Chapter 391 - A Mere Earl's Daughter

Earlier, when the three young noble children left the tent to explore the place, none of the maids followed them so it was just the three.

At the center was Yvonne with the two older children on either side of her.

The little girl's eyes scanned the entire area, gauging the caliber of this traveling caravan named Ocular.

'Even the tents they pitched are luxurious.' She speculated that this group were dealers of high-end products to be able to afford such good quality tents.

However, her actions of constantly looking around were misinterpreted by the young boy who was strolling next to her.

"This entire area is guarded by Ocular's guards, Vonny so you do not have to worry." Taylor assured her with a vibrant smile.

'Even if something happens I am right here.' He did not disclose his innermost thoughts.

When Yvonne's confusion faded and she grasped why he had said that, she smiled and nodded at him that she understood what he had said.

'I may have learned how to defend myself but I cannot go against a fully-trained adult.' She was self-aware of her shortcomings.

She could not even defeat Howard so she did not have false pride and overestimate her skills to be comparable to those of an adult.

The three then began visiting the stalls one by one.

The nearest was a stall that sold different varieties of silks in various mesmerizing colors and the daughter of the Leopold family did not let go of this chance and chose whatever caught her eye.

"You can send the bill and the items to our tent." She stated while giving out the location of the tent where her mother was so that she might pay for it.

Since only wealthy and influential people could gain entrance here, this kind of service was common so the man tending to the stall hurried and sent away the items she had picked out to their respective tent.

"What about you, Vonny?" Taylor inquired while scanning the different silk cloths on display.

'What would I do with these?' Yvonne gave him a languid shake of her head to answer his query.

Though Taylor nodded his head, he had grievances buried deep in his heart.

'If only Vonny could embroider something for me on a silk handkerchief.' He wished and let out a sigh for having big dreams.

Tilting her head, the little girl wondered whether he had already gotten tired of walking as she had noticed his weary sigh.

Elna watched from the sidelines as she was once again being ignored and did not like this feeling at all.

For someone who was treated with great care and adoration from a young age, she disliked this lack of attention she was dealing with today.

"Shall we head to the next one?" She spoke up while maintaining her stoic face as though she was not affected by being treated this way.

Taylor did not know this girl who was the same age as him but he was not rude to her as this would go against the teachings he had received.

Therefore, he nodded and gestured for her to walk along with them as they moved ahead.

The three then visited the toy store where Taylor bought a beautiful doll with amethyst eyes and turned towards the girl who stood with him.

"This is for you." He announced, surprising the girls who were with him.

The doll had fair skin and wide amethyst eyes which resembled Yvonne's.

'I…' The little girl's eye twitched when she was handed the doll but looking at the boy's excited face, she did not have the heart to reject it.

"Thank you, Master Taylor. I'd feel burdened if I accept this without offering something in return." She proposed as taking this from a child would go against her principles.

'So cute!' The stall keeper and Taylor had the same thought after looking at the pretty girl hugging the doll.

However, hearing her words, a frown formed on his face as this sounded much like a business transaction and unlike his heartfelt gift to her.

But soon a playful smile appeared which made Yvonne suspicious of what he might have in mind.

"Call me Brother!" Taylor declared with a wide and victorious grin.

'Vonny calling me Big brother as she does for that idiot...' He imagined how blissful it would be to be called her big brother.

'Just like I thought! He's up to no good!' The little girl choked when she heard his demand which she was extremely reluctant to give into.

"Here." She extended her hands, holding the doll out.

This caused Taylor's eyes to widen as he grasped what her actions meant.

"I was joking, Vonny! I won't take it back!" He shook his head in staunch refusal and took back the earlier demand.

'Being cold to him seems to work great in taming him.' Yvonne discerned as she had learned something new today.

At the side, Elna's eyes darkened, and was aghast at what she had just witnessed.

"Young Master Tanner, could you please find out where we can find some snacks?" Elna Leopold requested earnestly as she looked him straight in the eye.

Since she was being polite, Taylor did not feel the need to decline her request and nodded before walking towards a helper to ask for directions.

'But we just ate…' Yvonne frowned as she saw the boy stepping further away from them.

"Miss Yvonne." A voice coming from behind made her turn around, succeeding in bringing a frown to her face.

The sun was right in her eyes and the older girl now before her was looking down at her with a stern gaze.

Yvonne had to squint to be able to make out from the look on her face that she was unhappy about something.

"You should learn to behave, Miss Yvonne. One should always know their place." Elna uttered in a righteous tone while appearing to be a good elder, teaching the younger where they had gone wrong.

However, with a single look, Yvonne could decipher the thoughts in her head.

'Earlier, I had thought that we were similar because we had the same aloof personality…' She thought to herself while in a daze at what just happened.

Now, her thoughts had been proved wrong as Elna was not aloof before she was indifferent about her surroundings like Yvonne used to be.

Instead, her heart was filled with pride for being the daughter of a wealthy Marquess that she displayed no interest in everybody around her.

This discovery made Yvonne frown as her grip on the doll in her hands tightened.

'And to think that I compared my former self to the likes of her.' She scowled because she had never once looked down on people based on their status.

She gauged people based on their capabilities and not their social standings just like how her Grandpa and her father had taught her when she was a child.

This was also why she abhorred when people used their higher status to bully someone lower than them.

Elna had no clue about the scornful thoughts in the little girl's head and continued to teach her when she saw the doll in her hand.

"Sticking close to the Duke's son is not something that a mere Earl's daughter should do, much less even think of calling them with the prestigious title of 'Brother'." She leered at the shorter girl in an attempt to intimidate her.

Her cold voice would have made any other little girl cower in fear but sadly Yvonne was not just any little girl.

The last part of her sentence was sufficient for Yvonne to grasp why she had to listen to this self-righteous nonsense right now.

'So she is mad that Taylor wanted to change the way I addressed him?' She sneered at the hypocrisy.

If Yvonne had a lower status and was not worthy of calling Taylor her brother then was Elna who was also lower than him a better option for this?

"Miss Yvonne, look at how you are sweating! You should return to the tent if you are unwell." Elna's words snapped her out of her thoughts.

The earlier stern and cold face had morphed into one filled with concern which baffled Yvonne at how quickly she had changed her words and her tone.

"Vonny, are you alright?" Taylor's voice coming from behind along with his hastening footsteps made her realize why this change had occurred.

'You want to pretend like nothing happened just now?' Yvonne sneered as their little interaction had made her unhappy.

With her back still towards him, she tilted her head while glancing at the older girl before her.

Looking straight into Elna's eyes, her lips curved into a mesmerizing smile.

"Yes, BIG BROTHER TAYLOR. I am alright." She stressed on the way she addressed him while raising her brow at the girl who had dared to look down on her.

Elna's eyes widened at first but when the surprise faded, they narrowed dangerously.

'You aren't the only actress around here.' Yvonne sneered as a cold glint passed through her eyes before it faded away.

Returning to her usual angelic face, she scoffed before turning around and smiled at Taylor who had a concerned look on his face as he handed his handkerchief to her.

'Something so precious and he gave it to her like it was nothing…' She gritted her teeth at this blatant disregard for the rules of their society.

Elna's hands gripped and twisted her dress while watching the boy's anxiety fade as the little girl used his handkerchief, the one which had his family's emblem embroidered on it.

'I will not let you get away with this, Yvonne St. Claire!' She declared as she stood in absolute silence, seething in anger at the little girl's disobedience.