-Chapitre 20-

-POV Tywin Lannister-

This child was even worse than Aerys. Aerys was simply mad, but he was stupid; this one, however, was not really. He seemed more like someone capricious.

Spare one person, kill another, all based on his mood and feelings. There was no justice in that, no logic, just his own opinion. He didn't respect the lives of nobles, and he was clearly loved by his men.

He didn't follow the rules, and moreover, no one could really stop him from doing what he wanted because he could use magic to kill a person. He tore out the spine of that damned eunuch just by waving his hand.

"Now let's move on to you, Maester Pycelle. There's no chance of prevarication for you either. You helped the Lannisters overthrow my grandfather, and you bear a huge responsibility for his madness by fueling his delusions. So, to honor my late grandfather, I have prepared a special Targaryen execution for you. Don't thank me; I do it with real pleasure," said the young king with a cruel smile on his face.

"Bring the prisoner before the throne and untie him. He will pay the price of fire and blood," he said to his men, who did as he said.

"FIRE AND BLOOD"

"FIRE AND BLOOD"

"FIRE AND BLOOD"

The guards in the hall buzzed like children in front of candies, seeing a noble being punished. It was almost jubilant for them. They struck their halberds against their shields in chorus, repeating these two words.

The king looked at my faithful spy and said:

"A last wish?"

"I should have annihilated all of you, filthy dragon spawn," spat that fool, seeing no way out.

The king smiled and said:

"Too bad you couldn't do it."

He then opened his hand, and a small spark floated above it, slowly moving towards Pycelle. Once it touched Pycelle's robe, it abruptly turned into a scarlet flame.

It covered his entire body in less than a second. No one said anything for a full minute; only Pycelle's screams echoed until there was nothing more than silence.

Everyone looked at the pile of ashes that replaced the king, and each looked at him with increasing horror.

He still had that little vicious and cruel smile when he said:

"I think we had a lot of fun this morning, so I propose a little break. You can follow the servants who will lead you to the gardens where you can refresh yourselves, and we will resume the second part of this trial in half an hour... Lord Tywin, Lady Olenna, please follow me."

I took a small breath to calm my nerves, realizing that now was the time I had to redeem the lives of my children, all my descendants, and all that remained of Joanna. It was now or never that the future of House Lannister was at stake.

-POV 3rd Person-

In the small council chamber sat King Aegon VI, Eddard Stark, the Hand of the King, Tywin Lannister, the most powerful Lord of the Seven Kingdoms, and the matriarch of House Tyrell.

Everyone looked each other in the eye, but no one spoke because everyone was waiting for the main protagonist of this gathering to open his mouth.

The king, sensing his superiority, smiled and said:

"I imagine you know what I want, don't you?"

"It's more than obvious. You need our support; otherwise, you will be quickly surrounded by Stannis Baratheon, and then Balon Greyjoy will start taking revenge on the Starks, and then you will be isolated," said Olenna Tyrell, feigning indifference and total control of the situation, which she did not have at all. But appearances remained important, and she had to maintain a completely confident front as she represented the interests of her House.

"Yes, that's partly true," acknowledged the young king, to the surprise of all who already considered him a tyrannical and arrogant king.

Despite this, Tywin took advantage of the moment to attack and said authoritatively:

"Partly!? Without our support, you are finished. Release my daughter, her children, and her brothers immediately, and then we can discuss the terms of a possible alliance."

"I agree with Lord Tywin. Without Loras, we will negotiate nothing at all," said Olenna.