"Father told me to let him know whenever I returned to the Red Keep after sword practice. So I went to find him when I got home yesterday, and I heard King Robert's loud voice from a distance. As I got closer, I could clearly hear them talking about Varys... the Master of Whisperers. My father seemed to be asking, 'Whose side is that eunuch really on?'" Arya tried to recall. "After I pushed open the door and greeted Father, he asked me to leave. A while later, at dinner… ah, I remember! They mentioned summoning Slynt!"
"Why summon him?"
"How would I know? After dinner, Father sent me back to my room. There were guards outside his study. I couldn't just stick to the door and eavesdrop."
Tsk. Aegor frowned. The information Arya provided seemed important, but when he thought about it, it was completely inconclusive—the King might summon the commander of the City Watch for any number of reasons. Even if it was related to the rumors, without hearing the critical part of the conversation, who could say whether Robert intended to act against the Lannisters, or was merely inquiring into the investigation or ordering the arrest of those spreading the gossip?
Since all had been peaceful in King's Landing from last night until now, it meant that, for the moment, it wasn't the worst-case scenario. But if they relaxed just because Robert hadn't taken immediate action against the Lannisters...
Tyrion hadn't returned yet, but Aegor had a bad feeling. Slynt, who had just been summoned by the king himself, was unlikely to show respect to a Lannister who had nothing but a name—no rank, no power.
"I'll go call Akun in to practice with you."
"No more practice. Let's wait for Tyrion to come back." Arya tossed the wooden sword aside and followed him. "I want to see how to take down a big villain... No, I have to be part of it!"
---
…
…
The common folk of King's Landing might not recognize the Imp, but the gold cloaks—guards of the city—certainly did. Tyrion, relying on his high visibility, led Morris straight into the east camp of the garrison. Under the guidance of the guards along the way, he arrived at the commander's office.
After adjusting his expression, Tyrion pushed the door open with the easy smile of a seasoned merchant.
"Lord Slynt, it's been quite some time. How have you been lately?"
"Not well. There's far too much to do—can't keep up," Slynt said, a little surprised by the visitor but remaining seated behind his desk. He neither stood up nor invited Tyrion to sit. "Ser Tyrion, what brings you to the garrison when you're so busy?"
"Alas, there's been some recent misunderstanding between the Night's Watch office and the garrison." Tyrion wasn't just short, his legs were slightly deformed, and he couldn't stand for long. Even though Slynt didn't say anything, Tyrion still had to find a chair and sit down. "As someone in charge, I had to come clarify the situation."
"Oh?" Slynt snorted, offering a sarcastic smile. "A misunderstanding? What misunderstanding? How come I don't know about it?"
"This morning, a group of garrison soldiers ran to the paper mill I oversee outside the city, claiming they were searching for contraband. What's the meaning of that?"
"Oh, so that's what this is about. We received a report that someone was raising private troops and stockpiling weapons and food near the Blackwater River, outside King's Gate. King's Landing is the capital of the Seven Kingdoms, after all. As commander of the City Watch, I must be vigilant against this sort of thing."
"Lord Slynt, those food stores and weapons are war supplies for the Night's Watch, to be transported to the Wall at any time. The so-called private soldiers are the guards of the factories and warehouses, as well as newly recruited trainees for the Night's Watch. The Hand of the King, Lord Eddard, is fully informed and has signed the permits. Conducting a raid for these reasons is clearly a misunderstanding."
"Oh, then it truly is a misunderstanding. But you can't blame the brothers for doing their jobs—you never informed them ahead of time. I'm not running the Night's Watch, so how would I know the details?" Slynt crossed his legs. "Of course, since Lord Tyrion came to explain in person, now I understand the situation. If our actions disrupted your work, I apologize. But if we receive similar reports in the future, we'll still carry out routine investigations. Lord Tyrion, I hope you can understand—it's our duty."
"Indeed, the earlier misunderstanding was due to our own oversight. I apologize for the trouble we caused your men. Please forgive us, Commander Slynt." Tyrion already sensed something was off. Few people dared speak to him in such a tone. Suppressing his displeasure, he continued, "The Night's Watch business in King's Landing is currently managed by Aegor West and my apprentice Nina. One is a former Wall soldier and rather rough around the edges; the other is a girl of common birth who's never seen the world. Neither is very familiar with the rules, so they're bound to make some mistakes while operating in the city. I offer my apologies on their behalf. Commander Slynt is a magnanimous man—I hope you can forgive the missteps of these two young people."
"No need for that—it's all in service to King Robert. As long as you keep to your place and obey the laws His Grace has laid down, why would I cause trouble?"
…
Now you're just picking a fight, aren't you?
Tyrion could hardly bear the backhanded mockery from the greasy man before him. He pulled out the hundred gold dragon bond he had prepared and placed it on the table. "Then I'll trouble you, Commander. Please accept this as a reward for your men who've been working so hard."
Slynt glanced at the note, and his expression changed. "What do you mean by this? You think this little bit of coin can buy the loyalty of the Commander of the City Watch?"
"No, no. Nothing like that. We all know your loyalty to King Robert can't be measured in coin. This is merely a token of apology for the earlier offense caused by those two young ones. Lord Slynt, I beg you to accept it. Otherwise, I won't sleep well tonight."
"If you can't sleep, take more rest. Lord Tyrion, why trouble yourself over others' mistakes?" Slynt sneered. "It's not that I don't respect you, but whoever caused the problem should be the one to resolve it. Please go back and send your lovely little apprentice to speak with me instead. That girl is quite proud, hard to approach. Even I can't get her to show up when I want to."
Who do you think you are, trying to toy with my apprentice?
Once, Tyrion would have exploded with curses. As a dwarf, he had a foul mouth known for getting him into trouble. If not for his powerful father, he'd have been dead long ago.
But managing the Night's Watch's business had taught him much. It gave him a place to use his talents, and as a businessman, he gradually learned how to speak with restraint and tact.
His cheek twitched. Tyrion resisted the urge to curse or threaten. He sighed and retrieved the note. "In that case, I will pass on your wishes to the two young ones. Let them decide for themselves."
"Good." Slynt smirked. "No need to see me out."
---
The garrison camp was just across the street from the Night's Watch office, so Tyrion didn't keep Aegor and Arya waiting long. As Aegor had expected, Tyrion slapped the bond onto the table—a hundred gold dragons, and not a coin accepted.
"He didn't take it!" Arya beamed. "Now we can talk about how to kill him!"
"Do you like killing people that much?" Tyrion rolled his eyes at her, his expression a bit awkward. "Strange… as far as I know, isn't Slynt a commoner? Where does he get the nerve to be so arrogant? Did you look into his background?"
"Lord Aegor told me to investigate, and I got plenty of information from people who used to work at Littlefinger's brothel," Nina reported. "Slynt was born a commoner. His father was a butcher. He was appointed commander of the City Watch by King Robert by mistake. At first, he kept a low profile, but later he began abusing his position. Jon Arryn had planned to dismiss him, but King Robert said, 'Better to do evil openly than to hide it. The next one might be worse.' So Slynt kept his position and got even worse after the previous Hand died."
…
Better to do evil openly than in secret? Only a fool like Robert could come up with that logic. Even if the actions are equally corrupt, doing them openly causes far more social damage than doing them in secret. Beyond the actual harm to national interests, it corrodes public trust and weakens the foundations of rule. Those latter effects are nearly impossible to reverse—and enough to bring down a dynasty.
Robert surely understood that. But he clearly underestimated the damage Slynt could do to the Iron Throne. Rather than replacing him with an unknown, the king was willing to tolerate a bit of lawlessness from a man he himself had appointed.
"Is it really that hard to find a loyal commander? Why would the king keep such a man?"
"Because he's easy to use. The king knows exactly what kind of person he is but thinks he's useful and doesn't want to replace him," Nina explained. "Before the former Master of Coin defected, he once told people in his brothel, 'Janos Slynt has no talent. His only virtue is obedience. If Robert ordered him to go home and hang his mother, he'd do it without hesitation.' That's why he earned Robert's favor and held onto his position for so many years."
"In other words, he's an executioner without a conscience who blindly follows orders. His father was a butcher, so is Slynt just carrying on the family trade in his own way?" Tyrion muttered. "So that's why he's so confident—his backer is the king! No wonder he's arrogant and afraid of no one. To be fair, that's quite the backer. Not something ordinary people can challenge."
"With a cloak worth two thousand dragons and the king behind him, this guy's even harder to deal with than I thought."
"But now that we know his background, we can come up with a plan," Tyrion said with a cold smile. "The king may be useless, but we have a new Hand who loathes corruption. If Eddard Stark gets solid proof of Slynt's misdeeds, I doubt he'll care what Robert says."
Arya puffed out her chest proudly. "Of course he will! My father dares to argue with the king!"
…
"Seven hells. He's just Robert's dog, and he dares to act like this," Tyrion swore, taking a deep breath to vent his frustration. "Why does a short-legged man like me have to run around fixing other people's messes? If I don't take him down within three days, I'll write the name Lannister backwards!"
"Support, support, support!" Arya cheered, clearly enjoying Tyrion's curses. She bounced in her chair with excitement. "Let's get started on the plan to kill him!"
(To be continued.)
***
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