Commander Asier and Commander Ivana were shocked to hear this.
"The sound of a dragon's roar?" asked Queen Kayana.
"You must have heard the story of the ice dragons that lived in the Orokho Mountains, Your Majesty. In the past, the Orokho Mountains and the San Lucia region were not as cold as they are now. The Orokho Mountains and the San Lucia region became colder due to the arrival of a herd of ice dragons who began living there. These ice dragons constantly emitted ice magic from their bodies, causing the climate in the places they passed and stopped to become cold. Moreover, it was said that the leader of the ice dragons possessed ice magic that was far superior to that of the other ice dragons. The ice magic released by the ice dragon leader could cause the climate to become cold within a very long radius. Because of this, it could be said that the ice dragon leader was the one who caused the climate in the Orokho Mountains and the San Lucia region to become cold."
"When they learned of a herd of ice dragons in the Orokho mountains, the San Lucia family immediately formed an army to attack the dragons. In addition to making the climate in the San Lucia region cold, the dragons also attacked settlements around the Orokho mountains, which is why the San Lucia family decided to attack the ice dragons. The attack on the ice dragons took place and then the ice dragons were defeated and killed, but there was one ice dragon who managed to escape and remained hidden in the Orokho mountains. The dragon who was hiding was the leader of the herd of ice dragons. Because of that, the Orokho mountains and the San Lucia region still have a cold climate to this day. Because the leader of the ice dragons is still alive and continues to hide in the Orokho mountains,"
"The San Lucia family conducts an annual expedition to find the leader of the Dragons. However, they were unable to find the Dragon in the Orokho Mountains. When they did find it, the expedition ended up being massacred by the Dragons. Moreover, Miss Arlet, who was part of the expedition, is still unconscious."
"Everything I just told you is true, isn't it, Asier, Ivana?" asked Commander Allister.
Commander Asier and Commander Ivana remained silent under Commander Allister's questioning. But not long after, Commander Asier began to speak.
"What you just said is true, Sir Allister," said Commander Asier.
Meanwhile, Commander Ivana remained silent.
"I also already know about the dragon living in the Orokho Mountains. I was just surprised when I heard that some of the Storm Leopard knights heard the dragon's roar from the Orokho Mountains. That means the Ice dragon leader, whom the San Lucia family has been searching for, is likely still in the Orokho Mountains. It's unclear where he's hiding, as the San Lucia family's expeditionary forces have been unable to find him on several occasions."
"After hearing what Allister said, what are your responses as members of the San Lucia family?" Queen Kayana asked Commander Asier and Commander Ivana.
Commander Asier and Commander Ivana fell silent after hearing Queen Kayana's words. Not long after, Commander Asier began to speak.
"I must first discuss what Sir Allister told my father, Your Majesty. He is the one who decides whether to mount another expedition after hearing that some of Storm Leopard knights heard the roar of a dragon in the Orokho Mountains. However, I don't think he will mount an expedition to the Orokho Mountains even after hearing the news. He is currently strengthening the defenses in San Lucia City, where the other members of the San Lucia family are temporarily staying. This is because he wants to focus on keeping the San Lucia family together after learning of the plot to assassinate the entire San Lucia family. He is currently concentrating his troops on strengthening the defenses, so it is unlikely he will mount an expedition to the Orokho Mountains," Commander Asier said.
"I agree with what Asier said. Lord Louis likely won't be launching any expeditions for some time until the people plotting the assassination are dealt with. Once those people are dealt with, the entire San Lucia family will be safe, as there will be no one else plotting the assassination," said Commander Ivana.
"Hmm, you both have a point. If Lord Louis ever plans an expedition to the Orokho Mountains, please let me know. I will provide him with assistance for the expedition," said Queen Kayana.
"Yes, Your Majesty," said Commander Asier and Commander Ivana.
"By the way, is that the only strange thing that has happened in the San Lucia region, Allister?" asked Queen Kayana.
"Yes, Your Majesty. Nothing else has happened beyond that," said Commander Allister.
"I see. Then, thank you for the information. Please always guard and monitor the San Lucia region. Report anything strange happening in the San Lucia region," said Queen Kayana.
"Yes, Your Majesty," said Commander Allister.
"Then Keira, is there anything strange that happened in the San Minerva region besides your fight with Commander Marshall and Miss Harriet's disappearance from Lord Darwin's residence while you were checking the residence," said Queen Kayana.
"Nothing strange has happened in San Minerva territory, Your Majesty," said Commander Keira.
"I see. What about the Mistskog Forest, the border between San Minerva and the Seleria Kingdom? Has anything strange happened there?" asked Queen Kayana.
"Nothing, Your Majesty. However, several knights guarding the border claimed to sense a large group of people watching them from within Mistskog Forest. However, they couldn't see who was watching them because, in addition to being dark, the trees in Mistskog Forest were also very dense, making it difficult to see inside the forest from outside. They only felt they were being watched; they weren't attacked at all by anyone within Mistskog Forest," said Commander Keira.
"Hmm, I see. It seems the people watching them are the Elves who are the 'forest guardians'. The reason the Elves are watching the knights guarding the border is probably to keep an eye on their movements. They probably think one of the knights on guard might have infiltrated the Mistskog Forest to kidnap an Elf from the Seleria Kingdom."
"As you know, the Elves found dead in the San Lucia region were Elves from the Seleria Kingdom. Moreover, those Elves were knights of the Seleria Kingdom. They were kidnapped by Duke San Minerva's knights to be killed and their hearts harvested. Because of this, the 'forest guardians' are currently keeping a very tight vigil in the Mistskog Forest. They do this because they don't want any more Elves kidnapped by the people of the San Fulgen Kingdom."
"Also, what about the condition of the only road through the Mistskog Forest connecting the San Fulgen Kingdom to the Seleria Kingdom, Keira? Is that road still closed?" asked Queen Kayana.
"Yes, Your Majesty. The road is currently still closed. Many fallen trees are blocking the road," said Commander Keira.
"Hmmm, it seems the Seleria kingdom still doesn't want to have any relations with our kingdom. I actually wanted to go to the Seleria kingdom after it was discovered who was behind the murder of the Elves whose bodies were found in the San Lucia region. The masterminds were Lord James, Lord Darwin, and Marquess Marcelo, who were also involved in the assassination plot against me and the entire San Lucia family,"
"However, once I learned that the people who planned the assassination weren't just the three of them, I immediately abandoned my intention to go to the Seleria kingdom. Because it's possible that the people involved in the assassination plot, besides the three of them, were also involved in the kidnapping and murder of the Elves from the Seleria kingdom. So for now, I have to clear out everyone involved in the assassination plot first. After that, I will go to the Seleria kingdom to apologize to the Elf King and tell him that I have cleared out the people who kidnapped and killed some of his people. With that apology, I hope the Seleria kingdom will rebuild relations with the San Fulgen kingdom," said Queen Kayana.
"If Your Majesty really wants to go to Seleria, please allow me to accompany you, Your Majesty," said Commander Keira.
"Allow me too, Your Majesty," said Commander Asier.
"Me too, if you permit," said Commander Ivana.
Commander Keira, Commander Asier, and Commander Ivana volunteered to accompany Her Majesty the Queen. Meanwhile, Commander Allister and Miss Violetta remained silent.
"I'm not going to the Seleria Kingdom to fight, so how could I possibly bring so many commanders with me? I'll bring Sir Oliver with me, and perhaps you too, Keira, as you're the commander of the knights guarding the San Minerva region, and San Minerva is adjacent to the Seleria Kingdom. As for Asier and Ivana, you should focus on guarding and monitoring the areas your troops are guarding," said Queen Kayana.
"Yes, Your Majesty," said Commander Ivana and Commander Asier.
"Let's return to our original discussion. As for those observing the knights guarding the Mistskog Forest border, as long as they don't attack and simply observe, you have nothing to worry about, Keira," said Queen Kayana.
"Yes, Your Majesty," said Commander Keira.
"Is that the only strange thing happening in the San Minerva area, Keira?" asked Queen Kayana.
"Yes, Your Majesty," said Commander Keira.
"I see. Then, thank you for the information. Please continue to monitor and guard the San Minerva area. Report any strange occurrences there," said Queen Kayana.
"Yes, Your Majesty," said Commander Keira.
"Then Violetta, have anything strange happened at the academy over the past few days besides your fight with Lord Darwin's son when you attempted to capture him?" asked Queen Kayana.
"Nothing, Your Majesty. The academy has been as normal these past few days. Nothing strange has happened. We haven't even seen any suspicious figures monitoring the academy from outside," said Miss Violetta.
"I see. Thank you for the information, Violetta. Please continue to monitor and guard the academy area, especially now that my son and daughter are students there. Please also report any strange occurrences at the academy," said Queen Kayana.
"Yes, Your Majesty," said Lady Violetta.
"And finally, Sir Oliver. You are indeed the supreme commander of this kingdom, which means you are the commander of these military commanders. However, you still have territory to guard and monitor, namely the capital of San Estella. Has anything strange happened in the capital of San Estella over the past few days, aside from the incident at the courthouse yesterday?" asked Queen Kayana.
"No, Your Majesty. Nothing strange has happened in the capital of San Estella over the past few days. There are occasional disturbances in the capital, but the knights guarding the capital are easily able to handle them," said Commander Oliver.
"I see. Well, thank you for the information, Sir Oliver. Please continue to monitor and guard the capital of San Estella. Please also report any unusual occurrences in the capital," said Queen Kayana.
"Yes, Your Majesty," said Commander Oliver.
"With this, I have finished inquiring about the condition of the area you are guarding. Now let's move on to the next topic of discussion. Asier, Keira, I have a question for you both. When you both inspected the residences of Lord James and Lord Darwin, did you find any other 'test subjects' in those residences? Or any documents specifying the storage and manufacturing locations of those 'subjects,'" said Queen Kayana.
"No, Your Majesty. I did not find any other 'subjects' in those residences. There were also no documents specifying the storage and manufacturing locations of those 'subjects. I only found documents listing the names of the individuals who were the 'test subjects,'" said Commander Asier.
"I am the same as Asier, Your Majesty," said Commander Keira.
"I see. I've also seen the names of the 'subjects' in the experiment. There were 11 in total, including Lord James's son and Lord Darwin's son. Lord Darwin's son has been captured and is currently being held in San Sabaneta Prison, while the other 10 'subjects' were killed by Rid Archie in the Hevea Forest. However, I'm a little suspicious about this total number of 'subjects'. If they planned to kill me and the entire San Lucia family, there's no way they'd only have 11 'subjects' to carry out the plan. There must be something they're hiding, such as the actual number of 'subjects' and the locations where they're stored and manufactured."
"Therefore, Asier, Keira, I order you to inspect the residences of Lord Darwin and Lord James once again. In addition, I order you to inspect any suspicious places within your troops' guard areas. If anyone forbids you from inspecting any suspicious places, just tell them that I am the one who ordered you. If that person persists in forbidding you and even resorts to violence, I authorize you to fight back," said Queen Kayana.
"Yes, Your Majesty," said Commander Asier and Commander Keira.
"Ivana, too, I order you to go to Marquess Marcelo's residence and search his entire residence. He may have documents on the actual number of 'subjects' and their storage and manufacturing locations. Also, check any suspicious locations within the San Quentine area," said Queen Kayana.
"Yes, Your Majesty," said Commander Ivana.
"Allister, Violetta, and SirbOliver as well. Check any suspicious locations within your guarded area and the surrounding area. Even within the academy, there must be a suspicious location that could be a gathering place for 'subjects' disguised as academy students, so I order you as well, Violetta," said Queen Kayana.
"Yes, Your Majesty," said Commander Oliver, Commander Allister, and Miss Violetta.
"Find any clues about the assassination plot, the people involved, and the 'subjects'. Once you find any clues, report them to me immediately. I will not allow those involved in the assassination plot to continue roaming this kingdom. I will begin hunting them down one by one," said Queen Kayana with a serious expression.
-To be continued