Thrown Into A New World: Let The Punishment Begin!

Taylor sneezed while he ran his fingers through his fiery red hair.

"Cover up, you imbecile!" Howard snarled and hurried to wipe the droplets that had fallen right on the back of his neck.

He had been walking in the front while Taylor was ambling at his own pace in the back.

This had caused Howard to be in the splash zone since Taylor had not even attempted to cover his mouth before sneezing.

Taylor blinked his eyes at his best friend who was proving it difficult to continue holding that title today.

Earlier, he had barged into his room and forced him to attend the party and when he had declined, he blackmailed him into doing as he was told.

After he had hurried to wash up and get dressed, Howard had not given him enough time to dry his hair which had caused him to sneeze.

So he now scoffed and rolled his eyes at the young master of the St. Claire's family, who was a little too demanding today.

Howard shook his head in disapproval before turning around and walking towards the garden where the tea party was being held.

___

A few minutes earlier, 

When Taylor had returned from his shower, his hair was dripping wet but he had changed into a new set of clothes.

Wearing a cream shirt with dark brown pants, he had chosen not to wear a coat as it was summer already and he had no intention of suffering in the heat.

Howard did not comment on the clothes as he did not care what he wore as long as he came along with him to the party.

Thus he hurried the other boy who was using a towel to dry his sopping wet hair.

Before Taylor could get the water entirely out, Howard had lost his patience and was grumbling every few seconds, asking him to hurry up.

His little sister must be waiting for him but his best friend was taking all the time in the world which was irking him endlessly.

Unable to bear his constant pestering, the younger son of the Duke threw the towel aside and shook his head, just like a wet dog would after it walked out of the water.

His canine-like actions resulted in Howard being splashed with numerous droplets of water all over his face and shirt.

Furious as he was, he grit his teeth and only asked his friend to move ahead and leave the room now.

Taylor snickered as the frustration he had from earlier had lessened by a large portion now that he was admiring the sight of Howard's clenched jaws.

Having avenged himself just a little, he nodded and walked out with him.

However, how could Howard let him have the upper hand?

"Your shirt matches your room." He smirked while mocking the other boy for wearing something that had the same color as his wall.

Taylor glanced at his best friend as though he had just said something ridiculous before lowering his head to take a look at the shirt he was wearing right now.

"That was beige and this is cream…" He pointed out, his eyes expressing his pity for the other boy who could not make out the difference between the two colors.

"Beige has a grey, cool tint while cream is warmer with a brown hint to it." He rattled off, explaining why they were different.

In response, Howard gawked at him like a fool before rolling his eyes.

"How would I know that?" He muttered when he lost the chance to mock his friend.

However, Taylor only shook his head before sighing like an old man.

"You do not know how to appreciate the beauty of colors." He declared and there was a hint of pride in his eyes while he said those words.

This answer made Howard chuckle before he nodded in defeat, signaling him to keep moving.

This was the same reply he had received in the past when he had tried to make fun of the colors Taylor had for his bedroom.

Beige and gold were painted on his walls which he had always found to be an odd choice for a boy's room.

However, every time, Taylor would declare that Howard was the one who did not understand the charm of these colors and thus should not mock him any further.

The two best friends had such a relationship from the first time they had met in the Royal Academy.

One teased the other while the other sought an opportunity to seek revenge next.

___

Back to the present, Howard turned around and began walking while Taylor hurried to keep up with him.

As they walked along, he thought of what he had done earlier.

The sole reason for forcing Taylor to attend the party was what he had seen up in that room.

In the beginning, he had gone to meet his friend and figure out why he had refused to attend the Duchess's tea party.

His initial speculation was that Taylor was throwing a tantrum as there was no way he would miss a party, especially if it was organized by his mother who was known to create the perfect ambiance for a party.

He was confident in his deductions as Taylor himself had revealed that his mother was the one who had helped him decorate and design his room which he loved immensely and even boasted about.

Therefore, for such a person to miss the aesthetically-pleasing party that was happening right in his house was strange to him.

After speaking to him, Howard understood the reason behind his decision to not attend the tea party.

While he may be glad to see his friend putting in more effort to get better, he did not wish for it to be at the cost of his health or happiness.

Taylor was indeed doing his best to make up for the time he had lost in the past due to his lack of effort and perseverance.

However, Howard had seen the state of those books which had been worn out in just a few days, indicating just how much he had used them.

Not to mention that the dark circles under his friend's eyes were not something that was present a few days ago when they had met and spent the entire day together.

The worst of them all was the fact that he was refusing to attend a tea party which was something he loved to do in the past.

Howard was sure that his friend was sacrificing his happiness for the sake of his studies which was not something that he could condone.

He was well aware that sacrifices needed to be made in the process of fulfilling one's goals in life.

After all, he too was doing the same by not joining his family in their trip to the Valente fief next week.

However, what Taylor was doing was taking things to the extreme.

Howard too had decided to rest for the day and attend this party despite having a lot of notes to revise yet Taylor was adamant about continuing at the same pace.

His approach would have been acceptable if the Duchess had asked Taylor to spend a whole week, doing nothing but follow her around to different tea parties.

He could refuse to do that as it was very well hinder his studies which was not something that he could afford, especially now that the academy's reopening date was so close.

Fortunately, the Duchess had not asked him to do anything of that sort and had only hoped that he would attend her tea party.

The same party that was going on in the garden of their estate, which he could see from his balcony as well but he had chosen to stay cooped up in his room, trying to study during this time.

Studies were important but taking a moment to rest was equally important.

Especially for someone like Taylor who had lived his life in leisure until now.

It would be hard for him in the beginning but going all out and head first was not the right thing to do.

'He needs to ease into it.' Howard sighed as his friend had not been able to understand such a simple concept that needed to be followed.

Therefore, he was fine being the bad guy to help him relax for a while before he could return to his studies once the party was done and it was no surprise that using his sister's name had worked wonders in bringing Taylor out of his room.

Thus with a smirk on his face at achieving his goal for the moment, Howard walked next to Taylor as they finally reached the entrance of the garden where the tea party was being held.