Reborn As The Minor Villain In A Romance Fantasy Novel - Chapter 180

Chapter 180: Peaceful Night… Or Not?
“Boss, it was a success,” Alexia reported as she stepped into the basement a few hours later.

Her shoes clicked against the floor. “Every single drone package has been delivered.”

“Thank you, Alexia,” Lucius said without looking up.

Alexia blinked, tilting her head.

Something about this sight felt wrong. “Boss… why are you wearing an apron in the basement? This is a lab.”

She stared blankly at him.

Lucius stood there in a sleeveless singlet, a black apron tied around his waist with safety glasses resting on his face and a pencil tucked behind one ear.

It looked like he was preparing to bake a cake instead of design high-tech drones.

“I told him the same thing,” Luna said from the other side of the table, rolling her eyes as she continued typing on her tablet. “But he insists he’ll make a better drone if he wears the apron.”

Alexia’s brow twitched. “Boss is helping you make drones…?”

“Yes,” Luna replied. She had her hair tied back and a pair of glasses resting on her nose as she scribbled notes.

Beside her, Villy was sitting comfortably on Lucius’s back because somehow she always found a way to perch on him and Elara stood close at his side, peeking at his sketches.

Lucius didn’t look up as he erased a line on the paper.

“I suggested that Luna should have a variation of drones on sale since she’s already launched the brand,” he explained simply.

His purple eyes were glowing. “We might as well use the momentum.”

Alexia noticed something strange… the glow in his eyes was far more vivid than before, it was a deeper shade of violet that seemed to swallow the light around him.

When she tried looking into them for more than a second, it felt like staring into endless space itself.

It gave her chills.

“Villy,” Lucius said, holding up the paper. “How does this look?”

Villy blinked before leaning closer, her lips forming a small ‘o.’

“It looks amazing, my lord,” she said sincerely.

For once, she wasn’t exaggerating. The design in his hand looked professional with neat diagrams and labels.

Lucius was writing out names of drone components she was sure he’d never studied before, yet his notes were precise.

“Master, you missed a spot here…” Elara pointed near the corner of the page. “If you don’t adjust that angle, it’ll look like a triangle.”

“That’s what it’s meant to look like,” Lucius said without hesitation.

He turned the sheet toward her and began explaining how the triangular shape improved wind resistance and stability during flight.

Elara nodded with an impressed smile and her eyes sparkling with interest.

“Well, I don’t see a problem with expanding,” Alexia admitted, crossing her arms as she approached. “There are a lot of drones already in production, but it would help to have high-quality variations. Unique designs could make each model stand out.”

Lucius nodded. “Exactly.”

“So, we’ll need prototypes with different functions… surveillance, delivery, security, maybe even entertainment.” Alexia tapped her watch thoughtfully. “If you keep this pace, we’ll need an entire secondary workshop.”

“That’s fine,” Lucius said, jotting something down. “I’ll handle the funding.”

Alexia’s watch pinged suddenly, and she glanced down. “Boss, I apologize, but it’s already 7 p.m. I have to get goin—”

She bit her lip.

Part of her didn’t want to finish that sentence.

As much as she wanted to appear professional, her mind had already started wandering in a much less professional direction.

She really wanted to stay the night. Even if the house was full of his women, the rooms were soundproof for a reason.

Lucius didn’t even look up from his paper when he said, “You can stay for the night.”

Alexia’s heart skipped. “I—”

“We have guest rooms, right?”

“Yes, Boss,” she replied quickly, fighting the urge to grin. “Plenty.”

“I’ll tell the maids to hook you up with one,” Lucius continued. “Just keep thinking up ideas while you’re here.”

He finally put down his pencil and stretched. “We’ll need multiple schematics by tomorrow.”

Alexia nodded briskly. “Understood.”

Lucius closed the notebook he’d been sketching in and tossed it toward Luna.

She caught it effortlessly but frowned at the weight. When she flipped it open, her jaw dropped.

“What the fuck…” she whispered.

Alexia blinked. “What’s wrong?”

Luna turned the pages, her mouth still open. “This isn’t normal. He barely knows these design terms, and suddenly he’s writing them perfectly… with correct uses and ratios!”

Lucius blinked innocently. “Is it that surprising?”

“Yes, it is!” Luna said, slamming the book down. “Don’t think I don’t know you ignore half the things I say when I explain the parts!”

Lucius chuckled. “I listen when it matters.”

She glared at him but the frustration melted quickly.

Instead, she ran up to him and pressed a quick kiss to his cheek. “But this is amazing,” she said softly. “I’ll add some finishing touches and go with Villy to get the parts tomorrow.”

“Are you sure you want to use that design?” Lucius asked, meeting her eyes.

Luna smiled brightly. “Absolutely.”

He patted her on the head. “As long as you’re happy, I’m happy.”

‘My retirement is set,’ he thought, smirking inwardly. If Luna’s company kept growing like this, he’d have it easy later and that was just one avenue… He still had the country’s richest woman here and a lot of other investments to make.

Suddenly, the basement door opened with a creak.

One of the maids peeked inside, bowing with a bright smile. “Masters! I know you’re all working hard, but work shouldn’t be done on an empty stomach. Please come for dinner!”

Lucius blinked and looked around the room.

Everyone was either tired, hungry, or pretending not to be.

“Dinner sounds great,” he said, pulling off his apron.

Minutes later, they were all gathered in the massive dining hall.

The long golden chandelier above cast a warm glow across the polished table.

There were at least ten different dishes laid out… roast duck, fried dumplings, pasta, grilled meat, and even golden bread loaves that looked freshly baked.

Every seat was filled.

Lucius sat at the head of the table.

Across from him, on the opposite end, was Vanessa.

To her right sat Emilia and to her left was Elara, adjusting her fork neatly beside her plate.

Luna sat beside Lucius, while Villy, and Alexia filled the rest of the seats.

The maids stood lined up against the walls, ready to serve at a word.

Lucius hadn’t even changed… he was still wearing the apron from the basement. Somehow, it didn’t look ridiculous on him.

If anything, it made him look relaxed… A contrast that made the maids blush whenever they looked his way.

“Thank you, Deli,” Lucius said warmly to the head maid as she placed a covered dish in front of him.

The maid smiled and bowed deeply.

“It’s our pleasure, Master Lucius,” Deli said. “We’ve prepared something special for tonight.”

Lucius looked around at the plates… colorful vegetables, seasoned meat, and dumplings that looked so soft they might melt with a touch. “Looks amazing.”

“Enjoy, everyone,” Deli said before stepping aside.

The others began to eat. It was certainly going to be peaceful…

But peace didn’t last long.

A loud clink broke the rhythm as Emilia’s spoon hit the ground.

“Oops,” she said innocently. “I’ll pick it up.”

And he was sure it wasn’t going to be anything peaceful.