lerbook #457 - Chapter 191: Elegy for the Iron Fleet (I)
#457 - Chapter 191: Elegy for the Iron Fleet (I)
The first to react was Victarion, at the head of the fleet. He roared, "Dragons! Everyone, grab your bows and crossbows and prepare for battle! And the ballistae! Aim them now and shoot them down!"
Liu Yuan sat on Leviathan's back, Drogon and Viserion flanking him. After receiving the raven's message, he decided to see for himself. Daenerys was about to give birth and was staying in Highgarden, with the lazy Rhaegal staying behind to keep her company. The dragons had been sleeping in the Dragonpit for months, so it was a good opportunity to take them out for a fly.
Riding the majestic Leviathan, with two equally imposing dragons following close behind, he had barely left the coastline when he sensed a fierce battle ahead. Looking ahead, he saw countless broken and battered ships scattered across the turbulent sea, most still billowing black smoke, as if recounting the brutal clashes they had endured.
Following the trail of scattered ships, they soon found a large fleet. Among them, the black sails and grotesque kraken sigils of House Greyjoy stood out. Seeing this, Liu Yuan didn't hesitate to steer Leviathan straight towards the warships!
In the blink of an eye, three enormous dragons soared low over the fleet at incredible speed. Each flap of Leviathan's wings generated a powerful gust of wind, like a violent hurricane, causing the Iron Fleet's ships to rock violently as if they were candles in the wind.
Faced with such a fierce assault, Victarion, standing at the bow of the flagship, immediately gave the order. Instantly, thousands of arrows rained down on the dragons. Unfortunately, these seemingly fierce attacks were nothing more than tickles to the thick-skinned dragons, unable to cause any real damage. Even the sharpest arrows couldn't leave a mark on their steel-like scales. As for the more powerful heavy crossbow bolts, the agile dragons easily dodged them.
Just as the ironborn were feeling helpless and desperate, Drogon, in the middle, opened his jaws and spewed a torrent of fiery flames. This terrifying fire, like a roaring fire dragon, struck an Iron Fleet warship with lightning speed. The dragonfire swept across the deck, instantly engulfing the entire ship in flames. The intense heat and violent impact tore through the sturdy hull. With a chilling roar, the warship broke in half from the middle under the onslaught of this terrifying power. Then, the broken hull, as if losing its support, began to slowly sink into the deep, endless sea.
At the same time, Viserion launched his attack without hesitation. The white dragon soared into the sky with astonishing speed, his figure like a flash of lightning across the sky. The fiery breath he exhaled formed trails of searing dragonfire, each containing earth-shattering power. Often, a single breath could easily hit two or three ships, instantly turning them into an inferno. In an instant, flames soared into the sky above the vast sea, and thick smoke blotted out the sun, as if to devour the entire world.
For most people, dragons, as mysterious and powerful creatures, had become distant legends. After all, it had been over a hundred years since the last dragon had appeared in the world, and many people only treated stories about them as after-dinner entertainment.
But now, when these behemoths actually appeared before their eyes, everyone was shocked. Especially the ironborn, who deeply realized what the reappearance of dragons meant—they had personally ended the ironborn's glory! At this moment, with the arrival of the dragons, the already tense battle became even more precarious, and the once invincible Iron Fleet was plunged into unprecedented panic.
The Queen's fleet stopped at the outer perimeter. Although the terrifying dragons wreaking havoc and breathing fire on the battlefield were their allies, they did not dare to act rashly, fearing that they would be caught in the dragonfire.
After some discussion between the three commanders, they realized that blindly rushing into the battle could cause huge losses. After careful consideration, the fleet began to move slowly, deploying in a clever zigzag formation, circling the fiercely contested battlefield at half speed, driving away the scattered enemy ships and preventing them from escaping.
Meanwhile, Euron stared wide-eyed, his face filled with astonishment as he watched the burning warships and the panicked, fleeing crew. At this moment, a sense of helplessness welled up in his heart. He had learned from ancient texts that it took at least ten years for a dragon to grow large enough to carry a person. In his original vision, such a dragon might only be slightly larger than an ordinary camel, but the reality completely subverted his understanding. The power displayed by the dragons far exceeded his imagination!
What shocked Euron even more was the behemoth's incredible flying speed! Even his prized scorpion ballistae seemed pale and powerless against such a swift enemy, unable to hit their targets at all. At this moment, he finally realized that the strength of his invincible Iron Fleet alone was probably not enough to face the ferocious dragon head-on.
After a brief but agonizing moment of contemplation, Euron resolutely issued an order: disperse the fleet quickly and do everything possible to avoid the dragons' attacks. At the same time, he selected several faster ships and sent them to risk bypassing the dragons and sail at full speed to King's Landing, hoping to receive reinforcements in time. But Euron also knew that King's Landing was not in a position to help them, and that escape was his only option...