A Regressed Villain: Heroines, Villainesses and Me?

Chapter 50: 52 - Auction for Ethics

Carlos bowed before making his way out of the room to prepare for the given task, while also understanding that the Marquess didn't want government officials to disturb him while he stayed in the city for at least two weeks.

"Marquess, are you preparing for treason?" Aecilia, not caring about how her words sounded to others, directly inquired, since from the start, Avendial had been hiring a military strategist, accumulating wealth from the IT company, enlisting 20,000 soldiers from the pharmaceutical sector, and creating weapons through construction groups.

All of this was too confusing and could lead to misunderstandings if not cleared up firsthand. So she just asked instead of making wrong assumptions.

'?!'

'T-treason!' Rihane, standing near the door, heard Aecilia mention the taboo word and felt as if her world had shattered in an instant. Hearing a nobleman preparing for treason made her feel like an accomplice.

'What should I do now!' Rihane yelled inwardly as she thought that just a moment ago, she was preparing to join the royal family as a military strategist, but now she found herself allegedly becoming one for a military that was being prepared to go against the royal family, making her the final boss who would lead these soldiers toward betrayal.

"Of course not, are you kidding me?" Avendial shook his head and looked toward Aecilia as he raised his brow, feigning ignorance and showing confusion at Aecilia's incorrect assumptions.

"Eh? Then why all the funds, soldiers, and weapons?" Aecilia cast her gaze toward Avendial, noticing his serious demeanor in response to her remarks. With her hands folded, she locked her golden eyes on him, scrutinizing his expression but finding no signs of deceit.

"Because I want to have a private army of my own?" Avendial stated before turning toward Rihane as he gestured for her to send others away, while Aecilia felt her mouth twitching but controlled herself from uttering abuses and curses in front of Avendial since she didn't want to appear unfitting as a noble lady in front of him.

In the end, doesn't forming his own private army amount to an act of treason?

"Greetings, Marquess, it will be an honor to be of some help to you," the Director, accompanied by his assistant and the remaining two professors, entered the room before bowing while anticipating the task they would be assigned, given how other CEOs reacted hastily without telling them what task they were assigned.

Seeing three behemoths react so hastily and wear serious expressions as they left the room, they anticipated that the task would proceed with seriousness and provide the best result they could manage.

"Director, I want to experience how teaching feels," Avendial gradually stood up from his seat, his fingers skimming across the desk as he lifted a pen bearing the official symbol of the director's position, revealing its exclusivity to only his office room, which he then stored in his pocket.

"T-teaching?" The director, hearing this request, felt slightly surprised, as normally someone of his status would never try to act like this. But still understanding that influential people could have their moods based on something, he added, "If the Marquess prefers, Professor Daphis could accompany you in his business management department."

Pointing toward one of the professors standing beside him, the director, understanding that the Marquess would most likely prefer classes related to business and commerce, referred to the professor beside him.

"I would definitely help Sir Marquess to look around the classes," Professor Daphis said, realizing that it was a chance to have a proper conversation with the Marquess.

"Rather than just passively observing the classes, I would like the opportunity to teach at the academy for at least three weeks or as long as I choose, without disclosing my real identity to anyone other than those present here." Leaving his place, Avendial moved to the center of the room.

Standing just a few steps away from the director, he looked at him with a smile, clearly trying to give him a dominant look.

Naturally, for the CEOs, it was obvious that they would have some fear of his presence. But due to his nonchalant attitude in front of the director and professors, they would most likely consider him a pushover, which was inferred from the fact that he instantly chose Rihane as a military strategist.

So he needed to clarify things to the director, though of course, if the director didn't accept due to some hollow ethics that normally some honest people have, Avendial would have to use different methods to break those principles or ethics.

"Th-that's?" The director found himself in a dilemma, considering how several times it had happened that some professors used their connections to recommend some of their relatives, but he had always stuck to his principles and ethics, where it was impossible for anyone to enter the academy based solely on their influence and recommendation.

"Wouldn't it be a golden opportunity to have someone like the Marquess teaching our students about businesses?!" Professor Daphis came forward, seeing this as a golden opportunity since if the students of the elite academy could learn about business from a tycoon like Croceaus himself, it would be far more valuable than any internship programs.

"Hm, now that I think about it, it's a great idea," the director said, considering the possibility of the Marquess teaching students about business while making his ethics and principles remain undamaged, since it would be beneficial for the students.

"No, I would like to teach in the art and culture class," Avendial interrupted as the director had clearly suggested him to teach in the business department.

'?!'

"Sir? Why arts? It would be better if you taught in bu—" The director was taken aback by the Marquess's declaration, prompting him to grip his cane tightly as he considered how to make the Marquess change his mind.

Doing so would not be profitable for the academy and would instead leave a dent in his 40-year career, during which he had never allowed anyone to enter the faculty based solely on a recommendation.

"And in exchange for accepting my offer, I will donate 10 million Imperial Crowns to the academy." Avendial, seeing how the director was just wasting his time while also caught in a dilemma between his principles and ethics, made him an offer that would help him make a correct decision.

"Ahem, I would like to have a moment to think about—" The director, hearing the amount, which had just shaken his ethics, controlled himself. Even though he knew the academy was indeed in need of funds, he coughed and tried to think calmly before acting hastily and making decisions that could hurt his principles.

"20 million Imperial Crowns," Avendial once again made an offer as if it were an auction to purchase this man's so-called ethics.

Naturally, academies like the Elite Academy were known among prestigious universities where no one could simply gain admission based on their donations.

But considering that in the past decades, due to advancements in AI and technology, most donations were made toward universities focused on advancements in AI and technological prospects, rather than the Elite Academy, where the focus was on business, the arts, and traditional studies like social science instead of fully concentrating on robotics or engineering.

So the flow of donations was not very frequent; of course, there were always contributions from the academy's alumni.