THE PARTY AT THE DIABOLESE
"I don't know what to say. At first, I only expected your help in finding new suppliers for my business. In a short time, you destroyed the businesses of all our adversaries in Tarah city", Prince Geoffraie said to me appreciatingly.
"Yes, that is my son", Orol replied to him proudly.
"We should be prepared for retaliation though. So, we should consolidate all the businesses of the Hermaios and Gamanos family as soon as possible", I said to Geoffraie.
"Yes, the businesses from the two families that you assigned to me, I will incorporate them into our family's holdings quickly", he replied to me.
"As should we. We are shy to take the lion share of all the businesses of the Hermaios and Gamanos family", Amelia said to us.
"Well, you deserved them. After all you came out with the money for my wager with Prince Bion", I replied to her with a casual blink.
"Of course, we would lose a lot of money if you lost", she replied to me smilingly.
"What should we do about the two families? Will they come for revenge?" Princess Xene asked us.
"That is not a concern for you, my princess. You must return to Mount Templar for your training soon and don't go outside of the academy unnecessarily. Our enemies might target you if they couldn't target Oriese himself. You should be safe in the academy", Prince Geoffraie told Xene.
"Yes", she replied to her father.
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A month passed after I defeated Prince Bion in the Magic Arena. During that time, we consolidated all the businesses of the Hermaios and Gamanos family into our portfolio of holdings.
All the servants and staff loyal to the previous families were sacked while our people took over the businesses. Our family and allies became the most powerful and influential force in Tarah city.
The Demetriodes and Appolokis family were friendly to us accepting the reality of the situation in he city. They were glad that they were on our side and not against us. Only the Diabolese family remains opposed to us in the city.
One day, the Diabolese family issued an invitation to all the nobles of the city to attend a banquet in their mansion in the city. To my surprise, I was also invited to the party.
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"Why did the Diabolese family invite us to this party?" I asked them.
"It is to introduce their new matriarch who will take over the family's business in Tarah city", Prince Geoffraie told me.
"Aren't they opposed to us in business. Why are they inviting us to this party?" Orol asked.
"Maybe they want to mend fences with us. After all there is no reason to have enmity in business if there is no need to. They do their business, we do ours", Prince Geoffraie told us.
Suddenly, I spotted someone familiar at the party. She was one of the waitress serving drinks in the party.
"Do you know that girl?" Geoffraie asked me when he noticed I looked at a girl other than his daughter.
"Yes, isn't she Emily, Prince Heller's daughter", I replied to him.
"Yes, she is Emily. Why is she here working for the Diabolese family?" Geoffraie asked me when he realized it too.
"She was once a princess of the major families in this city but now is made to work as a servant. She must hate us for bringing down her father", Orol added.
"I tried to look for her after Prince Heller's death but couldn't find her. The Mithridocus family was in complete chaos at that time", Geoffraie said to me.
"Yes, the other families were busy ransacking the property of the Mithridocus family. They may have taken Emily", I said to them.
"Poor girl. That damned Heller should never dwell in dark magic. It caused his own downfall and suffering to his family", Geoffraie said to us with regret.
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"Emily, why are you here?" I asked Emily as she brought a jug a wine to serve the guests.
"I can't talk here. Meet me outside later", she replied to me before walking away.
I went out to the garden for a walk when Emily came looking for me.
"Oriese, why are you here?" She asked me.
"I was about to ask you the same. We have been looking for you", I replied to her.
"When my father was killed by the Church, the other families came to our homes to steal and rob everything. I was taken by the Diabolese family and made to work as their slave", Emily replied as she pulled down her dress to my shock and revealed her breast.
"What are you doing?" I asked her when I realized what she wanted to show me.
There was a slave brand tattoed on her breast that branded her as a slave of the Diabolese family.
"You can put back your dress", I told her.
Emily wore back her dress before she took out a bottle of wine.
"I stole this from the kitchen. There are perks to being a slave. Nobody knows there is a bottle missing", she said to me as she drank from the bottle before passing it to me.
So, I drank from Emily's bottle of wine too as she recounted her sad tale, since she was taken by the Diabolese family.
"Come back to us. Your Uncle Geoffraie has retaken control over all the properties of the Mithridocus family that were stolen. He has been looking for you", I told Emily.
"Maybe. But I must get back to work. I will look for you if I have the chance", she said to me before she went back to work.
"Sad girl huh?" Ratatouille said to me as he came out.
"Have a drink", I told him as I passed the unfinished bottle of wine to him.
Ratatouille drank from the bottle too, but he quickly spit out the contents soon after he drank the wine.
"What is the problem?" I asked Ratatouille.
"The wine is not good", he replied to me.
"Is it poisoned?" I asked him.
"Not poison but something far worse than that", he replied to me.
"Should we warn the guests about poison in the wine?" I asked Ratatouille.
"I've had some of the wine inside the party. It isn't the same as this bottle. This bottle of wine is meant for you", he replied to me.