**The Rise of House Redwyne: A Bannerlord's Conquest**
**Volume I: The Vineyard Prince**
**Chapter 4: The Grapes of Wrath**
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### **Redwyne Keep – 273 AC**
The scent of vinegar and burnt herbs clung to the deathbed chamber. Lord Manfryd Redwyne's once-booming voice had been reduced to a wet rattle, his barrel chest rising in shallow spasms beneath the silk sheets. The maester had whispered the word *"poison"* when he thought Aemon couldn't hear.
Aemon stood at the bedside, watching the candlelight dance across his father's ashen face. At thirteen, he was about to become the youngest Lord of the Arbor in history.
*"The fleet..."* Manfryd's hand clutched at Aemon's wrist with surprising strength. *"Don't let them take our ships... the Tyrells... the Lannisters..."*
The grip slackened. The rattle ceased.
**[System Notification: House Head Status Updated]**
*New Title: Lord Aemon Redwyne*
*Inheritance: 5 Warships, 12 Merchant Vessels, 40,000 Gold Dragons*
*New Challenges: Succession Crisis Imminent*
Aemon turned to find his brother Alester standing in the doorway, flanked by six armed men wearing Lannister crimson beneath their cloaks.
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### **The Lion's Gambit**
The great hall thrummed with tension as Aemon took his father's seat for the first time. A hundred Redwyne vassals stood divided—half behind Aemon at the high table, half clustered around Alester near the hearth.
Ser Kevan Lannister stood at Alester's right hand, his golden beard glinting in the firelight.
*"The law is clear,"* Kevan declared, unrolling a parchment bearing the lion seal. *"By the precedents set after the Dance, a lord may name any son his heir. Lord Manfryd's final decree names Alester."*
Murmurs swept the hall. Aemon didn't need to see the document to know it was forged.
**[Crisis Event: Succession War]**
*Forces:*
- *Aemon's Loyalists: 200 Household Guards, 3 Warships*
- *Alester's Faction: 150 Lannister Swords, 2 Warships (Defected)*
*Allies:*
- *Tyrells: Neutral (For Now)*
- *Hightowers: Watching*
Aemon rose slowly, his hand resting on the pommel of his newly-forged sword.
*"Ser Kevan,"* he said, voice dripping with false courtesy, *"does House Lannister so hunger for Arbor gold that you'd make bastards of your own laws? The inheritance of the Reach has always flowed from firstborn to firstborn... unless the elder proves unfit."*
He snapped his fingers.
The doors burst open as Harren Salt-Eye dragged in a bruised Lyseni sailor.
*"This man,"* Aemon declared, *"will testify how my brother took Lannister gold to let pirates sack our ships last winter. How many sailors died for your ambition, brother?"*
Alester's face went white.
**[Skill Check: Leadership (Critical Success)]**
*Vassal Opinion Swings 60% Toward Aemon*
Kevan Lannister's hand drifted toward his sword—then froze as the sound of marching boots echoed from the courtyard.
Through the stained-glass windows, Aemon saw the banners of House Hightower streaming into the yard.
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### **Oldtown's Play**
Lord Leyton Hightower entered flanked by a dozen knights in silver-and-white. At 250 years old, the Hightower loomed over every power struggle in the Reach.
*"This squabble ends now,"* Leyton intoned. *"The Citadel has examined Lord Manfryd's will. The ink was fresh when his hand was cold."* His gaze swept to Kevan. *"The Lannisters will quit the Reach by nightfall, or answer to the full might of Oldtown."*
As Kevan stormed out, Aemon met Leyton's calculating stare. The unspoken message was clear: *This debt will be called.*
**[Succession Secured]**
*Rewards:*
- *Gained 2 Lannister Warships (Abandoned in Harbor)*
- *New Vassal Loyalty: 75%*
- *Rival Gained: House Lannister (Grudge Level: Blood Feud)*
But as Aemon stood on the battlements watching the Lannister sails retreat, his master-at-arms brought grim news:
*"Pirates are massing near the Stepstones. They say Salladhor Saan has sworn to hang your guts from his mast."*
Aemon smiled.
*"Good. Let them come."*
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### **Next Chapter Preview:**
- **The Battle of Redwyne Straits** – 5 ships against 20
- **A Drunken Lion's Revenge** – Tyrion Lannister's cunning play
- **The Iron Price** – An unexpected alliance with the Greyjoys
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