A brown teapot stead, whistling until a fair hand swiftly lifted it and placed it in a pot of water to the side.
Three ladles of cool water were poured over the pot. It was lifted again, and the tea was quickly poured into cups.
The ball of tea leaves unfurled like a suddenly blooming flower, instantly releasing a delicate fragrance.
Kevin Whitlock took a deep breath and looked at Beta Morgan in amazent. "Beta, among the Morgan brothers, your tea-brewing skills are the best!"
Beta Morgan replied proudly, "I’m the one who makes tea for my boss three tis a day."
Nearby, Benjamin Morgan pushed up his glasses, speechless. ’The one with the most free ti has to know how to make tea. How else would he get by?’
Kevin Whitlock picked up his cup and took a light sip.
The temperature was just right—not too hot, not too cold.
It left a refreshing and invigorating sensation.
"What kind of tea is this? Why is it so good?"
"Kaelan Mountain Ice Tea, a specialty of Sunstone..."
"PFFT... COUGH, COUGH, COUGH..." Kevin Whitlock spat out the tea, choking and coughing violently.
Beta Morgan quickly put away the rest of the tea leaves, a pained look on his face. "This tea is extrely precious, Young Master Whitlock. Please don’t waste it."
Aurora Sinclair had brought this back from Sunstone last ti. It was supposedly picked from the foot of a snow-capped mountain deep within the Aurum Mountains.
She had carried back just over half a pound, all of which she gave to his boss.
If there hadn’t been any other tea left in the office, the boss wouldn’t have been willing to bring this out for him.
Kevin Whitlock laughed sheepishly. "It was just a reflex, wasn’t it?"
Alvin Morgan sipped his tea and said flatly, "Both of you, get out."
Beta Morgan and Benjamin Morgan froze. Seeing that their boss wasn’t joking, they put down the teapot and left the office.
After they left, Alvin Morgan coughed lightly and asked, "What’s the status of the case?"
Kevin Whitlock poured himself another cup of tea. "Following the leads you gave us, we tracked them to the coast. They supposedly escaped by boat. A nearby fisherman recalled the vessel was a small comrcial ferry from Niphoria."
At this, he pulled a piece of paper from his jacket pocket. "Have you seen this symbol before?"
Alvin Morgan looked at the symbol. It seed familiar, as if he’d seen it sowhere before, but he couldn’t quite place it.
"The fisherman recalled this emblem. I just drew a rough sketch, so it’s normal if you don’t recognize it. Anyway, our preliminary conclusion is that they’ve likely fled toward Niphoria. The arrest warrant has been sent to the Niphorian embassy, and we’ll have their people assist with the investigation..."
Kevin Whitlock had spoken too quickly and was out of breath. He picked up his cup and gulped it down. "Your cups are too small. This isn’t even one good swallow."
"If you’re not going to drink it, put it down."
"No way! This tea is too good." Kevin Whitlock clutched the cup and poured another. He wasn’t important enough to get tea from Sunstone himself.
"Right, what details did you want to ask about? There are so things I can’t disclose."
Alvin Morgan set down his cup and pulled a black folder from his drawer, filled with all the information gathered during the investigation.
"Two years ago in Sunstone Town, how many suspects were there in total?"
Kevin Whitlock thought for a mont. "As I recall, there were six. Four of them died on the spot, and the other two went insane."
"How did they die?"
"They just... died... The lab exploded, and they died." Kevin Whitlock replied, looking guilty. He took another sip of tea, accidentally chewing on a tea leaf.
Alvin Morgan’s hand paused as he flipped through the files. He continued, "And how did the other two go insane?"
"They witnessed the lab’s complete destruction, couldn’t cope, and... went crazy..." But as he said this, his eyes t Alvin Morgan’s, which seed to see through everything. His heart tightened, and he gave a couple of sheepish laughs, trying to smooth things over.
"Do you know her?" Alvin Morgan took out his phone and swiped to a photo of him and Aurora Sinclair playing the piano and singing.
With a "CLANG—" the teacup fell, and hot tea spilled all over the table.
"How are you with her?" Kevin Whitlock shot to his feet in shock. His eyes were wide with disbelief.
"What? You know her?" Alvin Morgan calmly put his phone away and asked lightly.
"Alvin, there are things I can’t say, but that girl is dangerous! You can’t get too close to her..."
Kevin Whitlock’s face beca exceptionally grave. His thick eyebrows knitted together, and his lips pressed into a tight line.
’That girl single-handedly destroyed the entire underground laboratory back then.’
’Her strength was monstrous, so terrifying that none of them are willing to recall it, even to this day.’
’And Alvin Morgan is getting this close to her?’
’How many lives does he think he has?’
Alvin Morgan picked up his teacup, took a calm sip, and said flatly, "I’m interested in her."
"What—" Kevin Whitlock slamd his hand on the table, making the teapot jump.
He leaned forward, looking like he was about to grab Alvin Morgan by the shoulders and shake him.
"Are you crazy?! Do you have any idea she’s a remnant of Project A..."
But before he could finish, the cup in Alvin Morgan’s hand shattered. His face was completely devoid of expression as he looked at him with a warning. "I don’t want to hear that again!"
"Alvin—"
Kevin Whitlock was frantic now, wishing he could pry open Alvin Morgan’s head and erase the thought from his mind.
’There are so many girls in Kingsford. Why, of all people, did he have to choose a monster?’
"She’s just a victim," Alvin Morgan said, his gaze cold.
"But she..."
"There’s nothing more to say about this. You should go." Alvin Morgan had already stood up and walked to the window.
His cold deanor startled Kevin Whitlock.
Seeing that he couldn’t be persuaded, Kevin’s fingers clenched into tight fists, and a fierce glint flashed in his eyes.
But as if he knew what Kevin was thinking, Alvin Morgan said coldly, "Get rid of that idea, or you’ll be making an enemy of the Morgan Family."
"You..."
"Get out—"
With a loud "BANG," the office door was slamd shut.
Beta Morgan pushed the door open from the outside, worried. "Boss, what was... Boss, your hand is bleeding..." Beta’s expression changed drastically. "Pip, go find the first-aid kit!"
"Beta, keep a close eye on Kevin Whitlock and the Whitlock Family’s every move," Alvin Morgan ordered, glancing indifferently at the scratch on his hand.
Beta Morgan froze, his brow furrowed, and he hurried forward to treat the wound.
’What just happened?’
***
That evening, Aurora Sinclair was in the kitchen, cooking.
Suddenly, she heard Leigh Miles exclaim from outside, "Morgan, what are you doing here?"
"I ca to freeload a al."
The next mont, Leigh Miles pushed open the kitchen door. "Senior Sister, Morgan and Mr. Beta are here. Make a couple of extra dishes."
Aurora Sinclair nodded and put away the chili peppers.
During dinner, Beta Morgan suddenly said, "Aurora, it’s ti for you two to move."
Aurora Sinclair’s hand paused as she was ladling soup. Leigh Miles’s eyes went wide as she looked at him in confusion. "Why?"
"The lease here is up. The landlord won’t renew, so I found another place for you. We can go see it after dinner."
"Huh? Is the rent expensive? Is it far from school?" Leigh Miles’s mind imdiately started calculating.
"The rent is about the sa as here, and it’s just two streets over." Beta Morgan thought about the small duplex his boss had him buy and renovate in advance, and couldn’t help but sigh in admiration.
’What a great new sugar daddy!’
Hearing that it wasn’t expensive, Leigh Miles relaxed and asked a few more questions about the house. The more she heard, the happier she beca; it sounded great.
After dinner, the group was heading out when they ran into Indie Lowell returning with her bag.
Her heart tightened when she saw Alvin Morgan. She hadn’t told him beforehand that she had moved here.
Suppressing her nervousness, she asked calmly, "Where are you all going so late?"
"Ms. Lowell, we’re going to see a new house," Leigh Miles replied cheerfully.
"A house?"
"Yeah! The lease here is up, so we have to move. We’ll co back and visit you in the future."
"Moving—" Indie Lowell’s face paled. She imdiately looked at Alvin Morgan and asked in a sharp voice, "Where are you taking them?"
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