For a decade, Ace had considered Evelina a burden, a shallow pool he had already mapped to the bottom. He thought he knew everything she was capable of, which was to say, very little.

But as he watched her through the door, seeing her calmly roll up the maps and take a slow, meditative sip of her tea, he realized the truth.

She had a whole world in her head. And in that world, he didn’t even exist. He wasn’t a secondary character to her, let alone the protagonist.

The realization left him feeling remarkably small in his own hallway.

He had spent so long ignoring her, only to find that while he was looking away, she had become someone he didn’t recognize and someone who clearly no longer needed him to recognize her at all.

Ace turned and walked away before she could catch him lurking.

He went to his office, sat in the dark, and wondered for the first time in his life if he had ever actually met the woman he married.

On the other hand...

[Notification: In the current situation, ’Target: Ace’ is 45% Perplexed, 25% Excluded]

[Bonus: 550 Heart-Wrecker Points awarded for ’Ego Bruising’!]

[Current Balance: 1100]

Evelina blinked, confused by the sudden notification as she looked towards the door. Was Ace here?

Her brows tugged together for a moment but seeing the current balance, she relaxed.

Whether he was here or not didn’t matter. She profited quite a bit so it was a good thing only.

After spending 2000 points, she was recovering points pretty well. It wouldn’t take her long to reach her goal.

The following days, Evelina was so busy that she had no time to breathe.

Baron Snow, paralyzed by the threat of his secrets being leaked to the Imperial Magistrates, didn’t require another visit to return the dowry; he simply couldn’t take the risk of facing the Emperor’s edict.

While everything was going well, the Duke remained visibly displeased by the sudden shift in household authority... and most importantly, the cold shoulder he kept receiving from his wife.

To mark the end of the deployment, the Alvarez estate hosted a customary military reception. While the event was a routine and ritualistic gathering for the soldiers, it provided the perfect stage for Evelina to debut herself to redefine her standing within the hierarchy of the Empire.

The week leading up to the reception was a masterclass in quiet revolution. With the [High-Class Aura] active, Evelina no longer had to shout to be heard; a simple glance was enough to make the household staff scramble to fulfill her every whim.

And that helped her save time from unnecessary hassle. Earlier, she would have to do rounds to establish her point and she knew she was capable of doing it.

But if she kept going in circles every time, it would be such a waste of her time. So, Evelina was satisfied with the current result.

She used this newfound authority to overhaul the estate’s logistical management, starting with the one thing Ace valued most: his military standing.

By rerouting a portion of the miscellaneous funds she had squeezed from her father, Evelina had quietly upgraded the rations and supplies for the returning border patrol. In the world of the System, loyalty was just another form of currency so it served her purpose just right.

"Your Grace," Marta whispered on the evening of the event, her hands shaking as she fastened the last of the obsidian-silk stays, "The Duke... he has been asking why the guest list was altered to include the lower-ranking officers as well. He seemed... displeased."

If Evelina had to be unbiased, the high-standing people like the Duke were raised and conditioned in way that made it difficult for them to break rules.

He fought for the lowborn but inviting them to his abode felt like something out of script. The discomfort was inevitable indeed.

But what did it have to do with Evelina?

"Let him be displeased," Evelina replied, her voice like cool velvet. She checked her reflection and realized that the aura didn’t change how others saw her but rather, it just seemed to help her carry herself better, "He is the master of the battlefield, Marta. But I am the mistress of this house. The soldiers should know who truly puts the bread on their tables."

Marta looked at the woman in admiration.

Evelina smiled and patted the girl’s head, the only person she considered close to her in this life.

As the first carriages began to rattle up the gravel drive, Evelina felt the anticipation in her veins.

The reception was a strategic necessity, a brief military gathering to celebrate the successful deployment of the border patrol.

Normally, Evelina would have spent such an evening blending into the wallpaper, her presence marked only by the occasional nervous stutter or a desperate attempt to catch Ace’s eye as he moved through the room of soldiers.

Tonight, however, the atmosphere was different...

Evelina stood beneath the grand chandelier of the ballroom. She was no longer the Pauper Duchess in this life and when she stood there with an air of nonchalance, she was vision, akin to at a dark diamond amidst a sea of drab military uniforms.

Ace moved through the crowd, accepting congratulations with his usual stoic indifference.

Yet, his gaze kept drifting toward the center of the room.

After a long while, Ace could barely hold his breath. He started approaching Evelina.

Before he could reach her, a tall and broad-shouldered man cut through the crowd.

Captain Cassian.

Ace froze in his tracks.

Cassian was everything Ace was not: charismatic, expressive, and possessed of a legendary war record that rivaled Ace’s own. They had been rivals since the Academy, two sides of the same coin as if one made of ice, the other of fire.

"Your Grace," Cassian said, his voice a deep baritone that carried easily over the music.

Cassian came to a halt in front of Evelina, his gold-braided uniform gleaming.