Chapter 449 - Greetings, Brother

The shock and unwillingness on Yvonne's face were clear even for the King to see as she had not attempted to conceal these emotions in the first place.

"I think that the two of you would make a great pair." King Ophire added to coax her which was already a great mercy he had shown her.

'Well, you are wrong!' Yvonne's mind was blazing after hearing the King's words but there was nothing that she could do.

The Ruler's decree was considered as an untouchable pact that could never be taken back and she was well aware of this truth.

Until now, she had been hoping that Grand Duke Roschester, who was surely in love with that woman standing at the side, would come to her aid in protesting against this union.

However, her assumptions had been in vain as that man had accepted the King's decree without any hesitation.

Everyone present in the Throne room was watching her intently, waiting to see what she might do next.

Being trained under Governess Bloom, Yvonne managed to recollect her composure as she smiled at the King though it was not in the least bit genuine or from her heart.

"I express my gratitude to the King." She uttered finally and took another bow once her words came to an end.

King Ophire nodded and the room was filled with applause and Yvonne knew very well who had initiated it.

Leering at the woman with fluffy brown hair, she pushed down the urge to speak her mind as this was not the right time or the place.

Soon after, she excused herself and exited the Throne room saying that she needed to inform her family about this matter.

However, before she left, she managed to shoot a deadly glare at the spineless weasel who had accepted the marriage proposal when he already had someone else in his heart.

The journey from the Palace back to the St. Claire estate wasn't long and Yvonne returned home in no time.

The moment she got down from the carriage with the help of a maid, she found two men waiting for her.

One, a tall man with a muscular build, having dark midnight blue hair while the other, a slightly shorter man whose hair resembled the blazing flames of a furnace.

"Greetings, brother." She wished the first man who replied with a short nod and did not speak another word.

The greeting sounded stiff and not something that one would give to a blood relative, much more, a sibling but this was common for them and his reply was also not out of the ordinary.

She was already used to this cold treatment she received from the man she called her brother, Howard, who had taken over the position of Earl after their parents moved back to their fief.

The siblings lived in this mansion alone but never spoke more than what was necessary.

There were numerous causes for the lack of love between them but the most probable cause was that they had grown apart from a very young age.

Turning her head to the other man, she saw the turmoil and hurt in his eyes but pretended not to see any of it.

"Greetings, Duke Tanner." She curtsied with a practiced smile that further troubled the anxious young man.

"How many times do I have to ask you to call me by my name, Vonny?" Duke Tanner sighed as he rubbed his forehead.

Hearing these words, Howard frowned as it was not wise to let unmarried men and women address each other in such a casual manner.

Not to mention that one was of a higher status than the other which would make it unacceptable no matter which way one sees it.

"I would not be comfortable to do so, Master Topher." Yvonne retorted while changing the way she addressed him.

Seeing that she was willing to compromise here and not call him by just his title which made him feel like a stranger, Topher Tanner, the current Duke Tanner, smiled as he gave up trying to make her call him by just his name.

Though soon that smile faded when he thought of the reason why he had come over here.

"We heard about what happened." He spoke and watched her expressions only to find that they soured in the next instant.

Yvonne was not surprised that news about the King's decree had spread outside already.

After all, it was the King's intention to let everyone know about this so that she might not back down from it.

Yvonne glanced at her brother, hoping that he might know what her true thoughts were and try to help her.

Howard felt her gaze and shook his head at once, indicating that his hands were tied.

"The King's decree is absolute." He reminded her of the rules of this Kingdom and also glanced at his mentor and idol from the corner of his eyes.

Topher stood still without revealing any fluctuations on his face but the clever Earl had noticed his clenched fists already.

Yvonne lowered her head after this reminder and nodded in defeat before she passed them to enter the mansion.

Once in the privacy of her bedroom, she let out her frustrations on the man with whom her betrothal would be announced at her coming of age ceremony.

"Why should I marry the Grand Duke!?" She growled as she knew that no one could hear the words that she was uttering right now.

___

The vision Yvonne was witnessing while standing in the same position as before continued and changed to a different location.

Her body was as still as a statue and Demon was worried that something was wrong with her yet he made no move as he could sense her stable breathing, proving that she was only lost in deep thoughts.

It took a while before the little girl finally opened her eyes.

Her feet ached from standing without moving a muscle so not bothering about the forest bed, she sat down without a second thought.

Taking on a meditative pose, she pondered about everything she had witnessed just now and also compared it with what had taken place during the day.

'According to what I saw, that miserable Grand Duke did not object to the marriage that the King proposed between him and Adult Yvonne.' She gritted her teeth while recalling that incident.

If he had disagreed with his elder brother's words then the King who doted on his brother would have changed his orders.

'Yet that man… He agreed!' She scowled at how dumb he was.

His heart belonged to Hilda yet he was willing to marry someone else.

Thinking of this and recalling the script that she had read, Yvonne came up with a firm conclusion.

'To save Hilda from the Villainesses and to keep them under control, he chose to sacrifice himself and marry Adult Yvonne.' She was sure of this as it was also mentioned in the script.

Yvonne was considered the mastermind behind every scheme made against Hilda for the sake of her friends, Glennise and Princess Felicia.

Therefore, to stop the schemes, Yvonne St. Claire needed to be kept under check.

'What better way than to keep her under his thumb by using marriage as an excuse?' She sneered, deciphering his thoughts effortlessly.

The Grand Duke who was sacrificing his future for the sake of his lady love did not for once think about the Young Lady whom he was meant to marry.

The more Yvonne thought about the shameless actions that Grand Duke Draco Roschester committed in the name of love, the more her blood boiled.

The grass before her was pulled out ruthlessly while imagining that she was pulling out those gorgeous golden strands that she was seeing in her vision.

The vision which later showed the interaction between the St. Claire siblings caused her lips to pout and sadness took over her.

'Looks like in the original script, Howard and Yvonne never made up.' She recalled how they had conversed as though they were strangers and only spoke for the sake of formality.

The thought of the Big Brother who hovered around her these days not even speaking more than what was necessary brought a sense of gloom over her.

If that wasn't all, she recalled how she had seen Topher Tanner behave in such an amicable manner with her.

'So Topher Tanner liked Yvonne St. Claire.' The little girl declared her findings.

She was confident about this because Adult Yvonne in the vision was also conscious and aware of it.

The entire vision was like a movie she was watching on the screen while hearing Adult Yvonne's inner monologue.

Therefore, she was aware of what Yvonne's thoughts were during that incident.

She knew that Duke Topher Tanner had special feelings for her but Adult Yvonne never once looked at him in that way.

He was Howard's mentor, someone who had helped him out many times, and also a good friend as they had been close since their days in the Royal Academy.

At times she doubted that Topher had gotten close to Howard even after their Academy days for her sake yet she did not have any other thoughts about him.

To her, he was just someone her brother, Howard, was close to.

Thinking about the surprising discovery she had made in her vision, Yvonne snickered without remorse.

'Topher was not even friend-zoned!' She tittered as that poor man was 'Brother's friend'-zoned which was a step lower than the pitiable friend-zone.