Chapter 137: In the River.

For a moment, Xandros said nothing. His grey eyes remained fixed on her face, and the faint amusement that had been present in his expression slowly disappeared. Instead, he studied her with an unreadable look, as though he were considering whether he should tease her or simply leave her to figure out his intentions on her own.

Rosaline’s brows drew together when he remained silent.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" she asked, her voice carrying a mixture of curiosity and suspicion.

Xandros finally looked away.

"I will stay nearby," he replied calmly.

Rosaline blinked.

"Nearby?"

"Far enough that you will have your privacy," he clarified, his tone almost deliberately casual.

She stared at him for a few seconds before glancing toward the river again. The realization slowly settled in, and a faint warmth crept into her cheeks.

"Oh."

A small smile tugged at Xandros’s lips when he noticed her embarrassment.

He turned his back toward the river completely.

"I won’t look," he assured her.

Rosaline watched him for another moment, almost as though she were trying to determine whether she could trust his promise.

"All right," she finally murmured.

She waited until Xandros had walked a little farther away before turning toward the river.

The sound of flowing water immediately filled her ears.

It was peaceful, almost hypnotic, and after the exhausting journey and the nightmare that had left her shaken, Rosaline found herself longing for the coolness of the river more than she had expected.

She slowly removed her clothes and placed them on a dry patch of grass near the bank before stepping into the water.

The moment the cold river touched her feet, she shivered.

She drew in a sharp breath and looked down at the water surrounding her ankles.

"It is cold," she muttered to herself.

Nevertheless, she continued.

She stepped farther into the river until the water reached her knees, then her waist, and finally her shoulders. The initial coldness gradually faded as her body adjusted to the temperature, and a quiet sigh escaped her lips when she finally relaxed.

The river felt wonderful against her heated skin.

Rosaline cupped some of the water in her hands and poured it over her shoulders, washing away the sweat that had gathered on her skin during the journey. She carefully cleaned her arms and neck before dipping her hands into the water again.

Her attention eventually shifted to her hair.

The long white strands had become tangled from the wind earlier, and she patiently worked her fingers through them while washing them beneath the flowing water.

She dipped her head beneath the surface, allowing the river to soak through her hair before lifting it again.

Water streamed down her back.

Rosaline closed her eyes and sighed softly.

For a while, there was nothing except the sound of the river.

No nightmare.

No blood.

No flames.

No memories.

Only the cool water surrounding her and the gentle breeze passing through the trees.

When she finished washing herself, Rosaline remained in the river rather than immediately returning to the bank.

She began moving through the water, swimming slowly from one side to another.

She turned onto her back and allowed herself to float for a while, staring at the darkening sky through the gaps between the trees.

A faint smile appeared on her face.

She had not realized how badly she needed this.

The water made her feel lighter.

She turned over and began swimming again, moving farther from the bank without paying much attention to how deep the river was becoming.

Then something changed.

Rosaline stopped.

She remained suspended in the water, her brows slowly drawing together.

The current felt different.

It was subtle at first, so subtle that she almost dismissed it.

The water seemed to be moving around her body instead of simply flowing past her.

It brushed against her arms and slipped around her waist before passing beneath her.

Rosaline looked down.

"What..."

She moved one hand through the water.

Nothing seemed unusual.

The river continued flowing normally.

She frowned slightly before shrugging it off.

Perhaps she was simply imagining things.

She began swimming again.

But after a few moments, the strange sensation returned.

This time, she noticed it more clearly.

The water seemed to gather around her.

It was not pulling her violently, and there was no sudden current strong enough to frighten her. Instead, it felt almost gentle, as though the river itself had wrapped around her body.

Rosaline’s breathing gradually slowed.

The tension in her shoulders disappeared.

A strange calmness settled over her.

She could not explain it.

It felt as though the water was entering her somehow, not physically, but in a way she could feel deep within herself.

Something was being drawn out.

Something she had carried without realizing it.

Rosaline closed her eyes.

The sensation was strangely comforting.

She tilted her head back and allowed herself to relax completely.

The river continued moving around her.

She did not notice that her body had begun to sink.

At first, it was only a few inches.

Then a little deeper.

The water rose past her shoulders and covered her neck.

Rosaline remained completely calm.

She was not struggling.

She did not feel frightened.

She simply continued enjoying the strange sensation surrounding her.

Deeper.

She sank farther into the river.

Her long white hair spread around her head as she descended beneath the surface, drifting gently with the current.

Her eyes remained closed.

She could no longer hear the forest clearly.

Everything had become distant.

Quiet.

Peaceful.

Almost as though the entire world had disappeared.

She continued sinking until there was no part of her above the water.

Yet she did not realize it.

She felt no fear.

Only an unfamiliar sense of peace.

Several metres away, Xandros remained with his back turned toward the river.

He had kept his promise.

He did not look in Rosaline’s direction, giving her the privacy she had asked for without needing to say it aloud.

The forest was quiet around him.

The only sound reaching his ears was the steady flow of the river.

For a while, he remained completely still.

Then he frowned.

Something was wrong.

He could no longer hear Rosaline moving through the water.

Xandros turned his head slightly.

At first, he saw nothing.

He turned around fully.

His eyes immediately searched the river.

"Rosaline?"

There was no response.

His expression changed.

He took a few steps toward the riverbank, his gaze moving across the surface.

"Rosaline," he called again, louder this time.

Still nothing.

The clothes she had removed remained where she had left them.

But Rosaline was nowhere in sight.

A cold sensation immediately settled in Xandros’s chest.

His eyes narrowed.

He stepped closer to the water, scanning the river again.

Nothing.

Then a terrible thought entered his mind.

His breathing stopped for a moment.

The last time Rosaline had been near water like this, she had tried to drown herself.

The memory struck him with painful clarity.

He remembered the fear.

The helplessness.

The days afterward when he had barely been able to think about anything else.

And now...

She was gone.

"Rosaline!"

His voice echoed through the trees.

There was still no answer.

Xandros did not hesitate.

He rushed toward the river and plunged into the water without removing his clothes.

The cold water swallowed him instantly, but he barely noticed it.

He propelled himself downward with supernatural speed, searching desperately through the dark depths.

Then he saw her.

Rosaline.

She was sinking.

Her long white hair floated around her face, and her body remained completely motionless.

Her eyes were closed.

For one terrifying second, Xandros felt as though his heart had stopped.

"Rosaline!"

He rushed toward her.

He wrapped one arm tightly around her waist and supported her upper body with the other before pulling her upward with all the strength he possessed.

The water rushed around them as he carried her toward the surface.

A few moments later, they broke through.

Xandros immediately dragged her toward the riverbank.

"Rosaline!"

His voice was filled with panic now.

He carried her out of the water and carefully lowered her onto the grass before leaning over her.

His heart was pounding violently.

He stared at her face.

Then her eyes suddenly snapped open.

Rosaline gasped for air.

She stared up at him, confused.

"Xandros?"

For several seconds, Xandros simply looked at her.

Relief flashed through his eyes so quickly that Rosaline almost missed it.

But it was immediately replaced by anger.

"What were you doing?"

His voice thundered through the clearing.

Rosaline flinched at the sudden sharpness in his tone.

"What?"

"What were you doing?" Xandros demanded again, his voice louder than before. His wet hair clung to his face, and his clothes were soaked from the river, but he seemed completely unaware of either. "Do you have any idea what you just did?"

Rosaline pushed herself up slightly, confusion written across her face.

"I was bathing."

"Bathing?"

The incredulity in his voice was unmistakable.

"You were at the bottom of the river!"

Rosaline shook her head.

"I wasn’t drowning."

Xandros stared at her.

"You were motionless beneath the water."

"I know."

"Your eyes were closed."

"I know."

"And you kept sinking!"

His voice cracked slightly on the last words, revealing the fear beneath his anger.

Rosaline fell silent.

She looked at him properly now.

His chest was still rising and falling heavily, and the anger in his face could not completely conceal how frightened he had been.

She slowly shook her head.

"I wasn’t trying to drown myself."

Xandros’s expression hardened.

"Then what were you doing?"

Rosaline glanced toward the river.

"I don’t know."

His brows furrowed.

"You don’t know?"

She shook her head again.

"The water felt strange."

Xandros remained silent, waiting for her to continue.

Rosaline searched for the right words.

"It felt like it was... taking something from me."

"What?"

"I don’t know what it was."

She looked down at her hands.

"The water started moving around me. It wasn’t strong, and I wasn’t being dragged. I just felt..." She paused, trying to describe something she herself barely understood. "I felt relaxed."

Xandros’s jaw tightened.

"Relaxed?"

"Yes."

She looked back at him.

"I wasn’t afraid. I didn’t even realize I had gone so deep."

Xandros stared at her for a long moment.

His expression remained displeased.

"The last time you went into water like that, you nearly drowned."

Rosaline’s lips parted.

"I know."

"I spent days wondering whether I would lose you."

His voice was quieter now, but the weight behind his words made them more painful.

"And now I turn around for a few minutes and find you sinking to the bottom of a river."

Rosaline’s expression softened.

"Xandros..."

"No."

He shook his head, cutting her off.

"I don’t want to hear another explanation until you understand why I was frightened."

Rosaline lowered her gaze.

She could not argue with him.

After a few seconds, she reached out and gently touched his arm.

"I wasn’t trying to leave you," she whispered.

Xandros looked down at her hand.

Rosaline squeezed his arm lightly.

"I promise."

For a moment, he said nothing.

The anger in his expression slowly weakened, though the tension remained.

Finally, he released a long breath.

"Everything is fine," he said, although his tone made it obvious that he was trying to convince himself as much as he was trying to reassure her.

He stood and extended his hand toward her.

"Get dressed."

Rosaline looked at him and suddenly she went still, she was naked right in front of him this whole time.