The Villainess Returns with a System
Chapter 148: The Morgans Visit

Chapter 148: The Morgans Visit

The world didn’t stop revolving, for the affairs of Vivian Moore weren’t its only concern.

It wasn’t just Vivian who was planning and plotting her next move in this power-hungry city. Others were scheming for noble causes and sinister endeavours, all within the scope of personal and factional gains. One of these individuals was Oliver, someone Vivian didn’t fully trust, but against whom she also didn’t raise many defences. He kept watching over everything and everyone around Moore Manor.

For the past few days, the situation with the plague had become more dangerous in the lower parts of the city, which meant that most of the workers from these areas would be laid off by the mansion. While Oliver was in such danger, his closeness to Esmeralda guaranteed him a spot in the outer shacks around the mansion, as she informed the head butler that he would no longer return to the plagued districts and that all the money he received should be sent to his older brother’s address, who was supporting their family.

This cunning move guaranteed Oliver two things. First, a permanent stay at Moore Mansion without having to go out often, and second, he got to use the Moores’ network to send his reports directly to that so-called elder brother, who was, in fact, his overseer.

But despite being an undercover spy, Oliver was growing more attached to his duties, focusing on caring for the flowers around the house very diligently, taking care of the hounds, and exchanging a few words with Esmeralda, whom Vivian allowed to take a break every now and then to see him.

If he were just to forget about his previous life, he would be quite satisfied with what he had right now. Still, the lingering fear of being found out never faded, and one night, he was given a new task. Something that made his hand tremble the moment he saw what it was.

"Plant this as evidence in the specified location."

The order was simple, but the execution made his mind and heart skip a few beats. He was told to do something insane, even by his standards, and if he were to be found out so close to Vivian’s room, things would go badly... extremely badly.

He prayed for strength and courage because what he was about to do would not only put an innocent person in a bad spot, but it might harm everyone who lived within the walls of House Moore.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

After Beatrix Morgan came to confront Vivian that day, the front door of Moore Mansion was as busy as a beehive’s entrance, with the Magic Knights of House Morgan coming back and forth.

The upper echelons of the family would not mindlessly enter House Moore’s mansion or Conglomerate HQ, even if it killed them. Being stripped of their magic was too much for them to bear, and only the Knights were used to perform correspondences between Beatrix and her house.

While Count Morgan was upset at Beatrix for staying a night in the Moores’ mansion, Vivian composed a reply herself, standing up for Beatrix, who had been physically and psychologically abused by Prince Liam’s faction for the past few days.

The replies that came back grew only harsher, but it was later revealed that the one corresponding with Vivian wasn’t the Count of the Morgans, but rather the head butler of the house, in the name of his lords. Vivian had to resort to her cunning and address the Count of the Morgans personally, someone whom she was very familiar with. His name was Count Albert Morgan, and he was the provost of the Royal Academy, the one who oversaw Vivian’s graduation.

Once her letter reached him, the count seemed hastily brought into the situation, and he immediately visited House Moore, as the first official visit of a Morgan to a Moore in 400 years. This meant that Count Julian himself had to descend and meet him, despite how bad his appearance was due to the Blackthorn illness.

"You look terrible," were the first words Count Albert said when he met Count Julian, not forgetting a wide grin.

"I believe it adds more attractiveness to my looks," replied Count Julian, who wasn’t insecure about the black, jagged line extending from his neck through his cheek, and almost reaching his left eye.

"There is no reasoning with you, Julian. I see your daughter took quite after you," Lord Albert said, glancing to the side.

Vivian was seated not too far from the meeting between the two lords. She put down her cup of tea and smiled vividly.

"It has been a while, Lord Provost," she said and widened her lips with a smile. "If I am taking after my father, then I believe this young lady is already winning in life."

"Hear that? It is called the joy of having a daughter," Count Julian tag-teamed with his daughter to sucker-punch the Count of the Morgans, a very well-known misogynistic family.

"Speaking of which," Lord Albert said, without even batting an eye, as he glanced at the young blonde lady, who was sitting with a depressed face beside Vivian. "My daughter here has been inconveniencing you quite a lot. I heard she has been involved in some misdemeanour."

"..."

Hearing that her father wasn’t pleased with her, the look on Beatrix’s face never changed, as she kept looking down and not speaking a word.

"Involved?" Vivian asked. "Or, by any chance, the victim of that misdemeanour?"

Count Morgan looked coldly at Vivian before casually putting down his teacup and speaking slowly:

"It is an incident that could have been prevented if not for my daughter’s foolishness. Being a victim can also be your own mistake."

"True. Being an educator, however, is to provide guidance for such situations beforehand. When guidance is provided and a mistake is still made, only then can we start blaming," Vivian replied with resolution.

"Is that so?" Lord Albert shook his head wryly. "Are you, by any chance, doubting my methods of educating my daughter, Vivian Moore?"

"Hardly, my lord. I didn’t even mention them in the slightest."

"Is that so?"

"It is so. What I was talking about was the fact that dear little Beatrix here never received any form of that thing you call education or whatever, with full knowledge of how incredible the education level of House Morgan is. After all, my favourite teacher will always be Mr Amos Morgan."

"Amos, huh? No wonder!"

While it didn’t seem pleasant to him to hear the name of his first cousin, there was no denying that Amos Morgan was a better educator than most other professors in the academy, being one who travelled the world and learned in most Albionese courts and even joined the Adnani academies at the far-off Sultanate of Adnan.

But that didn’t matter in the slightest to someone like Albert Morgan. After all, this was the Royal Academy, and House Moore and Amos Morgan weren’t even that unique in such institutions. Simply mentioning his name isn’t enough to make Albert Morgan feel inferior.

"Beatrix, it is time you went home. This situation has gone on long enough."

With no other option but to directly pressure his own daughter, Vivian turned to Beatrix and patted her knee, giving her enough courage to speak up for herself.

Beatrix hesitated, her heart pounding, her fists clenching, and her eyes darting down, but she still mustered enough courage to speak.

"Father..." she said and raised her head, meeting his gaze head-on, "... before we do that... there is something I must inform you."

As she spoke, she felt immense pressure coming from him, but as if there was a magnet fighting the force field of that pressure away, Vivian appeared to Beatrix as someone big and reliable, even though she was just a head taller than her.

"Go on."

Count Albert was gracious enough to hear his own daughter in front of those strangers whom he wasn’t a fan of in the slightest. However, Beatrix’s following words made his eyes widen, and his feelings towards the Moores became very sour very quickly.

"Father," she said and cleared her voice, "I have decided to accept Lady Vivian Moore as my warden."