Mamusa slowly stood up from his chair.
“This meeting is over. The remaining matters will be discussed later. You may all leave now.”
Arthav turned to leave as well.
“You stay.”
Arthav exhaled deeply in frustration.
Mamusa waited until every council member walked out of the room, then he looked toward Arthav.
“Sit.”
Arthav rolled his eyes lightly and sat on the chair beside him.
Mamusa placed one hand against his lower back while sitting down heavily on the chair again and released a tired breath.
“This growing age brings all kinds of troubles,” he said with a faint smile.
“And you broke my whiskey glass too.”
“Fine. We’ll use yours instead.”
Saying that, he picked up the glass resting in front of Arthav and poured a few fingers of whiskey into it.
Then he slowly slid the glass back toward him.
“You seem different lately, Arthav.”
Mamusa picked up another glass from the table and filled it halfway with whiskey.
“Did something happen yesterday… after the party?”
Arthav lifted his gaze and thought for a second before answering.
“No. Nothing happened.” His brows narrowed slightly.
“Why do you ask?”
Mamusa lightly pressed the whiskey glass against his lips and took a slow sip.
“I went to college with your grandfather. We were around twenty-three back then.” His gaze drifted to the wall.
“He used to tell me that his father had become rather troubled before his death.”
“Your grandfather was only around fourteen when his father died.”
Arthav rested one hand against his chin and listened to Mamusa very carefully.
“Your grandfather used to be an extremely calm man at first. Rarely angry. Rarely reactive.” Mamusa slowly rotated the whiskey inside the glass.
“But little by little… his temper began changing.”
“And before his death…” Mamusa’s voice lowered faintly.
“He became strange. As though somewhere inside himself… he already knew death was coming for him.”
The room fell quiet.
“And after your brother’s death,” Mamusa continued, “I started noticing a pattern. The men of the Advani bloodline never seem to live very long.”
“Your great-grandfather. Your grandfather. Your father.” He counted slowly.
“All of them died young one way or another.”
Arthav chuckled softly and shook his head.
“You actually believe in that?” he laughed lightly.
“In the kind of business we are in… death is like underwear, which we wear inside of this expensive suit.”
Mamusa laughed quietly and shook his head in agreement.
“You are a grown man now,” he said, lightly tapping Arthav’s shoulder.
Arthav’s lips lifted lightly from the corner, and he touched his nose with his knuckles.
“I don’t wanna take any more of your time now.” Mamusa smirked lightly.
“You are married now. Go home.”
Arthav nodded once and walked outside into the yard.
Leon was standing at a distance beside the stairs.
Arthav lifted his hand slightly and signaled him to get the car.
Leon nodded immediately and headed toward the parking area.
Arthav stood alone in the quiet yard beneath the pale night sky.
Then footsteps echoed behind him.
“Tell me…” Damian’s voice came from behind.
“How did you do it?”
Arthav turned slowly.
His face turned from calm to frustrated; the second he saw him, he rubbed his eyes with one hand in exhaustion.
“You’re still here?” he scoffed.
“Strange. Even after getting humiliated like that, you still haven’t left.”
Damian touched his bruised jaw and laughed bitterly.
“How did you manage to make Santelvo marry his daughter to you?”
Arthav’s expression remained unreadable.
“It took me a fucking ridiculous amount of effort just to find anything about her,” Damian continued thoughtfully.
“What’s your wife’s name again? Ah, Reiha?”
He smirked faintly.
“That bastard Santelvo never once mentioned he even had a daughter.”
The moment those words left his mouth—
Something shifted inside Arthav’s eyes.
His eyes turned black; the waves of anger slowly rose beneath his pupils like dark water rising beneath ice.
Pressing his tongue tightly against the inside of his cheek he exhaled deeply.
Damian noticed it instantly.
“He didn’t know, did he?” Damian laughed loudly.
“Tell me he didn’t know about you.”
His laughter echoed through the yard.
“You really started a war with Santelvo just like your father did?” Damian mocked.
“Or wait…” his eyes narrowed teasingly.
“Did you marry her because you wanted revenge for your father?”
Then he suddenly shook his head.
“No, no… that’s not it.”
Damian waved his hand through the air lazily.
“If that were true, you wouldn’t get this angry over her.”
A cruel grin slowly appeared across his face.
“You lied to her before marrying her, didn’t you?” he taunted.
“What happened, Advani?” Damian chuckled darkly.
“Did you actually fall in love?”
Arthav’s jaw tightened sharply.
Damian stepped closer slightly.
“Imagine if your father-in-law ever finds out who his precious son-in-law truly is.”
Arthav looked straight into his eyes and spoke coldly.
“You pathetic bastard. Do whatever the hell you want. Tell whoever you want.”
His voice darkened dangerously.
“She is my wife now.” His eyes locked onto Damian’s without moving.
“And I don’t care about anyone else.”
Just then, Arthav’s car stopped before him.
He opened the door before pausing for one final second.
“Don’t stand in front of me again,” Arthav said quietly.
“Next time, you’ll die.”
Then he stepped inside the car.
The door shut.
And the black Bentley slowly drove away into the night.
Damian stood there watching the car disappear into the darkness.
Then slowly—
An evil smile spread on his face.