*tak, tak, tak, tak.*

Then, he opened the door and stepped into a massive room filled with books. At the center of the room was a small table, and behind it stood a fireplace with two chairs facing it. Someone was sitting in one of the chairs. Ruya approached the fireplace, stopping in front of the table.

"As expected, he was hard to deal with at first, but in the end, I managed to convince him to give me a chance." Ruya said quietly, a look of excitement on his face.

After a moment, a familiar laughter echoed through the room. The person in the chair stood up and spoke. "Well done, Ruya! I didn't think you'd actually manage to convince him to give you a shot."

Turning around, Anastasia's face lit up with a wide, joyful smile. "It seems my little brother liked your cute warrior spirit! Hahaha!" she teased, her tone playful.

Ruya rolled his eyes and crossed his arms. "I don't understand what you find so funny about this. Can't you take me seriously for once?" he said, clearly annoyed by her teasing. He walked to the other chair and sat down, his eyes fixed on the fire.

Anastasia giggled and rested her palm on her cheek, looking at Ruya with a sly smile. "Thank you, Ruya darling! I couldn't have done it without you, and I'll make sure to reward you for your hard work." she said, her voice a mix of joy and seduction.

Hearing this, Ruya blushed. "Ahem!" he cleared his throat and muttered, "It was my pleasure..." His face was red with embarrassment.

Anastasia chuckled softly before walking over to one of the massive bookshelves in the room. She dragged her hand along the rows of books until she stopped at a dark red one. Pulling it from the shelf, she examined it and spoke.

"This book is a personal favorite..."

Ruya looked at her with a hint of confusion as she continued. "It was written by a man named Alfredo. Alfredo was someone quite similar to my dear brother Kajin, though not physically or mentally."

Listening carefully, Ruya asked, "So, he was a... hybrid?"