Chapter 428


    Ava had herptop in front of her, legs crossed, and head bowed as she earnestly replied to messages.


    A smile of well–wishing hung on her lips. Inside the Fairy Fortress chat group, Sherri did the same


    thing, saving and sharing Rose’s posts to the group chat.


    She wanted to make sure everyone shared in the excitement, as she was concerned that someone


    might miss out on this juicy gossip.


    Good things were meant to be shared. It was a principle Sherri always held.


    Ava smiled as she scrolled through the photos sent by Sherri. One by one, she slid through them and


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    lightly nudged Frank’s arm with her elbow. Her gaze was still fixed on the phone screen. “Frank, look.


    Rose is traveling”


    At her words, Frank squinted his eyes. His gaze shifted to Ava’s phone, and he was left speechless


    because the sequence of photos Sherri had sent was exactly the same as the ones Hackett had sent


    earlier.


    These two were really a perfect match.


    They were on the same wavelength.


    With a faint response, he said, “Hmm.”


    After looking at the photos, Ava scrolled down and could sense Sherri’s excitement from the captions.


    Ava wrote, [Rose, are you getting closer to being married?]


    Sherri replied, [Oh, she’s my future sister–inw.]


    Natalie chimed in. [Be a bit more cautious. You’re still a pregnant woman.]


    Sherri replied, [Can you understand the feeling of having a single older male in the family without a


    girlfriend, and then him finally getting married off? I bless you with tears.]


    Rose wrote, [Stop it, tone down the pretense. I’m afraid I won’t be able to handle it, sis.]


    Sherri wrote, [Love you, my beloved sister–inw.]


    Natalie added, [Cheesy.]


    Ava found the messages quite amusing and looked up at Frank. She noticed that his face had


    darkened for a moment. His slender fingers kept tapping his phone, seemingly contemting


    something. She asked, “Should I reply?”


    Seeing Frank’s irritated expression, Ava lost her motivation to reply to the messages. She pushed her


    wrapped one arm around his neck. With the other hand, she gently caressed his brow. “Don’t furrow


    your brows like that. Look, Rose is really happy in the photos.” After speaking, she gave a peck on


    Frank’s lips. Frank remained still, his deep, dark eyes narrowing slightly. The gloom that had been


    lurking in his heart was dissipated by Ava’s kiss. He replied, “Yeah.”


    Frank held her with one arm. Ava had an alluring waist that fit perfectly in his grip,pletely under his


    control. Unhurriedly, Ava leaned on his shoulder like a child, her weight pressing onto him. She yed


    with her hands on his back,pletely unaware of their awkward position.


    Suppressing his emotions, Frank picked up his phone and sent a message to Rose. [Are you aiming to


    be a professional inte sensation, or are you preparing to be a target?]


    Rose was ying with her phone at the moment. She quickly replied, [Speak humannguage.]


    After reading the message, Frank’s brow furrowed, and his head throbbed. He wrote, [You could have


    shared your posts more widely.]


    Rose understood and replied, (I’m not that stupid. Others can’t see my posts. I’ve set the visibility


    permissions so that only a few of you can see them. This time, I even added Grace and others. Am I


    smart or what?]


    Rose had no intention of revealing her private matters outside of their circle. She believed that her


    romantic rtionship was a normal and serious one, not some sort of reality show romance that


    required attention or poprity. She didn’t want to make it known to others.


    She only wanted the people who mattered to her and those who could genuinely wish her well to know


    about it.


    That was how Rose thought about it.


    It turned out that her brother Frank shared the same sentiment. They were rarely on the same page.


    After reading Rose’s message, Frank breathed a sigh of relief, feeling that his sister was quite clever. It


    seemed she hadn’t lost her mind while dating.


    However, he decided not to praise her in text form, lest he give her a big head. [Why not change your


    name to Queen of Spamming?


    1/3


    Rose responded, [That’s going too far. I don’t sinoke or drink, and you still want to take away my one


    hobby of spamming posts.I


    Finally, Frankpromised after recalling Rose’s radiant smile. [Stay safe.]


    Rose replied, [Got it. Be happy with Ava, okay?]


    It seemed Rose still had a conscience, and Edward could put up with it.


    Edward, who was usually quite methodical, had actually thrown his work aside to goof around with


    Rose. This was really a rare exception


    Frank put away his phone.


    Ava continued ying around behind him, sometimes fixing her hair, sometimes fidgeting with her


    earlobes. Frank wasn’t typically someone whose mind was clouded by desire, but he couldn’t resist her


    teasing in this posture. Combined with her actions, a sense of restlessness surged within him. “Baby


    Ava,e down and y the game.”


    Ava didn’t step back ore down. She encircled his neck with her arms and locked eyes with him,


    their gazes aligned, her delicate face adorned with a faint smile. “Are you feeling better now?”


    Yeah


    Frank responded lightly, unsure of what else to say at the moment.


    Ava dismounted from him, taking a seat beside him, ready for apetition. “Alright, let’s start.”


    Ava didn’t seem to notice Frank’s abnormality. Frank, on the other hand, was even more helpless. It


    was like the person who had just teased him wasn’t her. “Let’s begin.”


    Night had fallen.


    Inside a mansion in Artrond, the living room was filled with snacks, fruits, and beverages.


    Rose didn’t drink alcohol, so there was no need for any. She loved Edward, but not to the extent of


    throwing herself at him. asionally kissing him to change his moody demeanor was sufficient.


    He was handsome, refined, and genuinely a gentleman, but sometimes he overthought things and was


    too reserved.


    Rose had a mild case ofpulsive tendencies. Whenever Edward hesitated, overthought, or became


    too indecisive, she would give him a quick kiss, causing his mind to momentarily nk out and leaving


    behind all thoseplicated questions. Wasn’t it okay to live happily and peacefully, resolving things


    with oneself?


    Must one fill their mind with endless why, shouldn’t, couldn’t? All those words were just too exhausting.


    Rose and Edward had showered and changed into their sleepwear in their rooms. Then, they sat on


    the sofa, facing each other, each holding a deck of cards.


    In this kind of setting, it was probably the first and only time in Edward’s life that he felt so rxed and


    at ease. He enjoyed it and felt happy. “Do you want me to let you win?”


    Rose shot him a dagger–like nce, disying her refusal to ept defeat, “You think I’ll lose?”


    Edward wanted to ensure she wouldn’t be upset if she lost, so he honestly asked that question. “That’s


    not what I meant.”


    He didn’t know if she wanted to win or lose. He guessed she most likely wanted to win.


    “Let’s y fairly. Besides, this game doesn’t require any brainpower. It’s simply a game of luck,


    answer a question.”


    Rose carefully exined the rules, not feeling that the game would insult Edward’s intelligence. After


    all, she didn’t know how to y any card game.


    Edward felt his intelligence was being lowered, but he had no choice. Rose was enthusiastic about it


    and quite excited, so he just had to go along.


    “Sure.”


    “Then let’s get started.”


    As soon as they started, Rose yed a king and Edward yed a jack. The first round went to her.


    With both of them almost 60 years oldbined, they were ying a simple game ofparing card


    values and having a great time.


    If Frank found out, he’d probably have to give Edward some admiration once again.


    Frank would never y such a simple game with his sister.


    The first round went to Rose. She excitedly swayed her hips, her flexible waist moving like a snake.


    Edward nced at her quickly before looking away, waiting for the impending question.


    Tll ask then. When we were having pizza together, I suspected you were the person who saved me.


    Why didn’t you admit it?


    Were you afraid I would cling to you?”


    Rose asked the question that had been on her mind.


    1


    Edward paused for a moment, recalling their candid conversation from the previous night. “When I


    saved you, I didn’t know who you were. I didn’t expect any repayment from you. It was just a small


    gesture.”


    This was true. If it had been anyone else, Edward would have saved them as well. He couldn’t just


    stand by and watch a girl get abducted. However, he hadn’t told Rose that his leg had broken during


    the incident and he had spent a long time in the hospital.


    Rose asked again doubtfully, “Really, you didn’t think I’d cling to you?”


    “No.” Edward’s tone was quite certain.


    With the first round of questions over, they continued ying cards. The game progressed smoothly,


    and they were polite to each other.


    In the second round, Edward won. He rubbed the back of the card with his fingertip as if contemting


    what question to ask. After a few seconds, he finally said, “Why did you choose to be a


    pediatrician?”


    Rose sat up straight, adjusting her posture. Her legs were crossed, with her right leg over her left, but


    she shifted her position slightly, moving her hips. She was ready to exin, “This question, huh? I


    thought you were going to ask me about feelings. Actually, it’s quite a coincidence. Do you know why I


    went to Sapphire City?”


    As Rose spoke, she raised her hand, showing the scar hidden by her watch. It indicated the reason for


    going to Sapphire City.


    Edward’s interest in continuing the topic suddenly waned. His gaze dimmed slightly, and he spoke


    gently, “If you don’t want to talk about it, we can change the topic and discuss something that makes


    you happy.”


    Rose shook her head. “It’s not as sad as you think. In fact, the story starts with an act of bravery on my


    part. My initial intention to be a pediatrician was a happy one.”


    Edward brightened his previously dimmed gaze. He listened intently with an inquisitive earnestness.


    Rose said, “I guess it was my first year in Sapphire City. I was unfamiliar with the ce and didn’t know


    how to use public transport, but I needed to survive there. So, I explored the surroundings and the


    buildings based on the map. I didn’t dare to venture too far.


    “Coincidentally, I came across an artificialke. It looked beautiful, so I went to take a look. There were


    a lot of people gathered, and a woman was crying. As I got closer, I found out a child had fallen into the


    doctor around.”


    Rose continued, “It’s even more coincidental that our teacher had taught us about first aid procedures


    just a week before. With boldness, I walked up to the distressed mother and told her that I knew first


    aid and could help. Perhaps she had no other options, so she trusted me. Then, I followed the steps


    my teacher had taught us and properly administered first aid to the child. After about half an hour of


    effort, the child finally regained consciousness.


    “At that moment, I found myself. I felt a great sense of aplishment and excitement. Seeing the


    mother embracing her child in tears reminded me of Grace. I wondered if she felt as anxious about me


    after Imitted suicide as that mother did.”


    Looking back on it now, it felt as if fate was reminding her that she had made mistakes, arranging this


    incident specifically for her.


    As Rose spoke, tears welled up in her eyes. There was regret, self–me for her past foolishness, an


    apology to Grace, and a sense of closure to the past.


    The crystal–clear tears rolled down her cheeks and onto the sofa. Edward’s chest tightened. He


    regretted asking such a question.