Game of Thrones: Rise of the Supreme Dragon Queen

"Ask that boastful wench," Kraznys sneered, slowly recovering his composure. "My accountant examined her fleet. Even if she sold all her goods, it would only be enough for 1,000 Unsullied. Adding those gold and silver antiques might buy another 3,000. Yet we have at least 8,000 fully trained Unsullied in Astapor. How does she plan to buy them all?"

"Your Grace," the translator said, "Astapor has over 8,000 Unsullied. Your funds can only afford half of them."

Dany raised an eyebrow. That morning, the appraiser had valued the goods from the Grolare merchant fleet at 150,000 gold dragons, while the chests of treasure from Euron's ship were worth over 500,000. She had thought it would be more than enough to purchase every Unsullied in Astapor, but now there seemed to be a significant shortfall.

An average of 165 gold dragons for each Unsullied?

"Is this a joke?" Jorah exclaimed angrily. "In Westeros, hiring a knight costs only a few silver coins. Even a knight of proper station—a lord—commands a ransom of no more than 100 gold dragons!"

When Brienne of Tarth was captured by the Brave Companions, Lord Selwyn Tarth offered 300 gold dragons to ransom his only daughter.

Brienne was his sole heir.

Even Jaime Lannister, son of the richest man in the Seven Kingdoms, thought the price was steep—a princely sum, no less.

As for Sansa Stark, accused of murdering King Joffrey, her bounty was a mere 100 gold dragons.

Never mind that Sansa was Winterfell's heir and a potential duchess. Only 100 gold dragons.

In Game of Thrones, the first pivotal moment came when Bran fell from the tower, and Joffrey later hired an assassin to kill him—at a "high price" of 90 silver stags.

One gold dragon equaled 210 silver stags.

The life of a noble's heir was valued at less than half a gold dragon.

"This is outrageous," Dany muttered, shaking her head.

"Master, they say the price is too high," the translator relayed. "They claim that a knight's ransom is only 100 gold dragons."

"Bang! Bang! Bang!" The fat slaver pounded the armrest of his chair furiously. "Damn them! Ask if 3,000 barbarian knights could withstand the charge of 20,000 screaming warriors!"

Without hesitation, Jorah replied, "Of course they could."

"Hahaha!" Kraznys laughed, pointing a thick, carrot-like finger at Jorah. "You should visit Qohor. Their blacksmiths are the best in the world. Their heavy cavalry is unparalleled! Compared to them, your Westerosi tin-can knights are nothing but beggars in armor."

Even Dany couldn't argue. She knew well how formidable the Qohorik heavy cavalry was, yet she still couldn't understand how the Dothraki—horsemen who could overpower heavy cavalry—had fallen to light infantry like the Unsullied.

Could it be that the Qohorik cavalry were all show and no substance?

"Qohorik cavalry may have excellent armor, but they lack the skill and spirit of Westerosi knights," Jorah countered, though his reddened face showed his frustration at being unable to articulate a stronger argument.

Dany, however, had no such difficulty. With her modern understanding, she effortlessly pieced together a series of reasons. Even if her points were skewed, she could deliver them with conviction.

"A knight's most important quality is their code of chivalry: humility, honor, sacrifice, bravery, compassion, honesty, justice, and faith.

The Unsullied's greatest strength is their fearlessness in the face of death. But in Westeros, that's just the basic requirement to be a knight.

If the story of 3,000 Unsullied defending Qohor happened in Westeros, every knight would be so ashamed they'd disband their orders. Unlike the Qohorik cavalry, who continue to live shamelessly on that legacy."

"Your Grace, well said!"

Ser Barristan's eyes glistened with emotion. He had never been so moved. The princess had captured the essence of true knighthood in her words.

Though, he admitted, he'd never heard such a grand and elegant description of knighthood before.

Perhaps his understanding had always fallen short?

Ah, the "Fearless" Barristan Selmy was no match for the greatest knight of all, Ser Arthur Dayne, the Sword of the Morning.

Surely Ser Arthur would understand, Barristan thought with conviction.

"Since those barbaric tin-can knights are so incredible, why do you need to buy Unsullied?" Kraznys roared at the translator, glaring furiously. "Ask this Westerosi wench to explain herself!"

Dany was unfazed.

"Ah, precisely because I know how formidable Westerosi knights are, I've decided to spend everything I have to buy all the Unsullied," she lamented dramatically. "Think about it, dear Master. If one sausage is enough to fill your stomach, who would buy a second? That would be wasteful. With that money, I'd rather buy milk."

She sighed heavily and then asked, her tone suddenly serious, "But tell me truthfully, Master. Are there really only 8,000 Unsullied? For safety's sake, I feel that the more Unsullied, the better."

As Dany spoke, Missandei translated, and Kraznys clutched his head, furiously tugging at his wiry black-and-red hair.

He looked on the verge of madness.

After taking several deep breaths, Kraznys pointed at Jorah and bellowed, "Ask that wench! If a knight is worth 100 gold dragons, would she sell him to me for 300?"

Apostar, like Qarth, uses Glimmer Coins. Three gold Glimmer Coins are roughly equivalent to one Gold Dragon.

"Clang!" Hearing this, Jorah suddenly drew his longsword, pointing it at the slave master while cursing loudly, "You damn fat pig! Why don't you sell your own mother instead?"

Seeing Jorah's reaction, Kraznys only chuckled. He waved away the guards rushing forward and said casually, "Look at him. He's angry. What does that tell you? It tells you he feels insulted because he believes he's worth far more than 100 Gold Dragons.

Heh, my Unsullied are trained from the age of five. Their combat training and physical conditioning surpass those of any standard knight.

Do knights endure the same death rate as the Unsullied during training?

Hah, a so-called knight—what's valuable about them aside from the status their title represents?

Nobility?

Ask this Westerosi woman what she truly wants—a warrior or noble status?

Tell her this: Apostar's warriors, Qarth's courtesans, and Meereen's high-class slaves (specialized slaves with advanced skills)—none can match the excellence of my Unsullied!"

(Translation hint deliberately placed by original text: Check at the 69th chapter on Shu Bar for reference!)

"Even noble status is just another quality. If you're looking to buy nobles, go to Meereen. Who knows, you might even purchase a king or two there. Hahaha."

The slave master wasn't lying. Slaves themselves aren't inherently valuable. For instance, Daenerys could buy four Dothraki slaves with just a single silver coin.

However, the cost of raising a successful Unsullied is incredibly high for the slave masters.

For every Unsullied who earns the spiked helmet, five slave soldiers would die of exhaustion during training, and beneath his feet lie the graves of ten children who failed the trials.

The expenses for those failures are naturally factored into the cost of each Unsullied.

So, while 160 Gold Dragons might seem steep, it's not outright extortion.

After pondering for a moment, Daenerys said, "I'm buying in bulk. Can you lower the price a bit?"

The slave master muttered a few words to the translator. The dark-skinned interpreter replied, "Your Majesty, if you exchange all your jewels and goods, the Good Master is willing to give you 4,000 Unsullied, with an additional 100 as a gift."

Not even a ten percent discount! How stingy!

"Do you have any other treasures you haven't revealed yet?" the translator asked again.

"On my way from Qarth to Apostar, I encountered a pirate ship," Daenerys mused. "Good Master, have you heard of the 'Red Demon' that's been causing a stir in the Summer Sea recently?"

Hearing the translation, the slave master gripped the armrest of his chair and leaned forward in shock. "Did this wench really loot that pirate ship? No wonder she's so wealthy!"

"The red-hulled longship docked at the harbor is the Red Demon," Daenerys said. "It belongs to the Ironborn of Westeros' Iron Bay. Its captain, Euron Greyjoy, is currently locked in my lower deck."

The slave master's fat, sweaty hand lightly tapped the armrest of his redwood chair as he deliberated. "To think these people even captured the Red Demon! New Ghis, Qarth, and the Jade Sea City-States Alliance all have bounties on that one-eyed devil, totaling at least 100,000 Glimmer Coins.

Tell that woman I'll exchange 1,000 Unsullied for the Red Demon and its Pirate King."

After hearing the translation, Barristan quickly advised, "Your Highness, Euron is a noble lord. If you sell him as a slave, it will deeply insult not just House Greyjoy but all the nobles of the Seven Kingdoms."

"He won't be sold as a slave," the translator clarified. "The Red Demon is infamous across the Jade Sea. Many city-states have bounties on him. Besides, the Good Master said even a king wouldn't fetch the price of 10 Unsullied in his market."

"In other places, handing Euron over to local authorities would be acceptable. But this is Slaver's Bay, Apostar, and the recipient is a notorious slave master," Barristan protested, growing more anxious that Daenerys might sell Euron.

A thousand Unsullied—Euron is worth too much!

Actually, Euron is only worth 500 Unsullied. The Silence gained fame in the Jade and Summer Seas, increasing its value to 500 Unsullied, as many city-states want to study its speed.

Daenerys waved her hand to calm Barristan and cast a meaningful glance at the slave master. With a smile, she said, "I promised Euron that if he told me the correct way to enter the ruins of Valyria, I'd grant him and his pirates their freedom. A queen's word is worth three dragons, and even 10,000 Unsullied wouldn't match it."

"Your wisdom is unparalleled, Your Highness!" Barristan breathed a sigh of relief and praised her with a smile.

"The ruins of ancient Valyria?" The slave master's expression changed dramatically upon hearing the translation. His triple chins trembled as he exclaimed, "Quick! Nars, you idiot, ask her—did the Red Demon really go to the Smoking Sea and enter the ruins of Valyria?"

Clang, clang, clang! Daenerys tapped Jorah's blackened armguard. "Look at this understated yet luxurious armor. Notice the faint Valyrian glyphs on it. Good Master, who besides a dragonlord could own such noble Valyrian steel armor?"

"By the Harpy!" The fat slave master stared at Jorah's armor, his eyes nearly bulging out of their sockets. He moaned, "Just yesterday, I thought this savage knight was flaunting a fake dragonlord's armor to feign sophistication!"

Six thousand years ago, the Harpy's Sons of the Old Ghis Empire were invincible across the continent. The Unsullied training methods are modeled after that legendary army.

But today, the once-mighty Ghiscari have degenerated into mere slave masters. After being dominated by Valyria for 5,000 years, pure-blooded Ghiscari no longer exist in Slaver's Bay; everyone is of mixed heritage.

Still, the slave masters of Apostar proudly call themselves "Sons of the Harpy."

They live in pyramids, wear tokar robes, and style their black-and-red hair into towering crests.

The younger generation mimics the attire of Old Empire soldiers, donning Valyrian dragonlord armor and commanding eunuch slaves in gladiatorial battles. They pretend to be generals of the Old Empire, or even dragonlords of Valyria.

(End of Chapter)

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