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Harry Potter: The True Lord- Chapter 10: The Talk
🕑 Added 2025-06-25 14:47:57 +0000 UTCAntonio did not know whether it was intentional or not, but the place where Bellatrix guided him to sit was directly opposite Rodolphus Lestrange.
Bellatrix herself sat next to Antonio further infuriating Rodolphus.
"Lord Olario," Lucius was the first to break the awkward silence that had started to develop. "I believe that not many people here have any prior impression of you."
"Pray tell! Something about yourself," he added.
"Mr. Malfoy," Antonio replied smoothly. "I do not think I have anything particularly special to speak about myself."
"You all might have already guessed that the family which I am lord of, is a plain magical family, and thus I have no bragging rights."
Lucius gave a nod and continued, "Ah!"
"Then perhaps you would like to enlighten us about how you came to know Miss Black," he asked the question everyone was eager to have answered.
"There is nothing much to talk about our encounter," Antonio replied. "In fact, we have not known each other for more than two days."
"It was just a chance encounter we had at the inn which I operate," he added.
Antonio's answer came as a slight surprise to everyone. Because the way Bellatrix had behaved with Antonio, it did not seem at all that the eldest of the Black trio had known him for only two days. To be personally invited by Bellatrix, and then the way she had carried on the introductions, it was obvious that Antonio was a valued guest.
"You run an inn?" It was Rodolphus who made this remark with a mockery hidden beneath his voice.
"Ah! Yes," Antonio remained unabashed. "This has been a family business for decades."
Rodolphus let out a chuckle, "You must give me your address. I will help you increase your business."
Antonio smiled but did not respond.
Meanwhile, seeing that tension was once again rising, Lucius Malfoy once again took matters into his own hands.
"Lord Olario," he said. "You do not seem very sociable."
"Otherwise, we must have known about you," he added. "When did you graduate from Hogwarts?"
"Well, you are correct, Mr. Malfoy," he said. "I do not particularly enjoy going out to large gatherings."
"It was that Miss Black invited and persuaded me so much that I could not refuse her," he said, much to the irritation of those present, especially Rodolphus.
"And as for your second question," he continued. "I graduated from Hogwarts in 1972."
Already irritated by Antonio's presence and his words, Rodolphus was losing his patience.
"You must have been a very mediocre student to have gone unnoticed in Hogwarts," he jabbed an insult. "I graduated only two years later, in 1974, yet I did not know about you."
For the first time since arriving, the smile on Antonio's face vanished. It was not his natural reaction. He was not a fool to be genuinely riled up by another idiot. But Antonio needed to show something to these mini Death Eaters.
"Mr. Lestrange," he said in a stern voice. "I try to maintain a low profile."
"I do not prefer to shout, brag, and sneer with no capabilities whatsoever of my own," he said.
Rodolphus's face tightened at the jab, while Bellatrix let out a chuckle. The remaining people had expressions of tension and anxiety on their faces. Only Andromeda Black seemed to maintain a calm and easy look.
It was again Lucius who brought the situation back under control before Rodolphus could utter a word. It was clear that, by the way Lucius was acting, he was the unofficial leader of this group.
"Everyone," he said. "I think we should not lose our patience and get easily riled up."
"I think we need to change the topic, and since everyone here is a pureblood," he continued, "I would like to steer the discussion in that direction."
"Lord Olario, what do you think of muggle born entering our society?" he asked. This was a question that further tensed everyone as they turned curious to hear Antonio's opinion.
"You have put me in a really tight spot, Mr. Malfoy," he replied, his smile returning to his face.
"This is a topic which must be treaded extremely carefully," he said.
"The first question that arises on this topic, according to me, is whether pure-bloods are inherently superior to muggle born in their magical capabilities?"
"And the answer is obviously no," he said, much to the shock of everybody present.
"And I do not know how much you all subscribe to pure blood theory, but I will give two examples to support my claim."
"Albus Dumbledore, a half blood. He can wipe the floor with most of the wizards and witches in our world. Whether they are pure blood, half blood, or muggle born does not really matter."
"Then there is a student in her final year at Hogwarts in Gryffindor house. I believe most of you might have heard her name. Lily Evans."
"She can also wipe the floor with half of you," he said, "in one go."
"Probably only Bellatrix Black can dominate her in a duel. All this when she still has not graduated from Hogwarts, does not have family magic or spells to support her, and did not even know what magic was until she was eleven."
Lucius leaned forward with a grim expression. "These are interesting claims you make, Lord Olario."
"They are, Mr. Malfoy," Antonio replied. "And these two are not the only examples."
"You can very easily find two dumb pure blood wizards or witches," Antonio added, and at the mention of 'two dumb,' everyone's eyes subconsciously and subtly shifted to the Crabbe and Goyle pair, who were obviously oblivious to what was being said.
"But you would be hard pressed to find a dumb muggle-born wizard or witch."
"But this is only the tip of the issue, or a single perspective of it," Antonio said. "There are a lot of other factors to be considered in this whole issue."
"Enlighten us, Lord Olario," Lucius, whose curiosity had been sparked, remarked.
