Chapter 521 - Progress
Once lunch had come to an end, Yvonne proposed that her brother would accompany her to the library where they could read some books to get his mind off what had been troubling him.
However, this did not seem to work as the entire time they spent in the library, Howard appeared to be lost in his thoughts.
Though he was spending time with his sister, he was dazed as he stared at the books before him.
'Let's leave him be for the time being.' The little girl decided to leave him alone with his thoughts.
There was not much that they could do at this moment to know more about the situation in the Jorbin fief which might ease his worries.
After all, traveling down there would be ill-advised keeping in mind the current situation.
They would be putting the people sent to the south at risk of contracting the same disease and Yvonne was sure that her father would not do anything that might harm his men.
Therefore, all they could do right now was to wait until there was any word about the Jorbins in the Capital which might reach them as well.
Thus, Yvonne left Howard alone so that he might spend time alone with his thoughts and did not disturb him for the rest of the day.
The very next morning, when the little girl got dressed to train in the new ground prepared for them, she found that her elder brother was already there.
"Good morning, Brother." She chirped with a smile but all she got in return was a nod in acceptance of her greeting.
Howard's face was pale and his eyes were sunken, indicating that he had not slept well last night.
This made Yvonne sigh as she picked up the wooden sword used for practicing and stood before him.
With her swift movements, she managed to get Howard to pay attention to what was happening before him.
He dodged and evaded her attacks before swinging his sword right back at her.
The little girl smirked when she found him returning to his usual state as he sparred with her and tried his best to not get hit by her sword.
This continued for over fifteen minutes before they called it a tie and stopped to catch their breaths.
They had improved much over the last few months and the advancement in their skills was apparent in their swift moves and their precise attacks.
Finally, Howard no longer appeared listless and had a look of vigor back on his face.
With this, the little girl knew what she had to do to get his mind off his troubles and let him enjoy his vacation with the rest of the family.
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While Howard and Yvonne went back to training for a couple more hours, Earl St. Claire was seated inside the office in the Summer estate as he looked over the files that needed his attention.
He had made many changes in this fief over the last two years and most of them were upon the suggestions of his daughter.
Now as he looked over the progress of those suggestions that he had implemented and also how they were received by his citizens, a smile bloomed over his usually stoic face.
The reusing and recycling of milk bottles was a huge hit and every household was using it to gain a small return on every purchase of milk bottles which was a necessity for them.
The women in their fief were now a contributor to the income earned, resulting in the overall income of their citizens being increased even if it was just by a little.
Not to mention that the people in his fief were beginning to understand the importance of recycling and were applying it to other items which they felt could be reused instead of throwing them away.
The next most prominent change that he had observed was the orders to keep their surroundings safe and clean.
Even before the King had sent the Opera groups to teach the commoners about hygiene, Rutherford had already done so in his fief after listening to Yvonne's ideas.
Thus, when the opera group had come to their fief, more than half the population was already following those steps to keep themselves safe from common illnesses.
The soaps from CLOVER were also a grand success in their fief as it was one of the first fiefs to receive this amenity.
The Valentes and St. Claires had the fortune of gaining the products before they could be sold to the others.
Therefore, right now, every household in the St. Claire fief, regardless of their financial conditions, were enjoying the availability of soaps that had become a mandate after the King's decree.
There were many other such ideas which his child had given and he had implemented after noticing its practicality.
As Rutherford continued to read through the reports that the Old Butler maintained, he nodded in appreciation before moving to the next one.
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Inside her room, Raylene was seated before a desk as she played with the pen in her hand.
Twirling it around her fingers, she was lost in thought as she stared at the empty sheet of paper placed on the desk before her.
It took her a while before she finally found the words she wished to write on the paper.
Elegant and long strokes soon appeared on the paper as Raylene's hand holding the pen moved over it.
Within minutes, a short letter had been drafted after which she folded it and placed it inside an envelope.
Once she had sealed the envelope, the Countess rose from her seat and headed outside.
Back inside his office, Rutherford was focusing on the reports when he heard a knock on the door.
Glancing up, he heard Butler Limo announcing that it was his lovely wife who had come to visit him.
"Come in." He answered in a loud voice which was followed by the sound of the door being pushed open.
Rutherford's face softened at the sight of his wife as he rose from his seat.
The tall man walked towards his wife and holding her hand, led her to the couch where they took a seat.
"Ruthy, I have a favor to ask," Raylene muttered once they were seated next to each other.
Chuckling at her words, the husband nodded his head.
"Anything you would like, my Ray." He agreed without even waiting to hear what she had come here for.
This attitude of blind belief and acceptance made Raylene blush as she smiled at him.
"Can you ask your guards to deliver a letter for me?" She inquired while bringing out the letter that she had drafted and sealed into an envelope.
Rutherford accepted the envelope and found a familiar name written on it.
"Ray, you could have ordered them to do so yourself." He retorted after reading the name of the letter's receiver.
What he had just said implied that she had just as much right to order his secret guards and send them over to run errands for her.
She did not have to seek his permission for a minor task like this one.
Raylene was surprised as this was not something women in their Kingdom were allowed to do.
The authority to order the people serving inside their household was given to the Madam of the family.
However, these secret guards were men who followed the Master and hence had no reason to accept her orders.
Yet now her husband was telling her that she need not come and ask permission for something so small.
Rutherford was giving her the right to move his secret guards, which was a big responsibility he was handing over to his wife.
Ever since he had visited the Valente fief and learned about his deceased mother-in-law, Hannah Valente, he realized that women were more strong and capable than what others assumed them to be.
His daughter was proof that she was not lower than any other boy her age.
She was capable of pulling over feats that some grown men had failed to accomplish all their lives.
He had also seen that his wife whom he had thought to be meek and soft-hearted all along was also capable of being firm.
She wasn't as fragile as she was before and was growing bolder, more competent with her tasks as the Countess.
She was changing his view of her which only made him fall deeper in love with her.
Thus, today, he was sure that she would also be able to command his secret guards and let them run whatever errands she wished for them to carry out.
There was no need to approach him to be the middleman between them as she now had the right to do it all by herself.
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