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scratch out an existence

勉強維持生計 / 白手起家

`scratch out an existence` 字面意思是「刮擦出一段存在」，引申為「非常艱難地維持生活」或「白手起家、從零開始創造條件」。這裡 Corlys 說他的家族過去數世紀在海上艱難地打拼出了今天的地位。

But unlike the Targaryens, we were no dragonlords.

For centuries, my house had to scratch out an existence from the sea

with grit and luck.