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#302 - Chapter 36: Negotiations with the Iron Bank (Part 2)

Stannis: "According to the traditions and laws of the Seven Kingdoms, no one is more entitled than I am."

The keyholders chuckled: "Apologies! No offense intended. Across the Narrow Sea, your books are filled with words like lineage, lord, nobility, honor, right, and so on. But here, our books are filled with numbers, which are calm, objective, and less easily misinterpreted. May we ask, how many soldiers do you have? How many ships? Of course, only those still afloat, not those sunk in Blackwater Bay."

Davos said cautiously, "Seven thousand four hundred soldiers, one hundred and thirteen ships."

Keyholder: "Then how much wheat, barley, beef, pork, and other supplies does Dragonstone produce to feed these 7,400 soldiers and 113 ships?"

Stannis said stiffly, "None. Dragonstone's output cannot support these people at all, and I have spent all my savings."

Keyholder: "I think you have also deduced from these figures that the ending is not so beautiful. We regret that we, representing the Iron Bank, can only reject your request, but we still thank you for your personal visit."

Seeing that things were about to fall through, Davos immediately stood up and said, "Wait a moment, my lords. Can you listen to me? Before you stands the most just leader in all of Westeros. He will not violate his promises because of personal preferences. Look at my hand. Even though I made great contributions, he still punished my crimes. This is also an opportunity for you to recover the money invested in that bottomless pit in Westeros. Although I don't know the exact amount, it must be a considerable figure. War is expensive, and it is far from over."

Keyholder: "And what does that have to do with us? Although we are willing to listen to your appeal, it will not change the final result."

Davos: "Now that Tommen has just ascended the throne, the person in power over the entire military and civilians is Tywin Lannister. But he is already 67 years old. How much longer can he live? After Tywin dies, who will you continue to support?"

Keyholder: "It doesn't matter. That's something to consider later."

Davos: "In my opinion, this is an urgent issue. After Tywin dies, who will be reliable? A half-grown child with the reputation of being a bastard? Or the infamous Queen Mother Cersei? Or the Kingslayer Jaime? At that time, there will only be one reliable leader in Westeros—Stannis. He has the right of inheritance, is in his prime, and is a qualified commander. More importantly, he is upright and keeps his promises. When it comes time to repay the loan, he will never make excuses to delay, but will take action."

The three keyholders exchanged glances, and the one in the middle spoke, "I must say, Mr. Davos, your sincerity has moved us. We need to discuss it with others. Please wait here." After speaking, the three people left through the back door.

After the three keyholders left, Davos breathed a sigh of relief. Stannis stared at him with a complicated expression. Obviously, what Davos said had a certain impact, at least making the Iron Bank willing to reconsider.

Davos said firmly, "Your Majesty, please don't be discouraged. The situation can still be turned around. Even if we can get the Iron Bank's assistance in the end, the price we have to pay will probably not be small."

Stannis nodded slightly, indicating his agreement. "I know this very well. To achieve my goal, I am willing to give everything in exchange for their support. After all, we have no way out now."

Davos frowned slightly and asked, "Your Majesty, do we really plan to march north?"

Stannis nodded without hesitation and replied, "You have also witnessed Melisandre's witchcraft. Joffrey and Viserys are both dead. All indications show that the future she glimpsed from the flames is real, and going north to fight against the Others and save the Seven Kingdoms from external enemies is the sacred mission given to me by the Lord of Light. In this way, I will be able to rightfully win the support of the people of the North and take the opportunity to consolidate my own strength, and then continue to plan to conquer the South."

Davos opened his mouth, wanting to say something but hesitating.

At this moment, a slight footstep came, breaking the brief silence. Not long after, the representatives of the Iron Bank walked into the room, this time with two more people than before.

The keyholder was silent for a moment before finally speaking slowly, "Lord Stannis, you have successfully persuaded the Iron Bank. After our internal in-depth discussion, we have decided to give you a certain degree of support. However, given the large amount of this funding, we need some additional guarantees to ensure that you have the ability to repay this debt. We hope you can understand our position."

Stannis frowned and fell into deep thought. After a while, he raised his head and said, "This is a reasonable request. I am willing to give Dragonstone to you as collateral."

Hearing this answer, the representatives of the Iron Bank showed a smile on their faces. However, they were obviously not satisfied with this. One of them continued, "Dragonstone is indeed valuable, but for us, this is far from enough. We need more reliable safeguards."

Stannis clenched his fists tightly, feeling very conflicted. He knew that the other party would not give in easily, but at this moment he had no choice. Finally, he gritted his teeth and made up his mind, saying, "Okay, I will appoint your designated personnel as our country's financial officers, responsible for supervising and managing our country's financial situation. In this way, you can understand the use of funds in real time and ensure that I repay the debt as agreed."

The keyholder showed a satisfied expression and nodded slightly, "That couldn't be better. So, Your Majesty, we will lend you the funds you need, or you can pay with goods of equal value. However, please keep in mind that the Iron Bank never tolerates any form of arrears."

Hearing this, Stannis slowly stood up, looked at the other party with firm eyes, and shook hands tightly with the representative of the Iron Bank, solemnly saying, "I will never forget this contract."

With the successful completion of this important transaction, Stannis and the loyal Davos stepped out of the Iron Bank's rock-solid headquarters, their hearts filled with determination and hope. Because he knew that he had resolutely chosen the most rugged and difficult path among countless paths in life, and that the upcoming war would definitely be extremely tragic and arduous.

Fortunately, with the strong financial support of the Iron Bank, he seemed to have a glimmer of hope for achieving final victory. However, at the same time, he also understood very well that this was more like a desperate gamble, and the road ahead waiting for him to conquer was still long and endless, and everywhere was hidden countless, variable and arduous challenges.