Chapter 5 - Intermission
—Rumbling..
Inside a building that wasn't affected by the incursion, there appeared to be servants and guards in a rush to complete their assigned tasks.
Along the path to their duties, they continuously and unintentionally ran past nobles without a greeting, displaying their haste in plain sight for the people walking by to be curious of this moment.
Be that as it may, after a couple of minutes passed, one of the servants stumbled on his way to transfer the documents to a safe location, forcing him to face plant onto the floor while the documents were immediately scattered around! And unbeknownst to him, he had unknowingly tripped right in front of two individuals!
"My goodness, are you alright?" The voice of genuine concern echoes into this servant's ears.
"..I'm not injured thankfu—" Caressing his head to see if there was a bloody wound, once the man placed his glance at the people upfront, his eyes came to a shock!
"Thank heavens, you're all right."
"L.. Lady Kore?!"
"Yes, that's who I am. May I ask why you're in a hurry?"
The lady who wears a rose-like dress, carries a virtuous presence with the warm tone of her honey brown hair as well as her irises that resemble the natural green of nature!
Without introducing herself, her name and title are already engraved in the minds of everyone! From making contributions and connections wide enough to be known throughout the Olympus Empire to sharing generosity with all individuals on equal footing, altogether, it granted her the nickname of 'Maiden' in high society!
She's Kore Thesmophoros, the daughter of Duchess Demeter Thesmophoros!
"I suggest you tread carefully. Although these papers may not seem consequential, their significance is equally the same as the confidential documents." Suddenly, a nobleman's voice resounds.
The attendant had completely forgotten about the second person who was supposed to be standing beside Kore! Out of the blue, this individual has already grabbed hold of one of the documents after bending down to pick it up, reading it within a short glimpse!
"A-And Lord Thesmophoros! Forgive me for not noticing you!" The startled servant stood up in a hurry after having recovered all of the fallen papers!
In spite of being a young adult in his 20s, Plutus Thesmophoros is the sole heir to Duchess Demeter Thesmophoros as well as the head administrator of Plutocracy.
Far different from the Aristocracy where only nobles are its members, the wealthiest people, who can manipulate the authorities and anything with their immense income of riches, are ones with the Plutocracy.
Compared to Kore Thesmophoros, who is comfortable being referred to by her given name by all sorts of people, Plutus Thesmophoros, on the other hand, is considerably the opposite; a mismatch of siblings.
Thanks to the cold-hearted expression he wears, he appears stern to everyone, involuntarily inciting anxiety in some while prompting others to misunderstand his gestures.
"Why are you in such a rush?" Plutus hands over the document to the servant.
"O-Of course, all of the attendants, including me, were ordered to retrieve and deliver these documents to a secured location." The attendant became stiff.
"Does it have some relation with the commotion up ahead?"
"No, not at all! It's a fairly minor inconvenience of misplacement because of documents and so forth. It's nothing worth being concerned about!" Unaware of Plutus' prior knowledge of the intruder's onslaught, the attendant failed to realize it.
"I see."
Shutting his eyes, Plutus seemed slightly different after hearing the servant's response.
Seeing how the servant is expressing his nervousness through his trembling hands and stuttering speech, Plutus seems to catch on to this and remove eye contact with the poor fellow, whereas Kore notices and gives the attendant a reason to excuse himself and resume his duty.
"In any case, we shouldn't be obstructing your path for any longer. Please continue on with your task and be mindful of your surroundings." Kore smiles, opening up the way by moving closer to her brother's side.
"Yes..! Have a wonderful day, Lady Kore and Lord Thesmophoros!"
With a brief bow, the conscious attendant is seen sprinting through the hallway before disappearing in a few seconds. On the other hand, Kore was waving goodbye to that attendant before slowly lowering down her hand.
—Rustling…
"Despite being perturbed by our presence, he managed to lie in front of our faces to put us at ease, or as he mentioned, nothing worth being concerned about." Plutus states after carrying on walking alongside Kore.
"Have you taken an interest in him?" Kore asks as she looks forward.
"He's the type of employee who can put people's minds at peace while under severe circumstances."
"Then you must scout him for your new business. I'm certain he'll be grateful when receiving a job interview from the one and only, Plutus Thesmophoros."
"I'll give him an opportunity to try. Though, I'm afraid he might freeze up during the interview." Plutus jokingly said without a laugh nor a grin to imply it was a joke.
"Pfft." Despite that, Kore chuckles.
—Swoosh…
When the conversation between two supposed siblings died down, quietude began to reside in the hallway they were walking in. Of course, there were occasional servants going to and fro in the same way as the previous attendant.
"Have you recovered?" Plutus asks a random question to Kore, where the lady proceeds with a listless smile.
"I suffered quite an injury during the rainstorm. I couldn't believe my assessment of the muddy route brought about a numbing pain in my body."
'Right now, my elder sister is severely injured. I must tell her to return to the mansion, but I already know she'll appreciate my concern before continuing to disregard her health and body.' Plutus deciphered his sister's cryptic sentence, rummaging through his pocket in the meantime.
"My journey back was filled with relentless thunder. It was as though I had been close to my death's door numerous times. Even though the moments are murky, some parts of them were entertaining, almost amusing, in fact." Kore carries on talking while adjusting her hair a little.
'To assess that it was perilous enough to endanger her life meant that she had nonetheless avoided those instances before it happened.' Plutus spotted this and helped untangle the roses decorating his sister's brown hair.
'It's believable that she had the time to enjoy it amidst a confrontation. And it appears that the one who rules over everything, can't quite grasp my elder sister's true intentions fully. Is the pride of an Emperor damaged whatsoever in this encounter?'
The gentleman held the lady's hair, watching as the strands fell off his hand slowly.
—Fluttering…
'I'll see to it when an opportunity arises for me to settle evenly about what the Emperor had done to my sister.' Looking stern, Plutus secretly grits his teeth in silent fury after finding the item he wishes to present.
"Sister, please have this candy. I'm currently producing consumables that are sweet and everlasting. It'll also provide nutrition and improve your mood a little bit." Like a brother who cares tenderly about his sister, the young nobleman gives the lady a wrapped candy.
"Thank you." Kore accepted, undoing the wrap and giving it a try before reacting with awe when a familiar taste greeted her.
"It's as you guess. It's chocolat—"
As words fail to form, Plutus is standing in a daze after having come to a sudden halt. A smile filled to the brim with nostalgia and reminiscence lingered distinctly on Kore's pretty face for him to see in front of his very eyes..
A sentimental emotion that shouldn't be coming from a mere chocolate candy, emerged unexpectedly, which stunned Plutus wholly!
'It doesn't feel the same, but it's delicious enough for me to enjoy a sweet I have long missed.' Kore savored the taste.
Unbeknownst to Kore, who continued on moving without Plutus, the gentleman stood behind her as if her smile had taken his breath away.
'How unusual. Chocolate had only been found for a few months, yet she made it seem like it had been ages since she had last tasted it.' With a thought like that, Plutus was once again stunned by his elder sister's oddity, such as this moment.
'However, I don't dislike it at all.' When Plutus forms an unsuspected smile on his somber face, Kore turns around to find the opposite.
"Did something intriguing catch your attention?" Kore asked as her brother shook his head, returning to his walk once more.
"No, not at al—Well, there was." Plutus walked past his sister without giving more context to his sentence, as though he was teasing her.
"An interest that prompted my brother to rethink his statement? What might it be, Plutus? Plutus?" Curious about what it was, Kore hurries and urges her brother to finish his sentence.
—Whoosh~
From that point onward, if a servant comes across these siblings, the sound of a lady's chuckle and the silence of a man's response may leave them dumbfounded by these siblings' bond.
Honestly, they're like true siblings on the surface.