The Mountain of Ice and Fire

Chapter 829: The Charming Braavosi Ambiance

(Warning: The latter half of this book leans towards slice-of-life, political maneuvering, technology, shamelessness, and darkness, with a weakening of hand-to-hand combat)

*

“We will prove our worth, Dr. Clarence Kellaway,” Bran Stark said quietly.

In Braavos, learned people are called Doctors, equivalent to Maesters on the continent of Westeros.

Clarence looked at Bran with some surprise: “You found out my name?” As if finding out his name was a remarkable feat.

Bran didn't answer, just looked at Clarence quietly.

In fact, Bran knew the names of all the key people in the Iron Bank. The Three-Eyed Raven had visited the Iron Bank more than once, listening to the meetings of the Iron Bank managers outside the window, but the people of the Iron Bank had never discovered that a mysterious raven was squatting outside the window of their conference hall.

Littlefinger picked up the Sea Lord's letter of recommendation from the counter. He didn't know how Bran had obtained the Sea Lord's recommendation. To the people of Braavos, this letter carried significant weight simply because of the Sea Lord's name, but the Iron Bank only looked at economic returns. In Braavos, the Iron Bank has complete independence, and the Sea Lord has no coercive power over the Iron Bank.

“Dr. Clarence, please take a look at the Sea Lord's letter of recommendation, and then we'll leave!”

“Do you make the decisions?” Clarence said contemptuously. But there was no hint of contempt in his tone. The greatest contempt is often accomplished with politeness.

Littlefinger felt a pang of frustration. Here, Bran Stark was the one in charge.

“Doctor, after you read the letter, we will leave,” Bran Stark said quietly, “but we will return again.”

Clarence's gaze fell on the scroll that Littlefinger handed over. He looked at it for a long time before reaching out to take it and breaking the wax seal: “Let me give you a piece of advice: don't hold onto any hope. The Iron Bank will never support losers.”

“We understand,” Littlefinger said.

The doctor unfolded the parchment scroll, which contained two sentences, and at the bottom was the Sea Lord's seal.

Everyone stared intently at Clarence. Whether there was a turning point depended entirely on the Sea Lord's letter. As for what the Sea Lord wrote, no one knew except Bran. Nor did anyone know how Bran had obtained the Sea Lord's letter of recommendation. Before coming here, no one knew that Bran carried such a letter, except for Bran himself.

Clarence took a relatively long time to read the letter. Just two sentences should have taken no more than two heartbeats, but he clearly took longer. Littlefinger was sure that the doctor read it at least three times.

Dr. Clarence slowly raised his head and looked at Bran: “Are you a prophet?”

Bran didn't answer, just looked at Clarence quietly.

“Alright, I need to see your value first, and then I'll give you a chance to explain your loan request to the manager.”

Apart from Bran Stark, no one understood how Dr. Clarence would see their value first. However, the latter sentence was encouraging. As long as they met the doctor's requirements, they could see the manager and explain the reasons for the loan.

The so-called reason is to convince the manager that they can bring rich interest to the Iron Bank, and that the Iron Bank's principal will definitely not be lost. In the absence of any collateral, there are only two ways to get a loan from the Iron Bank: the first is to provide a guarantor with weight; if not, then you must rely on your first-class logical ability: a perfect plan that convincingly repays the principal and interest of the loan.

Yes, a perfect plan, a flawless repayment plan.

Dr. Clarence's promise to give them a chance to see the manager made everyone relax. Ramsay Bolton showed a sweet smile. He knew today would not be in vain. He was superstitious about Bran Stark. He also greatly appreciated Bran's betrayal of the Stark family. Bran's betrayal and forgiveness made Ramsay feel that Bran was a prophet worth following. Once, Bran almost died at the hands of Ramsay Bolton. But after he became the Green Prophet, the Three-Eyed Raven continuously invaded Ramsay Bolton's dreams, eventually subduing this elite among the scum.

Bran tapped his wheelchair. Roose Bolton pushed the wheelchair around and walked out of the hall.

Littlefinger climbed down from the high counter, his posture graceful but his movements awkward, causing Ramsay Bolton and the two Sand Snakes to laugh again.

“Hey, Bran, are we just leaving like this?” Jaime said.

“Jaime, we have to prove our worth first.”

“How do we prove it?”

“We're going to see the Sea Lord.”

“Where is the Sea Lord?”

“The Sea Lord is on the Sea Lord's Island.”

*

The Sea Lord lives on Sea Lord's Island. To land on Sea Lord's Island, you need to start from the island of the Iron Bank, travel through complex waterways that are either wide or narrow, and finally dock at the Sea Lord's harbor and land ashore.

The city of Braavos is actually composed of hundreds of islands scattered in hidden bays. The mainland near Braavos in the southeast is covered with swamps, which makes it impossible for enemies to attack the city-state of Braavos by land.

The swamps on land protect the southeast side of the Braavos city-state. Any legions that want to attack Braavos can only launch an attack from the sea.

To attack Braavos from the sea, there is only one sea passage that can be used, and that is the waterway to the west. All other directions are surrounded by mountain-like island walls, as if the Sea God had built a natural, unclimbable, steep city wall for Braavos. And this kind of natural city wall is many times higher, wider, and steeper than a real city wall.

This mountain-like ring of islands only leaves a natural canyon large enough to accommodate ocean-going merchant ships, and this canyon is protected by a giant artificial statue, as tall as the mountain, called the Titan of Braavos, also recognized as one of the world's nine wonders, and as famous as the Wall of Westeros.

The Titan is not only a landmark and a lighthouse, but in the event of war, if the enemy attacks from the sea, this giant statue will immediately become a perfect defensive fortress. Close behind the Titan, in addition to the harbor, are continuous combat fortresses and a huge shipyard called the Arsenal.

Between the hundreds of islands of the Braavos city-state, which are so perfectly protected on both the sea and land sides, there are two lines of communication that connect all these islands together. The first is the waterway between the islands, and the second is the gray, golden, or red arched bridges between the islands, which are either long or short.

People living in the Braavos city-state can travel from one island to another by boat, or they can choose to walk. Arched bridges connect each island together, forming a water city full of stone towers, castles, and arched bridges.

*

Bran's group chose to travel by boat. In Braavos, taking a boat through the waterways between the islands is the fastest shortcut. The road over the arched bridges is often very roundabout, which is a more preferable way for tourists who are not in a hurry. And on the boat, the happiest were Tommen and Myrcella. The two children were fascinated by the countless arched bridges. Each arched bridge had a different color and shape. When the boat passed under the arched bridge, Tommen and Myrcella would exclaim and hope to touch the bottom of the bridge above their heads with their palms.

In Braavos, as long as you have money, you can hire all kinds of yachts in various sizes and forms. Many people on the island rely on renting yachts to make a living. The captains and oarsmen on the yachts are all the best guides in Braavos. They can take you to your destination as quickly or as slowly as you require, and introduce you to the stories and legends of each attraction along the way.

Bran's group's boat passed through countless beautiful colored arched bridges. It seemed that only a few heartbeats had passed before the group reached their destination. Except for Bran, everyone was delighted by the beautiful scenery of the city. The two Sand Snakes declared that they were completely fascinated by the city and that they would marry in Braavos after the war and settle in this island city until they died of old age.

There was only one warship in the Sea Lord's harbor. The rest were all longboats and fishing boats without sails, as well as many yachts. There are many guests who come to Sea Lord's Island every day. The most powerful people on the sea live here. The Sea Lord's Palace and many temples have been built on the island. Except for the Isle of Gods, Sea Lord's Island has the largest number of temples. Almost everyone of different faiths can find their own god on this island to kneel and offer candles.

Bran sat in his wheelchair and was carried ashore by Roose Bolton, wheelchair and all. The shore was crowded with people, and fully armed soldiers stood on both sides of the road, but there were not many of them. Everyone was visiting Sea Lord's Island for the first time. Bran's Three-Eyed Raven had been here, but he himself was still here for the first time.

At Bran's suggestion, everyone passed through the pier and entered a fishy-smelling market. From the innermost part of the market came the sound of gongs, drums, and opera. There were clowns performing farces, and from time to time there was enthusiastic applause and whistles, as well as very vulgar curses.

After entering the formal street, there were even more people. There were brothels, mercenaries, taverns, stalls, spice shops, cloth shops, and bakeries everywhere. There were also many gold and silver jewelry stores. There were many people of all kinds on the street. You could tell from their clothes and faces that they came from different ethnic groups. Many taverns were filled with loud cheers or cheers, as if they were not taverns, but exciting underground casinos.

This was a prosperous and lively place, full of beauties, teenagers, and mercenaries that were a dime a dozen. As long as you had money, you could hire an army to serve you at any time; or go to a brothel full of the fragrance of powder to indulge until you died.

Littlefinger counted all the way and found that there were twenty-three brothels with different facades on this bustling street. There were a total of sixty-nine beautiful women soliciting customers at the entrances of the brothels. These people did not include the various fireflies who privately received patrons. Here, women of every skin color and appearance were available, and all kinds of styles bloomed here, which was what Littlefinger liked.

If there were no other worries, Littlefinger would also be willing to settle here and die of old age.

In Littlefinger's reluctance, the group finally walked into the Sea Lord's Palace grounds.

The hustle and bustle and worldly prosperity seemed to have gone to another world. It was very quiet here. The people on the streets were dressed neatly and brightly. Every distance, there was a soldier with a blank face.

The huge palace was in front of everyone. It was a magnificent stone castle, but compared with the empty stone castle of the Iron Bank, it seemed too small.

A young man with a bronze helmet with two spikes on the bronze helmet, holding a spear and carrying a shield, stepped forward and stopped Bran's wheelchair: “My lord, the Sea Lord's Palace is ahead, please stop.”

The bronze helmet and armor indicated that this guy was an Unsullied. The two spikes on the helmet indicated that he was a captain. If there was only one spike, it was an Unsullied soldier. “I want to see the Sea Lord,” Bran said quietly.

“Is your Excellency an envoy from another place?” The captain's eyes swept over the group. These people were carrying weapons and had soldiers following them. Of course, in Braavos, there were many merchants with soldiers following them. Merchants from all over the world came here to do business. People of all ethnic groups have settled here in the Braavos city-state. There are Dothraki, Volantenes, Summer Islanders, Westerosi, Qartheen, Far Easterners, and mysterious Asshai'i.

“Captain, tell Dr. Ivor to inform the Sea Lord that the Three-Eyed Raven has come to visit the Sea Lord and has very important military affairs to report.”

The expression on the captain's face immediately became respectful. Dr. Ivor was equivalent to the Grand Maester in the royal palace of Westeros. This wheelchair-bound teenager knew Dr. Ivor.

“Please follow me, my lord,” the captain said.

With the captain's lead, the group arrived smoothly in front of the palace gate. This was a huge oak door full of silver nails that needed to be looked up to. The silver giant door looked solemn and luxurious, and its aura was extraordinary. Unsullied soldiers guarded on both sides. A small door opened on the gate. The captain signaled everyone to stop, and he went in through the small door to report to Dr. Ivor.

After a long while, the gate slowly opened, and an old man in a white cloth robe with a fair face and no beard stood behind the gate. His attire was very similar to that of a Maester in Westeros. Littlefinger noticed that this guy was wearing a necklace around his neck, with metal pieces strung on the necklace. This was exactly the Maester's chain that Littlefinger was familiar with. Each metal piece represented a kind of knowledge.

Obviously, Dr. Ivor, who the Sea Lord deeply believed in, was actually a Maester from the Citadel of Oldtown in Westeros. There were many metal pieces on that Maester's chain, which meant that this guy was a very remarkable Maester in the Starry Sept of Oldtown.

Maesters of Oldtown were divided into two factions, one faction was Maesters who studied science, and the other faction was Maesters who were obsessed with declining mysticism. Scientific Maesters despised mystical Maesters, which was an open secret in the Citadel. But scientific Maesters and mystical Maesters were not as easily distinguished as they appeared. Many scientific Maesters who despised mystical Maesters were secretly studying mysticism.

“Bran Stark?” Dr. Ivor was meeting Bran for the first time.

Dr. Ivan was just such a hypocrite—despising the mystical arts publicly while secretly studying them in private. Once he became infatuated with mysticism, he could no longer remain at the Citadel in Oldtown as a Maester of science. So, he obtained the Citadel's approval to promote science in Essos, and then never returned, all to better facilitate his research into the mystical arts.

Maesters who studied mysticism at the Citadel were consistently at the lowest rung of the academic food chain.

Compared to Dr. Ivan's research and experiments conducted through books, the Green Prophet's mastery of mysticism was akin to that of a grandmaster.