C1 She Was Tired.

In the living room, Lydia, weakened by a high fever, slumped on the sofa, her scarlet eyes surveying her unharmed body with a surge of excitement. Moments before, she had been lying in a pool of blood, succumbing to despair. Yet now, she was miraculously... still alive. No, more precisely—

She had been reborn, three years in the past.

"Mr. Tillman, you've returned," came the maid's voice from beyond the door before Lydia could fully grasp her current situation. At the mention of "Mr. Tillman," her heart clenched painfully. She lifted her gaze through the floor-to-ceiling windows, her eyes settling on a tall man clad in a black suit. His eyes were icy, devoid of any warmth, mirroring the cold, disdainful look he gave her just before her death. He had told her then—

Lydia, your fate is of your own making!

The memory triggered an agonizing pain in her chest.

For eight long years, she had loved this man, held him dear in her heart, loved him to the point of losing herself, to the point of humiliation... She had believed her fervent heart would eventually thaw his. But she was gravely mistaken. From the moment she was deceitfully bound to him, all he harbored was loathing. And after Maria's tragic death in a car accident, his hatred for her deepened.

Three years into their marriage, disfigured and crippled by the life she led with him, she lost everything, yet he remained unmoved. She died without ever feeling a shred of his warmth. The memories of her past life weighed heavily on her, laden with pain. Lydia pressed her hand to her aching chest, shifting her gaze from his stern face, fighting back tears.

Outside the villa, the once vibrant courtyard fell silent, as if it too had succumbed to the man's chilling presence. Reece acknowledged the servant's polite greeting with a nod and continued into the courtyard. The butler, anticipating his arrival, hurried to the entrance to swing open the heavy glass door. As Reece stepped into the living room, the butler followed closely, attending to him with care.

"Lydia, you really went to extremes to lure me back home, even resorting to cursing yourself with a life-threatening fever," he remarked with a scrutinizing gaze.

He took in Lydia's appearance on the sofa; aside from her pallor and a slightly sickly look, she hardly seemed on the brink of danger. His expression grew even colder.

Lydia's eyes locked onto the austere yet striking man before her, a flicker of surprise crossing her features. Had she tricked him into coming home? Did she ever do that in her past life? Memories swiftly flooded back. Indeed, she had suffered from a fever for three days, but it wasn't her who had asked for him to return. Her persistent fever had alarmed the household staff, prompting Ora to inform Old Mr. Tillman of her condition, who in turn had called Reece.

With this realization, Lydia pieced together her current predicament. She had been reborn on the day she woke from a severe illness three years prior.

"Lydia, you wouldn't have gone to such lengths to summon me back just to sit in silence. Out with it—what's your scheme now?" he demanded, his voice icy.

"What am I doing?" Lydia echoed under her breath, a tumult of emotions—sorrow, resentment, and a deep-seated love—playing across her ashen face. Her hand at her side clenched and then relaxed completely, as if she had come to a significant resolution.

Lydia lifted her head, her eyes brimming with tears, and struggled to speak. "I..." Her voice broke as the tears she had been holding back finally spilled over.

Taking a deep breath, a resolute look replaced the sadness in her eyes. "I want a divorce!" she declared. She knew she could never warm his heart.

A wry smile touched Lydia's lips as she conceded, "I give up. I can't keep loving you—it's just too exhausting."