A Song of Ice and Fire: Wrath of the Sleeping Dragon

"Winter is coming."

"Although Andalos winters aren't too cold, I can't let my soldiers spend the winter in flimsy tents."

King Viserys held the reins of his horse with one hand, then glanced down at Maester Gunther, who was standing beneath him.

"Maester."

"Your Grace."

The black-haired maester rubbed his nose, feeling as if he were about to catch a cold.

"Convey my orders..."

Viserys was about to say something while sitting atop his white horse when he suddenly noticed a group of travelers arriving from afar.

These people had migrated to the still-under-construction Andalos City, attracted by his faith and wealth.

Clatter clatter clatter...

From the densely packed Targaryen army camp, two knights rode out on their horses to greet the newcomers, inquiring about their intentions and checking their identities.

Viserys looked at the group that had come from afar and then turned his gaze away.

Such groups were a common sight these days and were no longer surprising.

"Let them build their own homes."

Viserys then remembered the unfinished statement he had made earlier and added.

"Maester, convey my orders. Divide these prisoners into three groups and have them work around the clock to build the castle."

"I don't want a single second of delay."

"Do you understand?"

Viserys' cheeks were taut, his voice calm but firm.

The young king then pulled on the reins, urging his horse to turn around and head off into the distance.

Clatter clatter...

The sound of horse hooves stirred the leaves on the ground, and his voice carried with it.

"Tell them... once the castle is built, they can leave."

"Of course, if these bandits can survive until then..."

Viserys rode away from the small hill.

In the distance.

The newly arrived group of Andal people were conversing with the two knights who had ridden out from the army camp.

Within this group, two young boys caught sight of the rumored Andalos City and the boy riding a horse in the distance.

"That must be the son of this 'His Grace the King.'"

Myles said sarcastically. Though he didn't know much about horses, the shimmering glow of the horse's coat in the sunlight and the luxurious clothes worn by the boy on its back were enough to prove that he was no ordinary person.

Moreover, he had attendants following him.

What he saw was Maester Gunther, who had been left behind in a cloud of dust by Viserys, brushing the dirt off his clothes and shaking his head before going to relay Viserys' orders.

He knew that Viserys was a man of his word, and since he had said that the bandits would be released once the castle was built, he would keep his promise.

However, Maester Gunther didn't know what would happen after the bandits were released.

He felt that the fate of these troublemakers on this land might not be a good one.

...

And on the other side,

As the 'warrior's son' in the village, young Baelish frowned slightly upon hearing his companion's words.

He didn't have the heart to interrupt, but his friend's uncultured manner was indeed a bit embarrassing. So, he cut in,

"Stop, Myles, you'd better not say any more."

"Do you think the king's son is also called a son?"

Young Myles looked a bit puzzled when he heard Baelish's words.

"Isn't he the king's son?"

"Was the king cuckolded?"

Upon hearing his companion's naive words, Baelish once again rubbed his temples with a headache.

"Of course not."

"Myles, I've always urged you to gain more knowledge."

"The sons of the nobles are called young lords, and the king is the greatest of the nobles. What do you think his son should be called?"

Baelish spoke, gazing at the departing figure of Viserys in the distance.

In truth, he felt a surge of envy in his heart.

His dream was to become a knight, and he hoped that one day he could ride a tall, majestic horse.

He never told his companions that, apart from his mother's will, he had a little desire to move here.

Because he knew very well that this was his once-in-a-lifetime chance to get close to nobility. He had never seen a noble lord before, and according to the village chief, there was a king here.

What was a king?

The young man dared not even think about it. In his mind, a king was a noble more powerful than any other, so high up that Baelish could not see him even if he knelt and looked up, craning his neck.

Naturally, this stirred up the wild ambitions burning within young Baelish.

He wanted to seize the opportunity to impress the king and be knighted!

His companion, of course, knew nothing of the young man's ambitions and asked with some confusion.

"The... greatest noble?"

"What should the king's son be called?"

"I tell you, you're really foolish!"

"Of course, he's called a young lord!"

"No, the great young lord!"

As the two young men chatted, the conversation up ahead seemed to have reached a conclusion.

The migrating group moved once more, heading towards the city beneath the hilltop castle, where crowds gathered.

...

Clang, clang, clang—

Inside Andaros City, craftsmen swung their hammers, driving wooden stakes into the ground.

"Bring this piece of wood over!"

"Hurry up!"

Andals, who stood on rooftops building their homes, shouted.

Now, Andaros City had gathered more than ten thousand people, all of whom were Andals who had migrated from nearby villages.

They began building their homes around the castle on the hill in the center of Andaros City.

One wooden house after another sprouted up, densely guarding the large wooden castle in the center.

The new city could only be temporarily built with wood to speed up the process. After everything matured, the wood would be replaced with stone.

Andaros City's location was also well-chosen. Over six thousand years ago, it had been a battlefield where Andals and Rhoynar fought for supremacy—a strategically important location and the site of an ancient Rhoynar city.

Over six thousand years ago, the Andals launched multiple attacks from the Rhoyne River, targeting the Rhoynar territories, but they were repeatedly defeated.

Then, the Andals chose another direction, crossing the Narrow Sea to invade Westeros.

When Viserys chose the location, he first marked a general direction on the map, selecting a spot surrounded by mountains and rivers, with plains suitable for farming, and with some strategic significance.

Upon arriving at the land with his army, the young king made some adjustments, finally settling on the hilltop as the location.

This hill would be the site of the castle. The hill backed onto the Upper Rhoyne River and offered an unobstructed view of the entire plain within a radius of several miles. It was undoubtedly the highest vantage point in the area.

By building the castle here, even if they faced a siege in the future, it wouldn't be so easily captured.