Old King Jaehaerys had never appeared so lonely.
Without the companionship of his beloved Queen Alysanne by his side, that loneliness became even more apparent.
During nearly sixty years upon the Iron Throne, Jaehaerys Targaryen had earned more praise than perhaps any king in the history of Westeros.
In the eyes of the realm, he had always appeared noble, wise, and dignified.
His long white beard was meticulously groomed, while the golden circlet resting upon his head was decorated with seven gemstones of different colors representing the Faith of the Seven.
Simply standing there, Jaehaerys radiated the natural authority and bearing expected of a great king.
Such aristocratic dignity was not meaningless.
Whether in ancient or modern times, in east or west, appearances always mattered.
People would forever judge what they saw with their eyes first.
Jaehaerys had been skilled in riding, hunting, archery, and warfare during his youth.
More importantly, he possessed decisiveness and wisdom rarely found together in rulers.
Whenever possible, he preferred resolving disputes peacefully rather than through bloodshed, bringing the Seven Kingdoms decades of rare prosperity and stability.
Together with Queen Alysanne, Jaehaerys had fathered thirteen children throughout his long life.
Nine survived into adulthood.
Yet now, his last two sons, Prince Aemon and Prince Baelon, were both gone.
At this moment, the old king silently stared at the burning remains of Baelon’s funeral pyre.
Jaehaerys had always maintained a composed and restrained demeanor before others.
Yet even now, the gathered nobles could still glimpse traces of sorrow hidden beneath that eternally dignified face.
Then suddenly.
“Creak.
Creak.
Creak.”
The strange noise instantly drew everyone’s attention.
As a tiny pink dragon crawled slowly out from the ashes of Prince Baelon’s pyre, even King Jaehaerys failed to completely maintain his composure.
For the first time in years, visible shock appeared upon the old king’s face.
The newly hatched dragon staggered clumsily across the ashes before immediately crawling toward Daniella.
Watching the tiny dragon move directly toward his grand-niece, Jaehaerys slowly followed behind.
Throughout the entire funeral, Daniella had secretly watched the pyre with complete focus.
After all, she had personally arranged for her dragon egg to be quietly placed among the funeral flames beforehand.
Daenerys Stormborn had once hatched dragons through fire itself.
Naturally, Daniella intended to test whether the same method could succeed here.
If it failed, then nothing would truly be lost.
But if it succeeded…
Then she had truly struck gold.
Watching the little pink dragon approach her step by step, Daniella inwardly praised herself for her brilliance.
Without hesitation, she hurried forward and carefully scooped the dragon into her arms.
The creature was roughly the size of a wildcat, its scales shimmering with brilliant pink hues beneath the fading firelight.
The hatchling affectionately rubbed its warm little head against Daniella’s chest.
Daniella gently stroked the tiny dragon in return.
Honestly speaking, petting a dragon truly felt wonderfully satisfying.
Nearby, Dreamfyre immediately noticed her rider paying attention to another dragon.
The great blue she-dragon lowered her enormous head suspiciously and stared directly at the pink hatchling.
Daniella immediately raised a hand and spoke to Dreamfyre in High Valyrian.
“From now on, you must hunt more prey so the little one can grow quickly.” You are reading on novelping.com, the official source.
Dreamfyre released a dissatisfied puff of hot smoke from her nostrils before giving the hatchling a distinctly disdainful look.
Then the blue dragon turned and flew away.
“Little Daniella,” King Jaehaerys said kindly while bending slightly toward her, “is this dragon yours?”
“Yes, Your Grace.
More precisely, she just hatched from my dragon egg.”
Daniella quickly composed herself before continuing with an innocent expression.
“There was nothing especially valuable about the egg itself.
I merely thought Prince Baelon should have a dragon egg accompany him on his final journey, so he would not feel alone.”
“The dragons of House Targaryen would accompany him home.”
At that moment, Jaehaerys’s thoughts became unusually complicated.
Why could Daniella establish such intimate bonds with dragons so easily?
Dreamfyre already treated her with extraordinary affection.
Now even a newly hatched dragon immediately crawled toward her after emerging from fire.
The old king quietly observed the girl before him.
Daniella possessed bright silver-gold hair and dark violet eyes unlike most members of House Targaryen.
Traditionally, Targaryens carried silver hair and purple eyes.
Yet Daniella’s almost black-violet eyes had never appeared within the family before.
Combined with her ability to hatch dragons and bond so naturally with them, it strongly suggested an exceptionally pure Valyrian bloodline.
Jaehaerys suddenly found himself recalling a strange family superstition.
It seemed every Targaryen girl named Daenerys eventually became extraordinary.
“Your Grace, look how beautiful she is.”
Daniella lifted the hatchling proudly.
“There has never been a dragon with such vibrant coloring in all of Targaryen history.”
“She is practically a living work of art.”
“I wish to name her Meraxes.”
“Meraxes…” Jaehaerys repeated softly.
The name carried ancient meaning.
Meraxes had once been the dragon of Queen Rhaenys Targaryen during Aegon’s Conquest and one of the three great dragons who forged the Seven Kingdoms.
It was also said that Meraxes represented an ancient Valyrian deity associated with beauty and art.
“A fine name indeed,” the old king finally said with a smile.
“Our little Daniella has hatched her own dragon.”
“Excellent.
Truly excellent.”
Then Jaehaerys slowly spread his arms and loudly addressed the assembled nobles.
“Lords and ladies of the realm!”
“Today, House Targaryen welcomes the return of Meraxes!”
“Congratulate Princess Daniella and praise the birth of a new dragon!”
“Meraxes!
Meraxes!
Meraxes!”
The crowd immediately erupted into cheers.
The birth of a new dragon during Prince Baelon’s funeral was undoubtedly a sign worth celebrating.
At the same time, the experienced old king could already sense dark political currents gathering around the succession.
A new dragon brought reassurance to House Targaryen’s strength.
“Daniella truly was born beneath auspicious signs,” Jaehaerys thought silently.
“If only she had been born a boy.”
Afterward, the king gently dismissed her.
Holding little Meraxes carefully within her arms, Daniella happily returned toward Lady Aemma.
“Congratulations, Daniella,” Aemma said warmly.
“Meraxes is truly beautiful.
She may become the most beautiful dragon House Targaryen has ever seen.”
Before Daniella could answer, Rhaenyra suddenly spoke from nearby.
“My Syrax is still much larger than your little hatchling.”
The young princess proudly lifted her chin.
“Besides, Syrax is named after a Valyrian goddess of abundance and prosperity.”
“Not like Meraxes, who died after being shot from the sky by a Dornish scorpion bolt.”
“They originally suggested naming my dragon Meraxes as well, but I refused.”
“I chose Syrax myself.
The name suits her perfectly.”
Rhaenyra stared proudly at the tiny pink dragon while speaking.
Daniella immediately smiled sweetly.
“Of course, dear niece.”
“Everyone in the realm already says Princess Rhaenyra and her dragon Syrax are the pride of House Targaryen.”
“They say you are the Realm’s Delight itself.”
“Naturally, you must teach your poor aunt in the future how to raise dragons so magnificently.”
After speaking, Daniella stared at Rhaenyra with bright sparkling eyes filled with admiration.
Rhaenyra immediately blushed slightly.
“No…
it isn’t that exaggerated.”
Still, she unconsciously puffed out her chest proudly.
“Since you are my aunt, I will naturally protect you in the future.”
“Then I shall depend entirely upon Your Royal Highness from now on.”
Daniella smiled warmly.
Inside, however, she nearly burst out laughing.
Little girl, you’re far too easy to flatter.
Meanwhile, Rhaenyra appeared completely satisfied by the praise.
At this moment, having such a beautiful and obedient aunt suddenly felt rather pleasant.
The young princess immediately grabbed Daniella’s hand and pulled her toward Aemma.
Meanwhile, Daniella internally suffered intense secondhand embarrassment from her own shameless acting.
How exactly was she supposed to recover from this later?
By the time the funeral rites, prayers, burial ceremonies, and formalities finally concluded, evening had already arrived.
Soon afterward, the banquet officially began within the Painted Table Chamber and Aegon’s Garden.