Chapter 102: Doubts at the Pirate Gathering


    Three months passed swiftly.


    During this time, the Seventh Battalion underwent aplete transformation. Word of the battalion’s improved conditions spread, attracting auxiliary soldiers and mercenaries whose contracts were nearing expiration. As a result, the battalion''s numbers swelled from just over 70 to more than 120. Viserys had warned them that the training would be grueling, but they hadn’t anticipated just how tough it would be. Swordsmanship and physical fitness were expected, but why did they have to train in formation? Why practice standing at attention or tidying up the barracks? And folding nkets before battle—was this really necessary? Was it just?


    The mercenaries of the Seventh Battalion weren’t the only ones baffled. Even the other battalion sergeants were skeptical of Viserys’s methods. They doubted his ability as a drill sergeant and believed the soldiers stayed only because the battalion''s benefits were exceptionally good.


    Some soldiers considered quitting during those three months, but thoughts of Meris’s harsh discipline and the loss of their new privileges kept them in line. Over time, they grew ustomed to the routine. What''s more, Viserys not only provided the promised benefits but delivered them ahead of schedule.


    In just one month, he produced 50 suits of armor. Though in, no one was eager to part with them. Two monthster, he produced another 100 suits—these were slightly worn, but with some repairs, they were perfectly serviceable. After all, these armors could mean the difference between life and death.


    Despite theirints, the soldiers grumbled only in private. Moreover, Viserys now had a few diehard supporters within the Seventh Battalion. If anyone dared criticize him publicly, they were quick to silence the dissenters.


    Viserys’s strict training regimen had a purpose. He didn’t want a ragtag group of fighters; he wanted a disciplined, cohesive army. The results were impressive enough that even the Tattered Prince, the oldmander, voiced his approval, dering the Seventh Battalion a real army.


    But despite the progress, Viserys wasn’t satisfied. His goal was to build a mercenary force of a thousand before his dragon hatched. However, he knew this was no easy task.


    Take Bittersteel Aegor and the Tattered Prince, for example. Both had spent years in other mercenary groups before gathering a loyal band of their own to "start a business." Viserys didn’t have "several years." He recalled that Dany was around 12 or 13 when the events of <em>Game of Thrones</em> began, likely just after her first period. By his estimation, there were less than two years left before the story officially started.


    This looming deadline weighed heavily on Viserys. If he were forced to spend years building his mercenary group, he’d never manage to find another dragon egg, let alone form his army. His decision toe to the Disputed Lands was driven by the knowledge that war would soon break out between Tyrosh and Lys. But for now, the two sides remained in a tense standoff.


    Littlefinger’s words echoed in his mind—''chaos is adder.'' Viserys hoped Tyrosh and Lys would sh. However, Lys had fortified its position against Tyrosh with it''s stronghold and the support of pirates who secretly allied with them. While skirmishes were frequent, no major conflict had erupted. Tyrosh was too preupied with the pirates of Lys in the Stepstones tounch an offensive on the region, where it''s strongholdy.


    In other words, if arge-scale conflict was to erupt, the pirates would need to be eliminated. But that was easier said than done. If Tyrosh could have wiped them out, it would have done so long ago. These pirates were formidable.


    If wiping out the pirates was impossible, there was another option: decapitation. If the pirate leaders were taken out, the threat could be neutralized. And recently, an opportunity had presented itself—a "pirate gathering," as Bnd, the pirate who had once pursued Viserys, had mentioned.


    ording to Bnd, pirates from across the world were converging on the Orange Shore. For the past three months, Viserys had been using the Golden Eagle to scout the area. Since bing a Soul Binder, his telepathic connection with his animal partner had increased exponentially.


    Previously, in Braavos, he could only control a seagull to circle the city. But after linking his soul with the golden eagle, their range had be nearly limitless. He had even managed to guide the eagle as far as the vicinity of Dorne.


    However, something strange happened when the golden eagle crossed into Dorne, part of Westeros. The link between them weakened, and the images became blurry. Viserys redirected the eagle to explore the area where Bnd had indicated the pirates might gather.


    The Orange Shorey between the Disputed Lands and the Rhoyne River Valley. The former was contested by the Free Cities of Tyrosh, Vntis, and Lys, while thetter was Vntis''s domain. This made the Orange Shore a no man''snd, free of any jurisdiction.


    Viserys controlled the golden eagle as it hovered over the Orange Shore for nearly two months. He observed arge number of pirate ships converging in several areas, including two inds, an abandoned port, and a hidden cove. One location, Orange Shore Bay, stood out as particrly suspicious.


    Using the Moon''s Revtion, Viserys divined these ces one by one. The first few were shrouded in darkness, but Orange Shore Bay glowed with light in the darkness. He concluded that this must be the pirates'' meeting and trading ce. These pirates, who plundered across the world, gathered regrly to share their spoils. Viserys estimated that if he could strike a decisive blow here, he could aplish in one night what the old captain had done in twenty years. Additionally, it might catalyze a war between Tyrosh and Lys, allowing him to benefit from the chaos.


    But the task would be incredibly challenging. The pirates'' trading post was deep within the bay, and by the time of the gathering, pirates from across the world would be there. Over a thousand ships would be scattered along the Orange Coast. Leading arge army would only alert them, and bringing too few would be a suicide mission.


    However, Viserys’s goal wasn’t to eliminate all the pirates. ording to Bnd, most of the pirates would remain outside the bay to "guard the door," while only their leaders and representatives—numbering between 200 and 300—would enter the deeper bay to trade.


    The only viable strategy was to carry out a "decapitation operation" targeting these leaders. But these pirates were seasoned veterans of the sea, not to be underestimated. Even if they weren’t skilled fighters themselves, they would have capable warriors at their side. Entering the bay with more than 50 men would raise suspicion, but fewer would mean facing a tough battle with no room for error. Sess depended on eliminating the leaders swiftly, or the entire n would fail.


    In his previous life, a single rocket could have handled the situation. But in this world, that was out of the question. Now, he needed a strong, reliable group of fighters, possibly the best from the entire mercenarypany.


    Viserys still hadn’t figured out how to kill hundreds of pirates in a short span of time. Moreover, he needed permission from the Tattered Prince to undertake such a mission. As a sellsword, he couldn’t act independently. Although he had discovered a loophole in the contract that might allow him some leeway, there was little point in obsessing over how to deal with the pirates just yet.


    Feeling uncertain, Viserys decided to visit Meris and Dany, as he often did. For the past three months, he had been diligently collecting Assignable Points, and now, after his time away from Braavos, he had amassed a hundred of them. After maxing out all his attributes, he still had nearly a hundred points left.


    Constitution: 100


    Health: 100


    Spirit: 100


    Magic: 100


    Assignable General Attribute Points: 112


    Viserys felt in peak condition, brimming with energy every day. Yet, he was unsure how to use the extra points. He had hoped that reaching 100 in Constitution would trigger some kind of breakthrough, but nothing significant had happened. Although he felt stronger, there was no sense of having "evolved." It seemed that to surpass the 100-point limit, he would need to wait for a shift in the world’s magical environment—like theing tide of magic. As he pondered this, an owl appeared before him, interrupting his thoughts.