Chapter 803: Chapter 803: Confession
Indeed, the people who had gathered in Westeros due to the calamity were all talented individuals, each possessing their own unique skills.
The Red Priest, Moqorro, provided the method for constructing black stone buildings, while the Shadowbinder, Quaithe, offered the spells for utilizing glass candles.
Among the remaining people, whether they were envoys, princes, or governors, there was not a single fool. If they were fools, they would not have reached their positions.
Later, upon returning from the forge, Viserys received a request for an audience from Tormo Fregar, the new Sealord of Braavos, who claimed to have important matters to discuss.
Viserys had met this new Sealord once before. The previous Sealord with whom Viserys had collaborated was Ferrego Antaryon, but he was later impeached from his position and reportedly died of illness in the dungeons.
The former First Sword of Braavos, Qarro Volentin, also died accidentally in prison sometime later. Ferrego Antaryon's traces in Braavos were completely erased.
There were rumors in Braavos claiming that the current Sealord was responsible for this matter, but these claims lacked supporting evidence and were merely subjective speculations.
However, it was certain that Tormo Fregar was an ambitious man with grand aspirations.
His family was not considered among the most elite in Braavos, but through a series of schemes and some coincidental opportunities, he eventually became the next Sealord, elevating the Fregar family to the top echelon of Braavos.
Now, Tormo Fregar had actively sought out Viserys. What he and the Emperor of the Valyrian Empire were discussing in secret, no one knew.
However, in the gardens of the Red Keep, Tyrion was leading a man with dark hair and a hooked nose towards Maegor's Holdfast.
"Are you sure about this, Jaime?"
"There's no turning back once you go through with it."
In the gardens of the Red Keep, on the long, winding stone path, Tyrion walked ahead, slightly turning his head and lowering his voice as he spoke.
The royal gardens of the Red Keep remained the familiar place they had always been. Many famous stories had been born here as well. In fact, in the two to three hundred years since the Targaryen dynasty built the Red Keep, every inch of this land had witnessed countless tales. However, not only had the people changed, but the very appearance of the Red Keep had undergone a drastic transformation.
Due to the prolonged absence of sunlight, the once vibrant and fragrant palace gardens, filled with a myriad of colors, were now reduced to bare pillars and winding paths. The soil had become barren. Viserys, finding this sight vexing, ordered the royal steward to uproot all the withered flowers.
The entire Red Keep had lost its vitality and become much more desolate.
"Hmm."
The black-haired, hook-nosed man seemed equally lost in thought. As he observed the changes within the Red Keep, he appeared slightly distracted, as if reminiscing about the moments that had occurred here in the past.
However, upon hearing Tyrion's words, he ultimately nodded in affirmation.
Before arriving at Maegor's Holdfast, he had gone to take a distant glimpse of his biological son, Joffrey.
Now, having been abandoned by his adoptive father, biological father, biological mother, and sister in succession, Joffrey had become utterly paranoid, suspecting that everyone was out to get him. His mental instability had been amplified to an extreme.
However, Viserys had no intention of eliminating him. In this world, Joffrey was, all in all, a pitiful person, but the despicable things he had done when he was younger indicated that he was still the same person.
If left unchecked, Joffrey would still follow the same path of madness as the Mad King.
Fundamentally, Joffrey was not Robert II, but rather Mad King II. He was even more like the son of the Mad King than Viserys himself.
Tyrion led Jaime to take a distant look at Joffrey, not daring to approach and acknowledge him. However, Joffrey still noticed them.
Yet, Joffrey did not step forward to greet his uncle or his biological father. He merely felt a sense of trepidation, as he did with everyone else.
He saw the man beside his uncle Tyrion and, in a moment of confusion, this unfortunate blond youth thought he saw his former "uncle," or rather, his biological father—that handsome knight with flowing golden hair and a sharp smile.
When Joffrey was still Prince Joffrey, he had a vague inkling in his heart, but he was unwilling to believe this truth until his mother publicly admitted to her affair with his uncle Jaime during the trial, under the watchful eyes of the masses.
Joffrey gazed at his uncle from afar and the dark-haired, hook-nosed middle-aged man standing beside him. For a moment, he thought he saw his biological father, and his breathing became slightly rapid.
However, he ultimately realized that the illusion before his eyes had shattered. Standing there was a stranger he did not recognize. Joffrey, greatly disappointed, turned and ran away once again, retreating into his stable.
He felt that the smell of horse manure there would bring him a sense of security. At least in his own stable, he was still the undisputed "king," just as he had once heard a saying circulating among the Ironborn: "Those who have ships are not slaves; every captain is the king of his own vessel." Now, Joffrey was the "king of the stable." At least here, no one would disturb him.
"Joffrey..."
After following Tyrion to take a distant look at his biological son, Jaime fell silent for a moment, his heart filled with a complex mix of emotions.
Compared to the decision he was about to make, he was even more uncertain about how to face his own flesh and blood. Therefore, he had only requested Tyrion to let him take a distant glimpse of Joffrey.
Tyrion also looked at his brother without speaking. He smacked his lips and lowered his head, seeming to want to count the ants on the ground.
Unfortunately, after the sun disappeared, ants seemed to have become a rare sight.
"If only those damned mosquitoes and flies could disappear like the ants."
"All beings have souls, except for mosquitoes."
Tyrion, with his one black eye and one green eye, searched the ground for a while but couldn't find any. His fingers quickly rubbed and fiddled with the soft beard on his chin for a moment before he sighed.
This was a sign of Tyrion's anxiety and deep contemplation. He wasn't anxious about Joffrey's situation. Joffrey had been in this ghostly state for many years, and Tyrion had once tried to counsel his nephew, but unfortunately, he had failed.
Joffrey simply did not trust him and even believed that Tyrion wanted to harm him. Therefore, Tyrion had no choice but to let it be.
What he was anxious about was the decision Jaime was about to make. The two brothers had discussed this decision extensively recently. Tyrion had tried to persuade Jaime not to seek a quick end, believing that it was tantamount to courting death. However, Jaime had made up his mind, or rather, he had become completely disheartened. Ever since he had heard that Cersei had remarried, Jaime's state of mind had been somewhat off.
"I've made up my mind, Tyrion."
Before Tyrion could figure out how to stop Jaime from seeking death, Jaime, after remaining silent for a while, finally made his final decision.
"Regardless, I don't want to run away anymore."
"I am the biological father of Joffrey and Myrcella. I should step forward and acknowledge it, not let Cersei stand up and admit it in my place."
"Perhaps this is also the reason why Cersei is disappointed in me."
Jaime decided to personally come to Maegor's Holdfast to confess to Viserys.
He was willing to accept the punishment he deserved for breaking his vows back then, whether it meant life or death.
"But I am not the 'Kingslayer.'"
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