Evening had fallen, and Liyami walked along the beach. The comfortable sea breeze caressed her body, and the waves that occasionally lapped at her feet brought a sense of coolness.
Today, she had experienced many seaside activities she could only do near the ocean. Not just building sandcastles—after that, they had swum in the sea, tried surfing, played some beach volleyball, and enjoyed many other fun things.
In the end, everyone was exhausted and went back to the villa to rest. Only then did Liyami find the right moment to slip out. She walked alone on the beach under the setting sun, quietly lost in her own thoughts.
She had worn a swimsuit today, which was rare for her. She had originally intended to show it off to Kolin, but due to one thing and another, even though Kolin had seen it, he hadn’t given any comment.
That made sense, she supposed. After all, this swimsuit she was wearing now was the same one she had worn in Kolin’s room before. He had already seen it, so it was only natural that he didn’t comment again. Liyami understood that, so she wasn’t angry.
…
‘Well, no! Not at all!’
‘Even though Liyami could understand Kolin’s reasoning, she still couldn’t help feeling a little angry. After all, this swimsuit was specifically for him! Even if he had seen it before, he should still react somehow! But what about him? Not only did he have no reaction at all, he even looked at her less than usual!’
‘What? Was she really that unattractive in this swimsuit? An impossible thought! She wasn’t that ugly!’
‘Of course, although Liyami was a bit angry, she hadn’t lost her reason. She knew that Kolin wasn’t ignoring her because she looked bad in this swimsuit. He was probably too shy to look, right? Yes! That must be it! It definitely wasn’t because she looked bad in this swimsuit!’
Thinking this, Liyami suddenly remembered her confession to Kolin that night.
‘It’s been so long… Has Kolin made up his mind yet?’
Although Liyami still had some confidence in herself, as the days passed without receiving a reply from Kolin, she became less and less confident. Recently, she had even been having nightmares where Kolin inexplicably kicked her out of the party.
She knew it was impossible, but whenever Liyami recalled those nightmares—even if she no longer remembered the details, only vague impressions—she still felt afraid.
And once she felt afraid, she became even more reluctant to ask Kolin for that night’s answer. If it were just a rejection, that would be one thing. But if Kolin didn’t want her to stay in the party because of it…
Liyami shuddered. She suddenly realized that the sky had grown completely dark, and the temperature was slowly dropping. The sea breeze that had been comfortable just a moment ago now felt inexplicably cold. Wearing only a thin swimsuit, she shivered in the wind. The waves that occasionally splashed against her feet made her tremble with each touch.
Seeing that it was already too late to stay outside, even though Liyami’s thoughts were still chaotic and confused, she decided to head back to the villa.
But just then, Liyami noticed two familiar figures behind a rock in the distance.
Driven by curiosity, Liyami slowly moved toward them. To avoid being discovered, she even used “Presence Reduction” and “Shadow Concealment.” In this state, the chances of her being spotted dropped significantly. Moreover, after the battle with Anna Medias, Liyami’s level had increased substantially and was now above Level 70. So unless one of the two figures was Kolin or Lavinia, who was constantly on guard, Liyami would definitely not be detected.
But as she got closer, Liyami was surprised to find that one of the two figures was indeed Kolin! And not only that, the other figure was Eleanor, who had been making no special moves lately. It seemed they were secretly gathered together, talking about something?
Liyami had originally planned to leave after seeing Kolin, but after also seeing Eleanor, she ultimately decided to stay and listen to what they were saying—even if it meant she would likely be discovered by Kolin.
As she approached, Liyami heard Kolin’s voice, and to her surprise, there was a rare hint of impatience in his tone.
This made Liyami even more curious. What could they be talking about that would make Kolin, who was always gentle and refined, become impatient?
Thinking this, Liyami lowered her presence to the minimum to avoid disturbing them and focused on listening to their conversation.
“Do you still intend to keep doing this?”
That was Kolin’s voice. As soon as he said it, Liyami was slightly startled. Compared to just now, she could sense even more impatience in his tone—which was really unusual.
Facing the increasingly impatient Kolin, Eleanor looked somewhat dejected.
Eleanor bit her lip, as if unwilling to accept the situation. “Do you really… not remember at all? But we made a promise…”
Hearing Eleanor’s words, Kolin’s face immediately showed a sharp increase in impatience. He forcibly suppressed the urge to stand up and leave, and spoke in a slightly louder voice. “I’ve said it several times already. That promise you’re talking about? I really don’t remember. In fact, how could I possibly remember? I clearly…”
Before Kolin could finish, Eleanor’s expression suddenly changed as she interrupted him.
“What are you talking about?! How could you not remember?! That was the most important promise we made as children! How could you, how could you, how could you do this to me!”
As she finished speaking, perhaps unable to bear the atmosphere any longer, Eleanor quickly left the spot, leaving only a sighing Kolin behind.
Maybe she left in too much of a hurry, because Eleanor didn’t notice Liyami, who was only a few steps away.
Watching Eleanor’s retreating back, Liyami remembered that Eleanor had once mentioned she and Kolin had made a promise in childhood. But now it seemed that only Eleanor herself remembered it.
‘I don’t know what they promised, but that was childhood. It probably doesn’t affect anything now, right? Even if Eleanor still wants to keep that promise, Kolin clearly has no intention.’
Thinking this, just as Liyami was about to leave as well, she heard Kolin’s voice coming softly from behind the rock.
“Liyami, you’re there, aren’t you? Want to come over… and have a proper talk?”
Of course, being able to hide from Eleanor, who was close to her in level, didn’t mean she could hide from Kolin, who was over 10 levels higher.
But Liyami had already prepared herself to be discovered. Upon hearing this, she hesitated only briefly before turning and walking behind the rock.
She didn’t know what Kolin wanted to talk about, but Liyami could vaguely sense that if she didn’t talk with him now, she might miss a very important opportunity. Even though she didn’t know what that opportunity meant, she still trusted her instincts.