"Wait a minute! I know we don't have time because there are so many topics to discuss, but please complete each one properly before moving on to the next topic. If Fia's familiar is really a black dragon, that's amazing. Today's agenda alone is enough to fill my stomach... No, that's not it. Eh, I mean, the black dragon is the sacred guardian beast of the Kingdom, so it must have been the royal family's earnest wish to have it obeyed?" (Clarissa)
As if Clarissa noticed something, she turned her gaze to the center of the round table.
Taking this as an opportunity, all the knight commanders present turned their attention to the same person—the first heir to the Kingdom's throne, the Knight Commander Savvis.
Then, Savvis, unusually unable to think clearly, tapped his finger on the round table.
"Before holding today's meeting, I received a brief explanation from Cyril in advance. However, I am still in a state of not fully believing in the matter of the black dragon. The problem is not that Fia is the problem, but that the other party is a black dragon. Although I have never actually seen a black dragon, there is no doubt that it is a huge and powerful being. In addition, it is a monster that has lived for over a thousand years, making it old and cautious. I wonder if such a monster would obey humans?" (Savvis)
After hearing Savvis's statement, the knight commanders began to make noise, as if trying to get their way.
"That's right! It's fine for ordinary monsters, but the black dragon is on a completely different level! Moreover, Fia has a weak physique and will never be strong as a knight, right? Her personality is simple and haphazard, and I don't think she'll be able to compete with the black dragon who lived for a thousand years. What on earth was so good about it that Fia was able to subdue the Black Dragon!?"
Desmond, who was one of the people who had already shared the Black Dragon's secret, raised a doubt in his voice as if he was annoyed.
After hearing the testimony of the known knight commanders, he was once satisfied with the story, but when he thought about it again, there seemed to be some points that didn't make sense.
In addition to Savvis's statement, Desmond seemed to have loosened up after hearing Enoch's honest statement earlier, and he spilled out his true feelings towards Fia, which he hadn't said in a while.
Cyril continued to explain while looking coldly at his friend.
"The strongest evidence that the Black Dragon is Fia's familiar is the testimony of Quentin, Zachary, and Curtis, who accompanied her to Blackpeak Mountain. Next, the palm-sized black winged creature flying around are thought to be black dragons. Other than that, ...there is something like black dragon's horns, but I have to say that it is weak as materials." (Cyril)
"Hey, Curtis, did you see it too?" (Desmond)
Desmond lets out a voice of surprise at the first information.
"Now that I think about it, you and Fia visited Gazard Margrave Territory. I see, you saw the scene where Fia reunited with the Black Dragon and took him home. But did Fia really have the Black Dragon under her control? What did Black Dragon seem to be attracted to about Fia in the first place?" (Desmond)
Curtis looked at Desmond mockingly.
Desmond flinched, sensing something disturbing in that gaze.
"W-what is it!" (Desmond)
However, Curtis ignored Desmond, who looked upset, and then opened his mouth with a mocking look on his face.
"You're surprisingly incomprehensible! Considering Lady Fi's existence, no matter if it's a black dragon or any kind of monster, the only you can follow is the morning rush. Is it insane that you still don't understand the wonders of Lady Fi? I could teach you everything from scratch, but it will take 300 years to explain everything."
"…………" (Everyone)
All of the knight captains remained silent.
...That's right.
Curtis was an extremely decent knight captain, but after returning from Sutherland, he became even more strange than Quentin.
He used to be a kind-hearted civilian type, but they wondered when he became like this.
If they looked closely, they could see that even though he had a lanky physique, he had a lot of flesh on it.
They wondered if he was working out in his spare time in the laid-back Sutherland area.
Perhaps as an extension of that, the muscles were packed all the way to the brain.
...If this happened, it's already too late. At least they couldn't make Curtis change.
Understanding that the matter was beyond their control, the knight captains obediently agreed with Curtis in order to remain harmless to him.
"...You're right. It was a piece of cake for Fia to be able to subdue the Black Dragon. And that's all because of Fia's excellent qualities." (Desmond)
Desmond didn't understand how great Fia was, so he made statements that had no substance at all.
Meanwhile, Clarissa turned to Zachary.
In her eyes, Quentin and Curtis were too devoted to Fia.
Because of this, there was a risk that he might be seeing something that was actually small as a bigger deal, and she believed that he would not be reliable as a witness.
"Zachary, I think the reason we can't believe it is because it's an impossible story according to common sense. What kind of miracle was it that Fia was able to bring down a monster that even all the knight captains wouldn't be able to defeat? Or maybe Black Dragon is the type to feel deeply indebted to her, and Fia, who appeared in front of the dying Black Dragon with a healing potion, is the one-in-a-thousand-year ultra lucky girl?" (Clarissa)
Zachary stroked his chin as if thinking of a response.
He was indebted to Fia for protecting the knights.
And at that time, he swore in the name of the knight captains that he would protect the secret that Fia wanted to hide.
When Fia went out to search for a black dragon in the "Starry Forest", she displayed a number of outstanding abilities, but she wanted to make it seem like it was the power of the black dragon.
If that's what Fia wanted, Zachary thought he couldn't abide by his oath and share her extraordinary abilities with everyone.
"...I wasn't present when Fia made the Black Dragon familiar, so I don't know what she used to subdue the Black Dragon. However, I was present when the Black Dragon followed Fia and defeated two blue dragons to protect her.Fia declared that there was no doubt that she was using the Black Dragon." (Zachary)
Because there was a huge difference in ability between Fia and the Black Dragon, Clarissa couldn't believe the familiar's story, but Zachary acknowledged that he couldn't explain the same part and confirmed the familiar's story. She began to accept that the story might have some credibility.
Therefore, Clarissa uttered words of agreement.
"Hmph, if it's possible to subjugate a legendary beast with just one healing potion, then everyone should carry a healing potion with them. Perhaps the remaining two horns of the Three Great Demonic Beasts could be found injured and made into a familiar." (Clarissa)
When Clarissa asked Enoch to agree, he shook his head helplessly.
"I won't do it. Ever since a while ago, I can't stop thinking that maybe the black dragon could have heard my words, and I can't stop sweating. What if I happen to come across an injured legendary monster? I'll run away with all my might!" (Enoch)
"There's something weird about Enoch!" (Enoch)
Because of this, Clarissa can be said to be someone who didn't have a kink when it came to blatantly saying bad things about mages right in front of him.
As if in passing, Clarissa said what she was thinking.
"By the way, even if you say you saw a creature with black wings, shouldn't you first suspect that it's colored? If you go to festivals around here, you'll see lots of pink birds and golden frogs. All of them are colored to make them stand out as they are used as lottery prizes." (Clarissa)
Desmond twirled the pen in his hand.
"Clarissa, when it comes to coloring animals, our leader and a knight captain, were raised in pure culture, so there is no doubt about it. Have you ever heard of this anecdote? The son of the first Duke's family was so excited when he saw the "Animal Lottery" that he tried to win the lottery over and over again. His Royal Highness the Second Prince, who was there at the time, expressed his gratitude, saying, "Look, I got the lucky blue chick for the 26th time!" (Desmond)
The knight captains who heard the story looked at Cyril in silence.
They were thinking that the "Son of the first Duke" mentioned in Desmond's story was Cyril, and that "His Royal Highness the second prince at the time" was Commander Savvis.
With everyone's eyes on him, Cyril put on a sly smile and presented the conclusion of the topic without commenting on Desmond's statement.
"The problem with this topic is that no solid evidence can be shown, and it is unclear how Fia made Black Dragon a familiar. Therefore, the conclusion is that 'Fia Ruud may have made Black Dragon a familiar.' The situation ends with zero information, so if something happens, we won't be able to respond, so please keep this possibility in mind when acting from now on." (Cyril)
Apparently, he didn't originally think that the first topic was something that could be determined, and had planned to end it at a point where there was a hint of possibility.
"I forgot to mention, but all of today's agenda is classified as first-class confidential information. Please be careful not to say anything to others." (Cyril)
In response to Cyril's additional words, everyone replies in their hearts, "I understand even if you don't say it!"
Probably that's why not even one of the knights was allowed to accompany them.
Looking around at the knight commanders who nodded with satisfaction, Cyril lowered his gaze to the documents in his hand.
"Then, the next topic is…" (Cyril)
"Wait, it's supplementary." (Quentin)
But then Quentin raised his hand and asked to speak.
When Cyril gave permission, Quentin stood up and began pleading with a serious expression.
"I don't tell lies! Therefore, instead of saying 'there is a possibility' that the Black Dragon King is Lady Fia's familiar, please say 'it is highly likely'." (Quentin)
It seemed that he really wanted everyone to understand that the great Black Dragon King was connected to Fia.
"……I unterstand" (Cyril)
Perhaps thinking it would be troublesome to argue, Cyril easily tolerated it.
Quentin then smiled triumphantly.
"Then...Hahahahahaha! You'll be surprised to hear this! The Black Dragon King and Lady Fia went on a rampage in the griffon habitat and brought the owner of that land with them!! Thanks to her, the griffon king is now my familiar!!" (Quentin)
"…………"
"…………"
"…………"
All the knight captains looked at Quentin with cold eyes.
That's certainly amazing.
However, even if it was announced at this timing, they didn't think it's at all amazing.
Compared to the black dragon, which was the only one in the world, even though it was one of the many griffons that existed, it paled in comparison.
Besides, all the knight captains knew.
They naturally knew that Quentin had a new familiar, since he was always with the beautiful scarlet griffon.
Quentin didn't know that the black dragon and Fia were brought in from far away, so he wondered where they had captured them, but they saw that Fia's name appeared here as well.
Rather than praising Quentin's great familiarity, all the knight captains were dismayed by the reappearance of a name they didn't want to hear.
"That's...congratulations."
As the silence continued, Quentin saw Cyril spoke with lip service, and yelled, "If you don't understand how amazing this is, you're all frigid!!" It was him. It was natural for him, but it was unfair for the knight captains who were yelled at.
The Knight Commander's meeting had only finished the first topic.