In a private space, somewhere far away from the hustle and bustle of the Banquet Hall were two men, and surrounding them was a stifling aura.

One with bright blonde hair was seated on a comfortable couch while the other man with dark midnight blue hair stood on the other side of the couch.

"Do you know why you have been summoned here, Earl St. Claire?" A soothing voice arose, breaking the silence in the room.

Vibrant blue eyes stared at the man who nodded his head before he finally raised his head.

"For matters pertaining to the fief, Your Majesty." Earl Rutherford St. Claire answered without delay.

King Ophire nodded along with him, pleased that he did not have to waste much time in explaining the purpose of this private parlez that they were engaging in.

"So tell me…" He began and paused to measure up the muscular man who stood before him.

Rutherford could feel the King's piercing gaze focused on him but he could not show any signs of weakness or fear at this moment.

He knew that the new changes that he had implemented in his fief had gained too much exposure and even reached the Royal Palace grounds.

Therefore, he had come prepared to answer whatever questions that the King would place before him.

"What made you order the construction of a new clinic, Earl?" King Ophire inquired about the same matter that Rutherford had speculated earlier.

Since he could never take the name of his child whose assistance was the main reason for this new construction, he had already thought of someone else to use as his scapegoat.

"Our family physician had brought to my notice that the people in St. Claire fief would benefit from this new clinic so I chose to pay heed to his words and get a new one built." He answered in simple words but used Mr. Toone as the reason instead of his daughter.

After having completed his sentence, he glanced at the King who remained silent and continued to observe him.

'Why does every man in contact with that child become brave enough to conceal information from me?' King Ophire wondered as this was the third person who had dared to do so.

First was Marquess Samed who, at first, had chosen to remain mum about the girl, Yvonne St. Claire's involvement.

Then came Baron Quinn MacIntyre who also displayed signs of reluctance to speak about her.

Now, this man, her father was also hiding the truth from the King to keep her away from the spotlight.

'Am I some ugly monster that they try to hide her from me?' He wondered if it was something he had done that caused them to behave this way.

Rutherford was still anxious whether his explanation had been satisfactory to the King when he noticed the most powerful man in the land, raising his hand and patting his face as though he was checking something.

Though clueless as to what was on the King's mind, he did not interfere or speak unless he was asked to do so.

King Ophire's main objective of this private parlez was to get the Earl to open his mouth about the reason why he had built the clinic.

He was willing to wager a thousand gold coins that this idea was also one coming from the brilliant mind of that little girl just like how she had given him numerous times through the 'middleman' Marquess Samed.

Yet, once again he received false answers from his citizens for her sake.

If this had been someone else then he would have punished them severely for the crime of such falsity being uttered in his presence.

However, something inside him could not bring him to give out such orders as these people seemed to be doing this for the sake of the girl who had offered her aid to the development of the Kingdom.

If he repaid kindness on her part with ingratitude then he would be a disgrace to the name of the Rosenhyde Royal family.

'As long as this does not harm the Kingdom, I shall turn a blind eye to it.' He decided and finally nodded his head in acceptance of the answer that the Earl had given many moments ago.

Rutherford felt guilty for lying to the King but he was willing to do it again if it was for the safety of his beloved daughter.

"Now tell me more about this 'Recycling' that I have heard much about in the last few weeks." King Ophire commanded with a curious glint in his eyes.

The news about various helpful ideas that the Earl had implemented in his fief had reached his table in the form of an extremely detailed report.

But he chose to have the Earl speak about this to gain a better understanding of what they were trying to achieve with these new ideas.

When Rutherford heard this new command, he was excited as this gave him the chance to speak about the brilliant idea that his daughter had suggested.

King Ophire was amused as he observed how this stoic man's face displayed traces of joy and passion.

'So it is safe to assume that this came from her as well.' He declared and his desire to meet her increased once again.

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While Rutherford and King Ophire were in deep discussion of the uses and the advantages of Recycling, the atmosphere in the Banquet Hall was both energetic and stifling.

Everyone present was discussing the gifts that had already been presented before their King.

____

Earlier, they had witnessed how the Earl of St. Claire had managed to immensely please the King with the enormous present that he had brought for him.

A carriage made of black wood, the most expensive wood in the land due to its native rough terrain was the one which everyone had observed being pulled out by those six men whom the Earl had brought with him.

These men, with careful actions, transported the brand new carriage outside which allowed them to get a good view of it.

Though it appeared plain with no emblem painted on it, with a single glance they could make out the time and effort put into creating this masterpiece.

This was the same present that Yvonne had guessed the moment she had laid eyes on what was inside that goods-carrying carriage.

If one looked closer, this carriage was a better and more expensive version of the one that Rutherford had ordered for his daughter.

Traveling in this carriage would not give anyone motion sickness no matter how long and tedious the journey was.

Since this carriage was a present for the King, it could never be ridden anywhere and hence it had to be transported using the bigger carriage.

When King Ophire laid his eyes on this present, there was awe and appreciation evident in his blue eyes as he scanned every corner of the carriage that was visible from where he stood.

Hearing Rutherford's explanation of this carriage only increased his appreciation and the noblemen's jealousy that the Earl had managed to win the King's heart with his present.

Their envy reached a new height when the King patted the Earl's shoulder in acknowledgment of these thoughts.

His earlier doubt that the Earl was insubordinate was turned to dust with this single gift.

The King then ordered his knights to take the carriage to their sheds and even fetch the best horses to be used to draw it.

This was enough to prove that he valued this present which in return gave the noblemen their next target to brown-nose tonight.

Having completed their work here, the King with everyone else entered the hall once again to resume the ceremony.

Earl Blaise who had bad-mouthed Rutherford earlier was now in a bad spot when he compared his present with the one he had just seen.

However, he had no other choice but to bring out the one he had prepared.

With a red face, Earl Blaise stepped before the King as a knight brought out an exquisite piece of pottery.

At a stand-alone point, this pottery was mesmerizing, however, it paled in comparison to what they had just witnessed.

Earl Blaise had never been this embarrassed before in his life and he glared at the one who had caused him to face this day as he returned after his turn.

The next was the newly appointed Earl Mikren whose gift was an ivory white grand piano which succeeded in redeeming his reputation, unlike Earl Blaise whose gift had failed to do so.

King Ophire loved music, especially music played by his beloved Queen.

Therefore he was more than satisfied with the gift brought by the newly appointed Earl Brax Mikren, a twenty-seven-year-old who took over the position after his father had died recently.

This was also the same man who had threatened Earl Blaise to watch his tongue if he desired to return home with a beating heart.

Therefore, not one but two men were at the center of Earl Blaise's hatred after this incident.

Once the three Earls of the Kingdom had brought out their presents, King Ophire decided to take a break before they could resume.

This was when, while the rest of the men were discussing the presents, a messenger had walked towards Rutherford and whispered something in his ear.

Glancing at his son, he gestured for him to stay right here as he followed the messenger who then brought him to the room where the King had been waiting for him.

__

Therefore, right now, Howard was in the company of Marquess Samed and Topher Tanner but his eyes scanned the room to find any sign of his father's return.