Chapter 44 - Pie Boy?

"Why do we need to enter through the back gate like some common thief?" The tall boy with flaming red hair asked as he pushed a low hanging branch away from his face.

Right now, two young boys were making their way from the back gate of the Kiron household towards the area of the tea party.

The thick trees and thorny bushes around them were making it hard for them to move forward but the other boy did not make a sound as he stepped ahead.

"Stop whining, Topher. Just think of this as endurance training." The boy smacked his friend on the shoulder and strode ahead.

Topher Tanner scoffed as he stared at his friend's back and began following after him.

'What endurance training? You just wanted to sneak away from your lessons but you don't want anyone to know that you are here!' He rolled his eyes in disdain.

This friend of his loved to sneak out and go to new places because he never was allowed to go out on his own. 

'Speak about overprotectiveness!' He shook his head when he thought of his friend's family members.

By now, this friend of his had mastered the art of stealthily venturing into unknown territories.

One such territory was today's tea party at the Kiron Mansion.

The Tanner family was officially invited to the party and it wouldn't have caused any harm if he had brought a friend along.

However, this easy way out was rejected without a second thought and like always they had to take the more adventurous way.

'Adventurous for him always ends up as extra work for me.' Topher shook his head and clicked his tongue.

Topher happily followed behind the other boy who was shorter by quite a few inches.

But the person walking ahead of him had abruptly stopped in his tracks which made Topher almost crash into his back.

"What are you trying to do!?" He berated furiously after steadying himself.

"Shh…!" 

The other boy covered Topher's mouth and dragged him to hide behind a tree.

"What? Are we under attack?" The knightly part of his brain had instantly activated and he went into a defensive stance.

"Shut up! They will hear us!" The boy glared at Topher and then peeped around the tree in a certain direction.

Curious to see what it was, Topher too peeped his head out and looked in the same direction to inspect what exactly had made this guy react in such a suspicious way.

When he turned around, he noticed a small group of girls, about seven of them, walking along the path which was just a short distance away from where they were hiding right now.

"It's just a few little girls going somewhere. What about it?" He couldn't understand what was so interesting about watching the movement of these little girls.

His friend, however, did not answer and only stared at one particular girl. 

The one who was walking at the very end and seemed to be uninterested in what they were talking about.

'I can't believe that our paths crossed each other once again.' The young boy smiled as he stared at the little girl as she aimlessly followed the group.

Topher alternated between the violet haired girl and his friend.

'Did I just discover something fun?' His eyes sparkled as he thought of the possibility of his friend showing interest in that child.

'She is pretty. They would look good together.' He rubbed his chin in contemplation and then nodded.

He imagined the brown-haired boy standing next to the petite yet chubby violet haired girl and was satisfied with the image that his mind had come up with.

The satisfaction he felt was short-lived because his ears perked up when they heard the names of the Royal family that were mentioned.

As the girls moved ahead, so did Topher and his friend. 

While they were on the cleared path that led to the pond, the boys were hidden behind the trees and not once did they make their presence known.

He watched as his friend swiftly ran ahead and hid behind another tree.

'That is not the way to the tea party.' Topher sighed when he noticed that his friend was secretly following after the group.

As they continued this stalking situation, Topher heard the conversation move from the princess's education to her new playmate then it shifted to the prince and his godly looks.

"Tsk… Prince Fritzen surely has a large number of followers. Especially in that age group." He chuckled and pointed at the group of girls who were waddling their way along the path.

"Don't disrespect the Royal family." His friend hissed which made Topher cover his hand over his mouth.

While the boy was glaring at Topher, they noticed a hush silence for a few seconds.

Turning their gaze back to the children, they noticed how the violet haired girl at the end was now being glared at by the others.

Topher's eyes narrowed when he saw how three of them had stepped forward and haughtily questioned the smallest in the group.

If there was something that irked Topher the most then it would be people who used their status to step on someone else's dignity.

While he was frowning, the boy next to him was concentrating on their conversation.

"Playmate?" The brown-haired boy whispered when he heard what one of them had just yelled out.

The loudest voice surprisingly came from the girl who had been the most silent until now.

Topher watched as she questioned the other girl using his uncle, Sullivan Samed as the shield.

'This man really knows how to cause troubles!' Both of them had the exact same thought.

When they kept questioning her about this matter, Topher could no longer hold himself still.

"Tsk tsk tsk… The proud daughters of nobility and this is how you behave in private?" The words just escaped his mouth before he had even realized it.

The violet-haired girl was the first to notice his presence, so it was of no use to stay hidden any longer.

He slowly stepped out of the shadows and walked in their direction with a mocking smile on his face.

His friend facepalmed because now he too had to step out along with him but for some reason, he was looking forward to it.

The moment both of their faces were seen, multiple gasps were heard from the little girls.

"Topher sama!" Almost all the girls instantly bowed to curtsy him except for one.

The one who had not bothered noticing him was none other than the violet-haired girl who was now glaring daggers at his best friend's face.

Her eyes were narrowed and her face was scrunched up as though she had just swallowed something very bitter.

"Pie boy!" Though no sound came out of her mouth, the boys had effortlessly read the movement of her lips.