"Mr. Beckett," I cut him off apathetically. "I don't need the jewelry, and I couldn't care less about you and your new flame. I came here for one thing only—a divorce."

Had my father, Fabian Jennings, not sacrificed his own life to save Evan's grandparents, a woman of my family background and social standing would never have been able to marry into the Beckett family. Everyone knew he was out of my league, so the upper echelons of the city's elite looked down on me.

Even though the research papers I published had literally taken the world by storm, I, too, believed I was unworthy. Consequently, I dimmed my own light, stripping myself of all dignity just to cater to Evan's every whim.

Now that I had let go of this obsession, my forbearance over the past five years had become a total joke. Naturally, it was time for me to reclaim my rightful place.

"Fiona…" Evan started, but his sentence was cut short as someone burst into his office without knocking on the door.

Astrid Smith fluttered to Evan's side like a colorful butterfly. "Evan, I came all this way to have lunch with you… Oh, you're already eating? It looks delicious! Did your housekeeper make it?"

Evan absolutely loathed it when people barged into his office unannounced. Once, an intern had forgotten to knock during an emergency, and Evan had fired them on the spot. Even I had to go through several layers of security clearance just to bring him lunch every day.

Yet, Astrid was clearly an exception to the rule.

Not only did he not become enraged, but he also beckoned her over with an indulgent smile. "Yeah, the housekeeper made it. It might look good, but it actually tastes like garbage."

He made a point of eye-balling me as the words left his mouth. I smiled slightly as I picked up the lunchbox and tossed it right into the trash can nearby. Evan's expression darkened in an instant.

Before he could snap, Astrid slithered onto his lap. "If it's that bad, don't eat it. A new restaurant just opened next door. Let's go check it out together!"

"Alright, let's go."

Right before he walked out, he looked over his shoulder and said coldly, "I'll have Charles take care of the headlines, and I'll make sure it doesn't happen again. However, this is the last time I will tolerate your tantrums, Fiona. Next time, I'll grant your wish."

As soon as his threat sank in, my heart jolted slightly. However, I stepped forward and blocked their path. "Evan, even though there's been nothing dignified about our five-year marriage, I still hope we can end it in a dignified manner. So, there's no need to wait for the next time. Let's just sign the agreement today."

It didn't take Astrid long to put two and two together. Her eyes immediately lit up, and lunch was suddenly the last thing on her mind. "Oh, I'm so sorry, Evan! Am I interrupting something important? Why don't I head outside and wait for you instead?"

However, before she could leave, Evan had already grabbed her wrist. "The one who should leave isn't you." He looked at me blankly. His lips were pressed into a thin, hard line.

I could tell he was about to blow a fuse. In the past, I would've panicked and racked my brain for a way to beg for his forgiveness. Now, I met his gaze without a shred of fear. "Sign it, and I'll get out of your hair right now. I promise neither of you will ever see me again."

The atmosphere in the office instantly dropped below freezing point.

Astrid's gaze darted between Evan and me several times before she suddenly dropped to her knees right in front of me. "Mrs. Beckett, it's fine if you hate me, but please don't give Mr. Beckett a hard time! It's all my fault. As long as you can forgive Evan, I'm willing to let you slap me!"

The moment the words left Astrid's mouth, she raised her hand and struck her own face. The crisp sound of the slap reached Evan's ears, and he immediately scooped her up into his arms and glared at me. "Fiona, how dare you slap Astrid? She's a public figure! How can you be so vicious?"

Without giving me a single chance to defend myself, Evan had already pronounced me guilty based solely on Astrid's theatrical performance. "You've been hurt because of me, Astrid. I'll definitely make it up to you. I promise you, the lead role in that movie you wanted is yours."

Astrid flashed me a cocky smirk where Evan couldn't see. Then, she mouthed the words, "The position of the lady of the Beckett family is mine!"

Not a spark of emotion stirred within me. I didn't even want Evan anymore. Why on earth would I care about being the lady of the Beckett family?

Hence, I ignored her and kept myself firmly planted at the door. "Evan, sign the divorce agreement. Let's divorce!"

The air in the room grew suffocatingly tense once again.

Right then, the office door was violently flung open. My mother, Roxanne Miller, charged in, and the first thing she laid her eyes on wasn't me, but the divorce agreement in my hands. Without saying a word, she snatched it, tore it to shreds, and brought her hand back to slap me hard across the face.

"Have you lost your mind? Why are you so hellbent on getting a divorce when you have a perfectly good life?" Her hands were on her hips, and her tone was harsh. She pierced my heart with every sentence, as if she wanted everyone in the room to hear.

"Evan is the cream of the crop in appearance and status! Who else could you possibly land if you lose him? When a woman gets divorced at 30, she becomes secondhand property!

"Who would want you then? If it weren't for Evan, do you honestly think you could live this comfortably on the pocket change your research institute pays you? This is just a tiny hiccup, yet you're making a mountain out of a molehill!

"Listen here, only deadbeat losers stick to one woman their whole lives—and it's not because they don't want mistresses; it's because they don't have the means to get them!"

I pressed my tongue against the inside of my cheek where I had been struck. A profound sense of helplessness and sorrow washed over me.

Everyone thought my marriage was picture-perfect, but Mom knew just as well as I did how rotten it was to the core. Even so, she still wanted me to grit my teeth and bear with it. To that end, she had even slapped me in front of Evan and his side piece.

A self-deprecating smile touched my lips when I thought of that.

When I didn't refute, Mom thought my resolve had wavered. Her tone softened a bit, but her words still cut deep. "Fiona, all married couples fight. Look at your dad and me; we fought and bickered our entire lives. Listen to me and apologize to Evan. In the future—"

I lifted my gaze to meet hers. My tone was calm yet incredibly firm. "I won't be doing that. I'm going through with this divorce, and nothing will change my mind! I've spent my whole life bending to your will—in where I studied, where I worked, and whom I married.

"I lived for everyone but myself. That ends now. This time, I'm choosing myself!"

"You're simply impossible to reason with!" Beside herself with rage, Mom raised her hand to slap me again. Yet, the moment she met my resolute eyes, her hand froze in midair and ultimately didn't land on my face.

She could only grit her teeth and hiss, "Fine, divorce him then! But when you're bawling your eyes out with regret in the future, don't you dare come crawling back home to me!" With that, she stormed out and slammed the door behind her.

The deafening sound made the walls tremble slightly. Then, the office went dead silent.

Once again, I reached into my handbag and pulled out another copy of the divorce agreement. "Sign it!"

"I hope you won't regret this!" Evan was furious. He picked up his fountain pen and aggressively scrawled his name across the document. "We can get divorced, but you won't get a single dime of my family's money."

I carefully tucked the signed agreement into my bag. I didn't feel sad at all. If anything, it felt as though a crushing weight I had carried for years had finally been lifted from my chest.

I had fallen in love with Evan at first sight. Granted, I had been well aware of his reputation as a womanizer in Vaeloria, so it never crossed my mind that he would actually honor the agreement between our families and marry me. Plus, among his long list of stunning ex-girlfriends, I was literally just an ugly duckling.

Hence, when he'd actually dropped to one knee and proposed to me, it caught me completely off guard. I had been both overjoyed and deeply moved. At the time, I had naively believed that since Evan had asked for my hand in marriage, he must like me at least a little bit.

The consequence of my wishful thinking came on the third day after our wedding, when the media caught him checking into a hotel with a wealthy heiress. I had been consumed by jealousy and rage, yet I'd refused to let go.

I had genuinely believed that my unconditional, wholehearted love would eventually change him. Instead, it just led to me losing my mind and spiraling out of control time and time again. I went from being a genius prodigy whom everyone looked up to to a miserable, resentful trophy wife.

Truth be told, if I could've turned a blind eye to my husband's infidelity the way many wealthy wives did, my life really would have been incredibly comfortable. After all, for the five years we were married, aside from his philandering, Evan had been extremely generous to my family and me.

On our anniversaries and Valentine's Day, even though he wasn't physically there, Charles would always deliver fresh flowers and expensive jewelry to me right on time. When I ran a fever and fell ill, Evan would be out networking all night, but he'd hire an entire medical team to take care of me.

Consequently, to the rest of the world, including Mom, I was simply a woman who didn't know how good she had it.

However, day after day, after facing that massive, deserted mansion and the odd looks from my colleagues and friends, I honestly felt as though I was suffocating. I realized it was finally time to let go.

With that thought in mind, I looked up and met Evan's eyes. My gaze was completely clear and calm. There wasn't a trace of affection in my eyes. "Don't worry, I don't want a single cent of your money."

I had already decided to join the research team and relocate to Ymira indefinitely. So, no matter how much money I had, it would be utterly useless to me.

"You two were heading out for lunch, right? I won't keep you." Having said my piece, I walked around Evan and headed straight for the exit.

I came to a halt at the threshold. "Since you said the food I made tastes awful, I suppose there's no need for me to pass my recipes along to Maria anymore, right?"

Evan sneered at me. "Don't be so full of yourself! Do you honestly think I'll starve just because you're gone?"

Fair enough. I shouldn't have bothered asking.

"Enjoy your meal." With that, I left without a backward glance.

…

I went back to the Beckett residence to pack right after dropping the divorce papers off at my lawyer's. Five years of marriage, five years of unrequited devotion and bottled-up resentment—I was resetting it all to zero today.

More than half of the closet space belonged to Evan. My own clothes were few and far between, much like my insignificant presence in this marriage. I worked quickly, stuffing what little I owned into a suitcase.

Just then, hurried footsteps suddenly echoed from the entryway. It was Evan, the man who was supposed to be having lunch with Astrid right now.

His profound gaze locked onto mine, burning with a furious rage I had never seen before. "You had a miscarriage?"

I stiffened. When I recalled the unborn child I had lost before it had even fully formed, a sharp pain twisted in my chest. "Yes, a year ago. At the time—"