Chapter 78 - Secrets.
[Chapter Size: 2600 Words.]
Third Person POV.
Westeros.
...
...
It was nighttime, while the guards of the Red Keep remained vigilant at the castle gates. Everything seemed normal, and none of them noticed the figure moving calmly toward them until a strange and sudden noise from the other side caught the attention of one of the guards.
"What was that?" he asked, trying to identify the sound.
Meanwhile, Jon was already inside the castle grounds without any of them seeing him pass behind.
"Well, now that I'm here, I'd better head straight to the Tower of the Hand."
With that decision, Jon advanced toward one of the structures of the Red Keep.
He saw a group of guards that were not Stark men standing at the entrance—probably some visitors for his uncle. He walked past them, blending in with the servants and other patrolling guards before entering the location.
He was now in the Tower of the Hand, moving forward until, before stepping into the corridor, he paused for a moment, observing the old pillars while people approached the hallway.
"You should have gone to the ladies' tea, Arya! The queen asked about you and said your absence was highly inappropriate for a young lady of a great lord like Lord Stark, for an entire year."
Sansa's voice rang out, sounding displeased as she and the others neared Jon's position.
"Do you think I care? I was training with my dancing master! I'd much rather be training than sitting in a meeting with a bunch of fools!" the younger girl growled.
"Don't call the queen a fool, Arya!" Sansa retorted, even more displeased.
"Never say that again, never!"
The stern voice came from behind them, and Arya immediately fell silent, seeming to realize her mistake—she had to have limits too.
As they passed through the corridor, the two Stark girls walked accompanied by a third, silent figure—Jeyne Poole—along with some guards and Septa Mordane right behind them, overseeing their conversation.
Jon raised an eyebrow at the sight but ignored the scene and continued on his way. He climbed the tower, passing all the guards unnoticed until he found something interesting: a closed room guarded by none other than Jory Cassel and three soldiers at the entrance—the very man who was Lord Stark's personal guard in Winterfell.
"That's obviously where my uncle is," Jon murmured to himself, evaluating the situation.
"Now… How do I get in there?"
Before he could formulate a plan, he heard a sound beside him. He looked curiously and noticed a wall close to his face while raising an eyebrow. The noise was faint, but his ears picked up the steps of people nearby—apparently barefoot.
He stepped closer and lightly touched the surface, feeling that it was hollow.
"A secret passage?"
Jon narrowed his eyes and activated his magical sight. His eyes glowed, allowing him to see all living beings around him, even behind walls and objects.
He observed the guards standing still at the entrance of the room and, inside, saw two people engaged in conversation.
"Lord Stark is with someone… Seems like he doesn't want to be interrupted."
At the same time, he noticed something curious. There were two children, judging by their silhouettes, hidden within the walls, eavesdropping on the entire conversation.
"Interesting…"
Jon murmured while inspecting the wall, trying to find the entrance to the hiding place.
He scanned the structure with his enchanted eyes until he located a trapdoor on the floor.
Quickly, he used his telekinesis to move a cabinet over the trapdoor, masking the sound of the movement. Then, he opened the passage and descended, landing in a small space. Using his magic, he sealed the entrance without leaving any trace and began climbing the stairs to return to the hallway level and enter the secret passage.
The darkness did not bother him, and he advanced effortlessly until he reached his destination: the hidden side of the Hand's solar. From there, he could hear the conversation clearly and also see the two spying children.
"Two little spies… I've never seen anything like this."
The Dragonborn murmured to himself.
Without wanting to be detected, he moved quickly and grabbed one of the children by surprise. The little spy let out a small whimper but was immediately silenced as he was lifted by an invisible force. He and his companion were pulled toward Jon, who observed them with interest from beneath his hood, remaining unseen.
"Strange... You don't scream. I see... they cut your tongues."
He murmured, watching the terrified children. He noticed they had no tongues—they had been cut out, making them perfect for this kind of work, yet it was also incredibly cruel. He simply made them crash into each other with enough force to knock them out, leaving them unconscious on the ground.
"These people use this kind of espionage?"
Jon couldn't help but murmur to himself, finding it disturbing.
Leaving the children aside, he returned to listening to the conversation, searching for any other signs of movement nearby. There was no one else in the immediate area, but it was possible that more children were hidden in the corridors or other parts of the Red Keep, including the Tower of the Hand itself.
"I'm telling you, Lord Stark, you must be careful!"
A voice emerged from the other side of the wall.
"You speak as if it were easy," Lord Stark replied.
"I'm only saying this because I'm your friend. I'm doing this for Catelyn—I want to help her husband."
The voice responded, laden with concern.
"Someone has to..."
Lord Stark answered.
"You truly are an honorable man, Lord Stark. I wish I were like that."
The person said, seeming moved—but it was a lie. Just from the tone, it was clear he was mocking.
"But even so, you know so much and have never pursued this further."
Ned Stark spoke in a severe tone.
"What more could I do? I'm just a piece in this game. If I were discovered investigating this, I'd already be dead! Didn't Jon Arryn fall for this very reason?"
Petyr Baelish said.
"Whatever... I still need more proof to show Robert."
Ned said firmly.
"Alright, I understand your situation, but I would also be careful. You can't trust just anyone... not even me."
Petyr said in an enigmatic tone.
"After all, King's Landing is not a place to trust people. I say this from personal experience."
With those words, he turned and left the room, leaving Lord Stark alone.
Jon remained there, listening to his uncle sigh. He stayed in place for another ten minutes until he found an opening to look directly into the room. He observed Lord Stark, who seemed engrossed in a book, flipping through its pages before sighing, standing up, and walking to the door with the aid of a cane.
"I'm going to dinner with my daughters."
He said as he opened the door and left, accompanied by his guards.
Jon was thoughtful for a moment before a small smile formed on his lips.
"Interesting..."
Quickly, he found a passage into the room, though it was a bit narrow. However, for him, entering was no problem.
Now inside his uncle's study, he used a sound-concealment spell and reinforced the door to prevent any interruptions. He walked over to the book Ned had been reading and quickly identified the marked page. The pages were crumpled, indicating that this information was crucial.
"The Lineage and Histories of the Great Houses of the Seven Kingdoms?"
Jon murmured as he read. His eyes scanned the pages and soon found the name of House Baratheon. Eddard Stark seemed particularly interested in this section. Upon closer examination, Jon noticed some notes written in the book's margins.
"Blue eyes and black hair..."
He murmured, seeing that this pattern repeated in all legitimate Baratheon children throughout generations. However, something caught his attention.
"Blue eyes and black hair here... blue eyes and black hair there..."
He continued reading and even found mentions of Baratheon and Lannister children through marriage—"Blue eyes and black hair."
Jon smiled, his eyes narrowing.
"So this is what's happening here... The lineage seems to end with green eyes and golden hair."
He couldn't help but comment.
"So the royal princes are all bastards. Is that what my dear uncle is investigating..."
His gaze fell upon a drawer. Opening it, he found several letters.
He picked up one and began to read, surprised. They were messages sent by different people about a supposed man with black hair and violet eyes, seen in Essos and various other kingdoms. Moreover, the letters mentioned that rewards were being offered for any information about him.
"So, he's looking for me?"
Jon let out a laugh. He didn't care if the two guards outside heard him. After all, there was nothing they could do against him. It was amusing that none of these letters were actually about him, and most were just men trying to make easy coin.
Among the letters, he also found a journal. He opened it and flipped through the pages, quickly discovering that Ned Stark had visited Silk Street in search of Robert Baratheon's bastards. In the journal, he recorded that all the children had black hair and blue eyes, exactly as described in the book Jon had read.
"Quite a spectacle..."
Jon murmured. And an even greater spectacle was about to begin. He saw no reason not to take part. Perhaps it would be even more fun to sow a little chaos.
A mischievous smile appeared on his face as he left the room after putting everything back in place and began exploring the castle. If there was something he could do, it was uncovering the secrets of those who lived there. After all, a grander spectacle than any other was about to unfold.
A few days later, on Silk Street...
"Hey, have you heard the rumors?"
A fisherman whispered to his companion while glancing around, making sure no one was listening.
"Of course! Everyone is talking about it. Seems like someone is spreading messages about the powerful people in the royal castle."
The second fisherman replied cautiously as they walked toward Blackwater Bay, hoping to catch something and have a meal for the day.
"We need to be careful. The guards are all on edge. They say the king is furious... And not just him! Every noble in the court is either enraged or shocked."
"Yeah, I saw that. A merchant told me about it."
They continued walking when suddenly a firm voice interrupted them.
"Hey, you two! Stop right there!"
A man dressed in red appeared, accompanied by a group of city guards. The two fishermen exchanged nervous glances as they saw him pointing at a piece of paper stuck to a nearby wall.
"You were standing right in front of this paper. That means you're the ones who put it up, aren't you?"
The fishermen looked at the sheet in confusion. It had bold, clear writing:
**[BEWARE OF GRAND MAESTER PYCELLE! He uses his position in the Red Keep to abuse young girls, especially those brought in for medical treatment under his care. Furthermore, for years, he has hired minors to satisfy his depraved desires, hiding his crimes under the court's protection.
That's not all! He was also responsible for opening the gates of King's Landing to the Lannisters during the city's sack 17 years ago. Your relatives and friends were killed because of that old man's betrayal!
How many more must suffer before he is punished?]**
The fishermen widened their eyes in shock. They had heard rumors about someone posting slander against the royal family and high lords on doors throughout the city.
"What?! We have nothing to do with this!"
"We can't even read, sir! It wasn't us!"
They were terrified.
"It wasn't you?"
The man frowned.
"Then why were you standing right here?"
He looked at the guards, who seemed just as suspicious. The city was descending into chaos, and the king, along with other important figures in the Red Keep, was livid.
They needed a culprit. Even if it was an innocent one.
"Wait! No, don't do this! We have families!"
The fishermen barely had time to react before the group of guards grabbed them and took them into custody.
In a rundown tavern…
"Hey, are you all listening?"
A man shouted, laughing loudly while appearing to be completely drunk.
"Did you hear? Someone said the queen sleeps with her own brother!"
He exclaimed, still laughing, while everyone around him froze in shock. Clearly, they had all heard the rumors before, but no one dared to say it out loud in public.
"Stop, you idiot! What are you trying to do?"
The innkeeper yelled angrily. But it was already too late.
The door of the tavern was suddenly kicked open, exploding inward, and in that instant, several men dressed in red stormed into the place.
"We heard everything! Arrest him! And take the innkeeper too!"
One of them roared.
"Wait! I have nothing to do with this! It was this drunk fool who said it!"
Everyone in the tavern was left stunned by the aggression of the red-cloaked men.
By the riverbanks…
"Hey, yesterday I heard a man saying that Varys uses children as spies. He cuts out their tongues and teaches them to write so they can report every detail. Do you believe that?"
A woman murmured to another while washing clothes in the river, looking around cautiously to make sure no one else was listening.
"Yes... I also heard that Petyr Baelish only sleeps with women who have red hair because he has a fantasy about being with Catelyn Stark, the Hand of the King's wife."
"Who is spreading such rumors?"
The other woman whispered, worried about how everything seemed to be spiraling out of control.
The streets of Silk Street were packed with guards, far more than at any other time. They searched everything and anyone who seemed suspicious, but no matter how many they arrested, the rumors continued to spread like wildfire.
In the main square of Silk Street…
A large crowd gathered before a group of soldiers.
"Any slander against our lords will be punished with the loss of the tongue or even decapitation!"
The commander of the City Watch, Janos Slynt, roared, his voice echoing through the square. He had been forced to gather that crowd to send a final warning.
The queen was furious. The rumors that she slept with her brother and even with her cousin were spreading throughout the city, driving her to the brink of madness and panic—but the worst part had yet to reach her ears.
And then, a new voice rose from within the crowd.
"And what about the princes? Aren't they bastards? They don't have black hair and blue eyes like all the other Baratheons! They are Lannisters, born from incest between two siblings!"
The voice roared in the middle of the square, making everyone instantly turn toward its source.
"Who said that?!"
Janos Slynt looked panicked. His eyes scanned the crowd, and he immediately ordered:
"Arrest whoever said that! Quickly! Grab everyone before the person escapes!"
The voice had been so loud that everyone had heard it.
The guards rushed into the crowd, grabbing people at random, desperately trying to find the culprit.
But it didn't matter how many they arrested.
It was too late. The rumor had already been unleashed.
And once again, the whispers returned with even greater force. New revelations were emerging, threatening the very heart of the kingdom.
Inside the Red Keep, chaos was only just beginning.
-------------Nexts Chapters ----------------
Chapter 83 - Who would do something like this, shocking everyone.
Chapter 88 - The werewolf appears in King's Landing.
Chapter 98 - Do you want to challenge me, Robb Stark?
Chapter 107 - A small reception.
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