This Villain Is Mine Now - Chapter 78

“He definitely seems to be in better shape. Even smiling like that.”

Kyst looked almost unrecognizable compared to when Elaina had first met him. She found it curious that an old dragon could laugh aloud, but she didn’t dwell too much on why he had changed.

Lyle, who had been silently standing beside Elaina, suddenly spoke, “Do you have anything left to do?”

Elaina shook her head at his question. There wasn’t anything else for her to do. “Knox went with Drane to learn the hand signals, and Diane is with Nathan, so there’s nothing in particular.”

“Are you tired? The journey here by carriage must’ve been exhausting.”

“No, I’m fine. Why do you ask? Is there something we need to do?”

Lyle seemed about to say something but then closed his mouth. Elaina watched him for a while, wondering what he was holding back.

“No, it’s nothing.”

In the end, Lyle brushed off his earlier words, leaving Elaina with a questioning look in her clear eyes. Lyle, pretending not to notice, changed the subject.

“You’ve had a long journey. You should go back to your room and rest.”

“What about you?”

“I need to get back to work. There’s still a lot to do. I have to review Drane’s new tax calculation method and look over the trade proposals from the merchants.”

He wasn’t exaggerating—there really was a lot of work to be done.

Knowing that Elaina would be arriving today, Lyle had even climbed the mountain to train the falcon earlier that morning, wasting valuable time, which only added to the pile of unfinished work.

Yet, despite all that, he still wanted to spend more time with Elaina, even if it meant ignoring his responsibilities.

‘Dangerous.’

Lyle was instinctively aware of the danger in his feelings.

His marriage to Elaina was like a race with a set finish line. Once they crossed that line, it would be over. Their marriage would end as soon as the contract expired, and they couldn’t continue beyond that point.

Half a year ago, at their wedding, he had walked down the aisle arm in arm with Elaina and had promised her that they would never fall for each other.

At the time, he truly believed it was possible. He thought he could grow to like Elaina and the people of House Winchester as acquaintances, but that he would never develop feelings beyond that.

In retrospect, he had no idea what had given him such confidence.

The rebellion led by his grandfather, the downfall of his family, ten years spent on the battlefield—these experiences had left him deeply scarred, wounds that seemed impossible to heal.

Love, friendship—these kinds of fleeting, trivial emotions were not meant for someone like him. He had always believed that.

And yet, when he came to his senses, he found he was no longer alone.

Leo had stepped down from his position as vice-commander of the Imperial Guard to take charge of the knight order for him.

Nathan had traveled all the way to Mabel to examine Kyst’s condition and create the medicine.

Knox, who wouldn’t even look at him when Lyle first returned home, now greeted him with a bright smile, calling him “brother.”

And there was more.

The capable vassal who had made Lyle’s vague hope of restoring his territory a reality.

All of it—all these people—had come into his life because of Elaina.

“Lyle?”

At that moment, something moved before Lyle’s eyes, bringing him back to the present. Elaina was waving her hand in front of his face, trying to get his attention.

“What are you thinking so deeply about?”

“It’s nothing. What were you saying just now?”

“What? You weren’t listening to me at all?” Elaina gave him a playful glare.

“I said I’d help you. I can at least look over the trade proposals,” Elaina grinned as she spoke. The light streaming in from the window illuminated her, wrapping her in a radiant glow.

At that moment, Lyle couldn’t help but admit it.

Ah.

I’m in love.

With this woman.

It was a feeling he had never experienced before, yet he recognized it unmistakably.

“What’s wrong? You don’t look well.”

Elaina frowned slightly, concern etched on her face as she studied his expression. Startled, Lyle quickly turned away.

“Lyle?”

Elaina called his name, puzzled. His ears had turned a deep shade of red. She moved around to face him, only to see him covering his face with his gloved hand.

“What’s going on?”

“…It’s nothing.”

“Your face is flushed. You mentioned going up the mountain this morning—did you overdo it?”

To someone like Lyle, with his incredible stamina, climbing the mountain was hardly an exhausting feat. Yet, Lyle couldn’t bring himself to respond, standing still without a word.

Finding his reaction unusual, Elaina rolled up her sleeves and grabbed his hand.

“Come on. You should rest. I’ll handle the work, so at least take a short nap.”

Lyle knew he should have explained—told her she was mistaken and that he wasn’t sick. But instead, he chose to let himself be led by her.

Having her worry about him felt better than he expected, and being pulled along by her hand felt even better.

***

“Don’t you dare get up. Understood?”

After making sure Lyle was lying in bed, Elaina insisted sternly. She was even a little angry at his insistence on working.

“It’s not like taking a day off will cause the world to end. Sometimes you need to take time for yourself too.”

With those words, she carefully tucked the blanket around Lyle.

“If I find you out of bed, I’ll be very upset. Just rest quietly.”

She had completely misunderstood him.

Up until he gave her the falcon, Lyle had acted as she expected—the Lyle she knew. But after leaving Kyst’s room, he’d been acting strangely.

“I told you, I’m fine.”

“No? You clearly had a fever. Even if you feel better now, who knows if it might come back?”

Elaina firmly cut off Lyle’s protest.

His fever had gone down now, but she had seen his face flush bright red in front of Kyst’s room. Given how stoic his face usually was, even the slightest change felt significant to her.

As the two of them went back and forth, there was a knock at the door. Drane entered, carrying a mountain of documents, and rolled his eyes at the sight before him.

“Uh… Should I come back later?”

“No, Drane. Just put the papers on the desk. I’ll review them.”

“Elaina.”

“The patient stays in bed. Why are you so stubborn about this?”

Drane asked curiously at Elaina’s words. “A patient? Is His Grace the Archduke not feeling well?”

“He had a fever, but he’s refusing to admit it.”

“A fever…”

Drane frowned slightly, doubtful.

Could the archduke—a man who had been unfazed by constant camping on the way to Mabel, who had caught a falcon after spending three sleepless nights in the mountains—really come down with a fever?

Drane glanced at Lyle. During their time together, Drane had learned quite a bit about him. One thing was clear: the archduke was an incredibly stubborn man.

Seeing him swayed by Elaina’s words, Drane couldn’t help but understand the nature of their relationship.

“So that’s how it is!” Drane beamed, his voice loud. “I’ve been so worried about you, Your Grace. You overwork yourself with all the training and falconry—it’s no wonder you’ve fallen ill.”

“Oh my.”

“With your lifestyle, it’s surprising you haven’t gotten sick sooner. It’s only because you’re in good health that you’ve managed so far.”

Drane nodded earnestly, and Elaina’s expression grew serious.

“This is a good opportunity. While Her Grace the Archduchess is here, why not take some time to rest?”

“Yes, Lyle. I’ll help out while I’m here, so please get some rest.”

From behind Elaina, Lyle watched Drane biting his lip, clearly amused, and looked at him with a complex expression.

Just accept it—Drane’s eyes seemed to say.

“…Fine.”

A sigh escaped Lyle. He then turned to Elaina. “All right.”

The moment he surrendered, Elaina’s face lit up triumphantly. “See? I told you it would come back. Do you want some water? Should I get it for you?”

Even Drane, watching from afar, could see that the archduke’s face had turned a little red.

“Well then, I’ll take my leave.”

Drane quickly placed the documents on the desk and left the room in a hurry.

“Whew.”

Once the door closed, he rubbed his arms as if feeling a chill. Though it was past late summer, goosebumps covered his skin.

Even though he had orchestrated the situation, witnessing such an intimate moment between his typically ice-cold superior and his wife had quite an effect on him.