The Shivering Sea.
Beneath a deep-blue sea shrouded in thin mist, several white whales surfaced, spraying tall columns of white water into the air.
They swam peacefully through the deep sea, enjoying the tranquility of the early morning.
But that tranquility lasted only for a moment.
A gigantic, silent black shadow suddenly tore through the leaden sky.
Placidusax dove from a hundred meters above, its sharp talons moving with astonishing speed as they seized the largest and fattest of the white whales.
Black flames erupted.
The whale died instantly.
Placidusax then carried the roasted whale high into the sky before releasing it from its claws.
It dove again, circling the falling whale and opening its enormous jaws.
In midair, it swallowed its meal.
In the blink of an eye, only scraps of flesh remained, falling into the sea below.
Again and again, the process repeated.
Until—
Placidusax finally released a satisfied cry after filling its belly.
"Roar!"
Sitting on its back, Galon could not help clicking his tongue in amazement.
'No wonder the Cannibal managed to survive for so long. It can hunt sea creatures in the deep ocean.'
'Come to think of it, that makes sense.'
'If it could only hunt for food on Skagos, the island would have been completely stripped bare after a hundred years.'
'After all, it's already much older than Balerion the Black Dread.'
Galon stroked Placidusax's warm scales.
Through the spiritual connection between them, he could sense the dragon's condition.
Placidusax was already extremely old.
It was even older than Sheepstealer, the other wild dragon, and its lifespan had now approached two hundred and eighty years.
Dragons possessed a peculiar trait: they never stopped growing.
At least, not until they reached the limits of their lifespan.
Over the past few years, however, Placidusax's appetite had noticeably declined.
Its rate of growth had decreased year after year, until now, when it had stopped growing altogether.
If nothing unexpected happened, it was already approaching the end of its life.
At most, it had another two or three years before it became so old that it could no longer fly.
Then it would die.
But—
After Galon used the power of the Old Gods to bind his soul to Placidusax and establish a symbiotic connection, everything changed.
The bloodline of the Children of the Forest inherited from the Green Seer had already given Galon an exceptionally long lifespan, comparable to that of the Children of the Forest.
Now, through their connection to the Old Gods, he shared his lifespan with Placidusax.
The dragon that had lived for more than two hundred and seventy years suddenly regained its vitality.
From this moment onward, man and dragon had achieved true "life and death together."
'Now that you and I share the same life...'
'I wonder how large you'll become by the time our lives finally come to an end.'
Galon sighed softly, anticipation flashing through his eyes.
Sensing the hope in his master's heart, Placidusax once again beat its wings and let out a joyful roar.
At more than two hundred and seventy years old, its size had already surpassed that of the two-hundred-year-old Balerion.
With every beat of its wings, it resembled a terrifying black castle floating through the skies.
"With you, what does it matter if Daenerys has three dragons?"
"Once the Others are wiped out, House Targaryen will be nothing more than an ant beneath our feet. We can crush them whenever we please."
"Placidusax!"
"Let us conquer this world together!"
Roar!
Responding to Galon's ambition, the dragon let out a joyous roar.
Carrying Galon on its back, it raced toward the distant silhouette of Skagos.
Two hours later.
A massive shadow once again covered the village.
Under the horrified gazes of Sparta and his people, Placidusax descended from the clouds and landed at the entrance to the Skagosi village.
But when they saw the person jumping down from the dragon's back, their eyes widened in disbelief.
"Lord Galon?!"
One of Glover's guards shouted in surprise and delight.
Galon smiled and nodded.
Sparta's lips moved several times as he tried to say something.
But when he saw the enormous creature behind Galon, fear rendered him speechless.
"Sparta, there's no need to be afraid... Placidusax is my companion now. It won't hurt you anymore."
Galon turned sideways and gently stroked Placidusax's warm scales.
Then, beneath Sparta's horrified gaze, the terrifying dragon actually lowered itself peacefully to the ground.
"This... this..."
The Skagosi elder standing behind Sparta was even more dumbfounded.
He simply could not believe his eyes.
Only last night—
He had confidently told Sparta that the northerner had surely been thrown to his death by the dragon and turned into dragon dung.
But now—
That same northerner had actually subdued the dragon!
"Gods above!"
"Could he really be the son of the gods?!"
For a moment, the elder's legs went weak.
He fell to his knees and began praying devoutly.
Seeing him, the other Skagosi in the village also knelt and began muttering prayers of their own.
At this moment, Galon's other guards finally suppressed their fear and awe.
They cautiously approached him.
"Lord Galon, your... your sword!"
One of the guards handed over the Ice Greatsword that Galon had dropped the previous day.
His eyes still darted nervously toward the dragon's scales, which shifted slightly with every breath.
Two other guards followed while carrying the damaged dragonbinder.
"Relax. It won't hurt you."
Galon smiled.
He glanced at the damaged dragonbinder before repeating his reassurance.
He took Ice and fastened it around his waist again.
Then he looked at the horn before turning his gaze toward Sparta.
"Chief Sparta!"
He called out.
Then he solemnly addressed everyone before him.
"According to the ancient pact between Skagos and Winterfell, I promised to help you remove the dragon.
Now that the oath has been fulfilled, you are free to continue living on this island.
However, Sparta..."
Galon paused.
He looked toward the tens of thousands of Skagosi before him, determination flashing in his eyes.
"A great war in the North is approaching... Are you willing to fight for me?
If you are, Winterfell and I will continue to protect you."
Sparta finally came back to himself.
He immediately dropped to one knee and loudly proclaimed his oath.
"Lord Protector, you have mastered a dragon. You are the Lord of Dragons!"
"The Skagosi will remain loyal to you forever!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the elder behind Sparta also raised his head.
"That's right, Lord of Dragons. You saved us. You saved the people of Skagos."
"We Skagosi will honor our oath and fight for you!"
In an instant, every Skagosi in the village began shouting the title together.
"Lord of Dragons!"
"Lord of Dragons!"
Their voices were so tremendous that even Placidusax, lying on the ground, raised its head and looked around.
Seeing this, Galon patted Placidusax and signaled for it to return to its lair.
Then—
He quickly stepped forward and personally helped Sparta and the elder to their feet, smiling as he did so.
"In that case, I will give this horn to you."
"Let it serve as a reminder of the oath between you and me."
Galon took the dragonbinder from one of Glover's guards and solemnly handed it to Sparta.
Sparta accepted the horn, excitement flashing through his eyes.
"My lord, the Skagosi will never betray our oath to you!"
Hearing this, Galon burst into laughter.
At this moment, the other Skagosi also rose after seeing the dragon fly away.
Then—
At Sparta and the elder's enthusiastic invitation, Galon entered the village with them and lived alongside the Skagosi for several days.
During that time, he fought the Skagosi warriors in friendly contests.
The Skagosi worshipped strength, and after Galon thoroughly convinced their warriors, he learned much more about their people.
Under the pressure of the dragon, the various clans of Skagos had gradually merged into one.
Furthermore, under the pressure of survival, their civilization had begun developing further.
By now, they had almost completely abandoned their former barbaric customs.
The reason they had gained the reputation of being "cannibals" was entirely because they had fed passing pirates and merchants to the dragon.
Galon did not particularly care about that.
What interested him was the enormous amount of dragonglass found on Skagos.
During his free time over those few days, Galon rode Placidusax and explored nearly the entire island.
'The Others are approaching with every passing day.'
'Dragonstone is also far too distant from the North. Processing dragonglass into weapons and transporting them north would take a great deal of time.'
'We might as well begin mining the dragonglass on Skagos first.'
After carefully considering the matter, Galon immediately sought out the Skagosi elders.
After a round of negotiations, the two sides reached an agreement.
The North would provide the Skagosi with the necessities of life, while the Skagosi would exchange them for obsidian.
Once the agreement was settled, Galon had his guards slowly return to Winterfell by ship.
He, meanwhile, summoned Placidusax and took to the skies.
Only a few days later—
Riding the dragon, Galon once again arrived at Castle Black.
When Placidusax's enormous body completely covered Castle Black, everyone stared blankly at the sky.
"A dragon!"
"It's a dragon!"
When the black dragon's enormous body finally appeared in full view, Tywin and Jaime could no longer suppress their fear.
They immediately ordered the men to retreat into the tunnel beneath the Wall.
But the aged Maester Aemon stood alone on the terrace in the center of the fortress, completely ignoring the danger.
His entire body trembled.
He raised his head and widened his cloudy eyes as he watched the black dragon slowly descend outside Castle Black.
When Maester Aemon saw Galon leap from the dragon's back, he froze.
'Glover?'
'How can it be Glover?! He has no Targaryen blood. How can he ride a dragon?'
'Wait... could his mother have been a Targaryen?'
Maester Aemon desperately searched through his memories of Deepwood Motte and everything he knew about Glover.
But after thinking for a long time—
The only thing he could remember was that Galon's father was Gawen Glover.
He could not remember who Galon's mother was.
'Strange... Who exactly was Glover's mother?'
While Maester Aemon was racking his brain over the question, the others finally recognized the figure standing before the dragon.
"It's the Lord Protector!"
"Lord Protector!"
"Gods above! The Lord Protector has conquered a dragon!"
Castle Black erupted into an uproar.
Tywin and Jaime, who had been running toward the tunnel beneath the Wall, immediately stopped.
They turned around hesitantly.
With a single glance, they saw the handsome, imposing man standing before the dragon.
"It really is him?!"
"He actually conquered another dragon?!"
"Could Glover really be the gods' own son?"
Tywin and Jaime exchanged glances.
For a moment, both men were completely numb. They had no idea how they were supposed to react.
"Everyone, don't worry."
"This dragon is my companion. It won't hurt you."
Galon took a breath and raised his voice.
His booming voice echoed across the fortress.
Only then did the Night's Watch and Glover's soldiers cautiously emerge from their hiding places one by one.
They stared at the enormous, fearsome black dragon.
Then they looked at Galon, standing calmly before it.
An indescribable tremor swept through their bodies.
Galon stroked Placidusax and instructed it not to move.
Then, beneath the worshipful and fervent gazes of everyone around him, he walked toward Tywin and Jaime.
"Lord Tywin, has anything unusual happened at Castle Black recently?"
Tywin stared at the distant dragon and instinctively swallowed.
He forced a bitter smile.
"If my lord had not suddenly arrived riding a dragon..."
"Then everything at Castle Black would be normal."
He did not know how to describe his current state of mind.
He could only shake his head and force himself to remain composed.
"Recently, some wildlings have been trickling down from beyond the Wall. We've driven them back."
"But the rangers have discovered that the Others beyond the Wall seem to be increasing in number."
Galon nodded, pretending not to notice Tywin's shock.
"That's precisely why I've come."
"Shortly, I will ride the dragon into the Haunted Forest and capture as many Others as possible, then send them to King's Landing."
"Once the Others are in their hands, King Gendry and the southern lords will believe the reports."
"The support of the Seven Kingdoms will soon arrive at the Wall."
When Tywin heard that Galon intended to "ride a dragon to capture Others," his throat instinctively tightened.
After a moment of hesitation, he asked,
"Lord Protector, when do you intend to leave?"
"Now."
Galon answered without hesitation.
"The invasion of the Others is a struggle between the living and the dead."
"Every moment we delay will cause enormous losses to the kingdoms behind us."
"Lord Tywin, after I leave, Castle Black will remain in your hands."
"You must protect this line of defense."
Tywin solemnly nodded.
Seeing this, Galon immediately turned and walked toward Placidusax.
A moment later—
The dragon took flight, carrying Galon toward the Shadow Tower.
"Lord Tywin."
At that moment, Maester Aemon approached Tywin from the fortress, his body trembling.
He had originally wanted to speak with Glover for a while longer, but he had not expected Galon to leave so quickly.
Now he looked at Tywin and asked quietly,
"How much do you know about Glover?"
Tywin froze.
A trace of suspicion flashed through his eyes.
By now, who in Westeros did not know that Tywin Lannister had been defeated by Glover and consequently donned the black?
When it came to his former opponent, Tywin understood Galon better than almost anyone.
"What do you mean by that, Maester Aemon?"
He asked without revealing anything.
Aemon touched the chain around his neck.
"I have served at the Wall for many years, yet I never knew the North had produced such a..."
"hero."
"So I would like to learn more about Lord Glover's history."
Tywin studied the old maester for a long moment but detected nothing unusual.
After thinking it over, he said,
"Maester, let us discuss this inside."
"What would you like to know?"
Aemon slowly turned around, pretending to be indifferent.
"Hmm..."
"Perhaps you could begin with Glover's parents."
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