Chapter 506 The Surrender of Braavos

　　Samwell stood in the ruins of the House of Black and White, holding a pale yellow skull in his hand and looking at it carefully.

This skull gave him an inexplicable sense of familiarity, but he couldn't be sure where this feeling came from.

Other than that, the skull does not show any specificity.

 It seems to be an ordinary human skull, except that the color is a little weird and it is too small.

Bailong poked his head over, his nose slightly twitching, as if he was very interested in the pale yellow skull.

 The surviving faceless men around them stood silently, like statues.

They seemed not to care at all about their temple being destroyed and their leader and hundreds of companions being killed.

The pool filled with strange black water has also collapsed, and the ink-like black water flows out, mixed with blood, and outlines a creepy scene on the marble floor.

However, with the death of the leader, the remaining faceless men did not continue to attack.

 I don’t know whether it was because I found that I couldn’t kill the enemy and chose to give up, or for some other reason.

 Samwell tightened the sword in his hand, and also lost the desire to continue killing.

 In fact, regarding the Faceless Men, even though he had been assassinated by them and had this fierce confrontation, Samwell still had a good impression of the Faceless Men.

After all, he found the inspiration to deal with the gods from the original Faceless Men, thus avoiding the fate of becoming a puppet of the gods.

Furthermore, the faceless men do not act for power, wealth, or vanity. Even if they ask for the price of assassination, it is only for sacrifice and to complete a certain ritual.

 They are perhaps the purest group of people in the world.

“Hand over the dragon eggs, and I will let you live.”

  After saying this, he himself felt that there was no threat to these faceless men who had no normal view of life and death.

 For these faceless people, death may really be a relief.

　　They treat all lives equally, and hatred, joy, anger, honor and disgrace all seem insignificant.

 After a moment of silence, a faceless man emerged from the crowd, holding a tray in front of Samwell.

 On the tray, four dragon eggs were placed.

Samwell was slightly surprised, but soon he understood.

“The other three are the three dragon eggs lost by the Targaryen family during the time of Jaehaerys I, right?”

"Yes." The Faceless Man nodded, "Miss Alyssa Farman came to Braavos with three dragon eggs and used them to exchange for a large sum of gold from Neptune. These dragon eggs later became After traveling to the Courtyard of Black and White, you can guess the reason."

"The price of killing," said Samwell, "your business has always been expensive."

 The faceless man nodded in acknowledgement, and then said:

“These four dragon eggs are yours, and the feud between the House of Black and White and the Caesar family will be settled.”

 “Okay.” Samwell accepted the four dragon eggs and readily agreed.

He is not worried that these faceless men will seek revenge on him for what happened today. With his current strength, even if the faceless men come, they will die.

Furthermore, with the weird outlook of the Faceless Man, the other party may not really hold grudges.

However, Samwell couldn't let go of what he saw in the vision just now.

 “What was the illusion just now?” he asked tentatively.

“That is your greatest fear,” said the Faceless Man.

 Samwell was silent.

 The faceless man spoke again and said:

"We mortals have countless faces, and you are certainly no exception. Samwell Tarly of Horn Hill, the pioneer knight of the Crimson Mountains, the Storm King of Storm's End, His Majesty Caesar of King's Landing... there may be many more faces. .

Just as the God with many faces has thousands of incarnations and thousands of names.

 But in the final analysis, there is only one object for everyone to pray to.

 There is only one destination for us—

die.

 This is the greatest gift and the most merciful outcome. "

 Samwell shook his head, said nothing, turned around, jumped on the back of the dragon, and left the Courtyard of Black and White.

 The white dragon spread its wings and soared into the sky.

The violent hot wind stirred up was raging in the ruins, but the faceless men still stood in the darkness like statues, with faces with different expressions under their hoods, quietly watching the back of the giant dragon.

 …

At the same time that the Isle of the Gods was turned upside down by Samwell, a meeting concerning the future fate of this city-state was being held in the Palace of Truth in Braavos.

　　The dignitaries who used to be graceful and graceful now gather together in disgrace and quarrel red-faced.

Of course, as the Titans were decapitated, the military fortress was in flames, and the Island of the Gods was in chaos, everyone reached a consensus on surrender.

 What they were arguing about was how to appease Caesar's anger and make him stop attacking and leave Braavos.

 “The Antalion family must bear full responsibility for this matter!”

 “Bullshit! That Bruce is fake, do you think we can’t see it? Why should we bear the responsibility for the trouble he caused?”

"Even if it is false, it is an internal struggle within your Antalion family. It was you who attracted the Pentos and angered Caesar."

“Isn’t the Iron Bank responsible? Why did the Red Temple awaken the Titans? And the House of Black and White, those faceless men must have had a grudge against Caesar for a long time.”

“If you ask me, it’s better to hand over the Sea King Ferrego. The old guy is about to die anyway…”

 “Who said I was dead?”

An old voice suddenly sounded at the entrance of the palace. The dignitaries turned around and saw the old Sea King who had been ill in bed walking in with a group of guards.

I have to say that although Neptune looked old at this time, he walked with strong steps and did not look like he was seriously ill or dying.

 Seeing this scene, the Braavos dignitaries and even the representatives of the Antalion family looked like they had seen a ghost.

 "Brother Ferre, you..."

“Tychu Nestos, you should call me Your Majesty.” Sea King interrupted domineeringly.

Tai Chu, the manager of the Iron Bank, calmed down and understood immediately:

“Your Majesty, it turns out you have been pretending to be sick.”

"That's right. If I hadn't pretended to be sick, I would have been poisoned by someone long ago." Neptune's eyes slowly swept over the faces of all the dignitaries of Braavos, remembering all the evasive glances in his heart.

 But he also knew that now was not the time for revenge.

 He must deal with external threats before embarking on an internal reckoning.

 So, before everyone could react completely, Neptune took the lead and said:

“I believe you have all seen this catastrophe clearly. Braavos cannot resist the dragon, so surrender is the only option. Does anyone else have any other opinions?”

The dignitaries exchanged cautious glances, and someone suggested:

 “Can’t we have peace talks?”

"What about the conditions?" Neptune asked, "On what conditions do you let Caesar leave? Dragon eggs? Do you think we are still qualified to negotiate now?"

 There was an awkward silence in the palace.

At this moment, the howling wind resounded in the sky above the Palace of Truth.

Then the ground trembled, and everyone saw the terrifying beast that landed in front of the palace through the doors and windows.

 The dragon is coming!

 Caesar is coming!

 The dignitaries knew that the final judgment was coming, and their hearts suddenly tightened.

"Your Majesty Ferrego, you can negotiate with Caesar on behalf of Braavos. Surrender... may not be impossible. But you must ensure that the interests of each family are not infringed."

Poseidon glanced at the person who spoke, and raised the corners of his mouth slightly, as if he was mocking.

"good."

As soon as he finished speaking, the sound of footsteps came from outside the door, one after another, as if hitting everyone's heart.

Soon, a heroic young man walked into the Palace of Truth.

The golden-haired man with golden eyes exudes a pressure that makes people dare not look directly at him. The giant sword held in his right hand is burning with golden flames. The scorching heat wave is mixed with the smell of blood. It fills the entire palace almost instantly, making people breathe. difficulty.

"Your Majesty Caesar," Sea King immediately turned around and shouted loudly, "I, Ferrego Antalion, would like to submit to you on behalf of Braavos."

 “Submission?” Samwell chewed on the word, with a smile on his face, “Tell me how to calculate surrender.”

“Of course I swear allegiance to you and become your vassal.” Sea King said without hesitation, as if he had already made a plan.

Hearing this, the dignitaries in Braavos suddenly changed their expressions.

They all understand that if Sea King is really willing to become Caesar's vassal, then from now on, the secret city of Braavos, this free trade city-state, will no longer be "free", but will be included in the territory of the Seven Kingdoms , accept the rule of the Iron Throne.

 Samwell was actually a little surprised that Neptune had such a low profile as soon as he came up.

 But soon, he understood the other party's scheming.

This guy has been lying in bed for so many years. Not to mention that he has no prestige in Braavos, and even within the Antalion family, he probably has little control.

 In this case, Ferrego can be said to be the person most eager to obtain strong foreign aid.

 Furthermore, although becoming a vassal of Caesar is not as noble as the Sea King, the title of vassal can be hereditary.

Aquaman needs to pass the election.

 So, exchanging the position of Sea King, which cannot be hereditary, for a hereditary duke, at least for the Antalion family, may not be considered a loss.

But for other Braavos dignitaries, this is not good news.

 This means that from now on, the power of Braavos will be concentrated in the hands of the Antalion family.

"Your Majesty Caesar," as expected, an old man in a purple dress stood up and said, "Braavos is of course willing to surrender, but I don't think it is advisable to become a knight. This is a free trade city-state with its own politics. Traditionally, I suggest that the Sea King be changed to the Prince of Braavos and submit to the Iron Throne, but the original electoral system should still be used."

 Samwell smiled faintly and said:

“I think it’s better to change it to Governor. As the highest administrator of Braavos, you still use your original election method. However, the Governor you elect must be approved by the Iron Throne.”

Someone asked tentatively:

“What if the Iron Throne doesn’t recognize our elected governor?”

“Then choose again,” Samwell said calmly, “until we choose a candidate that satisfies the Iron Throne.”

 Everyone looked at each other and immediately realized what this condition meant to Braavos.

From now on, Braavos will become an overseas province under the Iron Throne.

“In addition,” Samwell continued, “the armies of Braavos must all be disbanded, and the Iron Throne will send a garrison.”

 This is naked military control.

 And this is not over yet.

 Samwell continued:

“Braavos’ annual financial revenue must be turned over to King’s Landing at 30%, and the Iron Treasury…must be moved to King’s Landing.”

 Hearing this, the expressions of the twenty-three members of the key-keeper family changed greatly.

 “Your Majesty, you can’t do this!”

“The Iron Bank is the Iron Bank of Braavos, it can only stay in Braavos!”

“Your Majesty, if you want to be respected by the people of Braavos, you must first respect the interests of the people of Braavos.”

 …

 “Shut up.” Samwell said calmly.

As he spoke, a loud roar of dragons sounded outside the palace gate.

The hot dragon's breath poured into the palace like a violent wind, blowing the dignitaries of Braavos to stagger.

At this time, they realized what kind of opponent they were facing.

 The nightmarish scene that happened tonight came to mind again, filling them with fear.

“Fire melts steel,” Samwell said. “I wouldn’t mind melting your coffers into liquid and packing them back to King’s Landing.”

 Faced with such a threat, no matter how reluctant the Keykeeper family was, they understood the king's determination.

 Fighting against it will only lead to tragedy.

Looking at the twenty-three keykeeper family representatives nodding in turn, Samwell finally smiled again:

"Very good. Don't worry, I'm just moving the Iron Bank to King's Landing. I'm not confiscating your property. All the gold still belongs to you."

 Hearing this, the members of the keykeeper’s family murmured in their hearts—

The Iron Treasury has been moved to King's Landing. If the Iron Throne wants to requisition the gold in the future, will they dare to refuse?

 In Braavos, the Iron Bank is extremely powerful, and even the Sea King cannot influence their decisions.

 The twenty-three Keykeeper families can also greatly influence the political situation in Braavos.

 But if we get to King’s Landing…

Samwell saw their faces and naturally knew what they were thinking.

 But he doesn't care.

 For the Iron Bank, he actually has a more detailed plan.

"Believe me," he softened his tone and reassured, "if the Iron Bank goes to King's Landing, your property will not decrease, but will increase. In the future, the Iron Bank's business will expand to the entire Westeros, and even It will spread to the whole world as I conquer.

Perhaps one day you will be happy with your decision today. "

After saying this, Samwell did not explain any more. He extinguished the golden flame on the giant sword with a gentle touch of his right hand, and then said:

“Now, it’s time for you to come forward and swear allegiance to me.”

Everyone was stunned for a moment and said in confusion:

“Your Majesty, didn’t you say...that you want to establish a governor?”

"Yes." Samwell smiled, "This is not a contradiction. You can still be my vassals, but the title is a false title and has no territory. It is just a symbol of glory."

This is actually the direction of political reform hidden in Samwell's heart, and it is also the way he hopes to achieve centralization.

But now facing the threat of the White Walkers, he was worried that rash implementation in the Seven Kingdoms would cause unrest.

Since Braavos came to the door, he just wanted to experiment here first.

The nobles of Braavos were of course more receptive to this system than the nobles of the Seven Kingdoms, so, under the leadership of Sea King Ferrego Anttalion, everyone stepped forward one after another and knelt down in front of Samwell. , swear allegiance.

The allegiance ceremony did not end until the first ray of dawn shone through the thick fog and blackened smoke towards this secret city.

 Since then, Braavos has ushered in a new era.

 (End of this chapter)