The Mountain of Ice and Fire

The cannon's iron ball struck the warship in the river, blasting it into two pieces in the middle.

The warship was of wooden construction.

Only the prow was fitted with iron for ramming during battle.

If the cannon's iron ball could easily destroy a wooden warship, could it also destroy a fortress built of giant rocks?

The Mountain led his courtiers and generals to the Blackwater Rush docks, entering the newly constructed small stone fortress.

This was a small military stronghold.

In the initial stages of construction, the people and nobles of King's Landing had all believed it was meant to defend the docks, and even the courtiers who personally participated in the construction were unaware of the fortress's true purpose.

All the nobles of the Reach also followed along to inspect this military stronghold.

Giant stone walls, sturdy roof beams.

Inside, it was not divided into small rooms.

The Mountain said, "My lords, this military stronghold will be used to test the power of live cannon fire."

Cannon?

That was indeed a more fitting name.

More fitting than the name Black Iron Dragon.

The iron ball was launched and exploded, flames soaring into the sky, truly deserving of the word 'fire'. As for the word 'cannon', it was a new term, yet it was naturally fitting and apt.

The accompanying maester took out paper and pen, writing down the new word.

The court historian also took out paper money, and after confirming with the king, wrote the word 'cannon' into the royal historical records, replacing terms such as Fire Dragon and Black Iron Dragon.

Prime Minister Jon Connington, learned and knowledgeable, was also shaken by the Mountain's new invention and new word, and his gaze towards the Mountain changed. Less defiance, more submission.

The courtiers and generals all felt a stronger sense of reverence for His Majesty the King, as if facing a god in the flesh.

Eddard Stark's tone still carried the aftershocks of shock: "Your Grace, the King, can the cannon's iron ball destroy such a military stronghold?"

Eddard Stark used honorifics.

His tone and attitude were also respectful.

The power of a single cannon had already led Eddard to truly submit and follow the Mountain. This submission and following arose naturally, not because of the pressure of royal power or the Mountain's martial prowess, nor because of the blood ties and political exchange of Sansa and Renard's marriage.

This involuntary submission and following came from Eddard's heart and soul.

Eddard's perception of the Mountain was completely changed by the power of a single cannon.

The Mountain looked at Duke Eddard Stark and laughed, "Lord Eddard, whether the cannon's power can destroy this military stronghold, we will know after we conduct the experiment later."

"Yes, Your Majesty," Eddard said, bowing his head. His attitude was very humble, which was a bit rare. During Robert I's reign, Eddard would never have been so humble towards King Robert. His relationship with King Robert was more of a brotherly respect.

The young Lord Hoster Redwyne of the Arbor said, "Your Majesty, if we can mount the fire on warships, with just one cannon and two hundred warships, we can easily take the Summer Isles."

"Lord Redwyne, although the Summer Isles' navy does not have large warships, their small boats are as numerous as ants and should not be underestimated."

"Your Majesty, as soon as the cannon fires, the Summer Islanders' navy will kneel on the bows of their ships and pray. They have never seen cannons and will surely think it is the wrath of the gods. The three kings of the Summer Isles will also be easily conquered by the cannons. I have been to the Summer Isles, and their kings' palaces are not as sturdy as the military strongholds we have built, mostly wooden palaces that cannot withstand the bombardment of cannons. After the cannon bombardment, we can send Shataya and her daughter from the Summer Isles to spread the word that the cannon is the wrath of the gods, a divine decree of submission, and the kings and people on the islands will kneel and submit."

The Mountain looked at Lord Redwyne, why did this idiot's words sound so reasonable?

"Lord Redwyne, building such a cannon is time-consuming, laborious, and costly..."

"Your Majesty, House Redwyne is willing to provide funds to support Your Majesty in building more cannons," the Earl eagerly stated. This idiotic earl of course also had his own selfish motives; he hoped to build high platforms on the Arbor, install cannons on the platforms, so that pirates and the Iron Islands navy would be mere ants.

The Arbor would be as solid as the Great Wall.

To get the king's permission, of course, you must first make the king happy.

Horace was very experienced in pleasing big figures. His long court life had not been in vain.

"Very well, Lord Redwyne, the royal family accepts your donation, and we will build a few more cannons."

Eddard Stark's heart stirred when he heard this, and he looked at Catelyn Tully, who was also looking at him.

The couple thought of the same point.

The North also had a port - White Harbor. The entrance to White Harbor, which defends against pirates, relies on a solitary rock in the sea. Yes, not an island, but a large solitary rock standing in the entrance to the sea. A small military stronghold was built on the large solitary rock, with no more than fifty archers stationed on it.

White Harbor in the North does not have its own navy. When pirates were rampant, they once broke through White Harbor, went north along the White Knife River, looted the inland cities of the North, and caused great harm to ordinary people.

If a cannon was installed on the solitary rock, or on the breakwater, when pirate ships attacked, a cannon blast could not only notify the military and civilians of the entire city, but also effectively deter the pirate army.

After Eddard and his wife exchanged glances, they made up their minds. The North could not contribute money, but could contribute people when His Majesty the King needed them, and perfectly cooperate when His Majesty the King promoted political affairs.

The appearance of a cannon would effectively unite the entire kingdom, and cause the hidden dissidents in the Seven Kingdoms to waver in their hearts, and begin to remain silent in front of those who promote king worship.

Eddard decided to talk to His Majesty the King about the Northern Army, the Clegane Bank, the grain and wine trade, ironware, and the defense of the Wall after the cannon test was over.

*

The Mountain and his party left the dock military stronghold and retreated to a safe distance outside the forest.

The Mountain signaled to Bronn beside him, and Bronn rode his horse to the bottom of the high platform: "Great Sage, Duke Gendry, Master Tobho Mott, His Majesty the King has ordered the destruction of the military stronghold."

The people on the high platform agreed, and Gendry opened the wooden box again, took out an iron ball and loaded it into the cannon, Master Tobho Mott was responsible for aiming and adjusting the height of the cannon, and the Great Sage was responsible for chanting to ignite and launch.

Boom!

With a cannon blast, the cannonball roared out, drawing a high arc in the sky, and accurately landed on the roof of the military stronghold.

Bang!

A loud noise.

The cannonball was designed for impact explosion.

Smoke, fire, and stone chips flew, soaring into the sky. The sound of the explosion floated in the sky above the Blackwater Rush, startling a flock of birds in the forests on both sides.

Crack!

The roof beams of the military stronghold broke.

Boom!

The roof beams fell, stirring up high smoke and dust.

On the high platform, the second cannonball came again.

Boom!

With a loud noise, this time the cannonball hit the stone wall, the stone wall shook, cracked, swayed, smoke, fire, and dust soared high. The stone wall tilted, but did not collapse.

Whoosh!

The third cannonball came again, right in the middle of the skewed stone wall!

Rumble!

In the midst of the loud noise, the stone wall collapsed!

The nobles beside the Mountain watched in stunned silence!

The city walls of many great nobles were built of giant stones, but even giant rocks could not withstand the continuous bombardment of cannons.

The walls of Storm's End were built of rock. The round stones of the trebuchet hit the city walls, but only left white spots. During the War of the Usurper, Stannis, who was stationed at Storm's End, relied on the sturdiness of the city walls to persist for a year under the siege of the Tyrell family, until Eddard Stark led his army to relieve the siege.

But when the dragon flew in the sky and the cannon was set up under the city wall, whose rock city wall could withstand this round of attacks?

With the dragon in the sky and the cannon on the ground, attacking each other, who in this world could stop His Majesty the King's army?

Every noble had heard that His Majesty the King was going to use the nation's troops to conquer Essos across the Narrow Sea, a continent several times wider than Westeros, with many races, countries, different legions, the world-famous Dothraki cavalry, and the equally famous Unsullied infantry all from Essos.

Most of the nobles did not have much recognition of His Majesty the King's expedition in their hearts, but they dared to complain but did not dare to speak out. Westeros had been in civil war for years and had entered a terrible winter. His Majesty the King still wanted to go on an expedition. The country's food reserves, weapon reserves, warhorse reserves, and various military supplies were worrying. The only advantage was that His Majesty the King owned a dragon.

Dragons are not invincible!

When the Targaryen family had many dragons, they could not conquer Dorne by launching wars. Dragons could burn the ground, but could not go deep underground.

The Dornish dug underground tunnels, hid in the underground tunnels when the dragons attacked, and came out when the dragons left. As long as ground troops entered Dorne, they would fall into the Dornish encirclement and be massacred. In the end, the Targaryen family, which had dragons and dragon knights, had to recognize Dorne's military and political independence through marriage, but politically, the Dornish submitted to the Iron Throne.

With this historical lesson from Dorne, the vast majority of nobles in Westeros were not optimistic about His Majesty the King's expedition to Essos. After the dragon burned, ground troops were needed to garrison the territory in order to control it, but as long as the enemy dug tunnels, the dragon's combat power would be powerless.

But now that there were cannons, the situation was different.

The cannon's iron ball was indestructible. Similarly, as long as a tunnel could be found, throw one down, and the tunnel would be overturned. The people in the tunnel would either come out and surrender, or be buried alive, with no other way to survive.

The nobles of Westeros were all generals of war, and everyone had participated in wars, and no one could stay out of it. Cultural and historical education was also a rich resource exclusively enjoyed by the nobles. After witnessing the power of His Majesty the King's cannons in shock, these nobles' minds became active, and ideas emerged like bamboo shoots after a rain, and could not be suppressed.

It was not that the nobles of Westeros did not like war and did not want to conquer, but that their strength did not allow it.

But now, under the leadership of the Dragon King, it seemed that everything had really changed, even the sky had become higher and farther, and even the cold in winter had become less frightening.

Essos was in the east, rich in resources, and had a warm climate. Even in winter, it was said that many places were as warm as spring. There were also some beautiful and rich places where it never snowed in winter, and the land was still green.

The power of the indestructible cannon ignited the warlike hearts of the noble generals on Westeros.

They had coveted the wealth of the Eastern world for a long time. In the past, they could only buy Eastern silk and porcelain, cloth and grain, and monkey wine from the distant Eastern world through trade. Now, the kingdom had cannons, and it seemed that all the wealth and territory across the Narrow Sea were within reach.

The Mountain clearly felt that the atmosphere of the nobles around him had changed, becoming enthusiastic. The courtiers and generals looked at the king with more respectful, fervent, and pious eyes.

The nobles of the Reach all had grievances in their hearts but did not dare to speak out about the Mountain's arrangement for Renard to be their lord. Now, that trace of resentment seemed to have been blasted away by the cannonballs of those cannons. They had only submission and following for His Majesty the King's wise and martial prowess.

The heart of Leyton Hightower, the Earl of Oldtown, who was most disgusted by Renard being their lord in the Reach, had also changed. With cannons in the kingdom, if they were mounted on warships, the world pirates of the Stepstones, who had been harassing and looting Westeros for thousands of years, would be nothing more than powder. If they were installed on the coastal city walls, those pirates and enemy warships would suffer the most tragic pain when they attacked the docks.

A cannonball could destroy the combat power of a warship.

The Westeros navy and army would be invincible in the world!

Earl Leyton Hightower walked to Renard Westerling in the crowd of enthusiastic discussions: "Duke, there are three coastal areas in the Reach. The first is the Shield Islands, which defends Highgarden, the second is the Oldtown docks, and the third is the Arbor. If cannons can be installed on the city walls in these three places, the pirate scourge in the Reach will be swept away. We can also form the Highgarden Navy to attack and drive all the pirates in the Sunset Sea to extinction."

His Majesty the King ordered Earl Leyton Hightower to be Duke Renard's supervisor, overseeing the Reach's political affairs, military affairs, and trade, assisting Renard Westerling in managing the entire Reach, and he had the right to make any suggestions to the Duke.

Renard stared at Earl Leyton, and he confirmed that the latter was sincerely discussing the Reach's defenses with him: "Earl, the kingdom only has one cannon right now, and we cannot deploy cannons on the Arbor, Oldtown, and the Shield Islands at the same time in the short term."

"The Shield Islands are the waterway defense line of Highgarden. Duke, we can deploy them on the Shield Islands first. Just a few cannons will make Highgarden worry-free and no longer have to worry about pirates entering the Mander River from the entrance to the sea and then窜 into the hinterland of our Reach to plunder."

Renard didn't want to discourage his supervisor who had just become active: "Earl, I will apply to the King and Queen, hoping that the Shield Islands of the Reach can take the lead in deploying cannons."

"Yes, Duke," Earl Leyton was very satisfied with the Duke's attention to his proposal.

Given Lord Renard's blood relation to His Majesty the King, if the kingdom were to mass-produce cannons, the Reach should be among the first to receive them. However, such an indestructible marvel would undoubtedly be coveted by other powerful figures eager to acquire it ahead of others, making it a prize worth striving for.

Lord Leyton spoke again, his words earnest and impassioned: "Your Grace, the Reach is the granary of the Seven Kingdoms and the kingdom's food reserve for enduring the long winters. To defend the Reach is to safeguard the lifeline of the Seven Kingdoms' people. And to safeguard the Reach, the first priority is to defend Highgarden. And Highgarden's and the Reach's water defenses are the Shield Islands at the mouth of the Mander River."

His argument was logically sound, each point building upon the last, directly addressing the core need!

Lord Leyton was a wily old fox!

Old ginger is the spiciest!