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nIn the blink of an eye, three months had passed since the day Yvonne had taken a day's rest to recover from the sudden and unexpected fever that had afflicted her.

nEverything went back to its normal routine back in the St. Claire household.

nYvonne's classes began the next day and she paid attention to everything that was being taught to her.

nShe diligently practiced the Piano each day in hopes of completing her classes with Governess Lester.

nHer training with Captain Desmo had been progressing at full speed and she was now allowed to use her sword even in his absence.

nAlong with sword training, the Captain had begun taking special classes for the little girl to control and improve the powers that her etcher possessed.

nThings were also looking better for the relationship between the two siblings.

nOver the course of three months, Howard returned home for a meager seven times.

nHe made it a point to return at least twice a month to keep the promise he had made to his mother and sister the time they had come to visit him at the Serenity Haven Inn.

nThe little girl was still in the dark about the conversation the Earl had with Howard and was also unaware of the resolution he had made to become the heir, to keep her safe.

nYvonne was still under the impression that there was a lot of time to make any final decisions and hence did not probe him about what he had determined.

nRaylene, too, had made considerable improvements in the past three months.

nShe ran the household with a stern hand but was never cruel to her servants.

nOnce bitten, twice shy.

nThis was her motto now as she made sure that every servant working for them had no ulterior motives which might hurt them and this household alike.

nOver time, she began mingling with her two new maids but maintained that respectful distance from them to ensure that her kindness wasn't taken advantage of like in the past.

nJust like she had grown a lot over time, the progress of the changes that Rutherford had made in his fief had also seen considerable growth.

nFor the first two months, the Capital was hit with massive rains, announcing the arrival of the monsoon season in Rosenhyde.

nBut as the season of rains came to an end, the work which had been held up went back to its high pace.

nAt the end of the three months, most of the suggestions that Yvonne had given to her father had already been implemented.

nThe Earl had visited his fief at the end of last week for the objective of the completion of the most difficult and time-consuming suggestion that she had given.

nThe construction of a third clinic had taken place successfully and the Earl was the one who had inaugurated the new clinic which could serve their citizens better.

nThe infrastructure was huge and could accommodate at least 100 patients at once, making it comparable to the hospitals under the control of the Rosenhyde Royal family.

nMr. Toone had also done a stellar job by recruiting promising young physicians to work at this clinic.

nThe young physicians were ecstatic at the good pay and the new workplace they were promised and did not hesitate to join this new endeavor.

nFrom being the family physician of the St. Claire's family, Mr. Toone was now appointed as the overseer of the three major clinics that operated in their fief.

nHis talents and his work experience along with his ethics made him the best candidate for this position.

nYvonne's idea of recycling waste and even teaching their citizens of better hygiene conditions was also well received by their people.

nAt first, the recycling concept was hard for many to understand and follow but when Yvonne's marketing strategy was used, there was a drastic change in this.

nAccording to the little girl's advice, the word was spread to the people about its advantages but the most compelling reason why this scheme was adopted successfully was the women in their fief.

nWhen the women heard about how they could contribute to income generation to aid their family's financial condition by making tiny changes to their daily habits, they did not let this opportunity go to waste.

nThe credit for the success of her recycling plan could be given to these women who often stayed at home and took care of their family from home.

nThese women were now given a chance to earn money, even if it was just a tiny amount every other day.

nThey grasped this opportunity they had been given by the Earl and were grateful for the same.

nNot only had Yvonne's recycling plan cut the cost of the manufacturing of the milk bottles, but it had also aided in the reduction of the prices of these daily commodities all while letting them earn a little more by returning these bottles to the vendors in good conditions.

nThus, the condition of living and the overall health of the people of the St. Claire fief was improving vastly due to these tiny efforts they made each day.

nIt did not take long for this news to be spread throughout the land, that the St. Claire fief which was under the control of the richest man in the land was flourishing more and more.

nEven the Royal Palace was not spared as this news had reached them as well.

nRight now, Rutherford was sitting in his office and reading a certain invitation that had reached his Estate.

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"So the King wants to invite me over for a Parlez.

" The man muttered to himself as he was alone in this room.

nThe envelope he had received had the seal of the Rosenhyde Royal family which every single child of this Kingdom was well acquainted with.

nThough the scroll in his hand was an invitation for Rutherford to enter the Palace, the words at the end could be interpreted as a summon for a private Parlez with King Ophire.

nThis was predictable considering how much attention he and his fief had been receiving especially since last week after he had returned from his fief.

nThe news of the inauguration of his new clinic had reached many noblemen's ears and they wished to know why he was wasting his hard-earned money by constructing a clinic when the King was also doing the same.

nThe suggestions that Marquess Samed had given to King Ophire after his discussion with his pupil were also being implemented alongside what Rutherford had been accomplishing in his fief.

nAfter intensive meetings between the King and his council of Ministers, the decision of building hospitals was sanctioned.

nWhen the citizens heard of the concern their King had for his peoples' wellbeing, his popularity increased along with their love and respect for him.

nThere were three major hospitals already running under the management of the Royal family.

nThey were situated in the Capital, Amarthea in the North and the fiefs of Carter at the Center and Wescott in the South of Rosenhyde.

nAs per the little girl's suggestion, two new hospitals were authorized to be built under the orders of the King.

nThese would be in the fiefs of Vamos in the East and Mikren in the West.

nThe new locations of the hospitals were chosen in such a way that they would be equidistant from the three that were already running.

nThus, in each direction of the Kingdom, one major hospital would be present soon enough.

nThey were still under construction due to their vast size and would take much longer to be finished.

nThough the construction of these new hospitals had begun after the Earl's decision to construct a clinic in his fief, the people declared that what he had done was a waste of precious money.

nThey scoffed at him for being foolish as the King was already spending his money to build these two huge hospitals.

nYet, Rutherford ignored their snobbish words and continued as per his plans.

nNow his fief had three clinics solely for his citizens and the King would soon have five functioning hospitals for everyone in the Kingdom.

nThis was the cause for the Earl to receive a summon from the King to meet him after two weeks.

nThe date of the Parlez was not a simple one but held high importance for the people of this Kingdom.

nHence, the Earl decided to start preparing for it from this very day.

nAfter all, the date on which he had been summoned to the Palace was the Birthday of their King, and numerous preparations needed to be made before he could enter the Palace on that day.

nPlacing the invitation safely in his drawer, Rutherford pondered about what might happen during this meeting with the King which would be here in no time.

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