Chapter 28: MISSION COMPLETE: Survival of the Fittest

The young maid appeared instantly, her face flushed and her eyes glowing with a fervor that bordered on worship. She looked as if she wanted to burst into song or fall to her knees.

"What has happened to the staff, Marta?" Evelina asked, pausing at the door to her private chambers, "They look as if they’ve seen a ghost."

"Oh, no, Your Grace! They are just excited..." Marta squeaked, her voice trembling with excitement, "The news from the Rose Pavilion traveled like a wildfire. The carriage drivers, the guards, even the palace messengers... everyone is talking about how the Duchess Alvarez won the Empress’s favor effortlessly.’’

Evelina blinked. The Alvarez information network is indeed efficient, she thought. It had taken less than an hour for her social massacre to become household legend.

"They are gushing, My Lady," Marta whispered, leaning in, "They used to fear the Duke’s anger. Now, they also talk about you the same way.n It’s... it’s wonderful!"

Evelina offered a small, "Go and rest, Marta. You’ve done well."

She entered her study and locked the door. The room was bathed in moonlight, reflecting off the glass of her desk.

For the first time in two lives, this room felt like her own fortress rather than a prison.

She sat down and closed her eyes, summoning the interface that had come to be her most trusted advisor.

System, show me the current status.

The blue screen flickered to life, the notifications scrolling so fast they were a blur of golden light.

[Notification: ’The Midsummer Massacre’ sequence complete!]

[Current Balance: 4900 Heart-Wrecker Points]

Evelina leaned back as a hint of satisfaction rose in her chest.

She was no longer poor, at least.

Before she could even begin to browse the high-tier shop, a chime echoed in her mind. It was a sound different from the usual pings. 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

[DING! MISSION COMPLETE: Survival of the Fittest]

[Objective: Establish a power base in the Alvarez Estate; SUCCESSFUL]

[Status: The servants no longer look to the Duke for permission to serve you. You have usurped the domestic throne.]

REWARDS GRANTED:

[Gold: 5000]

[Current Gold: 6450]

[Skill Unlocked: ’Merchant’s Eye’ ;The ability to see the true value and hidden flaws of any asset or person.]

Evelina felt a sharp tingle in her pupils. When she looked around the room again, the world seemed different than how it had been some time ago.

The mahogany desk now had a hovering tag: [Aged Wood, 400 Gold, Structurally Sound].

She then looked toward the door where Ace was likely pacing in the hall: [Duke Ace Alvarez, Current Value: High (Military), Hidden Flaw: Emotional Illiteracy].

"_"

Evelina barely managed to stifle a laugh. But the System wasn’t done.

[CRITICAL MILESTONE REACHED]

[The Host has surpassed ’Local Influence’]

[NEW FUNCTION UNLOCKED: The World Market]

"The World Market?" Evelina whispered.

The System remained silent.

Evelina frowned, "Explain."

The System’s voice rang again this time, and it felt almost proud.

[Host, you have conquered the manor well and impressed the Empress. But the Empire is a small pond. The World Market allows you to influence beyond the borders of this Kingdom. You are no longer restricted to just local politics.]

Suddenly, the blue screen expanded, stretching across the walls of her study until it encompassed the entire room. A massive, holographic globe shimmered into existence, slowly rotating in the center of the air.

It wasn’t a world map.

Evelina stood up, walking toward the glowing orb.

She saw flickering icons over distant Kingdoms she had only heard of in legends and read in poetries in her previous life.

To the East, a massive hub labeled [The Jade Dynasty] pulsated with gold light, indicating a surplus of exotic silk. To the West, the [Iron Republic] glowed red, showing a need for the very flax and coal Evelina was currently monopolizing.

The World Market interface was surprisingly simple and Evelina came to understand it better than she had expected.

It looked like a cosmic stock exchange. She could see the trade hubs where she could send her future steam engines, information brokerages in foreign capitals, and there was even a shadow market for more... secretive and aggressive maneuvers.

She reached out and touched a glowing node over a neighboring kingdom.

[Target Hub: Greystone Duchy]

[Status: Economic Crisis (Grain Shortage)]

[Opportunity: High. Use ’Alvarez Influence’ to export surplus and gain political leverage]

Evelina’s heart hammered against her ribs. She had spent her first life begging for a seat at her father’s table. She had spent the last month fighting for a seat at the Empress’s table.

But as she looked at the holographic globe reflecting in her eyes, she realized the truth.

She didn’t need a seat at anyone’s table at all since she owned the map herself.

She saw a trade route light up between the capital and a distant port she hadn’t even discovered yet. The System’s notification blinked again:

[Welcome to the Big Leagues, Host. Would you like to place your first global bet?]

Evelina smiled; a brilliant expression of pure ambition crossing her face.

Evelina’s fingers hovered over the shimmering node of the Greystone Duchy, the golden light reflected in her eyes like the light of a new beginning.

For a long moment, she simply breathed in the silence of the room, feeling the weight of the map she now held.

In her previous life, she had been a pawn moved across a board by men who didn’t even bother to learn her name. Now, she had shattered that board.

"Yes," she whispered in a steady voice, "Let’s place the bet."

With a decisive tap, she initiated the link.

[Initial Connection Established: Trade Route ’Alvarez-Greystone’ marked for development.]

[Status: Preparing for long-term influence.]

As the globe slowly faded into a pulsing blue dot on her interface, Evelina felt the adrenaline begin to cool, replaced by clarity of a strategist as she began to calculate a certain things she had avoided for a while.

...

Time, unlike the System, was a slow and grinding gears.

A month had passed since the Midsummer Tea; a month that should have been the most triumphant period of Evelina’s life.

In the eyes of the public, she was a miracle. She had successfully navigated the Empress’s temper, shattered the Snow family’s reputation so thoroughly that Selene had been sent to a convent for reflection, and secured her position as the undisputed mistress of the Alvarez estate.

Yet, as Evelina stood on the balcony of her study, looking out over the sprawling lands of the North, she could barely taste the victory.