"There is another way, Olario," Alex said, his voice as cold as ice. "If you die, the contract will hold no magical value."
With that, he whipped out his wand and pointed it at Antonio.
Alex's action was followed by a stunned silence in the lawn. The spectators were in pure shock and they could not really make out the scene unfolding in front of them. No one had expected the situation to spiral out so suddenly. Alex had just threatened to kill a Lord of Wizengamot. It was not a small matter. Unbelievable.
Antonio, against whom the wand was pointed, remained calm and indifferent. He barely reacted, not even bothering to draw his own wand. He did not put Alex's threat in his eyes.
"Oh!" Antonio smirked. "If I die, you say, the contract will hold no magical value."
"Alex… Alex…" he chuckled, his tone sarcastic. "Technically, you are correct and what you said is true. But you have made a small error in your miscalculation."
"Who is going to kill me?" Antonio said, raising a finger toward Alex's raised wand. "You? Do not tell me that you are even remotely considering that you have the ability to kill me."
Antonio had still not bothered to draw his wand. He was not worried in the slightest that Alex could harm him. He was utterly contemptuous of Alex's abilities.
Meanwhile, Alan snapped out of his stupor and hurried to his son and forced Alex's hand down.
Like his son, he was furious and felt humiliated. He too had felt the insult that Antonio Olario and to some extent Drafel Sinistra had rubbed in his face. He too was raging in his heart.
But unlike his son, Alan had not lost his temper. He was an old and experienced dog and could keep his composure even in tense situations. He understood the reality of the situation. Like his son, he too wanted nothing more than to draw his wand and kill the damned man, but he knew better.
Even if he joined forces with his son, he did not have the ability to take on Lord Olario. Antonio would toy with them, and Alan had no intention of dying today. Magically they were far inferior to Antonio Olario.
"Lord Olario," he said through gritted teeth, "you are taking us, the Timirus family, very lightly. You have humiliated us. Mocked us. This is not something we will take lightly."
"You will pay the price for it," he snarled, his face redding with anger.
"Oh!" Antonio remarked, the provocative smile vanishing from his face. His expression turned cold.
"Pay the price?" he almost snarled as he stepped forward and climbed down from the stage. "Then what are you waiting for? Make me pay for it."
"What are you hesitating for?" He questioned. "Declared a blood feud against me and let us settle this score."
Blood feud. Another of those ancient customs of pure blood families to settle very serious and severe animosity.
Though in the current age it had almost disappeared from practice, there was a time when blood feuds were among the most widely used methods to settle animosity between two families. Under this practice, the lord of a family held the right to formally declare a blood feud against another house. Once declared, there were two possible paths.
The first was acceptance. If the opposing party accepted the blood feud, both families were granted the legal right to kill one another. Families included. It became a sanctioned conflict. No trials, no hearings, and no punishments followed any death that occurred under a recognized blood feud.
It generally ended with the extinction of one family and was a very brutal and gruesome practice. Families after families had been wiped in the name of blood feuds and only after the population of pure blood started dwindling did sanity awoke in them and the practice was almost made redundant. Even so the legal provisions still remind and on rare occasions had been used in the recent past.
The second path occurred when the opposing party, often the weaker one, refused to accept the feud. In such a case, the one who had declared it could invoke magic itself to enforce the blood feud. Magic, depending on various circumstances, the severity of the animosity, the intent, and the situation, would then judge the declaration.
If approved, the blood feud would be bound by magic and killings would be permitted. If rejected, any act of killing would once again be deemed illegal.
Antonio wanted Alan Timirus to declare the blood feud, to make the first move, so that he would have a legitimate and convenient reason to act. He was itching to wipe out the Timirus father and son pair, but he had already realized that Alan was not impulsive.
And as long as Alan remained present, even Alex would not be easily provoked into striking first.
Alan remained silent and did not react. How could he not understand Antonio's intention? And thus, he weighed his options carefully. An option in which he could retreat safely without losing face. Only after accumulating more strength, weighing the consequences, and considering every possible path would he make his move.
"Scared, are we, Lord Timirus?" Antonio said sarcastically. "You disappoint me."
"I would have done it, Lord Olario," Alan finally responded, his voice controlled. "But I do not wish to invoke an old, brutal, and inhumane practice, one that has all but vanished from our society."
"But do not think this is the end of this," he continued coldly. "In fact, this is only the beginning. I will make you pay the price."
"You are welcome to try. Anytime," Antonio replied, raising his hand horizontally in invitation.
Alan nodded once before turning toward Raphel Sinistra.
"Lord Sinistra," he said, his tone sharp, "do not believe that this matter ends for you either."
"Your ignorance does not absolve you of responsibility. Just because your son acted behind your back does not mean you escape the consequences. You are equally responsible for what Drafel Sinistra has done."
Raphel Sinistra did not reply. He was devastated from within. Before his eyes, he could see his family beginning to crumble.
"Let us go," Alan said to his son and wife.
"But, Father," Alex tried to protest.
A sharp glare from Alan silenced him instantly. The trio departed from the lawn, leaving behind a bewildered and stunned crowd.
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