The sun had almost disappeared from the horizon bringing about darkness over the Capital.

Inside her room, Yvonne sat next to her window as she waited for the large golden eagle to make her appearance.

It had been a few minutes since Mrs. Jacinth and Roselie had helped her wash up and change into comfortable clothes.

After which, she had sent them away using the excuse of resting for a while.

Since the journey had been long with fewer stops, the maids realized that their Miss might still be tired and hence bowed and left the room soon after.

They still had a few hours before dinner time so the little girl could utilize this time for recuperating.

Now that she had privacy inside her room, Yvonne smiled with excitement for meeting this other etcher whom she used to be in constant contact with.

However, due to her entire family being stuck in the St. Claire fief, she had not been able to stay in touch.

'He also never tried to contact me.' She harrumphed as the master of that etcher too had never taken the initiative to make the first move.

However, she knew that he too must have been busy with work-related matters so she decided to let it go just this once.

While she was in her thoughts, the sounds of squawking were heard following which the large bird entered her room through the open window.

Sitting right on the table next to her, Tutu nodded at her as though she was greeting her.

Yvonne's face brightened at meeting this familiar face but soon she tilted her head.

"Have you been ill?" She inquired while looking all over the bird before her.

The robust and valiant eagle whom she knew of the past now seemed dull and a little gloomy.

In response to her concern-filled query, the large bird let out a heavy sigh.

'Master, that nasty bird said that she has been stuck inside her master's mansion for so long that she almost forgot how to fly.' Demon's voice echoed in Yvonne's ear, revealing what Tutu had spoken to him.

Since Tutu could not directly converse with Yvonne in her mind, the clever bird used Demon as the mediator between them to send her message across.

As much as Demon disliked the bird, he still relayed her message to his Master.

"I see…" The little girl rubbed her chin as she continued to gaze at the bird.

Tutu had been with Sevenz all along and as her Master did not travel outside, she too was stranded inside their estate all this while.

Previously, he would send her out to deliver messages to the others, especially this little girl but later on, due to the plague, everyone was separated and hence had no need to leave their estate.

"Everything will be back to normal now." Yvonne reassured the bird who nodded in acceptance as things were beginning to look good already.

Then the bird lifted her leg, indicating that a message had arrived for her.

Rolling her eyes, the little girl untied the tiny note and read its contents.

{I heard that you are back.

We should meet sometime…

But not in your house!

-- Your best friend, SO

A chuckle left her lips as the contents were absurd as ever.

'Why does he dislike coming here so much?' She wondered and even recalled how he had refused her offer of spending the summer with her in their St. Claire fief.

She only wanted him to be safe and away from the southern fiefs which was the reason she had proposed that idea to him.

Unfortunately, he had rejected it while promising to stay away from the south.

Therefore, she did not insist further and let him do as he pleases as long as he followed her little advice.

Considering how Tutu was here with his message, she was sure that he was just fine.

Shaking her head with a sigh, Yvonne scribbled a short reply at the end of that same letter and tied it around Tutu's leg once again.

The clever bird did not need to be told twice about what to do next as she quickly flew out of the window and in the direction of her master's house.

Yvonne watched as Tutu soared out in the darkened sky before vanishing from her sight.

However, what she did not realize was that there was someone else who was watching this same scene from a different location.

Having completed the task for which she had rushed over to her room soon after arriving at their mansion, Yvonne decided to also achieve the task that she had used as an excuse to return here.

'Let's lay down until they call me for dinner.' She trudged to the bed and climbed onto it before laying down at the center.

Though the rooms had been left vacant and unused for so long, she could find no traces of dust or even that rancid smell that came from things that have been left untouched for too long.

For this, they would have to thank the servants who had stayed behind to look after the mansion while the rest had gone over to the St. Claire fief.

These few servants cleaned the rooms and the entire mansion at regular intervals and had done the same when the lockdown came to an end.

They knew that their Master and his family would return soon so they made sure that everything was perfect by the time they were here.

Thanks to their efforts, Yvonne did not have to tolerate a putrid smell coming out of her sheets which had stayed untouched for months on end.

Snuggling in fresh and soft sheets, she let out a relieved sigh while closing her eyes.

'Can I recall that dream I forgot?' She wondered concerning the dream she had during the carriage ride which had slipped out of her mind.

There was only one way to attempt recalling it and that was to fall asleep once again, in hopes of getting the same dream this time as well.

Therefore, with hope bubbling in her heart, the little girl laid in bed and waited for sleep to find her.

___

"Your Majesty, no father would like to hear word of such an incident occurring to their beloved child." A restrained voice echoed in the silent hall.

Yvonne stood still with her head lowered beside the man who had just spoken.

The incident that had taken place during Princess Felicia and Lady Glennise's coming-of-age ceremony did not take long to spread throughout the Capital.

Therefore, it was a given that even the man who was happily spending his retirement days in his fief with his lovely wife had heard this shocking news.

The daughter whom he had brought up with such love and care was physically assaulted by someone during an event organized by the Royal family.

If that wasn't enough, the person to commit this crime was none other than the Crown Prince, the one next in line to the Throne.

This infuriated the father thoroughly and without delay, he hurried over to the Capital to seek justice for his child.

Therefore right now, the previous Earl Rutherford St. Claire was standing before the King seated on his Throne as he asked for justice to be done in this matter.

Earl Howard St. Claire stood on one side while Miss St. Claire stood on the other side of their father.

Despite his numerous attempts, Howard had failed to persuade his father against taking this step.

They were the richest family in the Kingdom after the Royal family but they were not above the King.

Their King respected them due to their acumen for business but that did not mean that they could act how they pleased.

However, Howard was now worried about how the King would react or if he would be offended by what his father had just said.

Yvonne's lowered head turned in one direction and she caught sight of the two young ladies who had come over to be her pillars of support.

Seeing her best friends, she shot them a brief smile before returning to her usual, expressionless face.

When her father had heard the news of what the Prince had done to her right before everyone's presence, he was furious and rushed to seek justice for her.

If this had been someone outside the Royal family then Rutherford would not have been so civil.

He would have already made sure that such a person would be taught a proper lesson lest they act this way with someone else.

However, his hands were tied when it came to those of the Royal family which was why he had made an appearance here today.

No one was allowed to harm his family while he was still around and when he wasn't available, that responsibility fell on his son, his heir's shoulders.

Yet his daughter was harmed when Howard was still nearby and he had done nothing to help her in that situation.

Hearing this had angered the father further but when Howard explained that there was nothing that he could do when the King and others were right there, he had no choice but to swallow his anger.

The only other thing he could do was come to the King and place his troubles before him and that was exactly what he had come here for.

The furious father's gaze fell on the two men who stood a little away from him with his annoyance clearly visible, not even attempting to conceal his displeasure with them.

'A man who uses violence against a lady cannot be considered a man.' He sneered in his heart but his face was calm as ever before turning his sights to the man on the Throne, the one who could give him justice.