Early next morning, before the sun could even rise, the servants of the St. Claire family were rushing around to complete the final preparations needed for what would take place today.

The little girl who laid asleep in her bed was not awakened by the servants who moved with hushed footsteps while using the corridor outside her room.

Carriages were standing in wait outside the mansion, horses were being prepared, luggage was already loaded inside their transport, and servants were seen hurrying to prepare for the journey.

The Masters awoke at their usual timing and the first to be up was the Earl.

Along with Butler Limo, he completed the tasks which needed his urgent attention before they could embark on this journey.

Soon even the Countess was up and she visited the Kitchen, instructing them on what needed to be done.

Jax too was seen rushing around as he packed the luggage of the etcher who would be accompanying them on this journey.

The last ones to arouse from their slumbers were the children of the St. Claire family.

Howard stuffed the folders filled with home assignments that he would complete while staying in their summer estate.

Meanwhile, Yvonne only sat before the mirror, gazing at her appearance.

It had been many months since her haircut and the length of her violet tresses had already increased.

The hair which was cut till her shoulders was now touching her waist, making her wonder whether she needed another trim before the journey could begin.

Shaking her head, she rejected that thought as her nanny would sob once again and she also did not have enough time to accomplish this.

In a month, she would turn seven years old and it would be two years since she had arrived in this world.

However, before she could dive into her nostalgic thoughts, she heard a knock on the door after which her nanny and maid entered the room.

"Miss, do we have anything else that needs to be packed?" Roselie inquired while scanning the room as she said those words.

In response, Yvonne nodded as she pointed at the ledgers she had worked on last night and also the dagger under her pillow.

The present she had received from Howard, the obsidian dagger, was kept by her side at all times and she did not part from it even in her sleep.

As it was still in its scabbard, there was no danger of injuring herself so the child was allowed to keep it close by.

Everything she required was already packed and all she needed to do was get dressed before meeting the rest of her family.

The maids were quick on their feet as they finished the last minute packing and even helped the Miss wash and change into new clothes.

It took them mere minutes before they were ready to step outside.

Mrs. Jacinth locked the room once they were outside and escorted the Miss to the parlor.

Yvonne met her parents and brother who were seated inside while Butler Limo and Jax stood by the door.

The family had a short chat while drinking their morning tea.

They decided to not have anything heavy before the journey, hence Raylene had already asked the maids to pack food for them to munch on during the trip.

Once tea and mild snacks had been consumed, they left the parlor and headed to the entrance of the mansion.

The moment Yvonne stepped outside, she saw a long procession of carriages parked before their mansion.

Unlike every year where only the Earl's family visited the summer estate with just a small bunch of servants accompanying them, they had planned something different this year.

Except for a small group staying back in this estate in Amarthea, the rest of the servants would accompany their Masters to St. Claire's fief.

This was all thanks to the Young Miss who proposed that the servants should also enjoy a vacation and was determined to take them along for this trip.

What they did not know was that Yvonne had suggested this to ensure that there was no loss of life due to the plague which would also affect Amarthea in the later stages of its progression.

The servants who had volunteered to stay back and look after the estate in their absence were the older ones who could not travel and a few youngsters to help them out.

Butler Limo had even left a few secret guards who would relay news from the Capital at constant intervals to keep him updated about everything.

He needed this information because he would also be taking a vacation with his Master and his family for the first time after he had taken up the role of the Master's Butler, put in charge of this estate.

Yvonne glanced at the old Butler and found him with a jubilant smile as he could follow his Master back to the St. Claire fief after decades.

This brought a smile to her face as well before she turned to find her aide, Jax in the crowd of servants assembled there.

She found him with Demon, at the front of the long line of carriages, making sure that the horse was fine.

Since Yvonne knew that this would be a longer trip which would even result in isolation from the rest of the world until the plague was controlled and abolished, she had decided to let Demon accompany her once again.

She even asked her father to bring his etcher, Fryght, along with them to which he accepted after a long debate.

The poor hound was left in confinement for most of the time and when Howard petitioned the same request, Rutherford had no choice but to bring him along as well.

Right now, Fryght was already inside the carriage which they would be boarding as he did not like to be around too many people.

'Not to mention that half of the staff here has no clue of his existence.' She shook her head at her father who kept Fryght's presence a tight-lipped secret from everyone in this mansion.

Soon it was time for them to depart from Amarthea and head towards the summer estate which was their ancestral house in the St. Claire fief.

Rutherford helped his wife and child into the large carriage which he had specially prepared for Yvonne in the past.

Howard soon followed as he sat next to the window and carried Fryght, placing the beast on his lap.

Rutherford was last to enter after which Butler Limo shut the door to this carriage.

Demon was tied to the harness of their carriage and Fryght was inside the same carriage.

The next was occupied by Mrs. Jacinth, Roselie, and Raylene's two maids.

Following which was the one with Butler Limo and Jax with a couple more and similarly the rest of the carriages too were filled with the remaining staff of the St. Claire family.

The servants who would stay behind bowed towards the Master's carriage and bid them goodbye as the long procession finally began moving towards the exit of the estate grounds.

___

Inside her carriage, Yvonne glanced at the etcher sleeping in her brother's arms.

She had noticed that Fryght always struggled to get away from her hold but contrary to how he behaved with her, he was docile and carefree with Howard.

This disparity in their treatments made her sulk but she could not voice out her thoughts as someone else would sulk more than her.

Her jealous etcher, Demon, was already whispering in her ear, requesting her to not get too close to the hound.

He did not wish to see his Master getting too friendly with another etcher as that was not something he would like.

Therefore, the young girl had to push down her desire to hug her father's etcher in order to not hurt Demon's feelings.

'This journey is going to be a tough one!' She groaned and rested her head on her mother's side.

The child was placed between her parents as they did not wish to risk the chance of what had taken place during their last trip to be repeated once again.

Though Yvonne had insisted that she would not try to peek out of the window again, she was made to sit between them without any further arguments.

Therefore, she could only strain her neck from this position to glimpse at the scenery passing by outside the window.