Survival Guide After Accidentally Kissing a Demon - Chapter 50

Stars dotted the night sky, and the sea breeze was cool.

Waves gently lapped at the soft, fine sand, leaving behind strands of milky-white foam, pearls scattered across the hem of the night.

At the edge of Holy Island’s beach, a massive bonfire blazed in the darkness, casting a dazzling glow.

The flames danced and leapt, cheerfully licking the night sky, painting the students gathered around the bonfire in shades of golden red.

The young women’s singing was clear as silver bells, and the young men’s voices were deep as horns.

They had all, as if by tacit agreement, put on the most intricate and splendid formalwear from their wardrobes; even the servants standing behind them had been carefully dressed, treated like precious accessories.

Song after song.

They danced, singing the songs of the Sainthos Kingdom.

The music, carried by the rhythm of the sea breeze, floated and echoed through the night sky.

After spending some Mana with Ashera, Beili finished dinner and started wandering through the places where crowds gathered at Holy Island Academy, searching for any leftover Mana or any newly generated Mana.

Walking along the beach, she passed near the lively bonfire crowd.

The students sitting by the bonfire brightened at the sight of the Young Woman walking past.

A sharp-eyed student nudged a companion, “Look-”

The Young Woman was wearing a simple black gauze dress.

Most striking of all, the belt of the dress was a triple-layered waist chain strung with countless evenly-sized black pearls.

On the side of the waist chain bloomed a large rose, meticulously carved from ruby.

Below the ruby rose, the skirt was dotted with a few tiny red diamonds, like drifting petals-mysterious and elegant.

Gradually, more and more students noticed her. Someone couldn’t help but wave and call, “Hey-! Are you from the Sainthos Kingdom?”

Beili, not sure what they meant, stopped and nodded hesitantly.

“That’s wonderful! Come join our bonfire party!” someone said eagerly.

“Everyone sitting here is from Sainthos!”

Someone else added enthusiastically, “We’re discussing Prince Cyril, the pride of Sainthos. If you’d like to know more, come sit with us – there’s plenty of space!”

Beili swept her red eyes around but felt not the slightest trace of overflowing Mana, and instantly lost interest in joining.

She politely waved, declined the students’ invitation, pretended not to hear their calls to stay, and continued walking along the beach.

The crowd grew thinner, and the firelight faded to a hazy glow.

In the end, the great bonfire was left far behind her.

Only the low-hanging moonlight and twinkling starlight remained, lighting the path where the waves met the sand.

Something appeared in her sight; Beili’s shoulders stiffened and she stopped.

Her deep red gaze landed on a perfectly crafted, delicate square fortress made of sand and gravel.

The waves came and went, always stopping a fist’s distance from the square fortress.

Then Beili lifted her foot and kicked it apart.

The perfect square fortress crumbled instantly, damp sand scattering in all directions.

A wave surged in, and the fine sand on the beach slowly shifted, turning velvety and smooth.

Beili’s tightly pressed lips relaxed a little, a faint smile emerging.

She continued along the coast for a while, and soon, a huge sandcastle nearly half a person high appeared in her field of view.

A glimmer flashed in her red eyes.
She took a few steps back, then ran forward and kicked off a corner of the sandcastle.

Squatting down and holding onto the broken castle, the Young Woman finally relaxed and let out a burst of laughter.

Her laughter drifted amidst the sound of the waves, carrying an inexplicable sense of release.

At that moment-

“…Ahem.”

Suddenly, someone nearby cleared their throat.

Beili paused, instantly stopping her laughter.

She turned her head alertly, but behind her there was only the empty beach and the ceaseless sound of the waves. In the distance, the bonfire’s glow had faded to the size of a fist.

Just as she was about to relax, still suspicious, she heard a sigh.

The sound was very soft, yet clear enough.

Beili quickly strode in the direction the sound had come from, circling around to the other side of the half-height castle.

Under the cold moonlight-

Someone was sitting quietly on the beach.

…

A simple white shirt paired with even simpler black trousers.

Only a few luxurious deep purple gemstone buttons, rimmed with silver in the moonlight, silently spoke of his noble status.

The sea breeze ruffled his short black hair, and his violet eyes shimmered with a dark light beneath the night sky.

At this very moment-

Our Sainthos’ light and pride, Prince Cyril, was sitting on the beach, holding a scraper in his hand, looking as if he had been meticulously shaping the smooth sand just a moment before.

His handsome face was expressionless, his eyes glinting with ice.

Cyril stared at her unblinkingly, gritting his teeth as he squeezed out a few words-

“Bartholomew.”

“Oh… Prince Cyril.”

Their gazes met and locked for a few seconds.

Beili’s eyelids fluttered; she looked away, a bit uneasy, first covering her lips with a light cough, then lifting her skirt in a curtsy. “To think I’d meet Your Highness here-what a surprise.”

I mean, what kind of male lead, after winning first place in the competition, doesn’t take the chance to find the heroine for a date and boost the romance line, but instead plays with sand sculptures here all alone…

“…”

Glancing at the corner of the castle that had been kicked apart, Cyril put down the scraper in his hand, his violet eyes lifting to look at her coldly.

“Do you have anything to explain?” he said.

Beili raised her hand to touch the tip of her nose, her gaze a bit evasive, but she braced herself and said, “Um… Well, I don’t really know what happened. My foot just suddenly slipped… It seemed like I bumped into something, and then the castle collapsed…”

The more Beili spoke, the softer her voice became.

Cyril frowned, his face cold, saying nothing.

The air seemed to freeze, even the salty tang brought by the sea breeze hung stiffly in the air.

Beili, under immense pressure, didn’t know whether to stand or leave, and for a moment had no idea what else to say.

Cyril stared at her with a grim expression for a moment, then said again, “Bartholomew, you’d better tell the truth.”

“…”

Beili opened her mouth, looking at Cyril’s expression as dark as the bottom of a pot, and finally chose to tell the truth-

“…Uh, actually, I’ve been feeling really unhappy today, but I’ve been holding it in with nowhere to vent. Then, as I was walking, I saw this castle…”

As she spoke, her eyes lifted slightly, watching Cyril’s expression with a hint of resentment.

Cyril’s brows were tightly furrowed. After a moment of silence, his expression seemed to soften a little, and he spoke slowly: “Tell me, what happened?”