Chapter 702 - Interrogation

What if she knew of the coming plague and whatever she did was after keeping that plague in her mind?

Ever since this doubt had originated in Topher's mind, he had kept it to himself as making it known to others might make him a laughing stock.

How could a child predict the future and even come up with so many preventive measures to safeguard themselves against it?

However, this was what he had thought in the past and silenced these doubtful notions that had popped up in his mind.

The information that had been revealed in the Palace and even last night from Minister Leopold had once again brought those doubts up and even strengthened them.

Even if no one spoke about it openly, he knew that there were numerous areas in the governance of their Kingdom which could be improved.

So why did that child only focus on the issues pertaining to the plague and the policies concerning it?

It was as though she was preparing for a future where the plague was an impending event and to his surprise, the plague did occur.

The policies she had suggested were a great help in not placing too much stress on the citizens while the Royal Medical Association created the cure.

If that wasn't enough, she had also urged their families to build granaries well in advance.

The final trigger for Topher was her adamant requests of not allowing the Marquess and the others to travel last summer.

Back then, he had shrugged it away as her being childish and anxious after having a nightmare but now his instinct was asking him to dig deeper into this matter.

Therefore, he had come over here after pondering over these matters throughout the night.

He had tried to speak to her after using the excuse of a stroll but she was guarded against him.

The match was another attempt to initiate the same conversation but even that had failed.

Finally, he had revealed new information during lunch to push her into a corner, hoping that she would not reject this conversation any longer.

Now that he was able to place his queries before her, Topher knew that he had made the right decision back then.

Yvonne remained silent after hearing his straightforward interrogation while maintaining eye contact with him.

The other boys had also noticed the strange ambiance around them but could not bring themselves to interfere.

The twins were tactful enough to realize that the two were conversing through their mental link while Howard and Taylor felt irked to see them gazing into each others' eyes.

Nonetheless, the younger boys could not speak up as there was a strange pressure surrounding Yvonne and Topher which prevented them from butting in.

This pressure was Topher's aura which was shielding them from any interruptions which might hinder him from learning what he had come here for.

He had finally gotten the chance to speak to Yvonne and had no desire to let that opportunity slip out of his hands due to the petty jealousy of these two boys.

Therefore, right now, no one could deter him from reaching his goal for the day.

Yvonne too realized that there was no way that she could escape without giving him an appropriate answer which would quell his curiosity and also keep her away from any suspicious implications.

Letting out an exasperated sigh, she looked him right in the eye as she prepared to answer him.

Topher waited with bated breath as the long wait was finally coming to an end.

'Didn't I explain the reason the last time we met before the plague began?' She replied with a question of her own.

The young boy she was facing now had a frown on his face as his brows furrowed to indicate that he was not willing to accept this answer.

The incident she was referring to was the one where she had arrived at the Tanner estate early one morning with a strange request for the Duchess.

At that time, Yvonne had revealed to the Marquess that she had seen him die while he was traveling, and to prevent such a nightmarish dream from coming true, she had asked him to postpone his plans.

'That was just a dream.' Topher rejected her answer, reminding her that even she had called it just a dream which had made her uneasy.

To calm the child, the Duchess had agreed with her ridiculous request but surprisingly a plague had terrorized the Kingdom soon after.

If Marquess Samed had followed his schedule and headed to the neighboring fiefs with the Duchess and Taylor then their chances of survival were dim.

Thanks to her words of warning, which most of them had not taken seriously back then, their lives had been saved.

Therefore, when Yvonne mentioned the same event this time, Taylor had pointed out that she had called it a dream and everything done after that was to soothe her weary mind.

'What if I tell you that was not the only dream I had?' The child spoke up again while Topher was mulling over the things of their past.

Her words made his eyes widen as he looked at her with a tinge of surprise and even confusion.

Since Yvonne could never reveal the truth about the script she had read and the fact that she was not from this world, she decided to use another method to alleviate any suspicions he might be having right now.

This was the solution her mind had come up with on such short notice.

'Explain yourself.' The heir of the Tanner family commanded the child who was not too pleased with his overbearing behavior.

However, pushing down the annoyance in her heart, Yvonne nodded her head and chose to do as he said.

'When Marquess Samed started teaching the lesson about the previous plagues…' She elaborated without looking flustered or nervous.

'I felt a strange sense of dread at that time.' She was indeed speaking the truth as that lesson had reminded her of the third plague that was yet to come.

Since the plague played a crucial role in the script it was explained in great detail which helped her recall some major aspects of its occurrence.

This had aided her in helping the Marquess figure everything out and then she left the rest in the capable hands of the King.

'Ever since we discussed that lesson, I always had strange dreams which depicted disaster and death.' She cooked up lies with such conviction that Topher was beginning to believe her words.

Everything she knew was because of the script and her knowledge from her previous world but she had to make sure to keep it concealed.

Therefore, she had come up with this excuse for everything she had done so far.

She was relieved to see that though Topher looked skeptical, he had not yet disregarded her claims.

'So… you are saying that you had a hunch about the plague after dreaming about it?' His bewildered voice reached her ears, making her nod in eager acceptance.

'Yes, hunches! Lots of them!' She exclaimed and rejoiced in her heart that he had helped her out just now.

Shamelessly adopting his theory, she added on to it in order to convince him further.

'Those dreams made me realize that we needed to prepare in case it truly did occur in the future.' She explained her reason for giving those suggestions to everyone.

In a way, she was using these dreams as a substitute word for the script she had read, giving her the foreknowledge of what was to take place in the future.

Topher's frown due to his suspicion had now transformed into a subtle contemplative expression as he tried to make sense of what she was saying right now.

Even in the past, she had mentioned that the nightmare was the reason she had been so disheveled when she hurried to the Tanner estate.

Now she had revealed that she had experienced such dreams ever since she and Marquess Samed discussed the lesson of the past plagues.

Therefore, even if he did not wish to believe her entirely, he found no other plausible explanation for her actions in the past.

'How can you prove your claims?' He narrowed his eyes as he tossed this question before her.

He needed to investigate the truth behind her words and thus gazed at her with an unwavering expression as he waited to see how she would react next.