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#212 - Chapter 22: The Battle of King's Landing (Part 3)

On the battlements of King's Landing, they threw the remaining alive members of the Antler Men over the edge. Joffrey, not entirely satisfied, had his men try to tie two or three corpses together before throwing them.

Tyrion ignored him; as long as that idiot king didn't cause trouble, it was fine. He saw the enemy. They were already moving, with countless warships adjusting their deployment. He picked up a Myrish lens and carefully observed a fleet of over 100 ships slowly moving out of the Blackwater Rush. He slammed his fist on the wall. "Damn it! Over 100 ships have left; judging by the banners, it must be that Onion Knight, Davos."

This was different from his original plan.

Bronn also picked up a Myrish lens. "My Lord, this is war. It's full of surprises and doesn't always go according to our will."

Tyrion: "Alas, this was also one of my concerns. That Onion Knight has lived in King's Landing since he was a child. Most importantly, he's a smuggler and knows this city better than you or I. Bronn, I'm giving you 1,000 gold cloaks and those six hundred mercenaries. Cooperate with the Iron Gate's garrison and hold it firmly. Remember that smuggler's cove?"

Bronn: "Yes, my Lord."

Tyrion: "I've prepared three ships filled with that stuff there. You know what to do, right?"

Bronn: "Rest assured, I know what to do. But I must warn you, time is running out. It's time for you to leave here..." He glanced towards Joffrey.

Tyrion, being quite clever, immediately understood. "Good idea, let's go together then!" As they passed Joffrey, Tyrion reminded him, "Tell your Majesty to stop playing around. It's not safe here. Hurry up and leave!"

Meryn Trant glanced at him dismissively. Joffrey sneered, "My dear uncle, if you're afraid, then hurry up and leave. I still want to send a gift to my stiff-necked uncle."

Tyrion: "Hehehe! Suit yourself; I've warned you." The two of them walked to a corner of the battlements. Tyrion took out a flask and took a swig. "Care for a drink?"

Bronn: "Thank you, my Lord."

As expected, they didn't have to wait long before hearing a series of loud booms and impacts, some near and some far. Soon, a burning stone projectile, about the size of a chair, landed within their sight, shattering and scattering flames everywhere.

Tyrion: "Tsk, tsk, tsk, it seems our Stannis is quite fiery! Hey, you few, what are you standing there for? Hurry up and put out the fire." While making sarcastic remarks, he didn't forget to order the soldiers to put out the fire.

Just then, Meryn Trant and the Hound rushed over with Joffrey, looking disheveled, his crown nowhere to be seen. Tyrion said mockingly, "Isn't this our Majesty? Why are you here? Didn't you have fun playing?"

Joffrey said angrily, "You did it on purpose, didn't you? You must have known all along; why didn't you warn me?"

Tyrion spread his hands innocently. "Injustice, Your Majesty! I warned you when I left. Besides, the battle wouldn't start so quickly; you could have gone back to change your clothes and take a bath."

"Humph! Hound, let's go." Joffrey also felt that he looked rather disheveled and returned to the Red Keep with his men.

On the south bank of the Blackwater Rush, Stannis's army had settled in. The disassembled parts had been taken from the ships and assembled. There were a total of twenty large counterweight trebuchets, which the Tyrells had spent a great deal of money to produce. Originally intended to support Renly, they had all benefited Stannis.

Once the trebuchets were assembled, Stannis couldn't wait to order a counterattack. His seemingly cold face wasn't as calm as he had previously shown. The soldiers didn't have suitable stone projectiles for the moment. Of course, the common Westerosi method was to fill coarse sacks with rubble and reinforce them with ropes. To make them more rounded, they also added dry wood soaked in oil. After being ignited, at the officer's command, the winch was activated. The iron counterweight in the front used the principle of leverage to hurl the shells far away, like fiery meteors heading towards the walls of King's Landing. The main target was the three large trebuchets on the gatehouse and the group of people there who were obviously dressed in finery.

The result was obvious: Joffrey, who was having fun, was caught off guard! In fact, the accuracy of the trebuchets was generally poor; usually, it was the unlucky ones who were hit. However, Joffrey's luck was only so-so. One fire projectile happened to hit the battlements of the city wall. The sack burst open, and the burning debris and gravel splashed everywhere, covering Joffrey and the others.

It was only because Sandor Clegane reacted quickly, grabbing a soldier's shield and holding it in front of Joffrey. The gravel banged against the shield, and even the strong Hound was pushed back a few steps by the great force. Joffrey was knocked over, but while the stone shield could block the gravel, there was nothing he could do about the splashing flames. Meryn Trant spread his cloak to protect the king. Even so, he couldn't block everything; Joffrey's clothes and hair were singed by the flames, and even his crown was flattened by the Hound's armored boot.

At the mouth of Blackwater Bay, the Thousand Colors Bird was a large-bellied ship resembling a swan, and it was Salladhor Saan's flagship. A table was set up on the deck, and a dark-skinned man was drinking with Davos. A fair-haired, blue-eyed Summer Islander was rare, only possible after several generations of mixed blood. This man was one of the Saan family representatives who had met with Liu Yuan in Tyrosh. Over the years, he had run his own armed merchant group. On the surface, it was a mercenary band, but secretly, it also engaged in piracy. After seven or eight years, he had done well in the Stepstones, even earning the title of Pirate King.

Salladhor said, "Old friend, there are some things I didn't want to say. Since your king has incorporated the Stormlands' army, he doesn't seem to value me as much anymore, and your position is also a bit awkward. I highly doubt whether your previous promises can be fulfilled?"

Davos: "Even if you don't believe in our friendship, you should believe in His Majesty's words. Any promise he makes will be fulfilled with his life. Don't say such things again; even you can't question my monarch."

Salladhor: "Alright! My apologies. Let's drink to our King Stannis. However, our position is indeed a bit awkward. Even such an important task as fleet command was given to that Ser Florent. The attacking forces are all nobles from the Stormlands, and we can only get some peripheral tasks."