"Codex: True Dragons
True Dragons are an incredibly ancient, intelligent, reptilian mortal race whose forefathers lived many thousands of years before even before the Age of Gods had officially ended and the first mortal races set foot on the lands of the Terra.
Today, they are few in number compared to the times of old, when they dominated the Known World and the air was full of soaring Dragons, tussling for supremacy in the primeval skies.
With the decline of Magic in Earth, so did the number of the True Dragons, and the ones that remain today were of the lesser, reclusive breed that spend much of their time asleep in hidden mountainside lairs or sunken caverns. Although fewer in number, dragons are still creatures of vast power, and when they are roused from their deep slumber, their deeds and actions are the stuff of legends.
That often raises the question of where the True Dragons went and how they disappeared from the face of the Known World.
The answer was rather simple.
After the beginning of the God and Devil Age by the Mazooligsits and Archeoligists of the World Government, belonging to the Department of Lore of the Congregation. The expedition went into the depths of the Terra, deep under the Himalayan Mountains, where they managed to discover the dwelling space of several True Dragons who awoke due to the Resurgence of Magic, which was an indirect effect of the God and Devil Age.
It was found out that most of the True Dragons went into crystalline hibernation, where they would use their powerful ancient Magic to create a crystalline-like substance around their bodies that is one of the toughest materials in the Known World.
When the crystalline substance envelops their bodies, the True Dragon will go into very deep hibernation that could last even for thousands of years if there was a need. Most of the True Dragons went to the depths of the Terra, somewhere at the start of the Age of Heroes, when the Magic started to decline in the world after the end of the Age of Gods.
The True Dragons have their own civilization, and many of the True Dragons are of tremendous power. When the God and Devil Age started on 06. 06. In 2006, due to Voldemort's invitation of the Burning Legion to Earth. When the war against the Burning Legion happened, it was the ancient True Dragons that helped the inhabitants of the Terra fight against the Burning Legion.
Some of the most powerful Special-Class beings even managed to enter into a contract with the True Dragon, becoming the Dragon Riders or Dragon Knights.
Before that event, what had happened on Earth were only Wyverns.
Wyverns were peculiar creatures, in fact. Wyverns are cannibalistic predators that are known to be a distant offshoot of the Dragon race. At a distance, one could easily mistake a Wyvern for a Dragon, but there is none of the nobility of spirit of Dragons in these debased and cruel creatures. One of the greatest differences between Dragon and Wyverns, aside from their size, is that Wyverns are bipedal creatures, with their front legs being fused with their wings, and the Wyverns being unable to spew fire.
Interestingly enough, the Wyvern was capable of spewing fire, and it could grow until its death; some of the most powerful Wyverns were used by the Wizardkin, Magi, and Vampires as their familiars.
Some of the Wyverns with a greater concentration of the True Dragon Blood were able to grow to much bigger properties and reach rather ridiculous sizes.
Unfortunately for the world, after the end of the Age of Gods, this wonderful species of True Dragons became nearly extinct due to the decrease of Magic and was forced to retreat to the depths of the earth to preserve their very own lives. Contrary to the Wyverns, True Dragons are beings of Magic and they cannot survive in an area that was Magicless, as they were then prone to various defects.
Fortunately, due to the repair of the World's Leylines and the start of the GOd and Devil Age, which brought the Resurgence of Magic, True Dragons started thriving even more, once again.
Nowadays, one can find the True Dragons freely flying over the Lands of the Terra, and a large population of them lives all over the world, with many of the True Dragons even mingling with the mortal races of the Terra.
True Dragons are generally primarily divided into two big groups. The Metallic Dragons and Chromatic Dragons.
Metallic Dragons were a type of dragon typically distinguished by the color and composition of their scales, which was like that of various metals, hence the name. They were generally good, altruistic, and righteous creatures. Despite their relatively benign nature, metallic dragons were also aggressive when threatened or challenged. They usually worshiped Bahamut, whom they regarded as their king.
Chromatic Dragons were a type of dragon distinguished typically by a solid, non-reflective coloring of their scales, hence the name. They were generally evil, greedy, and predatory, and usually worshiped Tiamat, whom they regarded as their queen.
If we are thinking of sentient species that are not ruled or managed by the World Government despite being part of the World Government, then the True Dragons are certainly on the top of the list.
Over the many years, True Dragons became a part of the World Government, but they are mostly managing their own affairs and have the highest degree of autonomy possible granted to them.
Despite that, they often help the forces of the World Government and contract with the powerful beings of the World Government. Most notable example is Ashardalon, Anicent Red Dragon, nicknamed as 'Demon-Hearted Dragon', who is the inseparable companion of Princeps Congregatio Imperatoris, Amakusa Shirou Tokisada or Capnolithyl, a very powerful Vampiric Smoke Dragon who is familiar with Selene Tepes."
- Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them: 7th Edition, Chapter 35 - Dragons and their Subspecies by Newton Scamander, Year 2036, Age of God and Devil, Terra
***
Great Britain, Ministry of Magic, Office of the Minister of Magic
Several days after the Raid on the Death Eaters, several people were meeting in the British Ministry of Magic for a collective meeting about the eradication of the Death Eater forces.
Minister of Magic, Eugenia Jenkins, hosted several prominent Lords who participated in the attack: Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement Bartemius Crouch, Director of the Jujutsu Association, Acting Regent of the Old World Coven, and a few other people.
Surprisingly or not, Dumbledore was missing from the meeting, as nobody bothered to invite him to the secret meeting. Mostly because Crouch didn't have the best opinion about Dumbledore, mainly due to not personally leading the attacks on the Death Eaters years ago when they started appearing.
"Well then, as everyone has gathered, we can start with the report."
As soon as the British Minister of Magic said that, Bartemius Crouch, as Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, stepped forward with the statistics and numbers and overall results of the raid.
"During the raid on the Malfoy Manor, we managed to completely eradicate all Death Eaters present, while capturing several members of Voldemort's Inner Circle, including Abraxas Malfoy himself. The Beta Strike Team managed to completely rout out Knockturn Alley and clear it of not only the Death Eater presence but also that of the Dark Wizards and Magi. Strike Team Gamma destroyed most of the resistance at the Yaxley Manor, Nott Manor, and Lestrange Manor, but some of them managed to escape, and Lord Lestrange was not even present at the Manor during the time of attack."
The start of the report was already better than many had anticipated because, in all three targets that Barty Crouch named, the completion of the task was almost perfect.
Almost all of the low-ranking Death Eaters were killed on the battlefield or were captured and transported to Azkaban. Those who survived would be extensively interrogated and afterwards, depending on their personal power, they would be either left in Azkaban for the rest of their lives or transported to one of the lower security prisons.
When it came to Yaxley Manor, Nott Manor, and Lestrange Manor, the situation was more problematic. Although the common Death Eaters were rooted out, some of the Inner Circle and commanders among the Death Eaters managed to escape.
What was worse was that, during the attack on the Lestrange Manor, the Lord of Lestrange was not present and managed to avoid capture or death. This was greatly irritating because it was clear that Lestrange was already in France, where his influence was much greater than in Great Britain.
"Now, the Epsilon Strike Team has been successful in arresting anyone on whom we have suspicion of being Death Eaters or we have confirmed it. The rest of the people are right now undergoing interrogation using the Veritas Serum. Though... many people have disappeared, so we can conclude that the remaining Death Eaters within the Ministry have already escaped."
The task of the Epsilon Strike Team, which was primarily handling the cleaning out of the Ministry of Magic, was supported by the Unspeakables, and they managed to capture a lot of spies.
Unfortunately, more managed to escape their arrest, especially the sleeping agents who vanished overnight. It was clear that the smarter ones managed to realize that something big was happening and used the window of opportunity to escape or just didn't return back to work on the second day.
Though at least they captured a lot of high-ranking Death Eaters, so the identities of the spies that still remained would be revealed. Still, Crouch ordered a complete lockdown of the Ministry until the last Death Eater was completely interrogated.
"Now to the last thing. Operation in the Little Hangleton."
Hearing this, everyone grew grim, because the Military Operation in the Little Hangleton was considered a half-success and left a bittersweet taste.
"Due to Voldemort breaking through the Anti-Apparation Wards and Bounded Fields, many of the Death Eaters escaped, and from there, we managed to capture only Rockwood and Dolohov. Still, it seems that Lord Fraga managed to annihilate Voldemort's Inferi Army, and several hundred Death Eaters died."
Annihilation of Voldemort's Inferi Army was a great achievement on its own, because the Dark Lord managed to create several thousands of Inferi, yet all of them were destroyed by the Holy Light of the Fragarach by the Lord Leonhard.
"Overall, the Raid against the Death Eaters could be considered an overwhelming success, and we managed to destroy the Death Eater movement in Britain completely. Even though Voldmeort has escaped, we managed to destroy the common troops of the Death Eater movement completely, dismantle the network at the Ministry of Magic, and most importantly, several prominent Noble Families were arrested or their members killed during the raid."
This was something that everyone could agree upon, because overall, the operation was an overwhelming success. Even though Voldemort managed to escape, this was already something that everyone somehow anticipated.
"Thank you, Lord Crouch, for the summer of the current events. What about the current high-risk prisoners?"
Minister Jenkins asked, her gaze directed to the Head Warden of Azkaban.
"All are under interrogation. From the high-risk, only Augustus Rockwood was directly taken by the Jujutsu Association. The rest are nearing their stay at Azkaban, and some Lords of Noble Houses have already started singing and spilling out everything they know."
This wasn't anything surprising, because the members of the Pure-Blooded Noble Wizarding Families were not particularly loyal toward Voldemort en masse. Many followed him only out of personal benefit or fear... or a combination of both of them.
When the curtain fell, they would do anything in their power or not to save their very own hides.
"And Rockwood? Why is he being taken by the Association?"
Even if a criminal and one of the most wanted, Augustus Rockwood, was still a British Citizen and Magical, so he fell under the authority of the British Ministry of Magic.
"He has a connection with Kamo Noritoshi."
Kamo Noritoshi was famous across the world, because he was one of the most wanted criminals all of the times. Many of the Wizarding Dark Lords or Dead Apostles paled in comparison to Kamo Noritoshi.
Even though Kamo Noritoshi wasn't particularly powerful compared to the other Special-Class beings, it was his knowledge of the Jujutsu Sorcery and creation of the Cursed Spirits and their hybridization with humans and other species, which made him infamous across the entire world.
For that reason, he was one of the most infamous criminals in the world and also had a staggering bounty on his head. One that was written in hundreds of thousands of Galleons.
Which was an enormous sum even for Nobles, powerful experts, or wealthy merchants. Cursed Spirits were always very problematic to deal with by the others who were not Jujutsu Sorcerers.
It wasn't like they couldn't see them, but the Cursed Energy was very peculiar and only needed really specific branches of Magic or other powers to deal with the Cursed Energy properly.
Only the Cursed Energy could combat the Cursed Energy more efficiently. So the Jujutsu Sorcerers and Vampires were most effective in dealing with the Cursed Spirits, and when Cursed Spirits started wreaking havoc in the territory of the other races, who couldn't effectively deal with them.
Kamo Noritoshi was a prime example, because when the man escaped the pursuit of the Jujutsu Association, which ended somewhere in China, where he clashed with a good number of the Jujutsu Sorcerers from the Chinese Branch by releasing huge numbers of Cursed Spirits, he became a menace to the rest of the world.
Obviously, Kamo was rather smart, and he avoided territories of Vampires, Werewolves, powerful Magi Families, Psykers Families, or Shapeshifters and Gorgons in general.
He selectively chose the targets where he could go and where he was not to conduct his experiments with the Cursed Spirits. He was choosingly only the countries that were weak and couldn't pose him any danger.
Most specifically, he was targeting nations with a primarily Wizardkin population where he was safe. The Jujutsu Association has been pursuing Kamo Noritoshi for whole decades, but the man was very slippery and intelligent to the point where it was nigh impossible to catch him.
"As you wish. The British Ministry of Magic only wants information from Rockwood that concerns Voldemort or other threats to our nation."
Minister Eugenia Jenkins stated that because she knew that the Ministry of Magic of Great Britain didn't have enough capital to talk with the Jujutsu Association like an equal partner, and she knew that no Magus Family would really want to scuffle with Lord Amakusa for someone as lowly as Augustus Rockwood.
Even though Rockwood was a former Unspeakable, he alone wasn't enough to come into conflict with the Jujutsu Association for just a single Rockwood.
"That's not a problem. As long as we are finished with the interrogation of Rockwood, all information that concerns Great Britain will be passed to you as soon as possible."
Such was the tacit agreement between them, and Shirou didn't have a problem with passing over the information. However, most obviously, it was not all the information because there were some things that he wanted to know, and most obviously, Rockwood wouldn't return alive.
Most probably.
He would need to assess Rockwood's loyalty toward Voldemort because, according to the information, Rockwood was one of the most talented and knowledgeable Death Eaters in the Inner Circle.
Shirou didn't like wasting any talents.
He was even considering recruiting Rockwood if the man wasn't particularly loyal to Voldemort, a Death Eater cause, or some of their stupid ideologies, which was technically highly problematic.
Someone as knowledgeable and talented as him, who was Unspeakable and rose to the position of Vice Director of the Unspeakables in the British Branch of the Unspeakable Department of the International Confederation of Wizardkin.
It was a testament to his drive, knowledge, and power.
Afterwards, the discussion revolved around how to deal with the raid, how to deal with the remaining Death Eaters, and overall the things that were of no particular interest for Shirou or Selene, so they excused themselves not long ago.
Nanami Kento captured Rockwood and right now, Rockwood was enjoying he hospitality of the holding cells of Star Tomb of Takamagahara underneath Tokyo, in the Jujutsu Association Headquarters.
It was also time for them to return from Great Britain to Hungary, because now, they had obtained a lot of knowledge from the Greyback about Kraven's dealings with the Lycan Rebellion and the fact that Lucian was still alive.
Which was something that was even beyond Selene's wildest expectations.
Nevertheless, there was still one last thing that Shirou had on his schedule, which was an invitation from Arcturus III. Black for dinner today. He was tempted to refuse because he wanted to return to Hungary and resolve the conflict between the Lycan Rebellion nd Old World Coven, as he got notification from Toji that he and Lucian had solid leads on Kraven.
It was impossible for the Kraven to leave Hungary as the entire country was under a strict lockdown.
The power of the Old World Coven was absolutely unmatched in Central Europe, and now, when the fighting ceased between the Lycan Rebellion and the Old World Coven for some time, they were all focused on the search for Kraven.
All Ministries of Magic in Central Europe issued a ban on the Portkey Travel and usage of the Teleportation under the sentence of death. Now, the Death Dealers that were previously fighting with the Lycan Rebellion were not scouring every nook and cranny of Hungary.
Together with the Werewolves themselves, but also Wizards, Magic, and practically anyone from the Moonlit World, were searching for Kraven. Once Selene sent back proof of Kraven's betrayal to Old World Coven, which was submitted to the Vampire Council, the Council of Regends issued a bounty of 50,000 Galleons on Kraven.
This motivated anyone in most of Europe to search for the former Regent of the Old World Coven, but it seemed that the bounty would be claimed by Zen'in Toji, who had most probably found the hiding place of the former Regent and would be raiding it tonight.
"Are you coming with me to dinner?"
Shirou asked as they returned back to the Hogwarts, though once they returned to the school, there were apparent signs of combat and the atmosphere was much gloomier than before.
Bellatrix didn't return with them, because she went to depak with her grandfather, who wasn't that pleased that she disobeyed his direct orders, which was something that he didn't like. Yet at the same time, he heard that she was pivotal in the siege of the Malfoy Manor and even killed a 1st-Class Wizard.
One of the Death Eaters that were a direct member of Voldemort's Inner Circle.
What was best out of it was Lord of the House Jugson, a very minor Aristocratic Wizarding Family, but through the Right of Conquest, the House Black took everything that Jugsons owned or had.
"It seems that there was a fight here too... Dumbledore certainly isn't happy about the fact that someone came and started arresting his students."
Now Shirou understood why Dumbledore wasn't invited to the meeting, because part of the Strike Team Epsilon also headed toward Hogwarts, where all students in the school were checked for the Dark Marks.
Nobody was taking any chances, especially not Crouch and Alastor Moody, who personally led Aurors and several Death Dealers and Jujutsu Sorcerers to Hogwarts to screen out the students.
Many of the children of captured or killed Death Eaters were students at the school, and it was highly possible that many of them were already marked or were in the process of initiation to join the Death Eaters.
Obviously, Dumbledore protested, very vocally at that, but there was nothing that the old man could do about it, because everyone was in favour of checking the students of Hogwarts to see if there were any Death Eaters in there.
Dumbledore hated the idea of fighting in the school, but he had to admit that he was outnumbered by that, considering the line of success in the raids on the Death Eaters and the disdain that Crouch held for him.
It all resulted in the situation in Hogwarts being raided by the enforcement force and the arrest of a good number of students. Especially the older ones from the higher years, who had already joined the Death Eaters or were planning to join the Death Eaters.
They returned to Hogwarts only to take some things from their rooms, and in truth, Shirou didn't really plan to meet with Dumbledore. It was clear that their ideas about the future of the world were incompatible, because Shirou was leaning more toward Grindelwald's ideas than those of Dumbledore.
Even though Albus Dumbledore was pivotal in the creation of Grindelwald's ideology.
Shirou knew that there was no coexistence between the Moonlit World and ordinary No-Majs. There was too much bad blood, too high a difference in status, and other things that couldn't be overcome.
He was old, and he knew that there were two problems with the coexistence that could never be solved. The fact that the species of the Moonlit World looked down on the No-Majs would never disappear, especially in the case of species like Vampires and Werewolves, which could boast of longevity and immensely long lifespans.
This was something undeniable because the races of the Moonlit World viewed themselves to be superior to No-Majs, which wasn't technically speaking a lie... on the contrary, it was only a truth.
The defining line between the No-Majs and other races of the Moonlit World was that the species of the Moonlit World was superior in everything. Be it physical strength, their lifespan, various abilities they possessed, and basically everything around.
And then there was the side of the No-Majs, who were inferior to every race in the Moonlit World, and due to this racial inferiority, they would be jealous of the races of the Moonlit World as much as they would fear them.
Jealousy and Fear were not a good combination.
Due to that, he would have preferred to subjugate the No-Majs and start re-educating them completely. Break their society, break their traditions and religions, destroy it and erase it from their memories, from the face of Terra.
He would have them reduced to the blank states, which would be then molded into the state he wished... selective breeding through Eugenics, something that the Moonlit World widely practiced for many, many centuries.
The all-out war if the existence of the Moonlit World got leaked to the No-Majs was certain, and Shirou was sure that it would be very bloody.
Nevertheless, that was for the future...
Together with Selene, he took the few things that they had in their rooms, mostly some minor gifts that both of them received when they arrived in Great Britain, and after collecting everything, they left Hogwarts Castle.
***
Number 12 Gimmauld Place, London, Great Britain, Short Time Later
Today at Number 12 Grimmauld Place, London, there was a very important occasion.
Or rather, it wasn't just one important occasion but two essential occasions.
Right now, the House of Black would be hosting the Director of the Jujutsu Association himself and the Acting Regent of the Old World Coven, though there were rumors that Lady Selene's position would be made permanent by the Vampiric Council.
Though just from one look, he could see that the female Vampire was not liking her position, and he knew that she was a warrior first and foremost. Arcturus Black knew that she was someone who thrived on the battlefield, not in the area of politics.
Sometimes, even he himself despised dealing with the politics, because it could be really, really annoying, but that was his duty as the Patriarch of the House of Black. The old Patriarch of the House Black wanted to get closer to the Jujutsu Association, and from what he heard from his granddaughters, Director Amakusa and Dubmledore had a certain kind of scuffle.
It wasn't really surprising.
Even though those who were neutral toward the No-Majs and sometimes even those who advocated for the coexistence often found Dumbledore's view somehow naive and really simplistic.
He personally agreed with the Director's view on the No-Majs.
The peaceful coexistence was impossible, and the No-Majs existed only to serve the superior species of the Moonlit World. The House Black always knew in whom to invest and with whom to align...
If not, then their Lineage wouldn't have survived for more than two thousand years, as within the Noble Wizardkin Families of Great Britain, they were indeed the oldest one... or rather, they were the oldest that managed to withstand the passage of time and was getting stronger.
Though the House Black was officially created and established as the Noble House only around 1,200 years ago, their history and the history of their Lineage could be traced back to around 2,000 years ago.
Another thing that was worth celebrating was the achievements of his granddaughter, Bellatrix. Even though she blatantly disobeyed practically everything that he had ordered her, he had to admit that her performance during the raid on the Malfoy Manor was straggering.
She alone secured a good number of the Death Eaters and killed even more, which was something that he was immensely proud of. At the same time, Bellatrix could now be classified as a 1st-Class Magus.
Considering the age of Bellatrix, who was 17, so it was a tremendous achievement, though, reaching anything higher would require a good combination of talent, hard work, and luck.
Not to mention, during the dinner, he needed to announce to the family that he had chosen to name a Heir to the House Black, and in the end, he had decided to name Bellatrix the Heir.
Till now, it was most probable that the Orion, his oldest son, but Arcturus was aware that neither of his sons was suitable to be the heirs of the House of Black, due to various reasons, but the most notable being the fact that they were too weak.
Orion was barely a 1st-Class Magus who reached that Class with the help of the rituals, and he wasn't a warrior in the first place. His second son, Cygnus, wasn't that much different from that, and there was also the fact that his second son was weak in personality and didn't have it in him.
He was a great administrator and bureaucrat, managing a lot of the family's assets under his orders, but he would be a very bad politician. Among his other descendants, there were few choices because he felt that turbulent times were awaiting them.
And for that, he needed someone who would be as strong in mind as he would be strong in Magic and body.
From all choices, there was only one sole viable choice.
Bellatrix.
From all living Blacks, she was the best choice for the position of the Patriarch of the House of Black, and the Lordship would certainly go to her if the House of Black wanted to stand through the turbulent times that were awaiting them.
For that, they needed a Lord who would have the strength to shoulder the responsibilities.
His grandsons were disappointed one after another.
Sirius, who was the eldest, was in his opinion a soft-hearted fool who would be manipulated by others as he didn't have the mental capacity to scheme, nor did he have the power required, as he never really liked the Dark Magics of the House Black.
Meanwhile, his younger brother Regulus was as spinless as it could get, but he attributed it to the influence of his mother, Walburga. Arcturus Black knew that among the next generation of Blacks, the male line was really pitiful.
He would never pass the Lordship of the House Black to either of them, because it would ruin their House and their might. Even though Bellatrix wasn't mentally the most stable person around when she had her episodes, she was still the most competent person to lead House Black.
Not to mention, she was also the strongest one.
And in a decade, perhaps, she could reach Special-Class, and finally, after several centuries, the House Black would have produced another Special-Class Magus. When that happened, it would be a tremendous achievement for the House Black...
Not only that, but he also managed to strike a very good deal with Zen'in Naobito and engage Andromeda to Zen'in Toji as one of his wives. Arcturus understood that due to the low number of Jujutsu Sorcerers and the fact that Sorcerers had very low fertility rates, most of them had multiple partners in an effort to procreate and have as many progeny as possible.
Now, all that remained was finding a good match for Sirius and Regulus, but for that, he would need to wait a bit and see how the situation evolved. He preferred someone from the Magus Family, but there was a slight problem with that...
From the current Magi Families in Great Britain, only a few of the Magi Families had eligible maidens, namely the Barthomeloi Family and the Fraga McRemitz Clan. But... it was known that Lorelei Barthomeloi was considering hunting for Death Apostles as her favourite pastime, so that completely ruled out the possibility of a match between the House Black and Barthomeloi Family.
Arcturus was sure that she would not even spare his grandsons a second look... perhaps not even the first one, considering her strength as Special 1st-Class Magus and one of the prodigies in the art of war.
That only left Bazett Fraga McRemitz, daughter of Leonhard Fraga McRemitz. From what he heard, the girl was a very serious, hardworking individual who possessed a strong sense of justice, as she had already worked as a Warden in Azkaban and also as an Enforcer for Azkaban.
Enforcers were specifically trained people who were hunting for criminals and other dangerous elements.
Anyone who was able to join the Enforcers was definitely a top-tier talent, and there were not many of them, yet Leonhard's daughter joined practically the moment she graduated from Hogwarts last year.
Suddenly, he felt an intrusion in the Wards and Bounded Fields, that lasted only for several moments, before they disappeared. He knew that his visitors were here, because Boudne Fields registered a huge amount of the Cursed Energy entering the Grimmaul Place Number 12.
"Kreacher!"
Like all house-elves, Kreacher was considerably smaller than a human. He was described as having a bulbous, snout-like nose, bloodshot eyes, many folds of skin, and white hair growing out of his bat-like ears.
Kreacher lived for over six centuries, a tremendous feat for a house-elf, or by the standards of most species. He wore a pitch-black miniature butler uniform with the Raven Crest of the House Black as he appeared near his master.
He was the Head House Elf of the House Black and commanded all other House Elves within the House Black.
"What can Kreacher do for the Master?"
The House Elf asked respectfully, not really befitting of his personality. Kreacher was very loyal to all the members of the Black family except Sirius Black, whom he hated because he treated Kreacher poorly.
Kreacher was usually hostile, bitter, and miserable, and had a habit of insulting people, including his masters, if he found them inadequate. The only one who had his utmost respect all the time was the Lord of the House, Black.
"We have very important guests waiting in front of the doors. Go and welcome them, bring them to the drawing room."
The House Elf then apparated away to carry out the order of his master.
***
In front of the Grimmauld Place Number 12, Shirou and Selene were waiting as he had just now knocked on the door of the Grimmauld Place.
"You know, from one of the richest Magus Families in Great Britain, I had really expected something more..."
Selene remarked as she had found the entire place rather unassuming because well... it really was even in Shirou's opinion, but he had to admit that the place was impressive from the magical point of view.
The amount of Magic that was used in creating this place was staggering, and at the same time, the Magic that was used was masterfully woven into the building. But for Selene, she was used for the grander show of power and wealth, as it was part of the Vampire culture.
Even though Selene didn't share many things that were rather common for the Vampire Race, she too shared certain traits, and one of them was showing power and wealth. This was something that was deeply ingrained in every single Vampire and in fact, she had expected something more from the House Black.
"Because this is just a temporary residence for the Patriarch that he is using when he is in London for some urgent matters. Normally, he would be at Castle Black, which is the ancestral seat of the House Black."
Many of the Wizardkin Nobles originally had castles or forts that were their ancestral seats of power, but over time, these castles were abandoned in favour of more comfortable manors and mansions.
Not to mention...
The costs of maintaining the Magic Castle are staggering.
Something that only a few families in Great Britain could bear and were bearing till now.
The number of them was something around ten.
Maybe even less.
"Most of the Wizardkin Nobles have long ago abandoned the Castles in favour of Manros. Many of them are lacking money, means, skill, and materials to support the existence of the Magic Castle."
This wasn't true just for the British, but for the Wizardkin generally. As time passed, many of them either sold their castles, their ancestral seats of power, or they were abandoned as they couldn't bear the costs of maintenance.
"Welcome, honorable guests of the House Black."
Suddenly, the doors opened, revealing there a very old House Elf who opened the doors for them as he invited them to enter.
"Thank you for the invitation."
Both Shirou and Selene entered Grimmauld Place Number 12 as they were led by the House Elf to the drawing room. There, they found the Patriarch of the House Black, who was waiting for their arrival, together with his wife, Melania Black, neé Macmillan of the Macmillan Clan from Scotland.
"Welcome to the House Black, Lady Selene. Lord Amakusa. This is my wife, Melania."
Arcturus Black introduced his wife as he greeted both of them, as Shirou shook hands with the Lord of the House Black, who was eager for the meeting. Truthfully, during the time he was here, Shirou received a few invitations from the Nobles, but the only one that he agreed to meet were the Blacks.
Mostly because among all the Noble families in Great Britain, only the Blacks had business contracts and deals with the Jujutsu Association, while the rest had zero to none, and with the limited time he had staying in Great Britain, he only had time to meet with one Lord.
Obviously, he chose someone who was somehow related to the Jujutsu Association, as that was his duty as the Director. Not to mention, most of the people who wanted to meet with him would most probably just want to ask for the support of the Association for something.
Shirou wasn't interested in the petty squabbles of the local nobles, as that didn't have anything to do with him.
"Thank you for the invitation, Lord Black."
Shirou started speaking with Lord Black, while his wife was speaking with Selene, and much to Shirou's surprise, he was able to see Selene rather relaxed, and she was even talking about various things that were happening in the Old World Coven with Lady Black.
"Cigar and some scotch?"
Arcturus Black asked as Shirou nodded. He wouldn't say no to a good cigar and a good scotch.
"I must admit that this is the first time Selene has been so relaxed... your wife is pretty skilled even with nuts like her."
Shirou stated that he had taken a cigar from Lord Black and a glass of some scotch that the elderly lord poured for him.
"Yes... she is often handling such things... she has a much better temper than I and people tend to relax around her due to her harmless appearance."
Arcturus Black had a rather temper, especially now that he was older, even though it wasn't really that much visible that he was already something around sixty or so. Due to the rituals that were aimed to extend lifespan, neither of the Black couple looked older than forty.
"A proper snake isn't seen until it strikes, right?"
During his very long life, Shirou had seen many kinds of people, and the ones who were hiding their fangs until the very last moment were the most dangerous around. It was beyond evident that his wife was the same, because when he looked at Melania Black, he could feel the Magic Power that she was expertly hiding away.
1st-Class.
Very powerful and dense at that.
He was sure that she was very dangerous.
"Yes... most of the negotiations with the others are handled by her. But that's not the thing that I wanted to talk to you about."
Suddenly, the atmosphere became much somber as Lord Black looked at Shirou with a much more intense and serious gaze.
"So, what did you want to talk with me about?"
Shirou asked as Lord Black conjured a whisper of flame and lit up their cigars, as they sat down in the leather chairs.
"Let's go straight to the matter. Several of the families in Great Britain are concerned about the state of the world and the future of the Moonlit Side of the World. Ironically, though, the discussion that you had with Dumbledore at Hogwarts is a testament to the worries that we are right now facing."
Arcturus Black started as Shirou listened to every single word, as it seemed that there was something important happening in the shadows.
"Barthoemlois, Fraga McRemitz, Animusphere, Blacks, and a few other minor Families had been lately troubled by the advancement of the No-Majs. Many of us, Magus Families, are much better informed about the developments of the No-Majs as we have our business and dealings on the Mundane Side of the World as well. And their latest development is highly troubling at last."
Shirou nodded, hearing that, because this wasn't something new to him. Due to the latest development of technology by the Normies, many within the Moonlit Side of the World were growing restless.
New World Coven, Psyker Families in America, American Werewolf Tribe, and the supernatural in the United States overall were most tense. They were at the center of the technological development, and they were viewing it as a threat.
Some of the muggle weapons like Atomic Bombs, were enougá to kill even Special-Class beings if they were unprepared or were just not strong enough to resist its might, and that was only the start.
Shirou understood this as well, and he also understood that, as the members of the Moonlit Side of the World, they would need to do something about it.
"Yes, it is... and you are not the only ones who are growing concerned around that. It seems that Gellert's vision was true, and now, we need to deal with the consequences of ignoring it some time ago."
Gellert Grindelwald was a famous or infamous Magus in Europe. Depending on who it was asked, he was either a Hero or a Dark Lord; everything around the man was just a huge controversy, especially due to his ideology.
Before and during World War II, Grindelwald rose to prominence by preaching about how the No-Majs represented the gravest threat to the Moonlit World, and he gathered quite a lot of followers.
Though...
Due to the very complicated situation in the world at that time and the balance of power, it never developed into full-out participation in the War, but Grindelwald's Alliance supported all sides of the Muggles to increase their deaths as much as possible.
Today, the Alliance encompasses all German-speaking countries and Scandinavia, and it was one of the strongest, if not outright the strongest, Wizardkin organization in the world, especially due to their close relationship with the Old World Coven, Nordic Coven, and a few other organizations and factions.
"I am aware of the troubles that lie ahead, and because of that, we need to achieve unity or at least resolve most of the problems outright, Lord Black. During the past several years, I have been in contact with Lady Amelia, Gellert, Gomez Addams, Figarland Garling, Lord Muzaka, King Ragnok, and a few other people and old timers to create a solution for our current predicament."
All that Lord Black was hearing were the names of bigshots in the Moonlit Side of the World, all of them were Special-Class beings some of them were of beings of tremendous power, like Muzaka who was one of the Werewolf Primogenitors, Lady Amelia, who was the Vampire Elder of the New World Coven or King Ragnok, the undisputed King of the Goblin Race.
He also recognized the other names, especially the Gomez Addams, who was the Patriarch of the Addams Family and a very powerful Special-Class Psyker, or Figarland Garling, a Patriarch of the Figarland Family and also extremely powerful Psyker and Swordmaster.
"Once the conflict between the Lycan Rebellion and the Old World Coven is resolved, a meeting will take place. All Special-Class begins, and representatives of powerful factions in the world are invited to attend this meeting to decide the unified front against the growing threat of the No-Majs and our stance on this topic."
Shirou explained to Lord Black, as he still needed to get the support of Marcus and Lucian for the meeting. That way, he would have representatives of the strongest factions in the world present during the meeting, as well as the strongest Special-Class beings.
Obviously, he wouldn't really bother to invite the rest of the people or those whom he had the idea that would sabotage the discussions during the meeting.
"Then I would be waiting for the invitation."
Lord Black stated that he felt that this would be something extremely important for the House of Black and their future development. A meeting of such scale was unprecedented in the history of the Moonlit Side of the World, though such was the threat that they were facing.
For many centuries, the world was divided into two sides.
The Moonlit Side of the World and the Mundane Side of the World.
And now, due to the rapid technological development, the Normies would destroy this division.
***
Not long after the discussion between Lord Black and the Director of the Jujutsu Association, the other members of the House of Black started arriving one after another. Because of the several announcements that Lord Black wanted to make, he ordered most of the members of the family to arrive.
"Leave me be, Bellatrix, I just don't understand why we should be gathering here right now..."
The one who spoke was Sirius Black, a well-built, darkly handsome man with fair skin, medium, lustrous black hair, which sometimes appeared light in the sun, striking grey eyes, and an air of "casual elegance", the so-called "Black Sheep of the Black".
"Because grandfather commanded it, and we would also be having guests. Shirou and Selene would be attending to behave themselves at least once in their lives like a proper noble."
Bellatrix looked sharply at her cousin, who mildly shuddered under her gaze, though his eyes narrowed when he heard her calling the Director of the Jujutsu Association and Acting Regent of the Old World Coven with such familiarity.
"You are awfully chummy-yummy with the Jujutsu Marshall... do you have a crush on the old fossil?"
The young man asked with a cheeky grin as he watched his cousin almost stumble her legs and a reddish hue appear on her cheeks, but before he could answer, suddenly he felt that somebody was standing behind him...
Rather close at that...
"Even though I am old, I am rather far from being a fossil, young Black."
Suddenly, Bellatrix grinned when she saw Shirou appearing behind her cousin, as Sirius froze in the spot, as he realized who was standing behind him. Even though he wasn't really interested in the Family Craft and he didn't have the same púredisposition toward the Family's Magic like Bellatrix, he was still rather powerful, just in a different way.
Sirius was in fact very skilled in the combat magic and the way of the sword, and just from the bit of the Cursed Energy that he felt from the Jujutsu Marshall, he was being overwhelmed by his sheer power and presence that was higher, bigger, and stronger than anything that he had seen and felt before.
"I-I..."
He tried to speak, but every instinct in his body told him to run.
It wasn't any wonder that Amakusa Shirou Tokisada was probably one of the strongest beings in the world, aside from the True Dragons, of course, who had disappeared over the course of history.
"Don't worry... I am not taking it seriously, I may be old, but I was too once young... it was just too long ago."
Shirou chuckled as he put his hand away from the young man's shoulders while Bellatrix watched with glee as Sirius literally fled from the scene.
"Well, that was a very nice sight... I must admit, I would have never thought that he would be scrambling away this fast."
The nature of Sirius's relationship with his family during his early childhood wasn't really the best one, but at the age of eleven, he earned the severe disappointment and disapproval of his family by being sorted into Gryffindor house at Hogwarts.
Sirius, in turn, became increasingly rebellious by flaunting his house affiliation and his disdain for his family's Magic-supremacy values and disdain for the No-Majs. His relationships with his mother and cousin Bellatrix became particularly antagonistic.
Though it wasn't like Bellatrix cared much about that, because in her modest opinion, Sirius was a waste of space and an entitled weakling who was just sullying the Lineage of the House Black.
Ironically, though, she viewed her cousin Regulus in a very similar way, that he was cowardly and a weakling. Bellatrix had a somewhat simplistic mindset about this, as she viewed people based on their value, which consisted of their skills and power.
If they had neither, they were worthless. Most obviously, both of her cousins fell into this category.
"He escaped rather quickly..."
The Jujutsu Marshall commented once he saw one of the male descendants of the House Black bolting away from him. It seemed that he had almost scared the young boy to an early grave.
"That was good... we could repeat it sometimes in the future."
Bellatrix commented as she returned with Shirou to the drawing room, as the members of the House Black started gathering together. It didn't take long for the invited members of the House Black to arrive at Grimmauld Place Number 12.
Obviously, not all members of the House Black were invited to the dinner, because that would be too many people, and due to that, Lord Black invited only a few people to the meeting.
Shirou was sitting in the place that was closest to the Patriarch and Lady of the House, while next to him was sitting Selene, and opposite them were sitting Bellatrix, Narcissa, and one seat away was Andromeda.
The representatives of the members of the House Black were seated according to their importance and status within the family. Lord Black was now delivering a welcoming speech, something to which he wasn't really paying much attention.
When Shirou arrived at the Grimmauld Place Number 12, he had his own private discussion with Lord Black, and after that, even Selene, in her position as Acting Regent of the Old World Coven, had a short private discussion with Lord Black.
The House Black had a very close trading relationship with several of the Vampire Covens, due to their joint interest in the Dark Arts, Forbidden Magic, and Black Magic. Or collecting the Dark Artifacts and Cursed Objects, so everything was most commonly an object of trade between the House Black and Vampire Covens all over the world.
"And now, that everyone has gathered here, there are a few important announcements that I would like to make in the name of my position as the Lord of House Black."
Suddenly, the atmosphere changed as everyone grew more serious when they looked at the ageing patriarch of the House Black. Even though he was ageing, it wasn't really showing itself.
Everyone knew that if the Lord of the House called the core members of the House Black here, it meant that there were some very important things to announce. What was rather peculiar was the fact, that there were two guests here.
Director of the Jujutsu Association and Acting Regent of the Old World Coven, so some of the people present theorized that it was somehow related to the guests.
"After a lot of consideration, I have decided to name a Heir to the Lordship of the House Black. We have turbulent times ahead of us, and I want to put more time into research and perfecting our Craft to reach the Special-Class Magus."
Hearing that Lord Black was going to name his heir made everyone startled and nervous at the same time.
The question of the next Heir Apparent was something that was a long-ago topic of discussion within the House Black, as Arcturus Black had already made it clear long ago that he wanted to retire from the position of Lord and focus more time on perfecting his Craft so he could reach Special-Class.
For the House Black, it was of paramount importance to produce another Special-Class Magus. It has been many, many years since the House Black produced a Special-Class Magus the last time.
Fortunately, with their Craft and Family Magic, creating Special-Class Soul Servants or Undeads was relatively easy once the person reached the Special 1st-Class Magus.
"After long consideration and prospects for the House Black, I have decided to name Bellatrix as the Heiress Apparent of the House Black."
Hearing who was made the new Heir of the House Black, surprised some people, and some already anticipated it. Arcturus's sister, Cassiopeia Black, wasn't surprised even a bit by this revelation... meanwhile, the rest of the family was rather surprised that Bellatrix was named the Heir.
At the same time, nobody dared to voice something about the decision, because it was the will of the Patriarch, and Arcturus would deal with them one way or another. Orion Black looked rather displeased, but once he noticed his father's gaze on his person, he immediately shut up.
"Among all of my currently living descendants, only Bellatrix has the right mindset and personality to lead our House through the new age. And she is the only one who is taking her studies rather seriously..."
Saying the last part, the Patriarch of the House of Black looked at Sirius and Regulus, who squirmed a bit under his intense gaze.
It was evident that the ones who were most displeased by the announcement were Orion and his wife, Walburga, because they lost the throne of the House Black that was right in front of them.
Meanwhile, Arcturus's younger son, Cygnus Black, and his wife Druella Black neé Rosier, were especially pleased by the sudden development. They didn't expect that their daughter would be chosen as the next successor for the House Black, initially everyone anticipated that the Patriarch would choose either Orion or Sirius for that role.
Yet...
Though Bellatrix also made the most sense because from the younger generation of the Blacks, she was the most talented and predisposed for the position of leadership.
Aside from that, she was also expected to reach the Special Class Magus within one decade or so if she had some luck. Hopefully, in the future, House Black would have two Special-Class Magi, which would elevate the status of the Black Family tremendously in the Moonlit World.
Among the Magus Families, only a few of them had Special-Class Magus and an even smaller number of them had more than one Special-Class Magus.
Right now, the Barthomeloi Family was a prime example of it, as Augustus Barthomeloi was a Special-Class Magus, and his daughter Lorelei Barthomeloi was almost guaranteed to reach the Special-Class Magus.
"Now, this is not everything. After the negotiations with Lady Selene, current Acting Regent of the Old World Coven, House Black and Old World Coven came to an extensive trade agreement which would be overseen by Bellatrix from Budapest in the foreseeable future."
This was rather a great responsibility, and it would also be an opportunity for Bellatrix to achieve something and prove to herself that she would be capable of handling the family fortune and overseeing the various businesses of the House Black.
This was rather surprising to Bellatrix that her grandfather would send her to the core territory of the Old World Coven, Budapest. Though at the same time, she was excited at the prospect of seeing the rest of the world.
She never really left Great Britain, or rather, she very rarely left Great Britain, so there was some kind of excitement at the prospect of going to one of the centers of the Moonlit World.
"Now... there is one last announcement that I want to make today. For the past few weeks, I have been in talks with Patriarch of the Zen'in Clan, Naobito Zen'in, and we have agreed to arrange a marriage between his nephew, Toji Zen'in, a young Special-Class Jujutsu Sorcerer, and Andromeda. I believe that the two of them would be a suitable match and would strengthen the ties between our two families."
Only three people noticed very subtle changes in Andromeda's expression when she heard the news. Both of her sisters and her mother noticed the predominant emotions, which were despair, anger, and fear.
And from three of them, only Narcissa suspected the true reason, because Bellatrix was too dense to see it. Though Bellatrix often failed to see many things when they were not connected to the Magic and combat.
Narcissa could only sigh, because such was the fate of women born into the Noble Families and the reminder that everything came with a price.
Sometimes the price could be too high.
The rest of the dinner went rather...
In a somber atmosphere, since Bellatrix was named the Heiress Apparent of the House Black, the duo of Orion Black and Walburga Black were gloomy as heck, because they lost the Lordship of the House Black.
Meanwhile, their two sons were quietly eating and minding their own business as they knew that their mother would be unbearable once more, after this entire dinner had ended.
Obviously, she was hoping that the Lordship of the House Black would go to her husband, only for it to go to her niece. Sirius, meanwhile, was rather distressed because his worst nightmare had come true...
While he did not have the most ideal relationships with his family due to their Magic Supremacist Beliefs and many other things, the ones that he had the worst relationship with were certainly Bellatrix.
It was like that since their childhood.
He didn't doubt that he would perhaps for the first time suffer greatly for some of his pranks and remarks to her, because he knew that, like her sisters, Bellatrix was no exception and could be as petty as it could get.
***
Once the dinner had ended, Arcturus invited Shirou and his sons to the cigar room for a cigar and hard alcohol. Even though his son Orion was sulking the entire time, he was pragmatic enough to recognize the reality.
Meanwhile, Cygnus, the younger son, was very satisfied with the outcome, as Bellatrix would be the next Lord of the House Bof lack. Which was the greatest thing that could happen, because the Lordship has been moved to his branch of the family.
"I know, Orion, that you are not satisfied with my decision... but because of what is to come, we need a strong leader who would be able to stand up against our enemies and also be a partner to the other Magus Families. And your sons are disappointments one after another. One would sell us in a second, while the other would be nothing more than a rug."
Both of his sons knew that he was talking about the No-Majs. Orion was on the verge of eruption from anger, because he was very well aware that his sons were huge failures.
Sirius was fraternizing with the muggles, which was basically a very big no-no. This was the result of a great conflict within their family that he was sympathizing with normies, which was something that the entire Moonlit World looked down upon.
Not to mention, this was also a great scandal as it brought great humiliation to their House, and it was another reason why his Arcturus was forced to choose someone else as the Heir of the Lordship.
If someone like that became Lord of Black, then many of their allies and trading partners would be greatly disturbed, especially the non-human species like Vampires and Werewolves.
That would be a very serious problem for the House Black, because most of their trade and business was conducted with the non-human races that had rather big problems with the normal humans.
Meanwhile, Regulus was meek and weak; in personality terms, he was the perfect person to be manipulated and exploited, as he was easily impressionable, among other things that were his major character flaws.
In the end, everything led to Bellatrix becoming the next Lord of the House of Black.
It was the best choice for everyone involved.
"Ts... unfortunately. I swear that boy is just a trouble... and Regulus was too coddled by his mother."
Orion Black sighed sadly as some things were really not going according to plan. Neither of his sons were suitable to become the next Lord of the House Black, which was rather disappointing.
And because of the fear of confrontation with the No-Majs, his father chose someone who was most expected to reach the Special-Class. In the younger generation, Bellatrix was indeed the brightest out of them all.
Yet, everyone knew that Sirius was consistently antagonizing his cousins, like the rest of the family, and among them, he had the worst relationship with Bellatrix, due to their entirely opposite views on the world.
"I will speak with Bella to not make things more difficult for them... but you should really hold Sirius on a tight leash... You know very well that Bellatrix is not the kindest person around, and once she takes the Lord, she wouldn't be accepting any kind of disobedience."
Everyone knew of Bellatrix's temper, and it wasn't the best. She was prone to anger, and she hated disobedience, especially if someone went against her decision. And in the first place, Bellatrix was beyond loyal to the House Black and its ideology.
Though if Orion knew that his wife wouldn't be shutting up about this, because of her, this was the greatest loss, as her line wouldn't be holding the Lordship of the House Black.
Arcturus himself was actually very satisfied with the development of things, because he was sure that his granddaughter would be making an excellent Lord of the House Black.