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"You're looking younger every day, Lady Olenna. More charming than ever."
Daeron smiled politely, laying it on thick.
"Ha. You're full of shit, boy."
Lady Olenna didn't buy a word of it. She turned and dropped into a chair like she owned the place, getting straight to business. "I hear you took the Stepstones and Tyrosh. Dragon King in full fury. Quite the show."
The small talk died fast. She went straight for the throat.
Daeron sat across from her and kept it casual. "What do you want?"
Lady Olenna wasn't the type to sail all the way to King's Landing for no reason.
"Advice? I'm too old for that. I just like sticking my nose where it doesn't belong."
She leaned forward, eyes sharp. "You've shown the world your power. Took a Free City and planted the Targaryen banner on eastern soil. But have you thought about how you're actually going to run it?"
Daeron knew exactly why she was here. "Lord Tywin's already sailing for Tyrosh. He'll keep it under control."
"True. Tywin Lannister's got an iron fist and zero mercy. Everyone's scared of him."
Lady Olenna gave him that backhanded compliment and kept pushing. "But do you know what the nobles across the Seven Kingdoms are saying about you conquering Tyrosh without calling on the Reach?"
Daeron raised an eyebrow, amused. "Let me guess. You're about to tell me you're only here because you're worried about the Iron Throne's safety."
Classic bullshit. Pretend you're doing someone a favor when you really just want something.
Lady Olenna smiled and nodded. "Exactly. I'm here about a little problem for the Iron Throne."
"Spit it out."
Daeron wanted to hear her pitch.
Lady Olenna had come ready and wasn't backing down. "You might not know this, but the Reach lords are pissed. You only called on Crownlands houses for Tyrosh. They think it's unfair."
"Bullshit."
Daeron shut it down.
By Westerosi tradition, the Iron Throne usually called on the old royal domain or maybe added the Riverlands and Stormlands. Never the whole damn realm. The only time they summoned everyone was during the War of the Ninepenny Kings, right after Jaehaerys II took the throne. They won, but it exposed how weak the Targaryens had become. Calling the entire realm meant they couldn't handle their own wars anymore. And the Targaryens had been sliding downhill ever since.
So Olenna's complaint was pure nonsense. The Iron Throne had handled Tyrosh just fine. Why drag the Reach into it?
"But you did call on the Lannisters."
Lady Olenna hit the real issue. It wasn't about numbers. It was about fairness.
The Seven Kingdoms weren't what they used to be. Right now the Crownlands were the strongest, followed by the Westerlands, the Reach, and Dorne. The weakest were the broken Dornish marches, the Vale without the Eyrie and Gulltown, and the North without White Harbor and split between two dukes. In the eyes of the great houses, those were just country folk with no real power. Dorne was isolated and not one of "us." The real prizes were the Crownlands, the Westerlands, and the Reach.
Now the Iron Throne goes to war, officially calls on Crownlands lords, and casually brings the Lannisters along. Lannisters equal the Westerlands. Crownlands and Westerlands both get to join in, conquer a Free City, and split the spoils. But they left the Reach completely out. All they get is to watch and seethe.
Of course the Reach lords were pissed.
Daeron got it immediately. "So you want land in the Disputed Lands?"
Tyrosh was an island city, but it still controlled real territory in the Disputed Lands. That was why he'd picked it—easy to connect the new holdings. Even though it was one city, it came with a decent chunk of eastern land.
"You could say that."
Lady Olenna was direct. "But it's not just me. And it's not just about Tyrosh's land or the other two Free Cities' lands."
She was speaking for the Reach as a whole. The Iron Throne wasn't what it used to be. Daeron was being treated like a new Conqueror, a Young Dragon—someone who wouldn't be satisfied with just the Seven Kingdoms. He was looking east. And honestly, that was true.
The Reach lords wanted in on the eastern conquest. They wanted land and titles as rewards.
Lady Olenna leaned in closer and lowered her voice. "Of course, if you can't manage all of Tyrosh's territory and want to share some of it, I'd be happy to help you out."
"I'll think about it."
Daeron gave a non-committal answer. Conquering Tyrosh hadn't cost much, but ruling it was turning into a headache. He had plans for the other two Free Cities, but he wasn't going to just smash them with brute force. He'd wait.
"You don't really have a choice, do you?"
Lady Olenna saw right through him. "The Triarchy might pretend to be united, but they're really just three cities squeezing the lower Narrow Sea together. That's the truth. You took the Stepstones—they'll write it off as a whim. No one holds the Stepstones for long anyway. But taking Tyrosh? That's crossing a line. They won't just let it go. If you don't go after Myr and Lys, they'll quietly link up with whatever's left of Tyrosh and come after you instead."
Every word hit hard. Nothing exaggerated.
Daeron understood all of it, but that wasn't why she was really here.
I want to hit Myr and Lys more than you do.
Lady Olenna saw her moment and laid out her real plan. "Your Grace, why not launch a big eastern campaign? Let the lords of the Seven Kingdoms join voluntarily. If you win, hand out some land as payment. It solves your problem of not having enough people to rule Tyrosh properly."
That was why Tywin was going to Tyrosh. The Iron Throne didn't have enough manpower to fully take over. They needed someone with real authority to keep it under control. If enough great house branches and minor house sons planted roots in the Disputed Lands, they'd create a new noble class on the other side of the Narrow Sea. Governance would get a lot easier.
Daeron listened, thinking. Calling the whole realm for an eastern war had some merit. But the risks didn't match the rewards. Win, and the Iron Throne looks unstoppable. Lose, or get stuck in a long war, and suddenly everyone starts complaining. Nobles had flexible morals. So it was better to fight with just the Crownlands and direct vassals than drag along a bunch of fair-weather friends.
"But Lady Olenna doesn't seem to understand the situation in Myr and Lys."
Daeron looked at the old woman's eager face and saw nothing but self-interest. Maybe the nobles who didn't know the details really thought the only way to conquer the east was brute force with dragons. They believed in dragons more than the actual dragonrider did.
"So what do you think?"
Lady Olenna asked.
Daeron didn't sugarcoat it. "You're saying the whole realm, but really you just want land in the Disputed Lands and you're dragging the Reach along with you, right?"
Lady Olenna's face flushed. The young king had nailed it.
She wasn't some harmless old lady. House Tyrell was one of the richest and most powerful in the Seven Kingdoms. But now House Lannister was clinging to the royal family and rising fast. Oldtown's Hightowers were making bank, and Goldengrove's Rowans had become Warden of the Rose Road and were skimming profits that should have gone to the Tyrells. Even the long-fallen Velaryons had gotten rich just by investing in Daeron. Lady Olenna saw it all and it burned. If she didn't do something soon, her house would fall behind and get left in the dust.
"I might have my own reasons, but the suggestion is sincere."
Lady Olenna tried to sound noble.
Daeron smiled. "When I need help, I'll let Lord Mace know. The Reach will have its chance."
Translation: Later. I'll ask when I want to. You don't get to push me.
Lady Olenna sighed. She knew the conversation was a bust. She stood up to leave.
She had just straightened her skirts when she suddenly said, "Your Grace, while I was seasick on the way here, I heard some rumors about the Smoking Sea. I don't know if they're true."
"That depends on what you heard."
Daeron was curious what the outside world was saying.
Lady Olenna said, "Some people say there's a dragon in the Smoking Sea. Others say it's the Volantenes making trouble. And some say a Qohorik merchant has a dragon egg from the Smoking Sea."
"A dragon egg?"
Daeron sat up straighter.
Lady Olenna nodded seriously. "If there really is a dragon egg out there, you can't afford to be careless. You need to keep your eyes open. You know what happens if that egg hatches into a dragon, don't you? I'm sure you don't want another situation where multiple dragonlords exist at the same time. None of us do."
That would be a real mess.
Daeron pushed down the differences in the new information and kept his face calm. "Don't worry. If a hatchling appears, it won't stay hidden for long. If one shows up, I'll go get it myself."
Lady Olenna added one more thing. "And if you can't take it alive, kill it. Don't leave it for anyone else."
With that, she slowly walked out.
Daeron sat there thinking. He hadn't expected an unexpected bonus. A dragon egg in the hands of Qohorik merchants? Was it one of the six from the Laughing Lion? Or more?
A sense of urgency hit him. Gerion had found dragon eggs but hadn't said where the Laughing Lion or the eggs ended up. Now it looked like they might be floating around out there.
Victarion should be reaching the Summer Sea soon. He was a useful piece on the board.