As if it had become a norm, day after day there was a piece of shocking news in the newspapers of Wizarding Britain. And the latest addition in this series of shocking and unbelievable news were the events that had transpired at the Sinistra Manor. The revelation that Antonio Olario was betrothed to Aurora Sinistra with her father 's permission but without knowledge of Lord Sinistra, and then the emergence of the feud between Lord Olario and the Timirus family.
Though there was still a matter of debate over whether the betrothal was even genuine, it did not appear to be so. The manner in which the story had unfolded indicated that the betrothal had been more of an act to keep Aurora safeguarded from the marriage she was being pushed into by her grandfather, Lord Sinistra. Clearly an act was played to side step Lord Raphel Sinistra's wishes.
But then again, for Lord Olario to be willing to go to such an extent to help Aurora certainly raised eyebrows. And it was not merely that he was willing to sign a betrothal contract with her, but also the fact that in doing so he had invited enmity from a very powerful and influential family like the Timirus.
And it had been obvious to all those who had been there to attend the wedding that Antonio had not been afraid in the slightest of the Timirus family. In fact, he had been provoking Lord Alan Timirus into making a move against him. Antonio had gone as far as asking Lord Timirus to declare a blood feud.
Yes, it was well known, understood, and accepted that magically, Olario might overpower and overwhelm the Timirus family. But it was also known that not everything could be solved magically. There were other aspects too, and in those aspects, the Timirus family overshadowed Antonio Olario.
Politically, the Timirus family was very well connected. They had powerful allies and were owed favors by influential families.
True, in the recent past Antonio Olario had demonstrated his connections too, with families such as Bonel and Black. But how far would these families be willing to go for Antonio? Were they ready to throw themselves into a conflict against the Timirus family, and by extension, the faction they belonged to?
Again the Timirus and Black families both belonged to the dark faction, and though the relationship between them was not very positive, would the Black family still oppose the Timirus family?
Economically, the Timirus family was far, far more superior to Antonio Olario. Though Antonio had gained some wealth after swallowing up the Marius family, it could not compare to a family like Timirus. If the Timirus family wished to do so, they could truly hurt the interests of the Olario family which basically was one single individual, Antonio himself.
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Alex Timirus slammed the newspaper onto the table in front of him. His face was filled with pure rage and anger. The atmosphere in the main hall of Timirus Manor mirrored Alex's expression. It was suffocating and heavy. The very air in the manor reeked of oppression.
"We should have attacked that bastard then and there," Alex raged. "Now the whole world will be laughing at us."
"No matter how beautifully or pragmatically you frame it, no one is going to buy your logic that you did not want to revive a brutal and dead custom. They all know that we retreated because we were afraid of him."
Alan, sitting in front of his son, sighed in response.
"We have already discussed it," Alan said. "What we did was a strategic retreat, and it was the best option we could have taken."
"If we had decided to remain and fight, then we would have surely been killed. We were no match for Lord Olario. You were not there when Antonio Olario killed Alicus Marius in the honour duel. He toyed with Marius Lord, and, trust me, even with both of us combined, we were bound to lose. We are no match for him. He is an exceptional wizard."
"But we were not alone," Alex almost snarled, barely keeping his rage to himself. "At one word from you, at least a dozen wizards would have jumped into the fray to help us."
"Our allies and our subordinate families were present there," he added. "We could have called in favors."
"I do not deny this," Alan sighed. "Maybe if we had gone all out, we might have killed him."
"But our losses would have been equally great. We would have lost half a dozen men, and that is not something you can call a victory."
"Have patience, and I will find a way to deal with Antonio. And that too in a manner where we will have to fear no loss."
"And," Alan continued. "While the world may mock us now. In the end, only the victors are remembered and when we kill Antonio, every insult and mockery will be forgotten."
Alex nodded in understanding.
"Anyway," Alan remarked, "why are you repeatedly getting so worked up?"
"The betrothal is obviously fake, and even if it is true, why does it matter? You want Aurora Sinistra, and you will get her. You have my word on it."
"Yes," Alex nodded. "I want her grovelling before me inside this manor. I am going to make a proper slave out of her."
"Haha!" Alan merely chuckled in response.
Alan's wife, Alaria, who was sitting adjacent to the father and son pair, wanted to voice her own thoughts, but she wisely kept her mouth shut.
Like many ladies of the magical families who were highly valued and respected in their houses, Alaria barely had any respect. Her words carried no worth and her opinions were meaningless. And the way she was treated? The less she said, the better it was.
"Did you check for Ragsan?" Alan questioned. "His father is very worried."
"I checked all the contacts I could," Alex sighed. "No signs of them."
"Ragsan, along with two of his friends, had planned a night raid at one of the inns, but they never made it there. I have a feeling they are in some danger."
"Nah!" Alan waved his hand. "You know how he is. He must have run off somewhere to get drunk. His father was overreacting, and he needlessly reported it to the Ministry. Even the newspapers published it."
"Exactly my point," Alex said. "Even if they had run off somewhere, they would have contacted someone after their disappearance was reported in the newspapers."
"Maybe they have not seen the newspapers," Alan quipped.
Alex shook his head and was about to respond when an owl came flying toward Alan. Alan unfurled the parchment tied to the owl's leg.
As he read through its contents, his face turned white.
"What happened?" Alex questioned with a frown.
"Bodies…" Alan stammered. "Three bodies have been found. Ragsan is dead."
"What?" Alex jerked and stood up in shock.
"Ragsan is dead," Alan repeated as he too stood up. "Let us go."
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