Growing up in the Laurent mansion, Aveline was practically immune to the Lancasters' definition of luxury. So she quietly walked beside Alaric, but her thoughts were elsewhere.

She didn't intentionally do it, but the Astors were truly getting the destiny of the Laurents. And it made her wonder how the world around her had changed due to her.

She escaped the prison called marriage, and Damien was behind bars.

Then she got rid of the threats on the Laurent Industries, and Ashford Holdings began the downfall.

She saved herself from the poisoning and couldn't help but wonder who became the victim of that destiny.

Scarlett was safe from the tragedy of the car accident. Then who lost their life in place of her?

Suddenly, her eyes widened. 'Vivienne's baby!' She felt her stomach twist at the thought of it.

Thinking of Vivienne, Vivienne was happy before Aveline's regression, living her life with Damien. Aveline couldn't help but glance at Alaric and wonder if they stole the happiness of that couple.

Was NexGuard truly out of danger?

What about her? Was her destiny assigned to someone else? Or will she die next year?

"What's wrong?" Alaric asked.

"Huh?" Aveline failed to grasp his question.

Alaric lifted his hand and looked at her pale knuckles. Aveline immediately freed his arm and forced a smile. "I was thinking about something."

Alaric didn't get to ask what. Aveline continued, "Nicholas Lancaster was the one working with Damien to steal your second product." She told him. She wasn't sure if Nicholas was still planning against NexGuard, but what she sensed and witnessed downstairs, Nicholas loathed Alaric.

Alaric didn't react to it. He gently pressed the small of her back to keep her walking and guided her inside the bedroom where he grew up.

Aveline smiled at the sight of it. If she were given a quest to pick Alaric's room out of four options, she would exactly pick this one. Everything in the room was customized to the dark shade of his eyes and matched with off-white and beige tones.

It was large, with an island bed, framing the floor-to-ceiling glass wall on two sides. The other end had a gaming station, and the wall was decorated with antique car models.

Before she could ask a question about anything, he gently spun her around and pressed her shoulders to sit on the edge of the bed.

He knelt before her and asked, genuinely out of concern, "I don't know how to ask this." There was hesitation in his tone. "How do you predict the future?" He just wanted to share if something was troubling her. "Have you heard it from Damien?" he asked. But he also knew Damien wouldn't act in a way to get caught.

Aveline bit her lips. She wouldn't be making sense if she told him the truth. Upon that, he might even fear her having some mental health issues.

She said the truth, "I can't predict the future, Alaric..." She hummed while coming up with a silly statement, "I got a dream of misfortune over NexGuard so that I can repay you." She giggled. She could only brush it off with that.

Alaric knew it was a lie. Anyway, he didn't insist. He stood up and hugged her. "Rest here. I'll be back soon."

Aveline hummed, letting his warmth calm the chaos in her mind. "I'm sorry if I have caused too much disturbance in your family." She paused, her arms tightening around him. "I didn't want the fight, I wanted the solution." But that doesn't mean she would forgive them so easily.

There was nothing to be sorry about. Anyway, Alaric quietly accompanied her for a few minutes to ease her.

…..

Meanwhile, in the living hall,

Lucien Astor watched the couple leave, his face stiff with refusal. "I will not resign," he declared, his voice ringing in the quiet room.

Edward simply lowered himself into a sofa, composed as ever. "This would have been under control if the Astors had listened to me earlier," he said evenly. "Why are you crying over spilled tea now?"

Lucien's anger flared. "Spilled tea?" His voice cracked. "Do you have any idea how hard I fought, how much I struggled to stand where I am? And now I should resign because your son commands it? And Seraphina..."

He pointed at Seraphina as he continued, "She worked her entire life for the presidency. The audacity of that wench to say she will not let my daughter achieve her dreams!"

Edward's gaze sharpened, and Isabella's lips pressed into a thin line. Both glared at Lucien at his insult toward Aveline. They were able to stay calm and think because Aveline had shown them mercy. Otherwise, they would have done what Alaric and Aveline were doing.

When neither Lancaster put effort into changing Alaric's mind, Lucien leaned forward, desperate. "I can give you the dam and tunnel tender. And more. Redevelopment deals, the oil rig, straight to Lancaster Global Holdings."

Isabella's voice cut the air like glass. "Stop embarrassing yourself further, Mr. Astor."

The Lancasters' silence told Lucien all he needed to know. They would never bend to his leash. Lucien's composure cracked. He hissed, "Then I will take my daughter away." He threatened them.

Edward's eyes shifted to Seraphina, disappointment and distaste unhidden. "Whatever suits you." He didn't want to break the relationship between Nicholas and Seraphina. However, he wouldn't let Astors use it against them.

Seraphina faltered, but she had no words. She turned to Nicholas, whose suspicious gaze pinned her hard. Her throat went dry.

As though to increase Nicholas's suspicion, Lucien roared again, "And when she divorces, I'll see she takes everything with her, alimony, settlement, enough to drain Lancaster dry!"

Edward finally leaned back. He knew this was desperation talking, but it disappointed him in Astors. His voice was cool with reality. "What Nicholas holds in his name would not last you a year."

His words cut sharper than a blade. Lucien's fury collapsed, and he dropped heavily onto the couch. His breath came ragged, his face aged. This fight was draining him.

Either he stepped down on his own or faced humiliation. Both paths led to loss. His shoulders sagged, his energy dropping under the weight.

Alaric came downstairs, signaling Ezra to leave. Mora, Seraphina's secretary, followed. The housekeeper was dismissed with a nod to have privacy in the room.

Lucien's eyes never left Alaric. The young man was distant, cold to the bone, untouchable. Begging would only degrade him further. Lucien pushed himself up, his chest rising with one loud sigh.

"I'm ready to take the fall for everything that has happened," he said, voice hoarse. Then, turning toward Isabella, "Chairwoman De'Conti, you once said you would care for Sera as your daughter. Forgive her. Cut her some slack. Don't let her career end between four walls."

His plea hung in the air. No one uttered a word to assure him.

Seraphina could no longer hold herself together. Tears slid down her cheeks as she watched her father's back retreat toward the door, each step heavier than the last.

What she feared the most was happening. She didn't want to affect her father while taking down Alaric. But the wild card, Aveline, flipped the whole game.

Edward waited until the silence had thickened. Lucien's shadow was gone, but the words he had left behind still hung heavy in the air.

His gaze moved slowly, from Nicholas to Seraphina, and then rested on Alaric. His tone carried no anger, only weight.

"Enough about power and money," Edward began. "There is something more poisonous here."

Nicholas frowned, unsure. Seraphina's fingers tightened, digging into her palm.

Edward leaned forward, his voice measured, unshaken. "Aveline came to us with what Seraphina said. That she would get rid of Alaric if it meant securing the Lancaster wealth."

The words struck like iron in the room, hearing them from Edward's mouth. Alaric's expression didn't change. He sat cold, silent, his composure unreadable.

Edward did not let the silence stretch too long. "Nicholas," he said evenly, "this is not about shame or anger. This is about truth. You are my son. Alaric is my son. Neither of you will be broken apart due to anyone's schemes."

Seraphina bit her lips, and her head dropped, hearing it.

"I know you are equally involved in this scheme, Nicholas." Edward knew his first son as much as he knew Alaric.

Nicholas clenched his fists. His gaze darted to Seraphina, then to Alaric. He wanted to defend himself, but Edward raised a hand, steady as stone.

"Don't speak. Listen. The Lancaster family does not survive by tearing itself down."

Nicholas could only nod to it. He didn't want to tear it down; he just wanted to get rid of Alaric from the Lancaster tree.

"Seraphina," Edward's eyes cut to her with open disdain, "your ambition has bled too far. To even speak of destroying one brother for another, it shows me clearly where your loyalty lies. Not with family. Not even with Nicholas. Only with yourself."

Isabella added, her voice sharp, "And such loyalty earns no place in this house."

Seraphina's lips trembled. For once, she had no measured words.

Edward leaned back, cold as marble. "There will be no more threats. No more poison schemes whispered in corners. If you think Lancaster wealth is a prize you can seize by breaking apart blood, then you are wrong. You will not succeed. You will only be left alone."

He made it clear that if there came another time when they tried to scheme against each other, that person would be left to face the consequences alone.

Nicholas flinched, caught between shame and disbelief, but Edward's eyes softened only slightly as they met his.

"You are my son, Nicholas. Don't lose yourself while selling your brother's life for a throne." Edward's calm voice ended the matter.

No one dared to argue, not even Seraphina. The room went still, like a string pulled too tight.

It didn't snap... yet.

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