Heartless!' King Ophire shook his head after letting out a defeated chuckle.

This little girl was bolder than what he had expected as she had dared to put on a false smile before him.

Being King for so many years, he was able to differentiate when someone was truly happy to be in his presence and who was here just for the sake of achieving their purpose.

While he did not sense any greed coming from her, it was easy for him to male out that she did not wish to stay here any longer.

'Hmm… Certainly interesting.' He mulled over her and the information related to her.

The first time he had heard about this child was during the consideration of who would become Princess Felicia's second playmate.

He had asked the Royal Tutor for a suggestion and this child was his first pick.

However, later on, he was told that she had gravely injured herself, deeming her incapable of joining the Princess for fear of dragging the other girls down.

Back then he was glad that they had taken the initiative to back down but at the same time, felt that something was amiss.

Young girls were eager to get that position while this child was dismissing an opportunity that had landed on her lap.

Yet he shook away those suspicions and went on to find another playmate for the Princess.

However, once again he felt that this child wished to stay away from the Palace when he heard the Marquess coming to him in order to discuss certain aspects of the faulty policies created during the reign of his father, Previous King Greggor.

After his second meeting with the Marquess, he had forced him to blurt everything out.

She was avoiding attention and had used the name of their Patron God to get her way.

Impressed with her piety and observance of their God's teachings, he had accepted to keep things a secret from the citizens.

Yet today, he disclosed everything about it without guilt or hesitation.

'I had promised to not let the citizens know about her contribution. Never said anything about my ministers.' He snickered as he had used the same loophole that Marquess Samed had come up with before revealing everything to him.

Marquess Samed had repeatedly reminded him that the child did not wish to be praised for the efforts she had put into the new policies they had created based on her suggestion.

Therefore, King Ophire had agreed with the Marquess's reminder and maintained her involvement a secret at that time but that did not mean he would keep it concealed forever.

The child's wish was to only work without being admired by the citizens.

Therefore, he had not done anything that would go against her wish but only made a minor change.

The citizens were still ignorant of who the true mastermind behind the changes implemented was.

It was only three people who knew about it which was negligible compared to everyone knowing about the same.

Therefore, he had not hesitated before disclosing the child's merits to his ministers.

If one were to look carefully, there were only three ministers out of the total nine.

Surprisingly, these three were those who were in close association with the aspects that Yvonne's suggested changes had dealt with.

Marquess Jace Kiron was in charge of architecture which dealt with the construction of the new Royal Hospitals.

Old man Syrac Carter was responsible for town planning which dealt with the construction of roads joining these Royal hospitals.

Finally, Cosmet Leopold had to look after the finances that were required for all of these changes being put to practice.

The three essential figures during the implementation of the new changes were all present today which was too much of a coincidence to anyone who was not an insider.

However, King Ophire glanced at the three men whom he had personally invited to be present while greeting the St. Claire family as he hoped for them to interact with each other.

While the initial incident between him and the child was an unexpected addition to this event, the rest had taken place as planned.

Right from the start, King Ophire had plans of revealing Yvonne St. Claire's identity as the secret helper for the new policies.

He had only been waiting for the right opportunity and found one at this meet and greet event.

Therefore, he used this chance to introduce her as the mastermind behind the new policies to help her gain their approval and things had gone just as he had expected them to.

The cherry on top of the cake was that even the Countess was held in high regard by these men due to her accomplishments.

'One step at a time.' He grinned as everything was beginning to fall into place.

With Yvonne's involvement in the policies which were a part of administrative duties and her mother's in the relief program run for those distressed in the plague, he had succeeded in proving to these men that women were capable of great things if given the chance.

These three men were his most faithful followers and had given their support to him right from the very beginning.

Even if his close friend, Duke Brodie was reluctant to accept his new ideals that women should be given more importance, these three had never once questioned him.

At this delicate juncture when he was beginning to put his thoughts to action, he did not need people who would object to his methods but someone who would accept his ways.

Thus, they were the perfect men to be present today, and looking at their enthusiastic faces coupled with how they had expressed their approval of the two ladies, he knew that he had made the right choice.

"Thank you for letting us meet Miss Yvonne, Your Majesty." Old man Syrac Carter bowed in gratitude.

King Ophire waved, allowing him to stand upright and smiled in victory.

"If you are truly glad to meet her then make sure you let it be known." He replied and the hidden meaning in his words was grasped in no time.

The three distinguished figures of nobility shared a glance before nodding immediately after.

King Ophire was pleased with their sharp minds and signaled to his Steward who had just returned after sending the St. Claires to their next destination.

"I shall take a short break before the next family arrives." He announced and the Steward bowed before leading the three men out.

Once the Throne room was empty, King Ophire did not step away from his Throne as he would have whenever he took a break.

Instead of heading to the secret resting place that he had taken Yvonne to earlier, he remained seated while turning in a certain direction.

"How much longer do you plan on staying there?" He muttered before chuckling without a care.

Ever since he had returned to this room with the little girl from the St. Claire family, he had sensed an aura with which he was quite familiar.

However, he had pretended to not notice it, allowing this person to stay hidden until now.

"You always find me, Big Brother." A sigh echoed in the silence before a figure appeared from behind a parting stone wall.

This Throne room had numerous secret pathways which were known only to a few people in this Palace.

One such person was the boy who had stepped out of his hiding place and walked towards his elder brother who sat on the highest seat in the Kingdom.

"I heard about what happened and came to check on you." The young boy revealed the cause of his uninvited appearance in this place.

Only the King was present for this event and the other members of the Royal family were busy with their other chores.

However, the younger brother of the King, Prince Draco rushed over when he heard about the strange incident with the child from the St. Claire family.

"You can come here anytime you like." King Ophire did not object to his presence and added that he was always welcome here.

Draco smiled as this was something his brother always said but also noticed that his brother had not revealed anything about the incident he had mentioned.

"So can you tell me what happened back then?" He inquired, displaying obvious interest in the King's interaction with that child.

King Ophire's left brow was raised when he noticed his curiosity but at the same time, he did not refuse his little brother.

He could never say no to his brother, thus, he nodded his head before revealing everything that had taken place from the moment his eyes met that child's until the moment she left this room.

From beginning to end, Prince Draco only nodded and gave a few soft hums as a reminder that he was paying attention to what his brother was saying.

As he listened, he realized that everything that his brother had planned for this meeting had gone exactly as planned.

"The only deviation was the 'incident'." He muttered to himself but the King nodded nonetheless.

Draco frowned while trying to decipher why that child would have called his brother 'Father' and the King too had responded with an endearing variation of her name, 'Von'.

"Do you really not know why you had called her that?" He interrogated his brother as the King's answer could help them understand this situation better.

Sadly, King Ophire could only sigh because no matter how much he tried, he could not find an explanation for having reacted that way.

'If my brother is her father then what am I?' The young prince cringed at the very thought of what the answer was.