Chapter 312: Seaside, Wind and Waves, Running Away
’Good grief. The more I listen, the more chaotic this world seems.’
Little Red Riding Hood invited the two sisters to go for a stroll along the seaside on the other side of the village tomorrow.
According to her, the sand there was golden, and walking on it felt as soft as cotton.
Flora was a little reluctant, but Faye Yardley thought it would be nice to see the sea. In the end, though, she said she’d go along with whatever her sister decided.
As if to reward her for her good behavior, Flora surprisingly agreed.
"That’s wonderful! Geoff said he’ll send a horse-drawn carriage for us tomorrow."
"Geoff? The Frog Prince?"
Flora’s muffled laugh came from the darkness, followed by Little Red Riding Hood’s slightly embarrassed voice, "Yes, that’s him."
Faye Yardley sighed and said, "I never would have guessed. Little Red Riding Hood is suddenly marrying a Prince. Won’t you become a Princess? Your parents must be so happy."
"I don’t know, but Grandma approved, so Mom and Dad probably will too." Little Red Riding Hood continued, "Geoff is very handsome, isn’t he?"
Flora said seriously, "Good looks don’t put food on the table."
Faye Yardley reminded her, "But they do if the handsome boy is a Prince. Sister, maybe you should marry a Prince, too. Then you’d never have to work so hard picking mushrooms again."
"What’s so wrong with picking mushrooms? Why would I marry a Prince just to stop doing it?" Flora clearly had no such intentions. She continued, "If I ever get married, it has to be to someone I love, and who loves me in return."
Faye Yardley lay in the dark, her eyes wide open as she stared at the pitch-black ceiling. "Maybe the one who falls in love with my sister will just happen to be a Prince. Right, Little Red Riding Hood?"
"Right. Like Geoff, a handsome Prince who loves you very much. Flora, you deserve the best. You have a heart of Gold."
’A heart of Gold?’
Faye Yardley’s head instantly started to throb. She knew that was from another fairy tale, one where the doll with the heart of Gold was burned to ashes at the end to save her little master.
She quickly changed the subject. "Oh, let’s get to sleep. Since we’ve decided to go to the beach tomorrow, we should get up early to prepare some snacks and tea. We can treat it like a picnic."
Little Red Riding Hood nodded. "Yes, Miss Faye is right. We should sleep early and wake up early, prepare some food and drinks, and bring a picnic blanket."
Flora made the final decision: "Then let’s sleep."
Blue skies, a bright sun, an azure sea, golden sand, and colorful shells of every shape and size.
The sea was calm. It was indeed a perfect day for a picnic on the beach.
Little Red Riding Hood and Geoff were holding hands, playing by the water’s edge.
Flora was lying on the picnic blanket, leisurely sunbathing, drinking tea, and eating pastries.
As for Faye Yardley, she was excitedly gathering seashells, occasionally glancing out at the sea.
’The sea is so calm. Nothing strange is going to happen, right?’
Well, the Fairy Tale World was just that unreasonable. One moment, it was a serene, beautiful world, and the next, the wind howled and the clouds gathered as wave after wave surged violently from the distance.
Geoff grabbed Little Red Riding Hood and they ran frantically toward the pier.
Flora immediately shot up and shouted toward Faye Yardley, "Faye, get back here!"
Of course, Faye Yardley wanted to run, but her foot suddenly sank into the sand, and she couldn’t pull it out.
’It’s hard to believe that with my Strength, I can’t even pull my foot out of this sandpit.’
Then, she could only watch helplessly as a crashing wave engulfed her.
It felt like someone was relentlessly pouring water over her head, making it impossible to breathe.
Fortunately, her second Talent ensured that aside from the discomfort of being battered by the waves, she was perfectly fine.
The wave had even freed her foot, and she could move again.
As she started wading through the water toward the shore, she saw Flora frantically dive into the waves, trying to fight her way over.
Swimming was incredibly difficult with the endless onslaught of waves.
Watching Flora struggle toward her only to be swept even farther away by the next wave, Faye Yardley felt a mix of emotions. She then used her own advantage in the water to dash straight toward Flora.
Amidst such massive waves, Faye Yardley seemed to move with ease.
But Flora, caught in the surf, had no control and was being carried farther and farther from the shore.
Even so, Faye Yardley just tried to estimate where the next wave would take her sister and headed in that direction.
Several times, she almost managed to grab Flora’s hand.
By the time Faye Yardley finally caught Flora, she had already passed out.
’How strange. Right now, she seems as fragile as an ordinary person.’
’Is she an ordinary person?’
’Obviously not.’
’So she’s afraid of seawater?’
Faye Yardley carried her to a large reef. As she looked up, she saw another head bobbing in the water before it finally sank beneath the surface.
She had no choice. After confirming that the massive waves from before had subsided, she noted that the sea was still rough and it had started to rain. At least Flora would be temporarily safe here.
She placed Flora in the recovery position, face down, then dove back into the sea and swam quickly toward the figure she had just seen.
「Half an hour later.」
Faye Yardley looked at the two people lying on the ground, unconscious after nearly drowning. She had already administered first aid, and both were breathing normally, but neither had woken up.
’What now?’
They were in a small cave formed by the reef, and it was still raining outside. If the seven-to-eight-meter-high waves from before returned, this place would be submerged in no time.
Fortunately, their luck wasn’t that terrible. Although it was raining, the wind and waves had calmed.
The person she had rescued was a handsome, red-haired young man who perfectly fit the description of a fairy-tale Prince.
After all, his clothes were clearly expensive.
’Could this be the Prince the Mermaid falls in love with after saving him?’
’If so, does this count as me helping the Mermaid? At least she won’t turn into sea foam over some guy now.’
’I guess I saved her life, in a way.’
’After all, without that unrequited love, she gets to live a full life.’
’If you live long enough, you’re bound to find a wonderful love eventually.’
’In the fairy tale, the Little Mermaid Princess is just a girl with a crush.’
’A completely boy-crazy one at that. She went all-in without even knowing if he liked her back, and in the end, she lost everything, body and soul.’
’In Faye Yardley’s eyes, her fate was tragic, but she honestly had it coming. After all, who can you blame when you don’t use your head?’
’The question is, who is the Prince that Clementine likes?’
’Could it be this one in front of me?’
’And Little Red Riding Hood, did you and your Frog Prince really just run off like that? Aren’t you going to come look for us?’