This Villain Is Mine Now

Chapter 87

Knock, knock. This was the fifth knock. The maid’s expression turned grave.

Not knowing what to do, the maid caught Sarah’s attention from a distance. Sarah approached her with a calm demeanor.

“What’s going on?”

“Ah, Head Maid!”

The maid’s face crumpled as she looked at Sarah.

“I knocked several times, but the madam isn’t responding.”

The maid had already decided that if there was still no response, she would go fetch Sarah. Looking visibly anxious, the maid fretted, wondering if something was wrong. She stamped her feet nervously.

“She was very upset yesterday.”

Even though Lyle and Elaina were good people, the maid was sharp enough to know that neither of them had a simple personality. After Lyle had stormed off into the forest alone and Elaina had gone to confront him in his room, the atmosphere in the mansion had been chaotic all day yesterday.

“Do you think they might have fought?”

Seeing the young maid on the verge of tears, Sarah sighed and patted her on the shoulder.

“That’s unlikely. You can head back now; I’ll handle this.”

“Yes, Head Maid!”

After confirming the maid had gone far enough, Sarah took a deep breath. A moment ago, she had reassured the maid, but even Sarah wasn’t entirely certain.

Things had gone too smoothly for a while. She thought it was unusual, as nothing ever seemed to work out this easily.

She shook her head. Elaina was kind-hearted, but not generous enough to tolerate anyone stepping on her pride. The real problem was that the other party wasn’t the type to yield easily either.

No matter how well they had gotten along until now, if two people with such fiery tempers clashed head-on, the tension was bound to persist for a while.

‘Well, there’s nothing I can do about it.’

Getting involved wouldn’t help resolve things between the two. The only thing Sarah could do was stand by Elaina’s side and offer advice.

Knock, knock. Sarah knocked on the door but received no response, just as the maid had said.

“Madam, I’m coming in.”

Sarah cautiously opened the door and stepped inside. Her eyes widened at the sight.

Of course, there was no response.

The room was completely empty. It looked just as it had been after Sarah tidied it yesterday, as if no one had entered since.

***

Sarah ran down the hallway. Ever since Elaina’s marriage had made her the head maid of the Grant family, it was rare for her to lose her composure like this, but the circumstances left her no choice.

In a panic, Sarah headed straight for Lyle’s room. Regret surged within her as she hurriedly pounded on the door. This wasn’t a gentle knock—it was frantic. From inside, the sound of someone approaching was followed by the door opening. Lyle stood there with a weary expression.

“…Sarah? What’s the matter?”

“Your Grace…! It’s an emergency. Her Grace is missing!”

Sarah, pale as a ghost, clenched her fists and cried out.

“The maid went to wake her, but there was no response, so I opened the door. It seems Her Grace didn’t return to her room at all last night. She must have been terribly upset and left the mansion. We need to send people out to find her immediately!”

Sarah was filled with self-reproach. She shouldn’t have fallen asleep so carelessly last night. While she hadn’t expected Elaina to go this far, she still felt an overwhelming sense of guilt for failing to fulfill her duties as Elaina’s personal maid.

“No one seems to know that she went out, so it must have been late last night. I’ll go to the village first and ask around about her whereabouts—”

“Sarah, calm down.”

Lyle placed his hand on Sarah’s shoulder.

“Your voice is too loud. You’ll wake her. Please lower it a bit.”

Wake her? Lower her voice? Did that mean he was still planning to sleep in this situation?

Sarah’s frustration boiled over at Lyle’s calm demeanor, and her voice grew louder.

“Your Grace may be able to stay calm, but I can’t! Can’t you see how much Her Grace’s actions reflect her feelings? Do you not realize how hurt she was by you yesterday?”

Tears welled up in Sarah’s eyes, but she bit her lip and continued speaking.

“Of course, you must be tired from coming home so late last night. But I didn’t expect you to be indifferent enough to go back to sleep in this situation! You probably don’t realize this, but Her Grace waited for you all day yesterday without even eating. Now she’s gone, and how can you just—!”

Lyle frowned at Sarah’s outburst. It was clear to him that Elaina’s loyal personal maid had misunderstood something.

“I think there’s been a misunderstanding. By ‘wake her,’ I meant Elaina. She’s asleep.”

Sarah froze, staring blankly at him.

“…What?”

“She fell asleep not too long ago. If she hears your shouting, she might wake up, even if she’s exhausted. I believe she’ll need a full day of rest.”

“…Huh?”

Sarah’s eyes widened. A moment later, she clamped both hands over her mouth to stop herself from screaming.

Realizing that Sarah had grasped his meaning, Lyle chuckled lazily.

“If it’s not too much trouble, could you bring some water? Her throat must be dry.”

Sarah nodded stiffly, her hands still over her mouth. A mix of guilt and embarrassment flitted across her wide eyes.

“I-I’m sorry. I had no idea…”

“No, I should have told you earlier. I didn’t mean to worry you.”

“I’ll leave the water by the door. I’ll also instruct the maids not to knock on your door—or even come near this area.”

Lyle chuckled softly at Sarah’s response.

Normally, he would have said there was no need, but today was different.

“That would be appreciated.”

Oh my.

Hearing such an unusual response from Lyle, Sarah’s fists clenched tightly. She quickly bowed and left, her steps just as hurried as when she had arrived.

“If the butler knew about this, he’d be thrilled…!”

Sarah thought about writing to the butler immediately and quickened her pace, a smile breaking across her face despite herself.

***

After sending Sarah away, Lyle carefully closed the door. Sarah was competent, so she would handle everything from here on out.

The room, usually tidy, was a mess. Lyle picked up the clothes scattered on the floor and placed them on the sofa. While he could have left this task to the maids, he wanted to spare Elaina any embarrassment.

“Mm.”

Despite everything, Elaina remained fast asleep. It was only natural. She hadn’t fallen asleep until dawn, and with her frail stamina, she would need to sleep all day to recover fully.

The thin blanket covering Elaina slipped as she shifted in her sleep. Her exposed skin bore marks he had left, contrasting starkly against her pale complexion.

Fortunately, autumn had arrived. If it were summer, the thin, revealing dresses would have made it difficult to hide such marks.

The thought of anyone seeing those marks made his heart burn with possessive jealousy. At the same time, he felt a twisted satisfaction at leaving evidence of his claim on her.

Lyle gently pulled the blanket back over her. He wrapped it tightly from her neck to her feet, cocooning her like a swaddled baby.

Instead of lying down beside her, he sat in a chair and watched her sleep. He worried that climbing into bed might disturb her rest.

Though only a day had passed, the sunlight seemed unusually bright. The only thing that had changed was his relationship with Elaina.

That small change made his entire world feel different. Was this what salvation felt like?

Suddenly, a deep fear gripped Lyle.

It was the realization that he could no longer imagine a world without Elaina.

Yesterday, he had accepted that their time together was finite. But now, he couldn’t bear the thought of losing her.

For Lyle, a world without Elaina was as bleak as an apocalypse without God. She had become irreplaceable—a weakness so profound it could destroy him.