Game of Thrones: The Wrath of the Sleeping Dragon

"Perhaps it's Prince Heros."

There is no distinction between princes and dukes in the common language or Valyrian High, only between emperors and kings.

The word "emperor" refers to a king with greater power and a higher rank, primarily in terms of military power. However, there is no literal distinction between "the emperor's son" and "the king's son"; both are simply "the king's son."

If the heir is designated by the king or emperor, then he will be called the 'crown prince' or 'royal prince'. In fact, both are the same term, 'the successor of the country'.

Therefore, Viserys was crowned emperor, but his two sons were still called 'princes', just as Joffrey had been called.

The chestnut-haired boy looked up at the VIP table above him against the light, then spoke uncertainly.

"The people love and support him. Perhaps only Prince Heros could elicit such a great cheer."

"Listen to the names they're calling..."

"Yeah, that's true."

Arya sat on the ground, adjusting her leather armor. She looked up, then shook her head and said something.

"Princess Diana received a louder cheer than Her Majesty the Queen, while Prince Herroes received almost twice the cheers and applause of the Eldest Princess."

Is His Highness so popular in King's Landing?

Arya did not see Prince Heros at the dinner in the Red Keep; it is said that he was attending classes at the academy at the time and did not have time to return.

It's quite normal for such a diligent and studious prince to be popular with the people.

Seeing the cheers Prince Heros received, Arya couldn't help but become interested in this boy who was six or seven years younger than her, and thought to herself.

Now she has a bow, a basket of wooden arrows, and a wooden sword at her side. She did not choose to ride a horse, nor did she choose a long weapon, which would give her an advantage in a group fight. Instead, she chose light equipment.

Arya was confident that she could resolve the battle single-handedly.

With twenty-five men against twenty-five men, as long as one side doesn't suffer a one-sided defeat, a knight capable of becoming a Royal Guard can turn the tide of battle and achieve victory.

Bran did not choose the same fighting style as his sister Arya. The young knight was very confident in his horsemanship. He chose to ride a horse and lance, hoping to break the enemy's formation and help his side gain the upper hand.

Arya had originally wanted Bran to follow behind her, but seeing her brother's confident demeanor, she changed her mind and simply let him be.

"Be careful not to overexert yourself later."

"Although they all use wooden weapons, there is still a possibility of getting injured."

But Arya, as the older sister, still earnestly advised him. Compared to the spirited young man, Arya was like a calm cheetah, with sharp eyes, waiting to capture her prey.

"I see!"

Bran nodded and spoke confidently.

Then cheers erupted overhead once more, this time the applause and cheers were dedicated to Prince Aemon.

Aemon's gains were not as strong as his brother's, perhaps not much different from his sister Diana's. Aemon still has a long way to go to win more public support.

Chapter 943, First Battle

"Today is the first day of the martial arts tournament. We would like to invite Your Majesty the Empress to give a speech."

Velas had wanted to ask Arianne to say a few words, but Princess Dorne simply waved her hand, indicating that Velas should preside over the entire ceremony, and that she was merely there to observe.

In fact, if today were not the first day of the martial arts tournament, she probably wouldn't have attended in person, because the preliminary selections were considered 'garbage time' by the empire's higher-ups.

The final round after the preliminary selection is the real key to competing for the Imperial Guard spot.

At that time, all factions vying for a spot in the Royal Guard will exert their utmost efforts, using all their connections in the court to ensure that the knights they recommend can ultimately win the honor and have the opportunity to speak to Her Majesty the Empress and choose sides.

Although the competition for the Imperial Guard may seem like a battle of warriors, in the increasingly mature and saturated upper echelons of the empire, it is extremely difficult to place someone in a position, and no one wants to miss this opportunity.

thump—

thump—

thump—

Then the first day of the King's Landing Tournament officially began amidst the resounding tolling of bells.

Arya and Bran were assigned to the first battlefield, where they kicked off the opening match of the tournament.

The siblings were on the same side, divided into red and blue teams, with Arya and Bran both wearing blue battle robes.

At the beginning of the battle, both sides were still testing each other. Knights who had participated in the conquest war and were awarded for their merits took the initiative to take command and used their command experience to deal with the enemy.

Among the twenty-five knights on the other side were also many veterans who had come from the battlefield. Due to the system of awarding knighthoods based on military merit, the total number of people in the seven kingdoms who were knighted based on their noble bloodline had decreased significantly.

Therefore, neither side made any rash moves. After testing each other, Arya, who was hiding in the shadows, took the initiative to attack.

Holding a wooden bow, she drew it and aimed calmly at a knight on horseback in the enemy camp. The knight had a round shield strapped to his left arm and was holding it tightly in front of him.

However, at that moment, a wooden arrow whistled through the air.

bang——

It struck the knight squarely in the groin area where his shield had failed to protect him.

"what!"

The other party immediately let out a scream, then clutched his groin and fell headfirst off the horse.

Because wooden weapons are used in group combat, armor is not allowed; only leather armor is permitted, with metal plates fitted to key areas for protection.

Otherwise, not to mention that many knights themselves could not afford armor, and with everyone wearing armor, wooden weapons would be completely useless.

That way, there would be no way to be fair and just. If someone wasn't wearing a mask, they might be hit directly in the face or eyes, which would have even more serious consequences. Everyone wore leather armor, and while wooden swords would hurt just as much when they hit other parts of the body, they wouldn't kill you unless you were in a very extreme situation.

So Arya hid in the shadows, drew her bow and shot an arrow into the unfortunate knight's groin, sending him sprawling and causing him to fall from his horse.

Each side only had three horses, and the enemy's main knight fell off his horse. Naturally, the commander on his side would not let go of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

"on!"

"Beat them to death!"

At their command, the impatient knights, who had been eagerly waiting, swarmed forward.

"kill!"

Bran, riding his warhorse, took the lead, brandishing his wooden spear and charging towards the remaining two enemy knights.

Many audience members on stage had already placed bets, but most were still observing. Some audience members who saw Arya with a woman on her side and placed bets on her immediately shouted "Despicable!"

"Fuck! Shit!"

"That shameless bastard actually launched a sneak attack!"

However, those who chose to bet on Arya cheered.

A good start is half the battle, and they silenced those people, even mocking them.

"A bet's a bet! You idiots! Stop whining like women."

"Didn't you see the dire wolf emblem?"

"Will the young master of the Stark family fall in the first round?"

The shouting match in the stands was even more intense than the battle below. On the battlefield, although the enthusiastic cheers from above could boost morale, all the contestants were completely focused and had no time to pay attention to what was going on above them.

Velas's proposal for the royal family to open a betting pool not only attracted a large number of golden dragons, but also had an unexpected effect: the spectators were extremely engaged, with cheers rising in waves and some even wanting to jump down and fight for their knights who had placed bets.

Brandon charged into the enemy ranks on his warhorse. The role of the warhorse on the battlefield was indeed decisive; he knocked two knights to the ground with just one charge.

"Give them a good beating!"

Bran brandished his lance and fought a knight wearing the crest of House Hunter of the Reach. Bran's martial arts skills were mediocre, but he hadn't expected his opponent to be just as incompetent.

"Go to hell!"

Then, surprisingly, the chestnut-haired boy seized the opportunity and stabbed the other man hard in the metal plate in his chest.

Although the sharp weapons they had were rounded wooden sticks, it still hurt quite a bit to be stabbed like that.

thump.

The Hunter knight screamed and fell from his horse, and Arya and Bran's knights saw the opportunity and pounced on him, unleashing a barrage of punches and kicks.

"I'm dead!"

"I'm dead!"

"stop!"

"Stop fighting, I surrender!"

The Hunter family knight was hit by a circle kick, immediately knocked to the ground, unable to get up, and was automatically eliminated.

The first group battle started uneventfully. Arya made a contribution by taking down an enemy cavalryman with a single arrow, but she didn't contribute much in the subsequent group fights and instead watched from the sidelines.

The battle finally came to an end. After several tens of minutes of fighting, Arya and Bran's side defeated all the enemies and won the first victory.

On their side, several knights were also badly beaten, their faces bruised and swollen. Although they won, they were forced to withdraw from the battle and enter the top 500. It is unknown whether they will be able to participate in the second round of the team competition a week later.

Bran was also somewhat disheveled; he had just been accidentally pulled off his horse by an enemy during the battle, prompting Lady Catelyn in the stands to gasp in surprise.

If this were a real battlefield, Bran might have been stabbed to death by the enemy, but fortunately he only took a few punches before being rescued by his companions.

"We won, Arya!"

Bran was overjoyed at the victory he had just achieved.

"Ah."

Arya, on the other hand, remained remarkably calm. This battle was already won because her side had the advantage in strength, and they would have won even without her arrow. Therefore, there was nothing to be happy about; it was more important to conceal their strength and avoid attracting attention.

Chapter 944 Emerging Geniuses

In addition to Arya and Bran, several other outstanding knights emerged during the team competition on the first day of the tournament.

The most prominent among them was Dickon Tully, the younger brother of Earl Samwell Tully of the Cornerstone Tully family.

"kill!"

Wielding a wooden sword, he was invincible, standing firm despite taking countless blows.

In a team battle of fifty men, Dickon single-handedly cut down seven or eight knights, rendering them unable to rise again. He single-handedly saved the battlefield from defeat and turned the tide to achieve victory.

"Good knight!"