Chapter 646 - King Ophire's Stance

"Hmm…" The King's voice diverted their attention from the pitiful child who sat with her chin touching her chest.

"Miss St. Claire is right." He accepted whatever it was that she had just said.

While all eyes were on him, he saw that the little girl had also raised her chin just a little to sneak a peek at him.

"This was also why I chose to keep matters a secret until I found an opportune moment to reveal the truth." He declared why he had let his ministers know about it today.

Old Man Carter and the other two ministers with him nodded after giving it some thought.

In the past, when the ministers had all heard Marquess Samed's proposal for the policies, there was zero opposition to what he had said.

However, that outcome would have been different if they knew that the true contributor to the policies was a little girl.

Though the suggestions were right and helpful, some of them might have objected to it just because it was from a child.

Therefore, the King's words now made sense to them.

It was because of Marquess Samed's name being involved that they did not object much to the suggestions and even were on board with it after making sure that they were truly for the betterment of their Kingdom.

They had misunderstood who their benefactor was but now that fact had been made clear to them.

However, even after seeing how effective those suggestions had been during the time of the plague, here sat a few noble men and women who were disgruntled that they came from a little girl.

This made Old man Carter shake his head at their ingratitude which would be the downfall of them.

While many had different thoughts in their minds, a certain young girl had now raised her head as she stared at the man seated at a different table.

Yvonne could not believe what the King had just said with such a confident look on his face.

'I just came up with that excuse and you were already aware of it?' She sneered at the man who she now knew was an excellent liar.

However, she was failing to see that she too had lied just now and was mad that the King had gotten on board with her lie and even strengthened it with his own words.

Her narrowed amethyst eyes collided with the King's sparkling blue ones.

He could see the animosity in them which only further amused him.

'So you think only you can lie?' He shook his head at her naive mind before looking away.

Right now was not the time to deal with her as he had a room full of confused nobles to pacify.

"My dear friend, answer my question." He requested the one who sat on his right.

Duke Maldock Brodie, a close friend of the King, nodded immediately as he would do anything for his King.

"Regardless of who gave those suggestions… What are your thoughts about them?" He interrogated, the same as what Marquess Kiron had asked earlier which the Duke had not yet answered.

Duke Brodie had instead questioned Yvonne which had led them to where they were right now.

However, he could not object to what the King said and could only give out his truthful opinion on the suggestions that had been made before them on that fateful day in the past.

"They were precise, targeting the issues which had been pointed out and also were proven to be useful during the time of the plague." He gave out his final verdict which was a known fact to almost everyone present here.

They had no issues with the suggestions but were miffed that they had come from a girl.

Their earlier belief of their benefactor being the Marquess made them unable and unwilling to accept that such a little girl could come up with these brilliant ideas.

To them, girls were supposed to talk about dresses, desserts, and other girls.

These were the topics they needed to be well versed in and not the matters related to the welfare of the Kingdom.

Thus they had been annoyed to hear the truth behind the identity of their benefactor.

"As Maldock said, the suggestions were a great aid during the plague and could be said to have saved enough lives." King Ophire proclaimed in a loud voice.

The soft murmurs among them came to a halt as they all looked at the King.

King Ophire had not been willing to get involved too much but he also wished to make his stance known in this matter.

"As long as you have the capability to do something good for the sake of this Kingdom, I, as the King, will be willing to support you." His words echoed in their ears as his deep blue eyes swept across them to scan the room.

He wasn't particularly stating that he was standing with Yvonne, but with any such person who could be of help to the Kingdom and make it a better place for them to stay in.

"So if a helpful suggestion comes from a little girl, the King will not turn a blind eye and a deaf ear to it." He announced and there was firm conviction in this tone.

Their objection wasn't going to shake him from his ways and this was something they needed to realize.

'The sooner the better.' He added in his heart but decided to keep it a secret for now.

"For the good of this great Kingdom." He concluded his monologue with a reminder that everything he had done was for this great land that they all lived in.

Marquess Samed stared at the man with worship brimming in his eyes as this was the kind of attitude that would help them advance into a new age.

An age where women weren't seen as lesser beings but as equals.

Yvonne could not help but be impressed with his speech as it was a step in the right direction.

However, she was still not pleased with his decision to use her as an example for this task.

'But I have no choice right now.' She sighed as there was no going back from here.

Seeing that the room had fallen into silence, the King wondered if he had gone too far in his speech but at the same time, he would not change a word that he had said until now.

He stood by his words and hoped that they might change and stand by him from here onwards.

His eyes then landed on his good friend who was one among those men who strongly believed that women were not supposed to meddle in important decisions.

Duke Brodie had always known that their King had strange ideals which contradicted what they had been following in Rosenhyde for generations now.

He had been taught this way by his father and this was what he had been following all along.

However, today, hearing that the child from the St. Claire's family was the one who had come up with those brilliant ideas was making his thoughts waver as well.

He was still not entirely accepting of the notion of women being equal to men but felt that what the King said just earlier made sense.

'So it doesn't matter who gives a suggestion or advice as long as it is a good one?' He mulled over the point that his mind had grasped.

The more he thought of it in this way, the more he felt that there was nothing wrong with it.

Thus looking towards his King, Duke Brodie gave him a nod of understanding.

"Your Majesty is right in saying so." He accepted what the King had said.

King Ophire was left wide-eyed at this statement as he had expected to receive much more resistance from his friend.

However, this was in his favor so he did not question it any further and nodded with him.

'At least he grasped the essence of what I had said.' He was happy with the tiny win he had obtained today.

The journey to changing the views of his citizens was a long and arduous one but not one that was impossible.

As long as they were willing to accept and grasp just this much today, he would work hard to help enlighten them in the same way.

'With their assistance, I can achieve this goal!' King Ophire smiled at his friend before his eyes fell on the others present.