-Chapter 153-
-POV Daemon Targaryen-
I observed the evidence that Borros Baratheon had quickly handed me for a long moment, pretending to be as surprised as the other lords.
There were all sorts of documents proving that this vile viper had committed various acts of corruption, but not only that.
There were also other documents, far more serious ones.
Documents that could send him straight to the scaffold right now.
Among these documents, some even proved that he intended to kill a prince of House Targaryen, even though the name of said prince was not explicitly mentioned.
The last document bore the seal of a magister with close ties to a Lysene alchemist who had guaranteed that even the blood of the dragon could die from the Tears of Lys.
I shook my head before passing them to my son's second wife, casting a glance at him because the evidence was too... perfect.
'It's so perfect that it looks fake,' I thought, wondering what he was trying to achieve, as no one would fall for this without seeing the deception.
'Unless that's exactly what he wants,' I mused after a few moments of reflection, considering another hypothesis.
I turned my gaze away from Aemon to observe the High Septon, who was seated in the front row near the Hightowers.
'Perhaps all he seeks is a way to break the grip this viperous family has on the realm, but how?'
'Unless… no, even he wouldn't dare do such a thing.'
'Only a madman like Maegor the Cruel would dare to openly oppose the Faith.'
---
-POV Jeyne Arryn-
"For me, it is clear that the accused only did his duty to his king, believing he was acting under the king's banner," I said while inspecting the documents I was already familiar with.
I averted my gaze before finally passing the documents to Cregan, who merely skimmed through them before nodding in agreement with me.
Daemon did the same, and I turned my attention to Borros Baratheon, who said:
"I have not found anything conclusive…"
"Perhaps you would like to reread the documents with the help of your maester," Aemon said, abruptly interrupting the Lord of Stormlands.
'Easy now,' I thought, trying to convey the message through my eyes, but he didn't care in the slightest.
"The evidence you have just seen is directly linked to an attempted murder of a prince of royal blood. There is no discussion to be had, unless you are part of the problem," Aemon stated, his hands still resting on the hilt of his sword before continuing:
"Are you part of the problem, Lord Borros?"
Borros Baratheon clenched his jaw but said nothing.
'Pride is a dangerous thing,' I thought.
"No need to make a fuss, I am sure Lord Borros simply did not pay attention to this part."
Borros Baratheon stared at me for a long moment, debating his course of action.
'Take the lifeline I'm throwing you, you fool,' I thought, as there was no point in escalating this issue further due to the wounded pride of this illiterate idiot.
'Did he seriously think he could use family ties to force Aemon to give him more attention than the others?' I wondered, observing how obviously Borros Baratheon was trying to mend his bruised ego.
Borros Baratheon sniffed and, under the pressure of everyone's gaze, finally said:
"It is obvious that had I known this earlier, my judgment would have been entirely different."
"And now that you are aware of it, what is your judgment?"
I was surprised once again by how forcefully Aemon was pushing the lords to submit.
This wasn't like him.
He was usually more subtle, more patient.
'Right now, it feels like he just wants to make everyone bend at once, then break those who won't yield,' I thought, waiting to see Borros Baratheon's response.
"I side with Princess Jeyne's judgment," he said reluctantly.
'He has no choice but to bend,' I thought, unsurprised by his decision, just amazed that he was capable of making the right one given his intelligence—or lack thereof. He was widely known across the realm as a man with strength in his arms but nothing in his head.
'What kind of self-respecting lord needs a maester to read his letters?' I couldn't help but think, completely despising the man.
He might rule over a vast territory, but so did we, and we had no reason to bow to please him.
'And unlike him, who has none, we have numerous dragons that could reduce everything his ancestors built to ashes in an instant,' I thought, not displeased by this shift in Aemon's attitude toward the other lords.
"Very well then, if none of the High Judges of the Court object, I hereby declare Harlon Greyjoy innocent of the charges against him," Daemon declared.
He observed the judges for a few seconds, but since none of them opened their mouths to object, Daemon gestured for Harlon to go free.
Harlon and Aemon exchanged a brief look—not one of complicity, but for those present who knew what was at stake today, it spoke volumes about their relationship.
---
-POV Cregan Stark-
"Now that you have proven your innocence, I leave you to take your rightful seat, High Judge," Prince Aemon said, removing one hand from his sword while stepping aside to let Harlon pass and take the only vacant seat left.
Once Harlon was seated to my right, Prince Aemon said:
"Now that we have clarified the situation surrounding the Lord of the Iron Islands, it is your turn, Lord Bennard."
My uncle rose with determination, followed by his… my maester, and before the latter could follow the child he had raised to defend him, the knights grabbed him.
I furrowed my brows, surprised by the knights' intervention:
"Your Highness, you promised to be fair and that the…"
"I know what I promised, no need to remind me," the Prince interrupted.
And just as I thought he would allow Maester Raymund to participate in the trial, the Prince added:
"Drag these two traitors away."
Without hesitation, the four knights seized the two men by their shoulders and dragged them to the platform, forcing them to kneel.
"Your Highness!!" Bennard shouted in panic.
The Prince stared at him coldly, wordlessly ordering him to be silent before addressing the assembly of lords:
"Some testimonies indicating that Lord Bennard had conspired with certain traitors to the Crown led me to investigate him, and to my great surprise, I discovered that he poisoned his own brother's wife."
"That's a lie!!!" Bennard screamed at the top of his lungs.
'At last, you will pay for this, you bastard,' I thought as I watched my uncle look at me, expecting me to do something to save him. But the only thing I wanted… was to kill him with my own hands.