This Villain Is Mine Now

Chapter 97

Elaina’s lips trembled. The divorce papers Lyle had handed her already bore his signature.

“What is this all of a sudden……?”

Her thoughts tangled into a mess, leaving her unsure of where to begin.

“I don’t think it’s something that should be all that shocking.”

“What did you say?”

“Ending a one-year contract just a few months early—is that really something so devastating?”

Elaina stared blankly at Lyle. “You… Are you really the same man I know?”

That was the only foolish question she could manage to utter.

Was this man truly Lyle Grant, the husband she had known all this time? Or was it someone else wearing his face like a mask?

Tears welled up in Elaina’s eyes. Even as her lips quivered and her face reflected deep sorrow, Lyle did not so much as blink. He handed her a handkerchief.

“I’d rather you not show weakness in front of me. It won’t change my mind. You used to be much bolder, but it seems marriage has dulled you.”

The handkerchief he gave her was the one she had gifted him long ago.

“You seem to need it more than I do. I have no use for it anymore.”

No use for it anymore.

The shabby handkerchief, embroidered with Lyle’s initials, was the first thing Elaina had ever embroidered for someone else.

Memories of the effort she had put into making it resurfaced. The thought of all the time she had spent with Lyle being dismissed so easily sent silent tears streaming down her cheeks.

***

Beyond the closed door, Elaina’s footsteps faded away.

Lyle resisted the urge to run after her. Only when her footsteps were completely out of earshot did he unclench his fists. He had been gripping them so tightly that his knuckles had turned white, and his fingernails had dug red marks into his palms.

It couldn’t be helped.

Lyle forced himself to erase the scene from his mind. He desperately focused on thoughts of Marquis Redwood, trying to forget about Elaina.

Her slightly thinner frame from not seeing her for some time.

Her trembling lips when she heard the word divorce.

The tears that had inevitably fallen down her cheeks.

“Damn it.”

Lyle shut his eyes, trying to erase Elaina’s lingering presence from his mind. But with it came a crashing wave of regret, along with an exhaustion so deep it felt like death itself was weighing down on him.

He barely closed his eyes for a moment before forcing his exhausted body to sit at his desk.

Lately, he hadn’t been sleeping properly or eating at all. He had entrusted Drane with full discretion over matters in the North, pouring all of his focus into cutting off Marquis Redwood’s financial resources.

Lyle didn’t have time.

For Elaina’s sake, he had to get his hands on the Deftia villa.

Would it be today? Tomorrow?

Like the tragic event from ten years ago, he feared something might suddenly happen to her when he least expected it. That thought alone made it impossible for him to sleep or eat.

For Lyle, the most important thing in life had always been restoring the grandeur of House Grant. Reclaiming the family’s former glory had been his sole ambition.

But after meeting Elaina, his life had completely changed.

For her, he was even willing to abandon his title and estate.

From the moment the Marquis had thrown off his pretense and sneered about “that Winchester girl,” Lyle had been driven mad with fear.

The fear of experiencing that same helplessness as ten years ago.

The fear that, just as he had lost everything belonging to House Grant, he might now lose Elaina, too.

This was his burden to bear. His punishment.

From the moment the cunning marquis had caught on to Lyle’s feelings for Elaina, the nightmare had begun.

He had to show the Marquis.

That Elaina and he had no connection whatsoever.

If it meant protecting her, then he was willing to let her go.

The searing pain in his chest was merely the price he had to pay for putting Elaina in danger.

***

“Have you signed the papers yet?”

Morning had arrived. When Elaina entered the dining room for breakfast, her body stiffened in shock. Lyle, whom she had barely seen for nearly a month, was sitting at the table.

“Brother!”

Knox, unaware of the adults’ affairs, ran toward Lyle in excitement. Elaina, careful not to reveal anything in front of the child, maintained her composure as she took her seat.

“If you need more time, it would be helpful if you set a deadline.”

Lyle spoke in an emotionless voice, never pausing his movements as he cut his meat.

“…It won’t take long.”

Elaina responded, her voice hoarse. Lyle’s knife momentarily slowed but quickly regained its pace.

“Would a week be enough?”

“That should be fine.”

Fortunately, she did not cry. She couldn’t afford to let Knox see her like that and startle him. Without another word, Elaina began her meal. Having gotten the answer he wanted, Lyle stood up without finishing his food.

It was clear that the only reason he had come to the dining room was to get her answer.

“Brother? Why aren’t you eating more?”

Instead of answering Knox’s question, Lyle simply ruffled the boy’s hair before leaving the room.

After breakfast, Elaina saw Knox off to the academy before returning to her room.

“Would a week be enough?”

Recalling Lyle’s words from the dining room, she let out a bitter laugh.

“So it wasn’t a dream.”

Last night, she had shoved the papers into a drawer and forced herself to sleep, convincing herself that it had been a ridiculous nightmare—something that would surely fade away once she woke up.

But meeting Lyle in the dining room had shattered that illusion. The previous day’s nightmare was now an inescapable reality.

Elaina pulled the documents from the drawer once more.

“Ha… Haha.”

The sight of Lyle’s name scrawled on the crumpled paper made her laugh unconsciously.

Her dazed expression lasted only a moment before the laughter vanished, replaced by a cold, unreadable look. Clutching the papers, she stood up.

Her destination was the place where the nightmare had begun—Lyle’s study.

***

The door slammed open without a knock. Though startled by her sudden entrance, Lyle concealed his reaction. The moment he recognized the papers in her hand, his heart plummeted, but he quickly suppressed his emotions.

“Here.”

The papers Elaina handed him bore her name, scrawled in an unsteady, rough script. Rather than written, it looked as though the letters had been hastily scratched onto the paper.

“You can file this yourself. But first, you owe me a proper answer.”

Elaina stared at him unflinchingly.

“What’s the reason?”

Her pride was wounded, but she couldn’t endure it without asking.

“Was I the only one who thought there was something special between us? I waited, believing you would explain everything to me. I thought you would trust me enough to share your burdens.”

Elaina clenched her teeth and continued, “If this is all I get for believing in you, I refuse to accept it. So tell me why.”

Her gaze remained locked onto Lyle. She didn’t look away, nor did she waver.

She had always known that their relationship had an inevitable end. But she had never imagined it would conclude like this.

“The day I first came to propose to you, you asked me for a reason. I’m doing the same now. If you want a divorce, then you owe me an explanation. That’s only fair.”

She had every right to demand this much. Strengthening her stance, Elaina resolved not to leave until she received a proper answer from him.

“There is no reason. I simply decided that, going forward, you would be an unnecessary obstacle to me.”

“An obstacle? Me? To you?”

“Yes.”

“Just one more thing… Are you saying our marriage meant nothing to you? That everything we shared was worthless?”

She tried to stay calm, but her voice gradually rose with emotion. Lyle clenched his teeth as if restraining himself, his jaw tightening visibly.

At that moment, he recalled something Elaina had once said to him long ago.

“You really are a villain, aren’t you?”

It was during a ball, when they had been locked in a battle of wits.

A villain—a term perfectly suited for someone who would tell such heartless lies and hurt the wife he loved without hesitation.

With a bitter smile, he replied, “Yes… It meant nothing.”