The Phantom Valyr

The Valyr family's far reaching information network, known simply as "The Mice" has had a long time to take hold across Essos. This has generally been used to simply keep track of trends and stay informed about the geopolitical state of affairs, however with the new and ambitious direction the family is taking, the network of mice has seen a drastic increase in investment and focus, slowly turning it into an Information network worthy of a Kingdom of unmatched size and scope. The Leader of the mice in each generation is given the name Maess but is often referred to in whispered discussion as the Phantom Valyr and it is a position that all slave children under the Valyr who show potential for this line of work will compete for over the duration of their long and rigorous education. The competition is fierce because, as the nickname implies, the Phantom Valyr is a slave of the family who has the same authority as a true blooded Valyr, only loyal to the Patriarch or Matriarch of the family. The losers of the extremely competitive education will end up becoming mice themselves. Considered the ultimate position for a slave to hold, the only cost of the victory in claiming that seat is the victor's own identity, which isn't worth much for someone born into slavery in a hidden family. The Phantom will always appear with their features hidden behind thick clothes and a mask that covers their features completely. Nobody even knows if the phantom they see now is the same one they saw the last time as the phantom's succession is always held in secret. The Phantom Valyr is often a very close advisor to the head of the family and the current one is no exception. A keen minded child that Ashara took an interest in from a young age, offering him encouragement from time to time. However the child would unknowingly become attached and later obsessed with the woman who encouraged him, sparing no effort to fulfil even the dirtiest tasks for her ambitions