The Mountain of Ice and Fire

The One-Armed Mercenary

The busiest place in the world is the port of Quells.

Five large ports are separated by breakwaters, with hundreds of docks for ships of all sizes.

People of all races and nationalities from all over the world gather on the docks.

Quells is a super-large immigrant city encompassing both Eastern and Western races, with the white race of Quells considered the locals.

On this busiest dock in the world, maids, servants, carriages, carts, porters, small vendors, fishermen, wine merchants, mercenaries, all kinds of dazzling goods, wealthy merchants speaking various dialects, elegant local nobles, captains from all over the world, Unsullied patrol soldiers, and Quells naval soldiers are everywhere... The docks are crowded every day, with only brief moments of quiet at night.

The sound of hooves echoed as a team of Dothraki cavalry galloped out of the city gate, men like tigers and horses like dragons, clearing the way ahead.

"People, the King is coming, make way, make way!"

Dothraki accent, broken Quells common tongue.

The avenue from the dock to the city gate was wide, enough for twelve horses to walk side by side, paved with stone slabs, and bustling with people. When the Dothraki cavalry appeared, the people on the avenue quickly made way. For a time, carts and wagons carrying goods all moved to the side of the road, but there were too many people coming and going, and many maids and laborers jumped off the avenue and stood in the mud.

Among the crowd, a pregnant woman also followed the people to avoid them, but she could not move quickly. A Dothraki cavalryman's whip cracked in the air, and in the fright, the crowd pushed and shoved, knocking down the pregnant woman who had difficulty moving.

The cavalryman's whip exploded above people's heads, which was very frightening, but it did not actually hit anyone. The Dothraki's horsemanship and archery were very exquisite, and their control was skillful.

In the King's orders, the cavalry guards had the right to clear the road, but were not allowed to attack any citizens.

The soldiers did not attack the citizens, but the Dothraki soldiers could not yet refrain from intimidating them.

Slaughter was in their blood.

All they could do was to use the empty sound of the whip to scare the citizens on the road. Watching these people scatter in fright brought great pleasure to these cavalry guards, but it was also their greatest pleasure. In the past, the greatest pleasure of the Dothraki was, of course, the pleasure of whipping people's faces and heads. If they encountered anyone who dared to resist or disobey, their arakh would chop off their heads.

When the crowd scattered and the pregnant woman fell to the ground, the Dothraki cavalry realized that something was wrong.

A pregnant woman had fallen in the middle of the road, and the King would arrive soon under the protection of the Unsullied soldiers. If the King saw that they had 'knocked down' a pregnant woman, they would all be miserable because they had violated His Majesty's military orders.

Military orders must not be violated!

The cavalry captain's face changed, and he dismounted and ran towards the pregnant woman. He was fast, but someone was faster.

A tall man with a beard and wearing leather armor rushed out of the crowded crowd on the roadside, bent down, picked up the pregnant woman with one hand, and dashed into the crowd.

"Hey!" the cavalry captain shouted, "Is she okay?"

If the pregnant woman was injured and knew the King's laws, and went to the palace to petition, the cavalry captain would be severely punished by the King.

The Dothraki cavalry were also stunned. If one of them made a mistake, they would all be punished. This was called 'joint guilt' by the King. If something happened to the pregnant woman, although they did not wield the whip, they would all be in trouble.

The man in leather armor with a long sword at his waist did not turn his head at all. After blending into the crowd, he jumped off the avenue with the pregnant woman in his arms and walked onto a small road, heading towards the dock as if flying.

The cavalry captain was stunned for a moment, surprised by the man's arm strength.

It was not difficult to pick up a pregnant woman, but it was very difficult to walk quickly with a pregnant woman in your arms. Moreover, the other party was one-armed. Holding her with one arm, the pregnant woman's hands tightly hugged the man's neck. The cavalry captain saw that the pregnant woman's face was pale, her expression distorted, and her eyes were full of suppressed pain.

The captain and the soldiers also noticed that the man's other left arm was actually an empty sleeve.

Judging from the looks of it, the pregnant woman and the man were likely husband and wife, and the man's attire was that of an ordinary mercenary.

There were warriors and ruthless people with extremely high swordsmanship among the mercenaries, and the Dothraki cavalry captain and soldiers understood this.

Mercenaries earned hard-earned money, money for selling their lives, and their lives were spent walking on the edge of a knife.

The one-armed mercenary with amazing strength went far away! The direction the man was carrying the pregnant woman was towards the dock. There were more people at the dock, and the noise was as loud as waves.

The captain did not dare to stay any longer, and the King would be out of the city soon. He turned over and mounted his horse, continuing to lead the soldiers to clear the way. Behind him, under the protection of the Unsullied, King Mountain appeared at the city gate riding a horse.

Beside him were Quells Naval Commander Asha Greyjoy, Deputy Commander Theon Greyjoy, Naval High Priest Aeron Greyjoy, and Red Priestess Quaithe.

Mountain was leaving the city to give a speech at the naval port and inspect the naval soldiers. A total of 1,800 warships, lined up on the sea, were a dark mass.

"Asha, go and call Captain Damian York back."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Damian York was the cavalry captain who was responsible for clearing the way earlier. He thought that the King did not know that his whip had frightened a pregnant woman, but unfortunately, the King had an advantage that no one else had, which was his height.

Mountain, riding on the most magnificent Dothraki warhorse, was very close to the ground. It looked like an adult riding a toy horse.

His eyes passed through the city gate and saw that scene, and also saw the one-armed mercenary. The mercenary was very fast, but he walked very steadily. Even so, Mountain thought that the pregnant woman must be very uncomfortable. This reminded him of one person: Daenerys Targaryen.

From Jeyne Westerling's mouth, Mountain learned that Daenerys Targaryen was pregnant. The joy of becoming a father again added a touch of gentleness to Mountain's heart. This was human nature.

Mountain longed to have children with Daenerys because this child was likely to have Daenerys's unburnt blood. Even if it did not now, after the Clegane family mixed with the Targaryen family's blood, perhaps the unburnt blood would awaken in a certain child in the next generation or the generation after that.

The news of Daenerys's pregnancy made Mountain feel very good. When he saw the one-armed mercenary pick up the pregnant woman, he felt a sympathy for the pregnant woman.

Mountain usually did not care about the Dothraki's barbarism and arrogance, as long as they did not violate military orders and laws. Being arrogant among the citizens could help release the Dothraki's wildness.

You cannot expect to change the inherent nature or characteristics of a nation in a short period of time. That is unrealistic and would be counterproductive.

If the water is too clear, there will be no fish.

It would be hypocritical and foolish to demand that the barbaric and murderous Dothraki suddenly have the manners, etiquette, and demeanor of nobles.

If it was not a pregnant woman who fell this time, and if Daenerys had not happened to be pregnant, Mountain would have turned a blind eye and let it go.

But this time it was a pregnant woman, and coincidentally, Daenerys was pregnant with his child. Even more promising was that perhaps this child could have the blood of the Unburnt.

These factors combined made Mountain decide to call the cavalry captain Damian York over and ask him about it.

Soon, Captain Damian York followed Asha to His Majesty the King.

"Damian York, I saw you scare a pregnant woman," Mountain said lightly.

Damian York's face immediately changed. He dismounted, knelt down, lowered his head, and did not say a word, but his shoulders trembled slightly. That slight trembling could not be seen without paying attention.

"I will not pursue your guilt this time, but you need to find the pregnant woman and give her..." Mountain reached out and touched his pocket, which was empty, without a single gold coin. "Asha, can you lend me ten gold coins?"

"I only have three, Your Majesty," Asha took out three gold coins.

"I have gold coins, Your Majesty," Theon took out a money bag from his arms, and shook it, the coins jingling inside.

"How much is there?" Mountain asked.

"About a dozen gold coins, a few silver coins, and more than twenty copper coins."

"Then give them all to me."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Mountain took the money bag from Theon and threw it in front of Damian York. "Captain, give this bag of money to the pregnant woman and tell her that I wish her and her child peace. In addition, you must personally apologize to her and obtain her understanding."

"Yes, Your Majesty." Captain Damian York never expected this punishment. His salary was very high every month, but it was still not enough for him. And His Majesty the King seemed to know that his money had been gambled away, and did not want him to pay gold coins, but only wanted him to apologize to the pregnant woman.

Mountain's martial power and prestige were like a god in the eyes of the Dothraki, who only admired the strong.

Mountain's military orders were strict, but occasionally being generous to the Dothraki around him could better gain their loyalty. The first thing for those who were selected by Mountain to be guards and cavalry was of course martial power and courage, and the second was absolute loyalty.

For absolutely loyal soldiers, Mountain was strict on the outside and lenient on the inside, with a ruler in his heart.

"Aren't you going yet?"

"Yes, Your Majesty."

*

The one-armed mercenary walked onto the dock and put down the pregnant woman.

People came and went around him, and accents from all over the world were mixed together like a noisy market.

In fact, being carried was not so comfortable for the pregnant woman.

Fortunately, the mercenary already had a good experience in holding her, and the pregnant woman knew how to cooperate.

The two already had a tacit understanding.

"We have to leave here," the mercenary said to the pregnant woman.

"Leave again?" The pregnant woman's eyes were moist.

"Yes, leave!" the mercenary said decisively.

"...Uh..." the pregnant woman said reluctantly.

"I'll go find a ship."

"Where to this time?"

"Go east."

"Even the farther east will soon be conquered by Mountain."

"Then let's go further forward."

"...What about the two children...?"

"You have to go back and find them first, and get them ready to leave."

"The children will definitely not be willing. And we don't have much money left."

"I'll work as a mercenary for the captain to earn the fare."

"What if the captain doesn't need you?"

This had happened more than once.

"I'll find work. The ship will need someone strong to do things," the mercenary said coldly.

*

Above the dock, on the hillside outside the city wall, a row of low houses was built. The houses were very simple, some were built of wooden boards, some were made of rubble, and some were made of wooden boards, rubble, and mud. This was where porters, maids, laborers, vagrants, some disabled mercenaries, and homeless people lived.

One city wall separated two worlds.

Among the dirty, messy, and poor low houses built against the city wall, there were also attics, women's courtyards, small shops, and small taverns. There were no dragons and snakes mixed here, only small people such as snakes, rats, and ants gathered here.

The mercenary and the pregnant woman's home was in a dilapidated small room in this long row.

The pregnant woman walked back to her home. Along the way, many dirty men with bare feet and bare arms whistled at her, saying indecent things. The pregnant woman walked with her head down without saying a word. Among those men, there were many fierce and cruel people, some playing with daggers and short knives in their hands, and some with iron hooks, iron rulers, and daggers on their waists and legs. Their eyes were like beasts, but no one dared to touch the pregnant woman.

The hooligans in this area all knew that the pregnant woman had an unprovoking one-armed man, who was taciturn and would kill people without saying a word. After killing the two most fierce hooligan bosses in this area, no hooligans dared to touch the pregnant woman and her two children.

Verbal advantages could be taken casually, but no one dared to go any further.

This dirty, messy, and poor place was also a place that the patrol soldiers and naval soldiers of His Majesty the King would not come to manage. This had already become a festering sore on the giant city of Quells, and the giant Quells had become accustomed to having such a place on its body. A city wall blocked this festering sore outside, and the royal nobles in the city had long forgotten that Quells had such a poor, messy, and dirty place.

The pregnant woman walked staggeringly into a room that looked like the door was still solid, and pushed it open, but the two children were not in the room.

The children were already grown up and would no longer obediently stay in the room.

The pregnant woman came out, and she knew where to find the two children: the first was the small pebble beach, which was where the children played and gathered the most children from poor families, and the second place was the waterside of the naval port.

The small pebble beach was an area where smooth, white rocks protruded from the ground. The slope was where the children chased and played.

Although the two children were no longer children, but teenagers, they liked to sit here and watch the children smaller than them chasing, playing, and fighting here.

Sure enough, the pregnant woman saw the two children sitting on the high ground of the pebble beach.

"Toman, Myrcella, come back quickly, I have something to tell you," the pregnant woman shouted. She was already very tired from walking all this way.