Hearing Gael’s words, Talvey was left speechless.
He pressed his right hand to his forehead, sighing silently to himself: “Blame this bloody world, no wonder there are so many stillborn and premature infants…”
But this couldn’t really be blamed on anyone; after all, for eight thousand years in this world, women had always been like this, taught from childhood to depend on men and then bear heirs for their husband’s families as early as possible, so being passed down generation after generation, it had become what it was today.
“Gael, you are still too young…” Talvey earnestly imparted sex education to Gael, telling her that this matter should not happen too early.
After much persuasion, they finally reached an agreement: the wedding ceremony could be held at any time, but they would only share a bed after Gael turned 18.
“Then you can accept the women they gave you, I don’t mind, and I won’t mind in the future either, Talvey,” Gael curled up in Talvey’s arms, saying with a serious expression.
Talvey let out a long sigh looking up at the sky: “With such a wife, what more could a husband ask for?”
Just at that moment, Talvey and Gael, who were being affectionate with each other, heard the voices of Viserys and Alicent from across the campfire.
“…It was my obsession that killed the mother of Rhaenyra and Gael!”
“It’s all in the past, Viserys!”
“I thought naming Rhaenyra as heir could lead me out of the abyss of pain and remorse!”
“You have already done it, Rhaenyra is doing very well now!”
“You are doing very well too, Alicent, but I never thought I would remarry, let alone have a son with you!”
With hazy, drunken eyes, Viserys spoke of a dream he had previously had, where he had a son named Aegon wearing the Conqueror’s crown and sitting on the Iron Throne.
Hearing Viserys’s words, Gael abruptly stood up.
“Clang!”
“Who? Who is over there?”
A Kingsguard drew the longsword from his waist, protecting the king and queen behind him, and looked warily across the campfire.
“It’s me!”
Gael stated her identity in a cold tone, and then walked with Talvey in front of the royal couple. Find the original chapter at g.com.
Talvey bowed slightly to Viserys and Alicent.
Gael stepped forward, glaring at Viserys and questioning: “Father, do you intend to change the heir? Have you ever thought about how sad Sister would be!”
“No… you misunderstood, Gael!”
Seeing Gael and Talvey, Viserys’s drunkenness dissipated by more than half; he didn’t mind Gael’s discourtesy and flatly denied: “I have never thought of changing the heir!”
“Then you…”
Talvey stopped Gael: “Gael, since His Grace has already said he will not change the heir, he won’t. We should go and leave some privacy for His Grace and the Queen.”
Then he glanced apologetically at Viserys: “Then we shall take our leave, Your Grace, Your Majesty.”
“Gael…” Viserys wanted to say more but stopped himself, finally waving his hand for the two to withdraw: “Never mind, you may go.”
Talvey bowed, then took Gael’s hand and left the place.
Along the way, Gael muttered somewhat indignantly: “Father clearly had the idea of changing the heir. It’s all those nobles led by House Hightower, buzzing around my father every day like flies, clearly wanting Aegon to sit on the Iron Throne.”
“Gael, perhaps your father wavers sometimes, but we must believe in his love and protection for Rhaenyra, whether out of guilt toward Queen Aemma or to maintain the royal prestige.”
Although after Queen Aemma’s death, Viserys’s actions were full of contradictions, Talvey knew that until his death he never thought of changing the heir, and was very tolerant of some of Rhaenyra’s actions, even allowing her to freely choose her own husband, always upholding Rhaenyra’s rights as heir until his death, when The Greens usurped the throne.
“Talvey, once Aegon’s name day is over, let’s return to The Arbor; the ravens in the Red Keep annoy me.”
Gael lowered her head in silence, not understanding why those nobles repeatedly obstructed an heir who had already been decided—just because Rhaenyra was a woman?
With Gael’s gentle and kind personality, of course she wouldn’t understand what all this scheming was for, and if she hadn’t been betrothed to Talvey early on, her situation would probably be the same as Rhaenyra’s, because every house wanted their descendants to carry dragon blood.
The various houses’ obvious desire to possess dragon blood was related to Viserys’s lenient and easygoing personality; leniency and easygoingness were not complimentary terms for a ruler, only making other houses feel that the ruler was weak and easily bullied.
Just like the Red Keep now, is it still the castle of House Targaryen?
Or has it already become the territory of House Hightower?
Whether messages sent out or messages received, the first person to get the information is Otto Hightower, not Viserys, and there was far too much room for maneuver in all of that.
Talvey interrupted his thoughts with a gentle smile on his face: “Alright, then let us stay away from this place of right and wrong. When we arrive at The Arbor, Mother will surely be very happy to see you.” Follow the newest chapters on novelping(.)com.
“Mhm, I miss Great-Aunt Visenyra too!”
A bright smile returned to Gael’s face.
The next day.
Early in the morning, all the nobles in the camp crowded around Viserys, galloping deep into the Kingswood to search for the legendary white stag.
Talvey still did not follow Viserys and the others to hunt the stag; he didn’t want to watch Viserys make a fool of himself during the hunt, so he chose to take Gael with him to hunt together in the Kingswood.
In a woods on the eastern side of the Kingswood, sunlight spilled down through the gaps in the leaves, like beams of light-swords thrusting into the ground.
Before a tall beech tree, a huge stag was lowering its head by the roots to graze on grass.
A wisp of morning breeze gently blew past, and the stag instantly raised its head alertly, twitching its nose to discern the scent in the air, and uneasily lifted its left front hoof.
“Twang——!”
Just at that moment, a loud bowstring sound rang out in the forest.
“Whoosh——!”
Along with the vibration of the bowstring, the wild deer’s head was instantly pinned firmly to the tree by an arrow, with only half of the arrow feathers visible, while the rest was deeply embedded in the trunk.
Three hundred meters away, Talvey on horseback slowly put away the recurve composite dragon-bone bow in his hand.
Besides Gael who stayed by his side and some servants, there were also thirty knights wearing the crest of House Valthorn.
These men were subordinates Talvey left behind in King’s Landing three years ago to protect Gael, commanded by Sir Raymond Stone.
“That’s amazing, Talvey!”
Gael clapped excitedly, cheering with high spirits.
“Bravo——!”
Although it was not the first time Raymond and the others had seen Talvey’s archery, it still shocked them, and at the same time filled them with deep pride, with that proud expression seeming to say: “Look, this is the heir of House Valthorn——Lord Talvey.”