The Villainess Returns with a System-Chapter 99: The Eccentric Mistress

"It’s a great privilege to join Lady Vivian on such a crucial mission... even if it involves so many weapons," Morris said, eyes flicking nervously between the stacked rifles and polished pistols lining the carriage walls. He shifted in his seat, careful not to let his elbow brush against a trigger or bayonet. The smell of gun oil clung to the air, sharp and oily, at odds with the plush velvet seats and gilded wood panels that framed the interior.

Across from him, Vivian and the others—Logan, Voros, Oscar, and Jane—were all business. They checked weapons with the smooth, mechanical grace of people who’d done this a hundred times before. The quiet clicks of locking mechanisms and the rasp of blades sliding into sheaths filled the space. Nobody spoke. Tension hung heavy, as if even breathing too loudly might trigger something neither mechanical nor entirely rational.

The carriage jolted hard, throwing Morris slightly off balance. A long rifle clattered against the side wall. He reached instinctively, then stopped short—better to let it fall than grab the barrel. Around him, the others barely reacted, just adjusted their grips, eyes scanning, minds already miles ahead. He cleared his throat and sat straighter, determined not to look too green.

"Excuse our eccentric mistress, Sir Morris. Despite her gun-loving tendencies, the situation we are walking into may turn a bit perilous," Logan replied to Morris’ comment.

"I do hear the lady’s pistol firing every morning at the range. Such dedication to one’s weapon is commendable," Morris said.

"Thank you for your words, sir. Maybe we can go shooting together one day," Vivian replied with a sweet smile.

"I would love to, my la—"

Just as Morris was about to give his approval, he noticed that everyone was looking at him dangerously, some making an X with their fingers, others shaking their heads frantically without Vivian spotting them, and others whispering "don’t" at him.

"Truly! I’ll take you on at your word then."

On the other hand, Vivian was already hyped for a new shooting competition against a worthy victim, someone whose soul wasn’t crushed on the gun range yet, in order to squeeze some SP out of the occasion.

Morris felt a chill running through his spine, but who was he if not someone brave and adventurous? For that, he would take the L like a champ, but that’s an occasion for a later date. Right now, it was time for him to squeeze out some information for his faction.

"I now understand the danger of Miss Vivian’s work, despite the good you are trying to offer the world," Morris spoke.

"Well, I am also trying to make a profit in this situation. This profit is what makes the work hazardous and full of rivalries," Vivian replied.

"Such is the price of pioneering. I remember the early days of charting the edges of Avalon were quite lawless, and they still are at the frontiers. But despite all, those who endure and move forward reap the best rewards," Morris said with understanding.

"Is that so?" Vivian asked with interest. "I hope that when this is over, you tell me more about Avalon."

"It would be my pleasure, my lady," Morris said before clearing his voice and continuing, "From what I understood from the Count, your current project is the biggest you have worked on."

"True," Vivian replied.

"So, for someone completely ignorant on the matter, what is Electricity?"

"Energy. Clean in itself, but dangerous and—in large quantities—can change the life we know."

"But it can’t be seen, grasped, stored, or harvested."

"It can be stored in special containers. It can’t be touched since it is lethal to the touch. It is basically lightning but wired in metallic wires. Can you touch lightning?"

"I’m afraid even for a high-ranked knight, let alone me, lightning is quite lethal."

"Lightning is wild electricity; that’s the best way you can imagine it."

"Truly terrifying! But can it be weaponized?"

"Sure, but not in the sense of throwing lightning bolts at each other. That’s just too much energy, and I believe magic is already more sufficient in that field. A more creative example of weaponizing it is to make a circuit run through a fence, and whoever touches it gets zapped."

"So it can’t be moved around freely."

"Until we make batteries smaller and concealable, we can’t walk around zapping people just yet. And as I said, magic is more efficient in that regard."

"Interesting, truly interesting!"

"What I find interesting is that an artist such as yourself is interested in weaponizing things," Vivian asked.

"Well, I have dabbled in tinkering with many things myself in the past, and whatever new diagram I present to my investors, that’s the first question I get asked: can it be weaponized? I believe such ideology has rubbed off on me."

"It’s okay. Who am I to judge?" Vivian said so while holding a rifle and loading it, making a mechanical sound. "I make my own weapons too."

Morris and Vivian exchanged an understanding look before nodding. Morris then raised his personal gilded wheellock pistol.

"To making our own weapons."

Vivian tapped the barrel of Morris’ pistol with the muzzle of her rifle before replying:

"And making things explode."

"Aye!"

"We’ve arrived, my lady."

From outside the carriage, the voice of Sir Fabian indicated that the group had arrived at its destination. The first to descend from the carriage was Logan, followed by Oscar and Jane, then Vivian and Morris.

What met Morris first, and what blew his mind right off the bat, was the scale of the establishment he found himself in. It was clearly a large factory by the riverside, judging by the humidity in the air, but all the machines in this place were things he had never seen in his life.

Humongous pillars shot through the ceiling of the factory; big machines of cold metal were rotating; workers were moving all around the place at this late hour as if it was a busy work day, doing various tasks.

"MOVE!"

Just as Morris was trying to take it all in, the Dwarf who accompanied them in the carriage pushed him aside, as he was the last to descend, and he seemed to be frantic about something.

"Chief! Voros feels no good about this! Humidity too much! Metal rusts!" he spoke in his weird manner.

"Relax. The coating we ordered will be layered over most parts of the machines. You’ll have a lot of disassembling to do."

"Worg piss! Good for rust! Get some!"

"Voros, for God’s sake, we can’t rely on whatever excrement that is. It’s unhygienic, smells from a mile away, and we can’t even secure it in quantities. We’ve got tons of nickel and zinc. Let’s use what we have so far until we can import enough chromium for the plating."

"It repels pests!"

"The only thing it repels is sanity."

"Grrr!"

Voros was annoyed that the material he asked for, the Worg’s urine, was denied for supply. This type of urine, taken from a monstrous animal with the savage shape of a wolf, a hyena, and a rodent, would grow sticky like glue, but after curing it with heat and liquidating it again, it would stick to anything it comes in contact with, and once it cools, it forms an impossible layer to remove, if you don’t mind the long-lasting smell.

As he stormed away, Morris approached Vivian and pointed upward, asking:

"What are those for?"

What he pointed at were the helical blades that were revolving up in the air, almost twenty to twenty-five metres high.

"Wind catchers, as the workers call them. These things revolve by wind and move the turbine, which generates an electrical current."

"By movement?"

"Yep."

Morris kept silent for a while as he looked around at all the moving parts before commenting:

"This is incredible!"

"I thank you on behalf of all the great scholars who contributed to this project."

"I am both honoured and humbled to be witness to this history-defining moment. Truly!"

"Then, allow me to welcome you to ViTech’s first Power Plant."

Morris De Brosa, while a tinkerer and an artist, was someone whose genius was ahead of its time, but what Vivian showed him was ahead of his comprehension by leaps and bounds. It was safe to say that what the world considered to be science fiction was now a practical science in ViTech.

But still, it wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows. Just as the group came with the intent to defend against trouble, it was bound to find them eventually.

Logan, who seemed to be on some sort of employee rotation, returned to Vivian with a list of names.

"Princess, as expected, some workers are late tonight as well."

Vivian took the list from him, and as she read it, she synced the home addresses written beside the names in her head and started to think of where this could have gone wrong.

"If those thugs are after our people, the nearest address is going to be the fastest to check. Logan, where is that?" Vivian asked her people.

At that time, it was Oscar who stepped forward after looking at the list.

"Over there, Willow Alley, where Mr Denning lives. It is a shortcut away from the main street, and if you are coming from Graytemple, you have to walk through that area."

"Shouldn’t it be busy then?" Vivian asked.

"Not at this hour, no. There are a lot of pubs in the area, so despite the traffic, the streets are usually light."

Getting insights into that area from a local, Vivian looked at the people around her and decided to act rashly.

"Let’s go get them then."

As soon as she said that, all members of her entourage freaked out.

"What! Wait!"

"Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!"

"Hold up! This isn’t what we agreed on."

Seeing as they all became like that, Vivian raised a hand.

"Silly! I meant let’s send our men to go get them. We’ll stay in the back, but we have to be there though," she said.

"Princess, this is you putting yourself in trouble all over again," Logan said, trying to dissuade her.

"And if the workers see their employer not taking care of them personally, things may turn bad for us," Vivian replied.

"As long as you send the men, my lady, this is more than enough," Jane interfered.

Vivian halted her step, raised her head up, took in a deep breath, then let it out with absolute patience. She then faced her employees and gave a speech:

"From my perspective, the more our men are subjected to violence, and as long as we continue to respond passively, they will not only lose faith in me, but it may also jeopardise our operations here. It is imperative that you all understand that the work we do here is sensitive, and it is no secret that ViTech is involved in a significant project for the Moore Conglomerate. Since our scientists, who possess in-depth knowledge of this project, are heavily guarded, these thugs believe they can exploit our vulnerabilities by targeting ordinary working men. Friends, I will not tolerate this."

Despite the fact that she was speaking normally, all the workers in the vicinity halted their steps and looked at her. It was clear that they were worried about their own safety, but now, this changes things.

However, Vivian’s chief of security had the final say in that, and he wasn’t too pleased.

"You know it is too dangerous," Logan said with a tired face.

"I am too dangerous," Vivian replied confidently, then spoke in a low tone, "Plus, Daddy let Sir Morris tag along. I am sure he put him in his stead for his prowess. Don’t worry, Sir Knight."

Seeing her confident act, Logan sighed and shook his head. He exchanged a look of understanding with Morris, who shrugged as if to say there was nothing he could do either. Logan shook his head again and went to gather the men.

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