She really shouldn't of been surprised at this point, but once again found herself in the positioning of being unable to believe what she had heard. "Hm." Her brother hummed in response, telling the coachmen where to head off to before taking a seat opposite in the carriage.
"There's no need to rush. The poison won't run," Isaac sighed at his behavior, the other boy only laughing. "Just like yer victims." He replied, her brother only shaking his head as he stared out of the window.
She wasn't sure how much of the novel's fate had been diverged, or if she managed to at all, but it seemed things were heading in the right direction for her. She knew her mother didn't want her to be a beast tamer, but even if the Duke used her for her magic, it still meant she was useful enough to keep around. She didn't have to do it alone, so long as she allied with Isaac and Nyx.
"Did you forget your crest?" Her brother finally broke the silence after a few minutes and turned to them, Nyx rolled his eyes. She was placed on his lap and held with one hand now instead of two, his free hand fumbling around in one of his short's pockets and pulling out something she couldn't quiet see as he briefly flashed it to Isaac, then shoved it in.
Yawning, Nyx responded. "Had it the past week. Ya know how damn annoyin' it is to carry this thing?" He complained, Isaac ignoring him and changing the topic.
"You're going to watch the front and be quiet." Isaac ordered, once again the two seemed to have a discussion with their eyes which was beyond her. Neither exchanged words but understood one another, much to her confusion.
The carriage ride was mainly Nyx talking to Isaac, to the point she fell asleep again, likely that they wouldn't arrive for awhile. "She's so frail," Nyx commented readjusting her position to cradling. "Lady Cyrille's genes skipped ya and went straight to yer sister, didn't it?" He joked, staring at her and then back up at Isaac.
Isaac hummed, pondering for a second. "She was always well behaved, but now it seems like she's even more docile." He said, staring at her. Theia was always quiet and never cried much, but it seemed she was now much more open to being held by others, and spoke a bit more.
The two had to admit they knew nothing much about children, even if Nyx had a younger half brother himself, and all their other siblings. The Argyris family raised their kids to nearly be monsters, but Cyrille was different. Unlike the mothers who wanted their children to be the strongest, she merely wanted to keep her children safe and shielded, maybe that's why she was so happy, he thought.
"Regardless, it's refreshing," Isaac murmured, Nyx raising a brow as he looked at him. "If I had to protect something, I'd rather it be her life than the bastards of the house." He finished, closing his eyes and leaning back in his seat. The conversation ended there, the two boys on alert in silence, waiting for the carriage ride to end at their destination.
It took well over an hour to leave the Argyris property, veiled in thick magic protection, and tons of acreage. The only reason it was that large, even for a Duke's land, is due to the majority of it being uninhabitable. Ferocious monsters, harsh conditions, the fact it's so rigid at certain points even one missteps could kill you, all of that added together led to a disaster estate only the Argyris family could survive on.
Much to their surprise, the carriage wasn't attacked once by the other siblings, none of them must of gotten permission, making it easier on them. After another half hour, they'd finally reached the nearest town within the duchy. It was a rare occurrence to be able to leave the estate, usually needing to be requested a week in advanced, with precise dates and times to go and be back, violating these rules by even a second would end up in punishment, they'd have to use every minute of their time wisely.
While Theia was still asleep, Nyx handed her to Isaac, letting the boy leave the carriage first, grabbing his weapon and nodding to the coachman. In return, the coachman stayed nearby, by still far enough away from them.
The people on the streets parted ways after seeing the boys, knowing that the carriage meant it came from the Argyris family, making things easier for them. They walked towards an old building, one with a slightly worn down exterior, and shut windows which you couldn't see through.
Nyx stood in front of the building with his weapon in hand, leaning against the wall with his eyes shut and arm folded. Isaac entered, breaking open the door with a gust of wind, not bothering to try knocking or opening the door. His steps were quite loud against the floor and were the only noise besides the old clock on the wall.
Scratching his head, a man behind the counter sat up and sighed. "Look kid, we're closed." In return, he pulled out his sword, pointing the tip at the man's throat, before releasing it. The sword floated and spun, revealing the handle and the man nodded, unfazed.
"That's a pretty sword, but unfortunately we're a jewelry shop," the man said, Isaac concealing his sword again. "Then I would like to see your brightest jewel, one even more than phoenix." After he said that, the man smiled and walked away from the counter, grabbing a key from his ring, and led the boy to the back room, down some stairs, and into a different room with more doors. Towards the far right, he opened it and told the boy to sit, the boss would be there soon.
After he left, Isaac let out a little sigh, this damn store and it's desire to make everything complicated. At the very least, it was more secure. Only the boss would be able to provide him what he needed, and he knew the Duke wouldn't stop him. Rather than try to stop the whole fiasco, he would merely encourage it to see the outcome, alls fair in the Argyris household.
Looking up at the sound of footsteps, a woman with a fan covering her face entered. The fan had many fire accents, and gold trims. Her dress too, was mature and in deep red, with a luxurious fur coat draped over of a beast that would normally take over ten trained knights to kill themselves. She had ebony black hair, and not even a speck on her skin. Everything about her screamed gaudy, just like how he remembered her.