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Damien looked at him with an amused, dangerous smile: "General, quite the impressive tone. By your logic, should I now bear your family name?"
Davis was terrified, stammering: "Y-Your Majesty... I... I didn't mean... it was a jest..."
Truly, there was always a bigger fish.
Davis, haughty just moments ago, now knelt in the dust.
Seeing his pathetic state filled me with immense satisfaction.
This villain was reliable; when there was trouble, he truly stepped up.
Damien lifted his eyelids lazily: "Very well, General. I was merely jesting with you too. Rise."
"I hear your wife's dowry has gone missing?"
Callie's legs were shaking like sieves—a dead giveaway.
How did someone like her ever become the female lead? It makes me question the author’s taste all over again..
Davis pursed his lips, hesitating.
Seeing him play mute, Damien pressed on, a hint of anger in his voice: "Is the question difficult?"
Davis dropped back to his knees; even from a distance, I heard the thud.
Sweet satisfaction.
He closed his eyes, fists clenched, and admitted defeat.
A flicker of amusement passed through Damien's eyes.
"In that case, I shall assist Madam in recovering it."
He lingered on the word 'Madam', saying it with a strange emphasis.
My breath hitched for a moment; I almost dropped the handkerchief in my hand.
Having him call me that in front of Davis was indescribably thrilling.
I suddenly understood why Davis and Callie liked flaunting their affair in my face.
Even sweeter was that Davis remained clueless.
Doubt Davis, Understand Davis, Surpass Davis.
As box after box was carried out, Davis's face grew paler.
Soon, the entire courtyard was filled.
Looking at these crates of priceless items, my heart soared.
Finally, Damien, a playful smile touching his lips, asked: "Madam, is this sufficient?"
If I said no, I had no doubt he'd empty the Davis vaults.
But I wasn't greedy. Besides, I didn't want anything else from the Davis estate.
It wasn't like they had much of value anyway.
I beamed back: "It's sufficient."
Davis kowtowed three times, forehead pressed to the ground: "Your servant is guilty. Punish me as you will, Your Majesty."
Damien's smile vanished: "Then I sentence you to write a letter of divorce."
I glanced at Damien, confused about his intentions.
He gave me a reassuring look, and I relaxed.
Callie's face flickered with secret joy. I shot her a mocking look.
"However, do not mistake its content. It is not you divorcing her, but her divorcing you."
Damien's words dropped like a stone, silencing the entire courtyard.
The silence spoke volumes.
Under the crowd's scrutiny, Davis's face was a mask of humiliation.
For a proud man like Davis, Damien's move was worse than death.
As the first man ever publicly divorced by his wife, he was destined to become a laughingstock, his reputation forever tarnished.
I supposed it was another way to leave his mark on history.
Davis remained silent. Damien's displeasure grew: "Well? Do you refuse?"
Davis looked up, resentment flashing across his face: "Is Your Majesty deliberately humiliating me? You know full well what consequences this will bring."
Damien gave a knowing smile: "Was I not following your example, General?"
Seeing Davis's confusion, Albert, who had been watching the show, kindly reminded him: "General, you seem to have forgotten your own actions on your wedding night."
Davis's face went deathly pale. He had likely never imagined that the humiliation he'd inflicted a month prior would boomerang back.
He opened his mouth, trying to defend himself but finding no excuse. After all, what he did was irrelevant.
What mattered was how the sovereign interpreted it.
After a long silence, he let out a bitter laugh and kowtowed again: "Your servant... thanks Your Majesty for his magnanimous grace."
At that moment, his former arrogance shattered completely. Seeing others look on with pity, I felt nothing inside.
Because Davis had treated me exactly the same.
It was simply karma.
When I signed my name on the divorce document, I felt profound relief.
I had finally escaped my fate as the Female Lead's stepping stone.
Though the plot had long since diverged from the book, I couldn't feel safe until I was away from Davis and Callie.
I didn't know if the derailed plot might suddenly snap back into place one day.
As the procession carrying my belongings marched out, I caught sight of Callie cowering in a corner. I paused.
I stepped forward and plucked the hairpin from her hair.
Solid gold, set with gems—my one hundred thousand coins nearly forgotten atop her head!
Seeing her fury barely contained, I was utterly delighted.
I walked out of the Davis estate with light steps.
Henceforth, I would give flowers to myself, ride freely towards freedom.
Unsurprisingly, Davis's divorce became the talk of the capital. Unable to bear the public ridicule, he shut his doors to all visitors.
Simultaneously, many wondered why Damien had intervened so decisively?
But no matter how much they speculated, no one guessed the truth.
Many tried to visit me, hoping to pry information from me. I refused them all.
Except for Lady Devereux .
