The longer Sui tried to contain her anger, the more she worried the shopkeeper. He was even beginning to look panicked as he tried to calm Sui down.
"Here, has a biscuit, child. There is no need to tell bad memories to consume yourself."
The shopkeeper was a gentle soul as he offered Sui the biscuit. But she did not take it outright, causing the shopkeeper to feel worried for her.
At the same time, the shopkeeper began to look suspicious, feeling as if there was something he was missing.
'Wait! Is it possible that this kid was forced to run away by his brother? But why? Should I call security-'
The shopkeeper was busy making his suspicions when Dimitry finally emerged from the dressing room and quickly snuck his arm around Sui's shoulder.
"Thank you for keeping my younger brother company, mister. He is a shy person, but he also gets lonely quickly. Sui, you were not scared when I was not by your side, right?"
Dimitry asked, causing Sui to try and shrug his arm off.
But as soon as it became evident that he would not let go, Sui stopped trying.
Somehow, that small show reassured the shopkeeper that these brothers shared a strong bond.
"Oh no! It's alright. I am not disappointed that I had to look after your brother. It made me quite happy. Looking after a disabled person can be quite hard, right?"
The shopkeeper asked. Dimitry flinched when Sui pinched his back hard.
"O-Of course it is! But it's worth it in the end, right? Oh! I should pay for our clothes, right?"
Dimitry asked, and the shopkeeper quickly processed his order.
He also gave Dimitry a considerable price cut for his clothes.
Sui kept her calm while this transaction took place, but as soon as they were done, she dragged Dimitry into an empty ally and tapped her feet.
"Speak!"
Sui demanded and Dimitry quickly placed a hand on her mouth to quieten her.
"Shh, we don't want anyone to hear you speaking from this point onwards. What? I thought you would be happy with this plan."
Dimitry questioned, but Sui continued to show her dissatisfied face.
Finally, Dimitry sighed and decided to explain his reasons.
"People tend to have a looser mouth around people who cannot convey what they have heard. So, I made up a lie about your disability to make people look down on you. The rumors about you being mute would have spread all around by now."
"Also, you are a terrible liar. It would be better if you let me do the talking, alright?"
That…made sense.
Even if Sui did not like it, or did not want to admit it, she knew that Dimitry's words had a point.
"Fine! I will agree to this for now. But that does not mean I am happy about it."
Sui sighed before following Dimitry outside.
The pair visited the local pub next.
It was bright outside but the pub was still filled with drunkards and people even on this bright day-time.
No one paid attention to an average-looking sibling pair that entered the room.
"Excuse me, miss. I would like a table for two."
Dimitry asked and flashed the waitress a charming smile.
Red bloomed on the waitress's face as she quickly made her way toward the pair. But then she looked around and realized that there was no table free.
"I am sorry, dear customers. But we are at full capacity now. We won't be able to serve you…but if you don't mind sharing a table…"
The waitress seemed incapable of escaping from Dimitry's charm and he continued to flash his smile in her direction.
"Of course not! My brother is hungry and I would appreciate a drink from a lady as lovely as you."
Dimitry reached out to grab a flock of the waitress's hair and played with it.
If the waitress had been red before, she was crimson now.
It was her first time being flirted with by such a handsome man.
"O-Of course! Please follow me."
The waitress led the pair toward the side table and just adjacent to a rowdy bunch.
There was another sibling pair sitting in front of Sui but Sui's attention was grabbed by the conversation happening on the side table.
"-did you hear? There were more monster sightings recently."
"Aren't those demons and not monsters? My friend said that he saw a summoner nearby as well."
"Urh, it is so scary. I am thinking of joining the cult. People associated with them do not get attacked by these monsters."
"You idiot! The cult is a scam and the only reason they have not gotten attacked is because they are behind these attacks."
"Come on! Do you believe such bullshit? People in the cult are normal humans. The only people who have magic are rich and influential-," "and the temple," "-there is no way they would form a cult of all things."
"The cult will be meeting at Celtic Doc on the new moon to perform a ritual. I think I will visit."
The more Sui heard the more opinions she heard.
Information was swirling all around her and it was getting difficult to focus on any one conversation.
Sui was so busy listening to it all that she did not even realize she was leaning out of her seat.
"Hey, pull yourself together."
Dimitry leaned forward to touch Sui and that broke her concentration.
She finally realized how much she had been leaning outside of her seat and Sui lost her balance.
"Shit! Don't fall now."
Dimitry worked fast and clutched Sui's arm to pull her back upright.
Sui's heart thundered inside her chest as she tried to calm herself down.
That had been a close call and Sui's face had almost ended up becoming acquainted with the floor.
"Take it easy and relax. I know you want to gather information quickly, but you need to pace yourself properly."
Dimitry advised and that made Sui calm down.
As much as she hated taking his advice, Sui knew Dimitry had a point. She should not rush into anything.