"Turii again! Selfish Turii! Damn Turii! May Nemesis curse them!" Cornelius growled through gritted teeth, his usual calm replaced by an uncharacteristic fury.
For someone as gentle and good-natured as Cornelius to harbor such bitterness, Juleios could already guess the reason—Archita had explained it to him. Still, he feigned curiosity. "Lord Cornelius, I thought Turii and Amendolara were allies. Why do you bear such hatred for them?"
Cornelius's face darkened as he spoke, his voice trembling with anger. "Turii forced us to abandon Amendolara, threatening that they would not assist us if the Lucanians besieged our city. They claimed the south was under attack, that the north was safe, and so we reluctantly gathered our supplies and opened the gates to relocate to Turii. But then…" His voice faltered, and his eyes shone with unshed tears. "The Lucanians attacked us by surprise, drifting down the Sinni River to strike when we were most vulnerable.
