Asio Copin
The following months were busy and productive.
First and foremost, he founded his own trading company and named it House Copin. At his disposal was the galley Whisper of the Waves, along with a couple of other ships—slower, but far more spacious.
King Joffrey bestowed upon him a remarkable favor. All goods entering King's Landing were subject to various duties and taxes, which, depending on the cargo, ranged from ten to twenty-five percent. The king halved these payments for House Copin, obliging Asio to pass the remainder on to Orm.
What was ten percent—or even less—of the value of goods? A trifle, a barely perceptible speck of dust.
Asio did not see it that way. What the king had granted him was a tremendous strategic advantage. From this, he could make vast sums of money, especially considering thatnearly half a million souls dwelt in King's Landing, and the capital itself was a wide open gateway to all of Westeros. And all the people there wanted everything—to eat, to drink, to fuck, to dress well, and to spend coin on countless trinkets and indulgences.
He knew what was in demand in the capital. He knew where and when to buy it, how to transport it, and how to sell it at the greatest profit. He knew everything about the flow of goods into King's Landing and understood precisely what demand depended on—and when trade was most lucrative. After all, he had done this work under Varys.
And after Illyrio Mopatis's murder, he had traveled through nearly all the Free Cities. Asio Copin cast his net wide, hauling in whatever happened to be caught. At times, the catch proved truly worthwhile.
Stannis Baratheon's fleet had sailed from Braavos shortly before Asio arrived there. The pretender to the Iron Throne had attempted to secure the support of the Iron Bank—but without much success. Half of his bannermen had abandoned him, and with those who remained, he had set sail for the Wall. Rumor had it that Stannis was running dangerously low on funds, and the priestess Melisandre could do little to aid him—the bankers were hardly swayed by hazy allusions to R'hllor and the new Azor Ahai. A report of this, carried by a trusted man, was dispatched to Harald Orm.
In Lys, Asio succeeded in recruiting a highly useful individual—a member of the city council. In ancient Volantis, he purchased the eyes and ears of an officer serving in the retinue of triarch Malaquo Maegyr.
Meanwhile, other matters were far from stagnant. Westeros itself was boiling like a pot set upon the fire. King Joffrey led his army personally and swiftly managed to take Riverrun, which served as further confirmation that Asio's choice had been the correct one.
The king's father-in-law, Mace Tyrell, captured Storm's End. Together with the fleet under the command of Lord Redwyne, they prepared to return to the island of the Arbor.
Rumors reached them that the Lord Reaper of the Iron Islands had died, and that all the warriors had gathered to choose a new ruler.
Intriguing news also came from King's Landing, which Asio had not had the opportunity to visit during this time. It appeared that a new force had emerged in both the city and the port—and was now steadily gaining ground.
The Gravediggers, a gang of unscrupulous bastards who made their living by plundering graves and looting wealthy crypts, were slaughtered to the last man one fine night. Six-Fingered Eg's sizable group vanished without a trace. These guys had owned stakes in several second-rate brothels, kidnapped people, and then illegally sold them to the Free Cities.
The Jester's men, who oversaw the illicit fighting pits, on the contrary began to prosper, and it seemed their affairs were steadily improving. In any case, it was clear they had found themselves a powerful patron.
From the outside, it all looked almost amusing. It seemed as if some confident, unseen hands were tidying up the city—destroying outright brutes and sadists, while allowing those with at least some shred of honor and rules of conduct to remain.
But of course, that was nonsense. All these bandits, thieves, and pirates—the so-called Port Brotherhood, gaudy with tattoos—claimed to live by a strict code, under which one of the gravest crimes was "snitching" and the leaking of important information. In reality, every second one of these so-called brothers—if not every first—was informing for someone. Asio knew this better than anyone.
A large fishing artel that owned several ships and had once worked for Varys changed hands. The pearl-divers working off Sharp Point soon followed suit.
Asio could clearly see who stood behind this redistribution of property. Everywhere he looked, he discerned the shadow of Harald Orm—and his king, whose power grew stronger with each passing day.
This came as no surprise. From Asio's perspective, this was precisely how matters ought to unfold.
The division of assets after the Spider's death had been swift and decisive. Part went to Harald Orm; part to the new master of whisperers, Lord Kevan Lannister. It seemed that Varys's people, realizing their former patron was gone—and almost certainly dead—had entered the service of their new master of their own free will.
Asio kept a watchful eye on his surroundings and knew how to seize the moment. A couple of his personal enemies—men he had not dared to touch while Varys and Mopatis still lived—were fed to the crabs.
The first stage went amazingly well, without a single misstep, and Asio Copin set out for King's Landing. He had much to tell Orm—he had learned a great many interesting things during this time. The information concerning the Golden Swords proved particularly important. King Joffrey had been right to order him to keep a close watch on them.
The situation with Daenerys Targaryen also raised troubling questions.
But there, everything was far more complicated.
(End of Chapter)
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