The table fell silent at the words uttered by the youngest present here.

No one would have assumed that the delicate-looking child would state her preference so boldly and without delay.

Yvonne had been lost in her thoughts about matters related to Porte Lumex in the script that she had forgotten about the conversation taking place in this tea party.

After Melissa had confessed that she liked Young Master Lumex's face, her younger sisters and even Princess Felicia with Rika were correcting her notions about love.

They explained that appreciating someone for their appearance could not be called love which made her purse her lips in displeasure.

They had then inquired if there was anything other than his face she liked to which they were met with a long silence, making them shake their heads.

How could Melissa give an appropriate answer when the number of times she had met him could be counted on the fingers of one hand?

Not to forget that he was someone who likes to stay silent, minding his own business and not speaking unless the other person initiated the conversation.

For someone like Melissa who did not open up before people right away, it was impossible for her to be the first one to speak.

Therefore, it was safe to say that the two had never shared a conversation which led her to be silent now that she was being questioned by these girls.

To divert the attention from her, Melissa had questioned others but no one was willing to give out any answer so she had turned towards the youngest here, hoping to gain success this time.

As expected, she was not disappointed as the child's outburst was entertaining for her and her sisters to witness.

On the other hand, Yvonne panicked for a split second when she saw so many of them gawking at her with intrigue apparent in their eyes.

Coughing to alleviate her embarrassment, she decided to manage the awkward situation she had landed herself in.

"My Papa always said that men are jerks so I should be careful and not get close to them.

" She explained her earlier words, tossing the blame to her father who was currently having a hectic day in his office.

Though the Earl had never once uttered those words out loud, it was clear that he believed them with his entire being.

Therefore, if he were to learn of this incident, he would praise his Vonna for being sensible and ask her to continue on the same path for all eternity.

"Your father is also a man,

" Aleena muttered while rolling her eyes at the child whose naive words had made the rest giggle.

Yvonne had only used that statement since she could not reveal before the Princess that the one she had subconsciously addressed as the 'Jerk' was none other than her Royal Uncle, the future Grand Duke of this Kingdom.

Therefore, she glared at Aleena who was now making fun of her answer.

"Of course, family is different.

" She retorted in a deadpan manner which made them chuckle again.

Even Governess Bloom could not stop her lips from curving upward at the innocent words being uttered.

"Then what about Young Master Taylor?

" Someone interrogated, bringing the jovial atmosphere to a standstill.

Everyone turned their attention towards Elna Leopold who was gazing at the child with a smile, blinking her beautiful and sleek eyes.

"Is Young Master Taylor a jerk?

" She questioned further when she did not gain an answer.

Yvonne frowned when the straightforward words were aimed at her.

"Maybe, Miss Leopold hasn't heard what I just said.

" She tilted her head while putting on an innocent expression on her face.

Since the Bird God had given her such excellent features, she would make full use of them to her advantage.

'Especially, in situations like these.' She added in her heart as the smile on her face widened.

"How could Brother Taylor be a jerk when he is family too?

" She fluttered her long lashes, enjoying the sight of the other girl gnashing her teeth in anger.

Elna was hoping to see Yvonne make a mistake in front of the Princess by disregarding their hierarchy and calling Young Master Taylor as her brother once again.

However, her hopes dissipated when the child did not hesitate for even a second as she declared Taylor as her brother.

"Oh my!

" Princess Felicia had heard about this matter from her playmates and to hear the same coming from the one in question, she could only believe this to be true.

She had met the Tanner siblings in the Palace a few times as they were sons of the Duke but never saw them being too close to anyone.

While they were respectful to her and her brother, there was always a line drawn between them.

Thus when she heard Yvonne addressing him as her brother without caring about the consequences, it could only mean that she had the permission of the other person.

Thanks to this, Princess Felicia's attention, which had been distracted due to various aspects, had gotten back to her.

Yvonne smiled on the outside but in her mind, cursed at Elna who had caused this shift to take place.

No matter how annoyed she was, she tried her best to keep her face from reflecting the thoughts that were bubbling up in her mind.

"Miss Aleena hasn't told us who she likes!

" Yvonne glanced sideways, not hesitating before throwing her neighbor under the imaginary bus.

She needed their attention to shift from her so she chose the one seated next to her as the one to take the fall next.

As she had thought, Princess Felicia's eyes fell on Aleena Kiron, curious to hear an answer from her.

'Just name Topher.' Yvonne shrugged, not caring about the glare she had just received from the girl next to her.

She was sure of this after witnessing a few incidents in the past where Aleena's affection for Topher was clear for her to see.

Therefore, she only smiled back when Aleena gritted her teeth while leering at her.

However, noticing the curious eyes of the Princess, Aleena was left with no choice but to disclose the thoughts in her mind.

"Your cousins.

" She muttered while looking at Yvonne who, with wide eyes, choked at these words.

"My cousins?

" Yvonne repeated and blinked in confusion when she received a nod.

"The Young Masters of the Valente family?

" Rika also spoke up as this was the first time she was hearing this.

'Brothers Roman and Knox!?' Yvonne was still unable to wrap her mind around this thought.

Aleena, who liked Topher just a few years ago, was now blushing while speaking of her cousins.

"Which one?

" She inquired as soon as she regained her composure.

Only in recent times did Princess Felicia learn that the Valente and St. Claire families were related so it took her a moment to make the connection.

"I don't know.

" Aleena's reply only confused the girls seated around them.

"You cannot differentiate between the two?

" Moana asked as this was a familiar problem with the triplets as well.

However, Aleena shook her head, revealing that she was not facing this issue.

"I cannot decide which one I like more.

" She muttered, stunning those seated around her.

The triplets were the first to start laughing and soon, the rest followed, forgetting all about their etiquette which they should have been following right now.

Elna and Cecily frowned at the strange reaction of the other girls as they had been waiting for Aleena to be reprimanded for being frivolous.

'How can she even dare to say those shameless words out loud?' The daughter of the Leopold family clicked her tongue and even scoffed at the girls who were enjoying this type of conversation.

"B-but they look so similar so I cannot decide between them!

" Aleena clamored to explain herself but the girls were too busy giggling among themselves to even listen to her reasoning.

In the past, she would have thrown a tantrum if girls laughed at her but this time, Aleena could tell that they did not have wrong intentions while doing so.

This brought a smile to her which expressed both her helplessness and her happiness at being a part of this group.

Yvonne had only implicated Aleena to avert their attention but was now surprised to have made this shocking discovery.

"I'll introduce them to you when they return to the Capital..

" She smirked playfully at her while also saying a silent prayer for Topher who was discarded from Aleena's heart just like that.