"Which tribe?"
Douglas finally spoke, his voice calm and level.
"The Moon Tide Council in Sardinia, or some tribe that signed a Mountain Pact with herders and tried to support itself?
"What is their internal structure like? Who is their leader? How far have their relations with the surrounding Muggle communities developed, especially the herders who have Mountain Pacts with them?
"How much pressure is the Church's Order of Saint Benedict Werewolf Hunters putting on them?
"Have they had any new conflicts with vampires recently?"
The series of precise questions left both Lorenzo and Isabella somewhat surprised.
Lorenzo had not expected Douglas to know the situation of Italy's werewolves in such detail, even knowing about the Mountain Pacts, a semi-public secret.
He shook his head with a wry smile.
"That's you all right, Douglas. It seems I really invited the right person today.
"And the wrong person-with you here, I can't hide my little schemes anymore."
He paused, his expression turning grave.
"It's the Ashen Claw Tribe, a small tribe active in the central Apennine Mountains, with just over seventy members.
"They once tried to cooperate with local herders through a Mountain Pact, trading pelts from the wild animals they hunted and some mountain specialties for food and basic medicine.
"But recently, their situation has taken a sharp turn for the worse."
Isabella added:
"The leader of the Ashen Claw Tribe is called Marco, a relatively young but very bold werewolf.
"They've been trying to survive between the Ministry of Magic, the Church, and the vampires.
"But half a month ago, the Order of Saint Benedict Werewolf Hunters launched a surprise attack on them.
"Supposedly, it was because the Church suspected them of secretly researching some way to resist the Genetic Silencing Curse.
"Although they managed to repel the Witch-Hunting