"What did you just say he was?" Howard scowled at the delusional little girl.

Shaking his head, he decided to share the knowledge that he had gained in the Royal Academy with his sister who seemed to be ignorant about many things.

"Only a man worthy of an etcher can form a bond with it. Not a little girl like you." He lectured her and taught her the right information about these rare beasts.

Though Demon had an enormous body and looked impressive, he was sure that the horse could not be an etcher.

This was fixed in his mind as he had never seen an etcher before and had only read about them in the books at the Academy.

Yvonne sighed when she saw that he was not willing to believe her words.

"Demon, take three steps backward and turn around twice." She commanded but her eyes never left her brother.

'Looks like you will only believe it when you witness it with your own two eyes.' She gave up hope on her brother who needed to face the cold harsh truth sometimes.

Howard had a mocking expression which soon transformed in amazement when he saw the horse doing exactly as he was told.

Though Demon could not understand the reason why he was asked to do so, he did not hesitate to follow her instructions.

The big horse walking in circles was a funny sight to behold but that was necessary to prove to her brother that this was an etcher, her etcher.

"You… You trained him!" He countered her words as he could never believe that a little girl was worthy of gaining an etcher.

'Even I have never met an etcher before so how could she?' He reckoned that she must have trained the horse before he had arrived and was still playing tricks on him.

'Okay, so it appears that I have shot myself in the foot by playing that previous prank on him.' She sighed and turned to her trainer for some help.

Rutherford pouted when he noticed that he wasn't her first option to seek help but it was the trainer.

Captain Desmo was Howard's idol so there was no way that he would reject this truth if he heard it coming from his mouth.

"Your sister is telling the truth." Was all the Captain said in support of his pupil.

Those words fell on the boy's ears, stunning him as he whiplashed to face the girl and her now proven etcher.

He could not question his idol's words which meant that he could only accept them without any debate.

"H-how…?" He muttered to himself in startlement.

Everyone said that only men… Worthy men were capable of forming bonds with etchers so why did his sister have one of her own.

'I haven't found mine yet and she already has one!?' He growled with his eyes widened.

Marquess Samed was the only one who felt the same pain as the boy and was sympathetic with his feelings since they were sailing in the same boat.

"I am sure that big brother will find his etcher soon enough!" Yvonne smiled to encourage her brother who seemed disheartened after Demon's authenticity was confirmed.

"Let's begin the assessment." Howard announced as the last thing he wanted was to be pitied by his brat of a little sister.

'I will find mine at all costs!' He vowed, not willing to be overshadowed by this girl who was a monster in the true sense.

Not only was she adorned with the title of the smartest girl in the Kingdom, she now had something that every single girl and most of the boys in this Kingdom could not even dream about.

He had been receiving one blow after another to his mental state and needed for the day to end already so that he might take some rest.

The little girl was not disheartened that he did not acknowledge her kind words, instead, she felt invigorated after he finished speaking.

'Well, I was waiting when you would utter those sweet words!' Yvonne exclaimed in excitement when she heard his announcement.

She nodded her head in eager acceptance and stood next to her etcher.

Wearing the perfect athletic outfit which helped her move around without any restrictions, she was ready to face the challenges that her elder brother had in store for her.

Howard glimpsed at her excited face then at the etcher who stood tall beside her and sighed as he could already predict the result of this first test.

But what was done was done and he could not change his test now as the Captain would think that he was trying to sabotage her.

"I have asked a servant to tie my handkerchief with our family's crest embroidered on it onto a branch of a tree." He began explaining what she had to do to ace this test.

The elders paid close attention to the instructions he was giving as they wished to know what it was that the brother had decided for his sister.

"Find the handkerchief and bring it back to me." He revealed the trial that he had put together just for her.

'That's all? I need to find a tree and a cloth tied to it?' She blinked in disappointment at the test he had created for her.

Here, she was prepared to even run through an obstacle course with her horse for the sake of the assessment but her brother decided that finding pieces of cloths fluttering in the wind was a much better test for her.

Noticing the hint of ridicule in her eyes, Howard scoffed at the impatient girl who did not wait for him to complete his words.

"The tree is somewhere in there." He added as his hand lifted high and his finger pointed in a certain direction.

Everyone turned in its direction and found that he had pointed at the thick woods behind their estate.

'I am sure that she has never entered that scary place.' He presumed that he was right and was waiting to see fear and anxiety in her eyes.

Sadly, all that he caught sight of was boredom and a lazy demeanor.

'We head into these woods each day.' Captain Desmo thought to himself and realized that his teachings had made things easier for her.

His pupil thought the same thing as she turned towards him and shot him a mischievous smile as though she knew exactly what he was thinking about.

"Anything else, big brother?" She inquired as she patted her horse, indicating him to be prepared to head out.

Demon's neighs startled the women as they tried to find someone to hold them.

Raylene clung to her husband while her maid had to adjust by holding onto Mrs. Jacinth's arm in her fear.

Even in this frightening situation, her eyes were filled with envy and animosity as she stared at the woman who was safe in the Earl's arms while all she could depend on was this old maid.

Butler Limo glowered at the wicked woman who was staring at their Master with greedy eyes and his anger towards her rose by another notch.

"You need to find the handkerchief and be back here in ten minutes." Howard's final announcement brought everyone's attention back on him.

Yvonne paused for a second as the time restriction would make things difficult for her.

The girl then looked at her brother and gave him a nod, accepting the rules he had set for the first test.

"I accept!" She declared with vigor.