The Villainess Returns with a System

Chapter 105: The Bloody Swan Strikes

Chapter 105: The Bloody Swan StrikesRobert Moore showed up at the Applewood Manor, a residence on the city’s outskirts. While this place was lightly guarded, its original owner was unknown, but it was expected to be either the Temple or the Crown Prince, since it was where Matilda Ambrose and her family resided.

The guards of the manor were unique in that they were all privately hired. They belonged neither to the Temple nor the Prince, which meant they were mercenaries.

This allowed Matilda Ambrose and her parents to be under no one’s influence in their own residence. However, whenever any of those young masters who flock around Matilda show up, there is little to be done about them.

Robert showing up uninvited at such a late hour would invite trouble, but as those residing there didn’t want to cause problems with the nobles of Elgard, they allowed Robert in quietly and hid any traces of his arrival.

In the end, Matilda received Robert, who appeared to be in a sorry state, reeking of alcohol, and claiming to have faced unfair treatment.

Matilda listened to Robert’s story intently. He was frustrated by his failures and eager to prove himself, no matter what. However, how his father and sister kept pushing him down and denying him the opportunity was something he could no longer endure.

Matilda saw Robert at his lowest point, as he began to pity himself and spoke in a painful tone. Seeing him that way, Matilda could do nothing but console him and offer him help.

"If you wish to prove yourself and gain the recognition you deserve, you can only do that through a great deed. Something that forces them never to look down on you again."

"But how? I can’t expose Vivian for what she is, and she keeps getting in my way," Robert said, desperately holding his head.

"I don’t think... You need to," Hesitantly, Matilda said.

Robert looked at her with a puzzled frown, asking:

"Why? After what she has done to you, you should be the angriest with her?"

"Well, I was angry at one time, but now, I think if you want to prove yourself better than them, you should look past their mistakes and move on," Matilda said, looking at the ground and occasionally glancing at Robert.

Robert looked at her, unable to wrap his head around what she had just said. Still, a short laugh found its way through his foul mood as he leaned back in his chair and looked up at the ceiling.

"That’s so like you, Matilda. I’m not even sure how you keep doing it." He said, and his gaze lingered, and after a long breath, he spoke: "The thing is, what you said only works if the other party feels bad about what they did. Vivian does not. She relishes every time she causes harm. I thought you, of all people, would understand."

She was about to say something, something that would get her out of this matter altogether. She was unrelated; if anything, she now had a deal with Vivian.

She shouldn’t get involved.

She should just tell him that she doesn’t want to get in between him and his sister, but...

"You are right," Matilda said and faced Robert, though looking down, "Lady Vivian can sometimes be... too much."

"Yes. That’s it!" Robert was overjoyed the moment he heard that from Matilda.

He gazed at her as if these words were the ones stuck in his chest. She uttered precisely what he desired to hear as if she possessed the same understanding of his sentiments. Of all the words in the lexicon, this young woman had an extraordinary ability to piece together just the right words for every situation.

The warmth of her presence was a stark contrast to the icy demeanor of his sister, Vivian, whose words, much like her personality, were invariably inappropriate and often laced with a biting chill. It was no wonder, then, that she was universally adored like a ray of sunshine in a world that often felt too cold.

"So... what should I do? There is something that must be done, I’m sure of it."

Robert stood up from his seat and started pacing back and forth.

"Most of my assets are tied up in investments now, but I can divest from a few businesses that no longer need my firm’s assistance. With enough assets, I can do something that obstructs one of her major projects. Let’s say that electricity project she’s investing most of her time in... that may teach her a lesson."

Robert started plotting his comeback against Vivian, but he wasn’t formulating a good plan on his own. He came here for Matilda’s help, and someone as talented as she ought to have something in mind to help him.

Matilda looked at him and, without even thinking, she found something he seemed to have missed.

"My lord, wouldn’t curing the illness that has confined your father to his bed be an accomplishment worthy of great praise in his eyes?" Matilda asked, offering a sincere piece of advice to him.

As if she said the last thing he expected, the look on Robert’s face shifted to one of downright fright.

"What? Why would I do that? What has he ever done for me?"

Matilda stared at him blankly and thought. Her father, if she could do anything for her father, despite everything, she would give her life to bring him back to full health if he were ever to get sick.

But what would her words be like? She asked herself that, and her tongue moved.

"My lord, if you look at it my way, there is much to gain from being on His Grace’s good side. It is a known fact that Count Moore is a man who repays his debts a hundredfold in both money and gratitude. But if it is his son who saves his life, and you ensure the public knows it, things will change dramatically in your favor."

Her words made Robert pause and think. He hesitated for a bit, then looked at her.

"Are you certain you can cure this new disease?" He asked.

"No. I haven’t even begun to re

"The Royal Treasury Convoy," Richard said.

Both Robert and Matilda looked at Edmond with eyes wide with shock.

"Please..." Matilda then held out her hand to Edmond, "Is it safe?"

Seeing that she was the more scared of the two, Edmond reached out to her and patted the back of her hand.

"Yes, my lady. Your secret is safe. Of all the carriages, your package was the one that made it out, along with Ronald’s," Edmond replied.

Ronald Morgan sighed and shrugged, saying:

"Well, I lost half of my package, but at least I got the important half, that is. The attack site was quite the mess, though." Ronald spoke.

"You don’t mean..." Robert looked at him with a haggard face, trying to piece together a sentence.

"Thank the Lord! Thank Athena!"

Meanwhile, Matilda collapsed onto a nearby seat and rested her head on her palms.

"Robert, only you had no package in the convoy this time, meaning that, aside from you, Miss Matilda, and Ronald, none of you took any losses. Since the two of them had a lot to lose, they were ruled out as suspects... which leaves only you, who happened to be drunk on such a crucial day."

Edmond explained.

It seemed that the Crown Prince’s faction—alongside Matilda—was having secret packages delivered through carriages bearing the royal sigil. These carriages were armored and made of special alloys; thus, no ordinary thief could simply blunder into them. However, the Bloody Swan had delivered a major hit, and now it was bound to be turned into a scandal.

A few hours earlier.

As Vivian got home from the meeting, she found a message sent by Jade-Eyed Lumi.

She had located both Mrs. Becky and Natasha Ivanov in a Royal Treasury convoy.