Chapter 211: The Fifth Dragon Egg

"The Elephant Party consists of merchants and moneylenders, but when it comes to real warfare, it's the Tiger Party's old nobility that must take action. Right now, the Allied forces are forming a power structure dominated by Volantis, Qohor, and New Ghis. Malakho represents the Volantene military, and the Ghiscari's efforts to reclaim Slaver's Bay depend on his support," Bu Cheng explained in a low voice.

Earlier, Dany had assumed that the main focus of tonight's banquet would be the Dragon Hatching Sorcerers. However, the nine of them had been conversing in a corner for over half an hour, yet not a single guest had come over to greet them.

When Malakho entered the hall, he went straight toward the Volantene nobles near the orchestra's stage, not even sparing a glance at the sorcerers.

"Weren't we supposed to present the dragon egg?" Dany frowned.

The Shadowbinder withdrew his gaze from Malakho and shook his head. "It's still early."

"What's Yi Ti's stance on the Mother of Dragons?" Dany turned to Bu Cheng.

"Yi Ti is currently divided into three kingdoms, and none of them seem interested in getting involved. Besides, Yi Ti has no slaves."

Hmm… The 'Three Kingdoms' here didn't refer to the familiar Shu Han, Cao Wei, and Sun Wu.

It was rather absurd—Yi Ti's Golden Empire named its dynasties after colors.

Yi Ti's history was divided into three major eras:

The "Dawn Empire" before the Long Night.

The Long Night during the time of Azor Ahai.

The "Golden Empire" after the Long Night, sometimes called the "Rainbow Empire."

The legendary Dawn Empire was said to have emperors who were either gods themselves or the offspring of gods.

The truth of these legends was uncertain, but the Dawn Empire did exist for an exceptionally long time—so long that it could be considered part of the previous era of mythical civilizations, alongside the Children of the Forest.

The later Golden Empire went through ten dynasties: the Hai Grey Dynasty, the Chang Indigo Dynasty, and the Murong Emerald Dynasty.

Then came three rather peculiar dynasties.

The Tea Brown, Pearl White, and Royal Purple Dynasties functioned somewhat like the Western and Eastern Han Dynasties, with a single ruling family managing to revive itself twice—quite a feat.

The strangest thing about them was that after each resurgence, the emperor would castrate himself.

The crown prince was allowed to marry and have children, but once he ascended the throne, he had to sever his manhood to rid himself of distractions and devote himself entirely to the empire.

Surprisingly, this policy worked. Yi Ti transformed from a weak and bullied state into the world's second-greatest superpower—rich, powerful, and prosperous. Its people lived in peace, the empire expanded its borders, and even the Valyrians hesitated to provoke it.

More impressively, the eunuch emperors achieved the greatest infrastructural feat in the world of A Song of Ice and Fire—a vast network of stone roads spanning all of Yi Ti.

Similar to the Valyrian roads, these indestructible stone highways connected all the cities of Yi Ti, making the empire incredibly formidable.

Even after thousands of years, Yi Ti still used the roads built by the Royal Purple Dynasty's eunuch emperor.

Unfortunately, the Eunuch Dynasty did not get a third chance at revival.

After that came the Jia Sea Green Dynasty and the Luo Scarlet Dynasty—the same Luo Dynasty that produced Luo Bao, who dreamed of being another Emperor Wu of Han but ended up decapitated by the Zebrayan warriors, who turned his skull into a wine cup.

The ninth dynasty was the Chai Yellow Dynasty.

Currently, the ruling dynasty was the Bu Azure Dynasty.

However, the Bu Dynasty seemed to be in decline. While the Zebrayan warriors hadn't invaded, the empire was fracturing under warlordism.

A general with Zebrayan blood, Bo Xiong, had taken control of a northwestern trade town—a crucial link on the Silk Road connecting the East and West.

Bo Xiong was somewhat akin to An Lushan.

Meanwhile, a remnant of the previous dynasty, having mastered formidable sorcery, had occupied a region and was flying the banner of the Chai Yellow Dynasty.

Essentially, it was as if Murong Fu had successfully restored the Great Yan.

With both a "Murong Fu" and an "An Lushan" lurking around, it was no wonder that the Emperor of Yi Ti's Bu Dynasty had no time to spare for a "War Against the Mother of Dragons."

"However, Yi Ti will join the United Nations. Maritime trade revenue is nearly equal to land tax income, and the court cannot afford to sever ties with the major trading city-states."

Bu Cheng sighed. "There's no doubt that the Dragon Queen stands against the entire world. But an army without dragons may not necessarily be her match. Who knows how long this world war will last or how many will perish?"

"Well then—" Dany glanced around before lowering her voice to a near whisper. "What are your intentions regarding dragon hatching? Do you truly believe you can hatch one, or is this just a demonstration of protective magic?"

At these words, the atmosphere in their little corner grew thick with tension, turning awkward and heavy.

Dany, however, remained unfazed and continued, "We've been here for almost an hour, and not a single esteemed guest has come to greet us. What does that tell you? The Volantenes look down on us!

And according to the latest popular theory, hatching a dragon requires the sacrifice of someone dearly loved by a noble-blooded individual.

The Dragon Crone of New Ghis burned down two noble households—hundreds of men, women, and children—yet not even a single dragon scale emerged. What do you think her future holds?

Do you really think they'll just give her a sum of money and politely escort her out of the city?

If you all fail to hatch a dragon, I fear your fates will be ten or even a hundred times worse than hers."

"We signed an agreement. There's no guarantee of success," a pyromancer said nervously.

"And do you really think an agreement will protect you from someone who just lost their entire family?" Dany sneered.

"Then what do you propose we do?" The Kohorik frowned.

"Enjoy the festivities tonight, and by tomorrow, let's disband and go our separate ways."

Bu Cheng's thick, arched brows nearly shot up in fury as he suppressed his anger and scolded, "You haven't even joined us yet, and you're already trying to break us apart. What exactly is your intention?"

"What intention could I possibly have?"

Let your team disband and go work on that million-gold-coin project. Each of you is profoundly skilled in sorcery, highly knowledgeable—true talents!

Dany's eyes widened as she stared back at him, refusing to back down. "Before I came here, I thought that even if I wouldn't be revered like a star by the Valantis people, at the very least, I could converse with Marajo on equal footing.

With higher status comes the right to speak.

But now that I'm here, I immediately feel disillusioned. It's obvious—if there's even a minor setback in the dragon-hatching process, we're all doomed."

Her words were harsh but truthful, leaving everyone in grim silence.

After a long pause, Bu Chang took a deep breath and solemnly declared, "Hatching a dragon can help me understand the path of life and death. For the sake of truth, I am not afraid to die."

"Exactly. I fear death, but I fear even more the loss of an opportunity to uncover the truth," the fire mage added with a serious expression.

"Well said." The Black Goat Priest nodded with a smile.

Damn, are they all really this brave? Not afraid to die in pursuit of the truth?

Finally, the Shadowbinder spoke slowly. "We are already among the most elite of the extraordinary professions—irreplaceable. As long as the Valantis people refuse to accept defeat at the hands of the Mother of Dragons, they must have a dragon of their own. To hatch a dragon, they need us alive."

"Someone's coming," the Moon Singer elder whispered.

A handsome young man with golden hair approached, speaking politely, "Honored mages, Governor Naisiso has arrived. Governor Marajo requests your presence."

Earlier, while they whispered among themselves, Marajo had halted the orchestra and delivered a campaign speech from the stage.

His voice was filled with passion, but the content was dreadfully dull.

Even Dany, an outsider who had been in Valantis for barely two days, could already recite his campaign platform.

After all, that afternoon, while passing through the park, she had already heard Marajo's speech and seen countless elephants plastered with his slogans.

His platform boiled down to two key points:

I will fiercely oppose the Mother of Dragons.

I come from an old noble family and have unparalleled military leadership skills.

After Marajo finished his speech, another governor entered the hall with a group of people, and soon after, the golden-haired youth came to fetch the dragon-hatching mage group.

Dany stood obediently behind the Moon Singer elder, watching as the three senior mages exchanged pleasantries with Marajo, Naisiso, and other nobles on stage. Suddenly, her eyes narrowed in shock. "Valyrian steel?!"

Her voice was barely a whisper, muffled further by her wooden mask, yet the Moon Singer elder still nudged her lightly. "Don't be rude."

"No one's paying attention to us; all the Valantis people are focused on the three elders," the fire mage said sourly.

Indeed, while the three elders stood on stage, the two governors acted as hosts, introducing them as esteemed "guests" to the Valantis audience and occasionally asking questions about dragon-hatching. The atmosphere was lively.

Dany and her group were also standing at the front, though pushed to the very edge, off to the left of the small stage.

"Is Marajo wearing Valyrian steel armor?" Dany asked in a low voice.

"Your Yalason family doesn't know about this?" The Moon Singer's eyes flickered with suspicion.

"The Yalason family left Valantis centuries ago. I only know that the Megar family belongs to the Fourteen Flames lineage," Dany said with a wry smile.

Damn, that was close—almost exposed myself. Is this supposed to be common knowledge?

The Moon Singer didn't dwell on it, instead explaining in a hushed voice, "You didn't see wrong. The Megar family possesses the only known Valyrian steel armor in the world."

"How lucky," Dany murmured.

"Indeed. Among all the branches of the Fourteen Flames, only his ancestors were fortunate enough to obtain a suit of armor."

A flicker of amusement flashed in Dany's eyes. Elder, you misunderstood—what's lucky is me.

Seeing Marajo passionately cursing the Mother of Dragons, waving his arms emphatically, she couldn't help but ask in confusion, "This afternoon, Marajo had his arm in a sling. How did he recover so quickly?"

"Did you forget?" The Moon Singer shot her a glance, speaking strangely. "It was you who crushed his hand."

"You mean..." Dany was stunned. "Tam took over this governor?"

"That's right. Marajo is that 'noble figure.' When he woke up this morning, his right hand felt as if it had been broken, though his arm showed no actual injury. Once the residual blood sorcery faded, he recovered completely."

"He and Tam are involved?" Dany asked in a strange tone.

"So what?" The Moon Singer didn't understand her surprise. "Marajo is a man, and Grand Sorceress Tam is a woman. A man and a woman being together is only natural, isn't it?"

Dany abruptly turned her head, her eyes behind the wooden mask filled with disbelief. "Hearing that from you sounds... weird."

"What's weird about it?"

"You—you're dressed as a woman. Doesn't that mean you prefer men?" Dany stammered.

"You're the one who likes men. No, wait—you're the one with a strange preference! You like women!" The Moon Singer's gaunt, sallow face flushed red with anger, his voice almost too loud to suppress. Nearby onlookers turned their heads.

They stared at Dany and the Moon Singer with curiosity, their eyes filled with gossip, as if the two had just staged a public spectacle of "unusual preferences."

"Calm down, I wasn't mocking you. Why so worked up?" Dany remained unfazed behind her wooden mask, utterly unbothered by anyone's gaze.

"You're just ignorant!" The Moon Singer took a step away, looking flustered as he tried to escape the attention. "The Moon Singers are mostly women. If a man wishes to transition into a Moon Singer, he must dress as a woman and adopt a female appearance."

"My god, you zebra people really are the ultimate bosses!"

Noticing the commotion around Dany, the Shadowbinder frowned, leaned toward Marajo, and whispered a few words. Then the governor loudly declared, "Members of the mage group, please come on stage and help us verify the authenticity of the dragon eggs."

(End of Chapter)

Want to read the chapters in Advance? Join my Patreon

https://patreon.com/Glimmer09