"... Alright then... I assume all of you are ready to begin our long-awaited meeting?"

A unison of voices would shout. "Yes, your reverence..."

"Hm. Very well then, this meeting shall now begin. Speak your concerns at once."

Within a massive room with a table where several figures were seated, the important officials of an important organization had adjourned a meeting to discuss an important matter they had to discuss.

"Your reverence, I shall speak first then." One of the figures would stand up to speak, quickly dispelling the temporary silence. "The first... and actually only matter for our meeting today... is about that dragon..."

In truth, the people who had gathered at such an esteemed meeting were powerful individuals of a certain group that held power over even the mightiest of the prospering nations of the continent- The Hand of Arslan, the sole protectors of the continent's safety and prosperity, as well as the ones who were in charge of protecting the lands from internal, looming threats.

"Indeed, your reverence, what Toumaren speaks of is of utmost importance." one of the voices added. "While it is true that that dragon of the west has remained dormant for the past few centuries... Its recent awakenings have already become a cause for concern already..."

With a snap from his fingers, simultaneously, 2 robed, hooded figures would enter the room, both carrying black staves where a blue crystal protruded from their very tops. They raised their staves and waved their hands, and instantaneously, the crystals of their wands began to glow, as the air around them began to change: a false projection of reality revealed itself before their very eyes, all while a faint mist slightly obscured it from their visions.

As the false projection came to life, it would gradually reveal the figure of a beautiful, female humanoid entity bound in a strange, draconian bodily armor, as well as a revelation of various sceneries, all of which were live imageries of the famed dragon and how it had destroyed entire villages in its violent fits of rage.

"... Dear Lord... How fortunate that its wrath did not befall upon one of the nearby cities..."

Despite its figure resembling that of a normal human woman bound in some sort of strange armor, the fell creature unleashed torrents of fire wherever it went: in one of the illusions amidst the creature's madness, it had even gone ane scorched alive a random patrol of knights who had unfortunately managed to present themselves in its path. Not a single object or being would survive the force of the destruction it brought, as everything it met had either been pulverized or turned into fine soot and ash.

Eventually, the illusions would gradually end and dispel the mist that formed with it, as the voice that spoke previously would speak once more.

"And there you have it, your reverence." with another clap of his hands, the robed figures simply bowed and quickly made their leave, as the voice would then continue to speak once more. "This is not a matter we can just let be... As a result... I request that we send an extermination party to deal with this threat at once."

Almost immediately, a chaotic, disorganized chattering of loud voices would echo throughout the room like a chamber of unwanted noises.

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"Lord Stephan, this is simply preposterous!" one of them would shout, greatly in opposition to what the figure had spoken of earlier. "Our forces are already deeply troubled with the myriad of tasks they've undertaken! Besides, we already have other matters to deal with!"

"I'm afraid Lord Kallius is correct with this one, Lord Stephan." another voice continued, clearly agreeing with the opposition. "We already have the threat of the elves steadily encroaching upon us, as well as those barbarous greenskins and the monstrous raids they've recently conducted under the banner of that orkish warlord... We simply cannot afford to expend our forces any longer-"

"Silence." Suddenly, a loud, yet calm, authoritative voice would speak his piece, his singular phrase instantly silencing the words of all the others- in truth, it was the figure being referred to as 'your reverence', the leader of the Hand of Arslan, Arnus von Arslan. Due to the authority he held, it was no wonder that all the others had easily obeyed his command without question.

"... Now then... I believe that this problem that Lord Stephan has presented us is not one we can ignore..." Arnus continued his speech. "This dragon... I believe the creature has made its nest near Vishnal, where the capital of the Empire resides, correct?"

Stephan would humbly bow before he answered his liege's query. "Indeed, your reverence, which is why this is a disaster that we absolutely cannot allow its existence to continue."

"... I understand... Lord Fallian, among the Hundred Seats... Who among our heroes can we hope to deploy for this new threat?"

The Hundred Seats- they were the 100, powerful heroes who served as the operatives of the Hand of Arslan, each of whom were ranked by numbers based on their strength. Truth be told however, even the lowest seats among them possessed a frightening amount of power enough to threaten an entire city's worth of civilians and soldiers alike; such was the power that the Arslan's Hand held, that they had managed to maintain the peace of the Xathran continent for many years already.

"Your reverence..." One of the figures quickly stood up from his seat in response as he clumsily pulled out a seemingly special scroll and began to read its contents. "... Among the 100 Seats... There are 4 of them who are available right now. Among them are... 8th ranked hero, Joseph the Blade-feller, 15th ranked hero, Margus the Steelrender, 18th ranked hero, Alryn the Swift-sage, and... 19th ranked hero, Falmuth the Endurer."

"... I see... However..." for a moment, Arnus would ponder his thought as he put his hand on his chin. Eventually however, after a few seconds of silence, the famed leader would then respond after a careful decision-making he had quickly made."... I believe that these 4 champions of ours may not be enough to quell the monster's rampage... Lord Fallian, prepare to make contact with the Empire's forces, I believe that they too are already aware of this threat at this point in time... Our extermination party shall coordinate with them in order to guarantee our chances of success."

Suddenly, one of the voices who had previously spoken with the opposition would voice out his concerns. "Your reverence, if I may humbly ask... Why must we send some of our forces to assist with the culling of the western dragon? Surely, the empire's forces alone can handle this problem by themselves. It is very likely that they're capable enough to handle the threat of the dragon without much issues."

Indeed, the voice's concern was correct with his assumption- the Neugomian Empire was the most powerful nation in the Xathran continent for a reason. Surely, their forces were more than enough to handle the threat by themselves? After all, they had many more problems to deal with, and the threat of an active dragon nearby the Empire's capital was a threat of low importance compared to the other dangers that the Hundred Seats were dealing with as of late.

However, Arnus had not acted without reason; in fact, there was a deliberate, logical plan that came with the decision he had already made.

"I understand your concern, since we ourselves are already having difficulties with the myriad of threats that threaten the balance of the continent... However..." Arslan replied quite quickly. "Make no mistake, the Empire is just as important to us as we are important to them- they are one of our strongest bastions against the dangers that reside within Xathra. It is an absolute must for us to provide them with help when it comes to such dangerous matters..."

"I understand, your reverence." the voice spoke back, as he then bowed and sat back onto his seat.

"Wonderful. Now, to add one more thing to ensure the success of this venture..." Arnus continued his speech, as he would then point his index finger toward one of the seated figures. "Lord Stephan, sine you were the one who provided us with this report... By my supreme power, I hereby appoint you as the leader of this extermination party- I am confident that you can lead this mission to a resounding success based on your abilities. Please do your best and make sure to eradicate this threat off the continent."

Stephan quickly rose up and gave a humble bow in thanks. "I humbly thank you for this opportunity, your reverence! I shall make sure to do my best!"

"I trust that you shall, Lord Stephan." Arnus responded with a slow nod. "... Are there any other matters that are in dire need of discussion?"

A deafening silence then ensued- it would seem that there was nothing else to discuss, and it was time for their assembly to finally come to a close.

"Very well... Our meeting has now concluded. You may all leave and continue on with your duties. Please do your best to ensure the continued prosperity of Xathra and its inhabitants..."

"May the will of Xathra continue to endure."

The voices would once more, finally, respond in unison. "May the will of the continent be with us all."