Chapter 133: Escape 2.2
Though Evanna’s words were confident, she still couldn’t help dread fill her chest as she stared across the river leading to the waterfall that was to come. Could Nesrin really help her with this? If Cedric and the others were not aware of her leaving, she could have taken a different route, but it was best to throw them off track this way.
~ I have your back, don’t worry ~ Nesrin hopped off from Evanna, flapping her wings to stay above her. Evanna glanced once more at the high wall to her side leading to the palace and Cedric’s form climbing over it with a rope.
The princess gritted her teeth together, more confident by the fairy’s words. She jumped into the water and stilled in shock as the icy temperature forced her body to freeze, almost making her mouth gape open and inhale the liquid. Evanna kicked her arms and legs into motion, swimming back to the surface as she felt herself being swept away and towards the gushing sound of the approaching waterfall. She gasped for air; her eyes panicked at her own stupidity.
She knew the water was cold, but she didn’t expect it to be freezing to the point her lips began to go blue and her teeth chatter. She shook her head; this was not the time to panic! Evanna didn’t bother to swim; the water was so strong that it wouldn’t take long until she followed it down the fall. Her breaths came out uneven as she looked at the approaching edge.
Everything seemed to be still for a single moment as she found herself staring at what looked like the edge of the world. Even in the dark, she knew of the beauty surrounding her that took her breath away as her belly began to drop and flip. Her body fell forwards along with the water; she covered her face and tucked her legs.
"Ugh!" Evanna landed uncomfortably on a bed of flowers. She pushed off from the unsteady ground of flowers that floated above the water and rocks at the bottom of the waterfall. She was hovering a few feet above what would have been her death. The princess stared wide-eyed to her left, where the rushing water plummeted murderously into the ground.
~ Move it. The spell is dissolving! ~
Evanna stood up and glanced at the flowers and petals starting to fall from the outer edges of the flowerbed. She leapt forwards after another bunch of flowers formed, and for the next few minutes, the princess jumped across flower beds like steppingstones to reach land. Evanna hopped one last time before landing at the edges of the water, disrupting its still surface as she sloshed through it with her boots. She looked up at Nesrin and grinned; the fairy stayed dry after all.
But even with this little triumph of not plummeting to her death, she reminded herself to keep moving forwards. The Flori would not stop searching for her until they found her body, at least. She knew in her heart, though, that Cedric was not fooled by her little stunt because what idiot really would jump to their death unless they had something hidden up their sleeve. She already proved to him that she could jump down that balcony without gaining any injuries.