Chapter 136: Chapter 136: Wright, Almost Forgotten
While the war on the Stepstones raged, Wright's injuries had healed, and he was packing his bags, preparing to leave the ruins of Valyria.
Wright received information that Myr, Pentos, and Braavos had reached some kind of agreement, and Braavos's Purple Fleet had sailed south, wanting to get involved in the Stepstones.
Dofas Pennymion, one of the Triarchs of Volantis, whose family now owed personal allegiance to Wright, came to deliver a message to Wright, despite the volcanic fumes and mists of the ruins, which would make ordinary people sick if they stayed there for long.
Wright had laid down a master-level restoration magic circle on the tent floor, which could slowly and continuously restore people's life force; otherwise, Nymeria and Tyene would also get sick.
Now, Nymeria and Tyene were inside the tent, directing the maids to pack clothes, packing bag after bag. Wright couldn't stand it anymore and said:
"Where did you get so many clothes? Just leave them all, you can buy more when we get back."
"No way!"
The two women said at the same time.
Wright picked up a red dress with his fingers:
"When did you buy this dress? I've never seen either of you wear it, just throw it away."
"Give it back!"
Tyene snatched the dress from Wright's hand, carefully folded it, and had a maid stuff it into a bag.
He then saw a blue embroidered robe, which Wright was sure he hadn't seen in the past few years! He had just reached out when Nymeria slapped his hand away.
"It's mine, get out! You're just getting in the way here."
The two women worked together to push Wright out of the tent.
"Fine, fine, fine, I'll go out myself, you guys hurry up and pack."
Wright walked out of the tent, looking at the dozen or so large bags that the two women had already packed, and then at his own small bag in the corner. He really didn't know where they had conjured up all this stuff.
Dofas Pennymion was directing the slaves to dismantle the camp. Seeing Wright come out, he quickly jogged over:
"Lord Wright!"
Wright: "You're one of the three Triarchs, how come you're so free that you come here personally every time? You could just send your son with a message."
Dofas smiled: "Lord Wright, my boy disguised himself as a mercenary and went to Myr. He's the one who brought back this news."
Wright: "What exactly are the Braavosi up to? They dare to get involved in the Seven Kingdoms' war. Aren't they afraid I'll go and burn their city again?"
Dofas: "According to intelligence, since the new Sealord of Braavos, Tormo Fregar, took office, he hasn't adopted a hostile policy towards Lord Wright. The returns on your investments in housing construction in the city have been paid in full by the Sealord, and this money is now in Lord Wright's account at the Iron Bank."
Wright looked at him: "Not hostile to me, but still sending the Purple Fleet south? What's this new Sealord trying to pull?"
Dofas: "From what I gather, it should be related to the rumors about Lord Wright currently circulating on Essos."
Wright became interested. Rumors were spread by word of mouth, some true and some false. The intelligence he usually received was about important matters, and he hadn't paid much attention to rumors.
Wright waved his hand, and two ice chairs rose from the ground: "Sit down, tell me specifically what rumors there are about me."
The weather here was hot, and Dofas thought it would be comfortable to sit on an ice chair. After thanking him and sitting down, he felt as if his entire lower body had jumped into ice water, shivering a few times.
"The Red Devil of Braavos, the Tortoise Butcher of Ny Sar, these are the nicknames people have given you. You previously killed a group of Dothraki, and their Khal, after learning about it, has been searching for you everywhere, but hasn't found you yet."
Wright wasn't afraid of the Dothraki, but those people were all cavalry, and fighting them was too troublesome. Now that he had dragons, however many came would die. Wright nodded, signaling him to continue.
"A few months ago, Euron Greyjoy, a pirate operating in the Stepstones, boasted to everyone that he could fight you to a standstill. The description of your magic, appearance, and fighting style that he gave was very detailed and highly credible. He is also proficient in naval warfare, so he has gathered a large number of people under his command and is now the most powerful pirate group in the Stepstones!"
"What! That son of a bitch can fight me to a standstill!"
Wright was furious.
Dofas felt the surrounding temperature instantly rise due to the magic fluctuations, and a heat wave emanated from Wright. Now he found the ice chair beneath him extremely comfortable.
"Wright! What are you doing!" Tyene ran out holding a dress.
"Nothing, continue." Wright waved his hand, and his anger dissipated.
Wright had to explain things to Dofas, otherwise, he might think that Euron was really that powerful.
"A few months ago, I encountered Euron alone in the Smoking Sea and utterly defeated his pirate fleet of several hundred men, leaving Euron himself in nothing but his underpants! Those Valyrian steel artifacts you saw before were from that encounter. If it hadn't been for a certain important figure intervening to save him, Euron would have been dead. I even cut off his jaw and used it as lining for my armor."
Dofas had witnessed the entire process of Wright making the armor. He now realized that the jawbone inside Nymeria's shoulder armor belonged to Euron. However, he had another question. Wright was in the Smoking Sea; who could be considered an important figure there? He carefully asked:
"May I ask, Lord Wright, who was the important figure who vouched for Euron?"
Wright: "Unless you possess strength like mine, you'd better not even know his name, or your soul will be toyed with by him!"
Hearing this, Dofas recalled the skeleton summoning magic Wright had displayed and concluded that it must be an evil sorcerer of similar power to Wright, capable of manipulating souls. He didn't dwell on it further and continued:
"Furthermore, Lord Wright, your last known location was Volantis. The outside world hasn't heard any news about you for almost a year. Combined with the strange occurrences reported from the ruins of Valyria, many people on Essos have speculated that Wright Baratheon has died in the ruins of Valyria!"
"Sigh…"
Wright sighed, feeling helpless. This situation was like modern celebrities; if they didn't appear in public for a long time, all sorts of rumors would arise — being hidden by their company, being imprisoned, and if there was still no news, they would even have a memorial portrait prepared.
"It seems I've been here for almost a year, and more and more people are forgetting about me!"
Dofas: "While you were residing here, I ordered my men to strictly control the flow of information. So far, only those within my family and trusted confidants who have been here know about it. The tongues of the first batch of slaves who came here were cut out. They are illiterate, so cutting out their tongues doesn't affect their labor."
Wright stood up. Over two thousand slaves, all had their tongues cut out just to keep his information secret. Wright had already taken thousands of lives, but those were enemies, criminals. Now, innocent people were being implicated, and he felt very uneasy.
Wright wouldn't blame Dofas; if there was anyone to blame, it was the thousands-of-years-old slave system of Volantis!
"Dofas, what is your current control over Volantis?"
Dofas: "I have now taken control of the exclusive rights to the spice trade, I have sufficient funds, and I have basically taken control of the Elephant Party."
Wright thought for a moment and then said: "Continue to infiltrate the Tiger Party. Both I and Westeros will give you support. I hope that in the future, all three Triarchs of Volantis will be your people."
Wright and the Seven Kingdoms had the ability to make him the sole Triarch, but Wright didn't want to make such a promise to him now. Too much change would inevitably trigger another war.
"Thank you very much, Lord Wright!"
This time, Wright didn't plan to travel by ship. He had dragons now, and such a large one at that. He would definitely ride a dragon.
After being away for several years, his strength had increased, and he now had a dragon. It was like a triumphant return home; he had to show off a bit.
Wright went to the elephant camp and sought out Odahviing to discuss it.
Odahviing wasn't a tamed beast. He had a magic contract with Wright. He was almost as intelligent as a human and had rich knowledge from the Dragon Wars. He was very proud and, most importantly, lazy.
"Big guy, I need to discuss something with you!"
Odahviing's huge body lay on the ground, behind him a pile of various animal carcasses piled up like a small mountain. He didn't bother to clean it up and had been nesting here for a long time without flying. In his words, he was enjoying the smell.
His dragon head lifted from the ground: "What is it, Dragonborn?"
Wright: "I'm preparing to return to my home on another continent. Would it be alright for Nymeria and Tyene to ride on your back with me?"
To climb onto a dragon's back, one had to have established a magical connection with the dragon. If others climbed on, Wright was afraid he would throw the two women off. He had to get the dragon's consent.
Nymeria and Tyene carried Wright's scent and often communicated with Odahviing in broken High Valyrian.
"It's acceptable, plus an elephant!"
Wright: "Easy."
The two women should be fine, the key was the next matter:
"I also have a lot of luggage. You have such a broad back, could you carry it all? Don't worry, it won't dirty your beautiful red scales."
Odahviing's dragon head came closer, his massive eye, as big as a millstone, glaring at Wright, his mouth opening to reveal his teeth: "Are you treating Odahviing as a mule?"
"How could I! It's just more convenient, plus another elephant!"
The golden pupils in the dragon's eyes narrowed into vertical slits.
Wright raised the stakes: "Two elephants!"
Odahviing raised his head: "The nobility of a dragon cannot be desecrated. I can carry it in my claws."
Wright: "Deal!"
Wright found Dofas and asked him to notify the soldiers in the distance to bring the elephants over. The elephants in the camp had already been designated as food by Odahviing. This batch of elephants had been prepared beforehand.
Soon after, all the elephants in the camp had been eaten by Odahviing. Wright and the two women's packages were tied together by the slaves with ropes. It was time to set off.
The camp's supplies were loaded onto wooden carts, and the horses were far away, only to be brought over after the dragon left.
Odahviing's body was too huge. He angled one of his wings downwards, and Nymeria and Tyene climbed up his wing membrane onto his back. They were very excited, this was their first time on a dragon's back.
Touching the thick, steel-like red scales under their feet, and then touching the thorns on his back, which were longer than a person, everything was new. Thinking that Wright would be standing at the head when they flew into the sky, the two women ran along the huge neck to the front to talk to Odahviing.
Wright: "Dofas, remember, letters from the Seven Kingdoms written on parchment with lightning are credible, use your own judgment for ordinary letters!"
"I remember, Lord Wright, have a good journey."
"Haha, there won't be a smooth journey, the wind in the sky is strong! Take care of yourself too, I'm leaving!"
Wright smiled and patted Dofas on the shoulder.
In the leather scabbard slung across Wright's back were three swords: Dark Sister, Bloodskal, and Dawnbreaker.
Wright felt that Bloodskal Blade, with its weight, length, and special sword aura effect, was very suitable for him. This sword would be his main weapon from now on.
Dawnbreaker was handsome, but ordinary people couldn't use it. Wright was reluctant to give it to other people who knew destruction magic, so he planned to keep it as a collection for now.
Dark Sister: Nymeria had a full set of Valyrian armor and a long spear, and Tyene also had a specially made Valyrian steel dagger. The two women now had high standards and didn't like it, so they could only take it back as a collection.
Odahviing stretched his wings, preparing to take off, with no intention of waiting for Wright.
The dragon head suddenly lifted, and the two women felt their bodies become heavy, rising to the height of several floors.
"Ah~~~ We're going to fly!" Tyene shouted excitedly, standing on the dragon's head.
"Stop shouting and grab the thorns on his neck, be careful not to fall." Nymeria grabbed a thorn with one hand and pulled Tyene to her side with the other, holding her in her arms.
Tyene was unhappy about being restrained and pouted, looking around.
The people on the ground saw the huge wings unfold and immediately ran frantically out of the camp. The wingspan of nearly two hundred meters flapped violently, comparable to a small storm.
Tightening the belt buckle of the scabbard on his body, white light lit up in Wright's hand, and a pale white mage's hand stretched out, grabbing the horn on his head and pulling himself up.
ROAR~~~~~~
Accompanied by the dragon's roar, the wings blocked the sun, a strong wind raged on the ground, and the mountain-like red and white dragon flapped its wings and flew into the sky.
Some of the people on the ground were blown to the ground by the wind. They only stood up and continued working after the sun reappeared and the strong wind stopped.
Dofas patted the dust off his body and looked at the dragon's figure disappearing into the sky: "Although I have been with the dragon for several months, every takeoff is still incredibly shocking!"
A man and two women riding a dragon should have been a very romantic scene.
Now, Nymeria was wearing a full suit of armor, struggling to grab the thorns with both hands, and Tyene was blown pale, her golden hair a mess.
Wright, kneeling, was hitting Odahviing's head hard: "You forget about me after eating the meat, right! And my luggage! Go back, go back quickly."
"Dragonborn, if you dare to break a single scale of mine, I'll eat you!"
Odahviing was stubborn, but his body was still honest, circling back and diving towards the camp.
"The dragon, the dragon is back!"
Buzz~~~
The huge shadow covered the camp again. Odahviing did not land, but flew past, grabbing the bundled luggage with one claw and soaring into the sky again.
The information about the battle on the Stepstones would reach Wright at least a month later. Wright was not very clear about where the Baratheon brothers were now, so he planned to fly over the Stepstones to see the situation, but he would not directly participate in the battle.
He had created such a good situation for the Seven Kingdoms, there was no possibility of losing!
Wright was very relieved about this war and didn't pay attention to the war at all. He had been studying the dragon in the ruins of Valyria. Odahviing could speak, but this guy refused to say many things. Wright could only study slowly, sacrificing his own time to lay a good foundation for future dragon riders.