Thrown Into A New World: Let The Punishment Begin!

Ever since Sept had met Demon on that day, it was as though something had changed in him.

Though he was still stingy with his words, he would come by the St. Claire estate every chance he got.

This continued for a few days where he used training with Howard as an excuse to visit the mansion but he would spend a lot of time gawking at Demon from afar.

Yvonne had noticed this abnormal behavior but did not know what was truly on his mind.

She also recalled what her etcher had said to her, making her wonder if Sept was eyeing her Demon which had caused her to be more vigilant whenever he was around.

'He won't be able to come around any longer.' She sighed while thinking of what was going on right now in their mansion.

Tomorrow was the reopening of the Royal Academy and everyone was busy helping the Young Master who would be leaving early this evening.

Since being on time for the first day was very important, Howard, and every other boy who was studying there needed to reach the Academy ahead of the scheduled time.

Therefore, most would make the trip to the Brodie fief where the Royal Academy was located one day before the date mentioned in the letters sent by the officials of the academy.

Even Howard, Taylor, and a few others would be following this same strategy to ensure that the first day was without any chaos.

Thus the entire household was preparing for Howard's departure and only Yvonne was sitting leisurely inside her room.

'What is your nephew up to?' She used Demon to form a mental link with someone she knew too well.

'My nephew? What did he do? Isn't he sleeping right now?' The answer came from the other side, belonging to a man whose invitation to visit his mansion she had been ignoring ever since she had returned to Amarthea.

Yvonne had been busy helping her cousins decorate the villa they had purchased for their stay in the Capital.

The twins had already moved into that villa after teasing Howard on the first day of their return.

However, there was a lot that needed to be done to turn that villa into a livable space for the two bachelors who had never stayed alone before.

Therefore, she had no time to visit Sevenz's mansion after returning to Amarthea but even when she was away, his nephew would pop up at the St. Claire mansion every chance he got.

Raylene treated him kindly and even pampered him when Sept arrived at their mansion as he was a friend of Howard.

However, Yvonne, even now, could feel that there was something suspicious with the boy who barely spoke but displayed excessive interest in her etcher.

Therefore, she inquired about it and when she heard Sevenz revealing that his nephew was sleeping right now, she knew why this was so.

After all, he had been in this estate until a while ago, training with Howard in the backyard where the stables were located.

The training grounds weren't anywhere close to this area but upon Sept's insistence, Howard would often go along with him to train in the open grazing fields.

'Why do you think he is so obsessed with Demon?' She questioned straight away, not concealing her suspicions from him.

Sevenz chuckled when he heard her skeptical tone before clicking his tongue at her.

'My dear Yvonne, once a bond is formed between an etcher and its etched, no force in this world can break it apart.' He explained to help her discard those absurd thoughts in her mind.

Though death was also a force to be reckoned with, he did not put this thought of his into words, letting her focus on what he had said earlier.

Yvonne, indeed, had been worried that Sept was interested in her Demon but hearing this caused her to sigh in relief.

'Then how do you explain his odd behavior, trying to get close to Demon all the time?' She interrogated again and her persistence revealed that she would not be satisfied until she received proper answers.

Sevenz did not reply right away but mumbled a single sentence after a few seconds.

'My nephew… He has a special set of skills.' He mentioned in a low voice but did not elaborate any further.

'If you want to know more then you will have to ask him yourself.' He washed his hands off this matter before cutting off the connection between their minds.

Yvonne scoffed at the man who had escaped without giving her the answers she was looking for then rolled her eyes.

'Master, Demon will be your etcher forever.' The horse who had been listening to this conversation declared once the connection with Sevenz had ended.

His words helped soothe her worried heart but her curiosity for Sept's actions these past few days did not lessen whatsoever.

Howard would be leaving for the Royal Academy soon so she wondered if Sept would show up when his excuse for arriving at this place would no longer be valid.

'Let's wait and see.' She sneered before heading out of her room to see how her brother's preparations were going on.

___

When the time for Howard to leave had arrived, he was being smothered in his mother's embrace.

Rutherford did not interfere while Yvonne giggled, looking at the red face of her elder brother.

The sounds of galloping that entered the Parlor through the window indicated that someone had arrived at the entrance of the mansion.

"Brother Taylor must have arrived." She announced as the boys had planned to head out together.

Howard sighed and hugged his mother back before she finally let him go.

"Vonny, take care of yourself when I'm not here." He wished after turning towards his sister.

He would be gone for the next six months and there was no scope of him returning throughout the duration of the first hectic year at the Academy.

There was too much to learn and too little time to learn it.

Therefore, they already prepared their hearts to be separated from each other for the next many months.

"You too, Big Brother. And don't fight too much with Brother Taylor." She added which made him grimace before nodding slowly, mumbling that he would give it a try.

Yvonne smiled at him then glanced at their mother who was putting on a brave face even when there were tears forming in her eyes.

Their father was already holding onto her so she turned to Jax who was behind her, gesturing to fetch something.

The young Butler hurriedly placed an exquisite-looking wooden box in her hand which she passed to her brother.

"A gift from Vonny." She revealed something she had kept hidden from him until now.

"Open it once you enter the Academy." She added just when he was about to take a peek at what was inside.

Being a good brother, Howard no longer tried to peek and handed it to a servant to place it in the carriage along with his other baggage.

Once this parting gift was given, it was time for him to depart.

The family accompanied him to the carriage waiting outside and found not just Taylor but even Lyon Jorbin there.

The boys greeted the Earl and Countess before turning towards the child.

"I'll miss you, Vonny." Taylor whimpered but did not dare to rush over and hug her when he noticed the Earl keeping a watchful eye on him.

"Take care, Miss Yvonne," Lyon added as well before nodding at her.

The two had already come to an understanding that they would not interfere with each other so Yvonne only nodded back at him.

Taking one last look at his family, Howard turned around and resolutely walked into the carriage with Taylor and Lyon following him soon after.

The family of three that remained waved at the carriage where the boys had sat while the second carriage was filled with their luggage for the next six months.

As soon as they were out of sight, Raylene stopped holding her tears in and broke down in her husband's arms.

The gentle husband rubbed her back while she sobbed in his arms.

"Shush, Ray. He'll be back before you even know it.." He coaxed her then glanced at his child and seeing her nod, he smiled at her before carrying his wife back into the mansion.