Ben walked inside the Council building and went to a office. He was guided by a guard to the office where he can report his assignment as Fairy Tail's guild master. This was the first thing he needed to do here.
The process didn't take long for him to complete because all he needed to do was fill out some paperwork. Besides, everyone knew Fairy Tail's situation and didn't try to make things hard for Ben. He was grateful for that, but he'll still mess with the Council today.
When he got ready to leave the office, a man came and informed him that his presence was required. Ben nodded and followed the man with a smirk. He knew why he was called and was excited.
Ben entered a big room that he visited once when he was offered the Wizard Saint position. There are several Council officials and five Wizard Saints. But none of the 4 Gods of Ishgar were present.
The man who guided him there told him to stand on the small stage. He did so and faced a lot of people who were sitting in front of him. They look at him with varying expressions for varying reasons.
Then Ben looked at a old man with long grey hair and a beard. He is Gran Doma, the current Chairman of the Magic Council. Draculos, who held the position before, was a temporary Chairman because the previous one had been killed in the incident orchestrated by Jellal and Ultear.
'Gran Doma, he must've ordered the infiltration of our S-Class exam. He was the one that started it all.' Ben thought.
"Ben Cooper. First, I want to give my condolences. What happened to your guild was rather unfortunate. It surprised us that the Black Dragon of the Apocalypse, Acnologia, suddenly appeared and attacked you. We're sorry we couldn't do anything and we are glad that there are 2 survivors at lea-" He said before being cut off.
"3. There are 3 survivors." Ben coldly stated.
"*Cough* Yes, 3 survivors. We are glad that the 3 of you survived and recovered." Gran Doma said.
"Well thanks." Ben sarcastically scoffed.
He can feel the disappointment in Gran Doma's voice because there were survivors. He must've hoped they all died there because Fairy Tail won't have a future ahead of them.
'Well, sorry to disappoint you, old fart. No one is dead, they're just trapped in a spell.' Ben thought.
"I heard that you have become Fairy Tail's new guild master, is that true?" Gran Doma asked.
"Yeah, I have just reported it." Ben said shortly.
Gran Doma was displeased with his short replies. But he needed to keep his composure and stay calm. He can't make his displeasure known because there are Wizard Saints here.
"Congratulations on your ascension. I hope you will lead Fairy Tail to be a better guild." Gran Doma said, emphasizing the word 'better'.
"I will try to do that although it will be hard. Fairy Tail was always a good guild. It's the number one guild in Fiore, and the 3rd master is an amazing guild master. The only way to surpass that is becoming the best guild in Ishgar or maybe the whole world. It's a hard task but I will try to reach it so I can meet your expectation." Ben said with a humble tone, but he smirked in his heart.
Gran Doma was displeased and the Council officials start to murmur. The Wizard Saints, however, smirk because they really like Ben had backbone. They won't like a Wizard Saint who doesn't have the guts to face something like this.
Gran was displeased.
"I hope that will be a reality." He said.
"Thanks dude." Ben replied as if he was talking to his friend.
Everyone wanted to laugh at Ben's response to Gran Doma, but they keep themselves composed. Calling a old man 'dude' with such a tone was really funny. Gran Doma's expression became darker but he stayed calm.
"Let's get down to business or the schedule will be ruined. Ben Cooper of Fairy Tail, the reason we called you here is that someone recommended you to become a Wizard Saint to replace Makarov Dreyar. The one who recommended you was one of the Wizard Saints, Jura Neekis. You've turned this position down before, so usually, we wouldn't ask you again. But it's a recommendation from a Wizard Saint, so we can't just ignore it. So I will ask you, do you want to become a Wizard Saint?" Gran Doma asked.
"Of course I will. I now have a reason to so I will accept the position. This was my 3rd master's seat, so I won't give it up to anyone." Ben said.
"Alright, then we will continue this meeting because the candidate agreed. But first, I will inform you that there are three more candidates to fill the empty seat. It's been over a month since Master Makarov died. So we searched for his replacement because Wizard Saints are important for Ishgar."
"The first requirement to be a Wizard Saint is strength. We need the strongest people who can protect Ishgar. As there's only a single seat left, we need to find the strongest among the four of you. To do that, we need to hold a competition and find the strongest one. The winner will become the next Wizard Saint." Gran Doma explained.
'Competition? They didn't do it before. Jura seems surprised and so do the other Wizard Saints. It must be new and prepared specifically for me.' Ben thought.
Ben's assumption was correct because when Jura asked about it, Gran Doma said that it's a new policy that they've decided because there were several candidates at once.
"Usually, their track records were enough, but that won't really show their capabilities. We need to see it to believe it, that's what the Council has decided." Gran Doma explained.
Jura can't say anything because choosing Wizard Saints was the Magic Council's job, not theirs. So he can only follow it and support Ben from the side. Well, it's not like he was worried about Ben because he knew how strong he was.
It's also impossible for Jura to worry after seeing Ben's excited expression. Ben is excited about the competition because Wizard Saint candidates must be strong. He always enjoys fighting strong opponents because it also makes him stronger.
'They are Wizard Saint candidates, so they should be at least as strong as the weakest Wizard Saint. I won't hope too much but it will be nice if they are at least as strong as Jura.' Ben thought.
"The competition will be held tomorrow on the east side of town. There is a wide-open place that we can use. The Council will make preparations today and the other 3 candidates aren't present, so we can't start right away. Now, I will end this meeting. Is there anyone who has something to say before I close this meeting?" Gran Doma asked.
No one raised their hand, so Gran Doma closed the meeting. Ben left the room with a disappointed expression. He planned a few things but he can't use them today because the meeting didn't go like he hoped.
Jura suddenly called out to him as he was walked so he came over to him. The bald guy apologized to him because the meeting was different than usual. He also told Ben to be careful tomorrow because his opponents could be strong.
"Don't worry, I can take care of myself. Just make sure to enjoy the show." Ben said with a smirk.
Jura smiled and nodded before they part ways. Ben returned to his hotel while thinking about what he'll do tomorrow. He can't wait to see what the Magic Council is up to.