Wright faced off with the Daedra, noticing that the Daedra's armor had a gem embedded in the neck area. It was clear that it was a high-level magical resistance item, capable of withstanding Dragon Shouts!
Ignoring the sword still lodged in his chest and the bleeding wound, Wright gripped the Daedra's head with both hands. "Your sword is mine now!"
"No!" The Daedra realized that Wright was about to unleash another Dragon Shout, and given the distance, a headshot would be certain death. The Daedra let go of his sword and tried to pry Wright's hands off, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't budge them.
"Fus~~Ro~~Dah~~!"
The headless Daedra collapsed, its body kneeling weakly. Wright withdrew the one-handed sword stuck in his chest, golden healing magic enveloping his body. His wound healed at a visible rate, and before long, only a scar remained on his chest.
The healing magic fully restored his injury, but Wright left the scar as a reminder—this spot had been targeted by an enemy, and he couldn't afford to be careless again.
"Wright! Hurry up!" In the distance, Renly was retreating while fighting, already reaching the foot of the mountain.
The lower-level Daedras had been taken care of by the two of them, and now only high-ranking Daedras remained. Fear and confusion spells were ineffective against them, so the two had to rely on destructive magic and martial skills to continue the battle.
There were still two mind-controlled Daedras left, following behind them to block any pursuers. White ice crystals exploded along their path, and occasional sparks of lightning flashed. The Daedras' fire magic kept bombarding them, with violent explosions and roars echoing from the foot of the mountain.
As soon as they stepped onto the circular stone platform where the portal was, all the Daedras stopped attacking and gathered around the platform, glaring at them angrily.
Wright and Renly were covered in wounds, their faces bruised, their tattered ice armor stained with blood, and their bodies riddled with sword and fire burns. Renly's magical energy was completely depleted, and Wright used the last of his magic to cast healing spells on both of them.
Wright glanced toward the distant figure of Dagon, who seemed to be smiling, unsure of what to say. Giving the guests a good beating—this was Dagon's idea of hospitality for the one who ruled over the Daedra Lord of Destruction.
Dagon raised his hand, and a parchment made of gathered sand and dust appeared before him, slowly floating toward Wright.
Renly looked at the floating scroll and asked Wright, "A Daedra's contract?"
"I don't know. Let's see," Wright replied, reaching out to take the scroll. As soon as he touched it, it felt unbearably hot. Upon opening it, he confirmed that it was indeed a Daedra's contract.
The text on the contract shimmered with a golden-red glow, resembling the molten rivers of lava here. The words shifted with the viewer's perception, changing into familiar languages and their own names. Renly saw the Common Tongue of Westeros, while Wright saw the Dragon Tongue. The contents were brief and precise, with two small magical sigils at the bottom of the text that flickered with red light. This was the place where the contract would be signed with blood.
The content read: The contract holder would drive the pawns of Molag Bal out of their world, and Mehrunes Dagon would assist the holder in dealing with Hermaeus Mora.
"It seems fine, right?" Renly, seeing this for the first time, was uncertain.
"The text on the contract is fine," Wright said, before calling out to Dagon in the distance. "Dagon, the contract is fine. It benefits both sides! I'll be leaving now."
After saying that, Wright immediately rolled up the scroll and held it in his hand. He had made a verbal agreement with Dagon, with no intention of signing the contract in blood. He and Renly prepared to step through the portal.
"Sly and greedy Dragonborn!" Dagon clenched his fist as he watched Wright leave.
The Daedra sword Wright had been holding instantly turned into a pile of black sand. Then, a force propelled Wright and Renly into the portal, just as the two mind-controlled Daedras attempted to follow. The portal immediately closed as Dagon shut it off.
The two Daedras were caught in Dagon's hand, and awaiting them was endless torture and research.
---
The Lord of Tyrosh and the Lord of Storm's End had disappeared from their room. Once the maids began tidying up, no one at Highgarden took much notice.
The mysterious and powerful magicians—perhaps they were experimenting with new magic, as they had done so often before. Even Robert didn't pay much attention, as they had conducted magical tests in both Storm's End and Red Keep in the past, as long as they didn't blow up the castle, it wasn't a problem.
The portal Dagon reopened wasn't in the original bedroom but in a deserted alley within the city of Highgarden. As soon as they stepped through, the portal vanished without a trace.
Time moved differently in the two worlds, and Wright had worried that, like in some places, decades might have passed during their trip. But when he reached the end of the alley and saw the fresh posters about Daenerys' crimes on the wall, it seemed that only a few days had passed.
However, there was now another problem to address.
Wright opened the Daedra contract he was holding, covering his lower body, and peered out the alley, saying, "Renly, it's noon, and the streets are packed with people!"
Today is the last day of the year 300 AC, and tomorrow is the day when Aegon I was crowned king after conquering the continent.
Their clothes had long been burned, and they were only left in tattered ice armor. The ice armor also had a characteristic: the stronger the magical power used to create the ice crystals, the purer the ice became. The ice armor they created was crystal-clear and dazzling.
Renly covered his lower body with both hands. "What should we do? I no longer have magic power to cast the invisibility spell!"
Wright said, "I can still use invisibility. Let's head back to the inner city first!"
Renly tried to grab Wright, but missed. "What will I do if you leave?"
As his body gradually began to disappear, Wright said, "What can I do? Invisibility can't be cast on others! Besides, it doesn't take much magic power. You should be able to cast it in a few minutes!"
"Wright, hey, where did you go?! I haven't finished my sentence!" Renly whispered in distress, afraid of attracting the attention of passersby.
When things go wrong, they tend to go wrong all at once. Renly had just been dragged to a different world and had been beaten up. Now, he was almost naked and lacked any magic power. As if things weren't bad enough, less than a minute after Wright left, the sounds of footsteps and conversations began echoing from behind the alley, and people started walking toward it.
This is it! My reputation! Renly, panicking, tried to climb the wall. He looked around and saw the smooth surface of the wall, which couldn't be climbed without magic.
In his desperation, Renly touched his hair, suddenly straightened his back, and, without caring about exposing himself, boldly walked toward the back of the alley.
"My lord Renly?"
The king and several lords had just appeared together a few days ago, and now the people of Highgarden recognized them.
Among the ten pedestrians, there were men and women. Seeing Renly dressed so openly, the men were shocked, while the women began sizing up his muscular body.
Hearing the greeting, Renly ignored them and continued striding deeper into the alley.
Storm's End had twin right?—thinking of this—one of them asked tentatively, "Lord Wright?"
"I am Wright!" Renly immediately turned around and answered.
"My magic experiment went wrong. Please lend me a pair of pants and a tunic!" Renly said, imitating Wright's tone.
"Lord Wright, how do you find my attire?" One of the most elegantly dressed men stepped forward.
Renly imitated Wright's speech: "Not bad! Leave me your name and address, and I'll send you a few sets of the most exquisite clothing from Tyrosh."
"Thank you, Lord Wright!" The man immediately took off his robe and draped it over Renly.
After putting it on, Renly nodded at him and turned to walk confidently toward the inner city of Highgarden.
"Hehehe, Lord Wright has a really good physique!" one of the women commented.
"His waist and thighs are all muscle. He must be very strong!" Another woman thought back to Wright's body, fantasizing that she would dream of him tonight. One of the women, who knew a painter, planned to ask the artist to draw Wright's body and keep it in her home as a treasure.
Wright returned to his bedroom, changed into his clothes, and grabbed another set to take to Renly when he saw that Renly had already returned.
"Where did you get this outfit from? Don't tell me you, a Lord, went and stole it?" Wright asked without skipping a beat.
Renly shook the ill-fitting collar of the clothes. "Am I that kind of person? I borrowed it, and I'll return the favor later!"
A few days after dealing with state affairs, Robert's thoughts had returned to his illness. This chronic disease had no cure, and no one knew when it would kill him. His offspring would inherit the illness and would not survive past the age of ten. The more Robert thought about it, the angrier he became. He stormed to the room where Daenerys was being held, intending to hit her. However, several Kingsguard, including Barristan, stopped him, advising him not to lay a hand on a pregnant woman as it would tarnish his kingly dignity.
Robert, who never harmed women or children, was deeply affected by the disease and now wanted to revoke his verdict and directly kill Daenerys. But her child was his own blood, and killing her would be akin to committing regicide. The more Robert thought about it, the more it gave him a headache.
"Ah!" Robert screamed, kicking the door to Daenerys's bedroom, pushing past the Kingsguard and retreating to his own quarters.
Unable to find a way to vent his anger, Robert spent the following days hiding alone in the reception hall, refusing to see anyone. He didn't wash himself, and as long as the guards brought him wine and meat, he drank himself into a stupor. Anyone who attempted to enter was threatened with death.
When Wright returned, he asked a servant about the date and found out that, after their trip, three days had already passed.
In Wright's bedroom, the two of them took out parchment and ink, and the habit formed since childhood made them immediately think of recording the information about the obliterated world.
About an hour later, Varys knocked on the door and found Wright and Renly. He quietly told them about Robert's situation over the past few days.
After hearing this, Wright asked him, "Varys, is your heart with the kingdom or the king?"
Varys smiled. "Both, I swear on my soul!"
Having witnessed the soul-wrenching pain Daenerys endured during her interrogation, Varys quickly swore by his soul to reassure them.
As long as he wasn't plotting against Robert or his family, Wright wouldn't interfere; it wasn't his business to worry about what the king was doing.
Wright nodded. "Thanks for the reminder. Is Robert in his bedroom?"
Varys answered, "He's in the reception hall. I'll take you there."
Wright, concerned that Robert might be in a bad state, grabbed Renly and prepared to try to reason with him.
"Robert!"
No one answered the door.
"Robert!"
Wright pressed his hand against the door lock. His mage's hand morphed into several fine needles that entered the keyhole. After adjusting them, he gently turned, and the bedroom door opened.
As soon as the door opened, a strong smell of alcohol and filth hit them. Bottles of liquor were scattered across the floor, with scattered food on the table, and in the corner, there was excrement covered by a blanket.
Robert was lying on the couch, wearing nothing but underpants. The red spots on his white skin stood out painfully.
As Wright and Renly approached him, Robert briefly glanced at them before slipping back into unconsciousness.
"Luckily, it's not poisoning, just too much alcohol!" Renly used magic to check Robert's vitality and found no obvious signs of deterioration.
Wright walked over to the couch, roughly pulling clothes out for Robert and dressing him. "Renly, let's take him out to sober him up."
"Let's go!" Renly and Wright each used their mage's hand to grab Robert's shoulders and directly opened the window, pulling him out.
Barristan and the Kingsguard, who had arrived, saw Robert's figure flying out of the window. When they saw Varys standing there, they immediately drew their swords and pointed them at him. "Are you trying to harm the king?"
Varys raised his hands helplessly and said, "We've worked together for many years, and you still don't trust me? Go look out the window yourself."
Barristan subdued Varys, and the other Kingsguard had already leaned over the windowsill. Lyn Cobry returned to Barristan's side from the windowsill and said, "Captain, Varys didn't harm the king. It's Lord Renly and Lord Wright. They're out in the Mander River with the king, helping him sober up!"
"Ah! In the middle of the river?" Barristan sheathed his sword and walked to the window to look toward the distance.
The Mander River flows through the northwestern part of Highgarden, its wide and calm surface. The three men were standing on a large block of floating ice, slowly drifting downstream with the current. King Robert was slumped, his hands flailing about as he cursed at the sky. Wright and Renly stood on either side of him.
"I see. It was a misunderstanding. I apologize," Barristan said as he looked toward the distant scene.
"It's fine. We really can't predict the behavior of magicians," Varys responded, looking at the ice floes. It was unclear what was going through his mind.
"I'm going to die! I've never wronged anyone in my life! I've only killed on the battlefield, never women or children. When I took women, they were either willing or paid for it. Why is this happening to me?! Ah~~~ Why?!" Robert cried out, lamenting the unfairness of it all.
Wright crossed his arms and looked at the gently rippling river. He didn't glance at Robert but spoke directly. "You were merciful, but the Targaryen didn't appreciate it. They never thanked you for giving up the hunt. Aegon, Viserys, and Daenerys have always wanted to overthrow your reign."
"I shouldn't have been so foolish as to be swayed by her beauty. But you know what? I envy you two. You have magic and dragons. I wish I could be like you, but I know I'll never have that chance!"
There were only the three of them, and Robert, completely broken down, finally began to vent his frustrations.
"But Daenerys's appearance gave me hope. All the magicians who've seen her say she has magical potential. If I have a child with her, the child could be a sorcerer, maybe even control dragons. She used that to seduce me, and I shouldn't have fallen for it! I shouldn't have!"
Wright and Renly both stood there quietly, and Renly spoke softly, "Robert, it's already happened. The disease can't be cured, but you are the king. You need to pull yourself together."
Robert gazed at the river, his face full of resignation. "Do I really need to pull myself together when I'm a dying man?"
Wright replied, "Robert, how do you want future generations to record your life? Your first half was full of valor, but your later years... like a weak Targaryen king, dying from the belly of a woman! Do you want to be compared to those kings and their many mistresses and bastards?"
Robert didn't answer immediately, instead falling into deep thought. He reflected on his youth, realizing he wasn't always like this.
On the riverbank, the Kingsguard rode on horseback, keeping pace with the drifting ice, slowly following the river until nightfall, when Wright and Renly finally made it to shore.
If not for Robert, Wright, exhausted from battle, would have already gone to bed, not still lying there now.
Once Wright finally fell asleep, he began to dream.
In the dream, he found himself in a world devoid of light—utterly black. As he walked forward, he could only see two or three meters ahead. Stretching out his hands, he groped his way through, and as he passed a small puddle, a black tendril shot out of the water, but just as it was about to strike, it swiftly retracted.
Wright continued his journey without any obstacles—ascending stairs, descending stairs, opening iron doors, and traversing hallways. He didn't know how long it had been until he finally reached a circular platform.
On the platform were several glowing pillars, their faint light barely illuminating the surroundings. The platform was hovering over a body of water.
"You kill without mercy, bodies piling up like mountains!" A drifting voice echoed around him.
A hill made of skulls rose from the depths of the sea.
Wright responded, "I've killed many."
"Countless souls have died because of you, and their vengeful spirits will come for you!"
More hills of skulls rose up, encircling the platform.
Wright answered, "More have died because of me."
"You toy with souls. Your greed for power turns them into weapons!"
Wright said, "I have used enchantments."
"Your actions are no different from hell and Daedras! Come, join us! I will grant you even greater knowledge and power!"
The surroundings began to grow brighter. The ground beneath him was made of black silk threads, and the buildings were constructed from countless stacked books. In the ink-black sea, many more book-constructed structures stood tall.
A half-circle stone wall appeared before Wright. As he walked closer, he noticed the most prominent feature—a word in the dragon language: "Gol". Along with this, many dragon language phrases hovered around the wall, all translations of Gol.
"You've already learned these. Join me, and I will grant you immortality!"
Wright's dragon soul inside him began to stir, wanting to escape this cursed place.
"No! Fus~~Ro~~Dah~~!" Wright was instantly awakened. The force of the dragon shout blew a massive hole in the bedroom, sending countless stone fragments soaring hundreds of meters into the air.