The people in the room were shaken again at the serpent's statement while Cygnus and the butler remained nonchalant about it. Their gazes all focused on the man who was standing beside Rigel with a silly grin on his face. He looked to be a normal person but to be standing beside the master made him even more inconspicuous.
Ignius then laughed when he heard the last sentence from the serpent, "I like that description. I am indeed a creature that humans fear and revere at the same time. Do you want to see my real form?"
The serpent already noticed but the dragon was indeed carefree and said whatever he wanted. He saw as the dragon's eyes swept through the people in the room with anticipation. If not for the power he felt from him, he would have mistaken the dragon as still a youngling.
"Say, do any of you want to see my real form?" He repeated his question while looking around. He wanted to show him how magnificent he was but because of the silence he was slowly discouraged.
"I suggest that you don't do it Sir Ignius or else this whole manor would be destroyed," Mr. C, who was originally on the side, walked up to them.
"I can always do it outside!" Ignius insisted. He insisted on it because he really wanted to fly and just wanted to show off.
"Sir Ignius, please mind your image. You are a mighty dragon and yet you are acting like a spoiled child," the butler reminded which made the dragon silent. He looked around and saw that they were all looking at him.
He cleared his throat and stood straight. He then returned to the master's side and did not say anymore words that could tarnish his reputation. Mr. C was pleased when the dragon finally behaved.
"I will take my leave then and will see you soon," the serpent spoke through the silence. "My powers cannot support this form any longer."
After that, the serpent's large body slowly disappeared until it vanished. The room was filled with silence once again after the serpent disappeared. Ulysses walked to Galahad and helped him stand up. Galahad could only sigh as he tried to fix his clothes that got messed up after the struggle.
He looked around the room and sighed once again. "Let's move this conversation to my study and let the servants do their job. Dinner has already passed and I'm sure that none of you are hungry after everything that happened tonight."
Even without them agreeing to it verbally, they all agreed to the duke's words. They left the dining room and relocated to the duke's study at the second floor of the manor. The servants went back to clean and were surprised at how unorganized the place was. They could only look at each other as they did not know what happened.
All the seats were occupied as they all sat down in the small living room inside the duke's study. Mr. C and the dragon opted to stand behind the master. No one wanted to talk first so they could only stare at each other for a couple of minutes.
Ignius groaned and leaned a bit closer to the butler and whispered, "Ugh, I'm not accustomed to this. Why aren't any of them speaking? Is this a staring contest?"
"You just need to be patient," Mr. C answered back without moving. He was also focused on the people who were just about to start speaking.
The dragon frowned but he returned to his position and waited together with the butler. Finally, the silence was broken when the archmage spoke. Because he was the most curious among them, he couldn't remain silent.
Since they left the room before the serpent appeared, he was not sure if that was the guardian that Galahad had been talking about but based on what he briefly witnessed, that must be the real deal. The serpent had been living in Blackwell even before it was established as one of the major territories in the kingdom. Now, he was guessing that something must have happened for the guardian himself to show up.
One more concern he had was the beaten appearance of Duke Blackwell. He looked like he went through a battle and was defeated while the butler and Duke Ginehart were perfectly fine. One more concern he had was the other man who was with Rigel, according to the serpent he was a dragon but he as a mage couldn't ascertain if that was true.
"Was that really the Blackwell's guardian deity?" His question was directed towards Duke Galahad who had his forehead wrinkled ever since they entered the study.
"Yes, the presence in the mausoleum is the same as that of the serpent that appeared and he protected me from a near death experience," his gaze went to Cygnus but it was only for a second. "That was the genuine guardian deity."
"I thought that the guardian deity is in deep sleep?" Sigma frowned after hearing the duke's explanation.
"Apparently, he was not. I don't know the reason why they said that he was sleeping but it is not the case. He just appeared to save me," the duke answered. If not for the deity's timely appearance, he would have died.
The prickling sensation of death was enough to haunt him for the rest of his life. He was already powerless because he did not have any magic and his physical abilities were not exceptional and to go through that would put fear in him. He couldn't help but look again at Cygnus who remained relaxed despite everything that happened.
"What happened? What would prompt the deity to suddenly appear even after he was supposed to be asleep? Who threatened your life?" Sigma asked in succession because it was the core detail they were missing.
Ulysses sighed and rubbed his head. Galahad also closed his eyes because he didn't know how to explain what happened to them. It was an unpleasant event but it was also considered a learning experience for them.
"Should I tell them what happened?" Cygnus suddenly spoke. The archmage's gaze landed on him then it went to the two dukes but they avoided his gaze.
Since they were not willing to tell him what happened, he could only rely on the young man. Now their attention was all on Cygnus who was too relaxed for their comfort. He had been like that ever since they entered the dining room and even with the guardian deity in there, he wasn't fazed at all.
"That's because I attempted to kill Duke Galahad for being rude and for getting on my bad side," Cygnus said. He didn't use any filters in his words and didn't think about the consequences of what he had said. "The serpent came and saved him and after that the guardian deity of Blackwell signed a contract with me. So right now, that guardian deity is serving me."
It was already shocking that he tried to kill the duke and yet he was still proud to tell them that the guardian deity was now serving him. It was too much information that they didn't know how to accept. All they could do was to remain silent after hearing those words.
Since nobody was speaking, Cygnus also took that chance to introduce Ignius. "This is Ignius. He is a black dragon that has been working for me for many years now. He's a bit of a fool but nonetheless he is still a dragon so all of you should stay on his good side."
When all was said, Ignius suddenly reacted when the words finally sunk into his mind. "A fool!? Do you really think that I am a fool master?" He couldn't believe that his master would tell other people that he was a fool. He was a magnificent black dragon and yet he was reduced into being a fool.
"Yes, you are a fool. You can't even read the situation and start shouting all of a sudden? You are acting like a child in front of all of these people. Shall I say what they currently think of you?" Cygnus slightly looked behind him at the dragon who was seething in indignation.
Ignius wanted to make a remark but he held himself back as he straightened his back and looked at the people inside the room, "I am not a child. They can think whatever they want and I won't let myself be affected anymore."
Cygnus snickered at the sudden change in the dragon's attitude. He was a simpleton that the master could easily play tricks on. Even a dragon was no match against him when it comes to words. Now that the dragon chose to remain silent, he looked at the people once again and waited for any reactions from them.
He waited for over a minute but none of them talked. Instead of finishing the conversation, Isaiah decided to bid them good night. Ezio also followed after a minute because he needed time to process everything he heard. Sigma sat there for a few more minutes before he too stood up and left but before that he gave the others one last look.
