At the words of the Elven Elder, the young blonde Elf steps forward. I already thought this guy was suspicious, but now I'm certain he and the man I fought with back then are the same.
"For those who don't know me, I am called Faelar. In my travels, I had previously come across this winged monster and can personally say that it is not as peaceful as the Khatun claims. It had attacked me on sight, so it clearly doesn't only attack monsters. I had even identified it, it was a Dragon."
Magistrate Thrasin briefly looks my way before speaking. "And what kind of Dragon was this?"
"Does that matter, Magistrate? Is a Dragon not just a Dragon? Regardless, I don't remember what its full name was, the species name was rather long and it was some time ago."
Looking directly at me this time, Magistrate Thrasin addresses me this time. "So what do you have to say about these accusations, Miss. I don't doubt that you didn't attack him, but what was the reason for it?"
Based off of the way he had been looking at me, I had a feeling that Magistrate Thrasin already knew my identity. But everyone else in the room is confused at his question, with the exception of our group who already knows what happened.
"Magistrate, it was not this woman who attacked me but the large winged monster from the previous discussion. What does this Dragonoid have to do with it? I was travelling through the steppes at the time of the encounter but even if that mattered wouldn't the Khatun be the one to ask?"
"*sigh* Your knowledge is too shallow. Just because you are young doesn't mean you can remain ignorant of others. As for you elders who are just as confused, you all have even less of an excuse. I understand that true dragons are rare, but they are powerful creatures that need to be met with respect. I have been with the Alliance since its inceptions hundreds of years ago, I had thought I can leave my position soon and let a capable member of the next generation take my place. But seeing your ignorance, it would seem I must remain for some time. The Dragons are the ancestors of one of our allies, my comrades-in-arms would find your lack of intelligence disgraceful if they were still alive."
Many of the others have a sullen expression after being berated by the Magistrate. To be able to affect everyone in the room like that, just who is Thrasin? Clearly he holds a lot of respect and influence to make even that proud Elven Elder rethink his actions. Even the unyielding Giant Chieftain looks to be thinking over his words.
"Shall I do the honours of explaining, Miss?"
"I do not mind, Magistrate. You are free to do so."
"Hm, very well. Then allow me to enlighten you, youngsters, in regards to Dragons. A high tier Dragon is capable of taking a humanoid form. Now think back to when I had outlined the description of the monster previously. Now take a good look at the Miss over there and think hard about why I had asked for her opinion about young Faelar's opposition to Khatun Milla's claim. The Antlers on her head, the feathered wings on her back and the feathered tail she has, and her hair, wings, and tail are all the same blue of the winged monster."
At the Magistrates words, the chilling feeling of being inspected returns and doesn't end for some time and all the other groups go into another round of internal discussions.
"Hey, Milla, just who is Thrasin? He seems to be rather influential."
"Of course he is, not just anyone can be the Magistrate that oversees the Capital. He is a war hero from the time the Central Alliance was formed 600 years ago. He has since retired from active duty on the front lines but it still considered the strongest person within the Alliance. After all, he is one of the few Legendary Masters we still have kicking. But honestly, I didn't expect that Thrasin would figure out who you are so easily, seems I still underestimated him. But this is still fine, I had wanted to reveal you in a more shocking manner to everyone and use the image you project for some influence, but it seems that instead of that, everyone else lost some face after being hit by Thrasin's words."
Even after several minutes I still get people looking over and inspecting me, and it doesn't seem like it will stop anytime soon. But some of them look doubtful as if they didn't really believe Thrasin's words, particularly the Elves.
*bang*
Loud sounds suddenly come from outside, followed by deafening screams. Within moments someone enters the room and runs over towards Magistrate Thrasin.
"Sir, hordes of monsters are assailing the city and many have made it over the walls!"
Thrasin Slams his hammer into the ground once again, bringing everyone else to a standstill. "This conference is temporarily on hold until this problem is resolved. I expect all of you to work towards resolving this issue as soon as possible."
Thrasin quickly leaves after his statement and the already loud sounds get louder. I may have been mistaken but I think I just heard a monster cry out in pain... he really works fast.
"Cordelia, this is a good chance for us. We can use this incident to show our strength. I'm sure the others are also thinking of the best way to make use of this as well. The report made it sound like there is simply a lot of monsters but nothing that really stands out, for now at least. This should be a good chance for you to get some recognition, so try to keep the collateral damage and civilian casualties down to a minimum. I don't expect you to keep it at zero but try not to go overboard. And don't pick a fight with the Elves if you see them... unless no one is watching."
"If that food stall I liked is in a mess then don't blame me for rampaging."
"Why is that your concern! Wait! No matter what the situation is there is basically no way it's untouched, you just want an excuse to go crazy!"
Ignoring Milla's words, I return to my true form in the centre of the room. Everyone's eyes are on me, as the people who previously didn't believe in the Magistrate's words now have undeniable proof that he was telling the truth. The look on the Elves grow worse, but I ignore all of them and break through the ceiling up to the open arena above, jumping out and gliding down to the outer walls.
Landing just outside the walls, I crush several small monsters under me and look out into the distance. A literal army of monsters is running at the city. But there seems to be something off about them. Their eyes are lifeless like they're nothing but puppets. I've seen this before, like those disgusting rats. So that's how it is, I'll deal with that matter later. For now, it's time to push my exploits further.