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nYvonne's keen eyes were observing the one standing before her and hence she had noticed how this person's shoulders flinched the moment she had uttered the name.

n'So I was right.' She exclaimed as her mind had not failed her.

nThe flinch she had witnessed, proved that she had hit the nail on the mark and her speculation was right.

nThe lady standing before her seemed too familiar to Yvonne earlier and when she had forced her brain to remember whether they had met each other in the past, she had found her answers.

nThe daughter of the gardener who worked in the Summer estate of their St. Claire fief had somehow transformed into the daughter of a Baron hailing from the South who had come here today to make her debut into nobility.

nShe did not know how this young girl had turned out to be someone of noble birth but she knew that she had not recognized the wrong person.

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"We meet again, Lady Hilda.

" Yvonne smiled and looked amicable while greeting the other person.

nShe also did not forget her manners and made sure to address her by using the proper title as she was now a lady of their noble society no matter what her past identity was.

nShe might be a noble now but she was the same person that Yvonne had been friends with during her childhood days.

nShe recalled how the two little girls would play in the garden behind their mansion but that had changed as this previously commoner friend of hers had disappeared along with her family after one summer.

nThey had promised to meet every summer and play together but the other girl had broken her promise and vanished from their estate and fief altogether.

nWhile Yvonne was reminiscing the pleasant yet short memories of the times they had spent together, she had not noticed the clenched fists of the other person.

nYvonne was happy to reunite with an old friend that she had expected to never meet again but the other person did not seem to feel the same way about her.

nThe daughter of the St. Claire family was often known to be a mastermind and cunning when it was needed; but in matters concerning friendship, she was still too naive and innocent.

nFriendship was the one thing she valued the most and she felt the same way towards the person she had met once again today.

nTherefore, she took a step toward the girl who was once close to her during their childhood.

nShe recalled that this young girl loved hugs so this time, she decided to take the first step and initiate the hug.

nHowever, her kind gesture was not seen the same way by many around them.

nThe crowd watching the show was waiting to see the closest friend of the Princess and Lady Glennise to avenge what had taken place today.

nThis lady was involved with the Prince and they were eager to see how Miss Yvonne would teach her a lesson.

nAfter all, it was common to see newcomers being bullied so they had expected the same to happen now as well.

nWhat happened next was more than enough to substantiate this thought in many of their minds.

nThis was because, the moment Yvonne had stepped forward in the direction of Miss Hilda, the other person had done the same but in the opposite direction.

nYvonne's step forward was countered by Hilda's step backward.

nThis made the Miss of the St. Claire's family frown and her displeasure was noticed by many.

nAs though Hilda had felt the same, she took another step back and in the next moment, the hall was filled with loud and exaggerated gasps.

nHow could they not gasp when one lady was standing high above and looking down at the other who had fallen to the ground with her eyes brimming with tears and her shoulders trembling?

nEveryone had seen how Miss Yvonne had taken the first step towards the other Miss who had been standing silently in a corner.

nThey could see that the person to initiate the conversation was also Miss Yvonne while the other remained silent throughout.

nThey had been waiting for a verbal confrontation but had never expected Miss Yvonne, who was called the 'cold flower' of high society to use violence on this special occasion.

nThe other lady had done no wrong yet she had been roughly pushed to the floor by Miss Yvonne who had come to avenge her friends.

nEveryone watching this sight had the same thoughts in their minds.

nHowever, the one at the center of the scandal was standing still with her eyes fixed on the lady who appeared like a wounded deer, fallen to the ground, waiting for someone to save her from the big bad wolf.

n'Did she trip over her gown?' Yvonne wondered, still worried for the childhood friend who had suffered a fall.

nShe could hear the accusing words coming from those around her but she was not bothered about that at this moment.

nIf Hilda had tripped then she should be helped up as in Yvonne's mind, this was a simple accident that could have happened to anyone who wasn't careful about where they stepped.

nTherefore, without another second's thought, the young miss stretched out her hand to help her old friend up.

nMuch to her surprise and even suspicion, the lady on the floor had flinched the moment Yvonne's hand had extended in her direction.

nThis caused her hand to pause for a second before it moved forward once again.

n*SLAP*

nThe echoing sound of a loud slap resonated in the large hall which had already quietened down to watch the show taking place.

nIf the gasps that erupted in the hall when the Lady had fallen were loud, then in comparison there was deadly silence that permeated through the hall at this moment.

nYvonne's widened eyes were fixed on her hand which had just been slapped away with great force.

nThe stinging pain was intense and the shock of being struck was immeasurable.

nHowever, what left her speechless was the person who had dared to act this way towards her.

nLooking up from her reddening hand, Yvonne's amethyst eyes which had now narrowed dangerously turned towards the one who had just assaulted her on this important occasion.

nThe two men who had stood before her were at the center of her glare which she did not care to hide.

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"What do you think that you are doing!?

" A loud roar echoed in the silent hall and the voice most certainly did not belong to her.

nThe man with bright blonde hair was helping the lady off the floor while glowering at Yvonne without concealing his disgust.

nThe older man who also had blonde hair stood a few steps away but he too had a frown on his face.

nOthers might not have seen much but he, the Grand Duke, had seen everything perfectly fine.

nWhen he had dragged his nephew away to the other corner, he was facing the direction where this incident had taken place and had seen everything right from the beginning.

nWhile he still had some doubts, he had never imagined that his nephew who was supposed to be the Crown Prince would be overwhelmed by his flaring emotions and take this step.

nYet even now, he did not interfere and only acted as a silent bystander, watching what was taking place.

nHowever, Yvonne wasn't interested to care about what they thought and instead had her eyes on the lady who was currently cowering in the arms of the Crown Prince.

nIf earlier she had been blinded by her desire to reunite with an old friend, now she had realized that she had fallen prey to a petty trick by someone who did not have good intentions towards her.

nShe was confident of this theory as when her eyes landed on Lady Hilda, the other person's body shivered as though she was fearing for her life.

nThis only made the Crown Prince rub her shoulders to calm her before glaring at the one who had caused this entire mess.

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"Explain yourself, Miss St. Claire!

" Prince Fritzen raised his voice once again which deepened her frown.

nEven the Grand Duke who was with them displayed signs of displeasure at his nephew's rude behavior but now, he did get a chance to speak up nor was his interference needed.

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"I did not think that the Prince would be so discourteous towards someone who was helping another up?

" Yvonne scoffed at the man while tilting her head.

nThe Earl's daughter was favored by the King due to her position as the Princess' playmate therefore, she did not worry about the consequences of her words and actions right now.

nOnce she was done speaking, the young girl raised her hand, revealing the bright red print on her hand which was the result of the Crown Prince's boorish actions just earlier.

nHe was the one who had slapped her hand away when all she did was stretch it out to help Lady Hilda.

nNow, that hand was already bruised which elicited gasps and murmurs from those around them.

nNo matter what had taken place, there was no necessity for the Prince to raise his hand on a fragile young girl and that was exactly what everyone was talking about after taking a look at the evidence of the Prince's crimes.

nPrince Fritzen grimaced at the sight of the red hand which had his palm's print after he had slapped it away to save Lady Hilda.

nAt that time, due to his anger, he had not realized that he had used greater force than what was needed.

nHowever, he was not willing to accept the entire blame for this incident.

nTherefore, he looked Miss Yvonne straight in the eye as he declared his stance in this matter.

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"You were about to hit her so I only did that to stop you.

" He accused the other girl and then glanced at the one cowering in his arms for confirmation.

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"Wasn't she?

" He inquired Lady Hilda in a gentle tone that had been absent when he was dealing with Miss St. Claire.

nYvonne's eyes landed on the person she had known during her childhood and waited to hear the answer straight from her mouth.

n'I will know whether everything that happened earlier was a misunderstanding or it was done on purpose.' She remained silent, awaiting the kind and friendly girl she once knew to speak up.

nShe did not know where everything had gone wrong today when all she wished to do was greet a familiar face she once knew.

nBut she was sure that she would gain some answers after taking a look at Lady Hilda's next actions.

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