The Mountain of Ice and Fire

“Arya, we already know your situation,” Daenerys Targaryen said.

“Oh?”

“We have been here for two days. In the market, there are rumors about the Hand of Fate of the House of Black and White being assassinated. The Mountain believes that Lady Melisandre's fiery prophecy saw the truth: someone will use fire on you after a failed assassination attempt.”

“Where is the Mountain?”

“Tell me, who is trying to assassinate you?”

“I don’t have any evidence yet.”

“The Mountain said he doesn’t need evidence, he just needs to know who it is.”

“I don’t want the Mountain to massacre Braavos.”

“Have you developed feelings for Braavos?” Daenerys’s eyes flickered. She understood the feeling; she also had feelings for Slaver's Bay and the Dothraki Sea, a very special emotion hidden deep inside.

“The common people are innocent.”

“Then name the culprit.”

“I want to see the Mountain first.”

“Arya, even if you don’t say it, we can guess. In Braavos, the only ones who dare to attack the Hand of Fate of the House of Black and White are the Iron Bank or the Sealord. No one else would dare, even if you gave them the courage.”

Arya paused slightly.

Daenerys immediately understood that the Mountain's speculation was correct.

That was enough!

“Arya, the Mountain knows that the House of Black and White and the Iron Bank were initially one entity before they separated. If you refuse to assassinate the Mountain, the Iron Bank probably won’t agree.”

“The Mountain knows?”

“Don’t forget that he is a divine envoy, the Lightbringer of the Red God. He also has some prophetic abilities. He also predicted that you would not kill Bloodraven Brynden Rivers because, in your eyes, he is Bran Stark's face. And you grew up with Bran Stark. Although you are a Faceless Man, you are a person of great loyalty. If Bran can convince the Iron Bank to fund the Faceless Men, then the Mountain believes that Bran is likely the mastermind behind the assassination plot against you. Also, the deaths of the seven elders are also extremely abnormal. If anyone can use mysterious powers to kill the seven elders simultaneously, then only a greenseer has such abilities. Bloodraven has been able to possess any bird or beast for a hundred years. He can appear in any place he cannot appear in the form of various birds and beasts.”

Arya's heart skipped a beat!

“The Mountain isn’t afraid of the greenseer?”

“Dragons are the highest level of magical creatures. When dragons fly in the sky and fight in the sky, the magical power of this world begins to revive. When dragons disappear from this world, magical power gradually subsides and eventually sleeps. The Mountain, who owns dragons, is difficult for the greenseer to deal with. Bloodraven cannot drive any birds or beasts to pose a threat to the dragons. His Three-Eyed Raven cannot even get close to the Mountain.” Daenerys Targaryen said politely and calmly.

When she spoke of dragons, Daenerys Targaryen exuded a sense of pride, intangible yet palpable.

*

The Sealord's Palace.

The Sealord of Braavos possesses the most powerful naval warships in the world.

To abolish slavery in the Nine Free Cities, Braavos spent hundreds of years building the most powerful naval force.

The deep-seated hatred of slavery came from the founders of the Braavos city-state, all of whom were slaves from the deep underground mines of the Valyrian Empire. These slaves, in groups, escaped, crossed hundreds of miles of swamp, and hid in the Braavos archipelago.

When the Valyrian Empire was destroyed by earthfire, the kingdom established by the slaves hiding on the Braavos islands—the Braavos city-state—officially debuted in this world. To oppose slavery, Braavos began building a navy. After possessing a powerful navy, Braavos declared war on other Free Cities until it forced Pentos, Lys, Tyrosh, Myr, and other city-states to abolish slavery.

In Braavos, there are three world-famous places: the Iron Bank—famous throughout the world for its countless wealth; the House of Black and White—famous throughout the world for the Faceless Men, the top assassin organization; and the Sealord's Palace—famous throughout the world for possessing the most powerful naval warships.

The Sealord, the richest and most powerful person in the world, is also the king with the most military power. Once elected, the Sealord serves for life. Braavos will only hold a second Sealord election after the death of a Sealord. The Sealord position is not a family inheritance from father to son, which is completely different from the dynastic succession of Westeros.

In Braavos, no one dares to disrespect the Sealord.

But there are exceptions!

The exception occurred in front of the gate of the Sealord's Palace.

A burly, giant-like man appeared on the street of the Sealord's Palace.

He came from the Sealord's Fish Market.

Guards personally saw this burly, giant-like man walk from the street of the Sealord's Fish Market into the Sealord's Street.

In Braavos, there are three 'mosts'—the first is the colorful arched bridges; the second is the fishermen and fish markets; and the third is the mercenaries.

Braavos has mercenaries from all over the world.

Looking at the burly man's attire—fine armor, a flat-topped giant helmet, a rare two-handed greatsword on his back, and his face mask lowered—one could only see his thieving eyes peeking out from the narrow slits.

This giant-like man came alone and went straight to the gate of the Sealord's Palace.

The royal guards couldn't help but cheer secretly.

They had seen many burly men, but they had never seen such a tall, mountain-like mercenary. Where did this person come from? Did he come to the Sealord's Palace to seek an audience with the Sealord and get a good job? Warriors from all over the world often come to the Sealord's Palace to recommend themselves, hoping to get a good job with a good salary, good benefits, and first-class accommodation by the Sealord's side.

There are many powerful swordsmen by the Sealord's side, and their main purpose is to compare swords with the self-recommended warriors from all over the world to see if these guys really have the ability or just want to fool the Sealord and swindle a high-paying job.

The soldier quickly reported the news to the captain, who was surprised and came out with the king's swordsman squad. The soldiers praised the visitor as a rare giant, which made the captain and the members of the swordsman squad all interested.

Giants, like Others, used to exist only in legends and poems.

When everyone came to the gate, they saw this burly, mountain-like giant.

Even the tallest general became a half-grown child compared to this visitor.

“Who is this big guy? Where is he from?” Chief Swordsman Basharo asked in a cold tone. He always looked down on big guys; big guys' movements were too clumsy. Basharo's narrow sword had stabbed countless strong men.

However, Basharo had never seen such a tall and majestic strong man before.

“My name is the Mountain, from Westeros,” the Mountain's voice boomed like thunder.

His voice was already extremely loud; when he exerted his strength, the sound was like a bell striking, or like spring thunder rolling. The mighty and unparalleled aura was substantial.

“The Mountain?” Basharo was still a little dazed.

He had naturally heard the Mountain's name from the Sealord and had also heard that there was a super-fierce man in Westeros called the Mountain, who had killed the King of the Others—the Night King—with a greatsword.

However, the Mountain was already the king of the Westeros continent; how could he appear here?

If this was not the Mountain himself, then it was either the same name or an impersonation.

“There is only one Mountain in Westeros,” the Mountain said in a deep voice.

This shout was more powerful than before and also revealed the Mountain's identity. All the guards and swordsmen changed color.

Basharo's expression also changed.

In any case, he couldn't believe that the king of Westeros would appear alone in front of the gate of the Sealord's Palace. He knew that the Sealord had regarded the Mountain as the most threatening enemy.

Basharo looked up at the sky. The sky was blue, with white clouds, and there were no abnormalities.

The doctors who served the Sealord, hearing the thunderous shouts outside the gate, also came out one after another. Many doctors also looked up at the sky. The sky was bright, the sun was good, and they couldn't see any abnormalities.

There were no dragons.

“Tell your Sealord to get out here. I want to fight him,” the Mountain shouted.

Chief Swordsman Basharo silently drew his narrow sword. In front of the Mountain, he was just a child, and his sword was more like a fire poker in a child's hand.

“Captain Carter, quickly report to the Sealord that a distinguished guest has arrived,” Basharo shouted to the guard captain, Carter, his narrow sword pointing diagonally at the Mountain.

Carter agreed and left in a hurry.

In fact, before Carter could go in to report, soldiers and doctors had already run into the gate of the Sealord's Palace one after another, stumbling to notify the Sealord.

The king of the other side of the Narrow Sea, the Mountain, suddenly came to the gate of the Sealord's Palace. All the guards, generals, courtiers, and doctors couldn't believe their eyes or what they heard.

However, the other party's huge, giant-like physique, terrifying two-handed greatsword, tightly wrapped fine armor, thunderous shouts, and mighty and unparalleled aura made it impossible not to believe it.

Regardless of whether this guy was an imposter or the real thing, reporting to the Sealord first was essential.

Before the first soldier who ran in could run into the Sealord's Hall, the Sealord himself, along with the chief doctor, the naval commander, the captains of the naval warships, the mercenary团长, and a large group of people, had quickly come out. Accompanying them were the fully armed royal guards.

Three hundred-man teams.

“Order the messenger to quickly summon the Ian Mercenary团 to come here immediately.”

“Yes, Your Sealord.”

The messenger left quickly.

The predecessor of the Ian Mercenary团 was the Cat's团, which was as famous as the Windblown团, the Night's Watch团, and the Golden团. When a gladiator named Ian from the East became the团长, he disliked the name Cat's团, saying it was too feminine, so he named it after himself.

Ian was a tall, bald man who liked to fight bare-chested. His body was covered in black iron-like muscles. Taking off his shirt revealed scars all over his upper body, which were his battle medals. As a former gladiator in the hands of a slave owner, Ian relied entirely on his own continuous victories in the bloody arena to finally gain his freedom.

Using battle-hardened to describe Ian was the most appropriate.

The Sealord had his own powerful navy at sea, and on land, he hired the Ian Mercenary团 to work for him.

The soldiers under Ian were all very warlike and cruel. Under Ian's leadership, their combat power was amazing. After the Golden团 crossed the Narrow Sea to Westeros, the most valuable and famous mercenary团 was the Ian Mercenary团.

*

The Sealord led hundreds of people to the gate of the Sealord's Palace. He saw a burly and strong man like a giant that he had never seen before. In front of that man, Chief Swordsman Basharo was confronting him.

Basharo's sword was a narrow sword, and he was only wearing leather armor. To maintain flexibility, Basharo was not used to wearing steel armor.

The giant was wearing steel armor, and his mask had been pulled up, revealing a fierce appearance.

The Sealord strode to the Mountain, but he cautiously maintained a considerable distance. Around him, the swordsman squad and the royal guards were layered guards. Although there was only one visitor, the other party was too burly, and everyone had never seen such a mighty and strong man in the world.

“The Mountain?” the Sealord asked cautiously.

His emotions told him that this man could not be the Mountain, absolutely impossible.

But…

If this guy wasn't the Mountain, then who would dare to call himself the Mountain?

“The Mountain!” the Mountain said in a deep voice.

Even if he didn't exert his strength to speak, the voice was still booming, different from ordinary people.

“The Mountain?”

“The Mountain!” the Mountain said proudly, with a look of disdain.

“Gregor Clegane, the king of Westeros?”

“Gregor Clegane, the king of Westeros!”

The Sealord still couldn't believe it, but he had to believe it.

He couldn't find a reason not to believe it.

He had heard of the Mountain's burly physique; even his most majestic general became a half-grown child in front of the Mountain. In Westeros, there was only one Mountain.

“You came here to challenge me to a duel?” The Sealord also felt that the Mountain's request to come here was incredible.

How could the king of the Westeros continent come to Braavos alone to challenge him to a duel? This was not in line with reason, it simply didn't make sense, it was outrageous. There had never been such a precedent in the world from ancient times to the present.

“I came to kill you,” the Mountain said lightly.

“Why?”

“Because you want to kill me.”

“I want to kill you? Do you have any evidence?”

“I never use evidence.” The Mountain's right hand gripped the hilt of the greatsword on his back, “Sealord, haven't you heard of my infamous reputation? The Mountain, a synonym for brutality and terror, and you are as naive as a child to ask me for evidence.”

“After becoming a king, you are still as bastard as before, doing anything without having to follow reason and law?”

“Yes, my reason is my sword.”

Clang!

The Ice Greatsword was unsheathed, and cold air drifted out, the light of the blade flowing on the sword's edge.

“Sealord, draw your sword!” the Mountain shouted!