Thrown Into A New World: Let The Punishment Begin!

Hearing everything that Earl Blaise had just said, Rutherford could not help but glower in his heart.

'Who the hell did he say uses substandard ingredients!?' He clenched his jaw to hold in his anger.

He knew just how hard his brother-in-law, Marcus Valente worked to acquire only the best ingredients and also how much money his daughter spent to purchase them.

If anyone here was lacking in terms of ingredients then it most certainly would be Earl Blaise.

However, Rutherford knew that he could not speak up right now as in the sights of the rest of the nobles, he was just another Fief Lord who purchased soaps from CLOVER.

He could not act in any way which might make people suspicious about his relationship with both CLOVER and VC.

Therefore, he could only stand in silence even when he wished to stand up for his daughter and the company she had started with a lot of effort.

On the other hand, Marquess Samed was free to do as he pleased, and right now, he wished to prove this man wrong.

However, before he could even begin, Earl Blaise beat him to it.

"I don't know if I should mention this…" He muttered with an apprehensive look on his face.

By now, those who had been standing away from them had also moved closer to get a better view of the escalating debacle here.

"What is it, Earl?" Marchioness Yona inquired, more interested in the gossip that might be revealed than her earlier animosity with this man and his family.

Earl Blaise did not need to be asked twice as his intention had never been to keep his thoughts a secret.

His agenda to look unwilling yet being forced to speak was accomplished so he moved right on with what he had wished to spill.

'How can I disobey a Madam from a higher family?' He snickered in his heart but his face held the same unwilling expression from just earlier.

"Madam… How should I say this…" He shook his head once again but did not wait to be urged any further.

"Everyone might already know this but they seem to have forgotten that I own the rights for soap manufacturing…" He disclosed and cheered inwardly when he heard a loud gasp coming from Marchioness Yona.

This simple statement worked as a reminder to them that the Blaise family had the sole rights to the process of soap manufacturing and this CLOVER was infringing on their rights.

At this accusation being thrown onto CLOVER, even Marquess Kiron and Duke Tanner frowned.

They had only agreed to make a deal with this company after seeing that Earl St. Claire and Marquess Samed had spoken in its favor and the contract was profitable to both parties.

However, to hear that they had been working with someone who was manufacturing soaps and selling them illegally made them feel like they were also accomplices to the crime.

While these two men were mulling over their past choices, Marquess Leopold and Marquess Yona were glad that they had stuck with Earl Blaise and his products all along.

They had no requirement to deal with a budding business whose owner was unwilling to show his face in public.

Now, hearing this, they were sure that they had made the right decision all along.

Duke Brodie, who had been standing a short distance away, frowned at Earl Blaise's words.

While the other heads of the families were affected by Earl Blaise's revelation, he wasn't swayed by it in the least bit.

He had, after all, been one of the few people who knew the truth behind what Earl Blaise was claiming to be true right now.

He had seen the legal documents that VC had submitted to the King in order to obtain His Majesty's permission for manufacturing and selling his products.

King Ophire had gone through them all and only after making sure that no one was being wronged did he approve VC's documents.

VC was using a new procedure to make soaps which varied from the one that Earl Blaise used.

Therefore, he was doing nothing unlawful.

'Who does he think he is fooling right now?' Duke Maldock Brodie glowered at the tricks that this man was trying to play.

As VC wasn't here to represent himself, it was a given that everyone would believe Earl Blaise's claims and shun the new company.

Duke Brodie leered at the culprit before scanning the others who were so easily swayed by mere words.

'Do these people think that our King is so incompetent!?' He growled in anger at their lack of faith in their King.

If CLOVER truly was doing something unlawful, how would the company be able to survive for so long without being shut down by the authorities?

This thought made Duke Brodie wonder if there was something wrong with these peoples' minds.

Earl Blaise was CLOVER's competitor so it was obvious that he would not speak in its favor.

Even he was able to grasp this fact but these people had failed to do so.

Giving those around him a good look, he found only two men were unaffected by the Earl's words.

In fact, he could even discern anger coming from them, unlike the others who were either surprised and frustrated at this revelation or gloating.

The only people he could make out who were level-headed enough to comprehend what was going on were Marquess Samed and Earl St. Claire.

Even Duke Tanner whom he considered to be a commendable rival had turned into a fool right now.

However, what Duke Brodie did not know was that Earl St. Claire and Marquess Samed were much closer to VC and CLOVER than what he had knowledge of.

These two men were aware of most details about CLOVER so they knew that Earl Blaise was spouting nothing but lies to spread baseless rumors about his competitors in an attempt to ruin their reputation.

Among the children present, only Yvonne, Howard, and Taylor knew the truth about CLOVER and their anger was also apparent on their faces.

This man was doing everything in his power to besmirch CLOVER's image.

Yvonne wasn't as upset with this as she was amused.

'Is he even aware of what he is doing right now?' She tilted her head while staring at the Earl.

Thus it was easy for her to catch the slight curve that formed at the corner of his lips, revealing his victorious smile just for a second before it disappeared.

Yvonne wasn't even affected to see that Duke Tanner and Marquess Kiron had believed Earl Blaise's falsified accusations.

She was more in awe of Earl Blaise and his audacity to lie about matters which involved the King himself.

He was standing right in the midst of a garden located inside the Palace premises while spouting untruthful words.

Yvonne had heard about Earl Blaise coming to the Palace with his complaint about CLOVER.

Therefore, she also knew that he was unsuccessful as the King had displayed proof that CLOVER was doing nothing unlawful and its methods were not close to the one he used.

Despite knowing this truth, he was now trying to sway the opinions of these influential men and leading them to believe that CLOVER was unethical and illegal.

While this tactic could have been effective somewhere else, she doubted if he would be able to get away with it within the Palace premises.

This realization made the little girl, the true mastermind behind CLOVER and also its owner, VC, shake her head in dismay for the Earl's future.

Unaware of the mistake he had made, Earl Blaise was in high spirits that he had turned public opinion in his favor.

"I had tried to reach out to the owner of CLOVER to remind him about this matter but he refused to meet me." The Earl shook his head after stating that he had tried to help that company out with kind intentions which weren't appreciated.

Countess Blaise standing beside him frowned when she heard about her husband's troubles due to this newly emerging business.

Like a caring husband, he smiled at her and comforted her, whispering that he was alright.

Sadly, his pretense did not work against the three women who had heard about his wayward ways.

However, the other Marquess families who had not heard about it shook their heads at VC's stubborn and ungrateful behavior which brought pain not only to Earl Blaise but also his wife.

'Now the final step!' Tobit Blaise declared while patting his wife's shoulder.

Once he was done, he looked back at Marquess Samed who seemed to be the biggest supporter of CLOVER.

"However, I must admit. This VC and his people are just a bunch of cowards!" He finally displayed his anger, putting aside his earlier look of apprehension and sadness.

This statement made a few nod, a few others contemplated their previous decisions, and finally, a few others seethed in anger at the falsity being uttered.

Those who did not fall among either of these categories were Duke Brodie who shook his head in dismay at Earl Blaise's wicked ideas and Earl Mikren who was curious to see what happened next.

Silence loomed over them after Earl Blaise had made his stance known about his competitor in the soap industry.

Thanks to this silence, the voice of someone who had just entered the garden echoed loud and clear.

"Who did you say was a coward?" 

A bold voice reverberated around them, turning their attention to the one who was now striding in their direction.