Illyrio’s attitude made both Shamira and Belwas flinch.
Aegon’s eyes flickered slightly.
At present, he had no real protection, and his personal martial ability was only mediocre.
If not for the status he carried, Belwas could probably take him down with one hand.
When Illyrio had been young, he had been a swordsman—a genuine swordsman who had lived by the blade and tasted blood on countless occasions.
Even though age had left him old and corpulent, the anger of his former self was still enough to make people tense.
Young Griff had been born from Illyrio and the woman he loved.
Calling his son a bastard was something he could not tolerate.
But he immediately realized that he had lost his composure, and Illyrio hurriedly rearranged his expression into a pleasant smile.
He stepped forward and placed a hand on Aegon’s shoulder.
The moment he opened his mouth, however, his breath hit Aegon like an uppercut.
Aegon was forced to push him farther away.
Illyrio didn’t seem to mind in the slightest.
He simply continued speaking.
“Ah, my Silas, that’s a friend’s child.
I promised to take good care of him.
I’m a merchant, after all.
A merchant’s most important things are his reputation and his promises…
Didn’t you say you wanted to join the army?
I’ve bought you a position as a cavalry commander.
You can take up your post the day after tomorrow.”
Silas was the false name Illyrio had given Aegon.
The name had been chosen in memory of his deceased wife, Serra.
Perhaps it was originally the name he had intended for Young Griff.
The moment the subject of becoming an officer came up, Aegon seemed to cast all his earlier unpleasantness aside and immediately began asking about the army under his command.
“Three hundred men and five hundred horses.
Quite the impressive force.”
Illyrio’s fat face crinkled into a smile as he spoke, sounding like a man coaxing a child.
“Belwas can go with you when the time comes.
How does that sound?”
“Fine.
I won’t go back tonight.
I’ll stay somewhere outside.”
“Stay, stay somewhere grand.
Bigger is more comfortable.”
“Do you really need to tell me that?
If there’s nothing else, you can go home.”
“All right, all right.
Heh heh.”
How could Aegon not know why Illyrio insisted on keeping Belwas by his side?
Shamira was one of Illyrio’s eyes and ears as well.
Sometimes, Aegon wondered if he had no other support to rely on, perhaps his only option would be to keep his head down and survive until Daenerys rose to power.
Then he could seek refuge with her.
That might have been a viable path.
But…
Aegon’s gaze shifted toward the lower-right corner of his field of vision.
A line of text, seemingly projected directly onto his retina, had begun to change.
[King-Making Plan Loading: 99.9%]
It actually took half a month to load, just like before I crossed over.
The King-Making Plan was a simulation and character-development system.
One of the game’s greatest attractions was its abundance of mods.
The character system, powered by artificial intelligence, made every historical figure feel remarkably lifelike.
Interacting with them created an extraordinary sense of immersion.
It wasn’t the kind of useless artificial intelligence that could only make excuses after screwing things up.
He considered himself reasonably intelligent, certainly not a fool.
But being alone in a world like this, inheriting such a dangerous identity, and knowing that he had only one life to clear the game…
It made him nervous.
Even frightened.
Now, however, with the system supporting him, he finally possessed the confidence to stir the winds of this world and carve out a place for himself.
Aegon stared at the progress bar in the lower-right corner of his vision.
The next second—
[King-Making Plan System Loading Complete]
…
…
By afternoon, the sun that seemed to have spent the entire day raging finally sank toward the sea.
A gentle breeze drifted in from the water, bringing with it a precious hint of coolness.
Having sent Shamira away so he could properly study his newfound cheat, Aegon lay on his bed as a futuristic blue holographic screen slowly unfolded before him.
At the center of the screen was a portrait of Aegon from the waist up.
Silver hair.
Violet eyes.
A complexion that was slightly pale.
Above his portrait was a large, bold, golden attribute:
[Dominion]
[Starting Dominion]
Every time his Dominion increased by ten points, a treasure chest would appear for him to open.
And Dominion was the central progression system.
Increasing his Dominion would grant him enormous material rewards as well as character attribute rewards.
Every stage of advancement would provide the player with a tremendous boost.
Of course, Dominion wasn’t the only feature of the system.
There were also a wealth of side quests, each of which could provide substantial rewards.
Below Aegon’s portrait was a detailed breakdown of his character:
[Skills: Military Lv.1, Swordsmanship Lv.1, Archery Lv.1, Horsemanship Lv.2, High Valyrian Lv.2, Common Tongue Lv.3, Etiquette Lv.2, History Lv.1, Inspiration Lv.3, Mathematics Lv.5]
[Attributes: Physique D, Health C, Charisma D]
Aegon looked over his attributes and discovered that they were all extremely basic.
As far as he knew, attributes were ranked from S down to E.
An E rating was the lowest possible grade.
If one used certain female characters, for example, their Strength rating would be E.
The fact that Aegon currently possessed even his present levels of strength, endurance, and agility was entirely the result of a year of martial training.
Even so, his rate of improvement was rather slow, and judging from the condition of his body, there was probably a limit to how far he could develop through training alone.
But with the rewards provided by the system, it wouldn’t be long before his abilities began to improve at an astonishing rate.
As a king, having a powerful physique and exceptional fighting skills could have a tremendous impact on one’s ability to rule.
Aegon looked through the skills he possessed.
In his previous life, he had worked in a profession related to mathematics and statistical analysis, so his mathematical ability had remained quite strong.
Considering the level of development in this era, his mathematical knowledge should place him among the very best.
In other words, when it came to skill ratings, Level 5 might be the maximum.
If he could raise his Swordsmanship to Level 5, Aegon believed that even the legendary Arthur Dayne, the Sword of the Morning, would have to take him seriously.
And if he could also improve his Physique, which represented qualities such as strength and agility, then his martial prowess would eventually have few, if any, equals anywhere in the world.
Aegon remembered that completing quests could reward him with Skill Cards, which could directly increase his skill levels.
To the right of his portrait were five major indicators: [Domain/Territory], [Titles], [Army], [Charisma], and [Family].
Together with Aegon’s personal skills, these five indicators determined his overall Dominion.
Yet aside from his skills, every one of those five indicators currently displayed the same word:
[None]
If this cheat had been given to Viserys, the Beggar King, it would probably have been a real headache.
There would hardly have been anywhere to begin.
Fortunately, Aegon had Illyrio as his nominal father.
With Illyrio’s wealth backing him, Aegon could enter the army of Pentos and secure himself an officer’s position.
That would unlock both the Titles and Army attributes, giving him a foundation from which he could quickly establish himself.
Aegon had already made up his mind.
First, he would find a way to take control of the army.
Then, he would climb all the way to the top!
The instant this thought entered his mind, the cheat responded.
[Your will has been detected.
Main Quest unlocked.]
[Welcome to the world of A Song of Ice and Fire.
Here, you will find the Seven Kingdoms, the Nine Free Cities, Slaver’s Bay, the distant empire of the East, dragons and magic that have vanished from the world but are on the verge of returning, and the Others and the dead that grow in shadow and cold.
From this moment onward, complete challenges, increase your Dominion, and become a Dragon King for the ages!]
[Note: Dominion rewards and various side-quest rewards will provide you with assistance.
Some rewards may even grant you extraordinary abilities.]
Looking at the information provided by the cheat, Aegon could barely suppress the grin tugging at the corners of his mouth.
As an ordinary person, he knew that he could not compare with the great figures of history when it came to innate talent.
When he first realized the circumstances of his reincarnation, the emotion he had felt most strongly was fear.
Although the King-Making Plan game had given him considerable exposure to political strategy and cultivated his understanding of power, he still couldn’t see how he was supposed to break out of his current predicament.
There was no doubt that Illyrio intended to put his own biological son on the Iron Throne.
But he hadn’t killed Aegon.
And Aegon simply couldn’t figure out why.
He remembered that the Targaryen bloodline possessed magical qualities.
Could it be that Illyrio was waiting for the right moment to use him as some kind of sacrificial offering for a sorcerous ritual?
Ever since his memories had awakened, Aegon had never been able to feel completely at ease.
But now that he had the cheat…
He could finally spread his wings and make his move!
Just as Aegon was contemplating the main storyline of Game of Thrones, the cheat provided another notification.
[Initial Reward: As a leader, the ability to seize opportunities for rest is indispensable.
Regardless of the circumstances, you will be able to fall asleep within five seconds and enter a state of high-quality sleep.
Combined with your character identity—the Targaryen bloodline—you will simultaneously gain the following abilities:]
[You can eat twenty pounds of meat in a single sitting and then go an entire week without eating.]
[You can sleep for an entire day and night in one stretch, then maintain abundant energy for three full days and three nights.]
Damn, that’s awesome!
Aegon already felt that the ability to sleep well alone was an incredible reward.
A person spent roughly one-third of their life sleeping.
High-quality sleep meant that one-third of his life would be spent in an excellent state.
Sleep was one of the most important things for the human body.
Whether it was growth and development or the repair of physical damage, its role was irreplaceable.
And when a person was full of energy, they naturally felt more hopeful, which in turn affected their state of mind throughout the entire day.
The ability to eat twenty pounds of meat in one sitting was pretty damn useful as well.
It could save him an enormous amount of time, especially in certain situations where he needed to minimize the effects of hunger.
If he still lived in the world before his transmigration, it could even save him a fortune.
He could simply eat at buffets every day.
All in all, with these two abilities combined, Aegon effectively possessed a body blessed with seemingly inexhaustible energy.
He could maintain a high-intensity confrontation with his enemies around the clock.
And considering that most people in positions of power were already advanced in age, he could take full advantage of one simple yet brutally effective strategy:
Outlast the old men.
There was no need to defeat them in a single stroke.
He merely had to remain standing when they could no longer keep going.
And that was without even considering the other, far more outrageous rewards the game had in store.
Aegon recalled everything he could remember about the game from before his transmigration.
With anticipation and excitement coursing through him, he slowly drifted into sleep.