Howard and the two adult men sat under the canopy in the training ground while the women were nowhere to be seen.

This was because while the men were discussing the details of the assessment, Yvonne and her mother had returned to the mansion to help her change into the attire meant for training.

She could not participate while wearing a gown and hence had to change into appropriate clothes first.

"You look like a little horse rider, Vonny!" Raylene squealed when she saw her daughter dressed in the equestrian uniform.

'That is because this is a horse rider's outfit.' The child could only blink and nod at her excited mother.

Today, the mother decided to help her get dressed while the old nanny and the personal maid both stood by the door.

Yvonne's subtle eyes passed over the maid who had been the topic of her discussion with the Butler in the stable.

Paula stood with her head lowered and hence did not catch the mocking glint that passed through the child's eyes before she looked away.

___

"Why do you want to test your sister?" Captain Desmo Reel questioned the boy who sat before him.

He could see the nervous expression on the boy's face but this was something that he had wished to ask for a long time now.

Howard gulped his saliva in nervousness as he prepared his heart to answer the query placed by his idol.

"Papa and I did not want to encourage her every whim which she might drop after a couple of days." He answered what he had thought was the truth.

This made the Captain turn in the direction of his old friend and raise his brows in question.

Rutherford scratched his neck in embarrassment when he saw the inquiry in his eyes.

"Are you doubting my teaching methods?" Desmo interrogated and had a stern frown on his face.

This was the only possible explanation he could find in what he had heard.

'They think that she will give up because I cannot keep her engaged in my lessons? But look at the present! She did complete an entire month under my tutelage.' He scoffed at the man who had such low expectations from him.

Howard's eyes widened when he saw the scowl on his idol's face.

"It is a blessing for her to learn from you, Captain!" He clamored in hopes of salvaging the situation.

'This is all her fault!' He blamed the little sister who had such absurd desires.

"It was my sister who asked for something unusual and we were worried that she would only waste your time by taking these classes." He tried to explain his point of view.

At that time, Howard and Rutherford both believed that Yvonne was only bored with her daily routine and needed a change of pace.

"We thought that she would quit soon after but she stuck to it." Rutherford added as pride in his child was apparent on his face.

The elder brother was not very pleased with it but he did not disregard what his father had said.

'She may have stuck to it but if she has trained half-heartedly then I will not forgive her!' He snarled in his mind.

For him, his sword was a passion, a desire to excel in it ran deep in his veins so he did not wish to see someone close to him treating it as a way to alleviate her boredom.

Rutherford had used his son as a shield to forbid his daughter from persisting in her request to learn self-defense skills from a trainer.

"We were worried for her and wanted to dissuade her from continuing these classes. That was when Howard decided to test her at the end of the month and based on that her classes would be continued or canceled." He explained the entire situation to friend.

'I had heard about the test but wasn't given much information about the reason for doing so.' Desmo rubbed his chin, deep in thought.

As though he had realized something, he looked up in a slapdash manner and alternated his gaze between the father and son.

Two similar faces, one big and the other old, stared back at him as they waited for him to speak.

"Everything you have said made it sound like you are against her learning under my guidance." He smirked and continued to look at them to observe their reactions.

Rutherford shook his head while Howard had a conflicted look on his face.

Noticing this, Desmo knew that he had to say something in order to not let his pupil be wronged.

"I was called over here to oversee the assessment which you are going to take, Master Howard. I hope you do a good job with it." He revealed, expressing his support to his student.

Though he was standing up for her now, if she were to appear at this instant then he would act as though he had not spoken a word in her favor.

This was how the relationship between this pair of trainer and trainee was.

All Howard wanted was to keep his sister away from disrespecting something he loved dearly and also stop her from acting too spoiled like she was in the past.

"Whether she can pass the assessment depends on her capabilities, Captain." He gave his opinion about today's event.

He had given her an entire month to do as she pleased, now was the time to see whether she had utilized the time and the resources as she should have or whether she had wasted them all.

"As long as she can pass two out of the three tests I have prepared for her, she can carry on with her classes as per usual." He declared the plan he had in mind for her.

His biggest support, his father, had already expressed his desire to let Yvonne continue these classes with the Captain so he would not hinder her path.

However, he needed to see if she could make him change his mind with the effort and hard work she had put in during the previous month.

"I will prove that I am firm in my decision to learn these skills, Big Brother Howard!" A childish yet firm voice was heard a short distance away from them.

Turning around, they found the women who had been inside the mansion until now had already made their way outside.

Yvonne and her mother stood in the front while the two maids stood at the back as they followed their masters.

"Thank you for speaking in my favor, Captain!" She bowed in gratitude to the mean man who was in fact someone who cared about her.

Somewhere along the line of mocking her every day and seeing her struggle to keep up with his teachings, he had grown fond of her but he would never accept it.

Thus, he scoffed at her who in reply, shook her head at his childish actions.

She then turned in her brother's direction and walked towards him.

"I know how much you like swordsmanship and I would never do anything to disrespect you or something you love." She announced her thoughts about the fear in his heart.

"We shall see." Howard's bland answer dampened the warm atmosphere around them.