Chapter 401 - A Lost Puppy

The little boy shut his eyes tight as a coping mechanism to shield him from the imminent pain from the punch that he was bestowed.

However, even after a few seconds of waiting for the throbbing pain to arise from his nose and cheek, he felt nothing at all.

Instead of his painful whimper that he was ready to let out, he heard a groan coming from the opposite direction.

Peeking through half-opened eyelids, what he saw made him release the breath that he had been holding until now.

Standing before him was the same boy who had tried to strike him earlier but unlike the haughty look he had before, now he appeared to be in great pain.

Everyone present here turned their eyes to the cause of this pain and was surprised to see who it was.

The little boy too had his eyes fixed on the newcomer and his hand which was holding the bully's fist tight to block the attack that was aimed at him.

Deep blue hair with similar-colored eyes were staring at the chubby boy who had made the first move to strike the little boy.

"Y-young Master Howard?" One of them blurted in shock that they had met this boy here.

Howard did not acknowledge them but continued to look at the boy who was trying to escape out of his hold.

'You dare to strike someone weaker then you should be brave enough to be struck as well.' He sneered while maintaining that tight grip over the bully's hand.

Every one of these four boys attended the same academy so they were well aware of just who this Young Master Howard was.

This boy in the third year at the Academy was a skilled swordsman and an even better model student in class.

Among the four, two were of the same age as Howard while two were older and in a higher grade than him.

However, he did not hesitate as he held onto the older boy's fist to stop him from attacking the one who appeared to be the youngest and the weakest of them all.

"Do you not know where you are?" Howard spat out in a low authoritative voice.

The boys looked around at once and gulped in nervousness.

His words brought reason back into their minds as causing a scene in the presence of Royalty would get them in trouble and severely punished by their father's if they were to catch wind about this matter.

"Young Master Howard, we were just trying to teach him a lesson…" A boy whom Howard had recognized as his classmate muttered in his defense.

This statement made Howard raise his eyebrow as he tightened his grip over that fist in his hand before letting go of it.

The older chubby boy held his wounded wrist which hurt after being released from that vice grip.

As Howard had already undergone his Awakening and trained rigorously, he was much stronger than all of them present here.

This fact, even the boys were aware of. Hence they were trying to avoid conflict as soon as he made an appearance.

"Teach this little one a lesson about what?" Howard interrogated while languidly staring at them.

The little boy sniffled when he realized that the new boy had come to save him instead of targeting him like the rest.

"Brother Howard, he accused us of tripping him when he fell on his own and even acted arrogantly after Brother Zimon pitied him and helped him." Another spoke up in a self-righteous tone.

Howard recognized who this Brother Zimon was, the son of Marquess Yona, Cecily Yona's older brother but he did not comment on what he had heard.

They had no contact with each other as Zimon Yona was two years older and that booy had never shown interest in anything athletic which meant that he was not worthy of Howard's attention.

Instead, he looked at the little boy who shook his head in vehement disagreement.

"You have something to say?" Howard questioned and the boy nodded shyly as he did have something to say in his defense.

Having been given a chance to speak up, the little boy did not back down.

"I am not clumsy to fall without someone tripping me!" He retorted as he was certain that he felt someone's leg trip him over.

If it wasn't that other boy named Zimon who had helped him up and chided these boys then he would have felt embarrassed after that incident.

However, even after he had let them go without pursuing that incident, those boys had come back to find fault with him.

Since Howard did not know what the truth was, he decided not to interfere in this matter altogether.

"You…" He turned towards the four boys who had ganged up on one little boy.

The boys stiffened after sensing his stern eyes.

"We are taught to protect others with our strength and not use it to bully the weak. Remember those words if you want me to be lenient with you when we spar during training." He succeeded in warning them with a few simple words.

The boys all knew that the hierarchy in swordsmanship among the younger pupils in the Royal Academy was being dominated by this very boy, Howard St. Claire.

So they nodded in eager admittance even when they were indignant at what they had to face because of that other boy.

Having dealt with these little hooligans, Howard turned towards the other boy who was rubbing his eyes until they turned red.

At a single glance, he could discern that the little boy had cried while they were speaking but he chose to stay mum about it.

"You, come along with me. We will look for your father." He ordered and gestured for him to make a move.

If this boy was left here then he might get bullied again so Howard chose to escort him to his father's side.

The little boy was stunned for a moment but soon nodded in acceptance.

The four boys could only watch as Howard turned around and began to stride away with this little one following him like a lost puppy.

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From the upstairs balcony, Princes Fritzen and Draco had witnessed this entire scene and were impressed with how Howard had handled the situation without letting it get out of control.

While Draco sighed that there was no blood shed on this auspicious occasion to taint it, Fritzen had other thoughts in his mind.

'Just earlier… That stare!' He narrowed his eyes when two faces were now coinciding with each other in his mind.

Earlier, when he had noticed Howard with Topher and then again when he came forward to break up the fight, there was something that Prince Fritzen had discovered.

The resemblance between this boy and the girl who had saved him from drowning in the stream back in the St. Claire fief was uncanny.

'He is the son of Earl St. Claire…' He began assembling the pieces of the puzzle with ease this time.

When he noticed the boy coming in with Earl Rutherford St. Claire today, he was finally aware of his identity.

This information put together with the location where he had first met that foul-mouthed girl and also the resemblance the two shared was confirming something in his mind.

'That girl who saved me was his little sister!' He declared with conviction as all evidence pointed in its direction now.

His eyes narrowed and he gritted his teeth when he recalled how she had shamed him for his weight and also called him a pig.

'So her name is Yvonne St. Claire, huh?' He sneered with a victorious glint in his eyes that he had finally identified the one who had dared to humiliate him in that way.

Draco had been focusing on the boy who was taking the little one away from the group of bullies when he noticed a strange aura arising next to him.

Turning in his nephew's direction, he caught sight of where he was looking and also the gloomy look in his eyes.

'Did he figure it out?' He wondered and the answer was already right before his eyes.

Fritzen's clenched fists and his grave expression were enough to confirm that his speculation was right.

"Did you already know that it was her?" The young Prince questioned without looking at his elder.

His uncle was smarter than him so it was only natural that he had known about this for longer yet he had to confirm it.

Draco did not conceal the truth and gave him a hum in answer.

"So why did you hide it from me?" Fritzen questioned again as he had been desperate to know who that girl was but his uncle had not aided him even after knowing her true identity.

Draco mulled over why he had done so?

Why had he protected that girl whom he had met for the first time from his nephew's hot-headed temper?

"Do you wish to repay a favor with ill will, Frit?" He retorted with a question of his own when he could not come up with a reasonable response for his nephew's query.

Prince Fritzen finally turned towards his uncle and looked into his emerald eyes.

The older Prince could sense turmoil in Fritzen's eyes which soon faded.

"A lesson needs to be taught no matter what, Uncle." He declared as he averted his eyes to gaze at the crowd below.

Draco did not persuade him but remained silent as he had some introspection to do.