The Lancaster mansion's grand drawing room felt suffocating despite its high ceilings. The air was thick with tension and the lingering scent of expensive cologne mixed with antiseptic from Nicholas's hastily treated wounds.

Yes, Seraphina wanted Aveline and Alaric to set the stage where they could walk out, and Edward and Isabella would beg for them to stay and hate the other two. However, she was wrong.

Aveline was beyond her grasp, wrapped in both silk and steel. She knew how to turn any situation around with mere words. The shock and desperation that had appeared on Edward and Isabella's faces were gone the moment Aveline opened her mouth.

And now, the stage Seraphina had so carefully orchestrated was owned completely by Aveline. She didn't just own it, she was shining brighter than Seraphina had expected.

Edward turned to Aveline, his composure cracking like ice under pressure. The man who had built an empire was losing his cool, and he wanted Aveline to stay quiet. "NOT NOW, Aveline." He stressed the words.

Aveline opened her mouth, then pursed her lips. She respected the man for his age and the patience he had shown her.

However, Alaric, who had silently returned to stand beside her, refused to let her be silenced. His presence was a wall of support at her back.

"You should hear her..." Alaric's voice cut through the tension, each word deliberate. He turned and met Edward's eyes without flinching, "Dad."

Edward's gaze flicked to Isabella, who was still kneeling beside Nicholas, her hands steady as she wiped the blood, though her shoulders had gone rigid.

Edward's eyes narrowed at Aveline, his instincts recognizing more dangerous information. "Don't play with words," he reminded her.

Aveline swallowed her initial response. Her fingers found her mobile phone. She scrolled to find the one video that would change everything.

A video even Alaric didn't know existed. A conversation she had held back for a moment like this.

And she chose to show it to the Lancaster family, because she was not interested in silently attacking each other and defending and protecting loved ones through her life. And more importantly, this was a matter that struck at the very heart of the Lancaster legacy.

Everyone held their breath as she pressed play.

In the clear high definition footage, Aveline arrived at the small cafe, walked straight to Seraphina, and slapped her across the face.

Not once but thrice.

Edward stepped closer to the coffee table, his leather shoes silent on the Persian rug. His hands clasped behind his back as he leaned forward, studying the screen carefully.

Isabella's movements stilled completely, her focus laser-sharp on the audio. Lucien's face had gone pale, his Adam's apple bobbing as he swallowed hard.

Seraphina's perfectly manicured nails dug into her palms. Nicholas's eyes went wide despite his pain.

… In the video …

Aveline sneered coldly, "Congratulations, Seraphina Astor. You've successfully found my weakness and stepped on my nerves."

Water splashed across Seraphina's face as Aveline threw it at her without mercy. Aveline's voice was sharp, each word like venom. "Seraphina, I never started a battle, and I don't intend to lose any battle."

Seraphina hissed back through clenched teeth. "You are no saint."

Aveline laughed, but it was cold and humorless. "Saint? You have no idea what I've been through just to be standing here alive."

Seraphina's voice dropped, malicious. "You weren't my target, Aveline Laurent."

But Aveline's voice sharpened. "You are my target."

Seraphina revealed her goal. "My dream isn't the presidency anymore. That was only a stepping stone. My real desire... is the Lancaster wealth. To strip it all away and throw Alaric out like he never belonged to the name."

Seraphina's words carried venom as she leaned closer to Aveline. "Stay with him, and his life will be hell. The same hell his mother carved for him."

..... Present ...

Isabella's expression darkened. She moved away from Nicholas and Seraphina and stood beside Edward as her eyes narrowed at the mobile playing the video.

If Seraphina thought she crafted a hell for Alaric, Isabella would show her soon who was in hell.

.... In the video ....

Seraphina's words dipped to malice. "Tell me, Aveline... are you willing to lose everything you were born with... just to protect him?"

Aveline's voice grew cold and clear. "No… I'm not willing to lose everything I was born with... but I'm also not willing to lose everything I chose."

"You assumed I would choose my family over Alaric," Aveline continued, her smile sharp as glass. "But when someone threatens what's mine, I don't choose, I fight for everything."

Her final words struck like a blade. "He's only quiet because I asked him to be. But if you try to touch me, he'll burn you and your whole world to the ground."

Her voice softened. "You've declared war on the wrong woman."

... The video ends ...

The silence that followed was deafening. The air in the room felt charged, like the moment before lightning strikes.

Aveline's gaze found Seraphina's face, taking in every detail of her expression. Her lips were pressed into a thin line, her hands clenched so tightly her knuckles had gone white. She looked like a beautiful statue carved from fury and desperation.

Aveline pitied Seraphina. What had Seraphina expected? That she would arrive unprepared? That she wouldn't dare expose everything?

Aveline had learned both kinds of games. Play dirty to uncover the truth, and play fair to wash her hands of their schemes.

Alaric's soft, "Tsk..." cut through the silence like a sigh of disappointment. If Seraphina had simply asked him directly for what she wanted, he would have revealed to her that he didn't fancy a penny of Lancaster's wealth.

Edward and Isabella exchanged a look that spoke volumes. Thirty years of marriage had taught them to communicate without words, and what passed between them now was heavy with understanding.

Isabella's worst fears were happening, but thanks to Aveline, who chose to bring it to their attention instead of letting it fester in darkness.

When Aveline spoke again, her voice carried no trace of emotion. Like a prosecutor delivering a closing argument, she began. "Seraphina Astor, your goal never changed. You want wealth and political power both." She meant she didn't fall for the bluff.

Her eyes flicked to Nicholas, whose face had gone pale. "I wonder if you actually want your husband."

Nicholas's entire body went rigid. The thought that his wife had orchestrated everything to position herself for a grab at Lancaster wealth hit him like a physical blow. His breathing hitched.

"Aren't you done yet?" Seraphina's voice was sharp with desperation, but Aveline was far from finished.

"Or are you helping your husband fulfill his dreams?" Aveline doubted Nicholas, too.

Aveline's gaze found Edward's across the space. She didn't have anything more to reveal, so she softly shrugged. "I'm done with revelation."

Her attention shifted to the father-daughter. "Oscar Astor will serve whatever sentence the court decides." She wasn't taking the case back.

Then her eyes narrowed on Lucien like a sniper finding her mark. "I don't need an insincere apology. Either step down from power voluntarily and save yourself from prison, or Alaric will have a cell reserved for you."

Lucien's face was drained of all color. His hands began to tremble. He opened his mouth to speak, to protest, to bargain, but no sound emerged.

Edward's jaw worked silently as he processed the calculated precision of Aveline's destruction. Isabella's eyes widened with a hint of admiration.

They understood that Aveline had never come seeking apologies or reconciliation. She had come to dismantle the Astor family, leaving them with a sword suspended over their heads for the rest of their lives.

Alaric adored the woman beside him. She didn't have to stand for him, he could fight his battle, but she fought for him and impressed him like before.

Aveline wasn't finished. She turned her attention to Seraphina, "Seraphina Astor, I don't care if you somehow manage to get every penny of Lancaster wealth, I will never let you become mayor of Velmora, much less president of this country."

Seraphina could only glare, her dreams of political power and financial empire crumbling like sand castles before her eyes.

Aveline finally turned to Isabella. Her coldness melted into something warm. "It's my honor to be called a family member, but I understand the need for privacy. If there's nothing else, I will take my leave."

The war had ended for Aveline, but the storm began for Lancasters and Astor.

Isabella needed a moment to gather her thoughts. She glanced at Edward before she spoke. "Aveline," Her voice was soft, but it still carried complex emotions she hadn't dealt with, "why don't you rest in Alaric's room for some time?"

Aveline hesitated for just a moment. She looked to Alaric, who stepped closer and nodded, his hand finding the small of her back. "Sure." She responded.

As they moved toward the stairs, Alaric's cold voice cut through the room one final time, "Ezra, if he doesn't resign by the end of the day, I want him behind bars before midnight." His tone tolerated no argument, no negotiation.

He glanced at Aveline as he added, "And a public apology to the Laurents."

"Yes, sir." Ezra's response was crisp and professional.

"The Fall of the Astors." Aveline's murmur was barely audible as they climbed the stairs.

Her words reminded her of the headlines she had read before her regression. 'The Fall of the Laurents.'

The destiny of Laurents was transferred to Astors.

She glanced over her shoulder one last time, catching Seraphina's venomous glare.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.