Divorcing the Duke to Buy the World

Chapter 92: Putting Them In Their Place

In the times where power was the ultimate boon, and people relied on backings of higher officials, no amount of money could save Lila if somebody of Isabella’s rank tried to finish her off.

But with Evelina in the picture, the situation immediately changed and Lila was smart enough to understand it.

And Evelina saw through her intentions as well.

Letting out a soft sigh, she took paper from her, "Go back to the estate before Isabella notices you’re gone."

Lila let out a huge sigh of relief, bowing her forehead all the way to the floor before slipping out through the back door.

The moment the door clicked shut, Evelina laid the charcoal copy flat on her desk.

She placed it right next to a small glass jar containing the ash her people had recovered from the ruins.

"System," Evelina commanded, "Match the numbers from Isabella’s paper with the chemical traits of the ash from the fire."

The blue light exploded into her vision again, the text moving at a dizzying speed.

[Analyzing...]

[Order Number: ARL-8832-WHALEFIRE matches physical ash sample...]

[Match found: 100% Correct]

[Proof Confirmed: The oil used to destroy your warehouses was officially ordered using Lady Isabella’s personal military seal.]

Evelina leaned back in her high chair, as a hint of smile crossed her face, "Perfect. This is enough to strip her of her title and drag Elian’s name through the mud."

But as her eyes drifted down to the smaller details at the bottom of the copied ledger, her gaze suddenly locked onto a specific row of numbers.

Ordering military-grade whalefire oil required a massive payment to the royal treasury, an unbelievable sum of twelve thousand gold coins.

From the information she had gathered before, Isabella’s personal finances had been struggling for months after Evelina had cut off her income in the north.

There was no way Isabella could have found that much cash on her own, even with the prince’s help, without leaving a massive hole in her personal bank accounts.

Evelina’s green eyes sharpened as she stared at the specific bank vault codes listed under the Funding Source column.

The vault code didn’t belong to the Imperial Palace nor did it belong to Isabella’s family money.

It was the secret vault code of the Alvarez Northern Military Reserve Fund.

Evelina’s breath caught in her throat.

Isabella had used her old, stolen access codes to secretly steal twelve thousand gold coins directly from Ace’s own military funds to buy the very oil that burned her trade.

She had used Ace’s own hard-earned northern money to pay for the destruction of Evelina’s life, fully intending to leave a paper trail that would frame Ace’s own supply officers for the fire if anyone investigated.

She was going to destroy Evelina and frame Ace’s most loyal men for it in a single move.

What would she get out of it?

It wasn’t hard to figure it out for somebody who had read countless romance and palace schemes novels in her free time in her past life.

Isabella wanted to corner Ace completely and then probably she was going to appear as his saviour to soothe his broken heart.

Slowly, the shock on Evelina’s face melted away, and it was replaced by amusement.

She picked up her fountain pen, drawing a dark circle around the Alvarez bank codes.

"You miserable, arrogant fool..." Evelina’s eyes narrowed into slits.

Ding!

A bright notification popped up directly over the paper

[System Alert: Ultimate Revenge Triggered!]

[New Event: The Imperial Council Showdown.]

[Target Ace’s Current Mood: Fully armed and waiting for your word.]

...

The grand doors of the High Imperial Council hall swung open with an imposing ’thud’.

High-ranking noble ministers were already whispering behind their sleeves at this point.

At the center of the room, Prince Elian sat arrogantly on his throne. His gold-lined cloak was draped over his shoulders, and a smug smile rested on his lips.

Beside him stood Lady Isabella. Her chin was tilted up as she looked down at the empty floor.

They had been expecting this.

They had received an urgent notice for an emergency council meeting from the Alvarez estate, and Elian had gladly approved it.

He fully expected Evelina to walk through those doors with tears in her eyes. After all was said and done, nobody could remain sane after the fire at her southern warehouses.

Even if the person was from the prestigious Alvarez Family, the loss would be just too enormous to ignore.

Elian expected her to drop to her knees and beg for a tax extension just to avoid a terrible loss.

Instead, Evelina stepped into the grand chamber wearing a beautifully tailored deep green gown. Her posture was as straight and unyielding as an iron pillar.

And walking right behind her, with the stature of an unshakable shield, was Duke Ace Alvarez.

He was fully armed.

The pressure radiating from his towering frame caused the murmuring ministers to instantly choke back their words.

The temperature in the hall dropped to a freezing cold in a single second.

"Your Highness, esteemed ministers," Evelina spoke up calmly, without bowing or kneeling... or crying, as the Prince had imagined.

"Duchess Evelina. We were deeply saddened to hear about the tragic fire at your southern warehouses. It truly is a shame," Elian started, regaining his composure.

"But this council is reserved for matters of state, not for a merchant’s complaints over lost fabric. Unless you are here to admit you cannot pay the crown’s required luxury tax, you are wasting everyone’s time."

Isabella let out a soft chuckle from the side, hiding her face behind a lace fan.

Inwardly, she was elated to see this. She had thought it would be easy to keep a girl like Evelina in check, even if she legally married Ace.

Had the situation not slipped so much, Isabella would never resort to this.

But now that she had walked down this path, she would make sure to drag Evelina down completely to claim Ace as hers.