After his small celebration with Amelia, Antonio returned to his old home. He did not have many things to move to the new Olario Manor, and whatever he did have, he packed in a short time. If he wished he could have shifted instantly but he decided to do it after a couple of days. He did not have any particular reason for it.
Afterward, he took out a couple of books on wards and began reading them. Although he already had more than enough knowledge to strengthen his wards, he did not mind fine tuning his understanding.
Apart from that, he had been waiting for Bellatrix. She had been a regular visitor for some time, and now that he had begun teaching her the water golem spell, he expected her to be knocking at his gates very soon. But to his surprise, she did not visit him the entire day. Even so, he did not think much of it and assumed she might have been caught up in something.
When evening arrived, Antonio disappeared from his house in a twist of space and reappeared in front of the Bones Manor. Through Amelia, he had scheduled his meeting with Edmund Bones for an important discussion. Amelia had been very enthusiastic about the meeting.
"Welcome, Lord Olario," Amelia beamed, standing at the entrance of the manor complex. "In another couple of days, when you shift to Olario Manor, I would not have to wait for you at the boundary of my wards. You will be able to use the Floo Network and arrive directly inside my manor."
"Good evening, Miss Bones," Antonio smiled in amusement. "And thank you for doing this hard work for me."
Amelia smirked playfully and gestured for Antonio to follow her inside.
"Father was quite pleased to hear that you would be meeting him this evening," she remarked. "In fact, he has been rather in a very delightful and pleasant mood ever since you successfully eliminated eight Death Eaters including someone as important and powerful as Reinhart Lestrange."
"Thank you," Antonio responded. "But it was not me alone who killed the Death Eaters. You and Lord Bones also played a very important and significant role."
"Yes, we did," Amelia agreed. "But it would not have been possible without your planning and support."
Antonio could only shrug at this, as it was plain truth. Without his presence, death would have been the only option for the father daughter duo.
Crossing the front section of the manor, Antonio was led into the grand hall of Bones Manor, where Lord Bones was already waiting for him. He was seated in the head chair beside the dining table. The table was filled with various delicacies. A feast had been prepared.
"Lord Bones, good evening," Antonio greeted as soon as he stepped into the hall.
"Lord Olario," Edmund stood from his seat with a boisterous laugh. "Good evening! Good evening!"
"Come," he gestured warmly. "Last time our dinner was interrupted by those idiots. So tonight, we will begin directly with dinner."
Antonio nodded and took his seat next to Edmund, while Amelia sat directly opposite Antonio.
Antonio picked up a plate and served himself some dishes. Edmund and Amelia did the same before Edmund resumed the conversation.
"Lord Olario," he said, his tone respectful and almost reverent, "first of all, allow me to express my deepest and most sincere gratitude for granting a new lifeline to my family. If not for your presence, the Bones family would have been almost eradicated, save for a single member."
"Thank you," he added in a very soft and almost emotional voice.
"It was my duty to help you, Lord Bones," Antonio replied with the same sincerity. "We had allied ourselves for such scenarios."
"True! True!" Edmund laughed in response.
"And I must say that what we did has stirred the entirety of Wizarding Britain," Edmund continued. "It was unprecedented and completely unexpected. The entire Ministry of Magic has been thrown into chaos and confusion."
"So, I assume our plan is on the correct path and proceeding forward?" Antonio questioned.
"Yes," Edmund nodded. "My allies are keeping the pressure on the Minister. He is being constantly questioned and harassed. They are not allowing him any respite, not even for a moment. If we continue this pressure, we can have him removed from his position in less than a month."
"Yes," Antonio replied. "But we need more allies… more voices, influential voices, on our side."
"And I have a name in mind," Edmund said. "Lord Charlus Potter. For now, he is helping us in keeping the pressure on the Ministry, but he is doing it out of a belief that this will force them to act. But I am sure that if told the whole truth and what we have planned he will certainly support us."
"Someone like him would surely shift the balance entirely in our favor," Antonio agreed.
"Yes," Edmund nodded. "And that is why I am planning to meet him in a couple of days and discuss the plan with him. In fact, I want you to accompany me in this meeting. I will introduce you to Lord Potter, and you can also participate in the discussion."
"Sure, why not?" Antonio agreed. He had no reason to decline Edmund's offer. He too had been anticipating meeting Charlus Potter.
"Do we have any news of any kind of response from the Death Eaters?" Antonio asked.
"No," Edmund shook his head. "It is as if they have all crawled into a rat hole. There has been no activity from their side. Not the slightest movement."
"Does the Ministry have any news?" Edmund turned to his daughter.
She shook her head.
"No," she said. "The Ministry has been raiding a few of their hideouts, trying to capture some of them. Even catching one or two Death Eaters could salvage their image. But as you said, they have vanished. Although we have found traces of them at some hideouts, no actual presence has been discovered."
The topic of the death eaters was discussed for the next few minutes before Edmund finally shifted the topic.
"Lord Olario," he said. "Amelia told me there was something that you wanted to discuss with me."
"Yes," Antonio nodded.
"What is it? Please tell me," Edmund said.
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