovering over the sea of ​​fire for a long time.

Gavin gently put down the cup and gave an order to Hassan who was standing respectfully beside him: "Pass the order down and have the fleet blockade the outer side of the throat and the narrow sea route in batches. Any ship traveling between Westeros and Essos must pay taxes and obtain our permission before passing."

Hassan frowned slightly, hesitated for a moment and said, "Your Majesty, to block the outer side of the Throat and the Narrow Sea, I'm afraid we'll have to use most of our warships. And there are more than ten routes to Essos after leaving the Throat, all of which are the main routes of the two continents. I'm worried that it will be difficult to blockade them tightly? The Free Trade Cities may also be dissatisfied with our tax collection."

Gavin raised his chin slightly and said with a firm look in his eyes, "Don't worry. If those merchant ships dare to resist, we will use force to intimidate them. The only one that can threaten us is the Purple Fleet. Now we have the upper hand in the Narrow Sea. It's just a matter of taxation. Braavos dare not act rashly."

Hassan asked Gavin again, "Your Majesty, according to Maester Qyburn's intelligence, the Lannister fleet will arrive at King's Landing in two days. Should we intercept them at the Throat?"

Gavin waved his hand slightly, a confident arc appeared on the corner of his mouth, and he slowly said: "No need. Although the Lannisters are rich, the scale of their fleet is pitifully small, with only about forty warships. The White Harbor fleet will arrive in King's Landing at about the same time. Now that Ned Stark has been captured, we just need to watch the show quietly. King's Landing will not be able to take care of us in the future."

Hassan immediately straightened up and replied respectfully, "Yes, Your Majesty, I will arrange it right away."

As a return horn sounded in the dark night, the Belleris and the entire fleet slowly turned around and headed towards Dragonstone, gradually disappearing into the night.

(End of this chapter)