'This is all your fault, you perverted bastard!' Rutherford leered at the one who had caused this entire mess.

Earl Blaise who was conversing with a certain Duke on the other side of the garden felt a sudden shiver running down his spine.

However, he shrugged it off and continued without paying much heed to it.

Back at their position, Rutherford focused his energy on trying to appease his wife and the two other men followed suit.

The others who were present at this tea party were alternating their gaze between the group of husbands fawning over their wives and the newcomer, Earl Blaise, and his family.

They did not know what had changed but the rest of the women were looking at these powerful men in amazement as they tried to appease and pacify their wives.

Among those watching, there was a man who was also following the progress of this show from a discreet corner.

'Brother Rutherford is still the same.' He snickered before looking away.

His eyes then fell on the new family who had entered after him and noticed that they were moving in his direction.

However, he knew that a man like Earl Blaise would not be coming here intending to greet him.

As he had predicted, his speculation was right as Earl Blaise's next location was a little further from where he stood.

The Yona and Leopold family were standing at a short distance from him and he had already understood that Earl Blaise must be heading over there to curry favor with them next.

But how could he let this opportunity of greeting this Earl go?

Therefore, just as Earl Blaise and his family were passing right before him, he called out to them.

"Greetings, Earl.

" He wished with an amicable smile on his face.

Earl Blaise had not noticed this person standing in this discreet corner as he barely made his presence known.

Therefore, upon hearing this voice, Earl Blaise turned in its direction and after recognizing who it was, his earlier practiced smile which was a subconscious response to any greeting froze.

'H-he….' He gulped in fear while recalling their interaction once in the past.

The man who had greeted him was someone whom he had known for a long time but had minimal interaction with in the past many years.

Only in recent times had he seen him after many years and just the thought of that brief interaction they had back then sent shivers down his spine.

"H-how have you been, Earl Mikren?

" Earl Tobit Blaise inquired while forcing a smile back on his face.

Brax Mikren raised his brow when this older man stuttered and in response, he let out a soft chuckle.

However, this chuckle pricked Earl Blaise's ears as it was clear to him that he was being looked down upon and even mocked by this newly appointed Earl.

The rest of his family had never met this man before so they greeted him without knowing the thoughts running in the head of their family's mind.

Earl Mikren nodded at them as he accepted their greeting before reverting his attention to the other Earl.

However, it looked like Earl Mikren would not be able to initiate a conversation with this man.

"We shall take our leave then.

" Earl Blaise announced with a nervous expression before Earl Mikren could even say another word.

He then did not wait to hear the response from the other party and urged his family to hurry on to the next spot.

'Huh? Looks like he is still bothered by what happened at the King's birthday celebration.' Brax shrugged and sighed in disappointment that they could not converse for longer.

However, the subtle smirk that lasted for just a second proved that he was, nonetheless, pleased with this outcome as well.

___

Earl Blaise dragged his wife along with him to the next family and did not care that she had almost tripped on her gown just a second earlier.

How could he be bothered about her when his mind was filled with thoughts of what had taken place in the past?

The year before the plague had begun, the King's birthday had been celebrated as usual, with great pomp and prestige.

All the noble family heads were invited for this celebration and each had brought a present for their King, the next better than the last.

However, when it was Earl Rutherford St. Claire's turn, he had not made his move which made Earl Blaise incite the crowd by stating that this man was being insolent towards their King by not preparing a gift for him.

Yet, not only did Rutherford turn the situation around in his favor, but he had also gained the King's approval with the gift of the custom-made special carriage he had prepared.

Even when this gift was being brought out, Earl Blaise had once again tried to instigate those around them to think poorly of Earl St. Claire.

At that time by muttering in a low voice, he had planned to insinuate that Earl St. Claire was trying to assassinate the King.

However, this young man who had newly been appointed as an Earl had stopped him.

{Remember to watch your words if you want to return to your estate with a beating heart, Earl Blaise.}

Those words that had been spoken by Earl Brax Mikren still echoed in his mind and a shudder took over him.

The three Earl families had been close once upon a time but with each passing year, their close ties began to fade.

Thus, he had seen the eldest son of the Mikren family after a very long time on that day and those words that he had spoken were eerie and chilling.

He did not know how that timid young boy from before had become someone with such an oppressive aura around him but Earl Blaise decided to stay away from him from that day onwards.

Thankfully, the plague occurred and the chances of them meeting had diminished but now, they would be seeing each other much too often.

This, he did not like as he would rather stay far away from this man than get any closer to him.

With such thoughts in his mind, Earl Blaise had an absentminded greeting and interaction with Marquess Yona and Marquess Leopold's family.

Coming back to his senses, he decided to pay attention to them in an attempt to get closer.

These two men had business ties with him but on numerous occasions had openly displayed their contempt towards him for being someone of a lower status.

While he could suffer the insult from the Leopold family as having a close relationship with them would be beneficial for them, he did not share the same attitude towards the Yona family.

After all, if he put together all of his businesses, his wealth was much higher than that of the Yona family who was struggling to run a profitable business.

Therefore, he bowed to Marquess Leopold before simply nodding at the head of the Yona family.

The two gestures were acceptable for bidding farewell but Earl Blaise's reverence towards one was higher than to the other which could be easily discerned by his demeanor.

Marchioness Yona's face darkened when she saw the disrespect her husband had faced from this man of lower social standing.

Gritting her teeth, she did not glance at his wife, as a form of retaliation for the disrespect her husband had faced.

However, Countess Blaise had her eyes fixed on her husband and did not even have the time to notice the disdain that Marchioness Yona had aimed at her.

Having her tiny attack account to nothing, Marchioness Yona clenched her fists and continued to glare at her.

This glare, in the next second, turned into a sneering smile when she caught sight of the destination that this Earl's family was heading towards.

'Let's see how high and mighty they can behave now!' She scoffed and turned to watch the show that would be beginning at any moment now.

Similarly, Marchioness Leopold who had been turning a blind eye to her neighbor, Marchioness Yona's actions, also decided to discern what might happen next.

After all, who did not know about the rivalry between Earl Blaise and the family that he was heading towards next.

Standing in the same spot as before, Earl Brax Mikren shook his head but he too was looking forward to seeing how this man would behave when standing up against his old rival.

____

Yvonne had been fed up with watching her father appeasing her mother and the other children shared the same feeling like her.

Therefore, they left the adults behind and formed a group among themselves, leaving them to their own devices, free to do as they pleased.

Now that the children had gone out of their earshot, Rutherford was whispering his vows of loyalty he had professed and even complied with until this day.

"And I promise to do so till my last breath, my Ray.

" His breath fell over her ear which had already turned red by now.

They weren't in the confines of their home but Rutherford chose to ignore everyone else and focus on correcting the misunderstanding that his wife seemed to have formed.

Hearing his heartfelt words, Raylene relented at long last but not before leering into his eyes.

She observed him and when she saw that there were no signs of falsity in his eyes, a smile bloomed on his lips.

"I'll hold you to your word.

" She acquiesced and Rutherford nodded his head like an eager chicken pecking grains off the ground.

Not wanting to fall behind, Duke Tanner and Marquess Kiron too professed their faith to their respective wives, and only after much convincing did they win them over.