The Inescapable Celibate Heir Chapter 180: The Deleted Surveillance

Ella didn't have many fans yet, and there weren't many people willing to defend her. 

She also didn't have a mature marketing team to manage her image, so the current exposure was the best she could get.

"Thanks, you're really brave," Victoria said.

Vera then went to gather evidence to prove that she and Ella were indeed classmates back then, along with her medical records. 

As long as the evidence was ready before the school year started, it would be fine. Victoria and Ryan also helped her collect information online.

During this time, Victoria visited Sweet Haven Corner and handed out souvenirs she had brought back. 

Charlotte was thrilled to receive the gift and reported the winter break profits to Victoria.

As soon as Mira saw Victoria, she ran over joyfully and gave her a hug. "Victoria, it's been forever! I missed you so much."

Victoria felt the warmth and softness of Mira, along with a faint scent of vanilla, and patted her back. "I missed you too." 

She then took out a gift, the wooden reindeer with light blue gemstone eyes.

Mira's eyes lit up as she opened the gift box. "It's so beautiful! Victoria, I love you so much! Oh my gosh, besides my mom, no one has ever been this nice to me, remembering to bring me a gift from a trip." 

The gift was exquisite and clearly not something bought casually.

Victoria smiled lightly. "I'm glad you like it." 

The two then sat by the window, and Victoria briefly recounted her travel experiences, also mentioning Jasmine.

Mira asked excitedly, "Jasmine's island collapsed? Hahaha, she was bragging about her mom buying an island before the break, and now it collapsed after just one visit? That's so unlucky!"

At that moment, Victoria received a message from Ella. 

She had already met with Vera, so she replied: [I've found something interesting. Don't worry, you'll be satisfied.] 

Ella was very excited, though the hacker still had to keep it under wraps for now.

Since they needed to find evidence from the past, Victoria had been working closely with Ryan lately. 

Sometimes they discussed hacking techniques at Ryan's internet café, and other times they had afternoon tea at her dessert shop. 

After meeting Vera, Victoria wanted to start a fund to support girls like Vera who had financial difficulties but wanted to continue their education. 

She discussed this with Ryan, who was very supportive. 

Although his savings were limited after opening the internet café, he could provide technical support, help build the website, and screen suitable candidates, with Vera being the first.

One day, Ryan found a deleted surveillance video that captured the moment Vera was pushed down the stairs. 

A girl's hand was seen pushing her, followed by Ella and a group of people appearing on camera. 

Considering Vera's uninjured face before going to the rooftop and the injuries when she reappeared, it was clear she had been beaten on the rooftop, where only Ella and her friends were present. 

Ryan arranged to meet Victoria at Sweet Haven Corner, handing her a USB drive with a pleased expression. 

When Victoria took it, her fingers brushed against his cold ones, and she joked, "Why are your hands colder than mine? Can't you afford heating at the internet café?"

Ryan quickly pulled his hand back, clenching it into a fist. "Nah, I just wanted to get the evidence to you ASAP." 

The two shops weren't far apart, and he had run over without gloves, so his hands were naturally cold.

Victoria smiled and ordered him a hot coffee to warm his hands. This scene was noticed by Ethan outside the window. 

Without even wearing a scarf, he opened the car door and strode into the dessert shop. "Victoria, who's this?"

After returning to Sunhaven, Ethan had immediately found a special forces instructor to train him in physical fitness and shooting. 

He had seen Victoria's skills during their trip to Lytheria, where she had easily taken down several strong men. 

He couldn't let himself be outdone by the girl he loved. So, he had been training hard to be able to protect Victoria in dangerous situations. 

Today, his instructor had some personal matters to attend to, giving him half a day off, so he rushed to find Victoria. 

Hearing that she had been frequenting the dessert shop, he hurried over, covering the training wounds on his face, only to see Victoria being friendly with a young, cute guy.

Victoria answered naturally, "This is Ryan, my friend." 

She was a bit curious, though, as Ethan's walking seemed a bit off. Nick had mentioned that Ethan had been very busy lately.

Ethan approached the table, subtly sizing up Ryan, and extended his hand with a frown. "Hey, I'm Ethan, a good friend of Victoria's."

Ryan sensed the hostility from Ethan but stood up to shake his hand out of respect for Victoria. "Hey." 

To his surprise, Ethan gradually tightened his grip, causing Ryan's hand to ache. 

Ryan, a less physically active guy, didn't want to back down either, so he gritted his teeth and squeezed back. 

The two stood there, gripping each other's hands, their knuckles turning red.

Victoria finally said, "Why are you both standing? Sit down." 

They reluctantly let go, secretly massaging their hands under the table to relax their joints. 

Ethan, who had a habit of exercising and had recently intensified his training, had a much stronger grip than Ryan. 

However, his right hand was injured, so he was actually in more pain than Ryan but remained silent, unwilling to show weakness in front of him.