Chapter 644

Buckwell, ever the dependable officer, finally brought good news.

The Queen had tasked Aegor with investigating the poisoning case, and no matter what, he had to produce something to show for it. Only a handful of people knew the real culprit, and those working the case were bound to carry out their duties with the same diligence they had when they rooted out half the kitchen staff back in Winterfell.

But out of respect for Murphy’s Law, Aegor had to consider every possibility—even the absurd ones.

What if, by sheer misfortune, some prodigy in the intelligence department managed to crack the case without realizing they were never supposed to? What if, through sheer diligence and keen deduction, they traced the trail of clues all the way back to the Hand of the Queen himself?

Would this farcical turn of events go down in history as the basis for future mystery novels in the world of Ice and Fire?

Fortunately, Aegor had already laid down the guiding principle of the investigation: "To thoroughly investigate the poisoning case means thoroughly investigating Myzedan."

With that framing, he could hide in plain sight—the safest shadow was the one directly beneath the lamp. Not only did this allow the investigation to proceed without unnecessary secrecy, but it also meant that when reports were presented, there was no need to dismiss trusted people like Nina, Neil, or Buckwell from the room.

The two intelligence officers entered together. At the sight of the Nymeros siblings, they hesitated briefly, but seeing that Aegor made no move to dismiss them, they continued without comment.

"Pentos' governor surrounds himself with no fools," Buckwell began. "Even the stablehands and litter-bearers are sharp and cautious—their counterintelligence discipline is far above our own. For the first few days, we gained nothing. But after we leaked the news that the Western Campaign against the Reach was imminent, they could no longer sit still. Their movements became more frequent, more structured—and that gave us the opening we needed."

He laid out a series of charts and lists. "They don’t conduct espionage directly. Instead, they disguise their activities behind routine business—trade, visits, procurement. They move through the marketplaces and slums, especially Flea Bottom, making contact with informants embedded in the city. Information passes through multiple intermediaries, layer by layer, until it is eventually relayed to local agents who seem too ordinary to draw suspicion."

"Good work." Aegor nodded approvingly before glancing at Neil, who still seemed uncertain why he was allowed to remain. He gave him a knowing smirk, as if he had already predicted this outcome. "Now, the real question is how to respond—and that is our topic for tonight.

"I have always believed that merely reacting to the enemy's moves is the worst possible strategy. The best path is to cut off the head—strike at the enemy’s core directly. That is why I called Nina and Neil here tonight.

"The intelligence division and the industrial research institute will collaborate on an operation. Using a carefully planned leak, we will lure the snakes from their holes. A false bait will allow us to wipe out not only the espionage networks of the Free Cities but also those of the Reach and the Iron Islands in King’s Landing. Only once our rear is truly secure can we turn our full attention to the final war for the Seven Kingdoms."

Harvey, ever the loyal confidant, presented his findings next.

"There have been several breakthroughs in the Myzedan investigation," he reported. "Unfortunately, most of them are unrelated to the poisoning case—we have found no co-conspirators. However, we have secured a witness who can confirm that he arrived in Westeros by ship from Pentos."

That was enough.

Aegor’s true goal was not just uncovering a culprit. He needed Daenerys to realize one simple truth: Illyrio Mopatis was her enemy.

Even with only a fraction of the intelligence network exposed, they had already gathered an overwhelming amount of evidence. Though Aegor had anticipated something like this, seeing the sheer volume of reports firsthand sent a shiver down his spine.

Had he not possessed the advantages of an unknown variable—his modern knowledge—and the overwhelming force of firearms, if he hadn’t leveraged the urgency of war to force the enemy into errors…

Could his barely-established intelligence division have even uncovered this much?

The reports detailed Myzedan’s every movement in King’s Landing while he was still in Varys’ service—his drinking, eating, and sleeping habits, the routes he took between the Red Keep and his residence, the inns and taverns he frequented, even the names and impressions of his landlords and neighbors.

Aegor picked up the files Buckwell had handed him, flipping through the densely packed charts and dossiers.

He didn’t recognize a single name, but he understood exactly what he was looking at.

This was the intelligence network that Varys and Illyrio had spent over a decade embedding in Westeros.

Not every name belonged to a professional spy—many were just "honest citizens" supplementing their income by occasionally doing favors or passing along information. Yet despite the new policies Aegor had implemented to strictly control orphans and vagrants, this web remained vast and intact.

Aegor didn’t even bother asking how Harvey had found the witness. He didn’t need to know.

Toppling Illyrio with just this information was unrealistic. The man was too deeply entrenched.

At best, he could force a confrontation, expose names, capture mid- and low-level agents—perhaps even deport Illyrio as a "warning." But arresting him wouldn’t be enough to destroy him.

Pentos was a city-state; of course it had its own intelligence operations. That wasn’t inherently suspicious. And as one of the city’s ruling magistrates, Illyrio overseeing such operations was unusual, yes—but not incriminating.

Besides, Daenerys had only recently taken King’s Landing. She still owed Illyrio for sheltering her when she was in exile. And since Pentos and Westeros were not at war, it was difficult to frame his actions as outright treason.

Even if Daenerys got angry, at worst, she would squeeze him for more intelligence, maybe execute some minor operatives, then expel him from court.

So long as Illyrio was allowed to walk away, he would remain a threat.

This was why Aegor had already prepared an alternative.

He wouldn’t fabricate evidence outright—that was too easy to unravel. But he didn’t need to lie. He only needed to redirect the investigation.

He would declare Myzedan the poisoner.

All investigative resources would now be diverted toward "uncovering" Myzedan’s background, contacts, and affiliations.

It didn’t matter that Myzedan was dead and could no longer defend himself. That was the point.

Aegor barely skimmed the rest of Harvey’s report. It was good enough.

"Maintain maximum pressure," he ordered. "Even if we find nothing else, I want the enemy to feel the hunt closing in. Buckwell, what about your end?"

Buckwell hesitated, then spoke carefully. "We have gathered a great deal of intelligence, but as of now, we still lack legal grounds to arrest any high-profile targets."

He took a deep breath. "I advise against engaging the enemy in their own field. Instead of playing their game, we should use our strengths—overwhelming force. We should strike first and decisively. It is better to kill an innocent than to let the rot spread. Right now, their infiltration is still limited to the periphery. But if left unchecked, it will spread like a plague. If we do nothing, there may come a day when we find ourselves powerless to act at all."

Aegor exhaled.

He had no illusions—Varys had been a terrifying opponent. Even in death, his lingering schemes were a nightmare to untangle.

But in war, even the best-laid webs burn.

It was time to light the fire.