Eli's words increased the displease of everyone towards the accusing group, even the nobles that were part of the council. As Eli has said, the fact that Count Maller's party used her records even though they knew that they violated the law was a challenge to their judgment.
Moreover, they also agreed to them at one point, proving Eli's words were spot on. Her two hypotheses were both correct, in the end, Count Maller's party looked down on everyone in the hall.
Count Maller and his entire crew could not utter any words to articulate their case, instead, they only scrambled to deny Eli's accusations.
They thought that the Emperor's doubt was already much of a burden to them, but Eli was able to pin down a heavier offense.
"We are foolish! Your Majesty, Your Excellencies, Lady Eli, we deeply apologize for our insolence!!!" Count Mallers allies started to kneel before the Emperor and the Grandmasters to apologize.
They might be able to at least appease the displease of the lady, but once the Emperor focuses on the fact that they bribed the ministry of registry, they might be severely punished.
"Oh, gentlemen, not so fast! What I said earlier were just my thoughts based on what I knew of the Empire's law. In the end, my words are just mere blabber if there would be no solid evidence." Eli maintained an unreadable expression while she suddenly seemed to retract her statements.
"You-Lady… what do you want to say?" As flustered and puzzled as they were, Count Maller and his party were utterly lost with Eli's words.
'What does she want?' They wondered in their minds, 'For her to be acting like this, what is she up to?'
Their thoughts were immediately answered by Eli's next words and actions.
"Well, what would be a better way to clear my status than by showing you my aptitude?" Eli calmly snapped her fingers before everyone and summoned Baobao in his peak state.
"Master, I have come to respond to your summons!" Baobao looked at Eli and bowed to her in submission, not even minding the people around them.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtBut even as he already did a submissive pose, his giant panda body was still towering in the eyes of the people who did not know of Baobao's true origin.
"C-cursed bear!" The people cried in panic as they started to stand up in a hurry and leave the place in terror.
Count Maller and the rest of the noblemen could no longer react as they remained frozen and still in front of Eli and Baobao.
Who doesn't know of the fact that cursed bears were terrifying animals? They were the type of beast that needed an entire battalion of knights to subdue just one of them.
Now they were seeing in their own eyes how the cursed bear bowed to Eli submissively and how Eli stood before him in complete control.
D class for all they care! The fact that she has the cursed bear as a contracted familiar was already formidable enough to put her at the same level as the young masters of the Astaze clan.
"Ladies and Gentlemen, please do not panic. Baobao is not a cursed bear but a bear species. He is not something related to the curse. To prove that fact, why not have the inaugurated member of the Anti Curse committee verify my claim?" Eli looked at the rest of the members and suggested her idea, successfully diverting the attention back to the main issue.
"Hmm, that will also work, have it as the first mission of the Anti curse committee!" Emperor Valentin was pleased and intrigued with Eli's sudden suggestion. So he raised his imperial staff and gave Eli his approval.
As soon as the Emperor gave his approval, Nathan, Seigfried, and Anderson, who were known as strong knights, stood up from their seats and went to face Baobao who was still sitting beside Eli in the middle of the hall with a docile expression.
The imperial guards moved the people away to clear a space for them and to also build a protection array to prevent damaging the palace.
The three well-known knights were now vigilantly facing the Baobao who was sitting unperturbed while Eli was gently stroking his fur. Nathan was more relaxed than the others because he already knew Baobao beforehand.
"Baobao, show them how strong you are but do not hurt them, they are friends." Eli looked at Baobao and instructed him.
"Okay," Baobao nodded, then lifted his chubby belly to stand on all fours and looked at the three knights.
As soon as Emperor Valentin shouted start, the knights have already charged and Baobao stood still. Anderson and Seigfried thought that because of his big body structure Baobao would be slower like any other beast.
So the two coordinated and alternatively went on Baobao's blind spot only to find themselves flying towards the barrier in a blink of an eye.
"W-what just happened?!" The people who were intensely watching the small duel were flabbergasted, even their naked eyes could not keep up with Baobao's attack!
Nathan on the other hand eyed Baobao signaling that he will be approaching.
Unlike the first two knights, Nathan has been painstakingly trained by his maternal grandfather in the northern mountain range. Hence, he was quite accustomed to fighting monstrous beasts.
With a relaxed position, he remained with his sword unsheathed and rapidly charged at Baobao up front.
Baobao stood on guard as he could already feel the commanding aura from Nathan even if the other party hadn't drawn his sword yet.
When Baobao was already at Nathan's attacking range, he swiftly drew his sword and swung it full force.
Baobao squinted his eyes and brandished his sharp claws to defend against Nathan's sword attack.
Clash!!!
The entire assembly hall rumbled because of the strong force that Baobao and Nathan were emitting.
At the time, Siegfried and Anderson have already recovered from their initial shock and now went carefully to approach Baobao. This time, they tried to match Nathan's movement, for they saw how he was well versed in dealing with big animals like Baobao.
The three of them moved to attack Baobao with all their might, but Baobao remained calm and collected no matter how much he could have been agitated by their tricky attacks.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmHe knew that his master's words must be followed and that the people attacking them are friends. He could also feel that even if the men's attacks were getting nastier, not one of their attacks intended to kill him.
Even so, he heard that the people were looking down on his master because they thought that his master was weak, so he also started to get heavier with his attacks.
Every attack that he executes would cause the entire hall to tremble even with the presence of a barrier. The people around were getting more and more terrified as they watched him take on three of the most promising knights after the three princes.
Emperor Valentin thought that it was about time to step things up and so with his commanding voice, he instructed the three knights to give their all.
The knights immediately became pressured, because all of them knew that they were already facing Baobao to the best of their abilities. But if the Emperor instructed to, then he must have been referring to the use of their own aptitudes.
And so the three knights started to use their magic and went towards Baobao head-on.
The on-lookers held their breaths as they could see how terrifying the three's attacks could be for an enemy. To add even further, Siegfried started to summon his spatial fairies and made Anderson and Nathan disappear and teleport from different places at different speeds.
Even for the strong Baobao, it was now quite hard to defend without inflicting a heavy injury to the three knights.
At one point Nathan and Anderson both appeared from opposite directions, one from the ground and another overhead. Everyone knew that this time, Baobao will really receive at least one heavy blow and so they had already imagined the end of the duel.
With no choice but to choose one, Baobao chose to face Nathan and give his back to Anderson as the former one's attack is much more formidable than the other.
Just as Anderson's attack was about to land on Baobao's back, a small figure appeared to face his attack out of nowhere.
Ching!
The sound of a sword being stopped sounded piercingly in the hall.
What they saw next had left the lookers' mouths agape.
That was because the one who faced Anderson was none other than Eli!
Meeting Anderson's sword attack inlaid with enhancement magic, Eli's hand that was now transformed into a furry paw similar to Baobao's was firmly holding his sword in place!!!
What's more, she was standing very casually, not even raising her other hand, as if Anderson's attack was just a mere child's play before her!