Viserys knew, of course, that his feigned mystery would stir speculation in some, perhaps even prompting a reaction.
But it didn't matter. He had other explanations ready and waiting for Illyrio to pry into. The longer Illyrio took, the more perfect his justifications would become, the more they would align with the original body's understanding.
This was the natural advantage of a transmigrator: using the outcome to reverse-engineer the logic. Combined with the original's memories and a bit of conspiracy theory, if he couldn't come up with a few sets of explanations to buy himself time, he might as well follow the original plot and wait to be melted by molten gold.
But verbal trickery was ultimately a minor skill, and without the support of strength, it could only muddle things for a while.
The most pressing matter now was to study the Dragonbone Pendant he'd swindled from Illyrio.
The Dragonbone Pendant was very light, made from a small piece of onyx-like, jet-black bone. The broken end was inlaid with crystal-clear gems, and the chain was a delicate silver weave. The craftsmanship was exquisite.
But Viserys was a man who would burn a zither to cook a crane. In his eyes, there was only that jet-black bone. He practically wanted to tear off the gems and the silver chain.
Viserys's task was "collect." This meant the "Dragon Soul" was scattered. And this piece of bone gave him a strange feeling when he touched it, so he was certain there must be something related to the Dragon Soul within.
But unfortunately, a simple touch couldn't awaken the Dragon Soul potentially hidden within. The sensation was peculiar, unreal. Viserys believed it was a mystical touch, a reaction caused by the power dormant within him.
But how could he utilize this reaction, how could he tap into the power within? Viserys began to experiment.
He first took out the Dagger he carried – the only sharp object he possessed. In his memories, Viserys had originally owned a sword, but he sold it to survive. Fortunately, he'd kept a dagger for self-defense.
He gently sliced his fingertip, squeezed out some blood, and smeared it on the black Dragonbone.
This was likely a common attempt for any transmigrator faced with a treasure they didn't know how to use.
Alas, the Dragonbone showed no change, it didn't absorb the blood and shine brightly.
But Viserys wasn't discouraged. He brought the blood-stained Dragonbone close to his nose and carefully sniffed the scent.
After much hesitation, he stuck out his tongue and licked the blood-stained area.
The first thing he tasted was a sickening sweetness. He couldn't tell if it was the iron corrosion from the dragonbone, his own blood, or the dried, gummy substance the artisans had used to polish the bone.
It was a risky move, to say the least. Fortunately, it didn't work. If it had, he'd be vulnerable to poison in the future.
Despite the failed attempt, the idea of a similar approach lingered. In the previous world, he'd triggered a change by swallowing materials. So, he wondered if he should try swallowing this stuff.
Viserys quickly poured himself a glass of wine – a low-alcohol, fermented beverage. It was sour and slightly sweet, meant for quenching thirst. Among the powerful, the choices were usually wine, lemonade, or tea.
Viserys began scraping some dragonbone fragments with his Dagger, mixing them into the wine. He shook it well and then drank it all down.
Still nothing.
Since it was ineffective, the idea of swallowing the dragonbone was dismissed entirely.
The dragonbone in the world of ice and fire wasn't a small quantity, and it was fundamentally different from the magical elemental materials he had swallowed before.
The Gleeok King's material he swallowed was a pure magical element polymer. When magical element monsters from Hyrule were killed, they would vanish and leave no body behind, only the purest magical element materials from their bodies, such as eyes, horns, livers, hearts, and wings.
In the world of A Song of Ice and Fire, dragon bodies were made of flesh and magic, not pure magical element creations, and what remained after death were not the purest magical element materials from their bodies.
If he relied on swallowing, Viserys might die of indigestion before he could obtain the tiny bit of magical element, possibly a Dragon Soul, contained in the dragonbone.
Things with mystical significance in this world should be obtained through mystical methods.
Viserys remembered that the world of Ice and Fire had sorcerers, magic, and even gods, and dragons were just one of them.
There must be a way to extract the Dragon Soul from the dragonbone.
Should I try boiling it?
Viserys suddenly had an idea, but he quickly dismissed it. Dragonbone was heat-resistant, and if it were that simple during the crafting process, it would have been discovered long ago.
Thinking from the perspective of alchemy, Viserys felt that he might need some kind of magical extract to extract the Dragon Soul from the dragonbone.
Speaking of magical extraction, Viserys thought of ethanol, or alcohol, as the best organic solvent on Earth.
So, is it necessary to produce alcohol to try this out? Do the alchemists of this world use alcohol to extract magical elements?
The current situation didn't allow for such an experiment, but Viserys made a mental note of the idea. If he couldn't find another way, he would try it in the future.
And so, everything went back to square one.
Viserys stroked the black Dragonbone Pendant, lost in thought.
He was a little uncomfortable.
Touching the Dragonbone Pendant, he could clearly feel that strange touch, like feathers lightly brushing across his soul.
This feeling of being tantalized, like watching a woman undress behind a glass screen, made him want to scratch his head.
"No way!"
Viserys released his grip, letting the Dragonbone Pendant slide onto the table. Then he closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and slowly exhaled.
Several simple attempts had failed, but he couldn't afford to be impatient.
This was a situation he had anticipated.
The mission information was "collect," and it was in a world like A Song of Ice and Fire. According to the original story, magical elements wouldn't be very active until the Red Comet appeared.
So it's normal that I can't find a method right away. Be patient!
In the previous world, when he had transmigrated, the chosen swordsman was still asleep, and the Gleeok King was nowhere to be seen. He waited for several years, until the swordsman awoke and Hyrule underwent a dramatic transformation, before the opportunity presented itself.
And now, he had only been in this world for a day and a half.
What he needed to do now was to wait patiently.
According to the original storyline, the Targaryen siblings would stay with Illyrio for the better part of a year. Then, they would spend nearly a year migrating across the Dothraki Sea before the Red Comet appeared.
That meant he might have to wait a year and a half.
Here, Viserys had to deal with the scheming Illyrio and Varys, the Spider, lurking in the shadows, both of whom were suspected to be behind the various conspiracies of the world of ice and fire.
Viserys had already had contact with Illyrio, so that was no longer a concern.
As for Varys, the Spider, who was secretly lurking in the shadows, he was the current King of Westeros's intelligence chief and head of spies. In the original story, he had numerous informants, and it seemed that almost no secret or conspiracy could escape his eyes, making him a dangerous figure.
They had orchestrated the marriage of Daenerys and Khal Drogo, aiming to use the beggar king to borrow the Dothraki's army and let him stir up trouble in Westeros.
As for their true intentions, it was to pave the way for the "false Aegon," whom they truly supported.
At least, that was the surface appearance.
Because Martin hadn't finished the books before the transmigration, Viserys didn't dare to blindly trust those unsubstantiated guesses.
Some people said they were "Blackfyre," and that the Aegon they supported in secret was the "Dragon" that Daenerys saw.
"Blackfyre" was originally the name of a Valyrian steel longsword, a type of sword, passed down through the Targaryen family in history.
Later, "The Unworthy King" Aegon chose to pass it down to his bastard son, who took "Blackfyre" as his surname and established the "Blackfyre" family. Later, due to the Unworthy King's various foolish actions, the Blackfyre family rebelled, vying for the Iron Throne. After their failure, the remnants of the Blackfyre family fled to the Free Cities – a common destination for those who failed in Westeros.
Many readers on Earth suspected that Illyrio and Varys were "Blackfyre," and that their support for the Targaryen remnants was to stir up trouble in Westeros, and then reap the benefits.
As for the "Dragon," it was even more complicated. The "Dragon" was a small part of the many prophecies that Daenerys saw in the House of the Undying in the original novel. It was generally believed to be the "fake Aegon" secretly supported by Illyrio and Varys – the "Aegon" mentioned here was Aegon Targaryen, the son of Prince Rhaegar, the last crown prince of the Targaryen dynasty, and Elia Martell, the legitimate queen, not the bastard Jon Snow from the TV series.
In the original novel, it was initially said that the young Aegon was killed when King's Landing fell, his head smashed against a wall by the Mountain while still in his cradle. Later, Varys claimed that young Aegon hadn't died, but rather a child from a peasant family had been killed in his place. The real Aegon was secretly sent across the Narrow Sea and raised by Jon Connington, a friend of Rhaegar.
Some readers believed that this "fake Aegon" was actually Illyrio's son.
Simply put, Illyrio supported Viserys Targaryen to pave the way for the "Aegon" he truly backed.
Viserys's opponents were like a layered cake: Illyrio was the first layer, Varys the second, and then there was Aegon.
In short, the situation was complicated, a deep pit.
If possible, Viserys wanted to jump out of this pit.
Unfortunately, his first attempt had failed; the Dragonbone Pendant didn't seem to save him from his predicament.
Since the Dragon Soul couldn't come up with a solution immediately, he could only activate his backup plan.
Thinking this, Viserys casually rolled up the pendant and tied it to his wrist. Then, he stood up and began to exercise in the spacious room.
Under the stimulation of seeing what he couldn't have, the skin's close contact with the dragonbone was, of course, very uncomfortable. But what if, through subtle influence, it could successfully activate some kind of power?
Endure.
Viserys had to endure until he grew accustomed to the contact.
The original owner of this body had learned some martial arts, but after a life of wandering and starvation, he was now as thin as firewood, utterly weak. He had forgotten almost everything except how to hold a sword.
But it didn't matter. In his previous world, the transmigrator had honed his martial skills for years to slay dragons, mastering fists and feet, single swords, two-handed swords, spears, hammers, and axes. His greatest skill was archery; after all, explosive arrows, lightning arrows, and freezing arrows were incredibly useful in that world. Of course, Viserys didn't expect this gaunt body to be able to train to fight ten men at once in a short time. He just needed to ensure he had a certain degree of ability to fight back.
While traveling by ship, Viserys carefully memorized the route and also roughly assessed the defenses of Illyrio's courtyard.
At the very least, if things went wrong, he needed the strength to jump over the courtyard wall, dive into the sea, and then swim back through the secret passage under the courtyard to launch a surprise attack.
....
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