Tyrion said bitterly, "In the wars now, without extraordinary power, without the backing of demi-gods or true gods, you aren't even qualified to enter the game.
"Our House Lannister should quietly bow out and stop making a fuss. We can't afford it."
Kevan also remembered the scene of the High Sparrow being resurrected and sighed, "If you weren't lying on purpose to curry favor with the Dragon Queen, then the citadel's 'real world' might actually be necessary."
"Ha, don't be naive. The common folk want a world of perpetual summer."
"What do you want me to do?" Kevan asked helplessly, his attitude beginning to soften.
"Send that troublesome sister of mine away as soon as possible. Don't let any animals cats, dogs, mice, birds, and the like come near you or Tommen. Write immediately to Dragonstone and secretly discuss repentance and pledging fealty.
"My father is dead, my brother Jaime is missing, and if I put in a good word for you before the queen there's a good chance she'll forgive you.
"Besides, the queen is just and broad-minded. She spared Stannis and even the Starks; she will certainly give Jaime a fair trial.
"Once the Iron Throne is handed over, you can recall all the Lannister troops stationed in King's Landing and the Riverlands back to Casterly Rock; at the same time, use our family's gold to buy grain.
"As long as Casterly Rock has soldiers and food, the Long Night can come and we need not fear."
Kevan's expression twisted. His fists clenched without him realizing it; beads of hot sweat formed on his forehead as countless conflicting thoughts surged through his mind.
Rationally, he felt the Imp's words made a lot of sense. He was not Tywin; he had neither the ambition to seize the Iron Throne nor the ability to deal with the increasingly complex situation.
Never mind the Dragon Queen, the pressure brought just by the High Sparrow made him almost suffocate.
If word really had come that the White Walkers and the Long Night were imminent, many nobles from the riverlands and other regions had gone to Dragonstone to seek them. Even if the Long Night did not arrive, what difference would the Dragon Queen make to the Lannisters? Both would bring an endless winter upon him and his house.
One step forward, a bottomless cliff; one step back, perhaps a sea of open sky.
But his nephew was asking him to give up the Iron Throne. How could the Iron Throne be abandoned lightly?
After a long moment, he wiped the sweat from his brow, stared straight at the dwarf, and asked, "Are you really not here to win me over for the Dragon Queen?"
Tyrion picked up the crossbow at his feet and twirled it a few times, saying, "If I kill you, Tommen's rule collapses instantly."
Kevan's eyes darkened and he forced a bitter smile. "So what is it you want?"
Tyrion said bitterly, "I only want to be both loyal and filial. It is that simple and plain.
"I swore fealty to the queen many times; I do not want to break my vows.
"But I cannot deny that I am a Lannister. I do not want you to die, I do not want Aunt Genna to die, I do not want so many innocent cousins to be burned in dragonfire.
"I once had a nightmare in which I charged for the Dragon Queen, killing Jaime, you, Aunt Genna, and countless Lannisters. I woke already in tears. If you do not evade the truth, recognizing your heart is not difficult."
Kevan's eyes flashed. "What if I refuse?"
"You will not. It is the best choice," Tyrion said coldly.
Outside, the cold wind howled; inside, only the fire in the hearth popped and crackled.
The uncle and nephew stared at each other and the air grew heavy. Not far away, the shapeshifter and the White Knight felt as though a lead weight had been laid on their chests.
"What if I refuse?" Kevan repeated.
Tyrion raised the crossbow and aimed at his heart, speaking with cruel calm, "There are too many people I want to save, and you, uncle, are only one of them."
"Are you serious?" Kevan raised an eyebrow.
"Let me kill the die-hards. The remaining rational or weak ones will only hate me. Anyway, I've already killed my father; I'm not afraid to shoulder more sins. At worst I go down seven levels of Hell.
"I do not care.
"The queen's hands will not be stained with Lannister blood, and she need not fear future Lannisters seeking revenge against her.
"A perfect solution.
"Now it's your turn. Will you do it?"
There was no warmth in Tyrion's voice; his face held nothing but cold indifference.
"You have the courage to kill your father, the nerve to point a crossbow at me, and the resolution to clean house of kin who displease you. Why not use this crossbow to kill the real instigator?" Kevan relaxed as though a great burden had been lifted, leaned back in his chair, and said slowly.
"I dare not imagine it," Tyrion replied.
Kevan nodded. "A fine 'I dare not imagine.' That reason convinces me."
Someone who could kill his father could certainly break the bonds of lord and vassal, but Tyrion could not even bring himself to think about it. How terrifying that woman must be.
"I agree to your plan. I will surrender to Daenerys. She may take my life; if she still is not satisfied, she may kill Jaime and Cersei as well.
"I ask only one thing: do not harm the children. They did not participate in the usurpation; they are innocent," Kevan said with a faint smile.
"You worry too much. The queen is beautiful and merciful. She has compassion for Riverlands refugees and foreign slaves; there is no reason she would mistreat those who swear fealty to her."
Tyrion smiled too.
"I need a few days," Kevan said as he stood to leave.
Tyrion rose as well and opened a narrow half-height secret door in the stone wall.
"Do whatever you must; I trust you," he said with a smile.
Kevan took his cloak from a peg on the wall, glanced at the secret door, and suddenly asked, "Tyrion, would you really kill me?"
Whoosh. Tyrion smiled at his uncle, then suddenly raised the crossbow. Under the shocked gazes of the other three in the room, one bolt pierced the White Knight's throat and another struck the unconscious Pycelle in the heart.
"My gods!" The wildling skinchanger stared blankly at the dwarf.
"You " Kevan roared in fury.
"Hush!" Tyrion tossed aside his hand crossbow and said with a grin, "Yell all you want after I'm gone."
"This is how you prove your generosity?" Kevan's face darkened.
"No. I'm helping you take out the trash." Tyrion shook his head, smiling slyly. "I don't deny Pycelle's loyalty to the Lannisters, but he's old, his strength is fading, and he's useless now.
"Besides, Her Majesty knows it was he who opened the gates for the lions back then he deserves to die!"When the maester was paraded through the streets, several of the seven charges the other archmaesters announced were connected to Pycelle he deserved to die!"As for Boros Blount, remove him and make room for someone stronger, a true knight with actual skill!
"I told you, beware of the Starks. You'll need good bodyguards.
"And that man has heard too many secrets. Can you really trust him?"
Kevan hesitated, his expression complicated. "You've changed."
"I know. I'm more like a 'little demon' now," Tyrion said with a wry smile.
No you're more like Tywin. You've always had his intellect, but now you have his ruthlessness and decisiveness as well.
Kevan sighed inwardly. No wonder Genna always said Tyrion was the one who resembled Tywin the most. She wasn't wrong.
Ah, there are three "laws" in A Song of Ice and Fire:First, prophecies always come true.Second, oathbreakers, kin-slayers, and those who violate the guest right never meet good ends.Third, whatever the characters believe to be true usually isn't or it's the opposite.
"Oh, I almost forgot!" Tyrion slapped his forehead. "Uncle, I'll need you to write a statement right now, in your capacity as Regent."
"A statement about what?" Kevan asked, puzzled.
"I'm planning to go to Dorne and bring Myrcella to Slaver's Bay as a hostage. But Prince Doran once swore to guarantee her safety and protect her from all harm.
"Though that vow was partially broken by Princess Arianne, without your cooperation, Doran will never hand Myrcella over," Tyrion said.
That, in fact, explains why Doran was so determined to protect Myrcella in Game of Thrones.
When Tyrion served as acting Hand, he had sent his niece to Dorne for a political marriage, but it came with conditions. Doran swore a sacred oath and granted Myrcella the rights of a guest.
Under such double protection, no one in Dorne could touch a single hair on her head unless Doran died. Darkstar's sudden attack was a complete accident.
"You know what she's been through, and yet you still want her to be a hostage?" Kevan said coldly.
"Heh, Her Majesty is also the High Septon of the Seven!" Tyrion said proudly.
"What do you mean?" Kevan frowned in confusion.
"If the High Sparrow can be resurrected, why can't Myrcella grow back an ear? You could beg the High Sparrow for help but he'd never agree. He wouldn't even crown Tommen! But Darkstar happens to be the Queen's Kingsguard now!"
"You know my secret. Why not kill me?"
As they walked down the secret tunnel toward the shore, the wildling Hogg gulped golden Arbor wine straight from the bottle while questioning the dwarf beside him.
Hogg was a skinchanger and a powerful warrior.
The Imp knew of the secret passage beneath the Tower of the Hand, but after Cersei burned it down, it was Hogg's animal companion that helped him find a hidden path connected to the rookery next door.
It was also the animal companion that spotted Kevan's group approaching.
In return, Tyrion promised him the finest wine in the world.
Now, Hogg wore several wine bottles around his neck all Arbor gold from the island of Greenstone, treasures once belonging to Grand Maester Pycelle.
"If I kill you, who'll prove my innocence to the Queen?" Tyrion said with a grin.
Just like when he tamed the mountain clans of the Vale, Tyrion had, within a few short hours, established a relationship with Hogg that was somewhere between friendly and truly close.
The mountain clans were wildlings too descendants of the First Men who had fled into the Vale's peaks. Their customs and temperaments were not so different from those beyond the Wall, and Tyrion had always been good at and fond of dealing with simple-minded folk like them.
"You're too cunning. I can't tell whether you've betrayed the Queen or not. I won't vouch for you I'll tell the Dragon Queen everything you said."
"That's exactly what I want you to do," Tyrion said with a sly grin.
"But you whispered a few things earlier I didn't quite catch them."
The part where Tyrion revealed Aegon's true identity to Kevan had gone unheard by the wildling.
"You misheard," the dwarf said naturally.
"If the Queen orders your death, I'll twist off your big head without hesitation and cut off your manhood for my collection," Hogg muttered.
"Uh… why do you want my manhood?" Tyrion's smile froze, and he had a bad feeling.
Sure enough, Hogg replied without hesitation, "A dwarf's manhood has magical power. I've long wanted one to make a charm."
Still, Timit and Shagga were friendlier!Ordinary wildlings didn't practice magic and had no interest in his private parts.
Traveling by sea from Dragonstone Point to King's Landing would cover nearly two thousand kilometers, but flying straight on dragonback was less than fourteen hundred. By the time Tyrion saw Arianne again, it was already three in the afternoon.
He had even learned to sleep while riding a dragon. Without stopping, he picked up the Dornish princess and flew directly to Dorne's Water Gardens, five hundred kilometers away.
(End of Chapter)
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