Compared to the last time Deltos was seen, it had grown to more than twice its original size. Its stone-like skin now shimmered with a gem-like radiance, as if gleaming jewels had been embedded across its surface.
This growth also made its proportions appear far more balanced—its body and head now in harmony, unlike before when it resembled a big-headed doll.
Although Deltos had fallen into a deep sleep, it wasn't without protection. A mist, like pale morning frost, surrounded it.
This layer of mist looked unremarkable at first glance, but beneath its ordinary appearance lay hidden danger. The monsters frozen within it made it clear that the mist's freezing effect was no less powerful than Lynd's Frozen Dragon Rune.
During his last search through the Valyrian ruins, Lynd had found nothing but parasitic creatures. But now, judging from the frozen beasts around Deltos, it was obvious that Valyria was home to far more species than expected.
There were giant spiders with over a dozen legs, worms covered in rows of mouthparts, and grotesque creatures that looked like rotting corpses—mutated beasts, each more bizarre than the last.
Lynd also noticed that as the volcanic ash and toxic smoke overhead thinned, the radiation-like magical energy emanating from the black stone surfaces had become stronger—and strangely sticky.
When this black stone magic landed on the body, it clung to the surface like radioactive dust, lingering long without dispersing.
Lynd walked a full circle around Deltos, checking on its condition. After confirming there were no abnormalities, he chose not to wake it. He could sense this slumber was vital for Deltos, so he left the lava dragon Neltharion behind to guard it, and made his way toward the nearby ruins to see if there was anything else to discover.
The surrounding environment hadn't changed much since Lynd's last visit. Sunlight now managed to pierce through the layers of volcanic ash, casting a dim light on the ground. By this faint glow, he was able to spot many things he had overlooked the last time.
For instance, the various treasures the Valyrians hadn't had time to take with them during the Doomsday disaster. Gold and silver ornaments aside, Lynd even found several items forged from Valyrian steel.
It was no wonder the outside world had always spoken of the Valyrian ruins being filled with treasure. Anyone who could enter and leave alive could walk away with a fortune enough to last a lifetime.
Though the rumors sounded exaggerated, they weren't far off. The Valyrian steel jewelry Lynd casually found on the remains of the dead was already enough to make any ordinary person wealthy for life.
And that was only from a cursory glance. The treasure buried beneath these ruins likely amounted to an astronomical sum. Stirred by the thought, an old idea rose again in Lynd's mind—to build another Black Cave near the Valyrian ruins. He began to seriously consider whether this could be done.
As he contemplated how to claim the ruins of Valyria as his own, Lynd continued wandering through them. Before long, he found himself once again outside the great hall where the Dragon's Horn had been stored.
He hadn't planned to go in again, but as he passed by, his gaze swept over a few corpses outside the hall—and something felt off. The bodies had been disturbed.
"Someone else entered the Valyrian ruins?" Lynd's heart tensed. He immediately turned and headed for the hall.
When he reached the bodies, Lynd quickly examined the remaining traces. It was clear they had indeed been moved. From the thin layer of new dust covering them and the ground around them, it looked like this had happened recently—within the past few days at most.
Inside the hall, Lynd saw that the altar which had held the Dragon's Horn had been dismantled and removed.
He didn't have a particularly strong impression of the altar, only remembering that it bore no special runes or markings. Its uniqueness came from the material it was made of—black stone. But it wasn't the same as the greasy black stone found outside. It felt more like the kind used in the Black Stone Fortress beneath the High Tower in Oldtown—black stone that had already lost its power.
"What's the point of that black stone?" Lynd frowned in confusion. Although that powerless type of black stone wasn't common, it wasn't exactly rare either. Many of the ruins in former Valyrian Freehold colonies were built with the same material—anyone could just go and take some if they wanted. So why would someone go through the trouble and risk their life to come all the way here just to remove this altar?
As Lynd puzzled over the situation, a faint noise echoed from within the hall. He turned toward the sound.
From a nearby corner, a few figures staggered out, then suddenly lunged toward him.
But before they could get close, they were instantly frozen solid by the power of the Frozen Dragon Rune.
"Wights?" Lynd looked over the frozen figures, frowning.
Their eyes glowed silver-blue, their faces were in varying stages of decay, and their skin had turned an icy hue. All the signs confirmed—they were wights.
Lynd was certain these wights hadn't been in the hall before. Clearly, they were connected to whoever had taken the altar. Judging by details like the Ironborn clothing still clinging to their bodies, it wasn't hard to guess they were once part of the group of Ironborn who had left with Euron.
Lynd had been hunting Euron for some time now, but the man was like a fish in the deep sea—every time he surfaced, he vanished just as quickly.
All Lynd could do was block off the Stepstones to keep Euron out of the Narrow Sea. Meanwhile, Asha and her forces had sealed the coastline along the western shore, and both Oldtown and the Arbor had joined Lynd in sealing off the Summer Sea.
Even so, Euron had still made it to the Valyrian ruins. That meant he had likely bypassed all the blockades by sailing through some unknown stretch of ocean beyond the Sunset Sea.
It was also possible that he had discovered a route that led westward from the Sunset Sea, circled around half the world, and returned to Essos from Asshai—just like Elissa Farman once had.
As Lynd stared at the wights before him, he realized this was serious trouble.
Euron himself wasn't much of a threat—Asha alone could deal with him now. The real problem was what these wights represented: Euron had found a way to transport wights from Beyond the Wall by sea. One or two might not matter, but if he used his Iron Fleet to bring thousands of them south of the Wall, the devastation to the lands below would be catastrophic.
Thankfully, for reasons unknown, the White Walkers themselves couldn't cross the Wall by this method. It might be due to some kind of magical law restricting them, or perhaps there was something in the ocean that kept them at bay. If not for that, all the work he and Willas had put into reinforcing the Wall would have been for nothing—and nowhere in the world would be safe.
...
While Lynd wrestled with the sudden appearance of wights in the ruins of Valyria, far off in the hills beyond Qarth, Daenerys—her hair burned away—had finally emerged from her grief over the loss of her loved ones. In her tent, she gathered her followers to discuss their next steps. Beside her, her three dragons wrestled and played, occasionally drawing curious glances from those inside.
Aggo, one of Daenerys's Bloodriders, spoke first.
"My blood of my blood, we should head west without delay. Sack the cities along the way, seize enough treasure, recruit enough men—that's how we'll help you claim the Iron Chair."
In the great fire, Khal Drogo and all his Bloodriders had perished. Aggo was one of the Bloodriders Daenerys had chosen from among the remaining Dothraki, and one of the Kos she had appointed.
He had once served as a marksman under Khal Drogo, though his status had been too low to enter the tent and drink wine. That, in turn, had saved his life. After witnessing Daenerys's miraculous rebirth, he had sworn loyalty to her—and had remained utterly devoted ever since.
"No!" Haldon objected. "That fire didn't just kill many of the Dothraki officers—several captains of the Golden Company died in it as well. The army hasn't been fully integrated yet. This isn't the right time to start a war. And on top of that, our food supplies are a serious issue. Based on what we currently have, we can barely hold out for three days. If we go to war under these conditions, it will only work against us."
Since the deaths of young Aegon and Jon Connington in the fire, Maester Haldon, Sister Lemore, Ser Rolly Duckfield, and Obara Sand—sent by Prince Oberyn—had all turned to follow Daenerys and become part of her inner circle.
Aggo scoffed. "Three days' worth of food is enough. We just need to take provisions from the cities we pass."
"If we do that, we'll lose any chance of establishing ourselves here," Haldon retorted. "Every city will rise against us. They'll hire other Khals to besiege us, and when that happens, we..."
"Haldon, enough." Daenerys frowned and cut him off, then turned to Aggo. "Don't bring up raiding cities again. I want to hear something more constructive."
"As you command, blood of my blood," Aggo replied, bowing his head.
Jorah Mormont spoke up. "We could move toward Qarth and force them to pay tribute. They used to offer tribute to Khal Drogo, and now that you command his army—and have the support of the Golden Company—you're stronger than he ever was. Qarth has no reason not to submit."
"And what if Qarth refuses to pay?" asked Ser Harry Strickland. Since taking over as commander of the Golden Company following Myles Toyne's death in the fire, he had been busy consolidating the company's internal factions and appointing new officers. This was his first time appearing before Daenerys, having just sworn his allegiance to her.
"Then we fight," said Rakharo without hesitation.
"Heh," Obara Sand let out a soft laugh—quiet, but sharp enough to grate on Rakharo's ears.
"Woman, are you mocking me?" Rakharo glared at her.
"I just think people should use their heads before speaking," Obara said, her voice thick with sarcasm. "Qarth isn't some backwater town. It has triple-layered walls and tight defenses. We don't have a single siege engine. What are we going to do—ride horses into the walls and hope they fall down?"
"You—" Rakharo's face twisted with anger. His hand moved to the curved blade at his waist, as if ready to draw it. Strangely, no one else in the tent moved to stop him. Not even Daenerys spoke up.
Obara, by contrast, remained calm. Her hand rested casually on the spear beside her.
The tense standoff didn't last long. Rakharo, seemingly restraining himself, took his hand off his blade and backed down. Around them, the others exchanged knowing smiles, as if they'd seen it coming.
Obara had resigned from her position as commander of the Miracle Harbor women's guard years ago and come to Essos on Prince Oberyn's orders to support young Aegon. For reasons unknown, Aegon had assigned her to Daenerys as a bodyguard.
Not long ago, she had arrived here with Daenerys. When the other female guards were mocked by Dothraki warriors for their status, she responded by knocking those warriors to the ground with her spear. Rakharo had been one of them.
That day, even with over a dozen Dothraki against her, they couldn't bring her down. Alone, Rakharo wouldn't stand a chance. Though hot-tempered, he wasn't stupid—he wasn't about to humiliate himself again.
"Obara, do you have any better suggestions?" Daenerys asked. Obara had been with her the longest; others like Jorah and Haldon had come through Viserys or Aegon, but Obara had always been close to Daenerys, and Daenerys often sought her counsel.
Obara replied, "What we lack is food, not money. We have plenty of coin—we can buy what we need."
"Qarth doesn't have enough food to sell us," said Harry Strickland grimly.
"No, but the Miracle Merchant Guild does," Obara said with a smile. She turned to Daenerys. "Your Grace, the Dragon Rune necklace Lord Lynd gave you is the perfect proof of identity. Just show it to the guild's local seneschal in Qarth. As long as the request isn't too outrageous, he'll make sure your needs are met. For the Miracle Merchant Guild, gathering that much food on short notice is hardly a problem."
At her words, Daenerys instinctively reached for the necklace hanging around her neck, lifting it to examine it. Around her, the others also turned their attention to the necklace.
"In that case," Daenerys said, "we'll go with your plan. Let's purchase enough food from the Miracle Merchant Guild first."
Just then, someone entered the tent to inform Daenerys that envoys from Qarth had arrived, requesting an audience. The news surprised everyone. They had only just mentioned Qarth, and now Qarth had already sent people. It was too much of a coincidence—not just odd, but unsettling, as if their every move was being watched.