Lyanna’s pupils dilated.
She stared into Grim’s calm eyes for a moment before shifting her gaze to Surana.
Surana seemed to understand Lyanna’s concern, offering a gentle smile and a nod.
Herschel stepped forward as well.
“Lady Lyanna, do not worry yourself too much.
The master will seek justice for the wrongs you have suffered.
Those who harmed you will pay the price.” Only then did Lyanna give a definitive answer.
“Grim, thank you.
I have never hated a man so fiercely.
I am not mistaken—because I refused to grant Ushur a divorce, I could feel his murderous intent.
I would not have fled so hastily otherwise.
If you can, please, rid the world of him!” Yet even as she spoke, Lyanna remained anxious.
“If you kill him, will it bring trouble upon our house?
After all, the nobles of the Vale have always borne us ill will.” Grim gently patted the back of Lyanna’s hand and sat back in his chair.
“If we do nothing, they will only mock House Crabb as cowards.
Everyone knows in their hearts that a noble house must retaliate.” Grim scoffed and continued, “Some might think House Crabb would, at most, run to the Red Keep to complain.
And what then?
A weak House Crabb, disfavored by the Hand of the King…
In the end, just to placate the delicate sensibilities of the nobility, the Red Keep would order Ushur to pay a few gold dragons, and the matter would be considered settled.” “Are we not half-wildling nobles?
This is the perfect chance to prove them right.
A lady of our house suffers a grievance abroad, and in our fury, despite the vast distance, nothing stops us from marching over and slaughtering their entire family.
That is very wildling indeed.” Lyanna could not help but gasp.
“You actually mean to…
won’t the fallout be too great?
Aside from the maids I brought with me, there is no one there I care for, but…
will that old thief Jon cause trouble for us?” “When the time comes, we shall rely on the methods of Her Grace, the Queen.” On the surface, the affair could be summarized simply: a noble lady married down to a merchant, suffered humiliation, and her outraged family took vengeance upon the merchant’s household.
The method of retaliation might be a bit extreme, but rationally, it was not incomprehensible.
After all, in Westeros, a noble’s honor was inviolable.
From Cersei’s perspective, Grim’s vengeance might even seem too gentle compared to her father Tywin Lannister’s “The Rains of Castamere.” Grim was merely going with the flow.
By occasionally stirring up minor trouble, Queen Cersei would feel more at ease with House Crabb, who had actively sought her patronage.
Grim had already laid out the plan in his mind.
The men sent to do the deed would not openly fly the banners of House Crabb, nor would they leave any glaring evidence behind.
Afterward, those in the know would understand it was House Crabb’s retaliation.
But so long as no hard proof remained, Queen Cersei could easily quash any inquiries from interested parties in the Red Keep, all without compromising her impartiality as Queen.
King Robert could be ignored for now.
If someone dared interrupt the King’s whoring and drinking over what he considered trivial squabbles, their first concern would be getting their skull caved in with a wine flagon.
Back in his study, Grim tapped his fingers against the desk, his brows furrowing slightly as he pondered.
According to the customs of Westeros, such a stealthy retaliation, no matter how brutal, might still invite mockery.
They would sneer that House Crabb was too cowardly to even show their banners, a stain upon their honor.
*The rules of the game here can be a massive headache.* After a moment, Grim’s brow smoothed out.
*I can just learn from Tywin Lannister!* Grim first personally selected a group of men from the Crabb levies, then arranged for a few smallfolk in the territory with beautiful singing voices to accompany them.
Having just finished lunch with Lyanna, Grim remained as busy as ever.
After a discussion with Steward Herschel and Steward Surana, he arranged for Surana’s eldest son, Leyton, to take a small retinue and depart for King’s Landing ahead of the main host.
The steward-in-training’s task was to purchase a manse outside the walls of King’s Landing.
Steward Herschel had already inquired with traveling merchants about the going rates for such properties; they generally ran between eighty and two hundred gold dragons.
The impoverished Lord Grim, enduring the heartache, allocated three hundred gold dragons to Leyton.
The core of Grim’s directive was that the manse should be as close to the city as possible, and as large in area as possible.
With a limited purse of gold dragons, the pressure on Leyton would not be small.
This future “Crabb Manse” outside King’s Landing was being prepared to garrison Grim’s troops.
In the memories of his original body, he had never left his lands.
Grim was unsure how many guards a manse outside the capital was typically permitted to keep, or what the threshold was before it tripped the Red Keep’s sensitive nerves.
To Grim’s mind, within the Red Keep’s limits of tolerance, the more troops stationed at the manse, the better.
It would vastly improve his sense of security in King’s Landing.
At Mermaid Port, the breeze was gentle and the sun shone bright.
Grim rode his horse, leading his guards on an inspection of the area.
Thanks to the addition of over two hundred free captive laborers, “Phase One” of Mermaid Port was largely complete, already possessing the basic functions of a working harbor.
“Phase One” had been constructed to get the port operational in the shortest possible time.
The primary building material was wood, making these transitional structures.
“Phase Two” was slated to take half a year.
Using stone as the primary material, they would replicate the various shops of Phase One on the opposite side.
Once finished, these stone buildings would directly replace the wooden ones.
Following closely behind would be “Phase Three.” Phase Three consisted of two main tasks, with a timeline measured in years.
The first task was to construct new port facilities based on specific needs, continuing to expand and refine Mermaid Port.
The second task was the beautification of the completed buildings, inside and out, primarily featuring exquisite carvings.
Grim placed great importance on the port’s defenses.
He had no desire to see his painstakingly built harbor destroyed by a few waves of visiting pirates.
A formidable defense would allow Mermaid Port to attract more visitors.
The garrison temporarily tasked with guarding the port consisted of over a hundred men, mostly villagers from the original fishing village.
They were trained and commanded by two veterans handpicked from the Crabb levies.
Grim would not neglect the issue of sanitation, either.
He refused to let his charming Mermaid Port reek to the high heavens.
Dedicated personnel had already been appointed to oversee public sanitation.
Standing by the sea, gazing out at the boundless blue, Grim was in no mood to admire the view.
House Crabb’s long-range ballistae had not yet been built.
Mermaid Port still lacked shore-based artillery to defend against attacks from the sea.
For now, the port’s maritime defense consisted of a few small, modified fishing boats from the old village.
Deep-sea combat was entirely out of the question.
Even slightly rough waves could capsize those little boats, and they dared not sail at all in foul weather.
As for large warships capable of ocean voyages, Grim’s territory lacked the technology to build them.
And buying them from the outside?
The starting price of a thousand gold dragons per ship instantly repelled the impoverished Lord Grim.
His dreams of becoming a shipping magnate had to be shelved for now.
He decided that, when it came time to sail, he would just have to honestly and properly pay for passage on a merchant ship.