Rutherford and Raylene shared a glance when they heard their daughter's strange words once again.

'Where does she get such strange words from?' Raylene wondered in astonishment.

At the same time, she was worried that her sweet child was reading some weird books and learning these bizarre things that they had never heard of before.

'I need to ask Marquess Samed about what kind of book he is recommending my Vonny!' She was determined in her heart and nodded at her husband who must have had the same thought in his mind.

Taylor, however, had a different reaction when he heard her words.

'Back to school? How did she come up with such a brilliant phrase?' He gazed at her with wonder and awe overflowing from his eyes.

Sadly, his expressions were misinterpreted and Howard directed an apologetic smile towards him.

"Ignore her stupidity. She keeps speaking such nonsense from time to time." He whispered in Taylor's ears and then shook his head in dismay.

Taylor scowled at his best friend who could not notice the genius in her words and decided to ignore him instead.

"You still haven't answered me… Will you accompany us for the 'Back to school' shopping?" He offered once again, adopting the same phrase that she had used and stared at her with stars shooting out of his eyes.

'What did he think my apologetic smile was for?' Yvonne rolled her eyes and then looked up at the child sitting on the opposite side.

She almost choked when she was subjected to those glittering eyes which were compelling her to say yes but thinking of spending the afternoon out in the hot sun rather than sleeping in her cold room was enough to strengthen her determination against those beautiful brown eyes.

"I would have to regretfully decline, Young Master Taylor." She rejected his offer in a polite manner.

The moment she uttered her reply, three collective sighs of relief were heard at the table.

Taylor and Yvonne turned towards the source of the loud sighs and found the other three looking down into their plates as though nothing had happened.

Three people with their heads lowered were all ecstatic over her refusal to the Duke's son's proposal but for various reasons.

'I'm glad Vonny said no or else it would have been tough for us to refuse someone from the higher standing.' Raylene sighed and smiled while slicing the meat that was on her plate.

'I would never have allowed Vonna to leave with that boy even if she had said yes. But my darling daughter knows what is good for her! She would rather stay with us than spend time in the city.' Rutherford proudly puffed up his chest as he sipped his wine.

'Thank Asmodeus that she said no or else I would be stuck with one idiot fawning over the other for the entire afternoon!' Howard cringed at the very thought of that ever happening.

Yvonne rolled her eyes when she observed their different yet remarkable reactions and then turned towards Taylor who was staring back at her with sad puppy eyes.

'I did not want to do this but looks like I have no other option but to use this trick.' She sighed and then gazed into his eyes as she fluttered her lashes in an adorable fashion.

"I have a lot of homework and it is very hot today." She muttered in a soft voice and turned towards the window through which the Sun's bright rays were permeating into the room.

*Pling*

Taylor felt an arrow shoot straight through his heart when he saw her pouting lips and heard the coquettish complaint in her voice.

He chided himself for not thinking of the delicate little girl's health and for insisting that she comes along with them on their trip to the commercial district.

'What if she faints due to the heat? What if her skin produces rashes because of it?' His thoughts wandered onto a whole different tangent.

'No! I cannot let such a pretty girl be subjected to such suffering for my selfish desires!' He exclaimed with resolution and looked back at her.

"We can go on another day when it is not so hot outside." He accepted her excuse wholeheartedly and proposed another suggestion.

The entire St. Claire family blinked in silence after they heard his confident speech.

'What an idiot!' Howard facepalmed himself inwardly and felt ruffled that Taylor was showing his true colors in the presence of his family.

Yvonne chuckled when she heard his suggestion and her mind was trying hard to think of a polite response to it.

"If the time permits then surely, Young Master Taylor." She replied with a subtle smile.

When what she really wished to say was…

'Not gonna happen, Sucker!' But there was no way that she could ever say that and spoil the image that she was trying to maintain before her parents.

Taylor's brilliant smile as he nodded his head was enough to blind everyone in the room.

This smile provoked vigilance in Rutherford's heart and his plans of keeping his Vonna away from the Tanner boy were gaining his top priority.

Soon, lunch ended and Yvonne was the first to leave the room.

She used homework as an excuse to escape from the starry eyes that were following her every move.

'Topher is so elegant and commendable while his younger brother is the polar opposite!' She judged their personalities while being led back to her room.

___

Inside the carriage that was leaving the St. Claire estate, Howard sat opposite his friend with a deep frown fixed on his face.

"Did you have to behave like a love-struck fool around that brat?" He scowled at Taylor who looked as though he had been wronged by the entire world.

"Pretty things deserve to be loved, Howard!" He declared and then crossed his arms across his chest as he gazed outside the window.

"My sister is not a thing" Howard's soft mumbles were loud enough to be heard by the other person because they were in a confined space right now.

'He defends her every time yet refuses to accept that he cares for her… Hmph!' Taylor scoffed at his friend's conflicting thoughts and actions.

He then pretended as though he had not heard his whining words and continued to stare out of the window as the scenery changed from green trees surrounding the various noble estates to the buildings containing stores and shops.

This indicated that they had arrived in the vicinity of the commercial district.

Within a few minutes, they had reached their destination for today's trip.

"You said you wanted to buy a new sword, right? I asked my father and he recommended this store." Taylor smugly revealed as his finger pointed in a certain direction.

Howard's earlier annoyances with his friend's behavior faded away into nothing the moment he turned his head in the direction that Taylor's finger was pointed in.

*SMITH'S SMITHINGS*

Reading the funny name, Howard and Taylor let out a chuckle before they rushed inside the store.

As they entered the store, the tiny bell tied to the door chimed and an elderly man stepped out from behind the curtain.

Howard's eyes were entirely glued to the swords of different sizes and shapes being displayed on the walls around the store that he had failed to notice the huge man who had walked to take his seat behind the counter.

Taylor shook his head at his sword junkie best friend and decided to greet the shopkeeper in the meantime.

"Good day, Mister." Taylor greeted the old man with wrinkled skin who surprisingly had broad shoulders and a straight back.

The old man's eyes traveled across Taylor's face and nodded his head while rubbing his chin.

"Hmmm…. Duke Tanner's boy has arrived right on time." He muttered which gained a surprised gasp from Taylor.

'Everyone in the capital knows that the red hair belongs to the Tanner family but how did he know that we were coming here today?��� Taylor's brows scrunched up when this question popped up in his mind.

Before Taylor could question him about how he had known of their arrival, the old man nodded once again.

"Your father had sent a message regarding your arrival beforehand." He revealed and turned his sight to the other young boy who had accompanied the Duke's son.

"The St. Claire boy." He whispered and a smile spread on his wrinkled face as he watched Howard's excited face, running around the store.

Taylor observed the man's face in silence which looked like he was reminiscing about the past and he had an inkling about what this old man might be thinking of.

'His father had the same expression when he first entered my store back when he was a child.' He smiled as his mind took a trip down memory lane.

Howard, who had completed his little overexcited tour around the store, came up to the counter where he found his friend staring at the owner of the store.

'What is he up to?�� He wondered and turned towards the old man sitting behind the counter.

Howard's confusion about this situation did not decrease in the least bit and this was because he was now looking at the old store owner who was still staring at a distant corner of his store with a sad smile on his face.