Regarding what had happened at Crakehall, Kal did not conceal anything. On the contrary, he proactively had the maester serving this castle send everything that had occurred out by raven.
He did not embellish it in any way, instead having the maester present the facts clearly and truthfully.
This also included Margaery Tyrell, as well as the collusion between House Tyrell and House Crakehall.
The time that followed was one of waiting—waiting for the Seven Kingdoms' reaction to this matter. At the same time, Kal also needed a period of recuperation, because he had to prepare supplies and absorb House Crakehall's forces in order to face the coming war.
However, during these few days of rest and waiting, Kal was not idle. He proactively dispatched scouts to Old Oak, and Old Oak indeed turned out exactly as he had expected.
A force from Highgarden had already been stationed there. It was an army of three thousand men, with the cavalry alone exceeding one thousand.
And this did not even include the Oakheart family's own troops of Old Oak.
The one leading this army was Ser Garlan Tyrell of House Tyrell, known as "Garlan the Gallant."
He was the second son of Lord Mace Tyrell and Lady Alerie Hightower, and also the second elder brother of Margaery Tyrell.
At the seat of honor in the great hall, Kal rested his chin on one hand and quietly listened as the knight below reported the intelligence gathered at Old Oak.
After he finished speaking, Kal waved his hand to signal for him to withdraw. "To think the one leading the army this time is actually Garlan Tyrell. I wonder whether Renly Baratheon will come chasing after them to Old Oak."
The arrival of this envoy was somewhat unexpected to Kal, but it was also within reason.
After all, no matter how one looked at it, if House Tyrell truly had intentions of reaching some kind of covert arrangement with him, then the person sent could not possibly be Renly.
However, after Kal had openly publicized his actions as they truly were, it stood to reason that House Tyrell and Renly Baratheon would no longer be able to sit still.
As for this time—the Tyrell family's army and Garlan Tyrell leading it—when viewed from the original plan, it was indeed within an appropriate and expected range.
Not dwelling excessively on this matter, Kal touched his chin and pondered for a brief moment, then turned his head to look at the Rose of Highgarden seated beside him, as though she were the lady of the house.
"I am actually a bit curious about how you managed to stop Renly, Miss Margaery. Do you have anything you would like to say to me?"
Upon hearing Kal's words, Ser Arys Oakheart, who was standing guard beside the two of them, as well as Ser Balon Swann, both wore expressions of subtle awkwardness.
After all, considering what Kal had done, and now with him even keeping Margaery Tyrell at his side, no matter how one looked at it, there was a distinct sense of a cuckolded situation mixed into it.
Mm—of the kind where one sweats profusely on one side while asking, at the same time, who is better, me or your husband.
Even the way the two of them had been getting along over these past few days gave people the feeling of an old married couple.
Yet in their eyes, the current Margaery Tyrell, as far as King Kal was concerned, was difficult to define—whether she was a lover or a captive.
In any case, ever since that night's incident of suppressing House Crakehall's rebellion, the two of them had continued to interact in this peculiar manner.
From early in the morning, when Kal began handling state affairs, Margaery Tyrell would sit calmly at Kal's side.
Naturally, she also heard the scouts' reports.
Facing Kal's question, several strands of complicated light flashed through her eyes.
Then she spoke softly, "I don't know either, Your Grace."
The tone of Margaery's reply was neither soft nor hard; saying it was the same as saying nothing.
Kal did not mind. He smiled faintly, his fingers unconsciously tapping against the armrest of his seat.
Then he continued, asking, "Then if I defeat him on the battlefield, would you plead with me to let him live?"
Kal's words were extremely direct, showing no consideration at all for Margaery's dignity.
Yet Margaery Tyrell's expression did not change in the slightest. Instead, she turned her head and glanced at Kal.
"Perhaps it will be he who defeats you."
"At that time, I will plead for your life, my husband."
When Margaery said these words, her expression was utterly serious.
Ser Arys Oakheart and Ser Balon Swann rationally chose to turn a deaf ear and act as though they had heard nothing—this was the first basic skill required of the Kingsguard.
Hearing Margaery's words, Kal could not help but laugh, and he even slapped his thigh.
"Hearing you say that makes me very happy, Miss Margaery, so I have decided that when the time comes, I will spare his life."
"And, miss, you truly are a clever woman."
Indeed, just as Kal said, Margaery's answer was extremely clever. These words were both firm and, at the same time, tactfully expressed what she wanted.
And most importantly, in that instant she was still able to grasp, with great accuracy, the single most appropriate point.
Even though Kal's question was a trap in every way.
After smiling and praising Margaery Tyrell a couple of times, Kal stopped what he was doing and turned his head to look out the window.
"Mm—so I have decided that tomorrow I will set out."
"While I'm at it, I should also replenish the numbers of my Kingsguard. After all, in order to protect you and me, Ser Arys Oakheart and Ser Balon Swann are already very tired."
"Your Grace, we are not tired. Protecting you is our honor!" Arys Oakheart hurriedly said upon hearing this.
Kal gave two soft chuckles in response.
Then he stood up and patted Arys Oakheart on the shoulder. Without saying anything, he strode out of this great hall that he was using to handle official affairs.
But before he had gone very far, the maester of Crakehall came up at a quick pace holding several letters, blocking his path.
Behind him followed two soldiers, not leaving him by so much as a step.
"Your Grace, you have letters that require your perusal."
Looking at this white-bearded old man who was blocking him, and after glancing at the string of links hanging around his neck, Kal's gaze shifted to the letters in his hands.
"From where?"
Kal's tone was somewhat helpless.
"They are a reply from Lord Tyrion Lannister of Casterly Rock to you, and then letters from Highgarden and Old Oak."
"As for this last one, it is a letter from King's Landing."
Hearing that there was a reply from Casterly Rock, Kal was not surprised; the ones from Highgarden and Old Oak were the same.
But as for the letter from King's Landing, Kal felt somewhat puzzled.
Judging by the timing, this did not really seem like King's Landing's reaction to this Crakehall incident.
After thinking for a moment, Kal reached out and took the letters from the maester's hands.
None of the seals had been broken; it was clear that this maester had not read the letters.
The two soldiers responsible for watching him also said nothing.
Not paying it any mind, Kal directly reached out and broke the seal.
First was Tyrion's reply. For Kal, there was nothing of real substance in the letter.
It only roughly stated that after Tyrion's departure, several nearby minor nobles had proactively come calling, expressing that they would dispatch their own family forces to support Kal.
Then he went on to curse and complain that many other nobles still showed no reaction at all.
As for those who had proactively expressed loyalty to Kal and were able to support him, they were all merely minor nobles and could not really amount to anything.
Among the major nobles of the Westerlands, such as House Crakehall, there was not a single one.
It was clear that between the lines, Tyrion's resentment was practically spilling out.
Seeing this, Kal could not help but laugh aloud, then continued reading.
And after finishing his complaints about those nobles' equivocation, Tyrion went on to worry about whether Kal's actions this time might have some negative impact on his efforts to bring the Westerlands under control.
After all, Kal's actions were indeed somewhat decisive. Although from a legal standpoint there was nothing that could really be questioned, from a matter-of-feelings standpoint, they were still rather uncomfortable, and could easily cause those already somewhat wavering nobles to develop a rebellious mindset.
The remainder merely mentioned, in passing, the administrative and defensive matters of Casterly Rock and Lannisport, and asked whether it was necessary to dispatch troops for support.
Skimming through this information quickly, Kal smiled and did not pay it much mind.
Tyrion's concerns were reminding him of nothing unfounded. After all, Kal himself knew exactly how large a step he had taken.
If it were an ordinary person, they would have torn themselves apart long ago.
"I will personally reply to Casterly Rock later."
After finishing Tyrion's letter, Kal casually said this to the maester.
In fact, from between the lines just now, he had already seen Tyrion's implied meaning.
Judging from the current situation, the worst-case outcome he had anticipated did not seem likely to occur, but if things continued like this, it would be hard to say.
Tyrion was essentially advising him to know when to stop, to first stabilize his foundation, and to advance steadily.
Hearing Kal's words, the maester nodded to indicate his understanding. He subconsciously glanced at Margaery Tyrell, who had also followed over, then turned and left without the slightest hesitation.
The two soldiers saluted Kal and followed after him.
Noticing that Margaery had followed along, Kal ignored her and instead opened the letter from King's Landing and began to read.
However, as soon as he looked at it, he could not help but frown.
"Lord Eddard Stark personally went to Dragonstone?"
Seeing that Kal had no intention of hiding it from her, Margaery Tyrell leaned in and also clearly saw the contents of the letter.
Kal did not speak and continued reading downward.
Seeing this, Margaery continued as well.
After finishing reading, she was the first to speak.
"As far as I know, Lord Stannis Baratheon is not someone who is easily persuaded. If he is any more radical, Lord Eddard Stark may be in danger."
Kal fell silent for a moment at this, then spoke helplessly. "I tried to stop him, but it seems it was of no use. He insists on his own view."
He had not expected that Eddard Stark would ultimately still choose to go to Dragonstone, but with such a great distance between them, he had no way to stop Eddard Stark's actions
Moreover, if he did not do this, then he would not be Eddard Stark.
Although this point was something that even Margaery could see the signs of at a glance.
Yet Eddard Stark still resolutely went to Dragonstone, wanting to use this method to make Stannis Baratheon abandon his ideas. Kal could only express helplessness.
At present, the situation was beyond his reach, and there was not much he could do.
He could only hope that Eddard Stark would not anger Stannis Baratheon because of this.
Otherwise, it would become awkward.
As for whether Stannis Baratheon would kill his own future father-in-law, Kal was not worried about that, because Stannis Baratheon would not be foolish to that extent.
But if Eddard Stark's straightforward temperament ended up displeasing Stannis Baratheon, then imprisoning him would certainly happen.
As for whether Melisandre, the priestess of the Lord of Light, would stir trouble in this matter, Kal felt that she probably would not.
The enemy of the Lord of Light was the god of cold, so Melisandre could not possibly bring trouble to Eddard Stark, the Warden of the North and Lord of Winterfell, under these circumstances.
It was even possible that this red priestess might instead help Eddard Stark at that time.
After thinking it through and concluding that Eddard Stark's journey would not involve any danger, Kal could only let out a sigh.
"Hopefully it will not end in an awkward situation."
As for the outcome of Eddard Stark's trip to Dragonstone, this was the only conclusion Kal could draw. He then loosened the letter, folded it to the bottom, and looked toward the remaining letters from Highgarden and Old Oak.
There was even less need to say much about the contents here.
First was the letter from Highgarden, from Renly Baratheon. In the letter, he harshly condemned Kal's actions, yet what was strange was that he still did not make any particularly direct statement.
For example, such as personally leading troops to come after him.
Seeing this, Kal frowned. He truly could not quite understand what Renly Baratheon was actually trying to do.
Ever since Margaery Tyrell arrived at Crakehall, his behavior had carried a certain sense of oddness.
The earlier part could still be explained, after all, with people from House Tyrell working behind the scenes.
But this response should not have been like this.
It was as if—
"Do you think my uncle Renly might be somewhat distrustful of your family?" Kal slightly furrowed his brow and turned to look at Margaery Tyrell beside him, who was also reading the letter.
Hearing his words, Margaery raised her head and glanced at him. A hint of strangeness also showed in her brown eyes.
Indeed, Renly Baratheon's sexual orientation was no secret among people within this circle.
She was also well aware of the relationship between her brother, "the Knight of Flowers" Loras Tyrell, and Renly.
But no matter what, when faced with actions like Kal's, as a man in the public eye, he should at least have made some kind of response.
Yet his actions were precisely this light and dismissive, giving no response at all to Kal's "provocation," where one would expect one.
"Perhaps he has confidence in Garlan."
Margaery said words that even she herself did not quite believe.
Seeing this situation, Kal pondered for a long time yet still could not arrive at any clear conclusion.
Helplessly, he could only set this matter aside for the time being.
As for the letter from Old Oak, that was very simple.
It demanded that Kal hand over Margaery Tyrell, and at the same time formally declared war on him.
Only the tone had shifted—from what had previously felt like a mere formality to something genuinely earnest.
After all, the letter Kal had had the maester of Crakehall send out to the Seven Kingdoms had already explained everything.
Coupled with the fact that he had now seized Crakehall, the overt relationship between him and House Tyrell could be considered openly torn apart.
"I will be ready."
Kal smiled, then reached out and flicked the letter with a finger.
...
Time passed in a flash, and the next day arrived.
But Kal, who had just gotten out of bed with Margaery Tyrell, did not even have time to put on clothes before he went straight to the window, raised his head, and looked up at the sky outside.
In the Westerlands, the sun had not yet risen, yet across the sky there was conspicuously a comet trailing a long tail.
In that blue-purple sky that was still dark, where the comet had swept past, it was as if a wound had been cut open, casting a purplish-red glow, the color like blood weeping in the depths of the darkness.
"The red comet!"
Kal had never expected the red comet to arrive so quickly. Although he had long anticipated it, when he truly witnessed the brilliant comet stretching across the sky with his own eyes, his heart was still shaken.
The magic tide surged again, overflowing with even denser magic particles, like an eager lover.
In the private room, Margaery—who had never seen such emotion on Kal—snuggled up to him, her arms wrapped around his waist, and also lifted her head to look at the comet outside in the night sky, just on the verge of dawn.
"What is this? Why are you so surprised?"
Looking at the comet in the sky, Margaery Tyrell did not know why, but she felt an inexplicable, timid unease in her heart.
Margaery's arrival and her question pulled Kal back from his astonishment.
He lowered his head and stroked Margaery's smooth hair twice, his tone somewhat deep as he said, "This is an omen."
"An omen?"
"You mean this comet is foreshadowing something?"
In response to Margaery Tyrell's question, Kal put away the surprise on his face and instead became more composed.
"It is foreshadowing that I will become the Emperor of Westeros, not some so-called ruler of the Seven Kingdoms, nor any kind of king."
Hearing his words, Margaery's expression shifted several times. She hesitated to speak, and in the end, subconsciously nestled her face against his chest, turning her cheek to look out the window at that blood-weeping star.
She recalled the words the man in her arms had told her a few days earlier—throughout history, any change in laws and any reform has, without exception, begun with bloodshed and sacrifice. At this moment, outside the window, that comet—mixed with blood, flames, and the terrifying color of a setting sun—was breaking through the darkness, bringing dawn to the world, just like this omen.
An emperor?
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