Ascension Of The Villain

Chapter 216: Imperfect Love

Iyana gently rose from Vyan's lap, sending him into quiet disarray. His wide, searching eyes clung to her as if pleading, Why are you leaving me?

There was something almost tragically adorable about his expression, a mix of confusion and longing that made her chuckle softly.

She reached for his hand, her fingers lacing through his with a light tug. "Come on, let's take a walk outside."

Yet he didn't budge, still fixed on her face, his lips parted like he wanted to say something—anything—but the words were lost, trapped in a dry throat. His eyes brimmed with silent questions and fear, as if her movement away from him was the beginning of some unspeakable separation.

Noticing his distress, Iyana glanced around for something to ease him. A glass of water covered with a lid sat on the tea table nearby, and she was about to reach for them when she felt it—a sharp tug.

Vyan's grip tightened around her hand, so sudden and forceful that she almost winced.

"Where are you going?" His voice was laced with panic and desperation.

She blinked at his trembling hand, his fear visible in the way his fingers clenched hers like a lifeline. When her eyes met his wine-red gaze, she saw it clearly now—the fear wasn't just in his hand. It flickered in his eyes, too. He was terrified she would leave him.

Moments ago, he was calmer, sounding both apathetic and apologetic towards his actions, yet he had the courage to continue recounting his wrongdoings. Perhaps because she was there to keep him anchored. Now that she was physically at a distance from him, he was spiraling.

"No, no, love," she said, her voice firm and calming. "I am not going anywhere. I was just going to get you some water." She offered a small, reassuring smile. "And about going outside—it's just that the weather was beautiful, and I thought we could take a walk together. Maybe talk."

His eyes softened in realization. "Oh. I just thought…" Explore more stories at m,v l'-NovelBin.net

"That I was leaving you?" she finished for him, raising an eyebrow.

He looked sheepish for a moment before he nodded.

"Vyan," she whispered, lifting his chin so that their eyes met, "Do you know what I kept telling myself when I was getting ready to see you today?"

He tilted his head, curious.

"I told myself that no matter what you said to me—even if you told me you were responsible for my mother's death, or that you caused a mass genocide—I wouldn't care. I was prepared to hear the worst, and as you can see, I am still here. As for what you did tell me, it was nothing compared to what my heart was ready for."

His eyes widened slightly, disbelief flickering across his face. "How could I be responsible for your mother's death? I must have been, what, sixteen months old at the time?"

She rolled her eyes with a groan. "That is what you took from my entire heartfelt speech?"

"Well, you did call me evil a few minutes ago," he muttered under his breath, slightly sulking. "What am I supposed to think?"

She threw her hands up in exasperation. "Did you not catch the tone? I was joking!"

He frowned, still unsure. "I don't know… I am too nervous to tell."

Iyana slapped her palm against her forehead dramatically. "How is it possible for you to be like this and also the strong Grand Duke Ashstone at the same time?"

Vyan merely shrugged, looking somewhat proud of his duality.

With a sigh, she turned the piano bench so that they were fully facing each other, kneeling in front of him. Her hands caressed his, smoothing the tension out of his knuckles. "Let's get a few things straight first. One: I am not leaving you. Two: I don't magically hate you all of a sudden. And three: I am definitely not turning you in."

Vyan blinked. "Why not?"

"Wow, Panicky Vyan isn't the brightest, is he?" she teased, her voice light with amusement. "Because, you idiot, I love you."

She watched him, caught in the quiet storm of his disbelief, as his breath hitched and his mind seemed to freeze. His eyes wide, his lips parted in shock—he was utterly adorable, almost too much for her heart to bear.

A smile tugged at her lips, and for a brief moment, all she wanted was to kiss him. But given the weight of his confession, she knew she had to soothe his trembling soul first.

"You... you love me that much?" His voice was small, hesitant, as if he couldn't quite grasp the depth of what she was offering him.

Without hesitation, she nodded.

"Enough to ignore my crimes?" His words were quieter this time.

Again, she nodded, unwavering.

"Are you sure?" he pressed, as if needing to hear her say it one more time.

Iyana smiled softly, lifting the hand she held to her lips, kissing his knuckles with a tenderness that melted into him. "Yes."

For a moment, Vyan seemed to relax, but his troubled mind couldn't let go. "So, you really, really don't care about... about my crimes? Nothing has changed between us?"

The answer wasn't simple. But then again, maybe it was.

It wasn't that she didn't care. Of course, it pained her to know the man she loved, the man she admired and respected so deeply, had blood on his hands—whether directly or indirectly.

But she understood him. His pain. His anger. His reasons.

Just like how she fought in the Ganlop War and took lives, for Vyan, this was a war as well. Just like she hadn't differentiated between her enemies—not stopping to think whether they had families to return home to or not—Vyan hadn't, either.

The only difference was, her cold-blooded murders were taken as something to be praised for and his would be taken as a national crime.

Vyan wasn't an evil man, not in the way he saw himself or others would see him as. She had been teasing when she said that, though she knew part of him believed it.

In her eyes, Vyan was just someone who had lost too much, one who had been denied the things he had a right on. He carried the burden of a family that sacrificed their lives for him. And for what? Only for him to live a crappy life—getting bullied, abused, and demeaned all his life. The final blow had to be the betrayal from whom he thought was 'Iyana,' thanks to Sienna.

So, how could he not be angry and vengeful? If she were in his place, she would have done the same. Or no, she didn't have his patience. She would have slayed everyone as soon as she got powers like him.

Therefore, it was unreasonable to expect Vyan to remain good-hearted after everything he had been through. He wasn't like the heroes from novels who chose the route to forgiveness despite getting stepped on their entire lives. And that was okay for her.

She didn't need him to be an altruistic hero. She was more than okay to be with a morally-gray villain, who wasn't wholly good nor was he wholly bad.

However he was, whatever he has done or planned to do, it didn't change the fact that he loved her fiercely.

He loved Iyana and his close ones with all the goodness he had, and the rest? The rest was reserved for those who didn't matter to him. It was really that simple.

Then again, would it really matter to her if Vyan didn't have sane reasons for his sins? What if he just did it for the fun of it? Perhaps, it wouldn't have mattered to her.

Because during the last few days of brainstorming, she had already accepted that their love wasn't about perfection.

Their love didn't need to be clean, pristine. It was theirs. Messy and wild. And that's all that mattered.

He didn't have to abandon his revenge, didn't have to seek redemption simply because he loved her. She didn't want to be the kind of love that forced him back to the righteous path.

No, she had now decided, she wouldn't try to change his mind about getting his revenge. Because she knew it was important to him, and what was important to him was also important to her.

In other words, she was promising to walk with him down that dark road, even if it ended in their destruction.

For him, she would risk it all. After all, she had told herself that countless times—Vyan was worth every sacrifice.

"Simply speaking, no," Iyana spoke up, her gaze locking with his, imploring him to believe her. "No, I don't care. Because I love you too much, Vyan." The words poured from her heart. They were raw and unguarded. "So yes, your confession has changed nothing between us."

The tension in his body loosened, and it made her smile.

"I know I told you that I didn't want you to do anything unlawful, that you were too much, and bullshit like that."

Seriously, what the hell was wrong with her for the past few days? She had seriously been so hard on him for no reason when he was just being his usual self.

"But I want you to know that I didn't mean any of it. But after thinking hard about it last night, I realized I don't want to stop you from being who you are or what you need to do. I just want to be by your side, supporting and cheering you on.

I only got paranoid because, you know, I only knew bits and pieces about everything and you weren't telling me anything, so I just got really frustrated and annoyed."

"I understand, and I am sorry about that," he murmured, actually feeling guilty. "I shouldn't have been so afraid to tell you all this. And to think, I still have so much more to say. Geez," he groaned.

"And I will listen to everything you have to say. Because Vyan, I want to know your deepest and darkest secrets." Leaning in closer, she whispered, "And I can still assure you that I will choose you. All of you."

Vyan's breath faltered again, and this time, Iyana rose to her knees and gave in to the urge. She pressed a kiss to his lips, soft but lingering, a promise sealed in that moment.