Inside the makeshift council hall on the ground floor of White Stone Town's crumbling tower, the atmosphere was strangely tense.
Even though it was dayti, the heavy wooden shutters were tightly closed, allowing only a few stubborn threads of light to slip through the cracks and trace glowing lines through the dust-filled gloom.
At the center of the hall, around the long Blue Star table, the core mbers of House Jaqenion sat upright. Yet their eyes were irresistibly drawn to the scene behind Luke at the far end of the table.
There hung an enormous, perfectly flat white screen made of a strange material that was clearly neither canvas nor linen.
Beside it stood a square, matte-black "box" (the projector) mounted on a tripod. It emitted a low, steady hum, projecting a fan-shaped beam of light onto the screen and forming a bright white spot.
In front of Luke rested the glowing "magic tablet," its screen a cool blue that illuminated his focused face.
Several colorful cables of unknown material snaked across the floor, connecting these wondrous devices.
Bronn reached out curiously toward the beam of light, only to be stopped by a sharp glance from Syrio.
Arthur gripped a dragon-etched steel pen, his notebook open, yet he had written nothing.
"Qyburn" the forr maester's prominent blue eyes were practically glued to the projector and laptop. His fingers tapped the tabletop unconsciously, lips moving as if silently analyzing everything.
Matthew stared wide-eyed, shifting his gaze between the bright spot on the screen and the glowing "magic tablet" in front of Luke, his face a picture of disbelief.
Lucas sat the straightest of all, hand resting on his sword hilt as if ready to defend against so unknown magical threat at any mont.
Though Emma and Annie already knew their master had many "secrets," even they held their breath at the scale of the display before them.
Luke surveyed the group, taking in every expression of shock, doubt, and curiosity. He cleared his throat; his voice rang clear and steady in the dim, silent hall.
"Everyone, please stay calm. Today I have gathered you not to discuss routine affairs, but to show you — just the tip of the iceberg of House Jaqenion's true foundation."
He paused, letting his gaze linger on each face before emphasizing: "Prepare yourselves to witness what true 'Celestial Dragon' magical technology looks like."
With that, he picked up the palm-sized black rectangle (the remote) beside him and pressed a button.
A soft click sounded. The projector's beam transford instantly. The white spot on the screen sharpened, focused, and suddenly blossod into an incredibly clear, vividly colored, richly detailed aerial image!
It was a city!
A majestic city none of them had ever seen or could have imagined!
The bird's-eye view perfectly captured the entire tropolis: a perfectly square and orderly layout, wide straight streets intersecting like a chessboard, clearly divided districts, towering solid walls, a deep moat, and at the very center — a fairy-tale, dreamlike, awe-inspiring complex of buildings on a staggering scale!
"Seven Hells!" Bronn blurted out, half-rising from his chair, eyes bulging like copper bells.
The rcenary who never believed in gods suddenly looked as clear-eyed as a university student.
Arthur's steel pen clattered onto the table.
Qyburn froze completely, staring at the screen.
Matthew's mouth hung open in silent awe.
Lucas sucked in a sharp breath; his hand slipped from his sword.
Even Syrio's elegant, composed smile cracked for the first ti, his eyes filled with disbelief.
Luke ignored their astonishnt. He deftly worked the laptop's keyboard and mouse.
Under his control the image on the screen flowed smoothly — zooming, rotating, changing angles.
He picked up a slender tal pointer (laser pen). A red dot danced across the screen as his calm, passionate voice explained:
"Look here, everyone. This is our future ho — the miracle city we will build with our own hands on the southern shore of the God's Eye: Draco!"
(The PS note: It can also be translated as "Draco Constellation," if you prefer.)
The red dot settled on the most magnificent cluster of buildings at the city's heart.
"Centered on the Dragonrise Plateau I have chosen, the entire city of Draco is planned as a perfect square with sides twelve kiloters long."
The view pulled back, showing the city's position relative to the surrounding terrain — the sapphire waters of the God's Eye, the winding Blackwater tributary, and the distant mountain outlines all crystal clear.
"Encircling the city is a wall fifteen ters high with a twelve-ter-thick base! Beyond the wall lies a fifty-ter-wide moat fed by live water from the God's Eye and its tributary. The riverbed is lined with sharpened stakes, the banks steep and sheer."
The red dot traced the wall, highlighting ingeniously designed gate complexes — barbicans, drawbridges, portcullises, and dense arrow slits forming a layered defensive system.
"Four main gates and eight auxiliary gates, each engineered so that any attacker will pay a terrible price."
The image moved deeper into the city.
"Inside, the layout draws inspiration from the ancient and wise 'ward-and-market' system of the East."
The red dot swept across the neat, uniform blocks.
"The city is divided into four major quarters by the north-south 'Luke Avenue' and the east-west 'Jaqenion Avenue' as the main axes. Twelve secondary north-south and twelve east-west roads further subdivide the city into one hundred and forty-four individual 'wards.'"
The view switched to the interior of a single ward: orderly rows of residences, reserved green spaces, concentrated workshops, markets, public wells, and even planned small parks and plazas.
"Each ward is a relatively self-contained, fully functional miniature community with its own walls and gates — convenient for security, disease control, and daily life."
Then ca the most breathtaking part.
The image zood in on the city's absolute center, magnifying the dreamlike architectural complex in exquisite detail.
"Here," Luke's voice took on an almost reverent solemnity, "is the heart of Draco and the future symbol of House Jaqenion's power and glory — the Purple Forbidden City!"
On the giant projection appeared a palace complex that borrowed and optimized the layout of the ancient Forbidden City while fusing Western castle aesthetics and ultra-modern design concepts:
Majestic palace walls, vast plazas, tiered Western-style halls, colorful glazed tiles paired with stone towers, exquisite carved beams and painted rafters, crisscrossing inner canals and bridges, and a rigorously symtrical central axis…
The grandeur of the Hall of Supre Harmony (renad by Luke as the "XX Hall"), the solemnity of the Palace of Heavenly Purity (now the "Throne Hall"), the elegance of the Imperial Garden…
Every detail was visible — breathtakingly beautiful, imposing, far surpassing any castle or palace known in the Seven Kingdoms. Even the legendary ruins of Valyrian freeholds seed inferior in systematic planning and sheer majesty.
(If any citizen of the Dragon Kingdom on Blue Star were present, they would be utterly bewildered: Was this Chinese layout gone rogue? Or a Western castle that had taken a forbidden lover?)
Luke had fused the two into his dream "Imperial City."
"The Purple Forbidden City is three kiloters on each side, also perfectly square, and sits at the absolute center of Draco. It will serve not only as my residence and seat of governnt, but as the spiritual and political core of the entire fief — and of the future…"
Luke made no attempt to hide the imnse ambition in his words.
He continued to display the city's other systems:
An underground network of clearly labeled drainage pipes combining Roman-style sewers with modern concepts.
A planned "running water" system that would draw from the God's Eye and its tributary via windmills or water wheels, with preliminary sedintation and filtration, then deliver clean water through ceramic pipes or channels to public points and key buildings.
Designated warehouse districts, military barracks, harbor zones, academy quarters, city hall, central business district, industrial zone, logistics zone…
The entire presentation lasted nearly an hour.
Luke spoke like the most professional city planner and architect, using an incredibly realistic, freely zoomable and rotatable 3D model to explain every detail, every concept, every ingenious touch of Draco.
(This 3D model of Draco was a "ga map" Luke had commissioned at great expense from a top-tier 3A ga studio…)
At first the group remained lost in the sheer shock of the "magical images."
But as Luke's clear, patient explanation continued, the blueprint grew clearer, more concrete, and increasingly… scalp-tingling and blood-boiling!
When Luke finally stopped operating the controls and let the full panoramic view of Draco freeze on the screen once more, the council hall fell into absolute silence.
Only the faint hum of the projector fan and the group's heavy, uneven breathing could be heard.
Then — boom — like cold water hitting boiling oil, the silence shattered.
"Luke! Is… is this really magic? This city… is it a place where gods live? I'm starting to believe what you said about 'Celestial Dragons' and the Seven showing their power!"
Bronn was the first to leap up, pointing at the screen, babbling incoherently. The rcenary's usual slickness had been replaced by sothing close to pious awe.
Qyburn staggered to his feet and stumbled to the screen, practically pressing his face against it. His trembling fingers reached out as if to touch the illusory yet utterly real architectural lines. His voice shook with excitent:
"The principle… what is the principle? Light? Lenses? Or so kind of illusion fixed onto a special material? It's too real! The structure, the proportions of these buildings… perfect! And this underground pipe network for drainage and water supply… genius design! My lord, you must tell how this 'magic' works!"
Arthur left his seat and stood beside the screen, gazing up at the majestic Purple Forbidden City, his voice hoarse: "My lord… this city is larger, more orderly, more… magnificent than King's Landing — than any city I've ever read about. Can it truly… exist? Can we… can we really build it?"
His eyes shone with longing and an almost suffocating pressure.
Matthew's eyes were already brimming with tears.
As master craftsman, he understood better than anyone the building concepts and technical challenges contained in this blueprint — concepts far beyond their era.
"Seven Gods… these gate designs… the barbican layout… and the architectural style — I've never seen anything like it, yet it feels perfectly harmonious and solemn… How much manpower? How much stone? How much timber? How much ti? Ten years? Twenty? No… it might take a lifeti…"
He was too emotional to finish a full sentence.
Though Syrio maintained so composure, the shock in his eyes was unmistakable. He took a deep breath and looked at Luke: "My lord… what you envision is clearly far more than a re baron's comfortable fief."
Lucas's face flushed crimson with excitent. His fists clenched and the look he gave Luke was no longer re reverence but near-fanatical faith: "My lord! Can we… can we truly build such a city and castle? For House Jaqenion! For Draco! I… I am willing to give everything!"
Emma and Annie clasped each other's hands tightly. They gazed at the breathtaking, dreamlike Purple Forbidden City on the screen, then at their master seated in the glowing halo, their hearts filled with unparalleled pride and belonging.
Luke said nothing. He simply watched them move from extre shock to doubt, then to the excitent, longing, and even fervor inspired by the blueprint.
He let them crowd around the screen and projector, touching, exclaiming, arguing.
Only when their emotions had cald slightly and all eyes returned to him did he speak again, his voice calm yet carrying the weight of mountains:
"This is not a city of the gods, but a miracle we mortals will create with our own hands.
"This is not an illusion, but a blueprint — the crystallized wisdom and magical technology of our Celestial Dragon ancestors.
"Whether it exists depends not on the gods, but on our hands, our determination, and our sweat.
"Ti? Manpower? Resources?"
The corners of Luke's mouth curved into a smile that was confident to the point of arrogance.
"Have you forgotten who I am? Have you forgotten the 'magic' I possess? Gold dragons? I have more than enough! Tools? I have the best! Manpower? Every displaced soul in the Seven Kingdoms is a potential subject of mine!"
He stood, walked to the screen, and pointed at the Purple Forbidden City: "This is not the castle of a minor baron…"
His words struck like thunder in every heart.
Every previous doubt — every secret thought that Luke's claims of being a "Celestial Dragon," of "noble blood," of "magical inheritance" were re jokes or boasts — was completely crushed in this mont!
The endless stream of unheard-of "magical artifacts": refined salt, white sugar, fine wines, miraculous lamps, the flying "observation device" (drone), and now this "magic box" that could display an illusory city so vividly…
The seemingly inexhaustible wealth.
And now this breathtakingly grand city blueprint that seed to belong only in legends or the realm of the gods!
How could any of this belong to a re "lucky magic rchant"?
This was clearly the sign of an ancient house with unfathomable foundations, mastery of powers beyond the age, and an ambition vast enough to swallow the heavens — a house either reviving or rising anew!
Bronn swallowed hard, staring at Luke's young yet seemingly boundless figure. For the first ti he truly felt that the boss he had chosen might actually be capable of shaking the heavens.
Arthur's mind churned like a stormy sea. He finally understood why his master was so urgently expanding population, stockpiling supplies, and training troops.
This was no small-scale fief developnt — this was preparation for building an imperial capital, perhaps even for a grand transformation!
The flas in Qyburn's eyes burned hotter. He felt he was touching the edge of truly great knowledge and power — knowledge and power that could rewrite history.
Matthew felt an unprecedented sense of mission and excitent. To participate in building such a city would be the supre honor of any craftsman's life! He would be rembered in the annals of history…
Syrio finally shed the last trace of casualness and began seriously considering his place and value in this vast chess ga.
Lucas had only one thought left: follow to the death and witness — and help create — the birth of this great miracle!
The way everyone looked at Luke had completely changed.
No longer did they see a sowhat magical, generous young noble. They saw a profound leader, a "man of destiny" who could lead them to heights never before reached!
The common folk had always spoken of a savior… Could it be Lord Luke?
Luke took in every shift in their expressions.
He knew that today's "blueprint presentation" had not only unified their thinking and clarified their goal — it had also been a successful "branding" and "binding."
Using visual shock and a magnificent vision far beyond their era, he had shaken their souls to the core, permanently tying their personal ambitions, honor, and dreams to the chariot of Draco and House Jaqenion.
"Now…" Luke's voice beca practical once more.
"Let us return to reality. Matthew, you saw the structural notes and material specifications? Brick, 'three-part concrete,' timber, and a few key sections requiring special materials (modern cent and rebar)… Your Ministry of Works' task is to turn these blueprints into reality step by step. Start with the brickworks, li kilns, and lumber camps. Begin with the outer residential wards and the foundations of the city walls."
"Arthur, population recruitnt must accelerate! We need thousands upon thousands of craftsn, farrs, miners… every kind of laborer! Funds are to be supplied without limit!"
"Qyburn, the 'scientist's' burden is heavy. Promoting the hygiene manual, ensuring drinking-water safety, and the future application of many 'magical technologies' all depend on your wisdom."
"Bronn, Syrio, Lucas — the fief's security is the foundation of everything. Training cannot stop, patrols cannot slacken. Soon we may face probes from those who covet what we have."
"This Draco will be our shared achievent — an immortal legend we leave to our descendants!" Luke spread his arms as if to embrace the magnificent city on the screen.
"Now tell : what are you willing to give for this miracle city?"
The answer ca from eight pairs of eyes burning with fire, determination, and zeal — and a single, roaring shout in unison:
"For Jaqenion! For Draco! Rule with Virtue!"
Luke found the family motto almost painfully cringeworthy, but for the sake of cohesion he joined in the chant anyway…
The sound wave echoed through the dim council hall, as if it had already pierced the stone walls, carrying across the newly cleared wasteland outside, over the vast misty waters of the God's Eye, and toward the ever-changing future skies of Westeros.
An ambitious seed had broken through the soil on this lakeside shore. A terrifyingly grand blueprint had taken root and sprouted in the hearts of House Jaqenion's core mbers — never to be erased again.
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