Chapter 174: 2 Parties


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    Berger City.


    This quiet town has recently be a bit lively.


    Some rarely seen, borately decorated carriages arrived from afar, driving into the Albione Manor one after another. The emblems on them were unfamiliar to the ordinary townspeople, but the families behind each emblem were well-known in the wizarding world.


    People vaguely guessed something, but only a few understood that a simple wedding wouldn’t attract so many wizards.


    Anvina’s mother stopped her work, looking into the distance at the mansion tinted with the blood-red hues of the setting sun, lost in thought.


    Meanwhile, in the mansion, the servants have never been so busy.They were informed in advance that the guests were pure-blood families like the Albione family, and they must be treated with the highest etiquette. Each servant was on edge; in the past, making a small mistake while serving the Albione family would result in, at most, a minor punishment. Now, if they were to embarrass the Albione family in front of these guests, a more terrifying fate might await them.


    In a corner of the mansion’s reception hall, several young people were having a conversation.


    They sat in a rxed manner, enjoying the fruits at hand. The boys, led by Edward, smoked pipes, creating clouds of smoke that made the girls frown slightly.


    “This stuff is really exciting, Cologne. Where did you get it from?”


    A short and stout man asked, taking a puff of his own pipe made from photinia wood, his eyes showing a hazy light.


    “Hmph, that’s a secret.”


    Cologne had be the central figure among the boys. The red powder he brought was quite popr, providing an unprecedented thrilling stimtion. He, who was once a useless magic-disabled person, had now be the object of everyone’s admiration.


    “But speaking of it, isn’t Edward’s new wife a mixed breed born out of an affair? Why would she invite us to the wedding?”


    Another tall and thin man blew a smoke ring and said mysteriously. Mentioning the term “mixed breed” elicited disgusted expressions from several people, as if hearing the word made them want to vomit.


    “The wedding is just an excuse. I heard from my father; this is actually about discussing some matters among the pure-blood families. Otherwise, why would the head of each family be here?”


    The stout man spoke mysteriously, as if he held some important information.


    “That makes sense. Recently, the mages havepletely lost their respect for bloodlines. They even think we pure-blood families are outdated and ancient!!!”


    The tall and thin man suddenly became excited, his eyes widening. Clearly, influenced by certain substances in the tobo, he became somewhat paranoid and emotional.


    “We must defend the honor of pure blood and unite to pressure the Magic Association.”


    He stood up, his hand holding the pipe trembling.


    The words of the thin man made the girls on the other side, who were exchanging clothing and makeup ideas, frowned. They didn’t care about such things. As long as they could maintain the status quo, it was perfect, and there was no need to pursue the seemingly elusive honor in their eyes.


    “He’s talking about those things again. Cedric never dares to make a sound even at home.”


    A girl spoke; her appearance seemed sharp and acerbic, resembling the thin man. Presumably, she was his wife.


    “Never mind those guys, E. I saw a skirt earlier…”


    …


    While the younger generations of the pure-blood families were gathering and chatting, in arge meeting room in the Albione Manor, twenty-seven mages sat around a round table. In the center of the table, a me burned quietly, illuminating the slightly dim room.


    “Albione, I’ve heard about it. You’ve had a conflict with that closely watched Reiner Ian Gray. This action is too significant. We shouldn’t attract the attention of the Magic Association and high-level mages.”


    A middle-aged bald man said, tapping the table with several rings on his fingers, as if warning.


    “Francois, I thought you would be more courageous. Now, even if the heir of the family has been abolished, you still dare not seek trouble with the other party. You’re really truly ipetent.”


    William Albione retorted. He had a rtively good rtionship with the Francois family, but seeing the other party’s cowardly behavior, he couldn’t help but mock him.


    “Everyone, at this time, the twenty-seven pure-blood families should unite rather than fight for their own interests.”


    An elderly man said; he had six gold borders on his cuffs, making him the highest-ranking person present.


    “Grindelwald, you’re putting it lightly [1]. It’s just because your family has gained benefits by aligning with those mages that you want other families to avoid trouble. You’re a traitor.”


    A man with a beard opposite him sneered, causing Grindelwald’s face to turn pale.


    The discussion continued, clearly showing that even among the pure-blood families, there were different factions.


    Among them, the moderate faction led by Grindelwald advocated integrating into modern magical society,municating more with the Magic Association to improve their bloodline.


    In the eyes of these pure-blood families, sacrificing some things for the survival of the family was eptable, as long as the bloodline continued, nothing else mattered.


    The radical faction, led by a family named Joestar [2], hoped to gain more power and status from the Magic Association. They attempted to use the status of the pure-blood mages to pressure and, at the same time, disy egotism towards ordinary mages. They reminisced about the glory of bloodline mages, especially the era of the Ancient Magic Empire, where mages held a supreme position.


    Another faction, represented by the Baggins family, did not want too much interaction with the Magic Association. They advocated leaving the main material ne and developing in the numerous semi-nes. In those ces far from the main ne, pure-blood factions could obtain more privileges. This was a kind of escapism to some extent.


    Apart from these three factions, several families had no clear inclination and became objects of persuasion. Their agenda initially focused on how to strengthen the pure-blood faction, but as the discussion progressed, it turned into quarrels and mutual usations, making people feel tired.


    Large gatherings of the pure-blood families easily attracted the attention of the Magic Association. That’s why they used the excuse of attending the wedding to privately hold this meeting. However, every time, they could not reach a consensus.


    The debate continued throughout the afternoon until evening where everyone fell into silence. As the host, William Albione slowly stood up.


    “Everyone, it’s gettingte. How about we go for dinner first?”


    Although it was just a pretext, the wedding ceremony had to proceed normally tomorrow. William did not want anyplications.


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    T/N:


    [1] 格林沃德 (Grindelwald/Greenwood) – I have suspicion that this is supposed to be a Harry Potter reference.


    [2] And now a Jojo reference.